Lafayette Park overhaul: What projects will look like

Allie Gross | Detroit Free Press

Five new development projects are heading to the Lafayette Park neighborhood of Detroit — including a Meijer supermarket — according to a presentation given by the City of Detroit at a neighborhood forum last week.

Located just south of Gratiot and east of downtown, Lafayette Park is likely best known for being the home to the largest collection of Mies van der Rohe-designed modernist residential buildings.

The neighborhood, according to the Detroit Historical Society, was developed — as it is today — in 1956 and is often considered one of "America's most successful post-World War II urban redevelopment projects."

Real estate developer Herbert Greenwald and architects (Ludwig) Mies van der Rohe, Ludwig Hilberseimer and Alfred Caldwell aimed, the historical society states on its website, to create a mixed community that would "attract [people] back to the heart of the city."

Of course, the historical society points out, the creation of the neighborhood — which aimed to combat urban blight — was "not without controversy."

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Prior to the development of Lafayette Park, the neighborhood had been known as Black Bottom, a predominately African-American community that was ultimately razed for Lafayette Park and other urban renewal projects like the Chrysler Freeway.

The redevelopment, according to the historical society, pushed many of the black residents of Black Bottom out and into public housing projects such as the Brewster-Douglass Housing Projects Homes and Jeffries Homes.

"Mayor Albert Cobo (at the time) and others believed that if they could replace the aging buildings in Black Bottom with a modern district of high-quality homes, then a racially diverse neighborhood might help the city hold on to its people," the Detroit Historical Society states.

More than 60 years later, new urban renewal developments are in the works. Those living in Lafayette Park — and those hoping to move to the area — can expect five new housing options and a number of new commercial and retail spaces over the coming years. At the same time longstanding landmarks are disappearing. Both the Friends School and Shapiro Hall are slated for demolition.

The developments are part of one of the City of Detroit's "20-minute neighborhoods," where people can, outside of work, walk or bike to everything they need.

Notably, of the roughly 1,000 proposed units, well over half are one-bedroom units or studios, a nod to the types of residents the city thinks will move into the area.

The forum last week, hosted by the city Planning and Development Department and the Detroit Economic Growth Corporation, "was a great opportunity for neighbors to see the full scope of development proposed for the neighborhood," said Maurice Cox, director of planning and development with the city.

"The smaller units sizes are the market responding to the people who are leasing and buying units right now, primarily younger single people and couples and empty nesters who are interested in one bedrooms," Cox added. "DEGC and PDD are looking at the unit mix in the projects and working with the developers to examine ways to include a broader mix of bedroom sizes."

Here is a closer look at each of the five developments:

Pullman Parc

A collaboration between Broder & Sachse Real Estate and Hunter Pasteur Homes & Woodborn Partners, Pullman Parc is a residential development that will include rental and condo units at 1100 St. Aubin.

The project, which will start construction sometime between the end of 2018 and the start of 2019, includes 149 apartments and 197 parking spaces for rent.

Meijer

Built by the East Jefferson Development Company LLC, this mixed-use project will have a supermarket as an anchor (at 1475 E. Jefferson) but also will include residential units and other retail spaces. The small-format Meijer will be the city's third.

The five-story building — plus underground parking — will have 213 residential units. Of those, 60 will be studios, 104 will be one-bedrooms, and 49 will be two-bedrooms.

Above the Cut

The Detroit real estate development company The Platform, is behind Above the Cut, a mixed-use development that will be located between 1920 and 1940 Gratiot, next to the Dequindre Cut. A groundbreaking is scheduled for April 2019.

The project includes 160-180 residential units and 195-240 parking spaces. There also will be 25,000 to 30,000 square feet for retail/commercial space.

Of the residential units, 45% are "micro-units" or studios, 50% are one-bedroom units and 5% are two-bedroom units.

Affordable housing will be offered for 20% of the units — somewhere between 32 and 36 units — and will be based on a yet-to-be determined percentage of the Area Median Income, which includes Detroit-Warren-Livonia metropolitan statistical area. It should be noted that use of this standard to determine affordability could hurt Detroiters. While the metropolitan statistical AMI of a single person is $48,000, the true median income in Detroit is $28,000.

Eastern Market mixed-use development

With a projected groundbreaking scheduled for June 2019, this six-story project spans a number of blocks: 1314-1388 Gratiot Ave., 2011-2105 Russell St. 1301-1399 Maple St. and 1350-1366 Service St.

Spearheaded by Develop Detroit, the project is mixed-use. There will be 235 residential units, with 47 units — 20%— reserved for people making 60% or less of the AMI.

The development will have 87 studios, 126 one-bedroom units, 31 two-bedroom units, three three-bedroom units and six live workspaces.

Lafayette West

With an expected groundbreaking of April 2019, this project is slated for 1401 Rivard St. The development will include 374 residential units — 60 will be for sale and 314 for rent.

Contact Allie Gross: AEGross@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @Allie_Elisabeth.