DETROIT – A neighborhood that some say has long been neglected is starting to see some new momentum and significant changes.
The Dexter Avenue corridor on Detroit’s west side receives more than $21.5 million in Strategic Neighborhood Fund investments.
The announcement about the local, state, and federal funding is bringing a boost of new energy to the area.
One small business in the center of the action is In Harmony Café.
“It’s a community hub,” said Tahlib Barnes, who opened the café with his wife Keyona in 2022.
The couple wants to be a part of the corridor’s revitalization.
“This has given us an opportunity to get people to connect,” Barnes said. “As people connect, we’re rebuilding our community.”
Rebuilding the Dexter Avenue corridor is key right now.
“Dexter is one of the most significant avenues in our district,” said Detroit City Councilman Fred Durhall, III.
City leaders and neighbors gathered to announce the $21.5 million Strategic Neighborhood Fund investment for the Dexter Avenue area on Wednesday (Nov. 1).
“Over the years, historically, Dexter Avenue was a bit neglected, and it has been challenged,” Durhall said. “This is one of the areas where the drug epidemic hit very, very hard. It kind of destroyed our communities and our neighborhoods here.”
That money is going toward new streetscapes along Dexter Avenue, park improvements, murals, and façade improvements, among other things.
It is also helping support a new pop-up shop for small businesses, which is now open to the public.
“Things are happening on Dexter,” Durhall said.
An additional $40 million in investment funding is going toward two affordable housing developments in the area.
The owners at In Harmony Café received a grant award that will help them with façade improvements at the business.
They’re excited Dexter Avenue is one perk toward, again, becoming a destination place.
The city of Detroit held meetings and worked with residents in areas including Russell Woods, Nardin Park, and Oakman Boulevard to determine where the investment dollars should go.
Most of the neighbors said economic development and a safer and more walkable community were important to them with this project.