Revitalizing Detroit: Demolition program making huge strides
DETROIT (FOX 2) - Cleaning up the city—one eyesore at a time. Detroit has seen its fair share of blight, but the city's demo program has made huge strides. In this edition of 'Roundabout,' we took a drive with the city's Demolition Director, LaJuan Counts, to discuss the progress.
When we first met LaJuan Counts, it was during a demolition event with Ms. Kim Marble, who was enthusiastically cheering for the demolition. While such enthusiasm might not always be the norm, LaJuan mentioned that residents are generally pleased when they see progress in their neighborhoods.
"Not quite that enthusiastic. Ms Marble was really excited. She was surrounded by two candidates, and we took both of those properties down that same day, but the residents are generally very happy when we’re in the neighborhood," Counts said.
The city's demolition program has a significant responsibility: to remove over 7,000 blighted structures across Detroit. LaJuan emphasized the importance of impacting residents positively and shared their satisfaction when a resident acknowledges their work.
One notable aspect of their efforts is the transition from residential to commercial properties.
"For us to be able to switch from the residential, which is a direct impact to those residents to move to these commercial properties, which a lot of times exist in the neighborhoods as well that we had not been able to address before. This is now us being able to turn the page on dealing with blight. A lot of the complaints come from the commercial structures we didn’t have a plan in place for," she said.
In addition to their efforts in demolition, LaJuan's unique position as the only African-American woman with her role in the entire country underscores the importance of representation. She initially entered the construction field without any familial background in the industry, guided by a counselor at Michigan State University who saw potential in her.
Watch the Roundabout in the video above.