New Restaurant at Jefferson and Mt. Elliot

[Pcm]

http://www.freep.com/article/2010021...nt-takes-shape

Posted: Feb. 16, 2010

Goodwill program transforms lives as restaurant takes shape

BY NAOMI R. PATTON
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER



An empty old post office with dusty concrete floors and exposed brick walls in Detroit is being transformed into a soul food restaurant with the help of some former felons who found work through a Goodwill Industries of Greater Detroit training program.

Leo Dolphin, 50, was part of the six-man crew working for chef Eric Giles and his partner Dave Theriault. They are converting the post office into the Sunday Dinner Company restaurant on East Jefferson near Mt. Elliott. It is to open by spring.
Dolphin, a certified master mechanic and electrician, couldn't find a job after serving 19 years in prison. He was convicted for aiding and abetting an armed robbery after a gun he owned and sold to a friend was used in a robbery.
Dolphin said he was "really, really frustrated" by trying to find a job.
He called it a godsend when he overheard someone talking about Goodwill Industry Detroit's Flip the Script program.
Teferi Brent, community reintegration coordinator for the Goodwill training program, assigned the crew working on the Sunday Dinner project.
"These guys are just outstanding," he said. "They come early, they stay late."
Workers buzzed around the structure one recent winter day. But a few months ago, most of the construction workers were former inmates looking for work.
Now, after three months on the job helping to build the restaurant -- and with the help of Giles -- three of the men have formed their own contracting firm.
With Giles' and Theriault's encouragement and assistance, Dolphin formed Perkins' Improvement Co. contracting firm, inviting two other crew members.
"There's a cycle that has to be broken," said Giles, 44, a restaurateur, caterer and entrepreneur. "I'm more concerned that we equip them."
Dolphin said his company has worked several jobs on rental properties since January, but finding work in this economic climate has been tough. He said no job is too small because he loves just being able to work.
"It's like you're getting paid to play," Dolphin said.


Contact NAOMI R. PATTON: 313-223-3327 or npatton@freepress.com

[Pcm]

Apparently, if it doesn't happen in Midtown, no one cares.

[izzyindetroit]

Apparently, if it doesn't happen in Midtown, no one cares.

LOL!!!

"Sometimes I feel as though I am the only one trying to gentrify this neighborhood"

[DetroiterOnTheWestCoast]

How nice that some redevelopment is happening on E. Jefferson, AND some ex-convicts are getting some legitimate work.

[Spaulding]

It is a very cool building and a great location they are going into.

[casscorridor]

Apparently, if it doesn't happen in Midtown, no one cares.

Totally.

But I think Jefferson will be the next Woodward. Of all the corridors in the entire region, I think Jefferson should be second to get light-rail, hands down. The potential to create vibrant urban neighborhoods exist here more than most other places in the city, and it is located right along the Detroit river, a logical place to build up. Downtown, Lafayette Park, Elmwood Park, Rivertown, Belle Isle, The Villages, Jefferson East and Grosse Pointe would all be connected.