Second Week in Detroit: Cool People, Cool Places – Detroit Community-Engaged Research Program

Second Week in Detroit: Cool People, Cool Places

This summer I am working with Downtown Detroit Partnership, the non-profit responsible for many of the parks of downtown Detroit including Campus Martius, Cadillac Park, Beacon Park, and others. DDP is also responsible for the Business Improvement Zone, a partnership with local businesses to make downtown a great place to live, work, and visit. Their stated mission is cultivating economic and social impact in Downtown Detroit by connecting public, private and philanthropic sectors, providing stewardship of public spaces, and developing programs that engage and benefit all. My work is about putting systems in place to further understand and better integrate community sentiments regarding public spaces and what should be done with them. So far, this has included developing surveys and finding creative ways to get feedback from residents and people visiting the parks. I have had an overwhelmingly positive experience with DDP thus far, sitting in on various meetings and preparing surveys and performing other miscellaneous tasks. Furthermore, I am doing my best to fully appreciate that I am working out of 1 Campus Martius in the heart of downtown Detroit, a beautiful building that overlooks Campus Martius and the surrounding area. 

In regards to DCERP proper, I am eager to get to know the rest of the cohort, especially since the people I have met so far have been pretty cool. Hearing from speakers who are visibly passionate about the work they do has also been nice. I’m looking forward to any outing in which we can justify going to the DIA.

3 thoughts on “Second Week in Detroit: Cool People, Cool Places”

  1. Hi!
    The non-profit you are working with sounds amazing and I look forward to hearing about you final results during the showcase. I am sure you have already learned some great things about local businesses and the work that goes into creating these public spaces and the impact they have had. I hear about DDP all the time as it is pretty popular in Downtown Detroit in creating parks as you said. However, I did not know that they were working on partnering with local businesses, which I find awesome, I am truly learning something new about the city everyday. Can’t wait to hear more about what you do and the places and people you meet!

  2. Hi Keegan,

    It seems like you are getting great insight and getting a broad range of experience by going to meetings and doing a variety of tasks. That seems like an awesome way to get to know the organization and figure out what you enjoy! Understanding community sentiment about the downtown area sounds like extremely important work and I look forward to hearing about the information you find out.

    I hope you have a great next week!
    Caitlin

  3. Keegan,
    One of my favorite things to do in Detroit growing up was visit the parks, so I think it’s so cool that you get to be involved with them. I think that those spaces are super important to the culture of the city and the beauty of it as well! I would love to hear more about what you’re doing with your project, it sounds awesome. And I also want to go to the DIA ASAP!

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