Rocket Community Fund Awards City of Detroit $600k to Empower Joe Louis Greenway
Some cities just don’t get the love they deserve, and Detroit is one of them. Detroit is an amazing city, and it’s doing a lot of dynamic things, especially from an urban planning perspective. Intricate things that many Detroiters aren’t even privy to. Take the Dequindre Cut, for example; a former railroad line that was once destitute and abandoned is now a below-grade walking and biking trail. The Dequindre Cut stands as a unique feature, offering more than just a path from Jefferson Avenue to Gratiot and further to Mack Avenue with its recent extension. This below-grade trail links communities with vital areas like Eastern Market and the East Riverfront District. It’s not just a connector but a canvas, showcasing the city’s cultural pulse through vibrant graffiti art by renowned artists. This space is a celebration of Detroit’s social and cultural heritage, where the preservation of urban art forms a visual narrative of the city’s ongoing story, which is a part of a larger project, the Joe Louis Greenway.
The Joe Louis Greenway project is a 27.5-mile-long greenway that connects a ton of Detroit neighborhoods and a few different surrounding cities. The greenway mission is to connect parks and neighborhoods across the city, allowing residents to travel safely from McNichols to the riverfront—all without a car—through a combination of new trails, on-street protected bike lanes, and links to existing trails like the Dequindre Cut and the RiverWalk. The Greenway includes the cities of Dearborn, Hamtramck, and Highland Park, linking them to larger trail systems that cross the entire state as well as pass through five council districts. This project is certainly a big deal that drastically helps connect people to neighborhoods, parks, jobs, schools, and essentially the essence of Detroit. Though this project is set to seemingly push the overall evolution of the city, the question remains: what are the tangible benefits that are surrounding residents will receive in real-time? What are the immediate impacts?
“I’m a Detroit girl! I’m born and raised and now raising my own family right here in the City of Detroit, so everything I do is about the impact to residents, and so as I lead the Joe Louis Greenway Partnership, this is what drives me,” shared Leona Medley, Executive Director of JLG Partnership. “So, right now, I’m focused on ensuring residents are informed, are aware, and are engaged and we do that every day by being out in the neighborhood, out in the community, talking to residents, taking phone calls, attending meetings and working with the community to build programming and engagement that’s meaningful.”
Making sure that residents are at the forefront of this project, the Joe Louis Greenway Partnership stands at the helm. The JLG Partnership stands as a crucial bridge, linking the communities it serves directly to the heart of the Joe Louis Greenway project. This Partnership isn’t just about maintaining a physical pathway; it’s about forging a deep, lasting connection with the residents of these neighborhoods. The Partnership’s role is to work hand in hand with the people living alongside the Greenway, involving them in the creation and upkeep of engaging public spaces that are more than just visually appealing.
This commitment stretches far beyond the mere look of these spaces. It’s about ensuring they are functional, environmentally sustainable, and, most importantly, beneficial to the community’s overall well-being. The aim is to make a positive, lasting impact on the health and quality of life for those who live near the Greenway, not just for today but for future generations.