Urban Centers Is Focus of Next AIA Detroit Urban Priorities Committee “Detroit By Design” Series

Series series seeks to assist the city with its efforts to reorganize by helping with the Detroit Works Project while bringing together architects, community/business leaders, public officials, allied professionals and other key stakeholders.
By: Mike Ingberg
 
May 9, 2011 - PRLog -- The American Institute of Architects Detroit’s Urban Priorities Committee (AIA-UPC) continues its “Detroit By Design” series at the Detroit Public Library, May 17-24.  Focusing on urban centers, exhibits for this month’s series open on May 17 and conclude with the symposia featuring industry experts on May 24.

From 1 p.m.-7:30 p.m. on May 24, the symposia will discuss such topics as:
How do we support and build existing Urban Centers in Detroit?
What is the relationship between the neighborhoods and Urban Centers in Detroit?
What impact do neighboring Urban Centers in the suburbs have on the city of Detroit?
What connects Urban Centers within the city and the region?
What is the connection between transportation and Urban Centers?

Called “Detroit By Design” and sponsored by the AIA National office in Washington, D.C., this three-month series seeks to assist the city with its efforts to reorganize by helping with the Detroit Works Project (DWP) while bringing together architects, community and business leaders, public officials, allied professionals and other key stakeholders in the region.

The subject of urban centers is the second of three topics covered by “Detroit By Design.”  Last month, the series discussed transportation. In June, urban agriculture will be the focus of discussion.  

In each symposia, participants discuss the specific theme as it relates to the Detroit’s current status, its historic efforts, and the Detroit Works Project.  Through this collaborative public event, the UPC, a group of volunteer architects, seeks to bring design awareness to the communities and promote sustainable communities in the city and region through collaboration.

All exhibits and symposiums are free and open to public (except architects’ seeking continuing education credits).  For more information, please contact the AIA UPC at UPC@aiadetroit.com or go to www.aiadetroit.com.  You also can catch up with the latest activities at http://aiadetroitbydesign.wordpress.com (UPC blog) or on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/AIA-Detroit-Urban-Prioritie....

URBAN CENTERS—May 17 (Exhibits) and May 24 (Discussions)
How do we support and build existing Urban Centers in Detroit? What is the relationship between the neighborhoods and Urban Centers in Detroit? What impact do neighboring Urban Centers in the suburbs have on the city of Detroit? What connects Urban Centers within the city and the region? What is the connection between transportation and Urban Centers? These are just some of the questions that will be asked when Detroit By Design focuses on Urban Centers in May.

Exhibit Opening Tues., May 17 from 6 p.m.-7:30 p.m., at the Detroit Public Library exhibit hall (Adam Strohm Hall), the public is invited to view the exhibits focusing on this theme.  Projects displayed were selected projects from almost 90 submissions by teams and individual designers from several countries and U.S. cities. They will be on display through June.

The discussion sessions will take place in the conference room (Explorer’s Room) and auditorium on Tues., May 24 and feature a distinguished group of panelists, UPC members, local residents, community leaders, public officials, local architects, allied professionals, and area school faculty and students, who will conduct a community workshop.

1 p.m.-4 p.m.: Marja Winters, deputy director for the City of Detroit and co-project director for the Detroit Works Project, and UPC members will co-moderate the opening discussions on the exhibit projects and how they pertain to Urban Centers in the city of Detroit. The roundtable discussion will also explore how the projects can  influence  the  Detroit Works Project, and have an open dialog with the local architecture community and other attendees.

Other panelists include: David Dixon, FAIA of Goody Clancy – the architect of New Orleans post Katrina plan; SOM Partner in Charge of Urban Design and Planning Philip Enquist, FAIA; SOM Director of Urban Design Doug Voigt, AIA; Detroit Works Project Team Member and Hamilton Anderson Associates Studio Leader Dan Kinkead, AIA; Cranbrook Academy of Art Director Reed Kroloff; McKenna Associates President Philip McKenna, PCP, AICP; Design 99 and Power House Productions Co-Director Gina Reichert; and Artist and Detroit SOUP Founder Kate Daughdrill.

5 p.m. to 5:50 p.m.:  David Dixon, FAIA, of Goody Clancy, headlines this discussion on his post Katrina 2030 master plan for New Orleans, and other US cities and what can be learned to benefit the city of Detroit. For more than five decades, the firm’s work has been characterized by an unwavering dedication to social responsibility and design excellence.

Combining humanitarian purpose with visual distinction, the Goody Clancy planned and designed buildings, neighborhoods and open spaces, which combine the firm’s strong skills in new building design, preservation and research. This experience is coupled with the firm’s interest in energizing the public and encouraging them to stake a claim in their future. The resulting practice is inclusive, collaborative and participatory.

The varied nature of the firm’s work recomposes and revitalizes existing campuses and communities for the people who live and work in them. Goody Clancy is a firm of 100 architects, preservationists, planners and urban designers based in Boston and working nationally. From the firm’s inception to present day, it has integrated energy and resource conservation into its work. The firm’s work has been published extensively and has won numerous accolades for design excellence

6 p.m.-7:30 p.m.: Moderated by Marja Winters, the last discussion of the evening focusing on the outcomes of the community workshop and the keynote presentations.  The discussion will explore how the city and the Detroit Works Project can benefit from the ideas and proposals generated from the afternoon sessions, make recommendations for urban centers in Detroit, and wrap up the Urban Centers symposium.  Panelists include Kate Daughdrill, David Dixon, FAIA, Philip Enquist, FAIA, Dan Kinkead, AIA, Reed Kroloff, Phillip McKenna, AICP, Gina Reichert, and Doug Voigt, AIA.

# # #

The goal of the American Institute of Architects Detroit’s Urban Priorities Committee (AIA-UPC) is to bring awareness to the design community, and encourage involvement in the planning and design of the city and region toward a sustainable future. Through such activities as interaction with local community stakeholders and city officials, and creation of seminars and other educational events, the AIA-UPC is available to assist the city of Detroit in the historic process of planning and altering the city to achieve a sustainable community design. For more information or to join the UPC committee and volunteer for events, visit www.aiadetroit.com.
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Source:Mike Ingberg
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Tags:American, Institute, Architects, Detroit, Urban, Priorities, Committee, Centers, Exhibits, Symposia, Experts
Industry:Architecture, Construction, Real Estate
Location:Farmington Hills - Michigan - United States
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Page Updated Last on: May 09, 2011
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