To Build, To Involve, To Instill Pride In Our Community

Vernor Overpass Project

“East Meets West on the Vernor Overpass” is a project that uses art, gardening, theatre and dance to bring together residents from both sides of the freeway. With a goal of community unification, the project will focus on the Vernor overpass over I-75.

HISTORY:
Our community, centrally located in the heart of southwest Detroit and at the foot of the Ambassador Bridge to Canada, is physically bounded by Clark St. on the west, the railroad tracks on the north, 16th St. on the east, and Fort St. on the south. According to 2000 Census information, our community is racially diverse: 10% African American, 55% Caucasian, and 34% other. At the same time 65% of the residents identify as Hispanic (of any race). The median household income is ~$20,000.

Most importantly, the families weave the fabric of the community with their diverse backgrounds, rich cultures and shared experiences. Southwest Detroit is the only area in the city that has experienced a population increase since the 1990 Census Poll. Many people living here have been here for 30 years or more while others immigrated in the past few years. It is likely that if one walks down any one of the tree-arched blocks in the neighborhood, they would find out that relatives live next door to each other, families have grown larger together, and old grade-school friends are now raising children across the street from each other.

TO DATE:

The project is building more and more momentum as a tool for change in our community. Our first notable success was getting the stunning billboard up for all to see. During Cinco de Mayo festivities, we sponsored a flamenco performance by our own artist-in-residence, Mary Herbeck. Vito Valdez and Mary have worked hard to make our “World Headquarters” a place where artists can flourish and children can explore. Workshops are taking place at the headquarters each Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. where the artists teach residents found object art, muralling, sculpture, organic gardening and more! We had a planting for the inside corner flower boxes with 12 children from Maybury Elementary School. Maybury is just one of the four sponsors of the inside corner boxes. The others are: Southwest Detroit Environmental Vision, Southwest Housing Corporation, Businesses and Officers United with Youth (B.O.U.Y. 3) and Bagley Housing Association. The organic vegetable and flower gardens located on the NW corner of the lot are beautiful! We are already eating the lettuce and basil, and are nurturing the tomatoes, peppers, corn, and other herbs in hopes of eating them soon! The mural on the SW corner is coming along, with almost half of the cement blocks done. Below is the schedule of our July workshops.
Amidst all of the planned efforts, people are now using the bridge as a congregation place. We seem to be inching closer to our goal of unifying the two neighborhoods on each side of the freeway.

TO JOIN THE CREW & GET INVOLVED CONTACT
AMY ISRAEL AT BAGLEY HOUSING 313-964-5942
 

All photos are copyright 2002-2008 Bagley Housing Association and may not be duplicated or used in any manner without express written permission of Bagley Housing Association.

[ Home ] [ Up ]

Send mail to WebMaster@DCSQuickStop.com with questions or comments about this web site.
Copyright © 2002-2008 Bagley Housing Association