This project involves the transformation of two miles of John R. Road between 10 Mile Road and 8 Mile Road in the city of Hazel Park, Michigan. This stretch of John R. Road serves as the city’s main thoroughfare, with the majority of the road zoned for local business use. Over the past 50 years, this corridor has deteriorated due to rampant sprawl and disinvestment, even as it bears the potential to become the civic and communal heart of the city.

This study outlines an incremental planning framework to create a new downtown for Hazel Park. It identifies a series of catalytic projects—both public and private—to guide the beginnings of two districts: the northern and southern portions of the two-mile-long John R. Road stretch, envisioned as two distinct districts on either side of the freeway bridge. The northern district, which stretches between the existing City Hall and the St. Justin and St. Mary Magdalen Parish, is a culinary district. The southern district is an arts and entertainment district. These two zones will distinguish downtown Hazel Park from its adjacent cities, making it a unique local and regional destination.