Conceptual plans for Dearborn train station available online

The plans include a community gathering area, new retail outlets and development of green space.

The public can now view the final conceptual designs for future potential development in the area around the new Intermodal Passenger Rail Station in west Dearborn.

The plans are posted online on the City of Dearborn's website.

The project was designed by a team from Michigan State University's School of Planning, Design and Construction with feedback from Dearborn residents, and includes 60 acres around the new train station on Michigan Avenue east of Brady Street.

MSU faculty member Wayne Beyea said the design plan includes projects that can be added or deleted depending on the public's preference. It aims to combine high density residential areas and retail space within a five- or 10-minute walk of the new station being built at 20201 W. Michigan Ave. and set to open in 2014.

The final conceptual designs follow fundamentals of Transit Oriented Development (TOD), which uses transportation hubs as launching points for re-inventing existing areas, creating a unique sense of place, and driving economic activity.

The plan calls for renovating most of Newman Street from the train station west to Oakwood Boulevard into a pedestrian walkway with benches and landscaping. Mixed retail and residential buildings would line both sides of the walkway. Parking structures would be created just south of the train tracks.

Plans also call for the development of Brady Plaza, a public gathering space where Brady and Newman streets meet. The plaza would include a clock tower, and a splash fountain that serves as a sprinkler park in the summer and a skating rink in the winter.

Beyea said the area near the station should also focus on connectivity to places of employment and public attractions in Dearborn, including The Henry Ford, Ford Motor Co., University of Michigan-Dearborn and Oakwood Hospital.

Dearborn was chosen as one of only five cities to receive planning and design assistance from the MIPlace Partnership.

The MIPlace Partnership is a collaborative effort of the Michigan Municipal League, the Michigan State Housing Development Authority and Michigan State University.

Michigan is one of several states that is on the forefront of “placemaking” as an economic development tool.

The idea is based on the understanding that thriving communities and successful regions are places that are attractive to employees, places where connections can happen, where productivity and creativity increase and where professional networks foster collaboration and innovation.

Design plans are available at www.cityofdearborn.org/city-departments/city-plan.