Plan Will Spur New Investment and Improve Quality of Life As It Guides Future Development
The city of Detroit’s Mayor’s Office, the Economic Development Corporation (EDC) – which is staffed by the Detroit Economic Development Corporation (DEGC) — and The Nature Conservancy (TNC) are seeking proposals from qualified firms to develop a “Comprehensive Neighborhood Framework Plan” and “Centralized Storm Water Management Feature Master Plan” to build upon the success of the Eastern Market and surrounding area.
Eastern Market is a unique area that mixes a tourist attraction rich in history with robust outdoor retail activity, food-related industries and a growing residential component.
The goal of the framework plan is to leverage those unique assets to make Eastern Market the hub of food production and distribution for the Great Lakes Region while increasing neighborhood amenities, improving the quality of life for local residents, and expanding their opportunities for nearby employment.
The addition of new storm water facilities and green space features will be an innovative way to add attractiveness and walkability to the District, creating a better quality of life now and in the future for Detroit residents and visitors.
“Eastern Market is one of the busiest urban areas in our city, and the largest open-air flowerbed market in the United States,” said Moddie Turay, Executive Vice President of Real Estate and Financial Services for DEGC. “Planning a mixed-use development in the middle of an active market that’s lively six days a week is very exciting.
“This Framework Plan will build upon the success of the Market and add even more life to the area by layering in residential, retail, and industrial food processing components that complement the existing businesses there,” said Turay.
“Integrating healthy habitats and functional green space within our urban areas is critical to the success and livability of our cities,” said Valerie Strassberg, Detroit Director of Urban Conservation at The Nature Conservancy.
“The opportunity to create a robust network of green storm water facilities that also provide recreational amenities to help catalyze future development within the district is exciting. The embedding of natural systems within the urban network will provide resiliency for the district and provide access to nature for the local community,” said Strassberg.
The project will cover a 1.1 square mile area that incorporates three sub districts: the Eastern Market, the Neighborhood Business Innovation Zone (NBIZ), and the surrounding Greater Eastern Market (GEM) residential neighborhood. The area boundaries are: Gratiot on the southeast, Joseph Campau on the northeast, Warren Avenue on the northwest, and I-75 Chrysler Freeway on the southwest.
The Plan should incorporate the best urban design practices for development that combines open space design incorporating the development of centralized storm water management features, as well as design features that can attract new residents, expand greater food-related commercial investment, incorporate land use buffering (between Eastern Market, NBIZ and GEM), and enhance mobility, culture, and recreation.
The EDC will only accept proposals from firms or teams that have experience within the last five years on projects of similar or greater scope and complexity as the services requested on this Framework Plan.
Well-developed proposals from either one firm or a group of firms are welcome. Respondents are strongly encouraged to consider inclusion of team members that are Detroit-based, a minority-owned business enterprise (MBE), women-owned business enterprise (WBE), and/or have a substantive body of knowledge and/or experience within Detroit.