MorningSide, Detroit
Encyclopedia
MorningSide is a neighborhood on the east side of Detroit, Michigan
. The area is bounded by Harper Avenue and Interstate 94
on the north, Mack Avenue to the south, East Outer Drive
and Whittier on the east and Alter Road
and East Outer Drive to the west. The local association that shares the name Morningside with the community is a collaboration of residents working together to take care of this area.
settlement of ribbon farms
late in the 1700’s. Since the only reliable method of travel was by boat or canoe, access to Lake Saint Clair
and the Detroit River
was a necessity. French settlers established “ribbon farms” which were long narrow strips of land that stretched inland for miles. These narrow farms each provided access to waterways for drinking water, fishing and transportation; and to the land for timber, farming and game. Some of the ribbon farms that would later become part of MorningSide were owned by Alec Trombly, P. Trombly, Robert Trombly, Mrs. L. Brown, Mrs. Turner and G. Martin.
These ribbon farms were collectively part of Grosse Pointe Township
, until the end of the 19th century, when Detroit annexed “large portions of the township of Grosse Pointe.”
Detroit’s population had grown in response to auto manufacturing
. Jobs were plentiful and working wages supported middle-class
mobility. Ribbon farms, which had been farmed for decades, now were redeveloped into sub-divisions for housing. The MorningSide neighborhood blossomed in response to Detroit’s middle-class housing needs into a collection of real estate sub-divisions.
Alter Road
stretches through the MorningSide community and Detroit’s east side and runs roughly four miles in length. In recent history, The Detroit Grosse Pointe Collaborative has been working to revitalize the east side of Detroit which leads to Grosse Pointe Park
. The plan has revolved around promoting real estate development, beautification
efforts, community organizing
and long-term maintenance.
Initially constructed in 1935, the Art Moderne style Alger Theater
is one of two unchanged neighborhood movie theaters left in Detroit. The historic theater sits on the northwest corner of East Warren Avenue and Outer Drive
. It stands as a representation of Detroit’s historic past, retaining much of its historic building materials and served its purpose of film watching for fifty years. It opened its doors on August 22, 1935 to roughly 1200 excited Detroiters who lined up eagerly for a viewing of “The Girl from Tenth Avenue” starring Bette Davis
.
Originally opened by George W. Trendle
, who later purchased radio station WXYZ, the theater was named after Michigan
Governor Russell A. Alger
, who served in the American Civil War
and held the post of Secretary of War under PresidentWilliam McKinley
in 1897. In 1983, a non-profit group, the Friends of Alger Theater, formed to save the theater from being demolished and held music events and fundraisers to renovate the theater.
was opened at its current location on East Outer Drive on October 4, 1951, the first National Library Day. It is named for the author of the Declaration of Independence
and the third President
of the United States, Thomas Jefferson
. In addition to the lending of its 53,000 book titles, the library provides an array of other services for all ages including the lending of magazines, videos, audio cassettes, and the provision of Internet access. Services also include income tax forms January through April, student financial aid forms, computers for public use, core collection of Career & Employment Information Center materials and a copy machine.
Residents of MorningSide reside in the Eastern District of police service provided by the Detroit Police Department
. The department is currently led by Police Chief Ralph L. Godbee and the Eastern District is led by Commanders James Moore and Robert Ennis. The district is made up of the former fifth and ninth precincts, which have been consolidated. The community of MorningSide has a lieutenant designated to tend to their needs specifically.
The city of Detroit has four neighborhood resource centers that connect the neighborhoods and their institutions to the city government known as Community Access Centers (CAC, formerly Neighborhood City Halls). A few of the duties of these centers are to assist community associations and block clubs in planning events, recruiting volunteers for the annual Motor City Makeover and Angels' Night events and providing bus and tax help. The MorningSide community is served by the East District which is managed by Ray Solomon II.
Historically, the school was named after John Clark, a physician and chemist who served on the Board of Education. The school was built on an area of land that was once called the “Old Rifle Range” on the city’s east side. The school sits on Bremen Street between Balfour Road and Buckingham Road.
The Ronald Brown Academy is a Pre K-6th grade elementary school located on East Outer Drive in MorningSide. The school was named after the first African American Secretary of Commerce. Students who attend the Ronald Brown Academy are offered enrichment and learning experiences such as the science club, sports, modern and ballroom dancing, French Club, the science fair, art, band, chess, glee club and the gospel choir. The Academy is a Skillman High Performing School and won one of the six National School Change Awards from the Panasonic Corporation in 2008, which included $5000 and a chance for students to be participants in a national research project focusing on school change.
Peace Lutheran Church is a multi-cultural congregation in the MorningSide Neighborhood located at 15700 East Warren. They believe that to have a better city, we need to have a better neighborhood. To that end, Peace not only offers worship and Bible study opportunities but “we believe in caring for those in our midst by offering a variety of personal services.” Peace Lutheran Church is a Faith in Action Partner with Habitat for Humanity within the MorningSide community. They also host the MorningSide community group's meetings the second Tuesday of every month.
Metro Central Church of Christ, located at 4455 Barham, has been a part of the community since 1999. They hold Bible studies, visit sick and shut in members and host a youth group. The congregation also has a very active music group, Voices of Metro.
Bethany Lutheran Church and School were founded in 1889. They moved to their current location in on East Outer Drive in MorningSide in 1942. The school is no longer in operation, but the church remains open for worship.
St. Matthew Parish is a Catholic church located at Whittier and Harper. They hold services five days per week excluding Tuesday and Thursday. The church was founded in 1927.
The Christ United Methodist Church
is also located within the community on East Warren.
. They used the $4950 to fund four projects: Lawn Maintenance, Mural Painting, Residential Board-Up and Trash Removal. The association's president, Kelley Marks, was featured in the Model D Media report "37 Minutes in MorningSide with Kelley Marks". In October 2010, MorningSide was awarded the Moe (Most Outstanding Neighborhood on the Eastside) Better Neighborhood Group award from the Warren/Conner Development Coalition.
United Streets Networking and Planning: Building a Community (U-SNAP-BAC) consists of two different corporations. In 1987 U-SNAP-BAC, Inc. was incorporated by a conglomeration of other community groups. Since then, it has been serving as a medium to unite revitalization efforts in the surrounding areas. One of their main goals is to educate home buyers. U-SNAP-BAC, Inc. created U-SNAP-BAC Non-Profit Housing Corporation in order to run a Neighborhood Opportunity Fund (NOF) program concentrating on home repair. They have also partnered with Habitat for Humanity-Detroit and the MorningSide Board to build brand new homes in the area. The company also sponsors a community garden in partnership with the Detroit Garden Center which is located on the corner of East Warren and Wayburn.
In the early years of the new millennium, Habitat for Humanity launched a major revitalization project with its Detroit chapter, building dozens of homes in the city of Detroit and within the community of MorningSide via a partnership with U-SNAP-BAC. The effort didn’t just include new homes going up, but also promoted workshops on home ownership and financial literacy initiatives as required for eligibility to buy a habitat house. The organization encouraged community participation, empowered residents to focus on their neighborhoods, and promoted block coalitions with the aim of creating positive changes in the MorningSide Community. Habitat for Humanity Detroit has also partnered with MorningSide to participate in Neighborhood Revitalization Initiatives, working to holistically
revitalize communities through an array of services including home weatherization
, repairs of existing homes, rehabilitation of vacant or foreclosed
homes and new energy-efficient home construction.
The CEM Business Association (CEMBA) serves the areas of Cornerstone Village, MorningSide, and East English Village. The main focus of this association is to improve the business district, mainly along East Warren. Members are offered a wealth of resources to assist in this effort, including information about available grants and loans. CEMBA also has a clean team that sweeps the streets twice a week for a nominal fee from participating businesses.
In 2010, the MorningSide Community has been the main focus of the Detroit Sun Project, which is run by graduate students from the University of Michigan's
School of Natural Resources and Environment
and Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning
. Their main goal and focus has revolved around economic, environmental and social sustainability as the project seeks new ways to further prevent urban decline. Citizen participation has been promoted by the project as they are open to hearing new ideas from members living in the community who have first-hand experience dealing with urban decay. The Detroit Sun Project’s primary initiatives have included things such as blight removal, environmental and public health, and water efficiency and management. These types of initiatives are meant to directly benefit residents of the MorningSide Community through economic savings and a cleaner living environment.
In early November of 2009, the Detroit Sun Project and Wayne County Department of Environment C.L.E.A.N. Program teamed up for clean-up effort in an area of MorningSide that has been hit hard by abandonment, foreclosures and illegal garbage dumping. The effort exemplified the commitments made by both the Detroit Sun Project, members of MorningSide and community residents to improving their neighborhood.
MorningSide also has a partnership with the University of Michigan-Dearborn's
Urban and Regional Studies Program. In the 2010 fall semester the program's senior capstone research class worked with MorningSide on an action research project. Action research
provides a vehicle for community members and volunteers to address issues that arise as a part of their work, allowing for the productivity of their organization or program to increase. The vehicle is a "systematic approach" that searches for a resolutions that are tailored to the local issues, rather than generalized to fit a broad perspective Part of the project has manifested itself as this page. An analysis of the organizational structure based on Fisher's (1994) three dominant historical approaches to neighborhood organizing has demonstrated that MorningSide is a community organization which functions primarily as a neighborhood maintenance group that also draws attention from public officials.
MorningSide residents have also benefited from services provided in their community by the Detroit Office of Foreclosure Prevention and Response (FPR). Although the program does not directly provide mortgage services to residents, they provide informational resources to new and existing homeowners who are dealing with issues such as foreclosures and taxes. They do this by sharing tools, resources and recommendations to partners and organizations such as MorningSide in the city of Detroit to reduce foreclosures in the area. Resources such as educational classes are also provided by the organizations for residents looking to purchase their first home and also for residents who are seeking to refinance and save their existing home. The organization also directs residents in need of legal services and prevention counseling when dealing with their homes. MorningSide and U-Snap-Bac have hosted events to educate community members on their legal options.
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
. The area is bounded by Harper Avenue and Interstate 94
Interstate 94
Interstate 94 is the northernmost east–west Interstate Highway, connecting the Great Lakes and Intermountain regions of the United States. I-94's western terminus is in Billings, Montana at a junction with Interstate 90; its eastern terminus is the U.S...
on the north, Mack Avenue to the south, East Outer Drive
Outer Drive
Outer Drive is a bypass road which encircles both the eastern and western portions of the Metro Detroit area. It resembles a jagged horseshoe and was not originally intended to move traffic as much as to provide a pleasurable drive around Detroit. This drive would include travel through beautiful...
and Whittier on the east and Alter Road
Alter Road
Alter Road is a north-south thoroughfare of approximately four miles length in southeastern Michigan's Wayne County.-Basic History:Although Alter Road itself is completely within the Detroit city limits, nevertheless it is a symbolic dividing line between the overwhelmingly African-American City of...
and East Outer Drive to the west. The local association that shares the name Morningside with the community is a collaboration of residents working together to take care of this area.
History
MorningSide began as a FrenchFrench colonial empire
The French colonial empire was the set of territories outside Europe that were under French rule primarily from the 17th century to the late 1960s. In the 19th and 20th centuries, the colonial empire of France was the second-largest in the world behind the British Empire. The French colonial empire...
settlement of ribbon farms
Ribbon farm
Ribbon farms are long, narrow land divisions, usually lined up along a waterway. In some instances, they line a road.-Description:...
late in the 1700’s. Since the only reliable method of travel was by boat or canoe, access to Lake Saint Clair
Lake Saint Clair (North America)
Lake St. Clair is a fresh-water lake named after Clare of Assisi that lies between the Province of Ontario and the State of Michigan, and its midline also forms the boundary between Canada and the United States of America. Lake St. Clair includes the Anchor Bay along the Metro Detroit coastline...
and the Detroit River
Detroit River
The Detroit River is a strait in the Great Lakes system. The name comes from the French Rivière du Détroit, which translates literally as "River of the Strait". The Detroit River has served an important role in the history of Detroit and is one of the busiest waterways in the world. The river...
was a necessity. French settlers established “ribbon farms” which were long narrow strips of land that stretched inland for miles. These narrow farms each provided access to waterways for drinking water, fishing and transportation; and to the land for timber, farming and game. Some of the ribbon farms that would later become part of MorningSide were owned by Alec Trombly, P. Trombly, Robert Trombly, Mrs. L. Brown, Mrs. Turner and G. Martin.
These ribbon farms were collectively part of Grosse Pointe Township
Grosse Pointe Township, Michigan
Grosse Pointe Township was a civil township of Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. Originally including all of the Grosse Pointe communities, and the northeastern portion of the City of Detroit, in its later years, it is was reduced to the portion of the village of Grosse Pointe Shores...
, until the end of the 19th century, when Detroit annexed “large portions of the township of Grosse Pointe.”
Detroit’s population had grown in response to auto manufacturing
Automotive industry
The automotive industry designs, develops, manufactures, markets, and sells motor vehicles, and is one of the world's most important economic sectors by revenue....
. Jobs were plentiful and working wages supported middle-class
Middle class
The middle class is any class of people in the middle of a societal hierarchy. In Weberian socio-economic terms, the middle class is the broad group of people in contemporary society who fall socio-economically between the working class and upper class....
mobility. Ribbon farms, which had been farmed for decades, now were redeveloped into sub-divisions for housing. The MorningSide neighborhood blossomed in response to Detroit’s middle-class housing needs into a collection of real estate sub-divisions.
Alter Road
Alter Road
Alter Road is a north-south thoroughfare of approximately four miles length in southeastern Michigan's Wayne County.-Basic History:Although Alter Road itself is completely within the Detroit city limits, nevertheless it is a symbolic dividing line between the overwhelmingly African-American City of...
stretches through the MorningSide community and Detroit’s east side and runs roughly four miles in length. In recent history, The Detroit Grosse Pointe Collaborative has been working to revitalize the east side of Detroit which leads to Grosse Pointe Park
Grosse Pointe Park, Michigan
Grosse Pointe Park is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 11,555 at the 2010 census. Bordering on Detroit with frontage on southern Lake Saint Clair, it is the westernmost of the noted Grosse Pointe suburbs, with the oldest overall housing stock of the five cities...
. The plan has revolved around promoting real estate development, beautification
Beautification
Beautification is the process of making visual improvements to a person, place or thing. With regard to a town, city or to an urban area, this most often involves planting trees, shrubbery, and other greenery, but frequently also includes adding decorative or historic-style street lights and other...
efforts, community organizing
Community organizing
Community organizing is a process where people who live in proximity to each other come together into an organization that acts in their shared self-interest. A core goal of community organizing is to generate durable power for an organization representing the community, allowing it to influence...
and long-term maintenance.
Architecture
Alger Theater
The Alger Theater is a theatre located at 16451 East Warren Avenue in the MorningSide neighborhood of Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is one of only two remaining intact and unchanged neighborhood theaters in the city of Detroit...
is one of two unchanged neighborhood movie theaters left in Detroit. The historic theater sits on the northwest corner of East Warren Avenue and Outer Drive
Outer Drive
Outer Drive is a bypass road which encircles both the eastern and western portions of the Metro Detroit area. It resembles a jagged horseshoe and was not originally intended to move traffic as much as to provide a pleasurable drive around Detroit. This drive would include travel through beautiful...
. It stands as a representation of Detroit’s historic past, retaining much of its historic building materials and served its purpose of film watching for fifty years. It opened its doors on August 22, 1935 to roughly 1200 excited Detroiters who lined up eagerly for a viewing of “The Girl from Tenth Avenue” starring Bette Davis
Bette Davis
Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis was an American actress of film, television and theater. Noted for her willingness to play unsympathetic characters, she was highly regarded for her performances in a range of film genres, from contemporary crime melodramas to historical and period films and occasional...
.
Originally opened by George W. Trendle
George W. Trendle
George Washington Trendle was a Detroit lawyer and businessman, best known as the producer of the Lone Ranger radio and television programs along with The Green Hornet. He is entombed in Detroit's Woodlawn Cemetery.-Movie theaters:...
, who later purchased radio station WXYZ, the theater was named after Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
Governor Russell A. Alger
Russell A. Alger
Russell Alexander Alger was the 20th Governor and U.S. Senator from the state of Michigan and also U.S. Secretary of War during the Presidential administration of William McKinley...
, who served in the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
and held the post of Secretary of War under PresidentWilliam McKinley
William McKinley
William McKinley, Jr. was the 25th President of the United States . He is best known for winning fiercely fought elections, while supporting the gold standard and high tariffs; he succeeded in forging a Republican coalition that for the most part dominated national politics until the 1930s...
in 1897. In 1983, a non-profit group, the Friends of Alger Theater, formed to save the theater from being demolished and held music events and fundraisers to renovate the theater.
Government
The Jefferson Branch of the Detroit Public LibraryDetroit Public Library
The Detroit Public Library is the second largest library system in Michigan by volumes held , and is the 20th largest library system in the United States. It is composed of a Main Library on Woodward Avenue, which houses DPL administration offices, and twenty-three branch locations across the city...
was opened at its current location on East Outer Drive on October 4, 1951, the first National Library Day. It is named for the author of the Declaration of Independence
Declaration of independence
A declaration of independence is an assertion of the independence of an aspiring state or states. Such places are usually declared from part or all of the territory of another nation or failed nation, or are breakaway territories from within the larger state...
and the third President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
of the United States, Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
. In addition to the lending of its 53,000 book titles, the library provides an array of other services for all ages including the lending of magazines, videos, audio cassettes, and the provision of Internet access. Services also include income tax forms January through April, student financial aid forms, computers for public use, core collection of Career & Employment Information Center materials and a copy machine.
Residents of MorningSide reside in the Eastern District of police service provided by the Detroit Police Department
Detroit Police Department
The Detroit Police Department , established in 1865, is responsible for the city of Detroit, Michigan.-History:The Detroit Police Department was established in 1865 to serve the city's growing population and covers the city with 5 districts and two precincts. The Detroit Police Department was also...
. The department is currently led by Police Chief Ralph L. Godbee and the Eastern District is led by Commanders James Moore and Robert Ennis. The district is made up of the former fifth and ninth precincts, which have been consolidated. The community of MorningSide has a lieutenant designated to tend to their needs specifically.
The city of Detroit has four neighborhood resource centers that connect the neighborhoods and their institutions to the city government known as Community Access Centers (CAC, formerly Neighborhood City Halls). A few of the duties of these centers are to assist community associations and block clubs in planning events, recruiting volunteers for the annual Motor City Makeover and Angels' Night events and providing bus and tax help. The MorningSide community is served by the East District which is managed by Ray Solomon II.
Institutions
The MorningSide Community is home to John E. Clark Preparatory Academy. It has been a neighborhood elementary school for nearly 100 years. The school is part of the Detroit Public School system and teaches grade levels beginning at kindergarten and up to fifth grade. The community and MorningSide have made the school a focal point in cleanup efforts and stabilization. The elementary school received a grant from the Lowes Harper Woods store valued at 100,000 dollars which will pay for a new kitchen and sewing room. The school took on new initiatives in 2010, including enforcement of school uniforms for all the children and changing their name from Clark Elementary to J.E. Clark Preparatory Academy. Part of their mission is to enable their students to become productive citizens that can meet the needs of a global society.Historically, the school was named after John Clark, a physician and chemist who served on the Board of Education. The school was built on an area of land that was once called the “Old Rifle Range” on the city’s east side. The school sits on Bremen Street between Balfour Road and Buckingham Road.
The Ronald Brown Academy is a Pre K-6th grade elementary school located on East Outer Drive in MorningSide. The school was named after the first African American Secretary of Commerce. Students who attend the Ronald Brown Academy are offered enrichment and learning experiences such as the science club, sports, modern and ballroom dancing, French Club, the science fair, art, band, chess, glee club and the gospel choir. The Academy is a Skillman High Performing School and won one of the six National School Change Awards from the Panasonic Corporation in 2008, which included $5000 and a chance for students to be participants in a national research project focusing on school change.
Peace Lutheran Church is a multi-cultural congregation in the MorningSide Neighborhood located at 15700 East Warren. They believe that to have a better city, we need to have a better neighborhood. To that end, Peace not only offers worship and Bible study opportunities but “we believe in caring for those in our midst by offering a variety of personal services.” Peace Lutheran Church is a Faith in Action Partner with Habitat for Humanity within the MorningSide community. They also host the MorningSide community group's meetings the second Tuesday of every month.
Metro Central Church of Christ, located at 4455 Barham, has been a part of the community since 1999. They hold Bible studies, visit sick and shut in members and host a youth group. The congregation also has a very active music group, Voices of Metro.
Bethany Lutheran Church and School were founded in 1889. They moved to their current location in on East Outer Drive in MorningSide in 1942. The school is no longer in operation, but the church remains open for worship.
St. Matthew Parish is a Catholic church located at Whittier and Harper. They hold services five days per week excluding Tuesday and Thursday. The church was founded in 1927.
The Christ United Methodist Church
United Methodist Church
The United Methodist Church is a Methodist Christian denomination which is both mainline Protestant and evangelical. Founded in 1968 by the union of The Methodist Church and the Evangelical United Brethren Church, the UMC traces its roots back to the revival movement of John and Charles Wesley...
is also located within the community on East Warren.
Recreational space
MorningSide has two parks within its borders. MorningSide Gateway Park is a green space park that was donated to the community by DTE and is located on Waveney. U-SNAP-BAC also has a park in the community called MorningSide Commons, located on Wayburn, which serves as a play area for children.Community organizations
MorningSide, established in 1979, is a non-profit community organization where the elected board works with community members to make MorningSide a better place. Through the mechanisms of block clubs and monthly meetings they keep residents informed and connected. They promote community involvement in dealing with issues such as clean-up efforts, energy saving and keeping the community safe. In the past they have participated in the MorningSide parade down East Warren and hosted a youth basketball league. In 2009 MorningSide was one of nine community-based organizations selected from a pool of over forty applicants to receive a Community and Property Preservation (CAPP) program, which is funded by The Kresge FoundationThe Kresge Foundation
The Kresge Foundation is a U.S. philanthropic private foundation headquartered in Troy, Michigan. The goals and aspirations of seven programs guide its grantmaking and investing. Those programs are Arts & Culture, Community Development, Detroit, Education, Environment, Health, and Human Services...
. They used the $4950 to fund four projects: Lawn Maintenance, Mural Painting, Residential Board-Up and Trash Removal. The association's president, Kelley Marks, was featured in the Model D Media report "37 Minutes in MorningSide with Kelley Marks". In October 2010, MorningSide was awarded the Moe (Most Outstanding Neighborhood on the Eastside) Better Neighborhood Group award from the Warren/Conner Development Coalition.
United Streets Networking and Planning: Building a Community (U-SNAP-BAC) consists of two different corporations. In 1987 U-SNAP-BAC, Inc. was incorporated by a conglomeration of other community groups. Since then, it has been serving as a medium to unite revitalization efforts in the surrounding areas. One of their main goals is to educate home buyers. U-SNAP-BAC, Inc. created U-SNAP-BAC Non-Profit Housing Corporation in order to run a Neighborhood Opportunity Fund (NOF) program concentrating on home repair. They have also partnered with Habitat for Humanity-Detroit and the MorningSide Board to build brand new homes in the area. The company also sponsors a community garden in partnership with the Detroit Garden Center which is located on the corner of East Warren and Wayburn.
In the early years of the new millennium, Habitat for Humanity launched a major revitalization project with its Detroit chapter, building dozens of homes in the city of Detroit and within the community of MorningSide via a partnership with U-SNAP-BAC. The effort didn’t just include new homes going up, but also promoted workshops on home ownership and financial literacy initiatives as required for eligibility to buy a habitat house. The organization encouraged community participation, empowered residents to focus on their neighborhoods, and promoted block coalitions with the aim of creating positive changes in the MorningSide Community. Habitat for Humanity Detroit has also partnered with MorningSide to participate in Neighborhood Revitalization Initiatives, working to holistically
Holism
Holism is the idea that all the properties of a given system cannot be determined or explained by its component parts alone...
revitalize communities through an array of services including home weatherization
Weatherization
Weatherization or weatherproofing is the practice of protecting a building and its interior from the elements, particularly from sunlight, precipitation, and wind, and of modifying a building to reduce energy consumption and optimize energy efficiency.Weatherization is distinct from building...
, repairs of existing homes, rehabilitation of vacant or foreclosed
Foreclosure
Foreclosure is the legal process by which a mortgage lender , or other lien holder, obtains a termination of a mortgage borrower 's equitable right of redemption, either by court order or by operation of law...
homes and new energy-efficient home construction.
The CEM Business Association (CEMBA) serves the areas of Cornerstone Village, MorningSide, and East English Village. The main focus of this association is to improve the business district, mainly along East Warren. Members are offered a wealth of resources to assist in this effort, including information about available grants and loans. CEMBA also has a clean team that sweeps the streets twice a week for a nominal fee from participating businesses.
Community partnerships
In 2009, members of the MorningSide Community along with high school and middle school students volunteered their time to create murals to cover the doors and windows of vacant homes in the community of MorningSide. This was part of an effort to preserve and maintain the community, which included mowing lawns and cleaning up areas around abandoned homes. The Mural Project was successful in improving the appearance of over a dozen homes in the area and was featured on Detroit’s radio station WJR. The project was a way to encourage involvement in preserving a community which has been physically affected by foreclosures and was funded by a grant from the Collin Hubbel Fund.In 2010, the MorningSide Community has been the main focus of the Detroit Sun Project, which is run by graduate students from the University of Michigan's
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
School of Natural Resources and Environment
University of Michigan School of Natural Resources and Environment
The School of Natural Resources and Environment was originally founded as the School of Forestry in 1927. Although originally housed in the Kraus Building, it is now housed in the S.T. Dana Building. SNRE provides graduate-level degrees at the doctorate and master's levels...
and Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning
Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning
The A. Alfred Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning is an undergraduate and graduate institution for the built environment at the University of Michigan. Formerly known as the College of Architecture and Urban Planning, Taubman College gained the namesake of real estate developer and...
. Their main goal and focus has revolved around economic, environmental and social sustainability as the project seeks new ways to further prevent urban decline. Citizen participation has been promoted by the project as they are open to hearing new ideas from members living in the community who have first-hand experience dealing with urban decay. The Detroit Sun Project’s primary initiatives have included things such as blight removal, environmental and public health, and water efficiency and management. These types of initiatives are meant to directly benefit residents of the MorningSide Community through economic savings and a cleaner living environment.
In early November of 2009, the Detroit Sun Project and Wayne County Department of Environment C.L.E.A.N. Program teamed up for clean-up effort in an area of MorningSide that has been hit hard by abandonment, foreclosures and illegal garbage dumping. The effort exemplified the commitments made by both the Detroit Sun Project, members of MorningSide and community residents to improving their neighborhood.
MorningSide also has a partnership with the University of Michigan-Dearborn's
University of Michigan-Dearborn
The University of Michigan–Dearborn , is a public university located in Dearborn, Michigan, USA.The University of Michigan–Dearborn is one of two regional campuses of the University of Michigan...
Urban and Regional Studies Program. In the 2010 fall semester the program's senior capstone research class worked with MorningSide on an action research project. Action research
Action research
Action research or participatory action research – is a reflective process of progressive problem solving led by individuals working with others in teams or as part of a "community of practice" to improve the way they address issues and solve problems. Action research is done simply by action,...
provides a vehicle for community members and volunteers to address issues that arise as a part of their work, allowing for the productivity of their organization or program to increase. The vehicle is a "systematic approach" that searches for a resolutions that are tailored to the local issues, rather than generalized to fit a broad perspective Part of the project has manifested itself as this page. An analysis of the organizational structure based on Fisher's (1994) three dominant historical approaches to neighborhood organizing has demonstrated that MorningSide is a community organization which functions primarily as a neighborhood maintenance group that also draws attention from public officials.
MorningSide residents have also benefited from services provided in their community by the Detroit Office of Foreclosure Prevention and Response (FPR). Although the program does not directly provide mortgage services to residents, they provide informational resources to new and existing homeowners who are dealing with issues such as foreclosures and taxes. They do this by sharing tools, resources and recommendations to partners and organizations such as MorningSide in the city of Detroit to reduce foreclosures in the area. Resources such as educational classes are also provided by the organizations for residents looking to purchase their first home and also for residents who are seeking to refinance and save their existing home. The organization also directs residents in need of legal services and prevention counseling when dealing with their homes. MorningSide and U-Snap-Bac have hosted events to educate community members on their legal options.