City of Detroit Blight to Beauty projects receive state, national recognition for outstanding design

• Redeveloped Roosevelt Park receives two major awards for design
• Jason Hargrove Transit Center also recognized for extraordinary design

The City of Detroit has recently received multiple awards for excellence in design for two of its signature “blight to beauty” projects: the redesign of Roosevelt Park in front of Michigan Central Station and the new Jason Hargrove Transit Center at the former State Fairgrounds. 

The City’s General Services Department (GSD) received a 2024 President’s Award from Keep Michigan Beautiful Inc., while the transit center project was awarded Best Regional Project by the Engineering News Record.

Roosevelt Park receives high honors for lush landscaping

Keep Michigan Beautiful Inc. is a state-wide organization that promotes beautification efforts and the President’s award for which Roosevelt Park was selected is the highest honor this organization gives to any project annually. The gardens at Erma Henderson Park received this same award in 2022. Team members will travel to Frankenmuth to receive the award in mid-October.

Prior to the park redesign, paid for with $6 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds, Roosevelt Park was a park in name only, with no features beyond grass and trees and a wide roadway that cut the park in half. The newly renovated park eliminated the road to create a unified park with lush gardens, swings, tables and walking paths.

“Our floriculture team is world class,” said Barry Burton project manager for City of Detroit General Services Department Landscape Design Unit. “Maintaining these beautiful park gardens, growing plant materials and reacting to all the seasonal challenges that come with having celebrated gardens really speaks to the knowledge and commitment of our Floriculture team.” 

Additionally, the Michigan Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects (MiASLA) Conference has honored Roosevelt Park with a Merit award for its overall design. The design of the park was featured at the MiASLA’s annual conference on September 12th in Detroit. 

The team who worked on Roosevelt Park’s improvement project included city landscape architects, planners and horticulturalist complemented by a contracted design and engineering team from Orchard, Hiltz, & McCliment Inc. (OHM).

“This project was truly a collaborative effort.  The awards are a wonderful recognition of our hard work and what we see every day at the park; people that are engaged and enjoying the beautiful gardens and settings of this unique, historic park and neighborhood asset,” said Jeff Klein, Deputy Chief of Landscape Architecture City of Detroit General Services Dept.

“I couldn’t be prouder of the recognition Detroit’s Parks are receiving.  We have a talented group of landscape architects, planners, horticulturalist and park practitioners in our maintaining these spaces,” said Crystal Perkins, City of Detroit General Services Director. “To get these awards really exemplifies all the hard work we’ve been doing to build on and improve our parks.”

Jason Hargrove Transit Center

The Jason Hargrove Transit Center has been named a 2024 recipient of the Regional Best Project Award in the airport/transit category. The award is presented by the Engineering News Record (ENR), an organization that recognizes exceptional design on construction projects and the teams that create them across the United States and Mexico. 

During the deliberation process for the prestigious award, the Jason Hargrove Transit Center and the construction team were reviewed by judges representing ten different regions. The judges, who are regarded as leaders in the construction and design industry, considered factors including innovation and contribution to the community, design and construction quality, and the construction team’s ability to overcome challenges likely faced throughout the process. The team behind building the transit center will be honored at an award ceremony later this year.

The Jason Hargrove Transit Center is named after late DDOT driver Jason Hargrove, who died from Covid-19 in 2020. Jason Hargrove was a strong advocate for bus drivers and passenger safety, two messages that DDOT sought to embody while building the transit center. The $31 million redevelopment of the former Michigan State Fairgrounds opened in May of 2024 with a goal of best serving DDOT passengers and bus operators. The remarkable 52,000 square-foot facility includes top of the line amenities and shelter from often unpredictable and harsh weather conditions.

The Detroit Building Authority took the lead on designing the transit center, emphasizing functionality and safety for all who use the transit center.

“The Jason Hargrove Transit Center was a challenging project because we were taking a beloved historic building used for the Michigan State Fair and adapting it into a state-of-the-art transit center,” said Detroit Building Authority Director Tyrone Clifton. “I am very proud of the team, led by Deputy DBA Director Donna Rice, who created a magnificent facility for DDOT passengers and drivers. We are proud to also have partnered with minority owned contractors to design a unique facility that meets the needs of today while paying homage to the building’s rich history.”

The city conducted community outreach meetings before adaptive reuse of the transit center began. Detroit residents expressed a desire for a new transit center designed to meet their needs. The architects at DLZ Michigan, Inc., a Detroit-based company, were able to craft a plan to preserve some history while still creating a state-of-the-art transportation hub, and the plan was approved by Detroit City Council before work on the facility started in 2022.