Southwest Detroit and Dearborn Greenway to break ground

Work is set to begin on construction of Phase One of the Southwest Detroit and Dearborn Greenway. Phase One is a pathway that runs along the northern edge of Patton Park parallel to Dix Road then crosses Dix into Southeastern Dearborn. It then follows the public right-of-way to Lapeer Park and terminates at Eagle Road, where it connects into the Rouge Complex pathway.

Besides a bicycle and pedestrian pathway, the greenway consists of benches, signage and landscaping including trees and native plants along the route. “The intention is to connect neighborhoods by increasing non-motorized transportation options and greening to the extent that we can in this urban context,” says Karen Kavanaugh, public policy director for the Southwest Detroit Business Association. She estimates Phase One’s construction cost to be $700,000 and its pre-development and planning costs to be over $300,000.

Phase Two of the greenway, for which planning is just getting started, will eventually complete a pathway around Patton Park and connect to the Pablo Davis Intergenerational Center. “We are trying to connect neighborhoods to provide more exposure between people and to increase the sense that this is a shared community—between cultures, between two municipalities, and between young and old,” states Kavanaugh. She also notes that it will tie into other greenways being planned in Southwest Detroit, including the West Riverfront and the Corktown-Mexicantown Greenlink.
 
The Southwest Detroit and Dearborn Greenway was funded by the Community Foundation of Southeastern Michigan, MDOT and the Cities of Dearborn and Detroit. It was designed by Hamilton Anderson and Associates. The contractor, ABC Paving, expects to complete path construction this season, but to finish landscaping next year.

Source: Karen Kavanaugh, SDBA