Earlier this month we wrote about how the owner of famed Berlin nightclub, Tresor, is set to open a nightclub in an abandoned warehouse in Detroit, Michigan.

While Detroit holds a special place in music history as the cultural birthplace of techno, today it’s not exactly known for its steaming, vibrant dance music culture (with the exception of the annual Movement Festival.) So Detroit may not be your first pick for a heaving new dance club, but it sure is for Dimitri Hegemann.

As we’ve already reported, Hegemann is set to convert the Fisher Body Plant 21, a six story warehouse that has been abandoned for 20 years. In a recent interview with The Guardian, Hegemann recalls visiting Detroit in the late 1980s, where he was first introduced to Jeff Mills and other techno pioneers. After opening Tresor, Hegemann regularly invited Detroit producers to play there – big names included Juan Atkins, Derrick May and Underground Resistance to name a few.

The thing is that unlike Berlin, there’s a whole load of restrictions on their nightlife, not to mention the myriad economic and cultural problems that plague the city. Detroit itself was formally declared bankrupt in December 2013, citing a US$18 billion debt, 78 000 abandoned buildings and 40% of streetlights not working and more.

Hegemann believes that Detroit will be saved though. Considering that he saw Berlin come out of its darkest time in history and go on to absolutely shine as a cultural hub, he reckons Detroit isn’t too far fetched. “I saw Berlin come out of the ruins, how this alternative culture brought people here,” says Hegemann’s partner Walter Wasacz. “Berlin has seen 24 million hotel stays last year, and those people are coming for the clubs.”

“We are not stupid dreamers – we know how this works,” Hegemann assured. “And we know that it can be done.”

The problems with liquor licenses and a 2 am curfew in Detroit is a large factor preventing their nightlife returning to the thriving culture it once was. Sounds familiar?

It’ll be really interesting to see how this project forms and how they work around city regulations. It’s certainly a similar situation in many ways, particularly as a city with a once-vibrant nightlife struggles to make ends meet due to legal restrictions. Not that Sydney’s financial struggle is close to Detroit’s problem, obviously, nor that our dance music history is as colourful, but legally the situations are really close. It’ll be well worth keeping an eye on further movements. Maybe we can learn a thing or two.