New Path Villages
Detroit
New Path Villages Detroit
New Path Villages Detroit was established as a nonprofit 501(c)3 in 2021 by native Detroiters. Prior to that time some of its programs started as Burners Without Borders (BWB) Detroit in 2007, and those programs still continue to this day.
Our Detroit based organization will be creating self-managed communities of cost-effective tiny homes for people in need of housing. It’s our belief that housing is a basic human need that everyone deserves. New Path Villages seeks to bridge the often insurmountable gap between the street and conventional housing with a variety of inclusive, cost-effective housing options.
The village will be located behind the affiliated church at 4103 Cadillac Blvd, Detroit MI 48214. See below for artistic renderings of our proposed designs.
What Would Detroit Look Like If...
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There were fewer people sleeping on the street and in abandoned houses
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Communities, supported by their residents, had small villages built where there is now blight and neglect on a vacant landscape
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City of Detroit government-sponsored and supported this effort city wide
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Neighborhoods experienced more of the revitalization seen commercially in the city
Latest News
OCTOBER 8, 2022
New Path Villages hosted a Fall Harvest Dinner.
Thank you to everyone who made our Fall Harvest Dinner a success..to everyone who made and prepped food..to all the local stores that donated food, to Mint Artists Guild for setting up a creation station, and to all the folks who helped set up and tear down..and esp to all the neighbors who joined us for a meal and chats!!
AUGUST 18, 2022
Transcript from the WDET interview. "New Path Villages aims to create a community for those who don’t have one"
JULY 19, 2022
New Path Villages will be on WDET (101.9 FM) Tuesday, July 19 at 1 pm, being interviewed by Tia Graham about our project. Give a listen if you’re free!
JULY 2, 2022
Community invited to blessing ceremony celebrating a unique tiny-home emergency shelter in east-side Detroit neighborhood
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Mike Willenborg, New Path Villages
586-623-7654
DETROIT- A newly-founded nonprofit organization, New Path Villages (NPV), is creating a community of tiny homes for the chronically homeless. An empty church on Detroit’s lower east side is currently under renovation and will serve as a community center to raise funds for the village community. The main sanctuary in the church will hold weddings, church services, music, and arts performances, and a full art gallery is planned. In addition, a sober bar will be on-site and a fully-functioning commercial kitchen will be available for rent and support community events.
The lots adjacent to the church will become the village housing site. The living quarters will begin with 10 tiny frame-built homes, approximately 240 square feet in size. They will be supported by shared facilities for cooking, restrooms, laundry, and gathering areas. New Path Villages is framed by HUD standards for the unhoused, informed by Detroit's Department of Housing and Revitalization, and will align with the goals of the Homeless Action Network of Detroit (HAND) the area’s lead agency for the continuum of care for Detroit.
New Path Villages Detroit is built with community in mind. Because each home is only so big (human-sized) – residents are oriented to spend more time outside of their personal dwellings and in common spaces. NPV targets the “Chronically Homeless”-- people living on the streets for one year or more, and who either cannot or choose not to gain access to a traditional dormitory-style shelter. This specific sector of the “unhoused population” does not currently have other emergency shelter options in the city of Detroit.
An ecumenical blessing ceremony will be held on Saturday, July 2, 11 am, at the New Path Villages site (4103 Cadillac). “We are inviting religious leaders from many faith communities to participate in this event. We all share the belief that poverty and homelessness are human rights issues, and every human being deserves a place to live. We hope our partners, neighbors, and supporters will join us to bless this space and our upcoming efforts to support our community’s most vulnerable citizens.”
Participants will have an opportunity to learn more about New Path Villages, the vision for this unique shelter community, and ways to support the work!
JUNE 2022:
Work has begun inside the Church to rebuild floors, walls, and a couple of ceiling spots. The basement is also under construction to repair the ceiling and restore the floor and kitchen walls /cabinets. Work continues in the school building to demo the rooms that will be used for the Community kitchen/meeting room/computer room and several training program rooms. Roof and HVAC work to start so.
We are very excited to announce that the past minister of the church, the Rev. Dr. Diane Oliver-Page Hairston has expressed interest in holding Sunday services in the Sanctuary again. She also brings a Master's degree background in Social Work that will be invaluable to our counseling programs for the village residents.
