College for Creative Studies Master Plan Detroit, Michigan

Services Provided

Campus Planning
Sustainable Design

People Involved

Casey Elmer
Andy Knight
Carley Lemmon

A collaborative vision that identifies short-, medium-, and long-term strategies and priority projects that support the future and goals of the College through its campus.

The College for Creative Studies (CCS) Master Plan builds upon previous planning efforts with the intent to create a more agile vision that can adapt to the changing landscape of higher education. It also reflects the College’s “North Star” goal: to become a “Student-Centered Learning Institution” that “will prepare, support, and inspire people from all backgrounds, enabling them to confidently fulfill their creative potential, achieve their goals, and make a difference in a challenging world.”

Each recommendation in the Master Plan is made with these guiding principles in mind, and seeks to strengthen an existing asset, address a recurring challenge, or reveal an opportunity to innovate. Each recommendation has also been informed by direct and continuous conversation with members of the College community, including administrators, staff, faculty, and students, to ensure that it reflects the broad vision of the College as a whole.

The Master Plan is the result of a year-long process led by a Planning Team of Interboro Partners, MKSK, and DLM. Working with the CCS Strategic Planning Committee, the Planning Team led a multi-faceted investigation of the campus that involved data analysis, urban and strategic planning, and robust engagement. While the Plan primarily focuses on the planning and use of the physical campus, it also seeks to capture how the campus relates to the programmatic, cultural, and other “soft” concepts that can help support the College’s goals.