Grants help renovate homes to stabilize historic Detroit district

August 27, 2011

BY GRETA GUEST

DETROIT FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITER


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Home Depot has awarded $105,000 to rehab a house on Longfellow. Exterior changes must conform with its historic character.




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Howell gives a walk-through tour of the house on Longfellow, a work in progress.


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A long-vacant home in Detroit's historic Boston-Edison neighborhood, unfortunately a favorite with squatters, now has reinforced boards across the former French doors in the dining room to keep them out as restoration begins on the stately brick home.

The four-bedroom, two-bathroom home, which has 2,530 square feet, is among four to be renovated with a combination of private and public dollars.

It's part of a larger effort to bolster the historic Detroit neighborhood of roughly 900 homes bordered by Woodward, Linwood, Boston and Edison.

The home, just off the Lodge Freeway exit ramp, has attracted a $105,000 grant from home improvement retailer Home Depot and $55,000 from Next Detroit Neighborhood Initiative and Local Initiatives Support Corp., said David Howell, managing director of Legacy Advisors of Detroit. The Home Depot Foundation has donated nearly $1 million to nonprofit organizations in Detroit to help revitalize and stabilize the community, said spokeswoman Catherine Woodling.

Howell is managing the renovations for the nonprofit Central Detroit Christian Community Development Corp. and plans to renovate nine homes in the district.
"This is a great example of a public-private partnership," he said.

And, he added, it is the only way to renovate a home like this because even with all that investment, the home will likely appraise for $76,000, he said. The home needs everything -- including a kitchen, windows, electrical, ceiling work, drywall and refinishing the hardwood floors.

"Given the recent sales in the area, that is the maximum amount you can justify," Howell said. "That's the only way you can make a Boston-Edison house work is to subsidize it ... given the size of the homes and what is required by the Detroit Historical Commission."

All houses in the historic district must have plans approved by the commission before work begins. Any exterior changes must conform with the historic character of the home.

The other three homes in Boston-Edison that Howell's crews will rehabilitate would be funded with city and federal funds, including some from the Neighborhood Stabilization Program. Altogether, the four homes will receive $1.1 million in investment.

While it is hoped that Detroit police officers purchase the homes under Detroit Mayor Dave Bing's Project 14 program, anyone can buy them subject to certain income restrictions. The Central Detroit Christian CDC also requires that potential buyers go through its homebuyer education program, said Lisa Johanon,
executive director of Central Detroit Christian CDC.

"We are hoping that families buy these ... these are large houses," Johanon said.
Project 14 is a pilot project that offers financial incentives to encourage police officers to buy homes in two Detroit neighborhoods -- Boston-Edison and East English Village.

Qualified homebuyers must have an income of no more than 120% of the area's median income, which is $83,760 for a family of four.

Renovations on the four houses are expected to wrap up this fall. They will all include Energy Star appliances, energy-efficient plumbing and electrical work, renovated kitchens and bathrooms, granite countertops and ceramic tile floors, security systems and new energy-efficient windows.

"Our goal is to get someone in by Christmas so they can celebrate the holidays in their new home," Howell said.

Central Detroit Christian also has identified six other houses in the neighborhood for similar renovations.

Pamela Miller Malone, president of the Historic Boston-Edison Association, said the area has roughly 70 vacant homes, an improvement from a couple years ago when there were 100 vacancies.

She said Citizens Bank announced last week it would pledge $1.6 million to reimburse homeowners for half the cost of improving the exterior of their homes, up to $10,000, in certain neighborhoods. Other banks such as Chase and Bank of America also are offering incentives to bring city employees into Detroit.

Malone also finds Project 14 inspiring for the neighborhood.

"We look at it as a point of stabilization. Any neighborhood would feel more at ease to know there is public safety personnel living in the area," she said.

Contact Greta Guest: 313-223-4192 or gguest@freepress.com

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Great to see this investment in one of Detroit's more architecturally varied historic districts. Hopefully they're able to lure some good occupants!