Youth from the Detroit Youth Energy Squad (a program of WARM Training Center) have created a

short documentary about alternative forms of education happening in Detroit. Learning spaces like

Omnicorp, the Boggs School, 5e Gallery, and the Mt. Elliott Makerspace are highlighted throughout the

film as well as interviews with community members, students and local activists. The documentary

seeks to show that education is everywhere, not just in schools.

Check more about who they are at their website here.

From June through October we will be offering a selection of books about the Detroit experience through the Detroit Public Library. You can check out these books from us for your book club. Each participant can borrow 3-10 books from First Container and keep them out for a month. You are also free to use First Container for your book club meetings. Read the rest

Niobe is Collision Works’ intern-extraordinaire. She is in fact a 21-year-old senior at the University of Michigan, with a concentration in Art and Design, psychology, and writing. In her spare time she enjoys tetris, being sub-par at guitar, yoga, sidewalk chalk art, and not eating animals. Read the rest

This is an open call to experts in community financing to help an ambitious and sustainable business launch in Detroit, Michigan. We need your help, advice, and experience. Read the rest

Three weeks ago we ended our successful kickstarter campaign, raising $41,000 to bring a shipping container to Eastern Market Detroit. This is a siginificant amount of money to raise through crowdfunding. Less than 10% of all kickstarter campaigns (over 40,000 to date) have raised more than $20,000. It’s a testament to the power of this idea and the many great people involved that we pulled this off. Read the rest

It’s a bold statement. We didn’t make it. We probably never would say it, but are so grateful someone else thinks so.

For 15 years Greg Oates has been writing for and about the travel industry. He’s held a number of editorial positions and is currently the executive editor of a magazine specifically targeting the events industry. Greg knows hotels. He also has a personal project called 200 Rooms where he highlights what he thinks are the most interesting small hotels in the world. What a great job! Read the rest

So here it is. Our first ever Kickstarter campaign. People have been telling us to do it for months for the hotel. But it’s too soon for the hotel. Kickstarter is best for immediate, quick projects. And now we’ve got it. If you are on this site you probably already know that Eastern Market has given us land to do a temporary installation of our FIrst Containers to demonstrate and test future offerings for the larger Collision Works boutique hotel and community space being constructed just a few blocks away. It’s a story box! Read the rest

While we work on bigger issues of financing Collision Works we are plotting our first demonstration unit pop-up in collaboration with Eastern Market! We will be setting up two units, hopefully by mid spring, to show a mini version of what can happen in the space. Read the rest

We want  to thank everyone for their support through 2012. It’s been an incredible year for Collision Works. Looking back we’ve had a name change, successful community workshops, built an impressive board of advisors, created a sustainable business plan, and now we are so proud to let you know that on Sunday, December 30th, The Detroit Free Press wrote a year-end feature on Collision Works and Shel Kimen. Read the rest

Guess what this is a picture of?

The future home of Collision Works on Division in Eastern Market with 220 feet of frontage on the Dequindre Cut! Jogging and biking from our front door all the way to the river! We are on a little hill, so you will be able to see downtown from the second floor! Yesterday we picked up our OFFER TO PURCHASE LETTER. We are buying land from the City of Detroit. There are still a series of due diligence steps we need to go through, but here we go everyone.  Read the rest