Thursday, April 2, 2009

URBAN DESIGN: Lafayette Park in Detroit stands as an example successful 1969's modernist urban renewal



The Lafayette Park in Detroit development planned by Ludwig Hilberseimer with a park and gardens designed by Alfred Caldwell stands as one of the most successful post-war urban renewal projects.

Even today despite all the problems of real estate in Detroit, the area is still doing well.


Although the construction is far from what would be considered green today (a mix of concrete, glass, and steel buildings designed by Mies van der Rohe) the overall design addresses aspect of green building in which design is meant to build community, though perhaps in a different way than might be done today by placing the development off the street grid in the midst of a large park.

Photos by gehad83 under a creative commons license.

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