Farmington Hills City Council Approves Demolition of Marvin’s Marvelous Mechanical Museum

The beloved museum and arcade is slated to be demolished for a partial redevelopment project at Hunter’s Square Shopping Center.
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Photograph courtesy of Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum

The longtime home of Marvin’s Marvelous Mechanical Museum is officially on the demo block as Farmington Hills’ city council unanimously approved a partial redevelopment of the museum’s home, Hunter’s Square Shopping Center, on Monday night.

The approved redevelopment project will see the strip mall, which is located on Orchard Lake Road near 14 Mile, replaced by a new “smaller footprint” Meijer grocery store, according to a report by WDIV, Channel 4.

Despite the news, the beloved museum and arcade posted to Facebook on Tuesday reassuring supporters that this will not be the end of Marvin’s and that they will be open in their current home through the end of the year.

“Yes, the city voted, and the mall will be torn down but from what I understand we have our space till the end of the year,” the post reads. “We will be moving, not closing! Where? I do not know as of yet, but I hope to stay within the same general area and will keep everyone posted as things progress…”

According to the same WDIV report, it is unknown when exactly the museum will be demolished.

Back in November, when the project was first proposed, the community rallied around the museum and against the development, amassing more than 52,000 signatures on a Change.org petition to save the museum.

Marvin’s Marvelous Mechanical Museum opened as Tally Hall in the ‘80s before moving to its current location and offers 5,000 square feet of “vintage coin-operated machines, macabre, oddities, unusual nostalgia, and the newest video game crazes,” at no cost for admission.

Learn more about the museum and arcade at marvin3m.com — and be sure to visit hourdetroit.com for even more community development news.