When Detroiters reflect on what their community meant to them 15-20 years ago, they often think of communities filled with families, children, neighbors, and homes on each block. A village is often described with pride and dignity for the place they called home. Today, with decreased population and abandoned homes, the pride within each community is quickly being stripped away from residents, leaving their community with blight and vacancy. Homes that people once connected with, are no longer standing, leaving open space and opportunity to make those spaces a place for people to reconnect. This moment is a chance for Detroit residents to cultivate a green culture shift that utilizes this vacant land in a way that is more productive and sustainable.

In response to the need to help cultivate a green culture shift, DFC launched the Field Guide to Working with Lots, in 2015, as a resource for community groups to transform vacant land in their community to a place that would enhance community pride, add beauty, and improve stormwater management.  Simultaneously, we launched the Working with Lots Mini-Grant program which was geared to accelerating implementation of the Field Guide by offering funds to grassroots groups and businesses.

Being resilient and dynamic, Detroiters responded quickly to this opportunity to take their neighborhoods back and reestablish a sense of pride and dignity that once existed. Residents were looking to commemorate the history of their blocks, teach youth about green infrastructure, create spaces for residents to meet one another, and build stronger relationships within their neighborhoods. With more than 60 applicants to the mini grant program, DFC was able to award 15 groups in the first year, and an additional 10 the following year with funds to make their dreams a reality. 

Further accelerating our work, we also collaborated with several community organizations that were interested in installing a lot design, increasing the impact of the Field Guide to more than 35 transformed lots in the city of Detroit.

Now, after two years of the Field Guides release, we are learning how much of a challenge it is to maintain these projects. Some of the stories we’ve heard include groups mentioning how they are lugging large buckets of water by hand and sometimes car for distances up to 5 blocks to ensure their plants have the water they need. We are also learning that groups are lacking resources to ensuring their lot is sustainable, thus making it hard to keep some installations from once again becoming blighted.

We want to ensure that communities can continue to transform their communities for the greater good. This campaign seeks to raise funds that will allow DFC to institute a maintenance program, which will provide funds to groups that are lacking the resources they need to sustain their lot design.