Seven Detroit commercial corridors are scheduled to receive significant streetscape enhancements this year. The first of which, a stretch of Livernois between Margareta and 8 Mile known as the Avenue of Fashion, sees construction begin this month.
In an attempt to entice Detroiters to keep more of their shopping dollars within city limits while also attracting outsiders, Detroit is using money from a $125 million bond program to fund the streetscape revitalization projects. The plan is to make commercial corridors throughout the city more pedestrian-friendly and attractive, both to shoppers and potential business owners alike.
On the historic retail shopping district that is the Avenue of Fashion, the city plans to remove the grassy median to install a center left turn lane. A road diet will reduce north and south travel lanes from two in each direction to one in each direction, favoring slower traffic and the planned installation of wider sidewalks and new lighting and landscaping.
Dedicated sidewalk-level bike lanes are also planned.
"The Livernois Streetscape project represents a significant opportunity to create a more pedestrian-friendly retail destination in one of the city’s most historic and important commercial corridors," says city council member Roy McCalister.
"I applaud the efforts of the city’s planning department and especially the participation of the many residents and business people whose input was referenced as part of this new vision for Livernois."
Business liaisons have been assigned to mediate construction-based issues that business owners might encounter.
Additional commercial corridor streetscape improvement projects planned for 2019 include McNichols from Livernois to Greenlawn, Kercheval from Parker to East Grand Boulevard, Joseph Campau from East Jefferson to the Riverfront, Bagley from I-96 Service Drive to 24th Street, Riopelle from the I-75 Service Drive to Division, and Grand River from Evergreen to Glastonbury.
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