MUD2
GRADUATE STUDIO II
MASTER OF URBAN DESIGNMUD 722 - WINTER 2024PROFESSOR
Cyrus PeñarroyoCTRL+ALT+DEL: Countering and Rebooting the University's Innovation Complex
Urban designers have become increasingly enrolled in the development of costly innovation centers, campuses, and districts promising to transform metropolitan areas through the commercialization of new ideas. These enclaves are designed to spur economic growth by bringing together researchers and entrepreneurs into spaces where market-driven creative exchange can occur. Despite their appeal, the efficacy of innovation centers and districts has yet to be substantiated, but that has not stopped prominent institutions and investors from supporting these risky projects. We need not look further than U of M’s controversial, multimillion-dollar plan to erect a shiny new “Center for Innovation” that promises to revitalize downtown Detroit...
A testbed for the development of counterproposals to the UMCI that deploy urban design and digital technology for the common good, this studio questioned innovation and rapid growth as design motivations. If technologies are indicators of shared values, what alternative technological paradigms could we put forward that deemphasize innovation and assign value elsewhere? If embracing technologies associated with the “sharing economy” is also accelerating ecological destruction, what other cooperative technologies could be introduced to promote ecological stewardship instead? If innovation districts are instruments of financial accumulation that bolster the commodification of urban space, what spatial models or practices could be advanced that recognize urban space as a common resource? Ultimately, the studio asked students to deploy urban design in a manner that holds U of M accountable for its behavior in Detroit.
STUDENTS
Srilaxmi Melkundi, Lauren Pettinga, Mujie Sui
PROFESSOR
Cyrus Peñarroyo
This project delves into the core principles of public education, extracting from the Center of Educational Policy's mission to validate five essential pillars: sustainable funding, free learning, equal opportunity, accountability, and access. With a focus on reimagining Detroit’s educational landscape, the initiative seeks to transform the way resources and methods are deployed in the District of Detroit. By rethinking the University of Michigan's Center for Innovation, the project proposes the redistribution of funding to create a dynamic, pedestrian-only educational corridor along W Columbia Street in District Detroit. This bold vision aims to ignite a new chapter in public education for one open to the community and not just the University of Michigan—one that fosters inclusivity, accessibility, and community-driven learning for all public users.
STUDENTS
Md Ehsan Alam, Cameron Blakely, Akshita Mandhyan
PROFESSOR
Cyrus Peñarroyo
As society continues to embrace ‘new’ technologies, we believe that maintenance and repair are equally important. RENEWPAIR recognizes the University of Michigan’s Center for Innovation (UMCI) as a microcosm of the District Detroit and looks to rescript its program as a way of contemplating the university’s responsibility to Detroiters. Through reconnection, remembrance, and reparation, our counter proposal aims to repair some of Detroit’s historical urban injustices while simultaneously constructing social and economic resilience at all scales. From reactivated streets and alleyways to reprogrammed buildings and new transit connections, we propose viewing innovation not just as new, but as a complementary step to create a more resilient Detroit.