By Lisa Donovan

The transformation of the Detroit riverfront over the past decade has been nothing short of spectacular! Ugly, dilapidated warehouses and parking lots that blocked access to the Detroit River have been transformed into miles of beautiful, inviting parks and walkways filled with people. In the words of Mark Wallace, president and CEO of the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy – the nonprofit responsible for that transformation – the story of the riverfront is a story of collaboration and cooperation and what can be accomplished when people stop fighting with each other and focus on an important goal.

When the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy was founded in 2003, people didn’t believe in the city so the Conservancy had to first rebuild trust. They set the stage with four intentional promises:

1. Good stewards of the waterfront – provide all necessary services for the transformation, including security and clean up
2. Be world class in everything we do – we want the space along the Detroit River to be top notch
3. Welcoming to all – considering diversity in all its aspects makes the riverfront exciting
4. Great partners – building great relationships with our partners, particularly the founding partners: GM, Kresge Foundation and the City of Detroit

“We’ve built a lot of trust with the community over the last 15 years,” said Wallace. “We do what we say we’ll do. We’ve spent a lot of time on community engagement. In 2003, that wasn’t common. But our leadership realized we need to start conversation s with citizens. We had 100 community meetings before we started the transformation of the east riverfront. ”

In addition to revitalizing the riverfront, the Conservancy has taken it a step further by planning and developing pathways, like Dequindre Cut. These pathways make it easy for people to access the river from their neighborhoods.

But pictures are worth a thousand words, so enjoy these!