The City of Detroit transformed the historic Michigan State Fair Grounds into a modern transit and transfer station through the adaptive reuse of the 1924 Dairy Cattle Building .
Challenge
The challenge was to adapt a nearly 100-year-old agricultural exhibition building for contemporary transit use. As a modern transportation facility, the design needed to balance preservation with operational, safety, and technology requirements.
Solution
As Preservation Architect, we worked with design partner DLZ to restore much of the original building fabric, including the stucco cladding, exposed structure, large façade openings, clerestory windows, and vaulted center bay. New transit facilities, retail space, a police station, and a semi-enclosed passenger pick-up area were integrated within the existing structure, while the historic Coliseum portico was adapted as an entrance feature to the public plaza.
Outcome
The adaptive reuse of the Dairy Cattle building contributes to a sustainable future by lowering our carbon footprint and improving the overall cost lifecycle of the existing structure. Bicycle and scooter parking, public green space, retail opportunities and an event stage help bring this historical site into the future.
The 1922 Coliseum portico was carefully preserved and reimagined as a new entrance to the public plaza, maintaining its place as an iconic State Fair landmark.
Adaptive Reuse
The 52,000-square-foot Dairy Cattle Building was adapted for modern transit use while preserving its vaulted centre bay, exposed structure, and clerestory windows.
The City of Detroit identified a need for a fully operational Transit and Transfer station on the site of the historic former Michigan State Fair Grounds. The adaptive reuse of the 1924 Dairy Cattle building offers modern transit options to an area in desperate need of mobility. Spanning 52,000 square feet, with an additional 1,500 square feet preserved from the 1922 Coliseum building portico, the transit hub serves a higher density of commercial development in the area while serving as a unique historic feature.
As the Preservation Architect, NORR restored most of the original building while preparing it for modern transit by implementing the program requirements of the DDOT (Detroit Department of Transit) and the SmartBus systems. The building enclosure at the rider pick-up locations provides a more comfortable semi-enclosed area to protect commuters from unfavorable climate conditions and enhance safety. Services and amenities, including a waiting area, 24-hour bathrooms, retail space, bicycle storage, a police station and an interactive historical display, were also updated.
NORR’s design intent for the Cattle Barn was to retain its historic fabric while integrating operations, safety and technology into the nearly 100-year-old building. Significant features such as stucco cladding, exposed structure, large facade openings and upper clearstory windows were restored as part of the preservation efforts. To adapt the building to a new use, treatments were undertaken with a sensitive eye towards maintaining the civil importance of the facility. The vaulted center bay was kept exposed as it was originally designed.
An important feature of the Coliseum, the south Portico was also preserved as part of the project. The Portico was carefully adapted as a new entrance feature to the public plaza while maintaining its status as an iconic State Fair building.
NORR worked with design partners DLZ to deliver a unique local transit solution in a former agricultural exhibition hall on a monumental scale. The adaptive reuse of the Dairy Cattle building contributes to a sustainable future by lowering our carbon footprint and improving the overall cost lifecycle of the existing structure. Bicycle and scooter parking, public green space, retail opportunities and an event stage help bring this historical site into the future.
