Model D speakers discuss building green neighborhoods and putting sustainable principles in action

Switching off a light bulb to save a little bit of energy is good, but making lasting changes will take more time and effort.

The speakers at the Model D Speaker Series, May 22, at the Detroit Yacht Club, talked about one of those big efforts: how to build sustainable neighborhoods.

"Subdivisions are part of everyday life," Mark Nickita of Archive DS told the crowd. His goal is to make them more pedestrian friendly and less auto-dependent.

Chris Bray of the Detroit Catholic Pastoral Alliance spoke about his Gratiot Woods project. Bray's strategies for revitalizing homes in this area around Gratiot and I-94 included repairing occupied homes, rehabilitating vacant homes, and creating brand new housing. But his preference would be to rehab over new construction whenever possible.

Bray also discussed a few sustainable design principles, all with the basis of creating beauty and quality development. Even for buildings that are low-income or HUD subsidized, those qualities are important, he said, to create a sustainable neighborhood. He talked about how using quality materials and good design helped foster a greater sense of community pride, and how such development made the neighborhoods more pedestrian-friendly because it made the sidewalks more inviting.

The final guest speaker was Diane Van Buren Jones of WARM Training. The theme of her discussion was new prosperity and ways to create sustainable communities. Jones suggested many money-saving actions for individuals and the state of Michigan alike. Taking only what you need and nothing more from our natural resources was one of her major points. She also discussed the SDAT — the American Institute of Architects' sustainability audit coming to Detroit. She promised a presentation on it this fall after the audit.

All three speakers sent the audience a message that could completely change our way of thinking: Profits are not the only thing we have to take into consideration; people and the planet matter, too.

Next month: Model D's speaker series is a special 3rd anniversary edition, June 20 at the Max M. Fisher Music Center in Midtown. More details here.

Writer: Lauren Gant, Model D intern