The University of Michigan’s 
plan for its Detroit Center 
for Innovation, announced in 
October, has generated mixed 
responses from the campus 
community, 
with 
some 
students creating a petition 
condemning the center as a 
sign of gentrification. The 
Daily 
spoke 
with 
several 
Detroit residents about their 
views on the Center.. 
The Center for Innovation 
will be built on the site 
formerly 
set 
aside 
for 
the 
construction 
of 
the 
proposed Wayne County Jail. 
Construction of the jailcame 
to a halt in 2013 after going $91 
million over its initial $300 
million budget.
University spokesman Rick 
Fitzgerald said the University 
aims to attract businesses 

and entrepreneurs to Detroit 
through 
the 
Center 
for 
Innovation. 
“This new Detroit Center 
for Innovation enhances that 
legacy by meeting another 
pressing 
need 
— 
helping 
to 
further 
the 
economic 
development of the city and 
the region,” Fitzgerald wrote. 
“As the president wrote in 
his message to the campus 
community last month, the 
university will help provide a 
pipeline of talent and platform 
for 
research 
collaboration 
to help grow and attract 
businesses and entrepreneurs, 
while positioning the future 
workforce for success in a 
dynamic 
and 
diversified 
economy.”
A majority of the concerns 
about the center lie around the 
building’s impact on Detroit 
residents. 
The 
petition, 
titled “#UMichRegentrifiers: 

Invest in Detroiters” stated 
the University’s decision to 
spearhead the center “signals 
its priorities in Detroit do 
not lie with Detroiters.” The 
petition said the University’s 
investment 
in 
Detroit 
Renaissance 
Real 
Estate 
Fund LP, a firm with ties to a 
string of evictions in Detroit, 
was a sign of the University’s 
lack of genuine commitment 
to the city. It also claimed 
the 
University 
was 
more 
invested 
in 
gentrification 
and 
furthering 
business 
interests 
than 
supporting 
Detroit residents. Staff of 
the University’s Semester in 
Detroit program also released 
a statement questioning the 
Center’s intentions.
LSA 
junior 
Oluwakemi 
Dauda, 
who 
graduated 
from the Benjamin Carson 
High 
School 
of 
Science 
and Medicine in Detroit in 
2017, said she, too, has 
questions and concerns 
about the building that 
have yet to be answered. 
“Being a site that has 
had so many promises 
for it, but that they 
failed, I am concerned 
if this amazing idea of 
an 
Innovation 
Center 
is going to actually fall 
through,” Dauda said. 
“My only other concern 
is how it will impact 
the 
Detroit 
residents. 
How does that impact 
residents from Detroit 
being able to have access 
to the Center, even if 
they are not students? 
Are 
people 
who 
are 
students from U of M 
who are from Detroit, 
do they have access to 
this center? How will it 
affect people who live 
around this center?” 
Dauda told The Daily 
she sees potential in 
the Detroit Center for 
helping Detroit residents 
and she hopes that the 

University sees that potential 
too. 
“I really hope that they are 
seeing more as a way to create 
impact and not money,” Dauda 
said. “Although, of course, 
them being entrepreneurs and 
businessmen, that’s always in 
the back of their head. But I 
feel when it comes to initiative 
for a new business plan, like 
the Innovation Center, I feel 
like the forefront of their 
minds should be that and not 
the financials that come after 
it.”
LSA 
freshman 
Chanel 
Barnes 
attended 
Cass 
Technical High School in 
Detroit, which is close to 
the proposed location of the 
Innovation 
Center. 
Barnes 
said her experience at the 
University has really showed 
her 
how 
much 
Detroit 
Public Schools are lacking in 
providing a quality education. 
She also said people often 
come to downtown Detroit 
and 
take 
resources 
that 
residents need. 
Barnes 
said 
she 
thinks 
the new building does not 
have any direct initiative for 
students in the Detroit Public 
School system and will have 
greater 
benefit 
for 
those 
outside of Detroit.
“It 
seems 
like 
they’re 
putting more of the building 
on people who are not of lower 
income. It seems like it is 
going to students who have a 
higher privilege of education,” 
Barnes said. “It is in the 
downtown area, so I see it will 
have an impact on the local 
students and community in 
general. But I won’t say it will 
have a positive impact.”
Thomas Page, a Detroit 
native and Los Angeles Police 
Department 
retiree, 
has 
returned to Michigan after 
retiring and now works in the 
community by leading bike 
rides around Detroit. 

2 — Tuesday, December 3, 2019
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
News

KYTO BATT/Daily
Journalist Ellen Nakashiima speaks on the role of journalism during a conversation on National Security Journalism in Weill Hall Monday.

TUESDAY:
By Design 

THURSDAY:
Twitter Talk
FRIDAY:
Behind the Story
WEDNESDAY:
This Week in History 

MONDAY:
Looking at the Numbers

Sudoku Syndication
http://sudokusyndication.com/sudoku/generator/print/

1 of 1
10/27/08 1:10 PM

4
8

9

6

9

5

2

5

7

1
3

5

4

1

8

9

7

8
5

4

2

7

9

4

6

8

7
5

© sudokusolver.com. For personal use only.

Generate and solve Sudoku, Super Sudoku and Godoku puzzles at sudokusyndication.com!

HAVE HOPE
puzzle by sudokusyndication.com

DESIGN BY KATHRYN HALVERSON

Stanford Lipsey Student Publications Building
420 Maynard St.
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1327
www.michigandaily.com

ARTS SECTION
arts@michigandaily.com

SPORTS SECTION
sports@michigandaily.com

ADVERTISING
dailydisplay@gmail.com

NEWS TIPS
news@michigandaily.com

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
tothedaily@michigandaily.com

EDITORIAL PAGE
opinion@michigandaily.com

TOMMY DYE
Business Manager
734-418-4115 ext. 1241
tomedye@michigandaily.com

MAYA GOLDMAN
Editor in Chief
734-418-4115 ext. 1251
mayagold@michigandaily.com

PHOTOGRAPHY SECTION
photo@michigandaily.com

NEWSROOM
734-418-4115 opt. 3 

CORRECTIONS
corrections@michigandaily.com

The Michigan Daily (ISSN 0745-967) is published Monday through Friday during 
the fall and winter terms by students at the University OF Michigan. One copy is 
available free of charge to all readers. Additional copies may be picked up at the 
Daily’s office for $2. Subscriptions for September-April are $250 and year long 
subscriptions are $275. University affiliates are subject to a reduced subscription 
rate. On-campus subscriptions for fall term are $35. Subscriptions must be prepaid. 

FINNTAN STORER
Managing Editor 
 frstorer@michigandaily.com

GRACE KAY and ELIZABETH LAWRENCE 
Managing News Editors news@michigandaily.com

Senior News Editors: Sayali Amin, Rachel Cunningham, Remy Farkas, Leah 
Graham, Amara Shaikh 
Assistant News Editors: Barbara Collins, Julia Fanzeres, Claire Hao, Alex 
Harring, Angelina Little, Madeline McLaughlin, Ben Rosenfeld, Emma Stein, 
Zayna Syed, Liat Weinstein

JOEL DANILEWITZ and MAGDALENA MIHAYLOVA
Editorial Page Editors tothedaily@michigandaily.com

Senior Opinion Editors: Emily Considine, Krystal Hur, Ethan Kessler, Miles 
Stephenson, Erin White

MAX MARCOVITCH and ETHAN SEARS 
Managing Sports Editors sportseditors@michigandaily.com

ARYA NAIDU and VERITY STURM
Managing Arts Editors 
 arts@michigandaily.com

Senior Arts Editors: Clara Scott, Emma Chang, Cassandra Mansuetti, Sam 
Della Fera, Trina Pal
Arts Beat Editors: John Decker, Sayan Ghosh, Mike Watkins, Ally Owens, 
Stephen Satarino, Izzy Hasslund, Margaret Sheridan 

ALEXIS RANKIN and ALEC COHEN
Managing Photo Editors photo@michigandaily.com

ROSEANNE CHAO and JACK SILBERMAN
Managing Design Editors 
design@michigandaily.com
Senior Design Editor: Sherry Chen 

ANDREA PÉREZ BALDERRAMA
Statement Editor statement@michigandaily.com 

Deputy Editors: Matthew Harmon, Shannon Ors

SILAS LEE and EMILY STILLMAN
Managing Copy Editors copydesk@michigandaily.com

Senior Copy Editors: Dominick Sokotoff, Olivia Sedlacek, Reece Meyhoefer 

CASEY TIN and HASSAAN ALI WATTOO
Managing Online Editors 
 webteam@michigandaily.com

Senior Web Developers: Jonathon Liu, Abha Panda, Ryan Siu, David Talbot, 
Samantha Cohen

ELI SIDER
Managing Video Editor video@michigandaily.com

NA’KIA CHANNEY and CARLY RYAN
Michigan in Color Editors michiganincolor@michigandaily.com
Senior Michigan in Color Editors: Lorna Brown, Samuel So, Ana Maria 
Sanchez-Castillo, Efe Osagie, Danyel Tharakan
Assistant Michigan in Color Editors: Harnoor Singh, Nada Eldawy, Maya 
Mokh 

MADALASA CHAUDHARI and HANNAH MESKIN 
Managing Social Media Editors

Editorial Staff

Business Staff

RYAN KELLY
Sales Manager

ROBERT WAGMAN
Marketing Consulting Manager

ZELJKO KOSPIC
Special Projects Manager

ANITA MICHAUD
Brand Manager

Senior Photo Editors: Alexandria Pompei, Natalie Stephens, Alice Liu, Allison 
Engkvist, Danyel Tharakan
Assistant Photo Editors: Miles Macklin, Keemya Esmael, Madeline Hinkley, 
Ryan McLoughlin

Senior Sports Editors: Anna Marcus, Aria Gerson, Ben Katz, Mark Calcagno, 
Theo Mackie, Tien Le
Assistant Sports Editors: Bailey Johnson, Bennett Bramson, Connor Brennan, 
Jacob Kopnick, Jorge Cazares, Rian Ratnavale 

MOLLY WU
Creative Director

CATHERINE NOUHAN
Managing Podcast Editor

Sudoku Syndication
http://sudokusyndication.com/sudoku/generator/print/

1 of 1
10/1/08 1:15 PM

2

5
6

4
1
5
6

8

1
3

7

2

3

1
7

5

8

7
8

5

7
3

9

6
8

© sudokusolver.com. For personal use only.

Generate and solve Sudoku, Super Sudoku and Godoku puzzles at sudokusyndication.com!

LIVIN LIKE LARRY 
puzzle by sudokusyndication.com

Senior Video Editors: Ryan O’Connor, Joseph Sim

Senior Social Media Editor: Allie Phillips 

JASMIN LEE 
Daily Staff Reporter 

Detroit residents reflect on new 
building, impact of gentrification

Plans for construction of Center for Innovation sparks criticism, conversation

See DETROIT, Page 3

