New Midtown development mixes art, veteran housing

An eclectic housing development is now open in Midtown with several furnished units set aside for veterans.

Why it matters: The neighborhood is part of an in-demand section of the Woodward corridor that is looking to add about 4,000 rental units, Midtown Detroit Inc. executive director Susan Mosey tells Axios.

Driving the news: Developers, city officials and artists gathered last week to debut The Freelon at Sugar Hill — a $38 million, 68-unit complex with retail space and a 160-space parking garage.

• Develop Detroit co-owns the property in a joint venture with national nonprofit developer Preservation of Affordable Housing.

The intrigue: Sugar Hill was a nightlife district decades ago and the area now includes art-related businesses.

• The building's namesake is Philip Freelon, a celebrated Black architect who worked on the project before he died in 2019.

What they're saying: "We know that justice begins with home, justice is what love looks like in public and we are doing this here," Freelon's widow, the jazz singer Nnenna Freelon, said at the ribbon-cutting. "This doesn't happen everywhere."

Between the lines: The development at John R Street and Garfield Street is across from the John D. Dingell VA Medical Center. Fourteen apartments are designated for veterans who have been homeless.

• The veterans' apartments are furnished with trauma-informed design practices and rent will not exceed 30% of their adjusted income.