The construction of the Renaissance Center in Downtown Detroit marked a new era for the city's architecture. In the 1970s, Detroit Renaissance, chaired by Henry Ford II, commissioned highly regarded architect John Portman to design an enormous skyscraper complex called the Renaissance Center in hopes of increasing the attraction of city living for middle and upper-class residents. Some left because of court-ordered busing to integrate schools that were "de facto" segregated based on residential patterns. Portman had hoped to halt the exodus.