Access Is a Verb

Written By Robert Alcantar

Detroit Download
Episode 8

In this episode of The Detroit Download, host Souly walks the line between celebration and action—spotlighting Detroit’s riverfront renaissance, a jam-packed festival season, and the civic decisions shaping our neighborhoods. Access here isn’t abstract—it’s a bus headway, a trail opening, a vendor tent, a ballot.

Riverfront Momentum: Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Centennial Park

Opening this fall, Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Centennial Park will add 22 acres to Detroit’s west riverfront—transforming a once-industrial stretch into a signature public space.

Features:

  • Play Garden designed for kids of all abilities.

  • Water Garden with seating and native plants.

  • Sports courts, flexible event lawns, and shaded picnic groves.

  • A 30-foot-wide Riverwalk extension linking to the Southwest Greenway.

Why it matters: This park isn’t just about scenery—it connects neighborhoods to jobs, schools, and recreation, with ADA-accessible paths and spaces for micro-vendors.

📎 Sources:

  • Detroit Riverfront Conservancy – Centennial Park

  • Axios Detroit – Opening Timeline

Festival Season in Full Swing

Detroit’s summer calendar is stacked. Here’s your quick guide:

  • AfroFuture Detroit (Aug 16–17) – Music, art, and technology converging at Hart Plaza.
    🔗 AfroFuture Fest

  • Ribs & R&B Music Festival (Aug 8–10) – Smoke, soul, and community at Hart Plaza.
    🔗 Ribs & R&B Fest

  • Detroit Jazz Festival (Aug 29 – Sept 1) – The world’s largest free jazz festival returns downtown.
    🔗 Detroit Jazz Fest

  • Dally in the Alley (Sept 6) – A Cass Corridor tradition with music, food, and art.
    🔗 Dally in the Alley

  • Detroit Month of Design (Sept 1–30) – Exhibits, installations, and talks across the city.
    🔗 Detroit Month of Design

Artist Spotlight: Sounds From the Park – Saxophonist Marcus Elliot’s project with Detroit Parks Coalition, bringing live music to outdoor spaces.

Songs from the Park

Detroit saxophonist and composer Marcus Elliott has been called one of the city’s most thoughtful jazz voices – a bandleader whose work blends modern improvisation with deep roots in Black music traditions. A graduate of Wayne State University, Elliott’s projects have ranged from intimate trio sessions to large-ensemble commissions. His playing is marked by a warm, searching tone and a willingness to let silence and space be part of the story.

With Songs from the Park – a collaboration with the Detroit Parks Coalition – Elliott takes that sensibility outdoors. The series brings free live performances to neighborhood parks across the city, mixing original compositions with Detroit standards. Each concert is as much a community gathering as it is a recital: kids weave between picnic blankets, elders tap their feet in folding chairs, and passers-by stop to listen on their walk home.

The aim, Elliott says, is “to treat the park itself as a member of the band,” letting the natural acoustics, ambient sounds, and setting sun shape each set. It’s also about access – meeting Detroiters where they are, with no tickets, no dress code, and no barriers.

Upcoming 2025 Dates
(To be confirmed – check Detroit Parks Coalition events calendar for updates):

  • July: Palmer Park

  • August: Clark Park

  • September: Chandler Park

  • October: Closing performance at Belle Isle

Bring a blanket, some snacks, and an open ear – these evenings are designed for lingering, conversation, and letting the music lead you deeper into the space you share with your neighbors.

Community Policy & Civic Action

Transit: DDOT Reimagined

Detroit’s bus system redesign aims for more frequent service on key corridors, improved reliability, and new transfer points. Public comment is still open.
🔗 DDOT Reimagined

Voter Turnout

BridgeDetroit’s precinct-level recap of the August primaries shows turnout gaps driven by work schedules, childcare, and transit access.
🔗 BridgeDetroit – Election Recap

Infrastructure

The proposed I-75 “cap” could reconnect Corktown to Mexicantown with new green space, while the Gordie Howe International Bridge will include a multi-use path for pedestrians and cyclists.
🔗 MDOT – Gordie Howe Bridge

How to Plug In

  1. Review DDOT plans and submit your feedback.

  2. Check your voter registration before November.

  3. Support local vendors—visit markets and share their stories.

  4. Plan an outdoor day trip—Detroit’s parks and trails are waiting.

Listen & Share

💬 Got a story about access in your neighborhood? Comment below.

Robert Alcantar
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