“There is so much structurally that holds back businesses owned by people of color, and the network I am a part of is hoping to turn that upside down.”
~ Lily Hamburger, Ross School alumna

Manuel Martinez has been working at the Michigan Central Station for the past three-and-a-half years, leading a 23-person project team that manages hundreds of construction workers. The project, which Ford announced in 2018, is expected to be finished next year.

When opened, the DCI will provide Michigan businesses and communities a pipeline of talent and offer opportunities for current workers to further their skills in a world of fast-paced technological change.

Through the Riverfront, Matt Cullen saw a way around the regionalism that had plagued Detroit, Wayne County and its neighbors. Born and raised in Detroit, Cullen knew how to unite people for a common cause: the city’s revitalization. 

The pair joined Olympia Development as part of a company growth spurt following its opening of Little Caesars Arena — the home of the NBA’s Detroit Pistons and the NHL’s Detroit Red Wings — and plans to develop the surrounding area as The District Detroit.

“A number of people in the area are also reporting that the shaking from rumbling trucks is cracking foundations and plaster. They are literally watching their homes fall apart as a result of the construction where they live,” said Amy Schulz, a professor of health behavior and health education at U-M School of Public Health.

Partnering with a small business owner to boost her coffee shop business, building a makerspace for students and the Brightmoor community, and working with Eastside city residents to create authentic tours are just a few projects the University of Michigan is collaborating on to boost entrepreneurial impact in Detroit.

The Detroit Neighborhood Entrepreneurs Project (DNEP) held its first Small Business Showcase Thursday, bringing together more than a dozen of its current participants, including Denard. Their business ideas ran the gamut from wellness subscription boxes to a new gaming platform to a chemistry-inspired fashion line. The event at the U-M Detroit Center also featured its food entrepreneurs, including soul food, French crepes and Afro-Caribbean specialties.  

“When I use some of those tools and techniques that I learned in Dr. Mohr’s class and my other Ford School classes to really try to unpack what’s at the root cause of both these challenges and these opportunities, what I come to is designers,” said Olga Stella, U-M alumna and now executive director of Design Core Detroit.