Detroit residents, business owners continue fight to save historic Corktown bricks
(CBS DETROIT) - Corktown residents are fighting against a new project by the Michigan Department of Transportation and Detroit Department of Transportation to change what they believe is the fabric of their neighborhood.
The project is called the US-12 Detroit Mobility and Innovation Corridor — Corktown project. Initially, it was supposed to include the world's first inductive road, which can charge electric vehicles that are in motion and parked. But last November that project was completed on 14th Street near the $950 million renovated Michigan Central Station.
"One lane of traffic into town. One lane out of town. Losing 63 parking spaces. No left-hand turns at intersections. No left-hand turns off feeder streets," said Bob Roberts, president of the Corktown Business Association. "And that's not the tradeoff we were expecting."
Roberts says the project plans to remove the historic brick-lined streets that Corktown is known for. Something he said nobody wanted, but they were willing to take in exchange for being at the forefront of changing the auto industry.
"Now that we're not receiving tradeoffs and it's just proposed to be a dedicated transit lane, there are too many consequences that are negative to both businesses and the neighborhood," Roberts said.
Residents and business owners are fighting back with a petition. They have met with DDOT and MDOT officials, but say they still feel deadlocked. The current plans will remove several parking spaces, change the way traffic in Corktown operates, and it will still remove the historic bricks.
Roberts says this could have lasting, detrimental impacts on small businesses that operate in Detroit's oldest neighborhood.
"I want to stay in business. I want to stay being an employer, and I want to keep employing 27 Detroiters. And the plan as it was presented, I just don't know how that's going to be feasible," said Roberts.
Roberts said Corktown residents will be meeting with officials in a few weeks.
