State Historic Preservation Office Michigan Strategic Fund, Michigan Economic Development Corporation Staff Comments, August 12, 2019 The Aretha Franklin Amphitheater/Chene Park Local Historic District On page 4, paragraph 1, the idea of creating large urban parks in America is typically attributed to the opening of Mt. Auburn Cemetery in Boston in 1831. Its surprising use as a park by the public led to the idea of Central Park in New York, which was approved in 1853. On page 4, the last line of paragraph 1 is misleading since Olmsted quit the Detroit project due to budget cuts and bureaucratic intervention. As a result, beyond the location of some of the drives, very little of Olmsted’s plan for Belle Isle was ever actually implemented. On page 4, paragraph 2, line 1, not sure what is being referred to regarding the 1845 date for the establishment of Belle Isle as a park. The park opened in 1884, according to the National Register nomination. Edward Bennet is merely mentioned -- was any of the plan he developed, in relation to the riverfront, ever implemented? Was anything from the 1927 Master Plan ever implemented? The report only addresses the Riverside Drive, which was not. On Page 4, paragraph 3 if you are trying to establish exceptional significance for this park based on planning and community development activities in the city, then there should be more information about the history of the master plans leading up to its development. For example, the National Register nomination for Hart Plaza makes note of the 7 booklets created for the master plan of 1947 and discusses the civic center development within that context. There was a booklet for riverfront development created in 1947--what did the plans for it entail? Who was involved with the planning? Was anything implemented? It is not sufficient to just mention that there were master plans for the riverfront in 1947 and 1965. The report needs to explain them, discuss the plans for the area that is now Chene Park and if implementation actually occurred. Page 4, paragraph 4, it is too broad a statement to say Detroit went into economic decline “after World War II.” It took some time. In 1960 Detroit was considered the wealthiest city in the nation and General Motors the largest manufacturing company in the world. The real decline didn’t begin until the late 1960s, early 1970s. On page 4, a quick search of Newspapers.com shows that in March 1978 President Carter proposed an $8.3 billion national plan to save America’s cities. A stronger discussion of this proposal would better place Detroit’s project in its national context. Some discussion of Coleman Young as the city’s first black mayor is in order as well as a short discussion about his approach to administration of the city. Was his intent to do something different and groundbreaking through the riverfront project? 1 On a page 5, paragraph 3, the discussion of Mayor Young’s Moving Detroit Forward plan is too light. Was the Linked Riverfront concept just one part of a larger revitalization plan for the city? What was actually implemented from Young’s overall plan? What were its major components and what was the plan for the Chene Park area? Why did Mayor Young want to focus on the riverfront? In 1969 Lake Erie and the Rouge River caught fire due to pollutants in the water. Was there a major environmental clean-up that had been successful? Also, what business and community leaders were involved in presenting it to President Carter? Was it actually presented to the President himself? How and why? How many other communities presented plans? On page 5, paragraph 4 what was the close relationship between Young and Carter? Why and how would that affect a grant application submitted by the city of Detroit to a federal program? Why did Detroit receive more grant money than any other city? What did other communities receive? There should be more background on the Urban Development Action Grant (UDGA) program. Why was it created? What was going in the country at this time? Was it considered an important grant nationally? What other projects around the country benefited from it? Because of economic conditions and the downturn of the automobile industry at that time? There should be more information on the social and economic condition of Detroit at the time the UDAG grant was applied for so that it can be understood why receiving it was of exceptional significance to the city. Page 5, paragraph 4 there should be an overview of what the Linked Riverfront Parks Project was and what was to be created by its implementation. The report jumps right into one component, music, without explaining the entire project plan. Also, please provide some context for Pine Knob, where and when was it constructed. Why couldn’t Detroit compete with it through its existing venues—because it was an outdoor theater? It may be appropriate to discuss the development of outdoor theaters during the post war era. Interlochen near Traverse City has an outdoor theater built in the 1940s. Wolf Trap near Washington DC was donated in 1966. Where they a trend? Page 6, paragraph 1 indicates that Chene Park was already established and was being redeveloped as part of the Linked Riverfront Parks Project. When was it actually established? Did not see mention of it in the previous discussions of master plans. Page 6, paragraph 2, the report mentions 3 water-related recreation areas that were purchased, what were they? Where were they located in relation to Chene Park? The report states the land for Chene Park was vacant at the time of purchase. Page 6, paragraph 3, if you are trying to show that Chene Park has exceptional significance for planning, then then there needs to be a much stronger discussion here of Detroit’s plans for the riverfront and a discusson of the Linked Riverfront Park planning within the context of 1970s park planning. Was it typical or unique? There should also be a discussion of the landscape architect and how this park fits in with his body of work. The plan for the Detroit riverfront should be compared with other major riverfront parks developed during that time period and with other Michigan waterfront parks that were undertaken in that era. It is easier to understand why other parks in Michigan stand out for exceptional 2 significance. For example Hart Plaza, was planned by the internationally respected artist, Isamu Noguchi. Flint’s River Bank Park, built in 1974, was designed by famed landscape architect Lawrence Halprin, who was a significant influence in 1970s urban park planning. It does not come across in the report how Chene Park meets National Park Service Criteria Consideration G. Pages 6 and 7, there is too much on programming and not enough on the history of the park’s development. On page 6, paragraph 3, the last line it states that Chene Park has already been expanded 2 times since it opened in 1984. What effect have the expansions had on the resource’s integrity? Page 8, paragraph 2 there should be more discussion on Rainy Hamilton and his work. Is there information available on the use of black architects by the city? Architect Nathan Johnson said that in the mid-1970s few black architects ever received city of Detroit projects—out of over 1000 projects that he completed only about 3 of were city contracts. What was Hamilton’s inspiration for the design of the pavilion building? How does it fit in within his body of work? The report indicates that Chene Park was just one park in a system of three parks. Why was just one of the parks selected for protection? In our opinion, this report does not show how Chene Park has exceptional significance and meets NPS Consideration G. In 2002, the SHPO adopted rules which state that local communities must follow the Secretary of Interior’s Standards for the National Register when establishing local historic districts. The park is just 25 years old. That does not seem to provide enough time to gain “sufficient historic perspective” to determine the historic significance. Nor does the report supply “the scholarly research and evaluation” required to make a determination of exceptional significance. There were many plans to redevelop Detroit and its riverfront. Enough time has not elapsed to indicate that the Linked Riverfront Park Project was more outstanding than any of the others and the report does not include sufficient information to show that it does. Nor does the report place Chene Park within the larger context of new planning theories and important planners/landscape architect that emerged after World War II, especially those related to riverfront development to show this park’s exceptional significance. 3 City of Detroit CITY COUNCIL HISTORIC DESIGNATION ADVISORY BOARD 218 Coleman A. Young Municipal Center, Detroit, Michigan 48226 Phone: 313.224.3487 Fax: 313.224.4336 Email: [email protected] DRAFT Preliminary Report Proposed Aretha Franklin Amphitheather/Chene Park Historic District 2200/2600 Atwater Street By a resolution dated October 23, 2018, the Detroit City Council charged the Historic Designation Advisory Board, a study committee, with the official study of the proposed Aretha Franklin Amphitheater/Chene Park Historic District in accordance with Chapter 25 of the 1984 Detroit City Code and the Michigan Local Historic Districts Act. The proposed Aretha Franklin Amphitheater/Chene Park Historic District consists of a single 9.3 acre parcel owned by the City of Detroit Parks & Recreation Department and contains a covered amphitheater with a stage, seating and an adjacent multi-level pavilion.