Reuse, Renewable Energy, Responsibility-and a few other R’s
A Landmark and Legacy come together. Bill Ford of Ford Motor Co. along with Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan seem to have pushed for magic and a massive undertaking, when maybe it was easier to jump the rails instead. In a time where its almost always easier and cost-effective to bulldoze and rebuild-(with the environment and Mother Earth paying the price )the thoughtful decision to revitalize and restore this landmark property, secures this former train station on the best possible track. An incredible journey, initiated by Mr. Ford at the storied Michigan Central Station in Corktown/Detroit has arrived at its destination-not by train this time-but in the form of a renewed set of purpose, in bold Motor City spirit.
What started as a bustling Beaux-Arts local train station and transportation gateway in 1913, this architecturally stellar station eventually devolved into a place of hopeless despair-at a time when Detroit needed hope the most.
After its closure in 1988, and scheduled for demolition in 2013, the once stately beauty became the city’s eyesore of a beast. Left deserted, its sole purpose was to gather extensive water damage, decay, vandalism, theft, graffiti and maybe a few not so well-intentioned visitors. It’s one of those things that pokes at my head and my heart to see in any city- a space or place, removed of its crown and duties. Sigh.
Lets cut to June 2024: the 18 story landmark and its auxiliary buildings encompassing 1.2 million sf. situated on a 30 acre campus has a new lease on life, reimagined as a global gateway-this time, swapping trains for EV vehicles, for starters.
Quinn Evans and Pau Architects directed the renovation and restoration along with the 3000+ talented team members, over the course of 6 years; with design elements initiated and executed by utilizing historic photographs, extensive research and 3D scanning of its entirety. Albeit somewhat painfully installed quite literally, brick by brick,(er, vaulted arch Guastavino tiling! Grand Central NYC embellished with the same) an abundance of marble, terrazzo and limestone-600 tons of which was reclaimed. Additional limestone was needed- they sourced limestone from the original quarry in Indiana. The quarry was found to be closed and the Michigan Central team convinced them to reopen! Dedicated to the cause, much? Another cool/clever tidbit:the Design & Arch team did leave some of the graffiti on walls- history is history, right? Hi-5 to keeping it authentically historic.
What launches it into today, 2024, is a bit of high tech and green/environmental features and sustainable practices. The building is powered by renewable resources, green storm water management systems, a biodiverse landscape program-including pollinator gardens integrated into the solar field and of course… there’s an electric road that charges vehicles as they drive along it.
The epic campus is already buzzing with Innovation, learning and commerce, Amongst a collective of Startups, Workplace and Community Enriching programs: Newly, a platform comprising of almost 100 Start-ups as tenants, and of course Ford Motor Co. plans for officing 2000+ employees at MCS by the end of the year, Google has onboarded with their CodeNext program, which offers free coding Ed to Michigan High Schoolers,along with tbd plans for additional workplace, retail, hospitality and restaurants said to be in the works, with partial occupancy sometime in Fall 24’. What we get from this element is more people in the workforce, a significant spark for the local economy
If you know me, I'm a super geek when it comes to adaptive reuse, sustainability in the design & architecture space and art history. LOVE this so much and thrilled for Detroit. What’s been created is of course, a place of community, heritage and hope a place of multipurpose outside of Ford- there’s something for everybody here. It’s a fortuitous gift that has every opportunity to give back.
Ford Explorers and Urban Explorers? Yes, please. Bravo, y’all. click for a YouTube vid.
More cool links, because this project has me posessed/obsessed:
michigancentral.com historicdetroit.org michigancentral.com/innovation codenext.withgoogle.com/