Construction begins, in earnest, on Rosa Parks Transit Center

Site work has begun for the Rosa Parks Transit Center, and foundation work is planned to start in June. The 2.4-acre site, bounded by Michigan and Cass Avenues and Times Square, has been fenced and is currently being prepped.

The transit center is planned as a 24-hour multi-modal transfer facility connecting passengers to DDOT, SMART and Transit Windsor Tunnel buses as well as to the Detroit People Mover. It consists of a 25,700 square foot three-level building and a central island with 12 bus bays. The building will host a cashier, retail, DDOT police and passenger seating as well as an AVL system that will show route schedules in real time.

The architect for the transit center is Parsons Brinckerhoff, who views the design as function-driven. “We had to put buses in the largest part of the site,” says architect Tushar Advani, citing the large turn radius of the vehicles. That left Parsons Brinckerhoff with a triangular site at the Michigan/Cass corner for the actual building.

Advani says the tensile structure that covers the bus bays was selected for several reasons, including light, protection and the “quality of the space.” He describes it as an “enclosed public square” that is open yet will be comfortable year-round.

The $18.3 million development is being funded through federal and state grants. DeMaria Building Company is the project’s general contractor; the contractor for the tensile structure has not yet been made public. Construction will be complete at the end of 2008.

Sources: Tushar Advani and Sharmila Mukhergee, Parsons Brinckerhoff and Ruby Dixon, DDOT
Writer: Kell B. Kavanaugh