City of Detroit Replaces Wigle Rec Center with Residential Units

By Alexandra Pacurar

The Wigle Recreation Site

Detroit—The city of Detroit is seeking proposals for the redevelopment of the Wigle Recreation Center site into a well-designed, walkable, environmentally sustainable, mixed-income neighborhood with roughly 200 residential units. At least half of all apartments will be rentals and 20 percent of those will be reserved for affordable housing (households earning up to 80 percent of the area’s median income).

“As the city rebuilds its population density, we are going to do everything we can to make sure Detroiters of all income levels have the ability to live in these new developments. That includes some of the best new developments in Downtown, Midtown and along the East riverfront,” Arthur Jemison, the city’s director of housing and revitalization, said in a prepared statement.

The 7-acre parcel located at 901 Selden St. is the largest publicly-held development site in Midtown, only three blocks away from Woodward Avenue and the new Q-Line streetcar. A DIY skatepark replaced Wigle’s old playground area, attracting numerous skateboard fanatics in the past year.

The city is also planning to redevelop a 1-acre parcel in Midtown’s historic Sugar Hill Arts district into a walkable, mixed-use, mixed-income community that includes at least 60 units of multifamily rental housing, in addition to ground-floor retail and structured parking. The site is bounded by East Forest, John R., Garfield and Woodward Avenues, and located in the vicinity of several cultural institutions, including the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit and the N’Namdi Center for Contemporary Art.

Developers can send their proposals for the two lots by Nov. 14, with the city expecting to make a decision by mid-December. Residents will also have a say in the selection process, according to Jemison.

Image via Google Earth