Penske Corp. in Bloomfield Township and the city of Detroit today announced a partnership with the Jefferson Chalmers neighborhood as part of the city’s Strategic Neighborhood Fund and Affordable Housing Leverage Fund initiative.
The first project will focus on the Lenox Community Center and A.B. Ford Park. This summer, the park will receive lighting improvements through city of Detroit bond funding. Contributions from the Environmental Protection Agency will be used to enhance wildlife habitat.
Additional improvements to the Lenox center and park will start in March 2020 with a grand opening planned for September 2020. The Jefferson Chalmers neighborhood is on the city’s far east side, bounded roughly by Jefferson, Clairpointe, Alter, and the Detroit River.
“It’s an honor to partner with Mayor Duggan and his Strategic Neighborhood Fund Initiative to help the Jefferson Chalmers neighborhood,” says Roger Penske, chairman of Penske Corp. “I am thrilled to help lead the charge to restore, renovate, and reopen the Lenox Center and add a gymnasium, as part of the revitalization efforts.”
Penske Corp., along with six other corporations, has committed $5 million over five years to the city’s two neighborhood revitalization funds. The city already has worked with Jefferson Chalmers residents to develop an action plan for the neighborhood with projects focused on parks and community spaces, streetscapes, commercial corridors, and single- and multi-family affordable housing.
“When we announced this effort to improve our neighborhoods, an important part of the process was community engagement,” says Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan. “When Penske Corporation joined this effort, we had a conversation with the residents in Jefferson Chalmers about a community partnership, and the response was overwhelming. Now, we’re starting to see physical improvements in the neighborhood, and thanks to Penske Corporation, the residents have a strong partner to support these efforts moving forward.”
