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Matthew Story, RA

Matthew Story, RA

Detroit, MI, US

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The Bureau of Emergent Urbanity


Welcome to the BUREAU OF EMERGENT URBANITY. 

Last fall, the ONE MILE Team opened a space for people to gather, share ideas, and talk about their work and their city. Converting the former OK Barbershop into a new urban hot spot was a collective effort. We first had to gut the corner storefront by removing decades of material accumulation from the many lives of the space. We then replastered walls, repaired the floor and joists, laid down cement board to make it durable, and painted ceiling. 

Then we installed a new facade. But, as a wink and an aspiration, the barber chairs, pole, and mirrors remain - reminders of the power of convivial and informal social space.

The Bureau hosts exhibitions, panels talks, gallery shows, meetings, open-mics, and it will soon be a space for a coffee shop and book lounge. The Bureau is, in many ways, a proto-type. It is a model of neighborhood collaboration in that there was an empty space with a landlord willing to let designers transform the space into something new. By working with existing owners, it allowed equity to be put back into the building to keep the value in the neighborhood. By making a mutual benefit agreement, the risk of a renovation is distributed and substantially lessened between all parties. 

 
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Status: Built
Location: Detroit, Michigan
My Role: Project Manager
Additional Credits: AKOAKI, MODCaR

 
c: jean louis farges
c: jean louis farges
c: piper carter
c: piper carter
c: jean louis farges
c: jean louis farges
c: jean louis farges
c: jean louis farges
c: jean louis farges
c: jean louis farges