Detroit Cultural District V1

A Guiding Plan

2019-2022

DETROIT

CULTURAL

DISTRICT

Agence Ter

+ Akoaki

PRAISE FOR THE CULTURAL CENTER

PLANNING INITIATIVE (CCPI)

Midtown Detroit, Inc. has been pleased to facilitate a planning process that has

brought together so many public, philanthropic and institutional stakeholders in

support of the region’s premier cultural campus.

The resulting plan incorporates visionary content; forward thinking climate and

stormwater elements; a new mobility, parking and traffic model for the campus;

and broad community engagement. It reflects a collective desire to engage

more thoughtfully and intentionally with the public and each other to create a

compelling and connected center of learning, art, science, literature, and history.

This new opportunity allows for each institution to continue to evolve and meet

its own aspirations while adding the supportive framework that will allow them

to leverage each other and their collective assets, audiences, infrastructure, and

ideas. Perhaps, most importantly, this planning effort has built a new shared

platform across all the stakeholders where working collectively is now a given

and no longer an afterthought. This is perhaps the most affirming achievement

to date.

Susan Mosey, Director

Midtown Detroit Inc.

*

The Cultural Center Planning Initiative that will unfold before your eyes on the

following pages presents a transformational plan for Detroit’s cultural center

for all who will visit the district in the future as well as for the institutions

themselves. The plan provides places for people to linger and experience

the natural beauty of the landscape as well as manages stormwater runoff,

creates new parking, and increases pedestrian-safe experiences. It provides the

opportunity for our institutions to collaborate and curate exciting new public

programs and art experiences. In sum, we transform this neighborhood center of

culture and education into a world-class attraction that serves people of all ages

and backgrounds.

On behalf of my colleagues among the 12 partner institutions, I want to recognize

and thank Midtown Detroit, Inc., the William Davidson Foundation, The

Erb Family Foundation, The Ralph A. Wilson Foundation, Hudson Webber

Foundation, The Kresge Foundation, The Knight Foundation, The Community

Foundation of Southeast Michigan, The City of Detroit, MDOT, SEMCOG, and

all the partners in the Cultural District for their stewardship and continuing

support of this master planning effort. Also, I would like to recognize the CCPI

project management team led by Susan Mosey, MDI’s Executive Director, who

has been tirelessly raising funds and supporting this planning effort with ongoing

collaborative programming and projects that have demonstrated the district’s

commitment to working collaboratively now and into the future. We also wish

to thank Xavier Mosquet; Partner of BCG/Detroit; The Fred A. and Barbara M.

Erb Family Foundation; Rocket Community Foundation; technology consultants

rootoftwo; as well as lead designers of this fabulous master plan Olivier Phillipe

of Agence Ter, and Anya Sirota and Jean Louis Farges of Akoaki.

Salvador Salort-Pons, Ph.D. Director, President and CEO

Detroit Institute of Arts

*

I continue to be inspired by the ambition, collaboration, and level of community

engagement that has characterized this long-term planning effort for our

cultural center in Midtown Detroit.

Home to more than a dozen iconic cultural and educational institutions, the area

already welcomes millions of visitors and residents of all ages and backgrounds

annually to Midtown and Detroit generally. We have an opportunity now to

celebrate and elevate the history and creativity of each individual institution,

while enabling an even more connected, vibrant, and accessible experience for

future generations.

Even more important to me than the physical transformation of the space

envisioned in these pages are the connections and relationships that have formed

over the course of the last several years. Plans for new collaborative programs are

underway. A shared set of services for the area is in development, including highspeed

WiFi and security and safety measures. Initiatives across institutions are

unfolding in new and exciting ways.

My thanks go out to all the outstanding partners who are leading, enabling, and

advising this effort. We will continue to make this path by walking together, and

the William Davidson Foundation has been proud to join everyone on

this journey.

Darin McKeever. President and CEO

William Davidson Foundation

*

A Guiding Plan

2019-2022

DETROIT

CULTURAL

DISTRICT

Agence Ter

+ Akoaki

DETROIT CULTURAL DISTRICT 8

Above: Detroit Square model from the competition phase displayed in the storefront on Cass Avenue

Next Page: Design team presenting at the Detroit Institute of Arts for DIA Plaza | Midtown Cultural

Connections international design competition.

DETROIT CULTURAL DISTRICT

AGENCE TER + AKOAKI 9

Where We

Began

Before it was the Cultural Center

Planning Initiative (CCPI), it was

the DIA Plaza | Midtown Cultural

Connections international design

competition, which began with the idea

that animated public spaces have the

power to bring people together and

make a community stronger. This is

what the leaders of the Detroit Institute

of Arts felt was missing. They desired

an arts and cultural district for Detroit

that is home to not just the Detroit

Institute of Arts, but to the Charles H.

Wright Museum of African American

History, the Detroit Historical

Museum, the Detroit Public Library,

the Michigan Science Center, and other

valuable organizations. The effort to

realize a public space that enforced

democracy, harmony, and connections,

started with a grant awarded to the

Detroit Institute of Arts for a plaza.

The Institute understood that the area

holds potential for so much more if it

could be transformed into a broader

revitalized district. To get the ball

rolling, the Detroit Institute of Arts

partnered with Midtown Detroit,

Inc., a not-for-profit community and

economic development organization,

to implement a design competition.

competition centered around

enhancing and enlivening the Detroit

Institute of Arts’ exterior campus.

It sought an outstanding integrated

design team for developing an urban

and landscape design strategy and

connection framework. In April of

2018, the competition kicked off with

a formal Request for Qualifications,

to which forty-four teams submitted

and, from those, eight were selected

to interview in Detroit. Three finalists

were chosen and invited to submit

a proposal to the final stage of the

competition.

On August 22, 2018, the Detroit

Institute of Arts and Midtown

Detroit, Inc. announced the design

team consisting of Agence Ter,

Akoaki, rootoftwo, and Dr. Harley

Etienne as the winner. This marked

the beginning of what is now the

Cultural Center Planning Initiative, an

18-month planning process en route

to a re-imagining of Detroit’s arts &

cultural district. The CCPI’s aim is to

create a vibrant, more connected space

for community stakeholders, as well as

more accessible and approachable for

all.

The Detroit Institute of Arts Plaza

| Midtown Cultural Connections

WHERE WE BEGAN


How Far We’ve Come

From a single concept for a plaza

to an international competition for

a district plan and now an expansive

two-year planning process, the project

has developed into a new paradigm

for inclusive urban design. It has

taken many steps and people to make

this vision a reality. This publication

is designed to share the process and

outcomes with project partners,

residents, government, and those

interested in supporting the initiative

over time.

The design for CCPI was organized

in three phases: Discovery and

Analysis; Framework and Concept

Development; and Masterplan and

District Strategies. In the first stages of

the project, the design team gathered

and reviewed data; researched and

synthesized the program; established

a foundation for the framework and

concept development to evolve; and

created modes of representation for

participatory stakeholder engagement.

This required launching robust parking

and mobility studies, producing a

survey of site conditions, and analyzing

the historical context.

Using the conclusions from the

analysis, the project explored solutions

that improve the District’s physical

qualities, enhance interactivity in all its

forms, connect institutions, engage the

public, and offer a sustainable landscape

for all Detroiters to enjoy. The design

team, working in close collaboration

with institutional partners, addressed

strategies for blurring boundaries

between institutional interiors and

the landscape while strengthening

the distinguishing features of each

stakeholder institution.

In the final phase, the design team

united the individual institutions

and their respective aspirations into

a cohesive whole, while ensuring the

final plan aligned with the results from

the feasibility studies. The outcome is

a plan that preserves Detroit’s global

influence by embodying the arts and

cultural organizations of the city, many

of which coalesce in the cultural center.

“

It’s a very good time for

institutional participation

in this district plan. Of

course, identifying and

establishing connections

is a substantial challenge

that takes investment,

cooperation, and the ability

to prioritize collective

projects over individual

interests. Working together,

however, will solve many

of the challenges that

institutions face, and

present opportunities at the

same time.

Sue Mosey

Executive Director, Midtown Detroit

Inc. (MDI)

“

DETROIT CULTURAL DISTRICT


Above: Detroit Square community engagement model used to spark conversation at the Charles H. Wright

Museum of African American History. Input from residents was integrated into the design team’s planning.

Next Page: Jo Anne G. Mondowney speaking at the Detroit Public Library to announce Agence Ter and

Akoaki as the winners of the international design competition.

HOW FAR WE’VE COME


A

GUIDING


PLAN

The Detroit Cultural District 18

Social Equity Guiding The Plan 56

Environmental Regeneration 84

Access for All 102

Twelve Institutions Plug In 118

Getting Together 190

Who We Are 204

1

The Detroit Cultural District


CCPI will create a District that is

approachable and enticing: full

of possibility, stimulation, and

dynamism. It will anchor Detroit

communities with a sense of

stability, build on local legacies,

and shine with distinctiveness.

The District will help sponsor

communication and networking,

ensuring ease in connections,

interactions, and movements. It

will form a bridge, making the

outside world more accessible

and interiors more engaging. The

District will ensure that people

THE DETROIT CULTURAL DISTRICT


feel part of a bigger, extensive,

and inclusive environment, while

creating a place to self-improve,

seek inspiration, learn, and reflect.

The best public places are diverse

and provide a rich register of

experiences, from the profound to

the mundane. They offer choices

and opportunities to engage. They

accommodate visitors of varying

resource levels and provide wide

ranging programs and amenities

that reflect the essence of the city.

To ensure the District’s success, the

CULTURAL DISTRICT INTRODUCTION


physical fabric and public realm

will meet all of the conditions for

civic life in its breadth of moods,

scales, and cultural sensibilities.

The District will provide balance

between spaces that are vibrant

and tranquil. It will encourage

mixing and togetherness, yet

create room for isolation and

safety. Some features will be

utilitarian and routine. Others

will be extraordinary and

moving. Above all, the District

will have a clarity of purpose,



and will know its goals. It will

seamlessly blend infrastructure,

cultural programming, and

economic activity with collective

stewardship and organization to

improve human life.

In its resolve to create a great

public space for the City of Detroit,

CCPI has advanced a holistic

approach. It combines insights and

expertise around tangible matters

like climate, mobility, and parking

with intangibles such as culture,

art, atmosphere, and belonging.



The result is a plan that integrates

the triumphs and dilemmas of our

time – directly addressing issues

of equity, environmental distress,

urban vitality, and collective

engagement.

CCPI will reinvent a distinctive

urban commons for Detroit, one

that connects and inspires.





6

11

THE CARR

CENTER

THE INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE

OF METROPOLITAN DETROIT

12

HELLENIC MUSEUM

OF MICHIGAN

7

DETROIT HISTORICAL

MUSEUM

2

DETROIT PUBLIC

LIBRARY

3

WAYNE STATE

UNIVERSITY



5

COLLEGE FOR

CREATIVE STUDIES

9

4 8

THE CHARLES H. WRIGHT

MUSEUM OF AFRICAN

AMERICAN HISTORY

DETROIT INSTITUTE

OF ARTS

THE SCARAB CLUB

10

MICHIGAN

SCIENCE CENTER

1

THE UNIVERSITY

OF MICHIGAN

PARTICIPATING INSTITUTIONS


The Detroit Public Library

opens for services on March 25,

1865. The 5,000 book collection

is located in one room of the

old Capitol High School on

Griswold Street.

Wayne State University is

established as an innovative

urban center of higher learning

when a group of Civil War

doctors established the Detroit

Medical College, forerunner of

the Wayne State School

of Medicine.

The Detroit Institute of Arts

is founded and opens its

doors on Jefferson Avenue.

The museum would move to its

current location in 1927.

1865

1868

1885

1

2

3

The spatial and organizational evolution of the Culture District is

long and storied. Each institution developed independently over time,

offering the city essential cultural infrastructure in response to a breadth

of public interests. Starting in 1913, a series of plans have attempted to

unite the cultural parts into a clear and unified whole. These efforts were

met with various levels of enthusiasm and resistance, contingent on the

social, political, and economic forces shaping the city at the time of their

inception. This timeline traces the continuing evolution of the District

through the establishment of its key institutions, punctuated by planning

initiatives over the past decade.



A group of local civic leaders,

inspired by the English Arts

and Crafts movement, forms

the Detroit Society of Arts and

Crafts which will later inspire

the creation of the College for

Creative Studies.

The Scarab Club is founded

by a group of Detroit artists

as a way to socialize with one

another and share their ideas

and passions while also hosting

festive events and educating

the public.

The International Institute

of Metropolitan Detroit

is founded by a group of

YWCA volunteers seeking to

assist legal immigrants with

integration into U.S. society.

1906 1907

1919

4 5

6

1913

DETROIT CITY PLAN AND

IMPROVEMENT COMMISSION

LED BY EDWARD H. BENNETT

DEVELOPS A PLAN FOR

DETROIT’S CENTER OF ARTS

AND LETTERS TO ALIGN WITH

THE LOCAL CITY BEAUTIFUL

MOVEMENT.

DISTRICT TIMELINE


After five years of construction

the Detroit Public Library

opens its doors at 5201

Woodward Avenue in an

Italian Renaissance style

building designed by

Cass Gilbert.

In 1928, the Detroit Historical

Society establishes the Detroit

Historical Museum to ensure

that the history of our region

is preserved. Their permanent

building would be completed in

1951 by William Kapp.

The District is enhanced with

the completion of the Horace

H. Rackham Educational

Memorial building. Designed

by Harley, Ellington, and Day,

the building originally housed

the Engineering Society of

Detroit and the Extension

Division of the University

of Michigan.

1921

1928 1941

7 8

9

1948

CULTURAL CITY PLAN

CONTINUED BY

SUREN PILAFIAN



Dr. Charles Howard Wright,

a successful Detroit physician

and civil rights activist,

establishes Detroit’s first

International Afro-American

Museum that would later

become the Charles H. Wright

Museum of African

American History.

The Michigan Science Center

founded in 1970 by Dexter

Ferry in a storefront at 52 E

Forest Avenue, moves to its

current location in the

Cultural District.

A major benefactor provides

the funds to purchase the

former Children’s Museum of

Detroit at 67 E. Kirby for the

Hellenic Museum of Michigan.

-

Building on a solid legacy of

community service, the Arts

League founded the Carr

Center. In 2019, it moved from

Downtown to its

Midtown location.

1965

1978 2009

10 11 12

1965

1989 2018

AGENCE TER AND AKOAKI WIN

THE DIA PLAZA | MIDTOWN

CULTURAL CONNECTION

COMPETITION, AND BEGIN

WORK ON THE CURRENT

DISTRICT PLAN.

DETROIT UNIVERSITY CULTURAL

CENTER PLAN

CULTURAL CENTER PLAN

DISTRICT TIMELINE


5,000,000

4,000,000

3,000,000

2,000,000

1921 DETROIT PUBLIC LIBRARY

1927 DETROIT INSTITUTE OF ARTS

1928 SCARAB CLUB

1933 WAYNE STATE UNIVERSITY

1941 RACKHAM BUILDING

1951 DETROIT HISTORICAL MUSEUM

INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE

1958 COLLEGE FOR CREATIVE STUDIES

1,000,000

0

1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970

1965

Cultural Center Plan

1948

Cultural City Plan

1913

Detroit City Plan and

Improvement

Commission

This timeline positions the District’s prior planning initiatives in relation

to the city’s evolving demographics, helping to visualize the socio-political

contexts in which projects were developed.



1978 DETROIT SCIENCE CENTER

1997 CHARLES A.WRIGHT MUSEUM

2009 THE HELLENIC MUSEUM

2019 THE CARR CENTER

1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 2030 2040

2018

Cultural Center Planning

Initiative led by Midtown

Detroit Inc. Agence Ter and

Akoaki engaged for design

services.

1989

Detroit University

Cultural Center Plan

Metro Area Population

Forecasts Metro Area Population

City of Detroit Population

Forecasts population

DISTRICT TIMELINE


Above: View from the Detroit Public Library’s terrace.

Next Page: Urban marker at the Detroit Historical Museum’s renovated Legend’s Plaza welcoming visitors

entering the district on Woodward Avenue.



Values &

Goals

A sense of possibility lends public

spaces their promise and dynamism.

Successful examples offer all visitors

an ease of mobility, a feeling of

collective vitality, and, perhaps

most importantly, an invitation to

participate. It is an ethos of promise

that’s nurtured within each one of us

when we feel capable of influencing

the social, political, and cultural fabric

of the city. In this model, the public

domain enables rather than controls.

It sets the guidelines for how things

work, ensures a tone of conviviality,

while encouraging everyone to

participate with imagination to move

things forward. CCPI is made possible

through the support and collaboration

of each stakeholder institution, each

project partner, and each Detroit

resident who has generously offered

perspective and feedback. The result is

an adaptive plan for Detroit’s Cultural

District that embraces productive

diversity and models how the city’s

leading institutions can cooperate for

the greater good.

Through a myriad of conversations,

both formal and informal, the project

has revealed a series of collective

goals that guide CCPI’s decisions and

structured a pathway to evaluating

opportunities. Some of the stated

goals are broad and aspirational,

while others are more directive. Most

importantly, they help set benchmarks

for achieving the common good.

“

Ensuring a welcoming

environment for all is at

the heart of this plan. This

means fully embracing the

diversity of the institutions,

their unique contributions to

the vitality of the whole, and

creating a plan that benefits

everyone equally.

Anya Sirota

Principal, Akoaki

“

VALUES AND GOALS


1. Creating a Sense of Place

Place matters. Despite accelerating

global movements and the allure of

places across geographies, people

feel the need to belong, to be

grounded, to be welcomed in places

they return to with ease, affection,

and friendly certainty. Appealing,

culturally-rooted places comfort

through predictability, while ensuring

opportunities for change, reinvention,

and choice.

A well-conceived commitment

to place builds collective pride,

encourages people to give back, and

develops responsibility for the city.

That commitment can find many forms

and lead to a breadth of outcomes:

expressions of social unity, collective

stewardship, civic engagement,

volunteerism, protection of heritage,

philanthropy, economic investment,

and perhaps most simply, a shared

feeling of well-being.

Renewing the sense of place afresh

is not easy. It requires sensitive

observation, deep engagement,

good design, as well as knowing

which existing aspects to elevate or

when to start fresh. In this scenario,

ambitious programming can help to

enhance existing energy, build the

infrastructure to revive and catalyze

activity, while centering the goal of

enriching that sense of belonging

and identity for all.

2. Connecting Institutions

to Each Other and the City

Public spaces are where we connect,

communicate, and exchange. They

work best when connectivity is

augmented and works smoothly

one-to-one, in groups, and virtually.

CCPI focuses on the need to create

gathering places that encourage

conversation, reciprocity, and

networking between people and

institutions. This requires institutional

infrastructure and mobility systems

that connect stakeholders and the

district to neighborhoods and the

region beyond. Connectivity requires

technology and open access to wifi.

It also involves spaces that relate

one destination to another, ensuring

smooth transition between multiple

interior and exterior spots throughout

the project. Enhancing the networking

capacity of the district, the initiative

becomes a connected accelerator

for collective opportunities.



3. Inspiring the City and the

Region

The cultural district needs to inspire,

to give us hope, to make us think, to

provoke us to strive. Inspiration can

be triggered in many ways. From

beautiful design to association

between a historical past and

a projective future, a carefully

designed cultural experience

identifies what makes us individuals

and what universally makes us

human. Inspiration happens when we

are faced with the thoughtful and the

unexpected. Inspiration comes from

a richness of experience that both

startles and offers opportunities for

reflection.

CCPI sees Detroit’s Cultural District as

a living work engaging with residents,

visitors, students, and artists to

inspire by providing a generous

civic space that reflects back on the

achievements of the city. The arts, in

this framework, have a special role to

play. They nurture our emotions, give

symbolic order, anchor identity, create

contrast between lived experience

and aspiration. They broaden our

understanding of the world, critically

address our lived experiences, and

sometimes they simply bring pleasure.

The CCPI project consciously seeks

space to inspire residents of Detroit,

the Metropolitan region, and visitors

from beyond.

4. Catalyzing Collective

Experience

The Cultural District aims to catalyze

collective experience by creating

a public platform for the city’s

intellectual, cultural, and artistic

endeavors. In many ways, the Cultural

District already demonstrates the

power of collective experience

through successful programming such

as Dlectricity and Noel Night. CCPI

builds on those achievements and

ensures cultural events and programs

at all scales may be delivered on

a more regular cadence and with

greater efficiency.

5. Advancing a Campus for

Lifelong Learning

A City that offers residents of all

ages opportunities to learn ensures

investment in the most important

of urban resources - people.

Understanding the Cultural District as

a campus for lifelong learning, with

VALUES AND GOALS


Above: Proposed children’s wing for the Detroit Public Library creates an interior playscape with stronger

connections for children and families to the outdoors.

Next Page: The Square will connect the College for Creative Studies with the Charles H. Wright Museum

of African American History creating space for public art and play along an interactive water mirror.



partnering institutions co-creating

forward-looking adaptable curricula,

CCPI seeks to engage individuals

from all walks of life with a diversity

of high quality, formal and informal,

learning opportunities.

6. Engaging Great Design

Timeless, adaptable, legible, and

embedded with contextual, cultural

values, well-conceived public spaces

take many considerations. At its core,

an outstanding public space requires

a supreme level of balance and

deliberation: adjusting the functional

demands of a site against the needs

for iconically distinct solutions,

offsetting directed programs with

opportunities for serendipity, valuing

cohesion without the trapping of

uniformity.

7. Raising Environmental

Consciousness

Environment management requires

investment and the necessary

infrastructure to make a positive

impact. Sustainable design requires

more than the introduction of an

efficient system. It invites us to change

perception, to become sensitive to

the effects of our choices, and to

empathize with our planet. This is why

CCPI couples public amenities with

environmental design. The approach

makes the case that infrastructure can

be beautiful. By incorporating runoff

mitigation, drainage, and filtration

into bio-dynamic landscapes, the

investment benefits the city and its

citizens.

The City of Detroit is located in

the Southern Great Lakes Forest

ecoregion—one of the most heavily

impacted regions due to human

activity on the continent, according

to the World Wildlife Federation.

As extreme weather events increase

in frequency, improving our water

management systems could not be

more urgent.

8. Including All

Inclusive design means creating

spaces that everyone can use and

where everyone feels welcome.

It is a design methodology that

intentionally removes the barriers

between people, be they economic,

physical, social, or otherwise. At

the same time, inclusive design

acknowledges and accommodates

diversity and difference while offering

people and institutions choices and

flexibility of uses.

VALUES AND GOALS


The District will be composed of

four landscape elements and

their interactions: The Square,

The Band, The Ecotone, and

The Necklace. Each of these

are designed to be adjusted

through stakeholder and public

engagement. The elements will

define the District in distinct ways

by offering varied perspectives,

engaging experiential sequences,

and architecturally legible points

of entry. The elements will also

unify by bringing together a site

that was formerly residential and

THE ELEMENTS


divided by streets or small plots.

Focusing on what will be shared,

CCPI merges the district parts into

a generous whole.

THE ELEMENTS


The Square

THE ELEMENTS


A pedestrian framework defines the boundaries of the district by transforming a network of

auto-centric streets into a people-focused pedestrian experience. It welcomes the possibility of

shared infrastructure while offering institutions generous spaces for outdoor programming and

public amenities. CCPI’s adaptation offers a democratic foundation for an urban plan where

each institution, big or small, connects equitably to public space and the District’s amenities.

THE SQUARE


The Band

THE ELEMENTS


A series of open green spaces highlights the historic axis of the Cultural District and creates

adaptable eventscapes for daily exceptional activation. The surface parking lot on Brush is

transformed into a Great Lawn by consolidating cars below grade. On Woodard Avenue, an

ephemeral plaza emphasizes the well-proportioned relationship between the Detroit Institute

of Arts and the Detroit Public Library, opening possibilities for seasonal happenings. Connecting

the College for Creative Studies and Wayne State University, the Band integrates open spaces

that unite the venerable campuses on both the east and west sides of the plan.

THE BAND


The Ecotone

THE ELEMENTS


The Ecotone incorporates nature into the city by merging infrastructure with the beauty of

an inhabitable landscape, reimagining engineering and ecological requirements as a public

attractor. In the form of two green zones bracing the District’s open plazas, the Ecotone

addresses climate adaptation, provides valuable solutions to urban overheating, augments

biodiversity, mitigates noise/air pollution, and introduces stormwater management at a district

scale.

THE ECOTONE


The Necklace

THE ELEMENTS


A meandering pathway that links the District with unique programming opportunities. If the

Square is the destination, then the Necklace is the journey. The walking path connects smaller

sites and experiences: sculptures, places for play, climate gardens, and other discrete activities,

while offering moments for quiet reflection. A tool for navigating the District in an open-ended

or theme-driven way, the Necklace creates distinct atmospheric experiences by facilitating

intimate encounters with art, culture, and landscape.

THE NECKLACE


The Square at the intersection of Farnsworth Street and John R Street looking west highlights a shared

street that privileges pedestrian activity and creates space for commercial programs to activate the public

life of the District.

THE ELEMENTS


THE SQUARE

2

Social Equity Guiding the Plan


A social equity framework guides

the planning process in order to

arrive at fair and just outcomes

for all institutional stakeholders

and Detroit residents. Social

equity can mean different

things to different people. At

the core, it is about equality and

flexibility. It makes space for, and

accommodates, different people’s

needs and experiences in society.

It also requires participants to

collectively define the values

and principles to which actions

adhere. Working through a social

SOCIAL EQUITY


equity lens, CCPI asks that the

social and economic conditions

of all participants be taken into

account and that possible impacts

on residents and neighbors be

evaluated with great care. This

method of thinking and designing

provides access and is attentive

to how people and spaces come

together.

SOCIAL EQUITY


Designing a

Cultural District

through Five

Points of Equity

1. Civic Engagement

CCPI invites people of all backgrounds

into public life as stewards and

advocates to shape their city’s future.

The plan also incorporates the

needs of each institution to ensure

democratic representation in the

shaping of the district. This project

evolves through robust community

engagement efforts, organizational

involvement, and cooperation with

local and state government agencies.

2. Socio-Economic Mixing

Creating shared experiences for

people of all backgrounds, and a

place where everyone feels a sense

of belonging are CCPI’s top priorities.

The district plan ensures a breadth

of public, culturally-inviting, open

spaces that are not contingent solely

on economic transactions.

CCPI is committed to creating public

spaces that are diverse and provide

a rich register of experiences for

everyone. The diversity of user groups

is ensured by providing numerous

opportunities for civic engagement,

different price points for consumer

activities, varied free and affordable

amenities, and access to wide ranging

cultural facilities.

3. Universal Access

The idea of universal access comes

from the concept that everything we

make and build should have aesthetic

and usable value where the greatest

number of people can benefit,

regardless of their age, ability, or

status. It is a concept that’s contingent

on creating barrier free environments

in every sense of the word. Universal

access is central to CCPI’s mission

and helps shape its many networks:

mobility, technology, and public

spaces.

4. Value Creation

This project takes into account the

interest of all stakeholders and offers

spaces for economic regeneration

across a city’s neighborhoods. Highquality

public space design and

infrastructure improvements are

vital, well-tested strategies to create

SOCIAL EQUITY GUIDING THE PLAN


The Necklace on the southern lawn of the Detroit Public Library combines spaces for art and ecology.

better standards in living and work

environments. The success of cultureled

regeneration projects, of course,

depends on the quality of the built

environment and its capacity to

include opportunities for diverse

groups of people to benefit.

5. Sustainability

CCPI offers a district where both cultural

and biological diversity are respected,

and equal access to institutions and

resources for individuals to grow and

thrive is possible. The environment

in this regard is more than just the

preservation of natural resources. It

is a direct link between economic,

environmental, and health issues and

a safe, clean community.

FIVE POINTS OF EQUITY


Proposal for the ‘People’s Lounge’ at the Detroit Public Library creates a space for Detroiters to share

personal stories. Contemporary installations provide opportunities for Detroit-based artists to showcase

their work.



FIVE POINTS OF EQUITY


Impacts

One of the foundational principles in

urban design is that you can’t improve

what you can’t measure. Designing

good public spaces requires us to

think strategically, to set goals, and to

analyze the possible consequences of

implementation on the environment

and people affected. For the Cultural

District plan, we have explored

impacts in three distinct categories:

environment, learning and civic

engagement. Both quantitative and

qualitative measures help us make

informed decisions and consider the

value of projected results against our

collective goals. In this way, metrics

encourage us to make considerate and

informed decisions when exploring

the urban environment both on the

neighborhood level and on a broader

urban scale.

The Cultural District plan, aware of

the ambitious scale and scope of the

project, reflects consistently on the

resources and impacts of each design

decision, while creating benchmarks

to appraise its target goals and future

prospects. The approach admits

that public space projects have a

responsibility to forecast the value

of the design and to assess possible

outcomes. We intuitively understand

why measurements are necessary - it

helps us decipher a current reality. But

they also encourage us to strive to do

better.

Beyond exploring possible outcomes,

the central reason why the plan

measures impacts is to allow for

greater transparency and more

engaged stakeholder participation

when making decisions about what

matters and how to chart a way

forward. Impact assessments instigate

collective discussion and ingenuity.

They can address both the tangible

and intangible aspirations of

a project.

“

Some urban data is

relatively accessible and

tangible. We can track

attendance, traffic accident

risk, pollution exposure,

rainfall, etc, and we can seek

to improve or mitigate the

issues we measure. Other

impacts are more ethereal,

but equally valuable: pride

in place, sense of belonging,

iconographic identity, the

desire to return. CCPI takes

both into account.

Jean Louis Farges

Principal, Akoaki

“



Proposed rooftop cafe at the Detroit Institute of Arts creates an overlook in the District.

IMPACTS


The CCPI transforms a

district originally designed to

accommodate car culture into a

human-centered and ecologically

responsible destination. The plan

reduces environmental impact by:



Transforming 16 acres of paved surface into

lush landscape;

Increasing the amount of pervious surface in

the district by more than 40%;

Treating an additional 15.6 million gallons

of stormwater runoff;

Decarbonizing the landscape with a 60%

increase in the tree canopy;

Reducing the heat island effect by 7 degrees

on average;

Creating empathetic spaces of encounter with

biodiverse landscapes that bring nature back

into the urban environment.

IMPACTS


Proposed ‘Climate Machine’ garden for the Michigan Science Center transforms an above-ground parking

lot into an immersive bio-diverse learning environment.



IMPACTS


Creating a cohesive landscape

around the District’s cultural

assets and promoting free and

open programming indoors

and out, the District plan will

dissolve the barriers between

the universities, institutions, and

everyday Detroiters to introduce a

civic commons by:



Creating a dynamic and inclusive arts

overlay for theater, installation, sculpture,

music, and science education;

Facilitating gatherings and activities that

benefit public health;

Delivering region-wide eventscapes with

adaptive lighting, open plazas, and

interactive technologies;

Offering increased efficiency in delivery of

services to city residents;

Activating spaces of collaboration & shared

programming for local artists, students, and

residents;

Creating a framework for collective

stewardship of public space and

programming.

IMPACTS


The Common Green proposed for the District transforms the Detroit Institute of Arts’ visitors parking lot

into a shared open space for leisure and programming.



IMPACTS


The Cultural District plan will unify

a network of essential cultural

resources open to all Detroiters,

facilitating lifelong learning

and increasing efficiency in the

delivery of resources and services

to all by:



Reducing barriers to cultural assets;

Sharing programs centered on crossgenerational

learning;

Creating outdoor engagement through

classrooms, pavilions, and greenspaces;

Technologically enabling landscape with

open access to broadband and interactive

media;

Enlisting Detroit- based talent to lead in

cultural programming;

Nurturing, fostering, and promoting

Detroit-based artists;

Strengthening connections between residents

and institutions.

IMPACTS


The Children and Family center proposed for the ground floor of the Charles H. Wright Museum of African

American History will connect new programs to the outdoors.

IMPACTS


CHARLES H. WRIGHT MUSEUM OF AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY


Social Institutions &

Urban Transformation

In Conversation

With Harley Etienne

SOCIAL INSTITUTIONS & URBAN TRANSFORMATION


CONVERSATIONS WITH HARLEY ETIENNE


Harley Etienne is a noted author,

researcher, professor, and consultant with

a keen understanding of the way social,

cultural, and political contexts intersect

with public institutions to facilitate urban

neighborhood change. Since joining

the CCPI design team in 2018, Etienne

has played an integral part in strategic

planning and public engagement. Jean

Louis Farges, principal of Akoaki, sat down

with Professor Harley Etienne for a tête-àtête.

Jean Louis Farges (JLF): Tell us about your first encounter with Detroit’s

Cultural District. L’amour at first sight?

Harley Etienne (HE): In 1999, I made my first trip to Detroit to spend the Thanksgiving holiday

with a friend and his family. One point of pride that this friend made a point to highlight was the

Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History. I was both delighted and astounded by

the “And Still We Rise” exhibit experience, and, from that point on, I thought fondly of Detroit and

my visit there. Flash forward a dozen years and I joined the faculty at the University of Michigan.

At the suggestion of many, I made my first visit to the Detroit Institute of the Arts (DIA), where I

found myself dumbfounded that Detroit had so many notable works that I somehow never knew

were here.



JLF

HE

Resonant as that experience was, as an urbanist, did you

observe any room for improvement?

During that second visit in 2012, I decided to walk around the DIA, since

it was clear that there were other institutions nearby. To my surprise, the

museum that had first placed affection for Detroit in my heart was directly

adjacent to the DIA, and I had not been aware of the proximity. Years later,

when I joined Akoaki and Agence Ter on the design competition team, I was

delighted to participate and to directly address this issue.

As an urban planner there are few opportunities such as this to fulfill a

century’s old dream and create a unitary experience of some of the

flagship cultural institutions of a major U.S. city. However, as the Cultural

Center added institutions over the years that benefitted from proximity to

the others, circumstance, fate, money, social change, and other historical

accidents have inhibited what could have been.

JLF

HE

Addressing discontinuity, fragmentation, and inequity in

the urban realm comes across as solid urban ambitions.

But in a city with a breadth of needs, how do you justify

investment in the cultural district?

Throughout the project, I would constantly get asked by Detroiters and

colleagues about the value of this project. In a city where there are so many

competing and more urgent needs, why this? My answer has always been

consistent and simple. Detroit needs and deserves both: bread and roses.

The city leadership, civic leaders, philanthropists, and every day citizens

must attend to the needs of Detroiters. And there are many organizations

that are working tirelessly to build decent and affordable housing; grow

and distribute food through urban agriculture projects and cooperative

markets; educate the youth; or work to reduce the disparate impacts of

environmental pollution and crime.

At the same time, Detroit has never survived on bread alone and never will.

Anyone who ever sang along to a Motown song or danced to techno music

knows about the many roses that have bloomed in Detroit. There is great

dignity to be found in seeing your story reflected in exhibits at the Charles

Wright, Detroit Historical Museum, or Hellenic Museum. There is immense

value in the learning and human advancement that happens at Wayne

State University and the College of Creative Studies. The Detroit Public

Library is a palace of the people where the architecture of the building and

vast collections makes any everyday user royalty viewing a publicly owned

collection of irreplaceable valuables. The love of science that is ignited in

the minds of Michigan’s youth at the Science Center has paid extraordinary

dividends in the past and will in the years to come. The art and culture

that the public has access to at the DIA, Scarab Club, Carr Center, and



HE

International Institute are virtually incomparable because of what they are,

what they do, what they possess, and how close they are to one another.

These are not incompatible goals. We can and must provide the bread and

roses that make life possible and full.

JLF

HE

JLF

HE

But the roses blooming here are so exceptionally diverse.

Given the embedded differences, how can an urban

design balance between the sensibilities and postures

of existing institutions and the universal conditions

necessary to unify them?

Each of the institutions of the Cultural Center has a public-facing mission

and a collective spatial arrangement that inhibits the full manifestation of

their collective existence. While our team’s appreciation for each institution

has grown substantially through this project, we have been clear that the

true magic is in how they are connected to one another - through unity

and strength. That informed each aspect of our designs. As each institution

provides opportunities for enrichment, reflection, enlightenment, and

deliberate civility, a unified experience can be calibrated that crosses

institutional boundaries, affinities, and personalities. By recasting how the

institutions relate to each other spatially, we are attempting to rewrite the

script of how visitors experience the Cultural Center as I did in 1999. My

wonderful first experience with the Cultural Center would not have been

diminished by knowing about the fullness of nearby offerings. Rather, my

experience would have been immeasurably enhanced. All of my prejudices

of Detroit erased and my mind appropriately blown. The positive impression

permanently made.

Let’s weigh in frankly on the experience of working with

the design team.

It has been my distinct privilege to work with Akoaki and Agence Ter on

this project in the hopes that Detroit will one day have a cultural center

that is the envy of arts districts around the country and world. And, while

the increased attention for the institutions of the Cultural Center and the

City of Detroit is a clear goal and benefit of this project, the primary task

is to provide Detroiters with a place to enjoy the artistic, cultural, and

educational treasures of the world in their own city.




3

Environmental Regeneration


The paradox of infrastructure

is that it requires significant

investment, while typically going

unseen. CCPI’s approach to

water management is founded

on a different philosophy:

infrastructure can be beautiful

and visible. By incorporating

runoff mitigation, drainage,

and filtration into bio-dynamic

landscapes, the investment in

water management will become

an investment in the living ground

of the city and an enhancement of

the urban experience.

ENVIRONMENT


In addition to being a tactical

and cost-efficient approach

to infrastructural remediation,

the plan will offer greater

biodiversity and will buffer

the impact of climate change

in the city by reducing the

heat island effect. The design

models environmentally

just and ecologically salient

solutions that directly address

pressing challenges in the built

environment.

ENVIRONMENT


Weathering

The Storm

The City of Detroit is located in

the Southern Great Lakes Forest

ecoregion—one of the most heavily

impacted regions due to human

activity on the continent, according

to the World Wildlife Fund. As the

average annual precipitation in the

region increases and extreme storms

occur more frequently, it is imperative

that existing and future urban

developments in Detroit implement

various forms of Green Stormwater

Infrastructure (GSIs).

Everyone in the city of Detroit—and

the entire Great Lakes watershed

region— will benefit from this project’s

green infrastructure. By transforming

16 acres of paved surface into lush

landscape, the District will become

an ecosystem responsive to climatechange

vulnerabilities. The plan is

designed to collect and manage 15.5

million gallons of runoff annually,

alleviating sewage overflow during

rainfall events.

The average yearly temperature in

the Great Lakes basin increased by

1.6 degrees Fahrenheit from 1980-

2016, while the average temperature

change within the United States

was just 1.2 degrees Fahrenheit.

Projections for annually-averaged

temperatures show an increase of 5.8-

10.1 degrees Fahrenheit by the end of

the 21st century, depending on future

greenhouse gas emissions.

A warmer atmosphere is able to hold

more moisture, causing an increase

in the intensity and frequency of

wet weather events. Until now, this

increase in wet weather has arrived

in the form of unusually large events.

Moving forward, these events will

re-distribute across the seasons.

Overall, the Great Lakes Region can

expect to see wetter winters and

springs while summer precipitation

decreases by 5-15%. In areas with

impervious surface area, these events

are expected to cause more frequent

flooding and damage homes,

roadways, and other infrastructure.

This will also place a greater amount

of stress on stormwater handling

systems, overloading water treatment

infrastructure, and polluting water

sources.

“

Modern cities often use

an excessive amount of

impervious surfaces, a trend

designed to expedite progress.

Contemporary times have

taught us otherwise. It is

now our responsibility to

remediate and reimagine

past efforts so that future

generations can thrive.

Olivier Philippe

Principal, Agence Ter

“

ENVIRONMENT


Water management infrastructure is fully integrated into the landscape and provides opportunities for

institutions such as the Detroit Historical Museum - pictured here - to enjoy an ecologically functioning and

beautiful design as they take their programming outdoors.

WEATHERING THE STORM


NORTH INTERCEPTOR EAST ARM

[NIEA]

DETROIT RIVER INTERCEPTOR

[DRI]

OAKWOOD-NORTHWEST INTERCEPTOR

[ONWI]

Midtown Cultural Center

Waste Water Treatment Facility

CSO LOCATIONS

WATER SUPPLY INTAKES

SEWER LINES (COMBINED

SYSTEM)

SEWER INTERCEPTOR LINES

¹ “Detroit WWTP NPDES Fact Sheet -

State of Michigan.” Detroit Water

and Sewage Department.

ENVIRONMENT


In Detroit

Combined Sewer Overflows (CSOs)

are points where the contents of a

combined sewer system overflow

occasionally and discharge excess

wastewater directly to nearby

streams, rivers, or other water bodies.

These overflows contain not only

storm water but also untreated human

and industrial waste, toxic materials,

and debris.

Stormwater runoff from impervious

areas is a major cause of water

pollution in urban areas. In Detroit, it

is most notably the cause of combined

sewer overflow released into the

Rouge or Detroit Rivers. However,

even in separated sewer areas (where

the sanitary and stormwater systems

are not combined), stormwater runoff

carries trash, bacteria, and heavy

metals into our natural waterways.

In addition, peak discharges from

heavy rains cause flooding in urban

neighborhoods that damage stream

habitat, property, and infrastructure.

It is clear that capturing and treating

stormwater runoff is critical for

all urban areas and not just those

serviced by a combined sewer.

Green stormwater infrastructure uses

vegetation, enhanced soils, water

harvesting/reuse, and other elements

to mimic natural processes such as

infiltration and evapotranspiration to

reduce runoff. This lessens the demand

on existing “gray” infrastructure

(conventional concrete pipes and

wastewater treatment facilities)

but also creates healthier urban

environments by improving air quality

and beautifying the neighborhood.

Green stormwater infrastructure

includes: bioretention cells, bioswales,

vegetated roofs, cisterns, permeable

pavement, constructed wetlands,

among others. Another reason

to integrate green stormwater

infrastructure into urban environments

is to improve resiliency. Climate

change has caused an increase in

extreme weather events and also

caused urban temperatures to rise.

Green stormwater infrastructure is

effective at diminishing increased

rainfall intensities while mitigating the

urban heat island effect. Promoting

the integration of green stormwater

infrastructure in urban environments

will improve the health and welfare of

all Detroit residents.

Untreated combined sewer

overflow coming from the City

of Detroit and surrounding

communities average 1-3 billion

gallons per year.

95% of total runoff is caused by

weather events with less than 1” of

rain.

The current Cultural District

footprint is 40% impervious.

IN DETROIT


City of Detroit Planning

and Development

Department

In Conversation

With Dan Rieden

CITY OF DETROIT PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT


CONVERSATIONS WITH DAN RIEDEN


Dan Rieden is a Lead Landscape Architect

at the City of Detroit Planning and

Development Department. A self-directed,

innovative urbanist, Dan has been a bridge

between the City of Detroit and the CCPI

Initiative from the project’s inception.

He brings deep and resonant expertise

in master planning, landscape ecology,

and site design coupled with a genuine

consideration of Detroit neighborhoods

and communities. We connected with Dan

to discuss his contributions to the project

and his penchant for catalyzing and

sustaining creative collaborations.

Sarah Carter (SC): Let’s talk about your role as lead landscape architect for

the City of Detroit.

Dan Rieden (DR): To serve the City of Detroit is a great honor. I believe my role is centered on

listening and delivering access for the residents of Detroit to be heard. Detroiters told us that they

want to see a cultural center that is welcoming to all; embraces opportunities to be represented

and celebrated within the programming of the cultural center; and allows all ages access to

a place that feels safe, inviting, and easy to navigate from institution to institution. Detroit

has world-class, rich cultural resources in its museums, libraries, and universities. They have a

wonderful opportunity to coordinate their efforts, open their doors to the public spaces outside,

and co-create more interaction between public and private spaces that allows more synergy

in this public square. So the role of a landscape architect is that of bridge-builder: to facilitate

a dialogue between the public and private, and between professions - architects, engineers,

planners – to bring this discussion into reality such as those ideas we are generating around the

Cultural Center Planning Initiative (CCPI).



DR

Landscape architects are also responsible for creating boundaries around

scope creep, or the physical boundaries of a space. Regarding the initial

discussion of the boundaries of the CCPI, our department believed that we

should delineate a space large enough to be visionary yet tight enough in

its scope to have real impact. By staying within the immediate collection

of institutions in this area, potential solutions can be represented and

extended outward.

Landscape is physically the space between these institutions, but,

professionally, landscape architecture can be the facilitator for all these

different disciplines to come together and discuss. We’re trained as

landscape architects to talk between the lens of science and art. How can

we address hydrology? How can we address systems of civic space? How

can we design streetscapes, circulation, and all the interaction between

different urban layers? What are the different elements of analysis that go

into the design of this type of space? Landscape is everything visible on the

surface of our built environment and extends down into invisible systems

below grade.

SC

DR

What is the city’s responsibility in the context of a project

like this?

We envision the City acting as a guide throughout this process. I see the

City as responsible for creating a space to have productive discussions. We

do not want to get our hands into the project too much, but we do want to

help establish boundaries. Unfortunately, we have limitations on resources.

Staffing and budget are vying for attention while the city is dealing with

COVID and other concerns that Detroit communities have.

That said, we understand the value of CCPI’s longevity and its impact.

The City has helped to set the geographic boundaries of the space and

guidance on the conversation itself. We need to be mindful of the context

that we’re working in at this point of history in the city. We also need to be

mindful of the strong feedback we have gotten from communities. People

are interested in how we are creating more accessibility in the context of

the pandemic and how we are addressing drainage issues in the district

and beyond. The City is helping to make sure this project is connecting with

the public, and, as design moves forward, we’re not isolating ourselves from

the pressing concerns of today.

SC

This project aims to combine cultural and recreational

spaces with water management infrastructure. It offers

outdoor public spaces that have proven to be so crucial

during the recent pandemic. Does this project feel

timely? Ambitious? Relevant?



DR

Absolutely! We have to ask ourselves why is this project different? Why is this

unique? I think the timing of COVID, in some ways, has been instructional.

COVID has taught us how to bring indoor spaces outside in a very efficient

way, right? For example, how can we create social spaces outside that are

safe? That’s a good thing, and it’s right in line with the mission of this design.

If I could, I would like to step back a minute and talk about the history of

this context. Detroit, for years, has had a history of insulating itself. As we’ve

had population drain from the city our resources have dropped. Ultimately,

with the bankruptcy, a lot of institutions and communities have had to fend

for themselves. These circumstances created a condition of fortification,

if you will. This mode of insular thinking is visible in the architecture and

design of the district’s buildings. Today, Detroit is in a more optimistic time

- we can take the bars off the windows, take the fences down, open up

ourselves to the neighborhoods, and create a more inclusive space for

our institutions. These institutions are starting not to think of themselves

as isolated, but really to think of themselves as a collective. This shift is so

important to Detroit as a whole. Thinking of ourselves collectively is how we

put ourselves on the map as a city.

So getting back to your question - what’s different about this project?

The way the design team handles the social context. The integration of the

city’s social fabric into all aspects of the design is truly unique. Integrating

the cultural and material reality of place into the design process ensures a

more inclusive, more open, and more compelling collective future.

SC

DR

SC

CCPI focuses on making the common space around and

between the institutions more desirable, safe, well lit,

and technologically enabled. The plan offers a series of

welcoming thresholds for all of the institutions with the

potential for cross pollination, shared audiences, and

the creation of a sense of belonging.

Exactly. I think another unique layer that this design team has introduced

- as a potential model for the city - is lighting. The lighting design is phenomenal.

It ties in really well with the idea of social fabric we talked about

while considering seasonality and time of the day. Detroit gets fairly dark

for four or five months of the year, and people tend to avoid being outside.

This plan introduces an everyday potential experience where people can

feel safe coming to the district. It’s not always about blaring bright lights

but creating an atmosphere of interest.

Earlier you talked a little bit about being a bridge builder,

and I wonder if you would like to go into any more detail

about what it means to create a space or a project in

partnership with civic and private institutions. Also, how



SC

DR

do we balance the interests of funders, stakeholders,

end users, and the city?

I think one of the big successes that we can celebrate today is this collective

conversation that we’re having with all these institutions. This is the first time

all these institutions have really worked together on one vision, and that’s a

huge accomplishment. The city can play a role in bringing this conversation

to an even larger audience and encouraging the networks within each of

these institutions to share their experiences nationally and internationally

outwardly.

I also appreciate that the design team has looked at not only the potential

impacts, but the potential cost savings for the City. The stormwater

management proposal for this plan is right on point with what the City

of Detroit is looking for, and it’s timely as we explore other potential

opportunities to handle stormwater in light of climate change.

SC

DR

SC

DR

With national resources potentially aligned, this project

feels timely.

The strategic thinking behind green stormwater infrastructure is crucial in

this proposal. With recent flooding events wreaking havoc, Detroit residents

are now seeing the importance of water management. This project, in

particular, illustrates how a landscape designed to mitigate damaging

overflow events can also be beautiful and inviting. The design offers a

functional biodiverse solution right in the heart of the city. I can already

imagine the lush gardens hosting birds and butterflies that make a more

enjoyable outdoor environment.

Anything we’ve missed?

There’s so much to celebrate. We finally have a vision that I think is very

strong and it touches on so many layers: stormwater, streetscape, cultural

programming, pedestrian safety, architectural plugins, inclusivity, and

access. We also need to celebrate the success of the institutions. They have

a shared goal, and they are already modeling ways to share resources for

operations.

I always say you may leave Detroit, but Detroit will never leave you. There’s

something about the city that has a bit of soul and will always stay with

you, no matter what you do. I really feel that this team has done such a

superb job. The design team came out of a large international selection,

and has really made significant contributions to this collective vision.



Proposed ‘Climate Machine’ garden for the Michigan Science Center transforms an above-ground parking

lot into an immersive bio-diverse learning environment.

ENVIRONMENT


Cooling

Oasis

Beyond stormwater infrastructure, the

plan increases the tree canopy by 60%.

The introduction of a denser planting

strategy reduces temperatures in the

district by up to 7 degrees, illustrating

how cities can adopt a more resilient

climate change strategy.

The plan is designed to sponsor a

range of landscape conditions with

both wet and dry environments.

Efficient drainage is engineered into

the elements, ensuring the mitigation

of swampy patches or boggy fields

and control over flora and fauna.

The Square’s levee design creates

efficiently draining micro-wetlands

and a multi-level natural environment

that is easy to maintain. The landscape

is designed to accommodate a variety

of ground conditions, native plants,

and inviting environments for visitors

to occupy.

The Science Center Garden

educates about micro-climates by

demonstrating how water cycles,

atmosphere, and ecosystem design

work at the scale of the project and

the planet. Here, the science behind

the project merges seamlessly

with exhibitions and inhabitable

environments. In this instance, a

parking lot is transformed into a

climate machine that serves to

change paradigms about landscape

in the city.

“

Green stormwater

infrastructure has clear

applications when handling

runoff. We sometimes

forget all of the secondary

benefits that help alleviate

and temper our urban

environments.

Don Carpenter

Principal, Drummond Carpenter, PLLC

“

COOLING OASIS


The Role of the

Ecotone

The Ecotone inserts a native,

biodiverse landscape into the heart of

Detroit. This introduction of a resilient

ecological system will filter urban

runoff, slow the flow of stormwater,

temper the warming effect of

development and improve local air

quality. In the process, the Ecotone will

serve as home to resilient vegetation

while helping accommodate and

introduce local and migratory wildlife

species. For residents and visitors,

this landscape element will produce

spaces for passive recreation,

environmental education, and respite.

This strategy plugs into the Southern

Great Lakes Forest ecoregion, which

includes sweeping interior wetlands,

major staging areas for migrating birds,

and sand pits hosting unique plant

communities. This region serves as an

extension of the Midwestern prairies.

Agricultural and urban development

are the predominant land uses here.

Remaining patches of wildlife have

been diminished significantly with

little to no connectivity in many

areas. In many areas, this region has

no protected areas larger than 500

square kilometers.

Given the region’s ecological

challenges, our watershed impact is

all the more critical. The Huron-Erie

Corridor, including Lake St. Clair,

the St. Clair River, and the Detroit

River, makes various contributions to

the overall health of Lake Erie. This

corridor contains near shore, stream,

and extensive coastal wetland

habitats (the Detroit River has over

4,000 acres). More than 65 species

of fish, 16 of which are threatened

or endangered, use the Huron-Erie

Corridor. This area is also part of the

central Great Lakes flyway for millions

of migratory birds.

“

The Ecotone is designed

to offset the impacts of

urbanization and human

activity while making

space for humans and

non-humans to coexist in

the city.

Don Carpenter

Principal, Drummond Carpenter

“

ENVIRONMENT


The Necklace creates a new way to experience the grounds of the Detroit Institute of Arts.

THE ECOTONE

4

Access For All


The fundamental ambition of

CCPI is to create accessible

design that takes all users

into account and reimagines

universal accommodation as an

integral and beautiful feature,

not as an add-on or burden. By

considering everyone’s needs,

design becomes more, rather than

less, appealing and inventive. It

shows how space can sponsor

activity across generations, social

groups, physical experiences, and

economic categories. Each design

decision is based on an aspiration

ACCESS FOR ALL


to achieve flexibility, offer choices,

guarantee welcome, create spaces

for conviviality, and remove the

barriers that keep us apart.

INTRODUCTION


Above: Proposed ephemeral programming on the Band showcases the capacity of the lighting plan to

support large scale events. Here, Woodward Avenue is transformed into a plaza.

Next Page: Lighting plan for the District by 8’18” Lumiere highlights CCPI’s landscape elements.

ACCESS FOR ALL


Light Up

Designed by Paris-based firm 8’18”

Lumière, the lighting plan offers

an adaptable, digital ecology

for Detroit’s Cultural District that

links all institutions with common

lighting elements, while preserving

and emphasizing the specificities,

functions, and architectural qualities

of each.

Enhancing existing conditions and

activating new elements, the plan

incorporates architecture, new

structures, and diverse landscapes,

while acknowledging the need for

flexibility and adaptation. The design

highlights functional lighting around

the Square and atmospheric lighting

along the Necklace. It offers lighting

effects to highlight architecture,

treescapes, and institutional

thresholds. Lighting on the Band, with

its series of flexible plazas, is designed

to accommodate a breadth of events.

Here the lighting offers strategies that

can emphasize large scale gatherings

or ensure safety and tranquility on

ordinary days.

The lighting plan is seasonally

responsive. Using adjustable

lighting temperatures, the system is

designed to accentuate the natural

features of the canopy and ground

vegetation, and to extend alluring

visual qualities of dusk and dawn as

they vary throughout the year. The

design’s affection for flora and fauna

is more than cosmetic, however. The

lighting takes light pollution and

bird migration into consideration,

creating a modifiable system that is as

efficient as it is focused on mitigating

ecological impacts.

The lighting plan operates by

introducing intelligent fixtures,

programmed to respond to changes

in weather conditions, times of day,

and the astronomical clock. Through

the use of controlled photometry,

the approach lowers energy

consumption while amplifying visual

and atmospheric effects. The system

also integrates data transmission and

ensures security. The lighting plan

merges WiFi and LiFi technologies

in order to link people to institutions,

information, and each other. This is

particularly meaningful in a city where

“

The lighting concept comes

from the desire to create

unobstructed views of the

District. Seeking to link

institutions and landscapes,

while ensuring diversity

of experience, the lighting

plan considers existing

architecture and projects a

functional and adaptable

future. It is a digital ecology

designed to animate the

district using modular parts

that treat the city as

a stage.

Remy Civitella

Principal, 8’18” Lumiere

“

LIGHT UP


close to half of the population does

not benefit from consistent access to

the internet.

Integrating signage, sound systems,

and video projection into the lighting

scheme allows for an extra layer

of interactivity. Light and sound

accommodate an ever transforming

cultural eventscape with a number

of possible artistic inputs and

environments. Dynamic lighting

on the facades of buildings and

ground surfaces is made possible

by integrating projection mapping

capabilities to activate key locations

around the District.

The lighting plan is informed by the

iconographic architecture of the

District, and works to amplify the

unique character of each building by

highlighting the rhythms of windows

and ornament. In this approach,

familiar structures become dynamic

urban markers welcoming visitors time

and again.

“

The lighting plan

accounts for human,

institutional and ecological

appropriation, taking

people, animals, vegetation,

and cultural production into

account. In the process it

offers comfort, adaptation,

playability and ambiance,

through a lighting scheme

that highlights the best

attributes of public space

design. Beyond poetics, of

course, the system integrates

functional, material

solutions to create the digital

infrastructure necessary to

access information, connect,

and recharge.

Salome Loyer

Project Manager, 8’18” Lumiere

“

ACCESS FOR ALL


SEASONAL LIGHTING


Digital

Strategy

The Digital Strategy Plan creates

a vision and set of principles for

the equitable development of

digital capacities for the Detroit

Cultural District, centered on digital

infrastructure, digital transformation,

and creative visitor experiences.

Engaged by Midtown Detroit Inc.,

rootoftwo, the Detroit-based, civic

future-making practice of Cézanne

Charles and John Marshall, led the

digital strategy. To ensure it was

deeply rooted in Detroit art and

culture, the team worked with the

district institutions, residents, visitors,

artists, stakeholders, partners and

others.

Technology should be a point of

inclusion. Detroit is one of the least

connected cities and significantly,

residents in Midtown also have

low rates of access to broadband

internet in the home. As a result of the

digital strategy planning work with

rootoftwo, MDI and Wayne State

University formed a new partnership

in collaboration with the institutions

to establish reliable and fast outdoor

Wi-Fi as a free, public amenity across

the district.

rootoftwo led discussions with

local, national and international

thought-leaders to guide the digital

transformation work - resulting

in a set of rights & principles that

consider the impact of data collection,

analysis, and distribution on our

collective cultural, social, and ethical

values. The strategy also identifies

opportunities to build digital capacity

and communications with the district

institutions. Ultimately, the strategy

highlights the Dlectricity festival

produced by MDI and the work of

several institutions in the district.

Collectively, these projects provide

compelling experiences, digital

programming and new collaborations

that activate the outdoor spaces and

connect to audiences across the city

and region.

“

We envision the Detroit

Cultural District as a place

where artists, cultural and

educational institutions,

visitors, and residents

can explore new pathways

for digital expression,

storytelling, and inclusion.

The strategy aims to

build resilient, equitable

and inclusive models for

digital transformation and

infrastructure.

Cézanne Charles & John Marshall

Partners, rootoftwo

“

ACCESS FOR ALL


East Kirby Street lighting plan with integrated WiFi and technology.

DIGITAL STRATEGY


The proposed Arts Vitrine and Welcome Center on Brush Street provides an engaging entry into the

District for pedestrians or those arriving by car via the new underground car park. The space works like a

switchboard, helping guide visitors on their journeys throughout the District. Exhibitions and events will

be co-curated by the District’s stakeholder institutions and the governing entity.

ACCESS FOR ALL


Movement &

Access

Getting to and moving freely

around the District is a fundamental

requirement for the plan. Yet how we

get there, how we access the resources

on site, and the affiliated costs of

staying can be a hotly debated topic.

Every resident engaged on the subject

has strong feelings about arriving and

connecting to the District. Impressions

are often based on connections to

transportation networks; available

vehicles; fees for parking; access to

services and commerce; and other

perceptual considerations about

comfort and efficiency.

Mobility, in this sense, is directly

related to access and social inclusion.

Appropriately, CCPI addresses

questions of urban mobility and

access in a holistic and comprehensive

manner. The plan embraces the

importance of providing access to

culture and leisure so that everyone

can enjoy the city’s resources.

CCPI’s approach to mobility planning

is not considered in isolation, limited

to a problem of public transport,

engineering, or travel efficiency.

It is integrated into a reflection

on the urban totality, including its

complexities and contradictions,

and the inequalities that manifest

themselves in the city. It considers

Detroit’s intense climate, historical

affinity for the automobile, and

embellishment of street proportions

prior to evaluating the impacts of

any urban transformation. It figures

the coded requirements of universal

access and the perceived convenience

of connecting to thresholds.

Most importantly, urban mobility

is not limited to the way people

move or access the District. It

includes the intangible aspirations

of social mobility through programs,

atmosphere, and spatial opportunities

that invite interaction with a fairer city

and a better society.

The Mobility + Access and Parking

booklets take deeper dives into the

statistical measures and attributes

of the mobility and parking

proposals, unpacking the numbers

behind the robust feasibility studies

accompanying the plan. Likewise, the

publications look closer at the District’s

connections to public transportation

and future mobility networks. In this

section, CCPI introduces the idea

of strategic parking consolidation,

creating access points in and out

of the District by coupling art

interventions and public programs

with the efficiency of underground

parking garages.

MOVEMENT & ACCESS


Proposed Brush Street Arts Vitrine and Welcome Center connected to the District’s new underground car

park holds exhibitions, public programs, and outdoor gathering spaces on the public roof deck.

ACCESS FOR ALL


WELCOME CENTER

5

Twelve Institutions Plug In


Urban design is typically focused

on shared and exterior spaces,

so why investigate the internal

workings of the participating

cultural institutions to create the

plan? Working intensively with

each stakeholder institution, CCPI

develops strategies that will make

the interiors more accessible

and the outside world more

engaging. The approach surfaces

public programs and commercial

intrigue, while making institutional

thresholds easier to breach. Each

tailored approach considers

INSTITUTIONS PLUG IN


the circumstances, aspirations,

and ambitions of participating

institutions in order to maximize

impact and develop plans for a

phased evolution. By plugging in,

everyone will augment visibility,

improve audience engagement,

and take full advantage of the

infrastructural improvements that

will be offered by the District plan.

INTRODUCTION


Top: Proposed entry rotunda at the Detroit Historical Museum creates an inviting and flexible space for

exhibitions while reactivating the original Woodward Avenue entry.

Bottom: The proposed third floor ballroom creates an event space that supports future large scale events at

the museum. The southern facade opens a view corridor down Woodward Avenue while the northern wall

creates space for a contemporary fresco by Detroit-based artists.



Detroit

Historical

Museum

Inviting the designers from Akoaki

and Agence Ter to reflect on ways the

institution might extend and amplify

its programming, the Detroit Historical

Museum offered a challenge: how can

architecture sponsor experiences that

highlight history as a living art, not a

closed canon?

In response the design team, working in

close collaboration with the museum’s

staff and leadership, explored ways

to create a more flexible and inviting

strategy for the reconfiguration of

a building constructed in 1951 and

expanded in 1967. The resulting

design gets to the bones of the

matter – producing an analysis of the

original structure and stripping away

partitions and surfaces that encumber

the spatial generosity of the original

plan. In this proposal, obstructions

are eliminated, galleries rearranged,

commercial activities introduced to

engage the Square, and a circulatory

strategy is incorporated to provide a

continuous flow through Detroit’s most

compelling narratives and histories.

On the exterior, the design activates

Legends Plaza by diminishing barriers

to the Square and landscape beyond.

A glass tower serves as a beacon and

a highlight for the collection, ushering

people across the threshold to explore

the museum galleries in open-ended

but clearly intuitive ways. A projection

surface provides a flexible venue to

present rotating audio and visual

content while leaving the lobby open

and welcoming. Inside the reactivated

Woodward Avenue entry, visitors are

greeted by an open atrium and “rust

belt” stair in homage to the industrial

legacy of the city.

Revising the physical space of the

Detroit Historical Museum, the

proposal emphasizes the museum’s

custodial role as keeper of Detroit’s

historical record, and spotlights its

contributions to authoring its future

histories.

“

The Cultural Center is

designed to be a nexus that

supports its neighborhoods.

The District does not stand

alone - it encompasses

neighborhoods, schools,

and the community. We are

thinking about the District

as a place of socio-economic

mixing waters that create

shared experiences for people

of all backgrounds.

Elana Rugh

President and CEO, Detroit

Historical Society

“

DETROIT HISTORICAL MUSEUM


The Detroit

Historical Museum

In Conversation

With Elana Rugh

PLUGGING INTO THE DISTRICT


CONVERSATIONS WITH ELANA RUGH


Elana A. Rugh is the President and Chief

Executive Officer at the Detroit Historical

Society. With thirty years of experience in

nonprofit management and a remarkable

capacity to galvanize local government,

business, and community around common

goals, she works tirelessly to invigorate the

beloved, 100-year-old institution she now

serves. Open, inspiring, with an insatiable

appetite for experimentation, she sat down

to share her thoughts about the future of

the Detroit Historical Society and her plans

to plug in.

Anya Sirota (AS): Someone clever once stated the obvious, “We study the

past to understand the present; we understand the present to guide the

future”? If that’s the case, how does the Detroit Historical Museum nurture

an understanding of the city? Whom does it serve? Detroiters, visitors,

everyone?

Elana Rugh (ER): A community cannot understand its current condition if it does not know its history.

If we do not understand our place within the present, we will be unable to chart a path toward a

positive future. The Detroit Historical Society and its two museums help visitors envision the future

by presenting them with the critical moments of the past and helping them to interpret them in a

way that creates context for their experience in Detroit today.

Our new tagline is “Detroit Starts Here.” We believe that every pilgrimage to Detroit, whether by

a lifelong resident, or someone from another part of the world, should begin with a visit to the

Detroit Historical Museum. We provide context for everything else one will experience in the city,

and we are proud to play this important role.

We know history can be a powerful teacher, and we believe that our work during this time of

such unrest is more critical than ever. We are the keeper of the Detroit region’s stories, but we also

know that Detroit is a microcosm of the world, so what we do is as much for visitors from elsewhere



as it is for Detroiters. People from around the world are fascinated with

our city, our grit, our perseverance, our ups and downs. Understanding the

link between past and present is basic for a good understanding of the

condition of being human.

AS

ER

The pandemic and contemporary social movements

have accelerated a call for change in the way institutions

operate, whom they serve, and how they include a

breadth of voices in the ever evolving conversation

around human experience. In this transforming context,

what is the future of the historical museum? What

aspirations are top of mind as you reconnect with

constituents and extend your audience?

This year, the Detroit Historical Society celebrates its centennial, and it has

been a time of great contemplation for our Board and staff. As we navigate

the significant economic struggles the pandemic has brought upon us, we

also take very seriously our role in telling all Detroiters stories, as well as

collecting stories about THIS time so that 100 years from now, people will

be able to learn from this difficult time in our city.

Even before the current racial unrest, inclusion and social justice were on

everyone’s mind. Most museums were founded by and were designed to

tell the stories of the dominant cultural group – and in Detroit, the dominant

cultural group is no longer what it was when we were founded in 1921, or

even in 1951 when the museum was built.

I think it is important for people visiting cultural institutions, especially

children, to see themselves represented fairly and authentically. Part of our

new strategic direction, as we reimagine the DHM for the next 100 years

and through the opportunity we have being part of Detroit Square, is to

take a critical look at what stories are missing, what has been edited or

excluded. We are committed to ensuring that we are engaging the right

voices from the groups of Detroiters that are underrepresented currently so

that we are representing the full measure of the Detroit experience in the

stories we tell.

I think It comes down to this: cultural institutions need to reflect the audience

we want to attract. We need to remove barriers to entry, and we need to

intentionally produce programs, exhibitions, and events that invite the

community in to engage people in meaningful conversation.

AS

Your institution, early on, modeled the importance of

bringing cultural programming to the outdoors with

various events, such as Techno Tuesdays in Legends

Plaza. Why is it important to breach that institutional

threshold and bring activities into the public realm?



ER

If there was any good that came out of the Covid 19 pandemic, it was the

utter need to design new outdoor programming that felt safe to our visitors

and staff.

Since the Detroit Historical Museum was built in 1951, our location and lack

of extensive grounds has limited our plans to provide outdoor programming

in midtown. Pair that with the decades ago closure of the original and very

grand Woodward facing entrance, and we were challenged at the very

least. The CCPI project showed us what would be possible in the future and

became a catalyst for our team to try out new programming that would

engage the local community of residents and businesses. Our previously

underutilized Legends Plaza was the perfect venue for us to test out our

ability to engage in this new way.

This Cultural Center plan ensures that there’s a breadth of free and open

public spaces that are not contingent solely on economic transactions,

and it ensures that these spaces- that are open for everyone to use are as

engaging as the interiors of our institutions. The added benefit of intentional

connectivity between the institutions through a planned and walkable

landscape will promote collaboration on engaging public programming in

the common areas. Free district wide wifi is one of the early project wins,

and we were proud to be the first place it was installed.

AS

ER

Moving indoors, let’s talk about programs and

exhibitions. Institutional collaboration seems key to

increasing programmatic impact, sharing audience,

diversifying user experience and activating the district.

Your past successes with exhibitions and public programs

that catalyze cross-institutional collaboration, Detroit

67 being a prime example, illustrate just that. Through

this planning process, have you discovered new

opportunities for coordinating resources, programs, and

new initiatives?

While we are at the early stages of embarking on deep collaboration, I

am encouraged and excited about the opportunity to partner closely with

the 12 core institutions in the district in any way possible. We do believe

that the collaboration we achieved with Detroit 67 provides a useful model

for new collaborations to come and our entire team is very excited at the

prospect of regularly working closely with our sister institutions, normalizing

the extraordinary collaboration that was the hallmark of Detroit 67. This

project gives us all the chance to think about ourselves differently and even

more so how we interact with each other and those who visit. The CEO

roundtable that formed as a part of the initial planning effort was a great

example of the power of this project to bring us together.



AS

ER

AS

ER

AS

ER

Urban designers rarely infringe on architectural

interiors. Yet, this design team did - exploring ways

public space can interact more dynamically with the

spatial organization of stakeholder institutions. Can

you tell us a little about working with the design team

on blurring the boundaries between inside and outside?

How has the process inflected your thinking about the

mission and capacities of the museum?

We had no expectation that the design team would delve into the potential

reimagining of our interior, but quite frankly it has been the most catalytic

and inspiring part of the project for our team. We came into this project

anticipating inspirational but modest outdoor changes to the museum.

The team’s discovery that the museum interior could be vastly opened

up intentionally connected to the landscape and reimagined, as well as

the designers’ willingness to take on a complete reimagining of our visitor

experience, changed everything for us.

What aspects of the plan support, grow, and further

develop opportunities for extended programming in

the landscape? For improving visitor experience in the

museum?

With nearly 300,000 artifacts in the collection, DHS is constantly looking

for new and interesting ways to activate the collection through storytelling

outside of the walls of our museums. Utilizing the landscape as a connective

tissue between institutions and an extended canvas for displaying artifacts

and telling Detroit’s stories is an exciting opportunity for us. By intentionally

using the exterior opportunities to expand and enrich the stories that

are well represented inside the museum, we can leverage this additional

exposure to entice more visitors through our doors and into participation

in our programming. By acting as a connector between institutions, the

landscape will hopefully also act as a shared canvas for joint programming

and storytelling by neighbors. We look forward to working toward this

new way of considering our partnerships throughout the cultural district.

Anything else you would like to share?

One of the things I think we all love about the idea of The Cultural Center

is that it is designed to be a NEXUS that supports its neighborhoods. This

District does not stand alone – it encompasses neighborhoods, schools, and

the community. We are also thinking about the district as a place of socioeconomic

mixing waters that create shared experiences from people of all

backgrounds, where everyone feels like they belong. As cultural institutions,

we struggle with this. We all WANT to be inviting, accessible, and appealing

to people who live in the neighborhoods.



Detroit

Public

Library

Beyond providing take-home

resources, the Detroit Public Library

serves as the city’s informal living

room. The Main Library’s exceptional

archival materials and collections

serve as the source material for a

series of interventions. New media and

contemporary arts practices deliver a

series of stimulating, technologically

enabled encounters with the holdings

that might otherwise go unseen.

The Lyric Lounge transforms the music

collection through the installation of

a series of ornery inhabitable disco

balls that immerse audiophiles in the

richness of the record archive. The

photography collection is activated

through an immersive projection

pavilion. And the Arts Collection is

transformed into the People’s Lounge,a

place for Detroiters to engage with

each other’s stories in a comfortable

and stylish living archive. Finally, the

Children’s Wing is invigorated with

an interior playscape that combines

spaces for reading with romping,

and extends family activities to the

outdoors. These interventions activate

the Main Library’s existing spaces and

provide a cornerstone for the cultural

life and civic infrastructure of the city.

“

The CCPI plan encourages

us to connect to other

institutions in a very

intentional way on a regular

basis. I think the district

as a cohesive system allows

people to expand their

experiences as they come

into this space, and that is

in alignment with where we

would like to be.

Jo Anne G. Mondowney

Executive Director, Detroit

Public Library

Moving outdoors, the Woodward

Avenue terrace is restored and

extended to sponsor public programs,

reading kiosks, and temporary food

stalls. The Cass Avenue entrance is

improved with terraced landscaping

that invites visitors to linger on the

grounds that connect to the Wayne

State University campus. CCPI builds

on the well established legacy of the

Main Library.

“



The proposed Lyric Lounge transforms the music collection through the installation of a series of

inhabitable disco balls that immerse audiophiles in the richness of the record archive.

DETROIT PUBLIC LIBRARY




DETROIT PUBLIC LIBRARY


The Detroit

Public Library

In Conversation With

Jo Anne G. Mondowney



CONVERSATIONS WITH JO ANNE G. MONDOWNEY


Jo Anne G. Mondowney stepped into her

role as Executive Director of the Detroit

Public Library in 2009. Before serving the

largest public library system in Michigan,

she made her mark in the field as director

of the Flint Public Library and serving in

several positions at the Enoch Pratt Free

Library in Baltimore. With Jo Anne’s

energy, unflinching dedication to civic

advocacy, and effervescence, the Detroit

Public Library provides residents diverse

and dynamic pathways to literacy and

learning. We met with Jo Anne to learn

more about the role of the library in the

district and beyond.

Harley Etienne (HE): One of the things that we appreciate about the

Detroit Public Library is that it’s an essential destination, one so commonly

frequented. How do you envision the library anchoring the cultural district

by serving residents on a daily basis?

Jo Anne G. Mondowney (JM): Public libraries were once defined by a structure where you had to

come to the library at least every three weeks to return your books, otherwise you were going to

be charged a fine. So structurally, we had an advantage. Programmatically, we didn’t have to

do anything to keep people coming - if you wanted new, different materials, you had to come

in. Over the years, libraries have evolved from a place of just coming in and checking out books

to a community hub for many neighborhoods. In Detroit, for example, the public library is often

the only public place you could come to meet. At one point before we became electronically

driven, the public library was the only place where you could get an encyclopedia and do your

homework. More recently, public libraries have become known to offer other things like: music

programs, plays, and events that engage the community more. But, it is, and has always been a



JM

HE

JM

HE

JM

place where people can come for a variety of different activities on a daily

basis.

As the role of the library changes, we have more digital

resources available and people may not need to come

in to see the physical encyclopedia as they once did.

What does the library become in that context?

The library started engaging communities more heavily when we recognized

that you didn’t have to come into the physical building. We started aiming

for 24/7 connectivity. Even though we compete with platforms like Google,

we do offer resources that those databases cannot. Also, the library got

into the download game with movies, books, and databases, while still

maintaining a presence in the lives of its community.

We are going to be extending the wifi beyond the walls

of the institutions to the entire cultural district. How do

you think that might impact the library?

If you’re only thinking in terms of just connecting to wifi, that does not impact

the library one way or the other. But, if you’re thinking about what you’re

connecting to, then there is room for the public library to shine.

Technology has been a large topic of conversation in the context of the

pandemic. It is widely known how many people are disadvantaged, and

do not have connectivity. In my opinion, it goes beyond connectivity - it is

about what you are connecting to and for what reason.

HE

JM

The Main Branch of the Public Library was the first

building constructed in the district and may well be the

most beautiful. It was the first anchor institution before

everyone else showed up. What are your thoughts about

the profile of the library in the district, and its importance

to this project as an institution, as a building, and as an

accessible place for the community?

Well, I always say: looks matter. People act and respond to beauty no matter

where it is. Detroit has always taken pride in its public library, especially

the main library, which turned a hundred years old this year. It’s [the main

branch] a little frayed with his age, you know, after a hundred years, you

can get worn out. But, it still is one of the most beautiful places you could be

and people come from far and wide to appreciate how beautiful it really is.

From our side, we take a lot of pride in providing an environment that is

beautiful, but that contains lifelong learning for people where everybody

is welcome.



HE

JM

HE

JM

HE

JM

HE

JM

We have this impression that the public library is a place

of comfort and it’s also a black space - either intentionally

or unintentionally black. It’s one of the places where

African-Americans are probably most comfortable

in the district. Historically, there is a tendency to deny

black people access to information, and to comfort. How

does the library respond to that?

I think that people feel welcome, you can’t just create welcome. Folks who

come, they just feel welcome because of the energy we put out to people

and the positivity we exude. That’s not to say everybody has the same

experience because you have to bring something to the process. I think

part of the advantage we have is that we are represented throughout the

city of Detroit. So, if you have the experience of going to a neighborhood

branch, more than likely, that will be a continuum when you come into the

main library space.

The Burton Collection has a big role in establishing the

library as a place where people come to learn about

Detroit’s history and its memory. Can you talk more

about how the DPL is this conservator of the city’s record

and memory?

We are fortunate for Charles N. Burton, who collected and contributed

materials for that collection. The Burton Collection turned a hundred years

old in 2015. It is extensive. It is just absolutely one of the most outstanding

historical collections in Detroit, and I would say in the world. Most notably,

the Burton Collection has the responsibility for maintaining the national

auto history collection, which is the largest in the world.

Turning back to CCPI, how has this design process been

for you? Is there any way that this project has helped you

take stock or appreciate your own institution differently?

It has been nice connecting to others in the cultural center and getting

to know my colleagues in a different way. This project has created an

imaginative space for us to look beyond our current situation, and has

enabled others to look at us in an imaginative way. So, it has been an

internally-focused as well as an externally-productive process.

How does what we’re proposing and working on align

with where you think the library might go? Are there

places of alignment, or some places where it may be not

so aligned?

The plan encourages us to connect to other institutions in a very intentional

way on a regular basis, not just around Noel Night or Dlectricity. I think



JM

HE

JM

looking at the district as a cohesive system allows people to expand their

experiences as they come into this space, and that is in alignment with

where we would like to be. Detroit 67 is a perfect example of what we

can all do to expand the experiences of others. I think that is something to

continue to build on.

What is the key takeaway that you want people

unfamiliar with the Detroit Public Library to know about

its possible future?

We are a lifelong learning institution that does not begin with preschool

and end in high school. We are the people’s university. You can always

learn something here or be connected to others. The library is one of the

most democratic institutions in this country - it allows for points of views

to be expressed in safe ways and nurtures respect for others. As a country,

we are right now in a divisive environment. In the Detroit Public Library, we

always try to cultivate a space to have and respect different opinions. We

are a neutral space that allows for various points of views to coexist.



Charles H. Wright

Museum of African

American History

The Charles H. Wright Museum of

African American History is a symbol

for African-American cultural life

in the city - which is, of course, the

essence and majority of Detroit. The

institution needs no help in cementing

its relationship to and representation

of Detroit’s legacy; what new

construction and participation in

CCPI can offer is a bridge to the

future of African-American art and

experimentation.

To support the vanguard cultural

production of contemporary and

emergent African-American artists,

the Charles H. Wright Museum invited

Agence Ter and Akoaki to reimagine

the interior configuration of its entries,

exhibition spaces, eventscapes, and

connections to the outdoors. The

process looked to enhance spatial

efficiency, circulatory legibility,

and access to flexible spaces for

programming, while enabling the

museum to better serve children

and families. Beyond renovation

and organizational strategies that

consolidate key functions, the team

tested possibilities for expansion,

modeling an addition to house

new media exhibitions, immersive

environments, and production spaces.

Outdoors, the Charles H. Wright

Museum is already modeling

ecologically sustainable strategies for

the management of its architecture

and grounds. The design team builds

on that momentum, contributing

additional water management

infrastructure, public art amenities

and performance-based activities.

“

The notion of a safe

gathering place where

the exchange of ideas and

cultures is really attractive

to me and I think it would

be to a lot of people -

particularly at this moment.

Where does culture gather?

Where can we begin to

intentionally live together

and learn about each other

together?

Neil Barclay

President and CEO, Charles H. Wright

Museum of African American History

“



Top: The proposed exhibition hall with an interactive technology overlay will engage visitors in a renewed

experience of ‘And Still We Rise’ , a comprehensive look at the history of African American resilience.

Next Page: Community event space on the ground floor is reimagined and connected to outdoor gardens.







The Charles H. Wright

Museum of African

American History


Neil Barclay



CONVERSATIONS WITH NEIL BARCLAY


Neil Barclay is the President and Chief

Executive Officer at the Charles H.

Wright Museum of African American

History. With more than three decades of

experience in managing art and cultural

institutions, he aims to engage a global

community in exploring and celebrating the

perseverance and achievements of African

Americans. Professor Harley Etienne,

planning consultant for the design team,

connected with Neil Barclay to discuss how

the Charles H. Wright plugs into the District.

Harley Etienne (HE): What is the importance of the Charles H. Wright

Museum to Detroiters and black Detroiters, more specifically. Zooming out,

how does the Charles H. Wright register at the city, region, state, nation,

and international scales?

Neil Barclay(NB): The Charles Wright is one of the oldest and largest of the state’s preeminent

American institutions, and it’s one of the few that is focused specifically on African-American

culture. I think those elements make the institution important, certainly locally and statewide.

The museum was established right after the rebellion. The current building we’re in started

the movement to create the institution. So, the Charles Wright is symbolic to a lot of people,

representing a certain kind of African-American empowerment. It also has been a place where

a number of prominent African-Americans have laid in state to allow the community to say their

goodbyes, whether it’s Judge Keith, Aretha Franklin, or Rosa Parks, all of whom have laid in state

in our rotunda.

I think the Charles Wright’s national import comes from being the largest encyclopedic museum of

African-American history other than the Smithsonian. Even then, I would say it’s the only replicable

model of an African-American museum in the country. Meaning, if someone wanted to build an

African-American museum today, they wouldn’t be looking at the Smithsonian as a model. They

would really be looking more to the Wright and what’s possible - particularly because it was built

out of a public/private partnership.



HE

NB

The building is monumental. It logically offers a gateway

into the district. What are the ways the Charles Wright

is thinking about enhancing its position in the District?

I really liked where the visitor center was positioned in the latest designs,

because of its proximity to the Wright. I also think my instinct about making

the Wright a media driven center is an opportunity for us to draw people

coming into the cultural center directly into the Wright, because of the

exhibitions that it would offer. As I envisioned it, the exhibition would be

similar to the Immersive Van Gogh installation with endless possibilities

for sound design, visual design, et cetera. My goal is to make the media

attraction a must-see. There are always going to be attractions pulling

people into the district, so we are trying to think a lot about how this

experience is going to be different from the DIA, DHM, or any of those

other experiences.

These ideas are part of a larger initiative that the Wright is exploring with

a number of funders around the use of technology and museums. How we

can increase interactivity and incorporate new technologies is going to

become more and more a part of what we do. Even what was done for

Dlectricity - video mapping on a building - is more of the direction we’re

going towards. We’re not likely to collect art objects but more artifacts and

archival material. Our visual arts presentations are going to be more akin

to public art or larger scale public displays of history and culture. Does that

make sense?

HE

It does. I’m curious about the complementarities

between the Charles Wright, the DPL, and some of the

other institutions along this avenue of new media and

exhibition. How are you envisioning that? Has this

project helped you see more opportunities for those

kinds of collaborations and connections?

NB It has not, to be honest. I don’t think the project invites - yet - the institutions

to think more about collaborations, other than providing a potential space

for them to do so. I think that the work of determining what that would

be, has yet to be frankly discussed. That could be just where we are in the

planning.

As it relates to the library and the historical museum though, I feel like a lot

of the materials that are in the archives they have could be an important

source for the exhibitions that we want to create - particularly the immersive

ones about Detroit neighborhoods and Detroit streets. So this notion of

pulling from archives about black Detroit around the city, could be a very

fruitful one for us.



HE

NB

Along that vein, we asked Joanne Mondowney [director

of the Detroit Public Library] about the comfort and the

importance of the Public Library for blackness in the

district. I think it’s pretty explicit with the Charles Wright

given its mission’s history, but I wanted to hear your

thoughts on the Charles Wright as a place of welcome

in the district on a daily basis.

Well, in a lot of ways it was designed as a town square. The conceit of the

rotunda is that people come in from all different directions into the central

place. Even the way the acoustics run, you can hear each other speak as if

they were in your mind. So that was certainly part of the impulse to create

the building itself.

I would say that in recent years the Wright has really tried more to live up

to its reputation as a cultural institution and not as much as a community

gathering place. I don’t think that is intentional in the sense that we did one

or the other. My feeling about the Wright when I came in was there was a

lot we needed to do as an institution before we could be taken seriously as

a museum and a cultural institution - the state of the archives, budget, staff,

etc.

Moving forward, our hope for a takeaway from the CCPI project is to be

more welcoming and more of a destination. We want to have more places

where people can come see themselves and feel comfortable. For example,

even in the Agence Ter - Akoaki remodel, we’re thinking about the whole

bottom floor as a place for children and families to come together and

look at African-American culture from the perspective of younger people.

This provides parents an opportunity to give their kids a sense of their own

cultural identity.

HE

NB

Which part of this project has excited you the most?

Well, the whole idea of it thrills me. Frankly, the notion that we would have

this central campus for culture that has the beauty and the utility that

you all have described is amazing. It’s fabulous. It’s also a very expensive

proposition in a city that does not have a lot of resources. So, it’s going to

be interesting to see if we can realize that.

It’s also been thrilling to have my colleagues around the table, and to have

us thinking about something together. I think that’s really significant. I have

not seen that in many cities that I’ve been in. If nothing else happened, if we

could learn how to work together and collaborate, that would be amazing.

There’s usually competition among these kinds of organizations, typically

for donors or visibility, but I don’t feel that in this group.



HE

NB

HE

NB

HE

NB

Is there anything about the design in particular that you

really like?

I love the new visitor center. I thought that was really a genius idea. The

look and feel of the open space created is going to be really inviting for

people, particularly when we think about what content might be seen as

people are coming out of the garage. I’ve loved all of the landscaping and

lighting work. I think it’s outstanding. It’s going to be really, really beautiful.

Do you see the potential for particular experiences

coming out of this project for artists, African-American

artists in particular, and how they engage with the

space? Do you see any potential for that?

Well, certainly my vision for the Wright building is about giving artists the

tools they need to innovate for the 21st and 22nd century. My belief is things,

like objects, are not going to be the subject of art making much longer. I

mean, we’ll still have painters and so fourth. But that work will be able to

be animated and utilized in so many different other ways. I want our artists

to be able to think about our museum as a place for them to actually do

it and to actually realize that level of ambition. The Wright has been just

about history, somewhat about culture, but rarely about contemporary art.I

come from the contemporary art world. I’m keen to give opportunities to

artists working here to show their work, to be a catalyst for their work, and

to garner them more regional and national attention. The Mario Moore

exhibition we just did and the catalog that goes with it was really an

attempt for us to give him the tools and things needed to be taken seriously

nationally and internationally. I think we will do that with all the artists that

we present moving forward.

What do you think that the rest of the cultural district

can learn from the Charles Wright?

They can learn that there is something significant about allowing an

African-American museum to have prominence in a cultural sector of a

predominantly black city.

There is nothing wrong with our colleagues being everything that they are,

and yet respecting the fact that there is a museum where that’s our mission. I

do think that there is a tacit notion of first choice institutions contrasted with

the way we’re positioning ourselves. That might make us feel a little foreign

to a lot of people attempting to understand that there is a difference. It’s

the difference between a culture speaking about themselves and a culture

commenting on another culture from their perspective. Those are both

important, but they remain two different things. In this moment, the piece

that is missing is the piece about the lived experience.



NB

Historically, larger, more mainstream organizations around the world, often

give very little respect and attention to BIPOC organizations within their

community. Seldom do they balance the fact that they have an institution

that’s totally focused on culture with one who lives in a community that they

want to be servicing . That has not ever been well negotiated. I think it’s

something we might be able to accomplish with the cultural district project.

Ultimately, how important is it to Detroit for this project to come to pass?

Given our demographics, the Wrights imprimatur is an important one. And

I say that to think about the project without the Wright is inconceivable.

HE

NB

HE

NB

This is an incredibly important point. Thank you for saying

what you just said, and for being that candid. This

came up a little bit when we talked to Joanne Mondowney

right before you. We told her that we thought

that the DPL was kind of one of the underrated stars of

the district. Is there a place where the Charles Wright

and the DPL are conceived as co-stars?

Absolutely. I think we could do a lot, and I’m glad you are talking about Jo

Anne because I haven’t talked to her in a long time. I think that the Wright

and the library system could be huge partners in this, and in Detroit. I think

that we could bring a lot of resources to residents, and possibly to each

other. I’m not familiar with the holdings of the library, but my suspicion is that

there’s a lot that they could help us amplify. Also, we could work together on

the creation of things that are more outward facing. In a city that is dealing

with literacy issues, low reading levels, and access to technology, there is a

story there that’s really significant about us working together. Right?

We also asked Jo Anne about the ways in which culture

and literacy in particular have been denied to African-

Americans, and how this project could be one way

to create gateways into these institutions and bring

even more people in. Do you have any thoughts? One

of the phrases we threw around with this question

was deliberate civility, a place where people come to

get calm and are civil in a way that they’re not in the

larger world and where they can absorb information

and appreciate art and culture in particular ways. I

just wanted to see if you had any reactions to that idea

about deliberate civility and the denial of information

and culture to African-Americans.

I’m kicking around whether civility is the right term. Our history is such

that sometimes being what people would consider ‘uncivil’ has been the

reason that we have survived. So, that word doesn’t strike me, in terms of

the African-American experience of being particularly apropos.



NB

The notion of a safe gathering place where the exchange of ideas and

cultures exists is really attractive to me and I think it would be to a lot of

people - particularly at this moment. Where does culture gather? Where

can we begin to intentionally live and learn about each other together and

not apart? Going back to the notion of trying to bridge the lived experiences

of black and non BIPOC people - that disconnect is so severe right now. If

we can’t get over that, we’re really not going to survive.

I think it’s a really interesting idea. You’re an urban planner, so you know

the town square is not a new idea. In this moment, that’s particularly

compelling when you think about the different kinds of the divides, right?

The fact that we all have different town squares, or different gathering

places - the district could be a gathering place where everybody comes.

They start there. So they learn about Detroit, that’s where they really sink

their teeth into what this place is about. That’s a huge possibility of

the project.

HE

NB

HE

Absolutely. One last question - how has it been working

with us?

Y’all are okay. No, I’m just kidding - I love working with you guys! I have to

say, I find working with you very inspiring. I think you listen well. I appreciate

how well the ideas that we’ve expressed together show up in the renderings,

and the things that you do for us. I think that’s been spot on. I think you all

are incredible. I really do. I’m not just saying that.

Well, we appreciate it. Thank you, Neil.



Top: A test fit to reimagine the Woodward entry in a strategy that proposes radical flatness and intentional

horizontality on an extended plaza.

Bottom: The Woodward Avenue entry amplifies the grand lobby to welcome visitors from the proposed

plaza. The triple-height space offers opportunities to exhibit three-dimensional works.



Detroit Institute

of Arts

For the venerable Detroit Institute

of Arts, Agence Ter and Akoaki

created a set of simple interventions

to leverage existing assets. These

spatial mediations are designed to

make navigation intuitive and access

more welcoming. In the process,

the proposal considers the possible

futures of an encyclopedic institution

as it works to expand, embrace, and

engage new generations of Detroiters.

Interventions explored by the design

team center around entry experiences,

exhibitions, childrens’ learning, and

commercial activation. The goals

include: unifying the existing threeentryway

layout on the ground floor

by way of a central ticket counter,

bringing commercial activity to the

southern facade, creating an addition

at the John R entry that extends

exhibition, consolidating educational

programming in a stacked children’s

wing, and extending the public

programming to a roof garden and

cafe.

The design also examines strategies

to humanize the grand stair and

institutional entry on Woodward

Avenue. Offering options with

different topographies that are more

playful, inclusive, and contemporary,

the proposal intentionally subdues

the reverential aspects of the

architecture to create an interactive,

approachable, and programmable

space for civic engagement.

These modifications help define

the central ephemeral plaza on

Woodward Avenue, an urban

connector between the Detroit

Institute of Arts and the Detroit Public

Library. Terracing, integrated lighting,

technology, and infrastructure

are combined to host large-scale

events when Woodward Avenue is

temporarily shut for cultural events.

“

Detroit is an incredibly

vibrant city, in constant

evolution, and there’s no

place else I would rather

be. The Detroit Institute

of Arts strives to be a

reflection of our culturally

rich communities, and we

want to continue to create

programs, exhibitions and

experiences that mirror the

powerfully diverse society

we serve.

Salvador Salort - Pons

Director, President and CEO, Detroit

Institute of Arts

“

DETROIT INSTITUTE OF ARTS




DETROIT INSTITUTE OF ARTS


The Detroit

Institute of Arts

In Conversation

With Salvador

Salort - Pons



CONVERSATIONS WITH SALVADOR SALORT-PONS


Since becoming Director of the Detroit

Institute of Arts in 2015, Salvador Salort-

Pons has worked to make one of the largest

and most significant art museums in the

United States feel more like a town square.

Community interest and accessibility

remain a top priority for this Spanish-

American museum professional, who

shared his aspirations for the District with

the design team.

Sarah Carter (SC): The Detroit Institute of the Arts (DIA) under your

leadership was a leading force and a conceptual catalyst behind the

entire CCPI project—could you share how this project came about, and

how your relationship to the project has evolved over the course of the

planning process?

Salvador Salort-Pons (SSP): As a child growing up in Madrid, the plaza (or public square) occupied

a central place in my early life. It was where friends played soccer and other games. It was a place

where many gathered for coffee and conversations. It was where neighbors lounged with books

and newspapers. It was the commons, the community space, a place where life unfolded slowly

and happily under the warmth of the sun and the music of the birds.

Upon my arrival in Detroit in 2008, I spent my first year in the city walking up and down Woodward

Avenue to my new job at the DIA. And in this big industrial city, built with the hands of workers

from every corner of the world, I wondered how those individuals would spend their time in public

spaces. On my walks and explorations of the city, I looked for its community heart in the urban

space, where the art of living occurred.

I was unable to discover that place. I wondered then if the DIA could function as the gathering

space for everyone, serving as a catalyst that helped structure the design of a plaza that could

play an important role in the life of the citizens of Detroit and our region. For some years the

idea was simmering inside and when I was elected Director of the DIA in 2015, with the Board’s

approval, it became the new vision for the organization as we defined the role the museum could

play in our society moving forward.



While the DIA initiated this effort we made it an early priority to bring all

of our neighbors in the cultural district as partners in the project, including

the Detroit Public Library, Detroit Historical Museum, The Charles H. Wright

Museum of African American History, and the Michigan Science Center

as well as the University of Michigan, Wayne State, and the College for

Creative Studies to ensure that this process was collaborative and that we

were all functioning as equals. This is why it was important that Midtown

Detroit Inc, under Susan Mosey’s leadership took over the oversight and

management of the process in the early days. She has been an amazing

and effective steward of representing everyone’s interest fairly and

equitably. We owe her much for her insights and the depth of experience

she has brought to this process.

SC

SSP

Our contemporary social climate has questioned

what role encyclopedic museums and other venerable

institutions play in the construction of culture, and

what responsibility they bear in creating equitable and

inclusive environments. Detroit has a high percentage of

residents who are people of color. Please talk about the

process behind the development of the CCPI.

I’ve lived in many different places throughout the world, and Detroit is an

incredibly vibrant city, in constant evolution, and there’s no place else I’d

rather be. The DIA strives to be a reflection of our culturally rich communities

and we want to continue to create programs, exhibitions and experiences

that mirror the powerfully diverse society we serve. We continually seek

input from all our stakeholders and meet with local advisors and artists

to ensure our programming and our art display meet the needs of those

we serve. All the work that we do internally and externally is implemented

through the lens of inclusion, diversity, equity, and access, which we are

ingraining in the DNA of the organization.

To secure a transformative vision for the district campus, a design competition

was launched in 2018 that attracted designers and firms from more than 50

cities/countries around the world. The competition featured a jury made up

of diverse national experts in landscape and urban design including Julie

Bargmann of the University of Virginia Maurice Cox, who currently serves

as Planning Director for the City of Chicago; William Gilchrist, Planning

Director of Oakland, CA; Jonathan Massey, Dean of the Taubman School of

Architecture at the University of Michigan; and Mario Moore, an artist from

Detroit, who joined together with leaders of the district institutions to select

a winning team and design direction after input from the community. The

Paris-based landscape architects Agence Ter were joined by the Detroitbased

design firm Akoaki to be selected by the competition’s 12 jurors to

formalize their compelling design proposal.



SC

SSP

It is a truism to say the DIA is a cultural and architectural

gem. That position can be intimidating for some. How

does the DIA invite visitors to breach its venerable

threshold? How does it engage the common ground?

This is why the CCPI is so essential for our future and why we are investing in

the plan. This project offers us the chance to bring the inside of the museum

outside for audiences. It offers us the possibility to make the building more

inviting. We do offer outdoor programming when the weather permits, but

the current infrastructure –or lack thereof – is challenging and is not ideal

for the kinds of engagements our curators and public programming leaders

would like to offer. We have also made it a priority to take programs out

into the community, in order to meet people where they are, which makes

the museum more accessible in the long run, including our long-running

Inside|Out program and our public art initiative.

The emerging landscape design of the winning Agence Ter/Akoaki plan

promises to transform 16 acres of paved surface into lush landscape,

incorporating native plantings, landforms, and pathways which add

interest and elevate comfort for Cultural Center visitors and staff. Areas

for programming have also been carved into the landscape along the

proposed necklace pathway as COVID-19 has underscored the value of

parks and public spaces and how they support public health and wellbeing.

SC

SSP

SC

SSP

What kind of relationship does the DIA have with its

neighboring institutions? How often are collaborative

exhibitions like Detroit ’67 undertaken, and are there

plans for more collaborative programming opportunities

in the future?

We are always looking to collaborate with our neighboring institutions

as was demonstrated with Detroit ’67 and other important programs from

the past, including ongoing internship programs and other collaborative

activities with Wayne State. I also participate in meetings with my partner

CEOs in the district to discuss current topics, challenges, and opportunities.

But of course, our main focus is driven by the desire of all of us to improve

and design more engaging visitor experiences on the campus which we see

as being the vital outcome of the CCPI plan.

The Cultural District already attracts 2 million people a

year. Does the DIA plan to grow its audience, and how?

We are always looking to grow the audiences that we serve, always

striving to be more relevant to our communities and to invite even more

people to visit. In the wake of the pandemic, which sent shockwaves across

the museum world, we also learned a lot through our efforts to reach our



SSP

SC

SSP

SC

SSP

audiences during the short time we were forced to be closed. We are now

developing plans to put more resources and efforts behind our digital

and online initiatives, including videos and live-streaming of programs,

all of which have the potential to play a critical role in expanding our

engagement with the public. Of course, growth in our in-person audiences

is always a top priority and to keep relevant to them is a crucial aspect of

our work.

Typically, encyclopedic museums are introverts. They

need climate control, safety, security, calibrated lighting,

and security in order to preserve culture for posterity.

Despite this fact, can you see DIA programming

activating the outdoors?

Of course. Absolutely. Outdoor programs and experiences have always

been a priority for us, especially in the warmer months here in the Midwest.

We know our audiences also love experiences and programs set outside

the building. But we are limited by the infrastructure as it currently exists.

This is why we are so excited for the opportunity that the CCPI plan offers.

In my eyes, the team’s proposed design for the campus will result in a

transformational experience for all who visit the district as well as for the

institutions themselves. The plan provides for places for people to linger

and experience the natural beauty of landscape as well as help manage

stormwater runoff, provide new parking, and safe pedestrian experiences. It

provides the opportunity for our institutions to curate new public programs

and art experiences. In sum, it allows the world-class centers of culture and

education that make up this neighborhood the opportunity to bring the

inside out for people of all ages and backgrounds.

We know you are not supposed to play favorites, but

currently what is your favorite work in the DIA?

Diego Rivera’s Detroit Industry murals. It is simply the heart of the DIA,

America’s Sistine Chapel, a lasting image of how Detroit changed the

history of the world.



Rooftop cafe and event space at the Scarab Club.



The

Scarab

Club

Celebrating the contemporary while

preserving and paying tribute to the

past is a balancing act for The Scarab

Club, an artists’ hub, gallery, and

studio space that has been a nexus

for creative activity since 1907. In

the CCPI plan, the design team tests

opportunities to extend and evolve

the legendary art club’s footprint. A

proposed new addition honors its

singular architecture by mirroring the

building over the adjacent parking

lot using new materials. Such an

extension would double the Club’s

available exhibition, workshop, and

studio spaces furthering its mission

as a center for artistic production and

experience in the District.

The proposal also works to enhance the

Scarab Club’s outdoor programming.

Its rich history of welcoming visitors

to the enclosed garden finds new

possibilities through an enlargement

of the garden space along the north

wall, which would include space for

sculpture.

Historically, the Scarab Club has been

an anchor for area artists who work,

gather, learn, and share through

exhibitions and events. Today, the

Scarab Club is perfectly poised to build

upon a legacy of artistic excellence

and inclusion with an addition that

furthers its mission to advocate for the

arts, embrace experimentation, and

sponsor emergent programming to

strengthen its cultural legacy.

“

The CCPI plan democratizes

the cultural landscape

by treating institutions

big and small with equal

consideration, recognizing

ways in which we all

contribute. The Scarab Club

promotes correspondences

between those who make

art and those who love

art, and we are excited by

the prospect of a bold new

direction for our historic

building.

“

MaryAnn Wilkenson

Executive Director, The Scarab Club

THE SCARAB CLUB




THE SCARAB CLUB


Michigan Science

Center

Since 1978, the Michigan Science

Center has grown and expanded into

the dynamic institution it is now: a place

that aims to inspire visitors of all ages

with active learning environments that

demonstrate how our world works.

The building’s incremental evolution,

through a series of additions,

poses certain organizational and

ecological challenges. How can the

existing architecture and landscape

be updated to better align with the

innovative scientific, technological,

and engineering content housed

within?

In response, the design team explored

ways the Michigan Science Center’s

aggregate parts might be unified by

deploying sustainable technologies

to activate the building facade. The

approach envisions the architecture

operating as a machine for learning

that demonstrates best practices and

new building methods. Photovoltaics,

wind energy, solar gain, vegetable

shading, and water management

systems are among the deployable

strategies explored in this phased

approach.

Beyond sustainable engineering, CCPI

offers an opportunity to augment the

Michigan Science Center’s visibility in

the District. Lighting effects activate

the dome on Warren Avenue,

transforming the architectural element

into an urban marker. Projections on

the building’s east elevation contribute

to District-wide events or announce

new programming. On a daily basis,

the proposal clarifies the entrances,

improves the sense of welcome, and

makes recommendations for easier

navigation.

The Michigan Science Center’s

outdoor experience is where

significant transformation is possible.

The plan reimagines the Center’s

shared surface parking lot as a series

of outdoor classrooms, temporary

exhibitions, and demonstration

gardens capable of hosting a breadth

of formal and informal programming

for a cross-generational audience.

Here rocket installations co-exist

with inflatable performance spaces

and climate machines that illustrate

environmental cycles at scale.

“

Detroit is a very proud

city and deserves an

intervention representative

of that pride. I would

like to see a design for the

district that celebrates

the accomplishments and

influences of the city.

Christian Greer

President and CEO, The Michigan

Science Center

“



In this proposal, the surface parking lot is transformed into a public garden designed to host a range of

temporary installations and programs for the Michigan Science Center.

MICHIGAN SCIENCE CENTER


The Michigan

Science Center


Christian Greer



CONVERSATIONS WITH CHRISTIAN GREER


Christian Greer serves as President and

CEO of the Michigan Science Center, a

popular educational destination that

connects with audiences and communities

through innovative onsite, offsite, and

online programming. Greer brings a

unique passion for science and learning

to everything he does. From his office on

John R, he shared how hands-on learning

inspires people of all ages and shapes

public programming.

Anya Sirota (AS): Let’s start with an establishing shot. For someone coming

to the Michigan Science Center for the first time, what would that visitor

encounter and what is the mission of the institution that you direct?

Christian Greer (CG): We have a more official mission, but our value proposition is we put you at the

center of science and STEM learning. Our focus and reach extends far beyond childhood audiences

to include a full gamut of family experiences and intergenerational learning opportunities.

For example, earlier this year, we opened an exhibit that addresses weather phenomena called

‘Earth, Wind and Weather.’ The exhibition invites audiences of all ages to interact directly with

material experimentation with water, providing displays that actively splash, form clouds, and

even simulate an avalanche!

When this level of interactivity is possible, we’re clearly not operating as an art museum, nor a

history museum. We’re something very different. When you walk in, you can see artistry in the

curation of our space. We make science active by encouraging trial and error.

Anya Sirota (AS): Traditionally science centers are educational venues,

and yet you’re talking about the Michigan Science Center as being

intergenerational and focused on diverse audiences interested in

understanding how the world works. How do you ensure that the interests

of such a broad audience are met?



CG

We start by learning from childhood interactivity. Kids don’t need

permission to try something. They run up to an exhibit and intuitively press

all of the necessary buttons. That’s how they engage. As we get older, we

begin to restrain ourselves by questioning if this is something we should

do. By intentionally creating the right environment, all that disappears and

everybody becomes a curious learner. When we get that ambition right, as

in the exhibition of a 12 foot tornado, people want to engage immediately

and intuitively.

Kids are typically the first ones to interact with an exhibit and that

automatically creates a pecking order. We design our exhibits in such

a way that audiences in the back can still engage. For example, when

children are interacting with an exhibit up close, there’s also a screen above

so that teens, parents, grandparents, and others can also see what’s going

on. Intergenerational learning is important because families that learn

together, grow together. They are more inclined to teach each other, and

they respect personal knowledge gained over the years.

Ultimately, we want to encourage human curiosity.

AS

CG

We’re witnessing science centers across the nation

becoming platforms for serious conversations that touch

on collective health, climate change, pollution in our

oceans, the role of technology, and building civil society,

to name a few. As the director of an institution that

foregrounds play, interactivity, and joy in the experience

of the exhibits, how do you position the institution?

Does the Science Center participate in these pressing

conversations?

There’s a difference between science centers and science museums. A

science museum has a rich collection of scientific objects and cultural

objects related to science or technology - each one of those objects tells a

specific story that shapes our society in ways that are more than just having

fun with your family. Science centers, on the other hand, offer a creative,

dynamic, and interactive way of teaching science.

I think science centers are starting to feel like they need to be more like science

museums and provide a platform to host some of these conversations. As

an institution we are ready to discuss topics like pollution, vaccination, and

climate change by demystifying them from a neutral, objective position.

I think the Science Center should take things out of your daily life and teach

you a little bit more of the science behind it. I believe we can not demystify

the realities of everyday life if we’re preaching dogmas. Instead, it is our

responsibility to provide accessible and intelligent tools for people to

develop informed opinions about top of mind issues.



AS

CG

We’re seeing institutions more engaged with outdoor

programming and outdoor exhibitions. How do you

imagine the Science Center activating public space?

Do you imagine that it’s possible to take some of that

energy currently housed within the museum and bring it

outdoors?

If we consider the cultural district design - the Necklace element gives

us ample opportunity to reconceptualize outdoor exhibitions. The design

of the public space invites us to dream big, even to extend beyond the

footprint of the district to engage Detroiters more broadly. Imagine, for

a moment, activating Woodward with a scale model of the solar system.

The sun could be located downtown, and then we could measure the entire

distance of the solar system. Distances and proportions could be perceived

at the scale of city blocks. How amazing is that?

Absolutely. The topics of exploration germane to the Science Center do

not need to be contained in the institution alone. Gravity, for example,

works uniformly indoors and out. Activating outdoor space with science

and learning would support our mission of growing awareness about the

mechanics of everyday life.

AS

CG

Science continues to play a role in the development

of this planning initiative. We have been working with

scientists, engineers, and consultants to find imaginative

ways that the landscape can introduce ecology,

biodiversity, and water management into this urban

public context. Would the Michigan Science Center

have an appetite to install exhibitions in the landscape

to make the systems more legible?

That would be fun! I think all the institutions in this district need to get out

of their four walls.

In Constructivist learning theories, which envision learning through direct

action, no two people discern knowledge in the same way. New information

is coupled with a full repository of prior knowledge and contributes to one’s

unique cognitive framework. Once you learn how to read things, you just

don’t see it the same way. And that perspective is singular and remarkable.

As an aside, I once traveled west with the famous paleontologist Paul Serino.

It was a great opportunity for me to witness a true dinosaur hunter, one who

could literally “sniff out” dinosaurs. Suffice it to say, that experience shifted

my perspectives and inflected the way that I understand paleontology

and geology. We work to deliver that level of captivating, direct learning

experience in all of our exhibitions.



CG

AS

CG

Taking that energy to the outdoors, I would love to see the Necklace

deployed as a teaching opportunity. Imagine carefully curated outdoor

exhibitions that introduce visitors to the region’s native ecology. How

fantastic would it be to know how to read leaves on your way from point A

to point B in the district.

If we were to harness your inspired imagination and

ask you about what you would like to see on the CCPI

grounds, whether that’s adjacent to your institution or

somewhere else, what would that be? No idea is too

outrageous.

Detroit is a very proud city and deserves an intervention representative

of that pride. The world may have influenced Detroit, but Detroit also has

influenced the rest of the world. I would like to see an intervention in the

district that celebrates the accomplishments and influence of the city.

I like to work backwards. I explore successful projects in cities and institutions

around the world and ask myself: how did that happen? How can we

reimagine these strategies for the Detroit context? Video conferencing, for

example, is, to a large extent, ubiquitous. But at the right scale and with

connections to partnering institutions around, visitors to the district could

experience an unprecedented, radical sense of connectivity across time

zones.

Connection is important in my mind because there are so many people

in Detroit that have not had the luxury or privilege to travel regionally or

globally. So the idea of installing a live interactive portal to other places on

earth is particularly meaningful here.

On the flip side, organizations in the district have world renowned

collections, and sponsor exhibitions of a very high caliber. It would be

equally beneficial to broadcast our activities out to the world.

There has to be an exchange, and the cultural district should be at the center

of this exchange. Detroit connects to the world, and the world connects to us.

AS

CG

You’re saying that the Cultural District is ready to step

onto an international stage?

Absolutely. We have to be ready for that. The Cultural District is unique in the

city, and well poised to help Detroit shine on an international stage. What

would people from other places come in and see? How would everyone

feel welcome? When I think about the existing assets and the future urban

design – Wow, it could be great!



College for Creative

Studies

The College for Creative Studies’

unique and architecturally significant

campus illustrates the District plan’s

adaptability as it works to unite

this educational institution with its

neighbors while maintaining the

integrity of the Walter and Josephine

Ford campus.

The proposed campus connection to

the District plan will be light and wellconsidered.

Continuity will be made

possible through the integration of

water management infrastructure.

upgrades of the hardscape; urban

furniture improvements that match the

materials and sensibilities introduced

in the Necklace; and the integration

of lighting and technology to offer a

playable landscape for events and

projections.

Integration of the campus will allow

for the college to extend its reach

and visibility beyond the boundaries

of its immediate footprint. An axial

sculpture garden along the Square

will extend to Warren Avenue and

connect to the Charles H. Wright

Museum of African American History.

The space creates an opportunity

for temporary installation of student

and faculty work. The John R above

ground parking lot transformed into

the Common Green will offer students

a quad experience in the heart of the

city. Additionally, the Brush Street

Arts Vitrine and Welcome Center will

create extended opportunities for

exhibitions and public engagement.

The campus’s current operations

are retained and improved. Student

shuttle drop off, delivery access,

as well as space for sculpture and

exhibitions, remain central to the

continuation of current campus

functions. Proposed connections

invite the College for Creative

Studies to expand its presence and

programming by activating newly

available public space with innovative

design generated by the institution.

“

A really important part

of the experience has been

learning more about the

challenges and opportunities

facing the other institutions

in the cultural center area.

This is especially true for

the smaller neighboring

institutions. The process

has created a regular

jumping off point for other

collaborations.

Don Tuski,

President, College for Creative Studies

“



The Walter and Josephine Ford campus is a natural hinge in the plan with its sculpture garden and outdoor

spaces for encounters with the arts. CCPI connects to the College for Creative Studies through light touch

interventions that retain the spirit of the campus.

COLLEGE FOR CREATIVE STUDIES


The College for

Creative Studies


Don Tuski



CONVERSATIONS WITH DON TUSKI


A three-time college president and

Michigan native, Don Tuski leads the

College for Creative Studies with his spirit

of inquiry across disciplines and creative

collaboration. An unwavering advocate for

the value of an art and design education,

Tuski is driven by the opportunity to build

on the College for Creative Studies solid

foundation to propel them into the future.

We caught up with Don to learn more

about his thoughts on the CCPI plan.

Anya Sirota (AS): Tell us about your experience collaborating on the CCPI

plan to date?

Don Tuski (DT): CCS has been involved from the beginning of the process, with our former president

Rick Rogers participating in the initial steering committee helping to choose the consultants. Since

I have taken over as president, I have sat on the steering committee, and a variety of senior staff

have been engaged in work groups and in other ways.

A really important part of the experience has been learning more about the challenges and

opportunities facing the other institutions in the cultural center area. This is especially true for

the smaller neighboring institutions. The process has created a regular interaction and been a

jumping off point for other collaborations.

Anya Sirota (AS): How do you think the CCPI can support the mission of

your institution?



DT

AS

DT

AS

DT

As a small institution, CCS can sometimes be overshadowed by its

neighbors. The planning process continues to grow awareness of CCS as

an integral part of the cultural center and hopefully in the future, bring new

visitors. The initiative also offers meaningful ways for our students, faculty,

staff, and programs to connect to other institutions for even greater impact.

Our entire campus community benefits as the surrounding district becomes

more vibrant and responsive to their needs.

What opportunities do you see in expanding

programming to the outdoors? In sharing resources with

neighboring institutions?

CCS is investing in experiential learning as a core component of its

educational process. Our cultural center neighbors are often exploring

contemporary issues that connect to our curriculum or have the types of

jobs that our students seek post graduation. We can expand the relevant

experiential learning opportunities available for our students by sharing

resources with these neighbors. For many of our students, this type of

experience is the most valuable part of their education. In addition, the

outdoors provides a canvas and a space to not only raise awareness of

student and faculty work to a much larger audience, but also to experiment.

The outdoors can become a neutral space to encourage collaboration

across our institutions.

How can the CCPI plan support the broadcast and

exhibition of CCS’s creative outputs - both faculty and

student-centered?

CCS looks forward to seeing many members of the campus community

involved in the implementation of the plan. Students, faculty, staff, and

alumni can all play a part - either by producing new works that can be

exhibited in outdoor spaces, supporting the implementation of specific

projects through their creative expertise, or developing and participating

in new public programming. As more visitors are attracted to the district, the

opportunities for a broader community to see and experience CCS’s creative

outputs increases. CCS is especially excited about the opportunities relating

to digital technologies and sustainability. We support the intersections

offered within our academic programs, including Communication Design,

Entertainment Arts, Film, User Experience, Design for Climate Action, and

many others.

CONVERSATIONS WITH DON TUSKI


Above: The World Cafe along the Square.

Next Page: The proposed renovation for the International Institute of Metro Detroit brings the World Cafe

to the ground floor to connect the interior life of the organization to the outdoors. The architectural facade

is updated with contemporary materials to signify the safety of a quilt and engage the sun to create new

signage with shadows.



The International

Institute of Metro

Detroit

The International Institute is already

a place brimming with heart, legacy,

and hidden gems—from immigration

advocacy to English language

immersion classes to affordable eats.

But these assets are tucked behind a

mid-century envelope that belies the

welcoming nature of the institution

and the multi-cultural offerings

within. To broadcast the compelling

work of the International Institute,

the design team proposes to connect

the interior life of the organization

to the outdoors, both as a visualizing

political action and an invitation for

people to engage.

building is underutilized on weekends.

The addition of landscaping and

water management infrastructure

will form an aesthetic buffer and

help temporarily transform a surface

lot into a site for food trucks. Not

only can these enterprises serve as

opportunities for first-generation

businesses, they will improve access to

food in the District.

The plan brings a taste of the

International Institute’s diverse

constituency, and their social mission,

into partnership with the cultural

institutions in the District.

The proposed International Institute

renovation participates in a symbiotic

relationship with the district plan:

harnessing pedestrian traffic,

while helping to activate the street.

Appropriately, the International

Institute’s World Café is upgraded

and moved from the basement to

the ground floor. In addition to the

efficiency gained by sharing a kitchen

with the Institute’s Hall of Nations,

the commercial programming adds

discernibility to the building’s southern

facade.

Food, as we know, is the connective

tissue of culture. Currently, the

International Institute’s portion of the

shared parking lot adjacent to the

“

We are dedicated to working

with low-income, foreign,

and native born populations

in an effort to establish a

more inclusive, equitable,

and just society. The Detroit

Cultural District is the

perfect space to convene

the diverse, multi-cultural

population that we serve.

Wojiech Zolnowski, Executive Director,

The International Institute of

Metro Detroit

“

THE INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE OF METRO DETROIT




THE INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE OF METRO DETROIT


Transformation of the Hellenic Museum’s Courtyard into a shared event space.



Hellenic

Museum

of Michigan

Small but mighty institutions make

excellent neighbors. The Hellenic

Museum of Michigan, dedicated to

preserving the rich heritage of Greek

music, art, literature, philosophy, and

language moved to the District in

2009. It is an example of a modest

organization with an overabundance

of energy, collective imagination, and

appetite to connect with new and old

friends nearby.

An early contributor to piloting the

CCPI project, the Hellenic Museum

is creating a courtyard for outdoor

cultural programming, which the

organization intends to share

with the adjacent Carr Center. The

suggested improvements made to the

outdoor space in conjunction with the

addition of apertures to the museum’s

historic carriage house improve the

organization’s curb appeal, draw

interest, and offer the Hellenic a

destination-worthy space for private

events. Additionally, the Hellenic

Museum is working to enhance the

building’s south facade by opening

shielded windows to reveal public

programming within. On a small scale,

the Hellenic Museum demonstrates

the pragmatic advantages of

networking to steward shared cultural

infrastructure and the activities it

sponsors.

“

Our museum is dedicated

to sharing the richness of

Hellenic heritage and its

contributions in shaping

our world. In many ways the

CCPI offers Detroit an agora

for diverse audiences to come

together and participate in

the civic life of the city.

“

Jim Andriotakis, President, The Hellenic

Museum of Michigan

HELLENIC MUSEUM OF MICHIGAN


The Carr Center

Building on the Carr Center’s mission

to preserve, promote, and develop

African-American arts traditions

within Detroit’s multicultural

community, CCPI recognizes that

cultural programs are as essential to

the vitality of the District as the public

spaces that sponsor them. The Carr

Center has a strong reputation for

creating African-American cultural

experiences that challenge, inspire

and educate by nurturing and

amplifying excellence in the arts.

In this capacity, CCPI welcomes the

Carr Center’s numerous compelling

programs into the outdoors.

“

CCPI promises the provision

of space for each institution’s

needs. The outdoor cultural

infrastructure developed in

the plan will deliver on the

promise of creating collective

benefits. For the Carr Center,

which has a tradition of

opening up to the world

in new and exhilarating

ways, the relationship to the

District will be symbiotic.

“

In the first stages of the project, the

Carr Center will share the Hellenic

Museum’s refurbished courtyard to

stage public programming. Temporary

installations by Detroit-based and

international artists on the Square

will provide signals that the public is

welcome to enter and participate.

As CCPI takes shape, the Carr Center

stands to benefit from the outdoor

cultural infrastructure designed to host

Oliver Ragsdale, President, The Carr

Center

music, theater, dance, experimental

performances, and installations.

Likewise, the District will be energized

by the Carr Center’s high caliber of

artistic excellence and commitment to

elevating African-American arts for

all.



The Carr Center is renowned for sponsoring outdoor programming and installations. This inflatable event

archway, is an example of a deployable installation to signify activities open to the public in the adjacent

courtyard of the Hellenic Museum.

THE CARR CENTER


Wayne State University

Wayne State University is an

esteemed neighbor to the Cultural

District, with nearly 25,000 students,

200 plus acres, and over 100

research and education buildings

comprising its historic urban campus.

The exceptional mutual benefits of

Wayne State’s direct adjacency to

CCPI cannot be overstated. Through

a reciprocal relationship between

the academic and cultural campuses,

each plan extends reach, grows its

daily audiences, broadens its public

assets, and increases access to a

breadth of cultural amenities. CCPI

works intentionally and symbiotically

with Wayne State’s recent master

planning effort to actualize distinct

and compelling connections, bringing

landscape elements from the Cultural

District’s design into the university’s

grounds. At the same time, CCPI

extends street improvements along

major arteries in order to create an

urban continuity with the Wayne

State plan.

Specifically, CCPI proposes to expand

the Necklace, the District’s walking

path, into Wayne State University’s

footprint, interlacing the many

architectural treasures on campus with

the cultural institutions to the west.

The Square, the District’s pedestrian

framework, engages Prentiss

Hall and its ground floor vitrines,

perfectly poised to broadcast the

university’s many cultural programs

and achievements. At this important

intersection between the educational

and cultural campuses, the lawn of the

Detroit Public Library is terraced for

public occupation, creating a mixing

ground for students, faculty, staff,

library patrons, and visitors.

“

The beauty of our urban

campus, stitched into the

very fabric of the city, is the

fluidity it provides; effortless

connections with CCPI,

its cultural institutions,

Midtown, and the region

beyond - ensuring our

institutional thresholds are

easy to traverse and inviting

for all remains top of mind.

“

Ashley Flintoff, Director of Planning and

Space Management, WSU

In addition to facilitating lingering,

CCPI is focused on improving the

pedestrian experience, creating more

visible, safe, and efficient crosswalks,

providing shared streets for people,

cyclists, public transportation

networks, and strategically easing the

presence of automobiles in order to

make room for people.

With a few acts of integration to

blur the lines between master plans,

Wayne State University can claim the

wider Cultural District as an asset for

its campus—a benefit that few, if any,

other public research institutions can

share.



The Detroit Public Library’s landscape on Cass Avenue is terraced along the Band to meet Wayne State

University. The subtle urban gesture transforms an underutilized space into an inhabitable attractor for

students and visitors to the District.

WAYNE STATE UNIVERSITY

6

Getting Together


Making compelling public spaces

is a complex art. There is no

simplistic step-by-step formula

that can guarantee positive

outcomes. But there are solid

foundations that will send us on

the path to success. These include:

integrating distinctive local

cultures into the essence of the

project, staying open to innovative

and emergent influences, involving

those affected by the plan in

decision-making, determining

public-good objectives with

project partners and sharing

GETTING TOGETHER


progress as the collective efforts

evolve. An inclusive, participatory,

and responsive framework for

engaging with stakeholders,

specialists, communities, and

government is needed to move

a bold vision for the Cultural

District forward. The process

challenges us to look beyond

architecture, landscape, and

engineering to include the voices

and perspectives of people who

understand the dynamics and

cultural ethos of the city.

INTRODUCTION


The Storefront +

Digital Engagement

In the design team’s experience, some

of the best conversations about the

future of the built environment happen

around a physical model. People

often have trouble empathizing with

the fixed perspective of architectural

drawings, which necessarily limit their

scope of interaction with the project. A

physical model facilitates interaction

with the proposals and creates a sense

of agency for the public. The design

team loves the directness of models;

they are accessible, legible, and often

trigger immediate feedback, like it or

not.

Sharing evolving models of the CCPI

project with the public was always

the plan for Akoaki and Agence Ter.

The Storefront, which the design

team opened on Cass Avenue shortly

after winning the competition, was

intended to house the in-progress

work and spark conversation with

the public and stakeholders. But,

like so many projects rolling out in a

landscape impacted by COVID-19, the

team was thrown a major plot twist.

Now unable to present a physical

model for public interaction, the

design collaborative asked: How can

people navigate, explore, and give

self-informed feedback in a digital

space, especially when the project is

complex, multi-layered, and includes

many stakeholders?

In response, the design team

developed CCPI.online, a navigable

digital platform that models the entire

80-acre plan. Features include links to

constituent institutions; information

about the proposed greenscape;

mobility and parking studies; and

space for the public to share feedback.

Zoom in close enough and users find

the simulated thickness of paper in

the lines of the modeled buildings

and trees rendered like they are cut

from Plexi with sharpied edges. The

digital model simulates precisely how

the design team makes models for

physical presentations.

It’s important to admit that architects

rarely show work in progress. However,

with 12 stakeholder institutions, the City

of Detroit, government, foundations,

and the general public, the project

requires a way to communicate with

constituents as matters develop.

Appropriately, CCPI.online serves as

a virtual pin-up board that reveals

the process and facilitates a collective

vision. Sharing research, the team is

able to show symbiotic relationships

between institutions, the street, and

public space.

GETTING TOGETHER


Top: Axonometric view of the digital model hosted on CCPI.online and built with a candid affinity for

aughts Bing Maps. A toolbar allows the map to rotate and zoom into points of interest.

Bottom: Clickable information cards allow users to explore themes of interest, and provide feedback.

Next Page: The design team’s Storefront at 4161 Cass Avenue in Midtown Detroit.

STOREFRONT + DIGITAL ENGAGEMENT


Above: Digital Presentation by Anya Sirota

Next Page: Digital Engagement Session

MODEL CITIZENS


Model Citizens

Akoaki

“In our experience, some of the best

conversations about the future of the

built environment happen around

a physical model,” says Anya Sirota,

architectural designer, Associate Dean

at Taubman College of Architecture

and Urban Planning, and founding

principal of urban design studio

Akoaki. In Sirota’s view, people often

have trouble empathizing with the fixed

perspective of architectural drawings,

which necessarily limits their scope of

interaction with the project. “A physical

model facilitates interaction with the

proposals and creates a sense of agency

for the public,” says Sirota. “We love the

direct instrumentality of models; they

are accessible, legible, and often trigger

immediate feedback, like it or not.”

Sharing the model with the public was

the plan as Akoaki collaborated with

Paris-based Agence Ter on the Detroit

Cultural Center Planning Initiative

(CCPI) —an intensive, 18-month

project that sought to ideate a flexible

urban greenscape linking twelve

major cultural institutions in Detroit’s

bustling Midtown. But like so many

projects rolling out in a landscape

impacted by public health concerns,

the team was thrown a major plot twist.

Now unable to present a physical model

for public interest and interaction, the

design collaborative asked themselves:

How can you give people license

to navigate, explore, and give selfinformed

feedback in a digital space?

“Compelling landscapes address

multiple datums at once, carving

the matter beneath our feet as well

as shaping the living and ethereal

layers above,” says Olivier Philippe,

founding principal of award winning

international landscape and urban

design firm Agence Ter. “Using a full

range of planimetric and sectional

strategies to inflect the beauty and

functionality of public space, CCPI

attends to the diverse needs of users

by creating a series of distinct and

interconnected outdoor experiences.”

The desire for interactivity, tangibility,

and accessibility are values baked

into the project foundations.

Communicating the logics and

aspirations of such a multivalent effort

in ways that cut across class and identity

barriers is a design challenge in itself.

“As urban designers, we are always

looking for that representational sweet

spot,” says Sirota. “An inclusionary

vantage point that clarifies the layered

thinking contributing to design

decisions without obscuring what

matters or overwhelming others.” In

order to capture the clean, low-res feel

that offers open access into the project,

SARAH ROSE SHARP


the design team obsessively rendered

a virtual environment that emulates

the tactile qualities of their traditional

models.

The result is CCPI.online, a navigable

digital model with a candid affinity for

Bing Maps that presents the entire 80-

acre district plan. Features include its

constituent institutions, like the Detroit

Institute of Arts, the Main Branch

Detroit Public Library, Wayne State

University, College for Creative Studies,

and the Charles H. Wright Museum

of African American History. Also,

it includes the proposed greenscape;

traffic plans; walking paths, and public

conversation about the myriad of issues

that shape the project. Additionally,

the lush bioswales contain green water

management features that help to

decongest aging city infrastructure

overwhelmed by rising rainfall in

the Great Lakes. But zoom in close

enough and you will find the simulated

thickness of paper in the lines of the

modeled buildings, and trees rendered

like they are made of extruded Plexi

cut by a 1992 laser cutter with sharpied

edges. The qualities of this model in the

digital realm simulate precisely how

the design team makes models in the

physical presentation.

“I believe that the pervasive use of

handheld mapping apps is changing

how we understand maps, in particular

in our relation to self,” says Oliver

Popodich, the web designer who

took on the practical considerations

of implementing this vision. “These

mapping apps track position, always

updating the representation of the

world around one’s self. As this

becomes our increasingly common

way of interacting with maps, we lose

our dissociation from the abstracted

representation of maps, and instead

begin to understand it as a more literal

representation - a kind of omnipresent

birds-eye-view of self.”

Over the course of a month, the web

team modeled every component

of Midtown – the site conditions,

landscape, building masses, details,

and design interventions. In order to

meet the strict limitations of the web

and further limitations of mobile,

everything was modeled relatively low

poly - using as few faces as possible to

create the essence of the object’s form.

More complex objects, like buildings,

were broken into segments based on

the amount of detail. This allowed

for different versions to load easily,

catering to both low-powered mobile

devices and more powerful computers.

Architects very rarely show work in

progress, because they typically have

a single client with a single concern

to address. But the CCPI has 12

institutional clients, plus the city, in

addition to the general public that

the space will serve. CCPI’s digital

presentation becomes a virtual pin-up

board that reveals the process, in order

to facilitate a collective vision. In the

mixing and matching of painstakingly

researched offerings, the team is

able to show symbiotic relationships

between institutions, the street, and

public discourse. “It gives liberty to

each stakeholder to understand the

moving parts for themselves and come

back to the table ready to negotiate and

collaborate,” says Sirota.

MODEL CITIZENS


These negotiations come at an especially

critical time, where we see shared

outdoor spaces as the current sole venue

for public engagement and experiences.

While emphasis on a unified cultural

district landscape was already the pre-

COVID aim of the project, it’s become

the essential worker of urban design

during pandemic times, as public

space becomes indispensable public

infrastructure. Creating a sensibility

that is tangible and physical at a time

when so much has become abstracted

because of COVID is yet another layer

of approachability in the model. It

grants the gift of imagined futures, to

all of us trapped in our homes ready to

plan the “next next” when we can get

back out into the world.

And it seems to work! Longtime Park

Shelton resident Joe Lewis, age 70,

has been following the project with

great interest, and jumped at the

chance to navigate the proposal. “I’m

excited to see a vibrant, accessible and

coordinated plan,” says Lewis, who

hopes that the effort will unify Detroit’s

treasured cultural institutions, “to

better serve the local public and draw

visitors from near and far.”

SARAH ROSE SHARP


Top: Susan Mosey of MDI speaking at the Detroit Public Library during a CCPI presentation.

Bottom: Members of the CCPI design team engaging with Detroit community members at the Charles H.

Wright Museum of African American History during a design workshop hosted by MDI.

GETTING TOGETHER


Community

Engagement

MDI and the CCPI design team have

had to reinvent what community

engagement looks like in the age

of COVID-19 and developed CCPI.

online, an internet-based platform to

share the evolution of the design and

research, and solicit feedback from

the public. Prior to the pandemic, MDI

hosted a large design workshop with

the public at the Charles H. Wright


that attracted more than 200 people.

In addition, over 1,000 comment

cards were submitted by the public

on the proposed design as part of

an exhibition at the Detroit Institute

of Arts and the Detroit Public Library

Main Branch.

sustainability, digital engagement,

institutional resiliency, COVID-19,

and more.

Additional Zoom meetings and

panel discussions are planned for the

remainder of 2022 and 2023 with

other Detroit Neighborhood residents,

arts and cultural stakeholders, and key

public sector agencies. We also seek

input on programming ideas both for

the District and potential partnerships

that could extend the Cultural Center

programs into the neighborhoods.

Since the pandemic began, MDI has

hosted numerous Zoom meetings

with the residents of the Park Shelton,

the Arts Center Neighborhood,

with Detroit artists and city-wide

arts organizations, and just recently

hosted a large metro area meeting to

gain feedback on the plan. MDI has

interfaced with over a dozen residentbased

organizations throughout

the city, including church groups,

block clubs, and recreation-based

organizations to elicit feedback.

In addition, 12 public panel

conversations and one symposium

have been held around topics of

arts and cultural programming,

ENGAGEMENT

7

Who We Are

6

THE DETROIT

HISTORICAL MUSEUM

5

12

THE DETROIT

PUBLIC LIBRARY

WAYNE STATE

UNIVERSITY

1

7

THE HELLENIC

MUSEUM

8

THE CARR

CENTER

INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE OF

METRO DETROIT

3

COLLEGE FOR

CREATIVE STUDIES

4

THE DETROIT

INSTITUTE OF ARTS

10

THE SCARAB CLUB

2

11

UNIVERSITY OF

MICHIGAN

9

MICHIGAN SCIENCE

CENTER

CHARLES H. WRIGHT

MUSEUM OF AFRICAN

AMERICAN HISTORY


Stakeholder

Institutions

WHO WE ARE


1. The Carr Center

Established: 1991

Location: 15 E. Kirby Street, Detroit

Director: Oliver Ragsdale

Website: thecarrcenter.org

Contact: 313.965.8430

The Carr Center is a multi disciplinary arts

organization, founded in 1991, that

leverages the essence of the African

American cultural experience to inspire,

entertain, challenge and educate. We

accomplish this through three core

programs: the Carr Center Presents, the

Carr Center Arts Academy and the Artists

Hub. The Carr Center Contemporary,

located on the first floor of the historic

Park Shelton includes the Carr Center

Gallery and the newly renovated

Performance Studio.

3. College for Creative

Studies

Established: 1906

Location: 460 W Baltimore Street

Director: Don Tuski

Website: collegeforcreativestudies.edu

Contact: 313.664.7400

Founded in 1906 as the Detroit Society

of Arts and Crafts, CCS plays a key role

in Detroit’s cultural and educational

communities as a private, fully accredited

college with more than 1,400 enrolled

students.

2. Charles H. Wright Museum

of African American History

Established: 1965

Location: 315 E. Warren Avenue

Director: Neil Barclay

Website: thewright.org

Contact: info@thewright.org

The Charles H. Wright Museum of African

American History was founded in 1965.The

Wright Museum’s mission is to open minds

and change lives through the exploration

and celebration of African American

history and culture. And Still We Rise:

Our Journey Through African American

History and Culture is the museum’s

22,000 SF immersive core exhibit and the

largest, single exhibition surveying the

history of African Americans. The Wright

Museum houses over 35,000 artifacts

and archival materials.

4. Detroit Institute of Arts

Established: 1885

Location: 5200 Woodward Avenue

Director: Salvador Salort-Pons

Website: dia.org

Contact: 313.833.7900

The Detroit Institute of Arts, one of the

premier art museums in the US, is home

to more than 60,000 works that comprise

a multicultural survey of human creativity

from ancient times through the 21st

century. From the first Van Gogh painting

to enter a U.S. museum (Self Portrait,

1887), to Diego Rivera’s world-renowned

Detroit Industry murals (1932–33), the

DIA’s collection is known for its quality,

range and depth. The DIA’s mission is to

create opportunities for all visitors to find

personal meaning in art.

STAKEHOLDER INSTITUTIONS


5. Detroit Public Library

Established: 1865


Director: Jo-Anne Mondowney

Website: detroitpubliclibrary.org

Contact: 313.481.1300

The Detroit Public Library is the largest

library system in the state of Michigan.

The Main Library and its 21 neighborhood

branches make it one of the most valuable

and accessible public institutions in

metropolitan Detroit. The Detroit Public

Library enlightens and empowers people

by providing diverse and dynamic

pathways to literacy and learning.

7. Hellenic Museum

of Michigan

Established: 2009

Location: 67 E. Kirby Street

Director: Jim Andriotakis

Website: hellenicmi.org

Contact: 313.871.4100

The overall mission of the Michigan

Hellenic Museum is to present, promote

and teach about Hellenic culture, heritage

and history. As part of its overall mission,

the museum also chronicles the struggles,

accomplishments and many contributions

of a vibrant Greek immigrant community’s

journey to Michigan.

6. Detroit Historical

Museum

Established: 1928


Director: Elana Rugh

Website: detroithistorical.org

Contact: 313.833.1805

Since its founding in 1921, the Detroit

Historical Society has been dedicated

to ensuring that the history of our region

is preserved so that current and future

generations of metro Detroiters can better

understand the people, places and events

that helped shape our lives.

8. International Institute

of Metro Detroit

Established: 1919

Location: 111 E Kirby Street

Director: Wojciech Zolnowski

Website: iimd.org

Contact: hello@iimd.org

The International Institute is dedicated

to working with low-income foreign and

native-born populations in an effort to

establish a more inclusive, equitable and

just society. The agency fosters community

engagement and believes that a variety

of cultures significantly contributes to the

richness of our great city.

WHO WE ARE


9. Michigan Science Center

11. University of Michigan

Established: 1970

Location: 5020 John R Street

Director: Christian Greer

Website: mi-sci.org

Contact: info@mi-sci.org

The Michigan Science Center (MiSci)

inspires over 200,000 curious minds of all

ages every year through STEM (science,

technology, engineering, and math)

discovery, innovation and interactive

education in Detroit and across the state

of Michigan. As the STEM hub of the

state, MiSci focuses on developing and

introducing expanded education

programs, exhibits, and initiatives that

empower and enrich all children and all

communities with STEM.

Established: 1817

Location: 100 Farnsworth Street

Director: Mark Schlissel

Website: umich.edu

Contact: 734.764.1817

The University of Michigan is a public

research university located in Ann Arbor,

Michigan, that was founded in Detroit in

1817.

10. The Scarab Club

Established: 1928

Location: 217 Farnworth Street

Director: MaryAnn Wilkinson

Website: scarabclub.org

Contact: 313.831.1250

The Scarab Club (SC) is a unique venue for

visual art, music, and literature, founded

in 1907 by a group of prominent artists

and arts enthusiasts. Housed in a historic

Arts & Crafts-style building in the heart

of the Cultural Center, the SC’s program

of changing exhibitions, workshops and

classes, and events ranging from dance

performances to poetry readings brings

together members and the public to

experience the extraordinary creativity of

the Detroit and regional arts community.

12. Wayne State

University

Established: 1868

Location: 42 W Warren Avenue

Director: M. Roy Wilson

Website: wayne.edu

Contact: 313.577.2424

Founded in 1868, Wayne State University

is a public research university in Detroit,

Michigan. WSU’s main, 200-acre campus

in Midtown Detroit is home to nearly

27,000 undergraduate and graduate

students from across the United States

and 70 countries.

STAKEHOLDER INSTITUTIONS


Steering Committee

Neil Barclay,

President and CEO, C. H. Wright


Ann Beck,

Vice President for Administration and

Finance, College for Creative Studies

Valeria Bertacco,

Vice Provost for Engaged Learning,

University of Michigan

Annmarie Borucki,

Director of Arts and Culture, Midtown

Detroit, Inc.

Alex Bourgeau,

Manager, Modeling and Mobility

Group, SEMCOG

Robert Bowen,

CFO, Detroit Institute of Arts

Antoine Bryant,

Director, Planning & Development

Department, City of Detroit

Melanca Clark,

President and CEO, Hudson Webber

Foundation

Robert Davenport,

Associate Vice President, Facilities

Planning and Management, Wayne

State University

Jasmin DeForrest,

Director of Community Sponsorships,

Rocket Community Fund

Kathryn Dimond,

Executive Director, Hellenic Museum

of Michigan

Joshua Edmonds,

Director of Digital Inclusion, City of

Detroit, Department of Innovation

and Technology (DoIT)

Sue Gott,

Campus Planner, University of

Michigan

Christian Greer,

President and CEO, Michigan Science

Center

Neil Hawkins,

President, Fred A. and Barbara M. Erb

Family Foundation

Danielle Jackson,

CEO, University Prep Schools

Wendy L. Jackson,

Managing Director, Detroit Program,

The Kresge Foundation

George Jacobsen,

Program Director, Southeast

Michigan Economic & Cultural

Vitality, William Davidson

Foundation

Sam Krassenstein,

Deputy Director, Office of Mobility

Innovation, City of Detroit

Darin McKeever,

President and Chief Executive Officer,


WHO WE ARE


Felicia Eisenberg Molnar,

Executive Director of Strategic

Initiatives, Detroit Institute of Arts

Jo Anne G. Mondowney,

Executive Director, Detroit Public

Library

Susan Mosey,

Executive Director, Midtown Detroit Inc.

Xavier Mosquet,

Sr. Partner Emeritus, Boston

Consulting Group

Frances Mueller,

Assistant Vice Provost, University of

Michigan

Oliver Ragsdale,

President and CEO, The Carr Center

Dan Rieden,

Lead Landscape Architect | Historic

Preservation Team, Planning &

Development Department, City of

Detroit

Rochelle Riley,

Director, Arts and Culture, City of Detroit

Victoria Rogers,

Vice President, Arts, Knight Foundation

Elana Rugh,

President and CEO, Detroit Historical

Society

Salvador Salort-Pons,

Director, President and CEO, Detroit

Institute of Arts

Michael Shaw,

Program Director, Hudson Webber

Foundation

Ned Staebler,

Vice President, Economic

Development, Wayne State

University and President and CEO,

TechTown

Tara Tuomaala,

Program Officer, Fred A. and Barbara

M. Erb Family Foundation

Don Tuski,

President, College for Creative

Studies

Nate Wallace,

Director, Knight Foundation – Detroit

Carol and Pete Walters, Walters

Family Foundation

Andrea Wilcox,

Projects and Contracts Administration

Engineer, Michigan Department of

Transportation, Detroit Transportation

Service Center

MaryAnn Wilkenson,

Executive Director, The Scarab Club

Greg Yankee,

Senior Program Officer, Community

Foundation for Southeast Michigan

Wojciech Zolnowski,

Executive Director, International

Institute of Metropolitan Detroit

STEERING COMMITTEE


“Man,” a 40-foot sculpture created by Australian artist Amanda Parer, was illuminated outside the main

branch of the Detroit Public Library for 2022 Dlectricity.

WHO WE ARE


Project Management

Team

Annmarie Borucki,

Director of Arts and Culture, Midtown

Detroit, Inc.

George Jacobsen,

Program Director, Southeast Michigan

Economic & Cultural Vitality, William

Davidson Foundation

Felicia Eisenberg Molnar,

Executive Director of Strategic

Initiatives, Detroit Institute of Arts

Susan Mosey,

Executive Director, Midtown Detroit,

Inc.

Dan Rieden,

Lead Landscape Architect | Historic

Preservation Team, Planning &

Development Department, City of

Detroit

Michael Shaw,

Program Director, Hudson Webber

Foundation

Tara Tuomaala,

Program Officer, Fred A. and Barbara

M. Erb Family Foundation

PROJECT MANAGEMENT TEAM


Design Team

Agence Ter

Agence Ter, founded in Paris more than

thirty years ago by three landscape

architects, Henri Bava, Michel Hössler,

and Olivier Philippe is an urban

planning and landscape design

studio working throughout the world.

The practice develops an urbanism

of living environments, imagining the

city as an interaction of ecosystems

combining urban functionality, human

dynamics, and respect for non-human

living systems. It defends the citynature

cohabitation as a productive

dialogue; the source of project

inspiration is a response to climatic

challenges and the associated ecosystemic

services: sustainable water

management, biodiversity, climatic

comfort, pollution reduction, and

the well-being of all inhabitants.

Considering the living also means

integrating sociological issues

into our conception of the city; It

means taking into consideration the

values of inclusion, citizenship, and

cohabitation based upon sustainable

shared public space.

Agence Ter has received many

distinctions, including, in France, the

‘Grand Prix National de l’Urbanisme‘

and the ‘Grand Prix National

du Paysage’. Its work ranges in

scale from territorial master plans

covering thousands of square miles

to the renovation of residential

neighborhoods or the public gardens

of private foundations.

Akoaki

Akoaki is a practice of architects and

urban designers specializing in public

space and cultural infrastructure.

That’s a shorthand explanation for

what we are truly passionate about:

creating physical environments that

inspire positive societal engagement,

spur cultural evolution, and enable

diverse and meaningful collective

experiences. Admittedly, our goals are

lofty. Yet they drive every aspect of the

studio’s research and development

processes – revealing ways culture

and design can strengthen the civic

life of cities.

Since establishing our Michiganbased

studio in 2008, we have

operated with a deep contextual

rootedness, while maintaining a

global awareness. It’s a balancing act

that helps us remain locally sensitive

and attentive to history, while ensuring

an intellectually open approach that

generates options for a dynamic

future.

To spark original outcomes, we start

with what’s there. Whether working

with existing structures, organizations,

living grounds or people, we carefully

establish an understanding of

what’s at stake. Next, we decode the

confluence of matters that shape the

collective vision and sense of purpose.

Throughout the process, we remain

cognizant that the built environment

is anything but static. Appropriately,

we produce adaptable strategies

designed to transform over time.

WHO WE ARE


Competition model by Agence Ter and Akoaki

DESIGN TEAM


Collaborators

313 Creative

313 Creative is a purpose-driven

planning and design practice focused

on catalyzing urban projects and

place-based development strategies.

313c works as a ‘bridge’ between

future-oriented investors, design

professionals and key stakeholders to

maximize the benefit of participatory

design collaborations.

8’18” Lumiere

8’18” Lumiere tackle remarkable,

large scale lighting projects. 8’18”

understands light, measures it, without

pretending to domesticate it and

shapes it in unique, sensitive and

intelligent ways that express desire.

Arcadis

Designing and delivering complex

solutions by combining their technical,

consulting and management skills to

provide exceptional and sustainable

outcomes for clients across all phases

of asset investments; from planning,

through to creation, operation and

possible redefinition.

Boston Consulting Group

(BCG)

Represented by Xavier Mosquet,

BCG is a global consulting firm that

partners with leaders in business and

society to tackle their most important

challenges and capture their greatest

opportunities.

City of Detroit Planning and

Development Department

(PDD)

PDD is charged with providing

a participatory model of urban

planning, design and development

services that encourage population

growth within the city and ensure that

every neighborhood has a future.

Its mission is to provide professional

advice and technical expertise that

promotes well-designed physical,

social, economic, and environmentally

healthy development within the city

that enhances the quality of life for its

residents, businesses and visitors.

Dr. Harley Etienne

A noted author, researcher,

consultant and teacher with a keen

understanding of the way social,

cultural and political contexts intersect

with public institutions to facilitate

urban neighborhood change.

Drummond Carpenter &

Associates

Specialists in environmental and

water resources, technical services,

and applied research.

HR&A Advisors, Inc.

HR&A is a real estate, economic

development and public policy

consulting firm with more than three

decades of experience supporting

complex implementation planning for

neighborhood, cultural district and

open space-anchored revitalization

initiatives.

WHO WE ARE


KAS

KAS Estimating Services provides

high quality pre-construction services

that support client and design team

decision-making.

Michigan Department of

Transportation (MDOT)

MDOT is responsible for Michigan’s

9,669-mile state highway system,

comprised of all M, I, and US routes.

Rich and Associates

One of the nation’s leading parking

consultants, providing expert parking

planning and design services.

RomoGIS

GIS professionals using a variety

of products including open source

software, web mapping, and GIS

applications for Urban planning.

rootoftwo

rootoftwo, the civic future-making

practice of Cézanne Charles and

John Marshall, uses participatory

design methods to facilitate people

to imagine and shape collective

actions for more just transformations.

Engaged by Midtown Detroit Inc. to

develop the digital strategy plan,

rootoftwo works at the intersection of

design, technology, and culture.

SmithGroup

SmithGroup is an international

architectural, engineering and

planning firm.

The Southeast Michigan

Council of Governments

(SEMCOG)

SEMCOG supports local planning

through its technical, data, and

intergovernmental resources. The

work SEMCOG does improves the

quality of the region’s water, makes

the transportation system safer and

more efficient, revitalizes communities,

and spurs economic development.

COLLABORATORS


Acknowledgements

“Detroit Square” Team, DIA Plaza | Midtown Cultural Connections Competition. From L-R: Sarah Carter,

Akoaki; Jean Louis Farges, Akoaki; Olivier Philippe, Agence Ter; John Marshall, rootoftwo; Cezanne

Charles, rootoftwo; Mark Dennis, Arcadis; Anya Sirota, Akoaki; Don Carpenter, Drummond Carpenter

PLLC; Jon Watkins, Akoaki; Dr. Harley Etienne, University of Michigan (Sumpter, Dori. 2018).

WHO WE ARE


Akoaki, Architecture and

Urban Design

Anya Sirota,

Principal

Jean Louis Farges,

Principal

Sarah Carter,

Architectural Design + Project

Managment

Ian Donaldson,

Architectural Design

Liz Feltz,


Ibiayi Briggs,

Architectural Design + Programming

Jonathan Craig,

Architectural Vizualization

Valeria de Jongh,


Abirami Nachammai Manivannan,


Ishan Pal,

New Media

Drummond Carpenter,

PLLC, Water Management

Don Carpenter,

Principal

Agence Ter, Landscape and

Urban Design

Olivier Philippe,

Principal

Pilar Llop,

Landscape Design (Barcelona)

Marina Daviu,

Landcape Design (Paris)

Kevin Marand,

Visualization (Paris)

Marie Saalburg,

Landcape Design (Paris)

Etienne, Urban Planning

Dr. Harley Etienne,

Principal

Frank Romo,

Research + GIS

rootoftwo, Digital Strategy

Cezanne Charles,

Principal

John Marshall,

Principal

Elizabeth Vander Veen,

Research

Rachel Pieschek, PE

Water Resources Engineering

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

THE CULTURAL CENTER PLANNING INITIATIVE

HAS BEEN FUNDED BY:

Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan

Fred A. and Barbara M. Erb Family Foundation

Hudson Webber Foundation

Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Foundation

Rocket Community Fund

The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation

The Kresge Foundation

University of Michigan

Walters Family Foundation

Wayne State University


Detroit Cultural District V1

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