The Bagley Development Group has kicked off a $75M renovation project located in downtown Detroit that’s slated to bring 148 luxury one and two-bedroom apartments to the city. BDG is a Black-led development team that is comprised of managing partner Emmett Moten, Scott Allen, Larry Brinker Sr., Tom Goss, Richard Hosey, Roy Roberts and Jim Thrower, who combined have decades of development experience in Detroit.
Larry Brinker Sr. is a partner in the Bagley Development Group, and spoke with rolling out about the renovation project and what it will do for the city of Detroit.
What does it mean to be involved in a project of this magnitude?
This is an amazing venture for us. A project of this size, in my opinion, shows the whole Detroit community that African Americans still have a stake in this town and that we have the horsepower and the knowledge to actually put together projects like this and bring them to fruition. We’ve had very successful business people here in the city for a lot of years, and if you look across the country, Detroit has more African American businesses than anywhere else, but we weren’t stepping forward and really being a major part of ownership in the downtown area, and other areas. So this is a major step, building upon what’s been happening with Detroit being a renaissance city, and it gives us a chance to create our legacy and build upon our legacy even more for our children and our grandchildren.
What is this project likely to do for the city of Detroit?
Well, first and foremost, it creates jobs and creates good union-paying jobs. I’ve been a union member for 45 years and I know how important it is to have African Americans working in skilled trades. This provides an opportunity to bring more African Americans as apprentices and let them work their way up through the system. So first it creates jobs. Secondly, it creates more affordable housing here in the city, good affordable housing, that all Detroit is taking share in so people won’t move out of the city. And then thirdly, it helps to continue to build upon this revitalization of downtown and bring Detroit back to being a proud downtown city like we used to be years ago.
