Location,

Location,

One of Detroit's hottest
neighborhoods is one ofthe
Jewish community's older
ones in Oak Park!

.-Pal THE DETROI T JEWIS H NEWS

ALAN HITSKY ASSOCIATE EDITOR

PHOTOS BY GLENN TRIEST

The Weiss family's
expansion Is nearing
completion.

here are no lakes, although at one
time it was swampy. It's not
trendy downtown Birmingham or spa-
cious West Bloomfield.
But the northwest corner of Oak Park
is experiencing a metamorphosis just as
dramatic as the outlying suburbs. Fol-
lowing a longtime trend in the heart of
the Orthodox Jewish community, hous-
es still sell by word of mouth. What is new is
major remodeling and expansion projects trans-
forming existing homes.
An example of the phenomenon is Raine
Street. Three brand-new homes are in the first
block north of Lincoln and a fourth is being
planned.
On nearby Sherwood Court, Ludlow and
Stratford Place, some homeowners have added
up to 1,200 square feet to their original 1,900-
square-foot, two-story colonial homes
by expanding across the front or across
the back.
Even south of 10 Mile Road, where
the lots are smaller than in north Oak
Park, a few residents have added
massive additions to their one-story
ranches.
Jack, Richard and Gary Schwarcz are
part of the trend. All three live on Raine.
With the help of their father's South-
field construction company, Jack built
an elegant new home four years ago;
Richard bought Gary's home and added
550 square feet to it; and Gary moved
an existing house to another site and
completed a new home last fall that is
just over 3,000 square feet.
"I grew up in Oak Park," said Gary
Schwarcz, "when kids on the street
knew every other kid on the street.
North Oak Park is like that now. In the
Orthodox community, the parents
watch out for each other's kids. The kids
walk around and interact and the little
kids run around all over the place.
"Other neighborhoods are all spread
out. But here, we are invited to our
neighbors' for dinner on Shabbat."
Mr. Schwarcz points to the other al-
lures of the neighborhood: its closeness
to Jewish institutions, the kosher deli-
catessen, shopping areas and freeways.
"We are right in the center," he said,
"only 20 minutes from downtown or
Novi or Oakland Mall."
His new wife, Mirjam, a native of
Great Britain, was nervous about leav-
ing her budgeting position at the United Na-
tions and coming to Detroit. On one of her visits
here before their marriage, "I looked out the
window and saw all the little kids running
around. I knew then we had made a very good
decision."
The Schwarczes say their neighbors have