Location: Detroit, MI
Size: Bus storage - 125,000 SF
Operations building - 17,000 SF
Team: InToto Studio - Design Architect
DLZ Group - Architect of Record
Status: Under construction

The Detroit Department of Transportation is constructing a state-of-the-art bus maintenance facility to consolidate and improve overall bus operations within the city and surrounding communities. Three separate buildings are planned for the site with interdependent programs:  Indoor Bus Storage with a capacity of 144 buses, Fleet Maintenance, and Operations.

As the lead design architect, InToto developed a unified exterior design strategy to create a functional and cost-sensitive solution for the overall facility. Exterior insulated precast concrete wall panels – used structurally on the Bus Storage and Fleet Maintenance buildings, and as a cladding panel on the Operations building - are durable with enhanced thermal performance and maintain aesthetic quality under heavy use. Complementing the regular repetition of garage bay doors, precast concrete is treated in sensitive ways through texture, pattern, and proportions, creating cohesion between the three buildings.