Video: Broker Explains the Backstory Behind the Sale of Como's in Ferndale

Real estate broker Jeffrey Hillman

After Como's Restaurant at Woodward and Mile Road in Ferndale finally closed for good late last year for health code violations, the owners put the iconic building on the market for about $4 million. 

Some developers came knocking and talked about constructing a four to seven story building on the site with retail on the bottom and dozens of apartments up top.    

But Jeffrey Hillman, a broker for Iconic Real Estate in Detroit, who had grown up eating at Como's, and even got engaged there, approached the owners about handling the deal, and convinced them that an apartment or condo building wasn't practical, particularly with the skyrocketing costs of constructing an underground parking lot for residents.

So, he arranged for the family to sell to Peas & Carrots Hospitality Group, which operates such restaurants as Social Kitchen & Bar, Mex and Beau’s Grillery. Hillman says Zack Sklar, chef and owner of the restaurant group, plans to sell Detroit-style pizza at Como's when it reopens next year after a renovation. 

Hillman sat down with Deadline Detroit to talk about the sale.