DETROIT – Linda Smith wants to restore what has been missing in Detroit neighborhoods.
As Executive Director of U-SNAP-BAC Inc. (United Streets Networking and Planning; Building A Community), Smith has worked for 30 years to make the Morningside neighborhood in east Detroit a better place.
Smith is this year’s first Black History Month honoree in the Ilitch Sports + Entertainment Game Changers series, which celebrates community members making a profound difference in Detroit. In partnership with Comerica Bank, the Detroit Red Wings and Detroit Tigers recognize one Game Changers honoree per week during select months throughout the year to receive a $1,000 grant dedicated to the charity of their choice.
As a child of the Jeffries Projects and the widow of a Detroit firefighter, Smith has never lived in east Detroit, but she has worked to fill the gaps she knows are there.
“I could do everything I needed to do before I made it home, like a grocery store, ATM, CVS,” Smith said. “In the morning, I could get a cup of coffee. That's what's inspired me to do the work that I do—what’s missing here, other communities have it.”
Much can be made about the more than 100 single and multi-family units that U-SNAP-BAC has developed in the Morningside neighborhood under Smith’s leadership—units that can be rented for as little as $300 per month—but building affordable housing is only the first step in neighborhood revitalization.
“When I started in 1995, that corner of Alter Road and Mack Avenue was vacant. Nothing had been built there in years,” Smith said. “At that intersection today, there’s a gas station, an Aldi supermarket that at one point, was the highest-selling of their stores in the whole state, and a number of other businesses that support the neighborhood.”
However, the community, much like the rest of east Detroit, has been struggling to keep commercial properties in business.
To mitigate these issues, Smith has spearheaded financial literacy programs as a prerequisite for homebuyers, among other programs, to keep the money within the community.
“The mayor is not going to come on your block and find dollars for you to fix up your house,” Smith said. “You have to take advantage of the resources to help you make better decisions.”
For seniors in the community, U-SNAP-BAC has provided laptops to help learn online basics and finance housing repairs. Estate planning is another issue for seniors that Smith is working on.
“You may be surprised at the number of people who, especially in the Black community, write it down on a piece of paper and put it away because they don't want to talk about it with their kids,” Smith said.
All these initiatives are important for the future of Morningside, which has consistently ranked as one of the most desirable neighborhoods in east Detroit. An aspect of the affordable housing revolution that Smith has kickstarted is the rehabilitation of Detroit Land Bank homes and how that affects demographic change and the outlook of the community.
“We just sold one in November to a Latino family on Three Mile Road,” Smith said. “They were able to purchase a home in Morningside.”
Smith hopes her Game Changers recognition is another step for awareness of her organization’s work.
“I'm trying to make sure that U-SNAP-BAC is making a difference in every neighborhood, on every block, so that we can become the neighbor to the neighborhoods,” Smith said.
