A Focus on Housing and Commercial Corridor Stabilization
Detroit native and Councilwoman Latisha Johnson has been active in the community for 15 years and represents Detroit City Council District 4 on the east side of the city bordering Harper Woods and Grosse Pointe, a community she’s lived in most of her life. She attended Detroit Public Schools and graduated from the University of Michigan- Dearborn, where she earned a degree in finance. She began her career in Detroit’s tourism industry, marketing the city to visitors to attract spending within the local economy. Johnson began her public service in 2007 when she became vice president of the East English Village Neighborhood Association. During her tenure, she led efforts to eliminate blight, hold financial institutions accountable, and prevent residential property tax foreclosures. In 2014, she founded MECCA Development Corp. to address concerns of well-being, workforce development, youth engagement, and neighborhood revitalization. She has also has served as treasurer for the 5th Precinct Police/Community Relations Council, vice chair of the City of Detroit’s Board of Zoning Appeals; member of the Wayne Metro Community Action Agency Regional Advisory Council, and was a volunteer with Wayne State University’s AmeriCorps Urban Safety Program. SBN Detroit spoke to Johnson about her sustainability goals and about how residential development and business development go hand in hand. Q: What are your primary goals for sustainability in the city? A: One key thing is the evaluation of our internal processes. I co-chair the Small Business Task Force with two council colleagues, Mary Waters, and Angela Whitfield-Calloway. Our focus is to ensure that our requirements and practices for small businesses to bid on projects are not insurmountable. One example that came to light just recently: We had a contract come before us, and our procurement team had to make calls to companies to encourage them to bid. In a healthier environment, we should have contractors knocking on our door to bid on projects. This showed us that a lot of companies are overwhelmed by our processes. Small businesses just don’t have the resources to navigate them, so we are now trying to streamline the system and reduce paperwork and red tape. We want to find ways to help grow small businesses, particularly in the neighborhoods of Detroit. Q: In 2014, you founded MECCA Development Corp. to address concerns of well-being, workforce development, youth engagement, and neighborhood revitalization. How does this work impact and inform your role as a councilwoman? A: It definitely impacts what I do now. MECCA had four areas of focus: workforce development; residential development; seniors; and youth. The area I became passionate about – especially as we saw property values climbing – was and is residential development. Houses have become unattainable for lower-income families in this climate. Too many people cannot afford the down payments and can’t qualify for loans. Now I’m hyperfocused on affordable home ownership. This also comes from who I am as a Detroit native who grew up in a lower-income household. I have firsthand experience with these challenges. Therefore, I’m working on programs and opportunities to assist. We recently started a Down Payment Assistance Program to provide up to $25,000 for lower-income renters who want to purchase a house in the city. I’m also working on getting the city of Detroit to support Community Land Trusts. I recently worked with a group of students from the University of Michigan to understand how split-rate taxes (which tax vacant land at a higher rate than structures and improvements) would impact Detroit homeowners. I also established the Equitable Development Task Force, which focuses on addressing underserved communities through policies and programs that reduce disparities while fostering places that are healthy and vibrant. The task force may include residents, representatives from the community, labor, the business sector, as well as any other individuals interested in participating. So yes, MECCA helped shape and inform the work I do around housing and home ownership. I’m always striving to find ways to provide support to low-income families. Q: How do you think residential development impacts businesses in Detroit? A: When I look at our district, the areas that have benefited from the Strategic Neighborhood Fund – Jefferson, East Warren, and now Gratiot – are the areas in which residential properties have also stabilized. So, we know that revitalizing commercial corridors helps stabilize residential, and vice versa. More businesses will come into these areas – it’s cyclical. I’d also like to see people having the opportunity to build equity in their homes that they can pull out to start their own businesses and build generational wealth. It all connects. Years ago, when I worked at Detroit Convention and Visitors Bureau, and we hosted site inspections, we had to craft the routes to prevent taking clients through blighted commercial corridors. When commercial corridors look a certain way, it gives the impression that the neighborhoods are even worse. So, we need more of a focus on both housing and commercial corridors to become stabilized, and they depend on one another to do so. Q: What are the biggest challenges you face? A: First, the tax rate in Detroit. It’s a challenge for residents and businesses. Second, is the lack of promotion of our neighborhoods and commercial corridors to encourage businesses to establish there. No entity proactively promotes and connects entrepreneurs to these communities. There is a big opportunity there. Q: What are other opportunities for the city, and how will these affect businesses? A: As I mentioned earlier, there is an opportunity to streamline the city’s internal processes so that smaller businesses can bid on and secure projects. Another opportunity is the promotion of harmonious growth between business communities and residential communities. We have not done that well. I think businesses and communities can work together better to support one another. When a business does this, it will inherently last longer in the community And when it comes to bringing industry and manufacturing to certain areas, the city has to do a better job of ensuring that we are protecting residents.
Huntington Place Detroit – Green and Working Toward Greener
What was Cobo Hall opened its doors as one of the nation’s first mega-conference centers in 1960 and has served as a venue for sports teams, concerts, speakers, and more. In fact, on June 23, 1963, following the Detroit Walk to Freedom civil rights march, Martin Luther King Jr. delivered the original version of his “I Have a Dream” speech at Cobo Arena. Having under gone a $279 million renovation in 2015, and several name and sponsorship changes since, Huntington Place Convention Center now features a 30,000-square-foot, three-story glass atrium overlooking the Detroit riverfront, the largest ballroom in Michigan at 40,000 square feet, and 723,000 square feet of exhibit space. That’s a lot of space to maintain, and sustain. The facility also is the largest and only convention center in the world certified under LEED v4.1 Operations and Maintenance (O+M), as well as Michigan’s largest certified green LEED Building. The facility contributes 9.8 tons of unserved food to Forgotten Harvest and sends 66 tons of compost annually to Hammond Farms and also has 110 recycle bins, 10,000 square feet of green roof, five beehives that retain 10,000 bees, and numerous awards for its green efforts. How did it get here, and what can other businesses and nonprofits glean from their work in this area? Cedric Turnbore, director of operations and chair of the Huntington Place Green Committee, shares his insights on where to begin when approaching a sustainability program, the why behind it, and some examples of initiatives Huntington has put into place to date. WHERE SHOULD A BUSINESS START? #1: Form a Committee “In 2011, we developed the Green Team, a committee that includes one person from each department in the office building,” Turnbore says. “We meet regularly to review programs and goals.” The center also has a 5-person executive board established by the state of Michigan to oversee its sustainability efforts. “The board acts as our governing body that oversees and approves our programs. We work closely with them to set and manage budgets and ensure that initiatives are in the best interest of the facility, the employees, our guests, and the city.” #2: Set Attainable Goals “Start with the low-hanging fruit,” Turnbore said. “Things you can achieve in the near-term that will help to gain traction for the long haul.” Initial goals of the Green Committee in 2011 included growing the committee with representation from each department and vendor partner and organizing operations around the Green Venues Michigan certification. Since the United Nations set for 17 Sustainable Development Goals in 2015, Huntington Place has patterned its work around them. When the TCF Center Green Committee reconvened in September 2021 after a COVID-related hiatus, those goals were front and center. “This will be pivotal year for our sustainability program,” Karen Totaro, general manager TCF Center/ASM Global, said at the time. Our work in the center is to contribute to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and re-certify as the largest LEED venue in Michigan will be front and center for our efforts in 2022. Turnbore said so far the center has been able to implement projects contributing toward 13 of the 17 goals, and the work will continue. #3: It Takes Green to Go Green “Businesses must commit to funding for the necessary equipment, tools, and programming,” says Turnbore. “That’s why we have a board … to govern and approve our spends and ensure that those spends have the desired outcome – a return on the investment.” Some examples of investments Huntington Place has made include 110 recycling stations, food court waste diversion receptacles, visitor education posters, a green roof, receptacles for compost collection, trash compactors, a cardboard baler, and a green website page for visitor information. #4: It’s a Marathon, Not a Sprint “When we first launched our efforts 11 years ago, many individuals thought it was a fad. That the sustainability work would ‘go away. You need to have a long-term plan to ensure that it never goes away and be steadfast in your efforts every single day. It’s as simple as that,” says Turnbore. #5: Educate! According to Turnbore, for their efforts to be impactful, it’s imperative to continually educate employees, vendors, and visitors on the how and the why behind them. To that end, every new employee is trained on conservation and sustainability during onboarding. Information is posted throughout the facility. The sales and events team with vendors toward making every event as green as possible. Vendors are offered a post-event sustainability report outlining diversion data, compost data, and best practices observed during the event. Further, the team tours sustainability partner facilities to observe first-hand how their efforts are working. The committee recently toured Hammond Farms in East Lansing, which composts more than 66 tons of unused food from Huntington Place events annually. WHAT EXAMPLES DOES HUNTINGTON PLACE HAVE IN PLACE? According to Turnbore, Huntington Place’s four biggest priorities are waste diversion, energy savings, food waste management, and employee education. Here are just some of the green initiatives currently in place: Sitting off the Detroit River, Huntington Place HVAC system pumps gray water from the Detroit River through chillers that then send the cool water to various air handlers, providing cooling to zoned areas in the center. This system uses considerably less electricity than conventional air conditioning units. The Huntington Place $279 million facility upgrade incorporates numerous green building components including low-flow restroom and kitchen equipment, energy-efficient HVAC equipment, and a living green roof. Centerplate, the Huntington Place food and beverage provider collects prepared food that has not been served for pick up by Forgotten Harvest, a local nonprofit that delivers the food to pantries, soup kitchens, and shelters throughout Southeastern Michigan. Materials left by events are donated to local agencies for reuse and upcycling. Exhibit halls are equipped with induction lighting that uses 50% less electricity. All main hall lighting and heat/cool settings are computer programmed and managed. Escalators in the building are energy efficient, Kone EcoMod units. Escalators operate based on occupancy and
