Midtown : Features

Our new series on Metro Detroit's ethnic and cultural history, written by local writer and historian Mickey Lyons, begins with the first Detroiters, Native Americans.

You can find a little bit of summer in Michigan tomatoes grown in the winter.

Bradford Frost, director of Capital Impact Partners' Detroit program and all around great person, passed away this week. Model D is republishing an essay he wrote in 2015 to honor his memory. 

As we step into 2017, let's take a look at some of the development news stories that are sure to influence the way we think about and interact with the city of Detroit.

There are many common misconceptions about who lives in affordable housing and what impact those communities have on neighborhoods. But the reality is that affordable housing increases stability, support, and mobility to a neighborhood and city.

In a conversation with Model D, Maurice Cox, Director of the City of Detroit's Planning Department, says he'll put extra emphasis on bike infrastructure across the city. 

38 percent of Detroiters, and 63 percent of its low-income residents, have no home broadband. But people and organizations are helping Detroiters access the internet, and teaching them how to use it.

Detroiters gathered on a recent December evening for an urban exchange to discuss ethical redevelopment, community engagement, and ways to empower the next generation of entrepreneurs.

Before we launch into another year of stories about the issues, people, and programs that impact Detroit kids, we wanted to revisit the best-read 2016 Michigan Nightlight stories from Model D.

After a successful few years at the Sugar House, opportunity came knocking for Kwiatkowski. Since then, he's been opening restaurants and bars at a breakneck pace. 

Detroit property owners are going green to save some green on their water bills. 

Michigan tree farms are the place to make Christmas memories and part of Michigan's growing agritourism economy. 

Illegal dumping, abandoned buildings, and other sources of trash are serious problems in Detroit. Fortunately, multiple businesses and nonprofits are coming to the rescue by turning the city's refuse into something useful. 

As development ramps up in Detroit, understanding what lies beneath our feet is key to the future.

Entrepreneurship programs across the city engage youth in hands-on, place-based entrepreneurial training, equipping them to both launch their own businesses and use entrepreneurial thinking to solve problems.