historic preservation Archives - The Handbuilt City

Ford’s Michigan Central Station is finally finished. It opens to the public on June 6th, 2024, but since tickets are sold out, you can still take a virtual tour here.

abandoned ilitch building in cass corridor detroit owned by olympia development

Detroit Historic preservation Real Estate Urban Planning

August 2, 2023 Nat M. Zorach

The Ilitch Crusade Continues: When Is Enough Enough?

The latest Ilitch demolition has us all scratching our heads and wondering when we will deserve a better city– for buildings, for historic preservation, and, of course, for Detroiters.

storefront-architectural-elevation-mixed-use

Housing Real Estate Urban Planning

April 26, 2023 Nat M. Zorach

Can Second-Floor Apartments Make A Comeback? A New SDBA Grant Program Thinks So.

An ambitious new program in Detroit seeks to provide $10,000 to property owners to renovate and rent out second-floor and third-floor apartments in mixed-use buildings along several major corridors in Southwest Detroit.

Construction Sustainability

October 21, 2020 Nat M. Zorach

Old House Love: Ditch The Chemical Floor Finishes

Nat explores wood finishes using a domestically-made, zero-VOC linseed oil-based varnish for some 1895 hardwood floors.

Culture & Language Historic preservation Travel

October 12, 2020 Nat M. Zorach

Postcards from Dubuque: Then and Now

A parable of delicious mini-donuts and– stories about those who came before the mini-donuts.

Business & Economics Historic preservation Transit infrastructure Urban Planning

October 6, 2020 Nat M. Zorach

Detroit Fairgrounds Site: Alternatives to Permanent, Monumentally Bad Decisions

The State Fairgrounds site is centrally located, and it’s huge. Too huge to make some monumentally bad decisions about permanently turning it into a Shelby Township-style strip mall.