Big announcements of even bigger downtown projects normally come with big waits before dirt starts to move. That's not the case in Redford Township's emerging downtown.
Township officials made a big to-do about their plans for downtown improvements in February. They are now getting ready to start work on the first of those projects, Rose Garden Park, in early April and gearing up to award bids on another, the $4.5 million Redford Marquee, at the same time.
The Rose Garden project will put a small pocket park on a vacant lot near Midland and Beech Daly. The $80,000 park will include a rose garden with a gazebo and monument rock, serving as a gateway into downtown. It replaces an old house the township acquired and razed a few years ago. Work is expected to wrap up early this summer.
Saying the Redford Marquee development is a bit bigger would be an understatement. The ambitious project plans to turn an old 1962 township library, vacant for nearly four years, into an open-air market complete with amphitheater and green space. Work is set to begin this summer and be completed later this year.
"We have been working with our community to make sure it gets done by this summer," says Michael Dennis, community development director for Redford Township.
The other two projects, an extensive bike trail and downtown streetscape improvements, are set to begin later this year or early next.
These projects aim to revitalize the central business district area at Beech Daly and 5 Mile roads by making it more walkable and aesthetically pleasing. The idea is it will make the township a destination, improve the quality of life and encourage business investment.
Redford Township has been working for years to turn its downtown district into an urban, walkable area. It has taken several significant steps toward that in recent years, primarily with the Redford Township Medical Building redevelopment. Township officials hope these efforts will help create a greater sense of community in the area by giving everyone a common place to congregate.
Source: Michael Dennis, community development director for Redford Township
Writer: Jon Zemke
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