Although progress is continuing inside the building, this week we’ll once again focus on the exterior work taking place. Winter will be here soon enough, shifting the focus to the interior work. In the meantime, the green alley, fence posts and elevator tower were the targets of intense work this week. The alley has been …
The El Moore is a project under construction that will be a model of urban residential sustainable living. Like most cities in the United States, Detroit went through a phase of “urban renewal” in the mid-20th century, with very mixed results. Jane Jacobs, author of the seminal 1961 book on urban planning, The Death and …
It’s been another exciting week on the 600 block of West Alexandrine, with lifts hoisting materials to the rooftop cabins, continued earthmoving around the green alley, and crews working 50 feet in the air to install the top sections of our metal bay windows. Amid all of this buzz, a small crew from Esko Roofing began sifting and …
This week’s edition of the Detroit web magazine Model D featured an pretty in-depth interview with Tom Brennan, co-founder of the Green Garage and the El Moore, about how and why to build green in Detroit. We like to think of the El Moore, which is an experiment in sustainable living, as a sister project to the …
A few weeks ago, my husband and I enjoyed a long, restorative weekend in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, where we camped, hiked, and took in the magnificent sights, including Tahquamenon Falls and the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. The immensity of Lake Superior, the lushness and density of the forests it nourishes, and the humbling scale of the region’s …
A lot of changes took place outside of the building this week. There was a lot of moving of the earth! In order to get our utilities connected underground, digging took place in the front of the building (to connect the gas line) and in the back, where a huge hole was dug to inspect …
Construction Update – Week of September 15, 2014 Read More »
Last week marked the groundbreaking (well, it was already fairly broken) of another Green Alley in Midtown. Having completed Detroit’s first Green Alley three years ago two blocks north of the El Moore, The Green Garage has begun work on improvements to the alleyway that runs behind the El Moore building. In planning for this …
One of our early goals in creating a sustainable residential community at the El Moore was to provide an opportunity to residents to participate in growing their own food. The nearby North Cass Community Garden has shown that there is a strong demand for garden space in Midtown and that community garden space can not …
