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    Dezeen Debate features restaurant with “rich details” in Detroit Book Tower

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    The latest edition of our Dezeen Debate newsletter features hospitality venues inside Detroit’s restored Book Tower by Method Co. Subscribe to Dezeen Debate now.

    As part of an extensive restoration of the 1920s neoclassical building by its developer and architecture studio ODA, design company Method Co was brought on to conceptualise and operate several restaurants, bars and a hotel within the Book Tower.
    Commenters were full of praise for the project, with one saying “those interiors are lavish – the rich details” and another noting its “incredible fresh 21st-century feel”.
    Bright yellow balconies enliven Melbourne apartment block by Austin Maynard ArchitectsOther stories in this week’s newsletter that fired up the comments section included an apartment block in Melbourne designed by Austin Maynard Architects, a food container system that reveals if something is safe to eat and the news that Saudi Arabian mega project Neom has revealed the Gulf of Aqaba yachting town by 10 Design.
    Dezeen Debate 

    Dezeen Debate is sent every Thursday and features a selection of the best reader comments and most talked-about stories. Read the latest edition of Dezeen Debate or subscribe here. 
    You can also subscribe to our other newsletters; Dezeen Agenda is sent every Tuesday containing a selection of the most important news highlights from the week, Dezeen Daily is our daily bulletin that contains every story published in the preceding 24 hours and Dezeen In Depth is sent on the last Friday of every month and delves deeper into the major stories shaping architecture and design. 

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      Restored Book Tower in Detroit features hospitality venues by Method Co

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      Several restaurants and a hotel have opened within Detroit’s historic Book Tower as part of a years-long restoration project of the building undertaken by its developer and architecture studio ODA.

      The 1920s skyscraper has undergone extensive restoration work over the past seven years by local developer Bedrock, which has transformed the former office building into a mixed-use space.
      Among Book Tower’s restored features are a grand glass dome, which sits over the lobby’s Bar RotundaA collaboration with Method Co has led to the first phase of restaurant and bar concepts, which were introduced through the course of 2023.
      “We have been ever-mindful of what the restoration of Book Tower means to this city,” said Randall Cook, CEO and cofounder of Method Co, “and we’ve worked hard to create hospitality concepts that will excite and reconnect Detroiters to Book Tower once again, and at the same time honour the heritage of this magnificent property.”
      Developers Bedrock worked with architects ODA on the restoration of the 1920s neoclassical buildingLocated on Washington Boulevard in Downtown Detroit, the 38-storey neoclassical building was designed by Louis Kamper – a prolific and celebrated architect in the city during its Gilded Age.

      New York architecture firm ODA was hired to update and expand the programming and existing structures, resulting in half a million square feet (46,450 square metres) of mixed-use space.
      Method Co was brought on to conceptualise and operate multiple culinary offerings within the building, including Le Suprême brasserie at street levelThe work included restoring the exterior windows and stonework and bringing an ornate domed glass ceiling back to life.
      Method Co was then brought on to conceptualise three restaurants and bars, as well as a hotel, and operate each of these venues within the building.
      Designed with Stokes Architecture + Design, Le Suprême includes a zinc bar top, hand-made tiles and mosaic marble flooringDining options include Le Suprême, a classic French brasserie that offers an all-day menu and both indoor and outdoor seating at street level for up to 210 guests.
      Designed in collaboration with Stokes Architecture + Design, the 6,200-square-foot space features a traditional zinc bar top, hand-made art nouveau tiles, mosaic marble flooring and oxblood leather booths.
      Furniture and decor were chosen to reflect Detroit’s cultural heritage, and photos on the walls of the Le Mans car race tie to the city’s automobile legacy.
      On the 14th floor is Kamper’s, a rooftop cocktail bar designed with ODAOn the 14th floor is Kamper’s, a rooftop cocktail bar designed with ODA comprising an indoor lounge that opens onto an expansive outdoor terrace via large French doors.
      The cosy interior has exposed brick walls and dark wood accents, complemented by marble mosaic flooring, antiqued mirrors and velvet drapery.
      Kamper’s opens onto an expansive terrace with views across DetroitBar Rotunda sits below the glass dome and acts as an all-day lobby cafe and bar, with 70 seats surrounded by ornate architectural details that recall the grand eateries of early 20th-century Paris.
      “The space is canopied by a beautifully restored 100-year-old Keppler Glass dome that features more than 7,000 individual jewels and 6,000 glass panels making it an architectural centerpiece,” said Method Co, which also worked with ODA on this space.

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      Also planned to open soon within Book Tower are sake pub Sakazuki, and izakaya and omakase-style dining spot Hiroki-San.
      The hotel component of the building, Roost Detroit, offers short and long-stay accommodation in contemporary apartment-style spaces, alongside The Residences that are purchasable as permanent homes.
      The building’s accommodation component, Roost Detroit, is Method Co’s latest iteration of its apartment hotel brandRoost Detroit is the latest iteration of Method Co’s apartment hotel brand, joining multiple outposts in Philadelphia – including the Morris Adjmi-designed East Market – along with Tampa, Cleveland and more across the US.
      The company also operates The Quoin boutique hotel in Wilmington, Delaware, which offers 24 guest rooms within a converted bank building, and the Whyle extended-stay property in Washington DC that was longlisted in the hotel and short-stay interior category of Dezeen Awards 2021.
      Roost Detroit offers short and extended stays within contemporary spaces of various sizes and configurationsDowntown Detroit’s revitalisation has taken shape over the past few years, and a handful of new hotels have opened to accommodate visitors who are returning to witness its cultural and creative rebirth.
      They include The Siren Hotel, designed by ASH NYC to recall the city’s glamorous past, and the Shinola Hotel, which Gachot Studios designed for the local watch company of the same name.
      The photography is by Matthew Williams unless stated otherwise.

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      PLY+ and MPR Arquitectos convert historic Detroit building into colourful school

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      PLY+ and MPR Arquitectos have transformed a building at a former Catholic college into the School at Marygrove Elementary, filling it with colours and shapes that help spark “experimentation and exploration” among children.

      Located in northwest Detroit, the building is part of the School at Marygrove, a new educational institution that will eventually serve students in kindergarten through 12th grade (K-12). The curriculum has a special focus on engineering and social justice.
      PLY+ and MPR Arquitectos converted a Catholic college in Detroit into an elementary schoolThe school occupies the site of a former religious college, Marygrove College, that closed in 2019. The campus – which is listed on the US National Register of Historic Places – is now owned and managed by a nonprofit organization, the Marygrove Conservancy.
      Several buildings on the 53-acre (21-hectare) campus are being converted into facilities for the School at Marygrove.
      The school is on a historic campusThis project involved transforming a brick-faced, concrete building that first opened in 1941 into a public elementary school for children in kindergarten through fifth grade.

      The design was led by PLY+, a studio based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and MPR Arquitectos, which is based in Ann Arbor and Murcia, Spain.
      It was led by firms run by Michigan architecture professorsBoth firms are led by professors at the Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning at the University of Michigan.
      The architects aimed to preserve original features in the 65,000-square-foot (6,039-square-metre) building while integrating a host of new elements.
      Features of the original architecture were maintainedThe goal was to “establish a foundational, collaborative educational environment” while preserving the historic components.
      The building’s exterior was kept intact, the only change being the addition of an accessible entrance.
      Plywood millwork was addedWithin the building, the team modified rooms and added new finishes and plywood millwork. The decor was carefully selected, and special details – such as visually dynamic ceiling baffles – were incorporated.
      The building’s original layout was mostly retained, as the double-loaded corridor layout was deemed historically significant and kept in place.
      The brick of the original building was kept exposed for some of the interiorsThe corridor received new storage nooks with spots for bags, coats and shoes. In the classrooms, the team inserted counters, sinks, benches, chalkboards and storage space.
      “Custom millwork elements provide design flexibility without impinging on historic elements,” the team said.
      Colourful patterns adorn the walls and floorsThe project also called for the creation of maker spaces, reading rooms, a media centre and a restorative justice centre. An existing gymnasium was renovated.
      Throughout the facility, the team used a mix of soft and bold colours, ranging from bright peach to pale yellow-green.

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      The palette was informed by historic hues and the desire to introduce colours that signal “the new use of the building and the new model of pedagogy being fostered”, the team said.
      “Colour and form play an important role in establishing unique identities for individual classrooms and signal the vibrancy and joy of collaborative learning,” the team added.
      The design is meant to encourage exploration for the childrenOverall, the design is meant to speak to its young users.
      “The design engages children’s sense of curiosity and encourages experimentation and exploration,” the team said.
      The project was a collaboration between Detroit Public Schools Community District, which operates the school, and the University of Michigan’s School of Education.
      Other school projects include an athletic centre at an Oregon school that features trellises laced with climbing vines and a boarding school in southern California that has buildings with jagged rooflines.
      The photography is by Jason Keen.
      Project credits:
      Architect: PLY+ and MPR ArquitectosPly+ team: Craig Borum, Jen Maigret, Andrew Wolking, Yusi Zha, Olaia Chivite Amigo, Yibo Jiao, Masataka YoshikawaMPR Arquitectos team: Ana Morcillo-Pallares, Jon RuleArchitect of record: Integrated Design SolutionsClient: Marygrove ConservancyCollaborators: Detroit Public Schools, University of Michigan School of Education

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