21st Century Libraries

Public libraries began popping up on American soil during the 18th century. Their purpose was simple, to give its citizens access to information through the free circulation of books. In the case of Ben Franklin's Library Company of Philadelphia, to serve the civic good of giving people a means through which to settle arguments.

The first public library arrived in Detroit in 1865. And on April 16, 1931, the doors of the eighteenth member of the Detroit Library system opened in honor of American historian Francis Parkman.

Today, libraries are evolving to serve a new modern-day purpose: to bridge the digital divide.

• For 66% of Americans, libraries are their only source for free access to the internet.



• 70% of Americans depend on library computers whether or not they have a computer at home.



• 55% of retail companies require online job applications.



• Between 2008 and 2009, libraries have seen a 110% increase in career service usage.

In attempt to bridge the digital divide, the Knight Foundation awarded a $866,000 grant to the Detroit Public Library to expand free Internet access at the Parkman Branch library by building a new technology and literacy center. The library will now be able to serve an additional 400 patrons a day with access to the Internet and an ever-growing range of activities including job searches and resume building.

Continuing to serve its original goals, this historic library is now being restored with a 21st century purpose.

Work began in the summer of 2010.

Awaiting the Rising of a Phoenix

A fenced in vacant field of wild flowers awaits a rebirth. Motor City casino looms in the background as the land formerly known as Jefferies East, re-named Cornerstone Estates, awaits the rising of a Phoenix. Crouching in a corner of the field each morning, I hope to capture a picture of this rare legendary bird.

The Egyptian Phoenix has two long feathers fixed atop its head with a white crown of ostrich feathers. Its rising is associated with the rise of the Nile river and creation. Its cry marking the beginning of time.

The Arabian Phoenix is said to be as large as an Eagle with brilliant scarlet and gold plumage and a melodious cry. At the end of its life it sets its nest on fire, is consumed by its flames, and after three days rises from its ashes.

The Chinese Phoenix is described as having the beak of a cock, the face of a swallow, the neck of a snake, the breast of a goose, the back of a tortoise, the hindquarters of a stag and the tail of a fish. It symbolizes high grace and virtue. If used to decorate a house, it represents the loyalty and honesty of the people who live there.

The Japanese Phoenix, known as the Ho-Oo, resembles the Chinese Phoenix. It descends from the heavens only at the birth of a virtuous ruler and the beginning of a new era. Its symbol represents justice, fidelity and obedience.

A Phoenix is about to rise over Jeffries East. One can only hope that its rising can be captured in pictures.

Releasing Some Steam

A full two levels below the public areas of the Detroit Public Library lies Sub-Level B. Containing most of the mechanical equipment heating and cooling the Library, I recently spent an afternoon surveying its condition with a mechanical engineer. I liken the area to the inner organs of a human body. The temperature rises as you descend into an artery of steam pipes and pneumatic controls. Loud random pieces of equipment cycle on and off, giving the unfamiliar reasons to pause and access the level of danger.

The life blood of the room is steam, pumped in from a network that loops its way around the center of Detroit. Multiple valves control its pressure like the sections of a submarine use water to control its sinking and rising. It’s summer, so only one section of steam piping remains open for the production of hot water. When winter returns, it will take 45 minutes to manually turn the complete system back on, as steam slowly re-animates the multiple limbs of the library's heating system and provides warmth through the winter.

When we talk of greening cities, these are the systems that require our surgical attention. These renovations are the primary challenge of the urban architect and engineer. And though restored facades can make wonderful first impressions, success is equally measured by keeping a building user thermally comfortable and utility bills to a tolerable minimum. Plans include significantly improving equipment efficiency, installing a heat recovery unit and installing computer controlled electronic monitoring devices.

Lessons Frozen in Time

During the summer of 2009, I surveyed the condition of over 80 Detroit Housing Commission single-family homes scattered through-out the City of Detroit. We would ritually unwrap hermetically sealed homes and disturbingly step into them fully furnished and untouched from the minute they were sealed. We became unwilling peeping toms, accidentally spying on personal belongings. We would survey every room, inadvertently glimpsing table tops with notes to love ones, walls with pictures of friends and relatives, closets filled with clothing, and pantries still filled with groceries. I imagined an elderly person, whisked off in an emergency, never to return. Their memorial: a boarded home filled with a lifetime of unclaimed memories.

These homes are filled with lessons. They are a frozen moment revealing the meaning of home. As we renovate them, there's an opportunity to listen to their spirit. To take notice of duct taped drafty windows, abandoned security systems, basements converted into bedrooms, mildewed bathroom floors, grease stained kitchen walls and double bolted bedrooms doors. It would be easy to ignore these simple observations, but if you listen closely, one can hear its spirit teaching lessons in home weatherization, energy conservation, aging-in-place and barrier-free design. These homes are laboratories waiting to reveal how to bring Detroit into the 21st century. The question becomes, is anyone listening?

Socially Responsible Architecture

Just over 1% of registered architects in this country are African-American. Though I'm proud to be part of this 1%, I find it sometimes challenging finding professional satisfaction and reward. I chose this profession hoping to help solve the ills plaguing urban communities. Professor Craig Wilkins, in his book Aesthetics of Equity, expresses my frustration through the words of Jacqueline C. Vischer:

...the profession's adherence to the belief that architecture's greatest aspiration is to be inspired by artistic vision, [implies] that anything that is not is, by definition, lesser. As result, although another person might produce architecture that is socially responsible, cost effective, technically innovative, or meets some other criterion of excellence, it can never be quite as excellent as "art"...[In fact], for some contemporary architectural theorist, achitecture that is inspired by an artistic vision cannot solve social problems and cannot even play a role in social change if it is to be "pure" as an art form.

As I review the projects I've been part over the past 17 years, I find inspiration in their social value. I have always valued being part of projects that are generated by a community need. Projects that are driven to have an immediate affect on a community's condition facilitate a building's link to community.

This is what I hope to share. My goal is to post images of projects that reveal this correlation. And along the way, raise the importance of an aspect of architecture that is frequently ignored. To reveal the role a socially responsible architect can play in rejuvenating the forgotten buildings of Detroit.

A Rehabilative Architect

How does an architect rejuvenate a building? First, the architect must understand its spirit. Second, the architect must meld this spirit with the new life he or she breathes into it. Like a grandchild listening to stories told by her grandmother, these spaces will speak to a past as well as to a present. They will use an understanding of the architect's original intentions to create new innovative and unique solutions. They will allow the ghosts of the past to harmonize with life in the present.

The City of Detroit is at a crucial point in history. A cacophony of political and economic factors has created a moment where the City must define its future. Specifically, a vision for how to breathe new life into the City’s built environment must be defined. The purpose of this journal is to document one architect's journey to find this vision. Future posts hope to reveal the spirit of Detroit's buildings and the rejuvenation of this spirit through designs that speak to both a past, present and a redefined future.