Community leaders and stakeholders held a ribbon-cutting to announce the grand opening of the Neighborhood Resource Hub on Detroit’s far eastside. The renovated building at 14300 E. Jefferson is a part of Jefferson East, Inc. (JEI), and its year-long effort to provide support to homeowners and businesses near Jefferson Ave. and Chalmers.
The newly-renovated facility will anchor JEI’s Housing and Neighborhood Services staff to service area homeowners and renters annually.
“We’ve built a world-class housing organization that plugs residents into a range of resources,” said Josh Elling, chief executive officer, Jefferson East, Inc. “Having a central place allows us the access to work with residents to develop an action plan to keep their homes and improve their homes.”
JEI will use to the space to continue to foster its important work of building inclusive neighborhoods along the historic Jefferson corridor.
The Neighborhood Resource Hub will provide services to meet community need such as home repair loans, housing counseling, utility assistance, home weatherization readiness, rooftop funds, Wi-Fi and computer access and financial education.
“This organization has helped my mother and my family a lot,” said Debra Hall who attended the grand opening with her 82-year-old mother, Cynthia Campbell. Campbell has been living in her eastside home since 1969. Campbell described the assistance she received from Jefferson East after coming across home repair information online. Some time had passed that she had forgotten she’d applied for assistance to fix the decaying structure of her front porch.
“The crews came out and immediately got to work,” said Campbell. “I feel so much safer and I’m not afraid anymore.” Campbell described having to once hold on to weakened guard rails due to the porch’s unstable foundation and would often need to warn mail carriers and guests before they approached her home. The completed repair is a gift she is thankful to have received thanks to the resources of JEI. “This was much needed help and the new porch; it adds something to the house.”
The Neighborhood Resource Hub project was made possible through grants and support from several entities including the Bank of America Foundation, The Kresge Foundation, AT&T, J.P. Morgan Chase, Invest Detroit, Penske Corporation, City of Detroit and the Michigan State Housing Development Authority.
“We contributed $100,000 last year to JEI to support this resource build,” said David Lewis, president of AT&T Michigan. “Jefferson East has the potential for so much growth. We’re going to soon put computer labs inside this space, Wi-Fi and fiber. We’re going to really help connect this area because it’s only going to grow from here.”
Redevelopment of the historic Kresge building was led by the East Jefferson Development Corporation, JEI’s development arm. The front-facing retail space of the new Hub will also house the second location for Detroit Soul, a Black-owned eatery serving traditional soul food.
“This is just the start in five phases of development,” said Derric Scott, chief development officer, East Jefferson Development Corp. “This building is one of four projects in phase one. We have three groundbreaking developments that will happen at the top of the year and it is all driven by the community.”
The development sites in phase two of its projects will bring over $96 million in investment which will range from retail to new affordable housing and all led by community input.
“The most important work we do is keeping Detroiters in their homes,” said Mayor Mike Duggan. “While there are many great programs to help homeowners who may be struggling with their property taxes, making critical repairs, grant and loan assistance or other needs, they aren’t much good if residents don’t know how to access them. That’s why the opening of the new Jefferson East, Inc. Neighborhood Resource Hub is so important. Now, the residents of Jefferson Chalmers have a place in their own neighborhood where they can get connected to the help they need.”
Jefferson East Inc. has created impactful housing stabilization over the past several years. The organization has been a force for good in providing crucial residential services more than 4,500 homeowners and renters.
Campbell’s new front porch is made possible by the years-long grassroot and collaborative efforts by JEI, resulting in $1.6 million in home repairs after assisting 450 homeowners apply for 0 percent interest loans. Its new Neighborhood Resource Hub will be a beacon for continued housing stabilization and development and a blueprint on how to replicate similar efforts into neighborhoods citywide.
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