Borrower
Name
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The Freelon
at Sugar Hill
Project
Location
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119 Garfield
- Midtown Detroit -
Project
Type
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Midtown
Project
Partners
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Cinnaire, Michigan Community Capital, MEDC, Building America CDE, City of Detroit, Develop Detroit, Home Depot Foundation, PNC Bank, Preservation of Affordable Housing (POAH), Rocket Community Fund
Cinnaire joined the Preservation of Affordable Housing (POAH), and Develop Detroit to support the development of The Freelon at Sugar Hill, a new mixed-use and mixed- income development located in Midtown Detroit’s Sugar Hill Arts District. Cinnaire provided $5 million in New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) allocation in partnership with PNC Bank, Building America CDE, and Michigan Community Capital.
The $38 million development includes the revitalization of a vacant lot to create 68 apartments, 11,900 square-feet of retail space and a 160-unit space parking garage. Located across the street from the John D. Dingell VA Medical Center, 14 of the 20 affordable housing units were created for veterans served by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s HUD-VASH program through the Dingell VA Center. All veterans’ apartments are fully furnished and decorated by the Interior Designers Coalition for Change, a volunteer organization that completed the work using best practices in trauma-informed design. Six additional affordable apartments serve residents earning up to 80 percent AMI. All residents enjoy access to a community room, lounge, outdoor green space, workout room and attached parking.
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​Located within walking distance to Detroit’s museums, music venues, restaurants, and education and employment opportunities, The Freelon at Sugar Hill provides commercial space supporting local enterprises that are either woman or immigrant led.
Current businesses located in The Freelon at Sugar Hill include Cure Nail House, a philanthropic beauty salon providing luxury nail service that works to empower its community through workforce development and training, and Hazara Coffee House, a coffee house owned by first-generation immigrants who work to honor their heritage by roasting and serving coffee that is inclusive of all people and cultures and brings people together.
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The Freelon at Sugar Hill is named in honor of Phil Freelon, one of the most celebrated Black architects in U.S. history. He was best known for leading the design team for the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of African American History and Culture and Atlanta’s National Center for Civic and Human Rights. The building was one of Freelon’s last developments that he worked on prior to his death in 2019.
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Additional project partners include the City of Detroit, the Michigan Economic Development Corporation/Michigan Strategic Fund, Building America CDE, Michigan Community Capital, POAH, Develop Detroit, the Home Depot Foundation, and the Rocket Community Fund.
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