Through multiple decades of inner-city challenges, rooted in waves of demographic changes, economic ups and downs, increased blight, property abandonment, and social shifts, Detroit’s storied adjacent communities of the North End and Milwaukee Junction continue to show incredible resilience and resolve.
While numerous community organizations have been vital to the forward movement of the North End and Milwaukee Junction, despite evolving barriers, one entity in particular has stood at the pivotal “vanguard of empowerment” for three decades: Vanguard Community Development Corporation (CDC).
Founded by Bishop Edgar L. Vann II in 1994, Vanguard was established as a nonprofit, comprehensive, holistic community service and development entity dedicated to creating, implementing, coordinating, and sustaining physical, social, and economic revitalizations in the geographic areas surrounding Second Ebenezer Church, which at the time was on the corner of East Grand Blvd. and I-75 Service Drive in Detroit. Since 2015, Pamela Martin-Turner has served as Vanguard’s president & CEO.
“Our mission is to cultivate Detroit Historic North End/Milwaukee Junction into vibrant and healthy communities, where people live, work, and play,” Martin-Turner told the Michigan Chronicle. “Our core values are economic equity and racial justice. In my tenure as president & CEO, we have reorganized and grown from a subsidiary of a faith-based organization to a broad-based community development organization.”
Generally speaking, the North End, according to the City of Detroit’s Planning and Development Department, is bordered by East Grand Blvd. (to the south), Woodland St. (the last street in Detroit before entering the City of Highland Park to the north), I-75 and the City of Hamtramck (to the east), and Woodward Ave. (to the West).
The North End’s name is derived from its location, meaning it was at the “north end” of the historic Paradise Valley (Black business/entertainment area) and Black Bottom ( the first and only community where Black people could live after migrating to Detroit from 1910 to the 1930s. Both storied communities were eventually demolished in the 1950s and ‘60s in the name of “urban renewal.”
However, in the late 1930s and ‘40s, Black people began moving into the North End. At the time, the community was primarily populated with Jewish and European immigrants. As more African Americans poured into the North End, Whites in large numbers found other communities in Detroit and the suburbs to live where Blacks hadn’t moved – yet.
The Milwaukee Junction, adjacent to and just south of the North End, is generally defined as the area bordered by East Grand Blvd. (to the north), St. Aubin Street/Hamtramck Drive (to the east), I-94 (to the south), and John R. Street (to the west.). In the early 1900s, Milwaukee Junction was ground zero for the automobile manufacturing industries, with numerous auto factories and related businesses. Two major railroad companies – the Grand Trunk Western Railroad and the Milwaukee Railroad – connected at a major junction in the area.
While the North End and Milwaukee Junction are technically two communities, Vanguard Community Development Corporation’s vision and mission has been to empower the two as one community.
“There are a lot of good things going on in the North End/Milwaukee Junction, and we believe that Vanguard being here for almost 31 years has been the major catalyst for the development that you see now,” Martin-Turner said. “We can’t take credit for everything that has happened to strengthen the North End/Milwaukee Junction, but we believe we have done much to redevelop and spur the rebirth of the areas.”
Vanguard, according to Martin-Turner, owns and operates three housing developments in the North End, including Melrose Square (24 affordable single-family homes), West Oakland Homes (45 affordable single-family homes), and Maxwell Homes (30 affordable single-family homes). In addition, Vanguard built Cameron Court, a 24-unit senior building located in the North End.
Martin-Turner said Vanguard is looking forward to breaking ground in the not-too-far distance to build North End Landing on Smith and Bethune Streets between John R and Beaubien. When completed, North End Landing, tagged as affordable housing for seniors and families, will consist of approximately 180 units for lease or sale. The development project carries an approximately $47 million price tag. The project is a partnership venture between Vanguard, southern California-based Avanath Capital Management, and RMC Development, headquartered in the greater Washington D.C./Baltimore region. Avanath is headed by Detroit native Daryl J. Carter, while RMC is led by native Detroiter Ronald K. McDonald.
Over the last few years, Vanguard has embarked on a beautification initiative called the North End’s East Grand Boulevard Transformation Project. With grant funding from the Knight Foundation, substantial streetscape improvements have been made to transform East Grand Boulevard, between Woodward Ave. and I-75, into a pedestrian-friendly area. Many of the improvements have included planting flowers and trees, erecting exterior displays of public art, colorful banners, eye-catching benches and swings, wayfinding signage, creative crosswalks, and more.
While Vanguard CDC is a major player in spearheading and managing positive community and economic changes in the North End/Milwaukee Junction, the organization is not alone, as other entities are engaged in elevating the area. In 2024, the North End welcomed the Detroit People’s Food Co-op, a Black-led and community-owned grocery cooperative aimed at improving access to healthy food. The Food Co-op is on Woodward Ave. at Euclid. Farther north on Woodward but still in the North End, the Detroit Wayne Integrated Health Network (DWIHN) celebrated the Grand Opening of its new administrative headquarters in March 2024. The reimagined headquarters was once the Utley Branch Library, built in 1913. In addition, the Black-owned Sephia Coffee has set up its corporate office on East Grand Blvd. in the North End.
For over a decade, the Oakland Avenue Urban Farm has been a stabilizing force in the North End. The mission is to use some of the vacant lots in the area to grow healthy food, host educational programs, create cultural gathering spaces, operate a Farmers Market, and generate jobs for community residents. Jerry Hebron, who grew up in the North End, sits on the powerful Agriculture Federal Advisory Committee on Urban Agriculture and is a Farm Service Agency Committee Member.
The Milwaukee Junction has experienced transformative development to renovate and repurpose old warehouses and factory structures for residential housing, commercial occupancy, and shopping spaces. Classic examples of renovating buildings as old as 100 years in the Junction being transformed include the Fisher Lofts (400 apartments), Piquette Flats (161 apartments), and Fisher 21 Lofts (400 future apartments). Developed by entrepreneurs and developers Gregory Jackson and Richard Hosey, Fisher 21 Lofts is being repurposed from the old Fisher Body Plant 21, originally built in 1919. The new Fisher 21 Lofts is scheduled for completion in 2027.
The Milwaukee Junction is also home to an array of businesses and organizations, including the Rev. Dr. Jim Holley International Ministries, Cognos Marketing LLC, and numerous restaurants, bars, and other business entities.
One of the most eye-popping renovations of an older building in Milwaukee Junction is the nine-story Chroma Building on East Grand Blvd. The revitalized structure has been described as “a vibrant union of creativity, collaboration, and community.” The building is an expansive workplace offering space for meetings, coworking, and traditional office settings. Chroma is also designed to support cultural programs and experiences that enrich the community.
Although there has been forward movement in the North End/Milwaukee Junction with residents and businesses moving in, there are still far too many vacant homes and outer shells of businesses that may never come back. While Vanguard is witnessing the rebirth and growth of North End/Milwaukee Junction through multiple levels of partnerships, Martin-Turner wants to ensure that individuals and businesses that have remained in the community through the down periods are rewarded for their loyalty for staying.
“We are all for growth and people and businesses moving into the community, but we are committed to making sure that current residents and businesses, as much as possible, are not displaced by newcomers, ” Martin-Turner said. “We think it’s possible for new people to move to the North End/Milwaukee Junction without displacing who and what have been here for decades.”
Realizing that everything must change, Martin–Turner added.
“As things change in the North End/Milwaukee Junction, we will adapt and move forward to lead and meet any challenges and changes on behalf of the residents, businesses, and community organizations,” Martin-Turner said of Vanguard’s commitment moving forward. “Whether it’s me or someone else leading the organization, Vanguard is here for the long haul because we are place-based, meaning we will always be in the North End and Milwaukee Junction working to improve things in meaningful ways.”