Grosse Pointe Park stands up to blight

Grosse Pointe Park is being accused of trying to wall itself off from Detroit by erecting farmer sheds across Kercheval Avenue at its border with the city. And thats a hard assertion to deny.

But consider what the suburban community is walling itself off from. The area of Detroits east side that borders Grosse Pointe Park is among the most blighted in the city, perhaps in the country.

Blocks are sparsely populated, with more vacant lots and burned out or abandoned homes than viable dwellings. The area also has a high crime rate.

Meanwhile, across Alter Road, Wayburn Street in Grosse Pointe Park is home to a diverse population and older but well-maintained single and multiple family dwellings.

But Grosse Pointe Park has seen from the experience of other ring suburbs how blight can cross the border, and is making an all-out effort to keep that from happening.

It has taken a series of creative steps to shore up the residential blocks closest to Detroit, including providing low-cost home improvement loans.

And it is in the midst of transforming its business district on Kercheval into one of the coolest outside of downtown Detroit. New restaurants and retail shops have opened, and the city is trying to create a pedestrian-friendly entertainment district.

Thats where the vegetable sheds come in. The temporary structures across Kercheval force traffic to go around the central business district, instead of straight through it. That cuts down on traffic.

Originally, the plan was for permanent office buildings. The temporary sheds were a bow to criticism that Grosse Pointe Park is walling itself off from its urban neighbor.

Residents from Detroit can easily walk from their homes to the downtown area. If they choose to drive, they can still take Alter Road, a short block north of Kercheval, turn right and follow a paved alley that has a sign directing visitors to the Kercheval Business District.

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Grosse Pointe Park stands up to blight