Sustainable Community Redevelopment: A Plan for Detroit's Lower Eastside

Abstract

In the city of Detroit, decades of discrimination, unrest, and disinvestment have left scores of vacant and abandoned property and thousands of impoverished residents. This is clearly apparent in Detroit’s lower eastside, located just inside the city limits and bordered by affluent suburban Grosse Pointe Park. Here, in the heart of the lower eastside, the Jefferson East Business Association (JEBA) works to restore economic vitality as a means of revitalizing the overall conditions of the neighborhood. To aid JEBA in their strategic planning process, we developed a replicable model of sustainable community redevelopment and delivered a set of tailored suggestions for the lower eastside. Our research began with a review of national case studies relevant to six core topic areas critical to redevelopment: Economic Prosperity, Human Health & Well-Being, Vibrant Communities, Energy Systems, Material & Resource Flows, and Ecosystem Services. Through the course of our research, common principles emerged and informed the creation of the sixstep REPAIR model for sustainable community redevelopment. In this report, we demonstrate the model through application to the lower eastside, provide our resulting assessment of the neighborhood, and suggest detailed next steps for JEBA and the community. While specific guidance is provided for Detroit, the key findings are universal: First, a data-driven approach is essential in guiding proper resource usage and investment. Second, there is often a plethora of organizations working for the betterment of hard-hit urban areas. It is essential that these disparate stakeholders collaborate on a common plan to avoid redundancy and while accelerating community redevelopment. Stakeholders must rally behind a strong leader to most effectively assemble crucial resources and increase the likelihood of success. Third, a truly sustainable community will need to prepare for future challenges through mitigation and adaptation strategies. These methods must be established to increase resilience and realize true sustainably. We highlight a process of continual improvement in which metrics and indicators are regularly checked for both changes in trends and continued relevancy.