Architecture and urban planning students have used Detroit as a teaching canvas for years, but the latest version of that education experience from Lawrence Technological University is different in that these students' dreams could become reality.
Lawrence Tech's
detroitSHOP Studio is working teams from Dan Gilbert's real-estate firms Rock Ventures and
Bedrock Real Estate Services to create plans to redevelop downtown Detroit's lower Woodward corridor. The plans will be on display between 3-8 p.m. Wednesday in the Dime Building, and could serve as a primer for what's to come developmentwise in downtown.
"They have an opportunity to design something that will be implemented," says Amy Deines, chair of the Art & Design Dept at
Lawrence Technological University.
The detroitSHOP Studio is a hands-on architecture and design lab based in the greater downtown area of Detroit. Its students have repeatedly met with officials from Rock Ventures and Bedrock Real Estate Services since January in teams of four.
The goal is to redevelop downtown Detroit’s lower Woodward corridor, where Gilbert owns a plethora of office buildings, into a desirable place to live, work and play. One of the big area's of emphasis has been retail development, along with residential space.
"The best place to think about art and design is in an urban environment, especially one in transition like Detroit," Deines says.
Source: Amy Deines, chair of the Art & Design Dept at Lawrence Technological University
Writer: Jon Zemke
Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.
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