Detroit Development News

A seafood restaurant and a multi-discipline arts center are coming to spaces controlled by the Detroit Downtown Development Authority in the Paradise Valley Cultural and Entertainment District at Harmonie Park.

A new clothing boutique, The Black Dress, opened its doors on E. Canfield in the MidMed Office Building this past weekend. The Black Dress sells couture and ready-to-wear clothing for women sized 6 to 5X.

The 1,200-square-foot shop carries casual, business and dressy attire. Sandra Allen, the proprietor, was guided to the Midtown location by her daughter, who lives in the area. They say walkability and its proximity to the Detroit Medical Center and the New Center area made the location desirable.

The Black Dress is at 87 E. Canfield Suite 1100 between Woodward and John R in Detroit. Hours are 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday.

Source: Marci Lewis, The Black Dress
Writer: Kelli B. Kavanaugh

The Riverfront Towers were built in the 1980s as the first high-end apartment development built on the Detroit River in decades. In 2005, Tower 300 was converted to condominiums, and all but 23 of 289 have been sold.

Because of this milestone, the sales staff is moving out of their office and into a model unit so that the office space can be reconstructed into three additional condos.

Riverfront Associates Managing Partner Peter Cummings attributes Riverfront's relative success to its location and pricing. "It's on the water, with a marina and all these amenities," he says. "We're offering compelling values, and, obviously, people are reacting to that."

Towers 100 and 200 were sold to Empirian Acquisitions in 2007 and remain as apartments.

Source: Peter Cummings, Riverfront Associates
Writer: Kelli B. Kavanaugh

Austainability experts from around the country joined with local architects, planners and other interested parties in Midtown Detroit for an SDAT, or Sustainable Design Assessment Team, charette, recently.

Given estimates that Detroit will continue to shrink -- down to about 500,000 or 600,000 residents by 2025, they looked at what to do with 88 square miles of land that is essentially excess.

The group looked at developing the core 50 square miles of livable space  developed as a series of densely populated urban villages -- looking specifically at Southwest Detroit, Corktown, Downtown, Eastern Market, Woodbridge, Midtown and New Center -- each with housing, recreation, entertainment and work opportunities, and each linked to each other and the main urban core.

From this base, SDAT worked at making policy and design recommendations in five areas, all of which intersect and feed into the urban villages concept: community development, transportation and transit, open space, economic development and local food systems and community gardens.

Some points of note: Many ideas centered on one of the city's greatest assets, the Detroit River -- for example, "blueways" were discussed as a mode of transportation; the importance of incorporating wind turbines into Detroit's energy system was stressed; Eastern Market was lauded as "the best farmers market in the country" by Edwin Marty, the executive director of Jones Valley Urban Farm in Alabama; reduction of energy costs for individuals was stressed as a method of creating wealth; and local food production within each urban village node was recommended.

A strategy was developed for the creation of 75,000 jobs over 10 years by leveraging new green industries as well as existing employment leaders like health care.

Next step: implementation. Local SDAT leaders will begin working with organizations and institutions to move its strategies forward. Funding from Kresge Foundation has been secured to undergo this process, and State of Michigan Energy Department funds will be used to conduct energy audits and technical assistance.

For more information, check out Zachary and Associate's web site or contact Zachary at 313-831-6100 or WARM Training Center at 313-894-1030.

Source: Diane VanBuren Jones, WARM
Writer: Kelli B. Kavanaugh

Goodwill Industries has relocated its "Flip the Script" program from its headquarters near the Motor City Casino Hotel to the Grand Boulevard/Woodward area, giving it double the capacity.

Flip the Script works with males aged 16 to 30, specifically in terms of work-readiness. Since its establishment in 2003, 80 percent of the program's graduates have engaged in meaningful careers, many in the world of construction. The new space, located at 7700 Second Ave., will allow 180 men to participate in the 16-week program each year.

The expansion will also allow for two program extensions: an “In School Male Youth Flip” program for boys and girls ages 12 to 17 in an after-school and evening curriculum and the establishment of Detroit's Annie E. Casey Center for Working Families.

The Annie E. Casey Center is a collaborative effort between Goodwill Industries, the United Way and the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC). "This is part of a national initiative that has now found its way to Detroit," says Keith Bennett, Flip the Script's program manager. "It will work with low- and moderate-income families and start getting them involved in some real financial literacy."

Bennett calls the program's new space "very, very aesthetically nice," and has noticed the effect that its other professional tenants have had on his clients. "As soon as they hit the doors, it makes their behavior go up a couple of notches -- it's a different environment than high school or middle school -- we're here to take care of business."

Funding for the Flip the Script expansion comes from the Kresge Foundation, the Skillman Foundation, Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan, and LISC's “Neighborhoods Now" program. The program currently occupies just under 9,000 square feet of the building's fifth floor, but an option to expand an additional 6,500 square feet is possible.

Source: Keith Bennett, Goodwill Industries
Writer: Kelli B. Kavanaugh

Greektown Casino is the last of Detroit's three gambling houses to open its corresponding hotel and convention space. The casino has has started to accept room and convention space reservations for 2009, and is already fully booked for the NCAA Final Four.

"It is a true urban hotel," says spokesman Roger Martin. "It's easy to get around inside, it's magnificent and the price point is well-situated."

On that note, the hotel will be offering three overnight packages with various food options that range in price from $119 to $229 for two. Regular rates also top out at $229, making it the least-expensive of the three casino hotels.

Room size hover in the 450-square-foot range. The hotel also features 10,000 square feet of meeting space that will also open in February, and an additional 15,000 square feet events center that will open in 2010. A dozen weddings are already booked in the coming year.

Martin says that the state's 600 trade associations, which typically hold their conferences and annual meetings in northern Michigan and the Lansing area, are being targeted. "We are starting to see some confirmations, which is really good," he says.

Additional amenities include a fitness room, restaurant and bar. Call 1-877-GCH-5554 to reserve a room.

Source: Roger Martin, Martin Waymire Advocacy Communications
Writer: Kelli B. Kavanaugh

After a year of vacancy, the position of community and economic development director for the city of Hamtramck has been filled. The new captain at the helm of multiple planning and development initiatives for the city is Jason Friedmann, most recently a senior planner for Macomb County.

Friedmann, a Detroit resident, is already familiar with many of the issues and challenges faced by urban areas such as Hamtramck -- as well as the flavor, culture and diversity that they have to offer. "It's pretty exciting," he says. "Hamtramck has all of the good things going on in the city of Detroit, [but the size] is just a little more manageable."

A couple of the initiatives that he plans to jump into straight-away include the development of the Hamtramck Trail -- a greenway system that would ultimately link the city to the Dequindre Cut -- and the creation of a certified industrial park on the southern end of town.

He aims to work closely to encourage better connections to Detroit, and envisions the establishment of a corridor improvement authority on Conant, where merchants technically located in Detroit consider themselves to be affiliated with Hamtramck. Another ammenity he hopes to improve is a shuttle connector between Hamtramck and education and cultural centers in Midtown, Downtown and Northwest Detroit.

With a grant from the state's Cities of Promise program, Friedmann will undertake the development of a master plan for Hamtramck that will include brownfield assessment and a vision for infill housing, recreation, arts and culture and sustainability. He plans to release a Request for Proposals for the project in the next few weeks.

Source: Jason Friedmann, City of Hamtramck
Writer: Kelli B. Kavanaugh

One month ago, Housing and Urban Development awarded the city of Detroit $47.1 million to stabilize housing in light of the current foreclosure crisis.

Before spending it, the city must develop a plan that is approved by Detroit City Council and then HUD. Last week, Planning and Development took the first step and presented the plan to Council's Economic Development Committee.

The plan focuses on three things: reversal of the decline of neighborhood housing values; significant elimination of blighted and abandoned structures; and stimulation of investment in and around targeted neighborhoods.

The plan can be downloaded at PDD's site; public comment is welcomed until November 20 at 313-224-6380 or NSP@detroitmi.gov. On Nov. 21, it will go to the full Council followed by submittal to HUD on Dec. 1.

Read more about the grant, the process and guidelines here.

Source: Sylvia Crawford, PDD
Writer: Kelli B. Kavanaugh

On Nov. 5, Henry Ford Hospital celebrated the grand opening of its three clinical and research labs that were recently moved to TechTown in New Center.

The labs will allow room for the hospital's genetics department to grow by providing dedicated lab space for DNA and cytogenetic diagnosis. Additional room for a drug discovery laboratory will explore new options for cancer treatment of solid tumors. The TechTown space on TechOne's fourth floor is nearly triple the size that was occupied on Henry Ford's main campus.

Dr. Barry Wolf, the chair of Henry Ford's genetics department, says that while the space issue was the primary reason for the move, a secondary one was talent and personnel opportunities that TechTown can offer.

Approximately 40 to 50 Henry Ford employees have made the move. Read more about the development here.

Source: Dr. Barry Wolf, Henry Ford Hospital 
Writer: Kelli B. Kavanaugh