Detroiters share frustrations over ‘fragmented’ system for housing help

As director of Renew Detroit Darlene Caro wants to feel good about the work she does. At the same time, the leader of the city home repair program said she knows it’s not enough.

“It’s like trying to fit a round peg in a square hole,” Caro told a frustrated contingent of an audience inside the Johnson Recreation Center on Tuesday night. 

“The answer is not her, it’s not him, it’s not me. It’s us,” she said, gesturing to the dozens of Detroiters who took part in a BridgeDetroit Community Conversation on housing and home repair. “Yes, there’s money, but it’s not enough. So now what? We need to be in this room. It’s hard work every single day. You still have to get up and do it anyway because it’s better than nothing.”

Caro joined with Wayne Metropolitan Community Action Agency CEO Louis Piszker and Rocket Community Fund and Gilbert Family Foundation Executive Director Laura Grannemann for the two-hour event moderated by BridgeDetroit and Detroit Free Press economic mobility reporter Nushrat Rahman. 

The program also included resource tables from DTE Energy, Americorps, Lakeshore Legal Aid, Black Family Development Inc., Detroit’s Water and Sewerage Department, Hannan Center, the Wayne County Treasurer’s Office and Detroit’s Property Assessment Board of Review. The event is one of four being hosted by our nonprofit newsroom this year centering topics that matter to residents. Other events have focused on reparations and the I-375 project, voter access and, next month, we will convene a final session on resources for refugees and immigrants. 

Panelists at Tuesday’s event reiterated the $5 billion to $20 billion scope of the city’s home repair crisis and that the “fragmented” system for aid among federal, state, philanthropic and local programs impairs awareness and access. Making the issue worse: much of Detroit’s single-family housing stock is more than 75 years old.

“There isn’t a national home repair program out there that exists,” said Piszker, adding the system that is in place is “extremely hard to navigate.” Wayne Metro, he said, has received about 80,000 calls so far this year for housing help. 

He touted the Detroit Housing Network hotline – (866) 313-2520 – facilitated by 13 to 16 partner agencies to aid residents. 

“That’s where you’re going to get all of your answers,” he said. “If there’s one thing to take away tonight, take this number.” 

Stephanie Donaldson, a representative with Cass Community Social Services, noted during Tuesday’s meeting that her group received a grant from the Detroit Area Agency on Aging for home repair. 

It provides for up to $2,500 per home for repairs and is geared toward homeowners over 60. It doesn’t have income eligibility restrictions and she’s marketed the opportunity at churches and other community sites. 

Now, there are a couple thousand people waiting on a list from Detroit, Hamtramck and Highland Park. 

“Our phones have not stopped,” said Donaldson, who told the panel she plans to direct some of those individuals to the Home Repair Network hotline. “I live in a house that’s over 100 years old in Detroit. I know what these people are going through.” 

Community advocate Toyia Watts said residents are “fed up” because there aren’t enough programs to meet the needs of Detroiters who are living in aging homes and coping with flooding, deteriorating roofing and other challenges. 

“What is the point of this meeting? Who can help right now?” she asked the panel. “Don’t tell me you ran out of money again. Tell me you’re going to help us.” 

In response, Caro and Piszker agreed that even with the hotline, resources fall short. The key they said is for city communities to be vocal and visible in the push for actions, including legislative change. 

“You have to keep doing what you are doing and that’s yelling about it,” Piszker said. 

Renew Detroit rolled out in fall 2021 to provide major, non-emergency repairs for up to 1,500 homes. It was funded by $30 million from President Joe Biden’s American Rescue Plan Act.

In July 2022, the program expanded to $45 million with an additional $15 million from the Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA) and the goal of reaching 2,000 homes overall. The city received more than 12,600 applications for the program for roof and window replacements over two phases of the program, which is now closed. 

Likewise, the $20 million Detroit Home Repair Fund, which was established in 2022 to help Detroiters access repair resources through a network of nonprofits. Currently, it is not accepting new applications. 

The program, funded by the Gilbert Family Foundation, DTE and health care organization ProMedica, had a flood of inquiries – 250,000 phone calls within the first week. Many were placed on a waitlist, which is now closed. In January, those waiting learned that the program would not be able to help them this year and directed them instead to other options.

The program, Grannemann said, is structured as “the whole home approach.” So far, she said, work has been done for 312 households. On average, there have been 9 repairs per home and the average cost is $24,000 per property. Of that, $16,000 is coming from the Detroit Home Repair Fund, and $8,000 is from other sources, including DTE Energy’s Energy Efficiency Assistance program and the Weatherization Assistance Program, she said. 

Grannemann said the home repair problems in Detroit aren’t going to be fixed with any short-term programs. She also noted that the Detroit Home Repair Task Force is meeting regularly and “doing the tactical work of ‘how do we actually bring these resources together.’”

Caro urged the audience to attend City Council committee and formal sessions to voice their views about home repair needs. 

“We need to hear it louder than just in these rooms,” she said. “It’s hard for me to advocate for my program when it’s just me. It’s better with 50 people saying it. I need you.”

Programs to help Detroiters