Thanks to a new tool, it’s easier being green in Detroit
With a simple keyword search, the Detroit Green Map shows users interested in sustainable practices where to buy solar panels, where to recycle, where to volunteer, and more.
Francis Grunow's Latest Articles
Detroit art cars go to Burning Man
Francis Grunow sees Detroit's connection to Burning Man (and its worldwide network of burners) growing even stronger in the coming years.
10 Years of Change: Remembering Doug McIntosh, Detroit architect and preservation advocate
Doug McIntosh was president of Preservation Wayne (now Preservation Detroit), an early supporter of Model D, a community leader, and a mentor to many. He had a vision for the city.
What if the movement to reimagine I-375 included Movement?
As Detroit considers permanently transforming I-375, what if we temporarily shut down the freeway and experienced it at the human scale? What if Movement grew into 375 next year? Can you feel it?
Designing with Detroiters: DCDC turns 20
To celebrate Detroit Collaborative Design Center's 20th anniversary, Francis Grunow sat down with DCDC staff to discuss the Center's legacy of facilitating participatory design in the city.
Detroit may be bankrupt, but it’s 600 feet above sea level
In part three of his series on neighborhood, Francis Grunow goes big picture and places Detroit within a context of global warming, blue/green infrastructure and sustainability over the next 100 years.
What if we really were one Detroit?
In Part II of his creative look at how neighborhood life has evolved in Detroit, Francis Grunow goes back over 300 years -- older than our nation itself -- to explore how we came to the footprint we have today, and how things might look under a greater municipal regional entitiy.
Rebuilding Detroit’s first and last neighborhood
Francis Grunow's presentation at last month's Idealab in Ann Arbor was so good we thought it should reach a wider audience in Model D. Not only that: we're turning it into a three-part think series on Detroit neighborhoods. Take it away, sir.
Detroit rallies round the G.A.R. once again and what that means for downtown
Tom and David Carleton began developing downtown property in the early 1990s, when most of the money was headed elsewhere. Now they talk about creating "the greatest space to take a meeting between New York and L.A." Francis Grunow meets the brothers for a chat on the roof of the Grand Army Republic building.
Why good design matters, and who is Jeff Chalmers?
We know good design values are key to successful retailing. Especially in walkable neighborhoods like the far East Side's Jefferson East community. Francis Grunow takes a stroll with the two homegrown creatives behind the pop-up project.
