Entries by Tracy Willis

COVID Emergency Rental Assistance Staves Off An Eviction Tsunami

With the ending of the federal eviction moratorium on August 26, local legal aid funds are still being sorted out. Since the initial eviction moratorium, the U.S. Treasury has paid $25 billion to states and local governments for COVID Emergency Rental Assistance. From May to August, a total of $181,821,906 has been paid out to […]

Detroit’s Roosevelt Park Plans Affect Vernor Highway

Detroit has plans for improvements to Roosevelt Park that involve permanently closing a section of Vernor Highway. The plans will make the park safer and uninterrupted by vehicle traffic. Currently, the highway cuts through the park and a section of 15th Street in the Corktown neighborhood.  A temporary closure of the highway at 17th and […]

Vacancy Increases in Detroit’s Prime Office Buildings

There’s an increase in vacancy rates in Detroit’s prime office buildings in 2021. According to a new report from the Chicago-based brokerage house JLL, there’s a 10.2% vacancy rate totaling more than 10.9 million square feet. That’s an increase from a 7.7% vacancy rate in 2019 and just under 9% in 2020. Rent also dropped […]

Ann Arbor Land Trust Plays Matchmaker

Ann Arbor’s affordable housing crisis has prompted the city to look at creative ways to address the shortage. A retiring U of M real estate professor has started a nonprofit called the Equitable Ann Arbor Land Trust with a goal of creating 1,000-5,000 affordable and market-rate housing units in the next 5-10 years. It’s job […]

Hundreds of Metro Detroiters At Risk For Eviction

Detroit tenants behind on their rent because of coronavirus pandemic hardships are no longer protected from eviction, according to Detroit’s 36th District Court. After the CDC’s eviction moratorium was deemed unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court, the Detroit court declined to issue its own moratorium. Hundreds of renters are at immediate risk of eviction. According […]

Macomb Subdivision Sold to Ohio-Based Builder

Columbus, Ohio-based homebuilder, M/I Homes has purchased 66 lots in Washington Township.  The shovel-ready lots sold for more than $3 million. The lack of inventory for homebuilders heightened M/I Homes interest in the lots. The company is expected to build homes between 2,800 and 3,500 square feet.

Former Big Boy Restaurant to be Home to New Tapper’s Jewelry

Tapper’s Jewelry has submitted plans to the city of Novi for a new showroom at the site of the former Big Boy restaurant at the northeast corner of Eight Mile and Haggerty roads. The plans include demolition of the restaurant building and constructing a more than 8,000-square-foot building. Trees would also be added to the […]

Eastland Center Mall Gasps Its Last Breaths

Eastland Center shopping mall is expected to close early next year. Its demolition will make way for a warehouse. The 1-million-square-foot mall is down to 10% occupancy. Its anchor department store have been closed for years. With the mall owner’s June announcement that it is selling the property to NorthPoint Development of Kansas City, Missouri, […]