The City of Birmingham, Michigan's New Cross-Laminated Timber Hybrid Police Department and City Hall Renovation

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A New Chapter for Birmingham: Modernizing Public Safety and Civic Life

We're incredibly excited to share details about a significant project we've been working on for the City of Birmingham, Michigan: a comprehensive renovation that addresses the critical needs of the Birmingham Police Department and breathes new life into the historic City Hall. This project isn't just about buildings; it's about enhancing public safety, improving city services, and preserving the beloved character of Birmingham for generations to come.

A Safer, More Efficient Police Station

The Birmingham Police Department had outgrown its current home within the historic City Hall. This presented some real challenges: cramped offices, overflowing records, and most critically, safety concerns for both officers and the public. Imagine holding cells that were too small, or a lobby where people felt vulnerable just trying to report an incident. Our goal was to create a modern, secure, and highly efficient new police station.

We found the perfect spot right on the same property: the existing police parking lot behind City Hall. This area, though a bit challenging with a five-foot slope between Merrill Street and the parking level, presented a unique opportunity. Through careful study and an extensive design process, we developed a solution that not only meets the police department's specific needs but also adds wonderful new features for the adjacent City Hall.

The new police station is designed with a durable three-story structure, featuring modern cross-laminated timber decks and sturdy masonry walls. We've even incorporated reclaimed brick and beautiful ornamental metals to give it a timeless yet contemporary feel. Below ground, there's a new subterranean parking structure which includes a secure sally port for safe prisoner transfers, extra storage, a vital backup generator, and rainwater cisterns to help with landscaping.

Connecting the two buildings is a secure corridor that isn't just a hallway; it includes a versatile multi-use gym for employees, a state-of-the-art holding cell and booking area, spacious new offices, bright meeting rooms, and comfortable break rooms. And, crucially, we designed a public lobby that feels welcoming and safe for everyone who visits.

Revitalizing Historic City Hall

The second major part of this project was to lovingly renovate the existing City Hall, a true gem built in 1928. This magnificent three-story English Tudor building, with its original limestone, masonry, and copper detailing, is a cherished part of Birmingham's Civic Center masterplan, which includes Shain Park and the city library. We knew how much the community values this landmark, so our task was to modernize its interior while carefully preserving and even enhancing its historic exterior character.

Our team undertook a thorough assessment of the City Hall, examining everything from its beautiful original stonework and intricate window details to all its internal systems – electrical, HVAC, and plumbing. We paid close attention to how each city department operates, focusing on creating better "flow" between secure corridors, offices, storage areas, and meeting spaces.

Our final design proposes a thoughtful reshuffling of spaces. The City Manager's office and Community Development departments will see a significant increase in their operational areas, while the City Clerk and City Treasury will benefit from optimized layouts that improve their efficiency. A major highlight is the relocation of the City Council Chambers from the second floor to the first. This move dramatically improves security for council members and attendees, and makes it much easier for the public to access meetings. The interior will feel highly modernized, yet the exterior will receive a careful restoration to ensure it remains a beloved community landmark.

Blending Old and New: Our Postmodern Approach

For this project, we embraced postmodern design techniques to gracefully blend the new police station with the historic City Hall. You might be familiar with "modern" architecture, which often stripped away decoration in favor of sleek, machine-like efficiency. Postmodernism, however, takes a different approach.

Instead of rejecting history, postmodern architecture studies historic architectural elements and then reinterprets them through modernization or even playful exaggeration. For the Birmingham project, this meant looking at the beautiful details of the English Tudor City Hall – its reclaimed brick, intricate patterns, and robust forms – and thoughtfully incorporating those "lessons" into the design of the new police station. The goal wasn't to copy, but to create a new building that feels like it belongs, that's respectful of its neighbor, and that contributes to the overall story of Birmingham's civic heart.

A Unified Civic Space

To truly unite these two important buildings, we've designed a beautiful joint public plaza that serves as the main entrance for both the new City Hall Council Chambers and the Police Department. This plaza isn't just a pathway; it's a new city asset in itself, thoughtfully landscaped to be both beautiful and highly functional. We've paid special attention to accessibility provisions throughout the landscape, ensuring a seamless and elegant "procession of movement" between the different levels.

This project is a testament to our commitment to thoughtful design that serves communities. We're incredibly proud of the solutions we've developed for the City of Birmingham and look forward to seeing this vision come to life, enhancing public services and preserving the city's rich heritage for everyone.