DETROIT -- Ford Motor Co. said on Thursday it would relocate its autonomous and electric vehicle units to Detroit from nearby Dearborn, Mich.
"The relocation brings together Ford teams that are creating new business models in a resurgent, diverse neighborhood with industrial roots," Ford said.
The company said the new operation located in the Corktown neighborhood would be up and running early next year. It will be staffed with about 200 employees.
The Factory at Corktown -- a 45,000-square-foot building built in 1907 -- sits on Michigan Avenue west of downtown, near where Tiger Stadium once stood.
The team in Corktown will be led by Sherif Marakby, Ford's vice president of autonomous vehicles and electrification. The company will begin testing its latest self-driving vehicle technology next year.
It's the latest significant real estate move by the company, which is embarking on a sweeping modernization of its main corporate campus in Dearborn and undertaking a $60 million mixed-use development called Wagner Place in the city's downtown, among others.
The company has also leased the former Lord & Taylor department store space in Dearborn's Fairlane Town Center and renovated it for employees.
Crain's Detroit Business contributed to this report.
