Brick + Beam

Prototyping events and initiatives for a community that encourages and supports building rehab in Detroit.

In Detroit, demolition is a common solution for blighted and vacant properties. The founders of Brick + Beam see this as a tragic loss of the city’s vibrant and historic buildings. Instead of blight, they see these properties as a resource to be protected and built upon. In 2014, Emilie, Amy and Victoria applied for a grant from the Knight Cities Challenge to create a community that provides resources and support to potential building rehabbers across Detroit.

In January 2015, our team of Parsons graduate students joined Brick + Beam through the IDEO & Knight Civic Design Fellowship. We kicked off with a week-long workshop in New York to explore a wide range of potential service ideas, and to plan a prototype that we could test in Detroit in March.

A storyboard of "Building Success Stories", one of the concepts we prototyped.
A storyboard of "Launch Box", one of the concepts we prototyped.

We focused on two ideas:

  1. Building Success Stories, an open mic event where building rehabbers can meet each other, share successes and failures, and trade resources. This also involved the #Bragmyrehab tag and map, where people could share their rehab projects.
  2. Launch Box, a collection of resources to help new building rehabbers get started with buying a property or planning their project.
A low-fidelity prototype of the launch box. The top of the box reads "Brag your rehab, launch kit"

In March, we planned a prototyping event with 120 Detroiters to test the open mic structure. We also scheduled visits to two rehabbed homes to meet with their owners, and visited homes on the market with the Detroit Land Bank to test our Launch Box prototype as new homebuyers.

A woman adds a pin to a map on the wall

We learned that:

  • Rehabbers in Detroit are craving a community to share their stories and learn from each others’ experiences. Beyond gathering as a large group, it would also be valuable to create smaller groups who can share specific experiences and information. For example, connecting the homeowner who wants to restore the stained glass windows in her home and the expert who teaches classes on stained glass restoration, or creating separate space for rehabbers interested in commercial versus residential buildings. 
  • Rehabbers at the event often used the story map to find projects near their own homes and neighborhoods. This connection between neighbors was often cited as the reason people stay in their homes and the support that gets them through the difficulty of the rehab process.
  • There is a tension between an inspiring, romantic vision of building rehab and its reality of hard work and sacrifice. The inspiration often happens on the street, seeing buildings before, during and after work has been done.
  • Given the difficulty of creating a one-size-fits-all resource in such a diverse community, the Launch Box should focus primarily on connecting its recipient to Brick+Beam events and expert community members who can provide more tailored support.
  • These experts are a vital part of the Brick+Beam community. It will be important to explore ways to attract and support their continued participation.

Today, Brick + Beam is a thriving community, hosting classes on topics like window repair and plumbing, alongside a range of initiatives to support building rehab in Detroit. The map of restoration projects is live on their website with over 50 entries, added by individuals across the city.