Monroe Streetscape Project continues through fall 2026

The Saint Antoine and Monroe Street intersection in Greektown has reopened with temporary two-way lanes while construction on the Monroe Streetscape Project continues.

The $20 million renovation of the pedestrian corridor is expected to be completed in the fall of 2026.

Tasso Teftis is the Vice President of the Greektown Neighborhood Partnership. His family also owns several businesses in the corridor, including Astoria Pastry. He says during the closures, his businesses have seen a 25 percent decrease in profits.

Other businesses haven’t been affected, especially the ones that are closer to the entrance of the casino, and some even more than 25 percent. From talking to all my neighbors, most have been here a long time, and they want to see the change. So they’re taking it in stride.

Teftis says all businesses are open and all parking spots within the two-block area are accessible. He says the intersections on Monroe at Brush and Beaubien are expected to be open by the end of this year.

Additional headlines

Michigan House Speaker supports Medicaid cuts but open to federal extension

Republican state House Speaker Matt Hall says he is open to the federal government granting more time to enact cuts to Michigan’s Medicaid program.

Governor Gretchen Whitmer met with President Donald Trump this week to seek a temporary reprieve. But Hall does support the cuts.

And so at some point, Michigan is going to have to adjust our Medicaid system to reflect the fact that we’re either—we’re just going to have to adjust it to reflect this new reality, and that’s OK.

Whitmer says a three-year waiver would give the state time to come up with a plan to manage the effect on 2.6 million Michigan residents who have Medicaid. The cuts would kick hundreds of thousands of people in the state off Medicaid, and millions would lose coverage nationwide.

Detroit voters turn out at higher rates than rest of metro area

Fewer than 1 in 5 registered voters in Metro Detroit cast ballots in the August primary election, but Detroiters turned out in higher numbers.

Turnout was about 18 percent in Wayne and Oakland counties, and less than 14 percent in Macomb County. Some precincts saw higher turnout in communities that had tax proposals on the ballot, such as Livonia, where voters rejected a $150 million bond to pay for a new police station, a new library, and renovations to the city’s fire stations. Citywide turnout was about 34 percent.

Legionella found at Dearborn senior facility after two deaths

The Wayne County Health Department has found Legionella bacteria at the retirement home and nursing facility Allegria Village in Dearborn. Two people have recently died.

The county is looking into the two fatal cases and a nonfatal case from last year. On Wednesday, the county confirmed that testing of the “affected area’s water system” has detected the presence of Legionella bacteria, which causes Legionnaires’ disease. Complex water systems like those in nursing facilities have been common routes for the bacteria to spread.

Health officials say they’re helping with disinfection and alerting residents and staff to seek medical treatment if they develop symptoms.

Free Power of Attorney forms now available from Attorney General

Free and fillable Power of Attorney forms are now available for download on the Michigan Attorney General’s Elder Abuse Task Force webpage.

The forms are user-friendly, making it easier for Michigan residents and their family members to appoint a trusted individual to make important medical and financial decisions on their behalf.

A notice from the Office of the Attorney General states the new forms will help combat elder abuse by allowing more access to power of attorney documents. Visit the Michigan Department of Attorney General’s Elder Abuse Task Force page for more information or find the link on today’s DER post at wdet.org/der.

Wayne State event to raise funds for African American Studies program

Wayne State’s African American Studies program, the Crocket-Lumumba Scholars, is raising money for scholarships and study abroad programs through an event called Homegrown: An Evening of Detroit Jazz and Poetry.

The event takes place August 16 from 6 PM to 8 PM at the Gretchen Valade Center for Jazz. Featured performers include jazz bassist and bandleader Marion Hayden, trumpet player Allen Dennard, and drummer Tariq Gardner. Tickets are $30.

For more information, email HR6736@wayne.edu.

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Judge blocks Real Token from collecting rent on blighted Detroit properties

A Wayne County Circuit Court judge has issued a temporary restraining order against real estate investment firm Real Token, blocking them from collecting rent on hundreds of Detroit homes until the properties meet city codes.

The order is tied to the city’s largest public nuisance lawsuit in history. Detroit filed the suit earlier this month, citing blight violations at more than 400 residential properties owned by Real Token.

Detroit Corporation Counsel Conrad Mallett says tenants will soon be instructed to pay rent into an escrow account starting in August.

“We will be doing direct door-to-door outreach, and will have specific direction for the tenants as to where their rent money should go in the next seven days,” Mallett said.

Paying into the escrow, he says, will protect tenants from eviction due to nonpayment.

The restraining order also blocks Real Token from pursuing evictions at any property without a certificate of compliance. The company was ordered to secure 58 vacant blighted homes and correct all code violations within 90 days.

Company owners Remy and Jean-Marc Jacobson released a statement blaming property managers for the conditions of the homes. Mallett dismissed that claim.

“These properties are in such a degraded state that there is no way that interested owners, no matter whom they farmed out the responsibility to, would not know that their tenants are living in substandard housing.”

Since filing the suit, the city has identified an additional 130 Real Token properties that also lack certificates of compliance.

Uber launches women-only ride option in Detroit

Uber is piloting a new feature in select cities, including Detroit, that allows women to match only with female drivers. Riders will be able to select the option when scheduling or ordering a ride on demand. Female drivers can also choose to accept only ride requests from women.

The change comes in response to Uber’s most recent safety report, which cited more than 2,500 cases of sexual assault and misconduct between 2021 and 2022.

Dearborn opens applications for women’s career program

Dearborn is now accepting applications for the second round of its WORKS program—short for Women’s Opportunity to Realize their Knowledge and Skills. The program is designed to help women gain employment and advance their careers.

Participants will receive financial literacy training, attend professional development workshops, and take part in an eight-week business boot camp. Applications are open through August 15, with the program launching in September. More information is available at dearborn.gov/BusinessResources.

People Mover station renamed as downtown redevelopment continues

The Detroit People Mover station once known for serving Joe Louis Arena is getting a new name: Water Square Station.

City officials say the name reflects the nearby development of hotels and luxury residences rising on the former arena site. The station will also provide access to the future Ralph C. Wilson Park, previously known as West Riverfront Park. Construction on the park is expected to wrap up later this year.

The Trucks Off Our Streets coalition urged the Detroit City Council on Tuesday to enforce existing truck regulation laws while waiting for a route ordinance to pass. 

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Detroit was named one of the worst cities to live with asthma in 2024, and activists says a leading cause of that is the trucks driving through residential areas.   

Activist Simone Zagovac says a truck census in 2024 on Livernois counted 1,000 semi-trucks passing in one day on a road without any industry on it.   

“So every day, yesterday, today and tomorrow, 1,000 semi trucks are driving down those streets. In the last two years since we toured city administration staff, that means one million semi trucks have driven down Livernois,” she said.  

Zagovac told city council simple enforcement of existing laws against speeding, parking, and route restrictions of semi-trucks can greatly improve the health of residents.   

She advocated for the council to also consider zoning amendments to better separate industry and residential areas.  

Other headlines for Wednesday, July 23, 2025:

• A Detroit man is suing the city of Detroit and its police and fire departments for $100 million in damages over his wrongful conviction in 2013.
• Detroit City Clerk Janice Winfrey will be kicking off early voting with a block party celebration this weekend. The Block Party for Democracy will be held on Saturday, July 26, on Grand Boulevard between Second and Third streets to mark the opening of Detroit’s Early Vote Centers.  The party will feature DJs, local vendors, food trucks, and dog adoptions from the Michigan Humane Society.  Primary election day is Aug. 5.  
• Temperatures are expected to reach the mid to upper 90s on Thursday, July 24. Detroit is reopening their cooling centers. Residents can visit any Detroit recreation center or Detroit library during normal hours to beat the heat. The Northwest Activities, Patton, and Heilmann recreation centers will have extended hours from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.  

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

The Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA) has released the Get Housing Ready Guide.

It’s a checklist for local governments to attract more housing development and investment. The state still faces a shortage of 119,000 housing units.

MSHDA Director Amy Hovey spoke with WDET about what is causing the shortage, and how the guide can help communities address it.

The following interview has been edited for clarity and length.

Amy Hovey: In the state of Michigan, we’re still about 119,000 units short of where we need to be for our current population in the state. That shortage comes from a few different things. One, the amount of people that live in each housing unit has shrunk. Quite often there’s one or only two people in the home. So, even if your population is somewhat stagnant, like it is in the state of Michigan — if you have less people in each home, you’re going to need more homes. We’ve also had a big increase in second homes and short term rentals. It’s great that we have those. That has also led to a shortage of housing for people who live here permanently. So we need to create all kinds of tools to help with the development of housing. And this guide really just kind of highlights all the different things — whether it’s zoning changes, whether it’s financial tools, whether it’s planning, whether it’s knowing where you want the housing developed, and having land control and working with land banks. There’s lots of things that a local municipality can do to really be housing ready.

Bre’Anna Tinsley, WDET News: What is the biggest obstacle that local governments are facing right now concerning attracting these investments?

AH: The cost of developing housing is really the biggest obstacle. Often in our state right now, the cost to develop housing far outweighs what Michigan families can afford. So we need everyone to come to the table to reduce those costs. Some of the suggestions we have look at their land use policy. How can they allow for a more dense housing structure? Meaning, like row houses or multifamily even for sale homes that make it more affordable to develop. Also allowing for smaller housing to be developed, which matches really what new families are looking for and also what they can afford.

I also think if local communities prioritize the development of housing, making sure that they’re reviewing plans quickly, that they have pattern books of plans they’ve already approved in the past, that they’re coming to the table and trying to make the process as easy as possible and as short as possible to get housing developed. You know, the longer it takes, the more expensive it is.

BT: I notice that particularly in Detroit, that urgency to build more housing, especially more affordable housing, we tend to lean more towards multifamily units — not necessarily single-family homes. I’m curious if the policy changes that you’re suggesting will help allow more single-family homes to be built.

AH: I do think so. I think the reason why you see a lot of multifamily being developed, particularly in Detroit, is that’s where a lot of the subsidy is geared towards. At MSHDA, we get a lot of money from the federal government that is just for multifamily. We don’t get as much assistance for homeowner for sale development.

And so really, there’s a couple things. One, we need the state government to step up and put more funding towards for-sale. We need local governments to rethink their neighborhoods, to make it more affordable for developers to come and develop for-sale housing. For example, in this guide, we talk about the housing TIFs (Tax Increment Financing) under one of the financial tools and incentives. We have seen developers across the state use that housing TIF tool to develop single family for sale housing. And so if you’re a community that’s willing to approve these housing TIFs, you’re more likely to attract these single-family kind of neighborhood developers into your community.

Detroit voters will elect a new mayor this fall. Nine people are running to succeed Mike Duggan, who’s making an independent bid for governor next year. The top two finishers in next month’s primary election will advance to the general election in November.

WDET is having one-on-one conversations with voters about the issues they want the next mayor and city council to address. We call it the Citizen Vox Project.

WDET’s Bre’Anna Tinsley spoke with Eugene Brown II, a resident of Detroit’s Brightmoor neighborhood on the city’s west side, about why he says honesty and action matters in the city’s next leader.

The following interview has been edited for clarity and length.

Eugene Brown II: Because we’re not too big on the words anymore. We need to see action, movement, growth, development, and these are all things that are taking place now in the city of Detroit and have been taking place for the past 15 years. So, we have always been at work setting up things, having successful things happen by by way of the water department. Even initiating the things that have happened with the Gordie Howe Bridge. You see what I’m saying? So, we’ve been hard at work, really, in the streets.

Bre’Anna Tinsley, WDET News: Who do you think right now is the best person for the job? Do you have someone in mind?

EB II: Well, you know, when I look at Mary Sheffield — I usually don’t, I usually don’t endorse people. But when I look at the Sheffield brand, it’s pretty solid.

BT: What is it specifically about her brand that speaks out to you?

EB II: Well I would you say from past to present. And then you could probably say to yourself, if you know certain people that have that name, then you probably can say that for yourself. You can put it together however you want to put together. I don’t name drop, but you could just look at that and just put it together and see. And then if she lying, she’d be called out, just like anybody else is.

BT: Is there anything specifically in your neighborhood that you would like to see the mayor possibly work on?

EB II: Well, our neighborhood is pretty solid. We’re pretty much a group of family. The only really thing that we really focus on here is protection, peace, happiness, love, no violence, no killings, no stabbings, no robbings; none of that stuff out here. We don’t need any of that. I came from the ’80s. I already lived through all that — ’90s drug era, crack epidemic, Devil’s Night. You see, then ‘YN’ crazy culture, like whatever we’re dealing with right now. But the Detroit Police Department is doing a very fine job, as well as the adjacent, you know, task force that have been set up for the 25 years [sic].We all know this Wayne State progression. It’s a beautiful thing to see people coming together in the city to handle life differently after things were so ripped off, like the water department. We received about a what, 25% pay cut in 2008 to actually help with this process. We actually helped with this process because we were robbed of our money. Well, not robbed. I’ll say… our money was put in trust.

We are investors in the Gordie Howe project, because we had to take the blow of this for the citizens of Detroit to drink water to live, and to flush their boo boo down the pipes so they don’t die. So, you know, we’ve really been hard at work, city of Detroit Water Department, so as far as I’m concerned, since we worked the waters, a portion of these assets that they’re wanting to collect, we should probably be repaid. So, I’d like to see that happen, because all those brothers, they live in this community, too.

WDET’s CuriosiD series answers your questions about everything Detroit. Subscribe to CuriosiD on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

In this episode of CuriosiD, we answer the question:

“Where in Detroit is the community known as Dogleg?”

The short answer

Dogleg refers to the southernmost part of the city of Detroit. It is referred to by residents as such because the outline of the area resembles the hind of a dog’s leg. But Dogleg is not its official name.

What is the official name?

That depends. Dogleg consists of two neighborhoods: Oakwood Heights and Boynton. This part of Detroit is the only section of the city that resides south of the Rouge River. The only connections to the rest of the city are bridges on Fort Street, Jefferson Avenue, and Interstate 75.

Some refer to it as the real Southwest Detroit. It’s also makes up the entirety of the zip code 48217, which has gained the moniker “the most polluted zip code in Michigan.”

Michigan’s most polluted zip code

Dogleg is surrounded by 42 major and minor polluting sources releasing toxic chemicals into the air day after day. One of the biggest offenders is the Marathon Oil Refinery.

The area also collects pollutants from industry in neighboring cities like Ecorse, River Rouge and South Dearborn, including the EES Coke Battery Plant and U.S. Steel plant on Zug Island, various scrap yard and metal crushing facilities, wastewater treatment plants, asphalt plants, power stations, and much more.

Clear the Air Michigan is a nonprofit organization focused on environmental justice in the area. They hosted the “Toxic Tour,” an expedition through Southwest Detroit, Ecorse and River Rouge of the various industries polluting the air within a three-mile radius of the area.

Theresa Landrum is a community activist and life-long resident of Dogleg.

She recalls growing up with foul odors in the air and thinking that was normal.

“I grew up with the norm of the air being dusty, and coughing or sneezing, because something has irritated me,” Landrum said.

Landrum now leads the Toxic Tours, informing people of the conditions in the area. She says the community had not met the National Air Quality Standards for more than 16 years. 

Quoting environmental lawyer Nick Leonard, she said: “‘If you have a kid that’s 14 years old, your child has never breathed clean air if you live in Detroit.’ So that’s [an] impactful statement.”

Landrum says quality of the air is so bad, that children are being born with health conditions such as asthma and residents of the area are developing rare diseases as a result of the pollution.

Samra’a Luqman is another activist with Clear the Air Michigan and a resident of South End Dearborn. She says 48217 has abnormal rates of cancer, asthma and kidney disease.

“There are people that I’ve known here in the south end who have died of nasal cancer. The number of people I know are five. I personally know that have died of nasal cancer. Nasal cancer is one of the rarest cancers in the world. There are only 2000 people that are diagnosed with it annually in the U.S.,” Luqman said.

Residents living in Dogleg continue to fight against new pollution sources and new industries in the area — from the potential sale and re-opening of a neighboring steel company to increased semi-truck traffic expected to come from the opening of the Gordie Howe Bridge.

The Toxic Tours and other activism have led to one huge step forward for the residents – an air monitoring station behind the New Mount Hermon Baptist Church by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality.

But with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under attack by the Trump administration, the future of these monitoring stations is unclear.

About the listener

Keith Mason first moved to the Dogleg area as a child in the 1950s. He purchased and moved back into his family home after his mother died in 2020. Mason volunteers at WDET for the Detroit Radio Information Service (DRIS) is southeast Michigan’s Radio Reading/Audio Information Service for people with disabilities.

We want to hear from you! 

Have a question about southeast Michigan’s history or culture? Send it our way at wdet.org/curiosid, or fill out the form below. You ask, we answer.

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Detroit officials say they’ve filed the “largest blight lawsuit in its history” against a blockchain-based real estate platform after it failed to maintain hundreds of residential properties in the city.

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Real Token, also known as RealT, is a Florida-based company that markets itself as a decentralized real estate security token platform. In the lawsuit, the city alleges that the company’s co-founders, brothers Remy Jacobson and Jean-Marc Jacobson — and their 165 affiliated companies — have neglected over 400 properties in Detroit by failing to maintain basic health and safety requirements, leading to widespread code violations and blight.

Detroit’s Corporation Counsel Conrad Mallet says the city wants them to pay $500,000 in blight tickets and ensure their properties pass compliance inspections.  

“We are also asking the judge to hold the Jacobson brothers personally liable for the circumstances that their tenants find themselves,” he said. “We are also asking the judge to take control of the entire process so that even the vacant properties are properly attended to [and] properly registered.”

Mallet says Real token used a complex web of shell companies to avoid responsibility for keeping up their properties.  

Real Token says it paid their parties to manage the properties and blamed them for the problems.  

“We are sending a message,” Mallet wrote in a statement, “no matter how innovative your business model may be, you cannot hide behind technology or corporate formalities to evade your responsibilities as a property owner.”

Other headlines for Thursday, July 3, 2025:

• More than 6,000 signatures have been collected by the group Dearborn Wants Wards to change the city council from an at-large body to district-based seats.
• The Michigan House has passed two bills that give police the ability to test for controlled substances during traffic stops.
• AAA says it expects almost 2.5 million people in Michigan to travel this Fourth of July weekend. State officials say they are suspending roadwork at more than 100 project sites over the holiday weekend to help ease traffic congestion.

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

In honor of Juneteenth, Wayne State University hosted a series of lectures and a genealogy workshop focused on tracing African American family lineages beyond slavery.

The workshop was led by Dr. Carolyn Carter, a historian and professional genealogist. Carter says genealogy research is an emotional journey.

“You’re going to find things that you didn’t know, you’re going to make discoveries that you didn’t know, that are going to be emotional. And you have to be ready and open and prepared for that,” she said. “But I tell my students, assume all stories are false because you were not there, and so it’s your job to find the truth in that journey.”

On this episode of Detroit Evening Report Weekends, we listen to WDET reporter Bre’Anna Tinsley’s conversation with Carter about the process of tracing one’s ancestry and the difficulties of tracing the histories of African Americans.

Later, Tinsley joins Detroit Evening Report host Sascha Raiyn to discuss their own family histories.

Listen to the episode using the media player above.

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Children experiencing food insecurity this summer will have multiple services available to them to get free, nutritional meals.

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The Michigan Department of Education’s Summer Food Service Program — known nationally as  known as the SUN Meals To-Go program and known in Michigan as Meet Up and Eat Up,  — provides children in need with nutritious meals at on-site locations all across the state.

Families that can’t visit an on-site service can visit the meals to-go locations to take meals home. To find a location near you, visit Michigan.gov/meetupeatup.

Another option for summer meals is the SUN Bucks Michigan Summer EBT program administered by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS). The program provides $120 for groceries per child through an EBT card. However, Health Department officials say because this program is backed by federal dollars, the program is in jeopardy this year due to proposed federal cuts to food assistance benefits and Medicaid.

For now, funding is still in place and families can take advantage. 

Other headlines for Thursday, June 26, 2025:

• The Wayne Mobile Health Unit (WMHU) is hosting a free vision clinic today through Saturday, June 28, at Grace Community Church. 21001 Moross Rd., Detroit. The event, held in partnership with Detroit OneSight Vision Clinic and Hap CareSource, will offer free comprehensive eye exams and prescription glasses, as well as free blood pressure checks, oral screenings, dental exams, hearing tests and more.
• The city of Detroit is hosting a Veterans Resource Fair from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. this Friday at the Northwest Activities Center. The free event will have career opportunities, veteran support services, community resources, and more.
• It’s national Homeownership Month and Detroit Project REACh is teaming up with Detroit Future City and other community organizations to host the 2025 Homebuyers Fair at Huntington Place this Saturday. There will be two sessions, with the first from 10 a.m. to noon and the second from 1 to 3 p.m.

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