Downtown Allen Park

When Benjamin Hughes was hired last year as the City of Allen Park’s Director of the Downtown Development Authority (DDA) and Economic Development Director for the City of Allen Park, he noticed very quickly a special and unique sense of pride and community within the Allen Park borders.

“Allen Park residents support and even go out of their way to be supportive of the local, independent businesses,” he said. “There is a very positive sense of pride and level of support. Allen Parkers appreciate these businesses and want them to succeed because they see them as part of the reason why Allen Park is special.

“There have been changes and challenges coming out of the COVID crisis from a business aspect but I’m confident we will continue to meet those needs and diversify and add to the excellent businesses we already have in place.”

In 1975, the Michigan Legislature created Act 197, which allows communities to establish a Downtown Development Authority (DDA). The group is responsible for adopting and implementing a downtown central business district development plan and facilitates economic development and redevelopment of properties and infrastructure within the downtown area.

In 1991, Allen Park launched its DDA and defined a large portion of the city as “downtown,” including the traditional downtown area of Allen Road between Southfield Road and Roosevelt Avenue. Other areas include the north section of Allen Road from Southfield to Outer Drive and on the southern side from Roosevelt Avenue to Englewood Avenue. All of Ecorse Road and nearly all of Southfield Road, along with Park Avenue, from Allen Road to Regina Avenue, also are part of the DDA.

“We are one of the larger DDAs in the state of Michigan,” Hughes said. “We have a healthy mix of businesses that feature retail, food and dining, professional services, entertainment, and a mix of light industry and small manufacturing.”

Many communities struggle to define their downtown area. Allen Park is fortunate that, back in the day, the city planners saw a need for a traditional downtown area where residents can walk or ride a bike or take the short drive from their homes to downtown Allen Park. A place where you can go to the bank, have lunch, get your hair done, take a guitar lesson, buy a new pair of sneakers, get an ice cream cone, and pick up dessert for dinner – all in the same block or two.

“We are really fortunate in Allen Park to have that traditional downtown area that was formed back in the 1940s and 1950s,” Hughes said. “Our downtown business buildings are close to the sidewalks and adjacent to each other. It is very pedestrian friendly – people can walk to different stores and businesses. Many of the more common suburban sprawl cities built after the 1970s are now spending large amounts of money to recreate the density and “downtown feel” that we already enjoy in Allen Park. You get a feeling and a sense of community when you walk down Allen Road or Park Avenue or Ecorse Road that you are in a city that was designed for local residents.”

There have been some exciting new developments, upgrades and changes happening in downtown Allen Park, with many other improvements planned for the near future. The DDA has made, and continues to make, efforts to improve the appearance and landscaping of the downtown area.

In the summer of 2023, the DDA Board approved a $900,000 plan to hire DTE to remove the old and outdated streetlights throughout the downtown area and replace them with new LED lights that are more energy efficient and offer more illumination. DTE will replace the poles with a more decorative and historic black-iron pole that will be a perfect complement to the downtown area. Work is scheduled to begin in April and should be completed this summer.

Another big change that arrived downtown in 2023 occurred during the winter holiday season. For nearly 20 years the DDA would put up decorative holiday snowflakes on the streetlights from November to March. But because these snowflakes had become broken down and had a tired look, the DDA board approved a three-year contract with a company that now provides these lights.

“This past year our businesses and residents enjoyed three new colorful designs and next year we can choose three other designs,” Hughes said. “A fresh new look will exist each year. We also for the first time added them to the northern part of the city.”

In 2024 the DDA plans on looking into a comprehensive beautification and landscaping plan for the downtown area. “We want to look into a refreshed landscaping look for all of our DDA spaces,” Hughes said.

“We want people to know just by the look of the area that they are in beautiful downtown Allen Park. We want to make this commitment to our businesses and our residents that we are going to improve the look and feel of our downtown.”

The DDA also spearheaded the 16-page 2024 Allen Park DDA Guide, published this month, and includes a listing of all Allen Park businesses along with a 2024 calendar highlighting the many special events that run throughout the year in the city.

“This business directory/visitors guide lists all 406 businesses in the city of Allen Park,” Hughes said. “It includes a listing of businesses by category, and their contact information. It’s also an excellent source of information for people from out of town looking for a quick reference guide to find a certain business in the city.”

The Downtown Development Authority is paying to have around 15,000 copies printed that will be distributed to all residential and commercial properties in the city of Allen Park and to be used as a promotional guide for visitors from out of town. Hughes expects that this new print version of the 2024 Allen Park DDA Guide will be an annual publication with an updated list of Allen Park businesses published every year.

“This is not a one and done for the DDA,” he said. “We want to be proactive and want every resident and business to receive this guide each year, keep it and use it throughout the year to support our businesses and services.”