Midtown Detroit Inc. has named Melanie Markowicz as its new executive director, leading community and economic development efforts in eight vital neighborhoods that span from Brush Park to New Center. She will assume her new role in March 2025.
Markowicz has been executive director of the Greektown Neighborhood Partnership since July 2019, and brings more than 15 years of experience with economic development, urban planning, historic preservation, connectivity, and public policy on a federal, state and local level.
During her tenure at Grooktown, Markowicz led the planning, design, funding, and began construction on the redevelopment of Randolph Plaza and Monroe Street. Randolph Plaza will be completed this summer and the largest pedestrian-oriented shared streetscape in the city of Detroit will open the following year on Monroe, ushering in the next generation of activation and hospitality in the heart of Greektown and downtown Detroit.
Markowicz is vice chair of the City of Detroit City Planning Commission and represents the district that includes downtown, Midtown and New Center. She also is a board member for The Greening of Detroit and is an Urban Land Institute Larson Leader.
“Melanie brings a wealth of experience and a strong vision for the future of Midtown Detroit, Inc.,” says Ned Staebler, chair of Midtown Detroit. “Her leadership will be central in advancing our mission of driving this vibrant area while maintaining a focus on inclusivity and community engagement,.
“We are confident that Melanie’s deep understanding of urban development and her commitment to collaboration will help us build an even more dynamic and sustainable Midtown for generations to come.”
Markowicz helped lead efforts to preserve and rehabilitate Historic Hamtramck Stadium, one of the last remaining Negro League-era ballparks in the country. She also has worked with leaders in the African American community and the National Park Service African American Civil Rights Program to get several historic civil rights sites in the region listed on the National Register of Historic Places. They include Second Baptist Church of Detroit, Vaughn’s Bookstore and the Orsel and Minnie McGhee House.
Before her work with Greektown, Markowicz was department executive for the Wayne County Economic Development Corp., providing strategic direction and oversight for countywide urban planning and development across the region. She also served as Hamtramck’s city planner, president of Preservation Detroit and consultant to the Michigan Historic Preservation Network. Additionally, she worked as a project manager for the Savannah College of Art and Design in Hong Kong.
“I look forward to working alongside our partners and community members to continue the legacy of Midtown through innovative programming, development, and small business support,” says Markowicz. “Midtown’s many neighborhoods each have a unique identity and history that should be celebrated and lifted by MDI, and the area’s public spaces should reflect that community character through vital connection both within and between other neighborhoods.”
Markowicz holds a Master of Fine Arts in historic preservation from the Savannah College of Art and Design, a Bachelor of Arts in interdisciplinary humanities from Michigan State University and meets the Secretary of the Interior’s Professional Qualification Standards for Historian and Architectural Historian.
Markowicz takes over from Interim Executive Director Maureen Stapleton.
