Detroit council committee advances three Historic District Commission appointments after candidate interviews

The Detroit City Council committee of the whole on May 20 advanced three appointments to the Detroit Historic District Commission after interviews with the nominees and brief discussion on preservation procedures and ongoing restoration work.

The interviews and subsequent motions sent the mayor’s nominations for Katie Trudeau, Adria Simmons and Alan McGilcey to formal session with recommendations to approve; the committee proceeded “hearing no objection” in each case.

The nominations matter for preservation and neighborhood rehabilitation across Detroit. Trudeau described her experience as president and CEO of the Eastern Market Partnership and her organization’s role supporting the move and planned stabilization work on the Ulysses S. and Juliette Grant House. “The MDNR was awarded a half a million dollar grant that they’ll be starting construction on stabilization of the home this summer,” Trudeau said, and she said Eastern Market Partnership has provided logistics and letters of support while the Michigan Department of Natural Resources leads the restoration work.

Trudeau told the committee the planned work will prioritize exterior and roof stabilization and improvements to the ground floor and that the Department of Natural Resources has partnered with Black Bottom Archives to plan a first-floor museum space. She said “there’s not quite enough money currently allocated to do a full renovation of the home,” and the state is prioritizing structural stabilization.

During his interview, Alan McGilcey described his background as a licensed architect and a National Park Service–credentialed historic architect who has worked on building renovations in Detroit for roughly 18 years. McGilcey explained how new local historic districts are created: the historic designation advisory board studies nominated neighborhoods and city council must request that study; the commission then reviews those studies and advises council. “Neighborhoods that would like to become historic really need to go to city council, and then city council would charge the historic designation advisory board with creating that study,” he said.

Adria Simmons, a resident of Indian Village and a current commission member seeking reappointment, said serving on the commission has involved supporting growing application volumes and “figuring out how do we empower that…while maintaining the important parts of what makes historic districts possible.” She urged prioritizing education and reducing friction so owners can make appropriate improvements in stages rather than attempting to “do everything at once.”

Member Mary Waters asked about procedures for exterior changes in a historic district; McGilcey and other commissioners described the usual path: homeowners first contact historic district commission staff within the Planning and Development Department, staff can grant approvals for minor changes, and larger or significant requests are referred to the full commission at its monthly meeting.

The committee combined the formal actions and sent the nominations to the council’s formal session with recommendations to approve. One reappointment (Alan McGilcey) was forwarded pending correction of a duplicate resolution that committee members asked the clerk’s office and mayor’s office to fix before the formal roll.

If approved at formal session, the reappointments would return the three nominees to the Detroit Historic District Commission to serve the terms specified in their respective resolutions.

Committee discussion also included practical local details: the Eastern Market Partnership donated land to facilitate moving the Grant House from the old State Fairgrounds, the architecture firm engaged on that project is Hamilton Anderson, and the current funding awarded by the state is aimed at structural stabilization and limited interior ground-floor activation.