Southwest Detroit's Whitdel apartment building got new life through art and artists, thanks to Southwest Solutions and CAID.
Excerpt:
After buying the Whitdel, Southwest Solutions asked the Contemporary
Art Institute of Detroit to help restore the building. The exchange led
to a partnership. CAID now uses the 1,500-square-foot Ladybug Gallery
in the basement for exhibitions, including video art, sculpture,
paintings and drawings. A ceramic studio will provide art education and
workshops to neighborhood children and other residents.
CAID also
makes tenant referrals. Whitdel is open to anyone with an income of no
more than 60% of the area median, or $29,300 for a single person. But
Southwest Solutions seeks painters, musicians, writers, sculptors and
other artists. They now occupy 10 of the units and make the place
special.
When I first walked into the lobby last month, tenant
Gerald Butler, a 53-year-old flutist, was playing "Amazing Grace." He
played it from the heart. For the first time in his adult life, he has
a real home.
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