Umoja founder turning empty Puritan building into bookstore
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Jerjuan Howard in front of 13803 Puritan St.
Jerjuan Howard's plan to bring life and resources to an abandoned building in his west-side neighborhood is a full-circle moment.
The intrigue: Howard purchased an empty building on Puritan this year and wants to turn it into a bookstore and community space. The building was owned by late judge and former deputy mayor Adam Shakoor, a civil rights attorney who represented Rosa Parks.
- Howard, 26, said Shakoor's wife and daughter were excited that someone with shared values planned to activate the unfinished 2,201-square-foot space.
Between the lines: Howard wants to install a commemorative plaque honoring Shakoor's legacy once finished. This summer, he's talking to community members about what they think is missing from the area while turning his bookstore idea into a viable business. Howard toured Axios and a group of community members through the building last month before major renovations.
- He's eyeing completion by next spring.
Catch up quick: Near the building, Howard and a team installed a small library, added seating and planted vegetables in an empty lot he purchased on the corner of Stansbury and Puritan, called Umoja Village.
While youth programming occurs there, Howard is also active within Detroit Public Schools Community District. He's been helping students gain public speaking and debate skills through the Umoja Debate Team since the 2021-22 school year at his alma mater, John R. King.
- "My vision with Umoja was to create a pipeline for the next generation of lawyers coming out of Detroit."
- The debate group is sponsoring 14 students on a trip to Ghana this month.
What they're saying: A white van with a young man inside pulled up at the corner on Puritan and Lesure to offer support and express his well wishes to Howard while he was touring the building.
- "Every single time I'm out here people stop and say, 'Oh, what's up, Jerjuan? Appreciate you bro,' and that's daily," says Howard, who grew up six blocks away.
- "I want everyone who sees this to know that it's an act of self-determination — we have to be the ones that spark things like this in our communities."
Howard's connection to the area spans generations. His great grandparents moved there in the 1930s when it was full of thriving businesses, something Howard says he wants to see be rebuilt.