Affordable housing complex across from Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament offers 53 units, job skills training program
DETROIT — Archbishop Edward J. Weisenburger, cathedral rector Fr. J.J. Mech, Van Fox, president of MHT Housing, Inc., and leaders from the city of Detroit stood side by side June 12 in cutting the ribbon to formally open the Cathedral Arts Apartments, the city’s newest affordable housing project.
The presentation, complete with musical accompaniment from organist Lance Luce of the Detroit Red Wings, celebrated a project two years in the making to bring high-quality, affordable apartments to the city’s North End Neighborhood.
The $19.7 million development on Woodward Avenue, just across from the Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament, is a joint venture between the cathedral parish and MHT Housing, Inc., the city’s biggest landlord.
“I would just like to say how grateful I am to the rector of the cathedral, Father J.J., to be able to envision something like this is critical,” Archbishop Weisenburger said. “When we leverage one another’s abilities, talents and dollars, when nonprofit entities come together with churches and community organizations and then the wonderful entities on behalf of our federal, state and local governments, beautiful things for the whole community emerge.”
The ribbon cutting culminated a vision that began in 2020, when Fr. Mech, on behalf of former Detroit Archbishop Allen H. Vigneron, unveiled a plan to turn Detroit’s mother church into an "apostolic center for the arts and culture," inviting visitors from neighborhood, city and indeed, the world, to come and experience the treasures the Church offers.
“The Holy Spirit has been truly behind us," Fr. Mech said at the press conference. "That’s what we did, bringing God’s beauty into the world.”
The $19.7 million development brings 53 affordable apartment units to the city’s Gateway Community, just north of the historic Boston-Edison neighborhood. The project is the latest collaboration between the city and the archdiocese in providing affordable housing, including the recently opened affordable housing project at St. Matthew Parish in Detroit.
“I was introduced to the (Archdiocesan Cathedral Council) that Father J.J. had organized on March 19, 2020, and here we are, five years later, to celebrate Father J.J.’s vision,” Fox said. “Father, we are so stoked to recognize your persistence and grooviness. Friends, the extraordinary has been done, managing strange difficulties and irregularities, recognizing we had to dig down so deep I thought we were in the Mediterranean or something like it, to create 53 new affordable housing facilities along with an M Training Center.”
The M Training Center is a skilled trades workforce development hub sponsored by Citizens and operated by MHT Housing, which offers four-week workshops for those who want to learn skills to obtain internships and employment in the property maintenance and multifamily housing industry.
The Cathedral Arts Apartments are one of many neighborhood outreach efforts sponsored by the cathedral parish, which have also included regular neighborhood cookouts and construction of a nearby dog park.
Each of these efforts has as its greater mission the singular focus of the Church, Fr. Mech said: introducing people to Jesus.
“I met two gentlemen last night when I brought my dog (Annie) over to the temporary dog park, and I introduced myself to these guys. They asked, ‘Well, who are you?’” Fr. Mech said. “I said, ‘I’m the guy who runs the big building over there for Archbishop Weisenburger.’ They asked, ‘Well, what’s this big building for?’ and I said, 'We’re following the mission of what Jesus is all about and what he told us.'
“They didn’t know who Jesus is. I've been ordained now for 30 years, and I was thinking, 'This is the first time I’ve met someone who never knew our Lord,'" Fr. Mech added. “This is what it’s about. I told them who Jesus was and invited them to come inside the cathedral to see what it’s all about. They looked around the place and said they wanted to know more. That is what building community is all about.”
James Arthur Jemison, executive director of the Detroit Housing Commission, said the Cathedral Arts Apartment are an example of what can happen when the city and the Church work together to improve the lives of Detroiters, particularly for low-income residents.
“It’s just thrilling to see the kind of work that’s getting done with this project,” Jemison said. “Our role in this project is that we’ve provided 16 project-based Section 8 vouchers, which allow for 16 people with the lowest incomes in the city to be part of this amazing development. It’s an entirely affordable development, but this makes sure the very lowest-income people can be part of it.”
Jemison noted the Cathedral Arts Apartments are not the first time the City of Detroit has collaborated with the Archdiocese of Detroit to provide affordable housing in the city.
In 2017, the city and the archdiocese collaborated to turn the former Transfiguration School building into affordable housing.
“Transfiguration School was turned into affordable housing with the help and support of the Archdiocese of Detroit, as part of the Campau-Banglatown strategic neighborhood plan,” Jamison said. “So I’ve seen the Archdiocese of Detroit get more and more involved in this space, and again, it’s thrilling to watch. This is one of the ways you, as a community of faith, can have such a great impact in the city, and I just want to highlight the great work you guys have been doing, and this is another brilliant and beautiful example.”
Melia Howard, deputy mayor of Detroit and former district manager of District 5, which includes the cathedral and surrounding neighborhoods, thanked the partners involved in the Cathedral Arts Apartments and encouraged everyone, Catholic and non-Catholic, to make a point to visit the cathedral.
“Fr. J.J., I have to say it’s been a pleasure to work with you on this project,” Howard said. “When you go into the cathedral, it’s a history lesson, so take the time to visit. It doesn’t matter if you’re a Catholic, take the time to go and hear the history, to look at the reliquaries, to absorb this beautiful space. I want to thank you for all that you have done in the community, because from the beginning, Fr. J.J. is about community, and he wanted to ensure that the residents were involved in this project.”
Beyond the 53 affordable living units, Howard said the M Training Center is a true game changer for the area.
“I’m doubly excited about the M Training Center for providing a space to train up our residents to have skills that nobody can take away from them,” Howard said. “Once you learn how to put in a window, you know how to put in a window. Once you learn how to put in a toilet — I learned how to put in a toilet last year — once you know, it’s a skill you have for life.”
The M Training Center is open for residents and non-residents alike to get paid while learning hands-on property maintenance.
Matthew Wilis graduated from the M Training Center in Midtown in 2020 after a family member recommended it.
“You learn HVAC, you learn electrical, you learn painting, basic maintenance activities to go around,” Wilis said. “Even if you are just a homeowner, it helps you maintain your home, or if you are looking for a career, you get a diploma at the end of the training and you get a $500 reward after completion. I then moved on to maintenance, and they gave me a lot of opportunities in terms of interviews and recommendations, and I was able to get a job in maintenance right after.”
The M Training Center at the Cathedral Arts Apartments — the second M Training Center in Detroit — was made possible with a $500,000 capital investment from Citizens.
“The M Training Center is a key community asset offering hands-on training and career path programming and job placement for residents, not just here at the apartments, but across the city,” said Yasmeen Jasey, Michigan regional president for Citizens. “The center includes a fully functional sample apartment, which is so cool; it includes a kitchen, a bathroom and a bedroom where students can be trained in areas of maintenance, and at the end of the four-week program, receive a certificate. At Citizens, we are so committed to helping those we serve thrive, and we’re so excited to see the amazing things that the community can accomplish with the support of these new facilities and programs.”
The Cathedral Arts Apartments are a joint venture between MHT Housing and the Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament; MHT Housing handles the day-to-day management of the 53 two-bedroom units, which rent for as low as $578 per month. The cathedral's involvement in planning and implementing the project is a fruit of Art for God's Sake, a nonprofit dedicated to raising funds to realize the cathedral's strategic vision.
Sixteen units are supported by project-based vouchers from the Detroit Housing Commission, ensuring residents pay no more than 30 percent of their income on rent and utilities.
Funding for the project was made possible through the Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA) and Citizens, including Low-Income Housing Tax Credits and Housing Trust Funds, as well as contributions from the Archdiocese of Detroit, MHT Housing and the Detroit Housing Commission.
“MSHDA is proud to invest in a development that brings 53 deeply affordable homes to life in a community rich with history and promise,” said Chad Benson, the agency’s director of development. “Cathedral Arts is more than just housing; it’s an investment in people, in opportunity, and in the future of Detroit.”
At the end of the press conference, Fox took to the podium to once again thank Fr. Mech for being the spiritual leader of the project and presented the rector with a special gift, a chasuble from the Vatican.
“We got in contact with the team that builds, manufactures, and crafts the ropes for the pope for the last couple of hundred years, and we’ve been successful in doing the exact same for Father J.J.," Fox said. “Father J.J., the community is very thankful to you, the archbishop, and we are proud of the mission and what you do for Detroit. We are so thankful.”
After the presentation, a surprise video clip was played from Hollywood actor Mark Wahlberg, an outspoken Catholic, congratulating the community, the Archdiocese of Detroit and everyone involved in the Cathedral Arts Apartments on a successful launch to the project. Wahlberg also provided a video during the groundbreaking ceremony in 2023.
“Congratulations to the Archdiocese of Detroit on the grand opening of the Cathedral Arts Apartments. This development doesn’t just provide affordable housing and job training; it truly ‘unleashes the Gospel,’” Wahlberg said. “The Cathedral Arts Apartments bring tremendous change to the North End of Detroit, offering hope, stability and opportunity for future residents. Absolutely amazing, what a big win. God bless you, keep following the purpose of God for you. God bless you.”
