Downtown : Features

Metro Detroit is home to over 1,000 miles of trails—with even more being planned and built every year. Here's what to expect as you plan your next non-motorized adventure.

The refleX line will link city and suburbs with express bus service. Some see it as a big step forward for regional transit, others say the money could be better spent elsewhere. 

In 2006, Detroit's renowned electronic music festival was nearly disappeared for good. That is, until Paxahau took on the challenge of running it. 10 years later and the festival is as strong as ever.

Community organizers and entrepreneurs have more choice than ever when it comes to asking the public for funding. But is the landscape getting 'crowded'? Nina Ignaczak digs in to find out what's going on in the world of civic crowdfunding in Detroit.

How much can you really clean up and restore waterways that have been subjected to more than a century of intense industrialization and urbanization? In the case of the Rouge and Detroit rivers, there has been definite progress.

More than 50 years before Dutch elm disease, a treacherous caterpillar pest spurred the city to action on an ambitious plan for its street trees.

The Detroit Training Center has graduated over 1,500 students since it launched in 2012. According to Marcus Jones, DTC's director, graduates find jobs paying anywhere between $12 and $40 an hour, depending on the field.

Ideas from the sixth annual summit of the Detroit Food Policy Council, which took place last week.

Detroit and Medellin, Columbia, are very different cities, but there's a lot they can learn from one another when it comes to involving citizens in equitable development.

Behind every great historic restoration project, there's a great architect. In the case of many of downtown's most prominent buildings, that person is Brian Rebain.

"Detroit City of Design cannot simply be a moniker or a logo," write Olga Stella and Ellie Schneider of Detroit Creative Corridor Center. "It must be an attitude backed up by collective action." That's why they want to hear from you.

Undeniably, Detroit's local food movement has exploded. But can it one day feed the entire city?

"We know the name of the architect of Grand Central Station, but who swept the floors?"

The second round of Motor City Match grantees, who will receive a combined $500,000 in awards, are located throughout Detroit. They include a gourmet slider restaurant, a neighborhood pharmacy, a bike and coffee shop, among others.

The Regional Transit Authority millage, partnerships between Silicon Valley and Detroit, and sprawl are a few things we'll be keeping a close eye on this year.