James Witherspoon

About

James Witherspoon is the Vice President of Architecture and Design at Bedrock, where he leads the design and execution of architecture projects across the Bedrock portfolio, with a focus on large-scale mixed-use developments.

Since its founding, Bedrock and its affiliates have invested and committed more than $5.6 billion to acquiring and developing more than 100 properties, including some of the most significant new developments that Detroit and Cleveland have seen in decades. Bedrock’s portfolio totals more than 20 million square feet of office, retail and residential space within new construction and adaptive reuse projects.

James has over a decade of experience designing for the built environment. His experience ranges from urban strategic framework planning to post-industrial adaptive reuse to ground-up signature buildings, primarily within the City of Detroit.

At Bedrock, he played a crucial role in the design of the Shinola Hotel and is currently working on the redevelopment of the Hudson’s Site. By leading and collaborating with local, national, and international design firms to realize these complex projects, his goal is to help build Detroit’s legacy as a world-class destination for design excellence through thoughtful and equitable development.

James also writes and publishes articles on architecture and the built environment and has served as adjunct faculty at the Taubman College of Architecture at the University of Michigan. His work has been published in The Journal of Architectural Education, The Plan, MONU, Plat Journal, and Metropolis.