A popular restaurateur in metro Detroit is looking to build a $17 million banquet hall and events center in Bloomfield Township.
Zack Sklar, 40, a chef and owner of numerous restaurants including Social in Birmingham and Como’s in Ferndale, has proposed building the two-story and more than 30,000-square-foot center on a heavily wooded 31-acre property that his catering and events company purchased at the end of last year.
The venue, tentatively named Bloomfield Hollow, would be located just north of Enterprise Court on Franklin Road and designed to host a variety of high-end events, from dinners to grand reveals of new luxury vehicles.
The building would have capacity for 650 seated guests or more than 1,000 people for “strolling” events. There would also be a glass-enclosed atrium with expansive views of the surrounding woodlands. Planning documents show the project’s address as 350 Fremont St.
“I wanted to create something that felt transitional and timeless,” Sklar said in a news release issued Tuesday, Jan. 20. “You can find an empty building in Oakland County to convert into an events space, but you can’t really find a sanctuary of world-class design nestled in between 30 acres of woods and wetlands. This is going to be a jewel box for Bloomfield Township, with reach far beyond its borders.”
The project would be developed by Sklar’s catering and events company, Cutting Edge Cuisine, and its development plan is set to go before the township’s Planning Commission on Feb. 2. Sklar hopes to break ground later this year and open the venue by late 2027.
The project also will be seeking a variance related to tree removal, a planning official said. The plan calls for removing 496 trees at the site, including 85 “landmark” trees and 289 “protected” trees such as wild black cherry trees and white mulberry trees.
Sklar said in the news release that they are trying to keep as many trees as possible. To preserve nature, the venue and its parking would occupy a small clearing in the center of the property and there would be a winding, quarter-mile scenic drive into the woods to get to the entrance.
“We are keeping the native trees and cutting down the absolute bare minimum,” Sklar said. “The architecture is designed to wrap around the wetlands, not pave over them. When you arrive, there is going to be a massive wow factor. And you are just surrounded by woods.”
Sklar also is a partner in the Peas and Carrots Hospitality group, whose other metro Detroit restaurants include MEX and Beau’s in Bloomfield Hills and The Common Grill in Chelsea. The release says Sklar has opened more than 20 restaurants across the country in his career.
Contact JC Reindl: 313-378-5460 or jcreindl@freepress.com. Follow him on X @jcreindl
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Restaurateur wants to build high-end events center in Oakland County
Reporting by JC Reindl, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
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