DETROIT – Jeffrey Lewis II opened Morningside Cafe on Detroit’s east side three years ago and said he has seen growing momentum along East Warren Avenue.
“East Warren has seen a lot of momentum over the last couple of years with new developments,” Lewis said.
Detroit Mayor Mary Sheffield is pushing to attract national and regional retailers to create more vibrant retail corridors in neighborhood business districts.
The city is hiring a senior director of retail attraction as part of that effort.
The role will be based at the Detroit Economic Growth Corp. and will work in close partnership with the Sheffield administration.
Lewis said he supports the idea, but wants small businesses to remain a priority.
“We’re the backbone of the community. No one knows the neighborhood the way we do,” Lewis said.
Mac Farr is the executive director of Villages Community Development Corporation, which focuses on economic development in a collection of neighborhoods on the city’s east side.
He said landing a major retailer could help keep more shoppers and spending in Detroit.
“If you take everybody who drives outside the city of Detroit that goes to Costco every day, because we are now able to keep them here, because we get a Costco, that would be a huge win,” Farr said.
Lawrence Hancock, an East Side resident, said he supports small businesses in his neighborhood. But for big-box shopping, he said he still has to leave the city and would prefer not to.
“We still have to go to the suburbs to enjoy multi-level retail opportunities like Walmart,” Hancock said.