The Detroit Cultural District framework plan is the result of a five-year collaborative process integrating sustainable urbanism, ecological resilience, and nature-based strategies. Encompassing 83 acres and 12 cultural institutions in Midtown Detroit, the plan uses landscape as a unifying medium—transforming a collection of discrete sites into a continuous and dynamic public realm.
Originally developed as the Cultural Center Planning Initiative, the framework extends beyond coordination to operate as an act of social and environmental repair. It addresses Detroit’s fragmented urban fabric by establishing a shared civic ground that responds to existing conditions while supporting future collective use. In parallel with the design process, the Detroit Cultural District Association was established as a nonprofit governing body, aligning spatial vision with long-term stewardship and institutional collaboration.
The framework is organized as an adaptive spatial system composed of a pedestrian square, a continuous green band of linked plazas, a calibrated ecotone for environmental management, and a network of smaller pedestrian paths. Developed through sustained engagement with adjacent institutions, the system achieves coherence through deliberate differentiation—using landscape to bind diversity into a legible, resilient whole.
2019-present
Midtown Detroit
Scale:
83 acres
Client:
Midtown Detroit, Inc, The Detroit Cultural Center Association (DCCA)
Competition:
DIA Plaza | Midtown Cultural Connections Design Competition
Winner, “Detroit Square” submission in collaboration with Agence Ter,
Dr. Harley Etienne, rootoftwo
Stakeholder Institutions:
Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, Detroit Historical Museum, Detroit Institute of Arts, the Detroit Public Library, Michigan Science Center, Carr Center, Hellenic Museum of Michigan, International Institute of
Metro Detroit, and the Scarab Club, University of Michigan, College for Creative Studies, Wayne State University
Support:
William Davidson Foundation, Fred A. and Barbara M. Erb Family Foundation, Knight Foundation, Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Foundation, Gilbert Family Foundation, The Kresge Foundation, Hudson Webber Foundation, Walters Family Foundation, Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan, Wayne State University, National Endowment for the Arts, Michigan Arts and Culture Council, and the State of Michigan Appropriation
Principals:
Jean Louis Farges, Olivier Philippe, Anya Sirota
Collaborators:
Agence Ter
Consultants:Arcadis Engineering, 8’-18” Lumière, Drummond Carpenter & Associates, Dr. Harley Etienne, Ohio State University Rich & Associates
Design Team Detroit:
Sarah Carter (project manager), Ian Donaldson, Liz Feltz, Abirami Nachammai Manivannan, Valeria de Jongh, Ibiayi Briggs, Jonathan Craig
Design Team Paris:
Marina Daviu, Kevin Marand, Marie Saalburg
Design Team Barcelona:
Pilar Llop
Publications:
Project Volumes 1-4:
The Guiding Plan
Water Management
Mobility & Access
Parking
Design Commons: ccpi.online
Awards:
Architizer Vision Award. Vision for Public Space, Winner (2025)
The Plan Award. Public Space Design, Winner (2024)
Bay Urban Visioning Awards. Bilbao Metropolis-30 Partners in Progress, Winner Finalist (2024)
Architect’s Newspaper Best of Design Merit Award. Honorable Mention in the Urban Design & Master Plan (2023)