Contact:
Ramona McArn
(313) 479-2074
rmcarn@lisc.org
DETROIT (June 29, 2023)—When community partners outlined a local investment plan for Milwaukee Junction in 2019, they never anticipated that a global pandemic would upend the U.S. economy, with a particularly damaging impact on economically vulnerable populations, small businesses and underserved communities.
What they found in the midst of that disruption is that their place-based community investment strategy withstood the challenges of the pandemic to spur commercial development and support entrepreneurship—all while laying the groundwork for the future.
In a new impact report, the Detroit Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC Detroit), Vanguard Community Development Corporation and Detroit Future City detail the development progress made in Milwaukee Junction over the past four years, spanning a time when commercial real estate across the country faced unprecedented pressure. It builds on a 2019 Milwaukee Junction District Framework study, which highlighted the earlier work of local stakeholders and developers to revitalize the area and outlined next steps for the area.
Much of the work over the past few years has leveraged the community’s reputation as a center for art, music and nightlife, the report explains. The development of the commercial property Chroma, for instance, which opened in 2021, includes 39 tenants from the nonprofit and creative sectors, with two new restaurants opening adjacent to it.
Similarly, Method Development has been renovating a block of buildings between St. Antoine and Oakland avenues since 2020, with tenants that include an art gallery and a comic book shop, along with loft-style apartments. And the opening of Black Bottom Park at the corner of Hastings and East Grand Boulevard brought in new green space and an outdoor entertainment area for residents—further elevating the rich cultural heritage of the neighborhood.
“What we are seeing in Milwaukee Junction illustrates the tremendous value of place-based investing with committed local partners,” noted Camille Walker Banks, executive director of LISC Detroit, a nonprofit community development financial institution (CDFI) that invests in Detroit neighborhoods.
“With the right strategy, we can fuel the development of quality housing and commercial space. We can advance manufacturing and creative enterprises. And we can help incubate small businesses—even in one of the most difficult environments imaginable—so that they can expand, hire and anchor their businesses within the community rather than look elsewhere for space to grow,” she said.
There is still undeveloped land in the area, the report notes, and efforts will be needed to add deeply affordable units to the housing mix and preserve naturally occurring affordable housing elsewhere, especially as property values rise. Some new housing developments have opened in the past two years, including a mixed-income apartment building on Milwaukee Street with both market-rate and affordable units and new projects opening in adjacent areas north of East Grand Boulevard, with others still under construction.
“When it comes to community development work, information is power,” said Pamela Martin, president and CEO of Vanguard, a nonprofit organization leading affordable housing development, small business support and economic justice in the North End and Milwaukee Junction. Vanguard also oversees the North End/Milwaukee Junctions Main Street Program, a designation it obtained in 2020.
Martin noted that the 2019 framework report for Milwaukee Junction helped advance community investments over the last few years, giving developers, investors, philanthropic organizations, business owners and city leaders information to identify opportunities to create outsized impact. “The 2023 implementation and impact report will provide new information that will help us continue to revitalize our Main Street District,” she said.
Tom Goddeeris, chief operating officer at Detroit Future City— a nonprofit think-and-do-tank focused on economic equity in Detroit —noted that there continues to be tremendous development potential for the area. “Older industrial buildings like those found in Milwaukee Junction provide a great opportunity for adaptive reuse and community revitalization,” he said. “When community development partners integrate industrial district redevelopment into their strategies for equitable and inclusive economic growth, it has a lasting impact on the immediate community as well as a positive ripple effect on surrounding areas.”
In addition to ongoing housing and commercial development, the report points to a number of other goals for the 2023, including:
For more on the range of successful investments in Milwaukee Junction and outlook for the future, read the full report: https://bit.ly/MilwaukeeJunctionImpactReport2023
Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) is the nation’s largest community development organization, helping forge vibrant, resilient communities across America. We work with residents and partners to close systemic gaps in health, wealth and opportunity and advance racial equity so that people and local economies can thrive. Since 1979, LISC has invested $27 billion and leveraged $75 billion to create more than 463,215 affordable homes and apartments, as well as develop 78.5 million square feet of commercial/retail, community and educational space. In Detroit, LISC has invested more than $200 million to support economic opportunity and community growth. For more information, visit https://www.lisc.org/
Detroit Future City is a think-and-do tank that coordinates strategies, actions and resources to catalyze long-term revitalization, improve economic equity and enhance quality of life in Detroit. The organization is organized in three departments - Land Use and Sustainability, Community and Economic Development, and the Center for Equity, Engagement, and Research – with an 18-member staff and 16-member board of directors. DFC was launched in May 2013 to advance the recommendation of the DFC Strategic Framework, a 50-year vision for the City of Detroit. In January 2016, Detroit Future City became an independent nonprofit. For more information, visit www.DetroitFutureCity.com
Vanguard CDC is a stalwart champion of the North End. Vanguard was founded in 1994. Since our founding, Vanguard has evolved into a broad-based community development entity. We have advocated and worked for the North End over all these years. For more information, visit www.vanguarddetroit.org