INFRASTRUCTURE

WHO IS BELLE ISLE BUILT FOR?

IS IT WELL CONNECTED TO THE CITY?

Abstract

First opened as a park in 1845, Belle Isle has a rich and layered history that extends back to the indigenous peoples that first inhabited the region. Over the course of its 150+ years of operation, Belle Isle Park has seen many changes to the urban infrastructures that allow people to use and enjoy this space. Environmental changes, mobility technologies, and Detroit’s shifting economies and population have molded the public park into what it is today. Currently, Belle Isle’s infrastructure is in varying states of disrepair, impacting the health of its ecosystems and the experience of the visitors. More frequent and intense storm events, and decadal cycles of high water levels in the Great Lakes are overwhelming the old stormwater system and negatively impacting the recent habitat restoration interventions in the island. The ever expanding need of parking and car access continues to add impervious surfaces to a park that has lost a lot of its tree canopy over the years.