Landmark. Historic. Pivotal.
You may think that’s a bit over the top for a press release announcing that the City of Detroit has entrusted the Downtown Detroit Partnership with managing 12 additional public spaces.
The truth is, it’s that much and more.
This development is important on many levels, but at its core, it is an embodiment of the DDP’s mission.
This is also why organizations worldwide have contacted the DDP to replicate our efforts.
Allow me to explain.
The DDP has secured its place as a preeminent partner of business and government. We are incredibly proud of how we have built relationships with the City of Detroit and the State of Michigan over the decades. This has been a standard of excellence for our team since the DDP’s inception in 1922.
Now, the City has asked us to manage not just seven spaces Downtown, including the award-winning Campus Martius Park, but 18. This significant undertaking demonstrates a level of trust and alignment that we all want what is in the best interests of Detroit and Detroiters. I don’t believe there is another example of this sort of partnership in the City’s history.
Detroit’s Deputy Chief Operating Officer Jessica Parker said it well: “This expansion represents the City of Detroit’s confidence in our collaboration with the Downtown Detroit Partnership regarding the stewardship of public spaces. Thanks to this partnership . . . Detroiters and visitors alike will soon experience an enhanced and consistent level of service across Downtown.”
“A level of service.”
As an organization driven to make Downtown Detroit a great place to work, live, play, and visit, the DDP prides itself on its service. In fact, in many areas, the DDP’s work is an extension of the services the City provides, and we do it without a cost to the City’s budget or that of the businesses and residents. We know that well-managed public spaces are critical to the Downtown’s economic and social health and to enhancing the safety and wellness of its residents. This change in management marks a crucial turning point in that the City recognizes the DDP’s comparative advantage in this arena.
We apply that level of service to every engagement through our wide-ranging activations, markets, and food truck programs, to every organization that hosts an event, and to every guest. We also have become a trusted financial partner to not just the city but to our various stakeholders and funders. Transparency, reliability, and consistency are hallmarks of the DDP.
The DDP realized early on, even pre-bankruptcy, the necessity to lean into a public/private sector model. We knew it needed a nonprofit partner to augment and expand the more traditional city services. Since then, we have relied on innovative funding sources that include earned revenue strategies, public and private grants, food and beverage rental income, a fleet of more than 75 food trucks, through subsidiaries and royalties, rink revenues, and rentals.
Parks management and creative placemaking are just two more ways the DDP has proven its value as a forward-thinking entity that can accept any challenge and execute with creativity and authority.
For these reasons, other Downtowns contact us virtually every week for our advice and consultation. Sharing knowledge has become another hallmark of the DDP.
So, look at those adjectives above and let me know if you agree. The next time you visit Downtown, take pride in knowing that these critical spaces are in good hands and will continue to be so for decades to come.
