Detroit To Hire New Entrepreneurship Director, Create Warehouse For Deconstructed Projects

DETROIT (WWJ) Mayor Mike Duggan announced -- at an event meant to help Detroit-owned businesses get access to contracts --  that he will hire a director of entrepreneurship for the city.

The person has not yet been named, according to WWJ's Beth Fisher.

He also revealed a grand plan at the event to take advantage of the deconstruction in Detroit -- by using it for new construction. Duggan said as the city of Detroit works to demolish abandon homes in the city, it will start a deconstruction project to salvage some of the materials that are still usable.

The announcements came as 150 minority business owners in Detroit met with the state's largest road and bridge contractors to talk about qualifying for $150 million available to prime contractors. The event was called "Bridges to Entrepreneurship."

Managing Director Of The Black Caucus Foundation of Michigan, Dr. K.B. Stallworth, said he was excited about the gathering.

"We've assembled the largest road, bridge, construction contractors in the state of Michigan, whom have committed to work very aggressively to help the minority, disadvantaged, headquartered in Detroit businesses," he said.

Mike Aaron of the Black Caucus Foundation of Michigan, added, "It's very important for the revitalization of Detroit to get the black entrepreneurship going."

As Detroit works to rebuild, Duggan said the city will create a warehouse with floorboards, banisters, windows, and more, that can be reused.

"And we're hiring Detroiters, we think that has a lot of value," the mayor said.

The goal will be for people who want to fix up their homes in the city -- to be able to buy the reclaimed materials to do it.

"Could you imagine a town where you had a group of workers deconstructing houses and moving the materials to a warehouse and then as people come in to rehab the houses, they'll have the warehouse with the contemporary  materials they could go buy?" Duggan said.

"Could we create industries in this town to take them down and rebuild our neighborhoods and base it on Detroiters?"

Apparently for the mayor, the answer is "yes, we can."