Detroit, like many parts of the country, is facing a housing crisis. 

Over half of renters in the city are cost-burdened, spending more than 30% of their income on housing. 

Meanwhile, the number of homeless children in Detroit reached a record high last year, with 455 kids experiencing homelessness.

In her new book, “And Housing for All: The Fight to End Homelessness in America,” Maria Foscarinis says homelessness is the outcome of calculated political choices. She says these decisions have entrenched poverty and made stable housing unattainable. 

Foscarinis is an attorney and advocate who’s spent decades fighting for housing justice. She joined The Metro to discuss what it’s going to take to shift America’s approach to housing and treat it as a human right.

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The muted complexes and concrete towers that paint the image of America’s public housing tell a deeper story. It’s a story of segregation, of communities trying to survive along the margins, and of money and power shaping neighborhoods.

In Detroit — as in many places — it’s a layered story, one that involves neighborhoods like Black Bottom and Paradise Valley — majority Black middle-class communities that were razed in the late 1950s in the name of “urban renewal.” Many of the residents who were displaced were promised better housing in public projects, but those promises rarely came to fruition. 

But even in the most challenging times, many public housing residents have made the best of it, raising children, organizing neighbors, and demanding more. Now, a new museum in Chicago is illuminating those histories — not to romanticize them, but to confront them.

The National Public Housing Museum honors the people who made homes in a system stacked against them. It also asks: What should public housing in America look like today, and how can it be a place where people and families can thrive?

Lisa Yun Lee, executive director and chief curator at the museum, joined The Metro to help us answer these questions.

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City leaders joined with community members and stakeholders on Wednesday to celebrate the grand opening of a new affordable housing complex at the historic St. Matthew School on Detroit’s east side.

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Renamed The Residences at St. Matthew, the building had previously been vacant for almost a decade. Now the residence will offer 46 new affordable apartments with 36 one-bedroom, four two-bedroom and six studio units. Twenty-five of the units are reserved for permanent supportive housing for individuals who were unhoused. The rest of the units will serve folks making 30%-60% of the area median income.

The Residences at St. Matthew is part of the national Healthy Housing Initiative launched by Catholic Charities USA. The Catholic Charities of Southeast Michigan, who spearheaded the renovation, will have the residence serve both affordable housing needs and health services delivered through a partnership with Henry Ford St. John Hospital.

“This redevelopment represents the heart of Catholic Charities’ mission — to create hope, foster dignity, and build community,” said Paul Propson, CEO of CCSEM, in a statement. “We are proud to honor the legacy of St. Matthew’s Parish by helping meet a critical need for affordable housing in Detroit.”

Other headlines for Friday, May 9, 2025:

• The My Mental Wellness clinic inside the Islamic Center of Detroit will host a mental health first aid training from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, May 10.
• Southwest Detroit music venue El Club closed down Saturday due to what the general manager described as “police intimidation,” Detroit Metro Times reports.
• The late Detroit funk and soul ‘ambassador’ Amp Fiddler is being honored on May 16 with his own street — Amp Fiddler Ave. The city of Detroit, in collaboration with the Amp Fiddler Estate, will reveal the street sign on the corner of 7 mile Rd and Revere St.
  All are welcomed to attend.

Do you have a community story we should tell? Let us know in an email at detroiteveningreport@wdet.org.

Americans are struggling to find affordable places to live. With the cost of living, gas and groceries going up, Detroit it is no exception. According to a report from the Detroit Justice Center, Detroit is behind in supplying affordable homes to residents.

Still, this is an issue city leaders have tried to address. For the better part of a decade, officials have invested millions of dollars into affordable housing projects. But the city is still unable to keep up with demand. Those efforts have only multiplied in recent years.

Julia Cardi, an investigative reporter for The Detroit News, has been covering affordable housing in Detroit. She joined The Metro on Wednesday to talk about the city’s past investments and the work that’s happening now to bring more affordable housing to the city.

Also, MiSide Community Impact Network President Sean De Four joined the show to talk about Campbell Street Apartments — Southwest Detroit’s new $18 million affordable housing development — ahead of the project’s ribbon cutting.

Use the media player above to hear the full conversation.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

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