DETROIT — The Detroit Lions and a private developer are expected to announce an agreement today to build a $40 million office building and parking deck adjacent to Ford Field.

“We’d like to get both projects completed in time for the 2006 Super Bowl” at Ford Field, Lewand told The Detroit News.

The five-story, 115,000-square-foot office building, which will house 400 workers from the accounting firm of PricewaterhouseCoopers and other tenants, will be developed by Etkin Equities Inc. in Southfield. It will be located in what is now a surface parking lot at Interstate 375 and Madison and will be adjacent to a new 1,000-space parking deck.

The office and hotel projects are a positive sign for development in downtown Detroit, which is showing signs of life after years of false starts.

“This adds to the critical mass of the surrounding sports and theater district,” Lewand said.

The brick and glass office building next to Ford Field will be designed by Rossetti Architects in Southfield, which designed Ford Field, Orchestra Place and the Compuware building in downtown Detroit.

“In the last few years, we’ve seen more companies seek out marquee locations like Ford Field, downtown Detroit and New Center because people want to work near restaurants, stores and entertainment,” said Andrew Farbman, president of NAI/Farbman, an office brokerage and leasing firm in Southfield.

“Companies are starting to take notice that we are improving the downtown streets, adding new parks and attracting stores and restaurants,” said George W. Jackson Jr., president and CEO of Detroit Economic Growth Corp. a quasi-public development agency.

The Lions opened the $500-million, 60,000-seat Ford Field in 2002 while refurbishing the adjacent Hudson’s warehouse. The Lions have 175 employees at Ford Field while another tenant, NTH Consultants Ltd., an engineering and environmental services firm, has 100 workers.

PricewaterhouseCoopers will move workers into the new office complex from its local headquarters at the Renaissance Center in Detroit as well as in Bloomfield Hills, Lewand said. Construction of the office building will start in the fall and be completed in late 2005, Lewand said.