Friends of Woodward - video trailer

The Friends of Woodward was an urban revitalization movement along the Woodward corridor in Detroit City in the 1990's.

Check out the trailer of our upcoming documentary film about this pivotal movement

In 1992 The Friends of Woodward was founded to promote and improve the streetscape along the Woodward corridor of Detroit, Michigan. A small group of Detroit-city-loving-zealots pooled their efforts and resources to spark redevelopment and connectivity. The Friends of Woodward was determined to be a catalyst in the hoped for turn-around of the once great city they so desperately love.

Each year for a decade the Friends of Woodward awarded individuals at an annual gathering for contributing hope, funding, redevelopment and genuine love for the city of Detroit. Then by the year 2000 the cumulative efforts gradually led turn around and ultimately to a stunning present-day resurrection of the Renaissance city.

The city is now bursting and bubbling with excitement. From the "Q-line" Street Car to the District Detroit with Little Caesars Arena for the Detroit Red Wings and to welcoming the Detroit Basketball Pistons back, to new developments and tech employment opportunities that abound. Detroit is coming back stronger than ever.

There is a new town in town!

Detroit had become a post-apocalyptic urban nightmare. The city found itself on deaths door due to the socioeconomic implosion of Detroit after the 1967 summer rebellion in tandem with the devastation of the automotive industry in the 1970’s. Michigan automakers went from building most of the cars in the world in 1950 to a small percentage by 1990.

Detroit had been one of the greatest cities in America. Between 1910 and 1929 Detroit added one million new residents, to become the nation’s 4th largest city. The city was widely known as “Detroit the Dynamic” during this era.

The Friends of Woodward joined together in hopes of somehow bringing the city back to its famous glory of yesteryears. Times were very bleak at the beginning of the 1990’s. The Friends of Woodward persisted for a decade—a glimmer of hope in a depressed city. That seed of optimism was well placed. Years later and the Woodward corridor is revitalized as the anchor to the resurgent City of Detroit.

Hope, optimism, and vibrant energy are the new order of the day. Renewal and revitalization is spreading everywhere seemingly. Fun social experiences beckon the masses with a lure not seen in Michigan since the bustling 1950’s. The new Q-line Street Car creates the vital link and cements a foundation for Woodward that pulses down the tracks like the heartbeat of a newly resuscitated Detroit City.

There is a New Town In Town!