The Prosperity Agenda: What’s Old Is New Again – The Value of Repurposing Buildings and Communities

Summary: A key to restoring economic prosperity in Michigan is creating the kinds of communities where people want to live. One way we do that is by repurposing or utilizing again buildings and infrastructure that have been in decline. This month’s Prosperity Agenda radio show on News/Talk 760 WJR focuses on this repurposing concept. We talk to leaders across Michigan about their successful efforts to revitalize communities by repurposing buildings through cooperative efforts between private and public interests. My co-host for this show is Claire Nelson, publisher of Model D. One of our guests is Matt Sviland, who along with his wife led the Lofts on Ludington mixed-use project in Escanaba that has since been selected as the 2012 winner of the Governor’s Award for Historic Preservation. Other guests are Mark Schurman, director of corporation communications for office furniture company Herman Miller; and Fred Kent, founder of Project for Public Spaces and a leading authority on revitalizing city spaces. The Prosperity Agenda is a monthly radio show that challenges listeners to help make Michigan a better place to live, work and play by creating vibrant and prosperous local communities. It airs on News/Talk 760 WJR on the fourth Wednesday of each month. Our April show is scheduled to air at 7 pm Wednesday, April 24, 2013. You can also listen to it anytime at the League’s website or by subscribing to the FREE iTunes podcast. Learn more about the placemaking concept here as well as on this blog.