Highland Park, a small part of Detroit, is crumbling. The school has closed down, the street lights have been removed, it’s quickly becoming comepletely abandoned.

However, one woman is putting up a fight and has plans for Highland Park to flourish again, to become an urban paradise.

Shamayim “Shu” Harris lives in a house on Avalon Street. She has started the plans and the work to create an eco-village, a community living space.

Her project “Avalon Village” is

“In the middle of one of Detroit’s most blighted and abandoned neighborhoods, Shamayim ‘SHU’ Harris and her team of engineers, futurists, artists, urban farmers and their nationwide allies are reimagining public and private space. This is an invitation to step into the village with us…

Where schools have been defunded and closed down, we are building a Homework House. Where city streetlights have been repossessed and people left in the dark, we’re building cooperatively-owned and operated solar streetlights. Where healthy food offerings are few and far between, we’re building a greenhouse-to-cafe food system. 

After years of patient work acquiring the land, seeking the permits, and building our expert team, we’re finally ready to birth this baby. Phase 1 is scheduled to be completed by late-September 2016. It will cost us almost $250,000*, employ dozens of local workers, and rally hundreds of volunteers to our city.”

According to their Kickstarter campaign that aims to raise $241,900. At time of writing they have hit $195,313 with over 1200 backers.

They plan green power, community spaces, local food supply and learning centers and much more.

A great and lofty project!

See more on their Kickstarter campaign.

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