The former Northville Downs racetrack officially started its second act on Wednesday, as crews opened the first stretch of a new riverfront park that brings a long-buried piece of the Rouge River back into the open. Fresh paths, new pedestrian bridges, and a relocated historic log cabin now frame the gateway to the green space just outside downtown Northville, where city and development leaders gathered for a mid-morning dedication while construction continues across the wider site.
Park features and restoration
According to a developer announcement from Toll Brothers, the master plan centers on a roughly 10.38-acre River Park built out with scenic overlooks, native landscaping, pedestrian bridges and a network of walking and cycling trails. The release describes the green space as the signature public amenity sitting at the heart of the 48-acre redevelopment.
Daylighting the Rouge River
Crews have restored about 1,100 feet of the Rouge River to an open channel between Beal Street and Seven Mile Road, bringing back to daylight a stretch that was tucked into a concrete culvert in 1962, as reported by Spectrum News. The rerouted channel is designed to improve habitat, bolster flood management, and open public access while folding the river directly into the park’s layout. As landscaping and finish work continue, the resurfaced waterway is intended to serve as the park’s central showpiece.
Homes, public ownership and access
The Downs development combines residential, retail, and more than 15 acres of parkland across roughly 48 acres, and the developer has said the River Park will be deeded to the City of Northville to lock in public access, DBusiness reported. “Having our first models open and welcoming buyers is a major moment for this project,” Hunter Pasteur CEO Randy Wertheimer said, according to the outlet. The project’s own marketing materials tout the riverfront park as the neighborhood’s centerpiece, The Downs.
Funding, connections and what’s next
City officials say the new park will stitch downtown pathways into the region’s broader greenway network and will be celebrated with a ribbon-cutting ceremony this morning; the mayor’s community update also notes a historic log cabin has been moved to the south entrance of the park to serve as a welcome center, the City of Northville wrote. Local grants and developer funding backed the river restoration, and the park will connect to a SEMCOG-supported $1.2 million trail project linking the River Park to the Hines Park Greenway, WHMI reported. Officials say the River Park will be open to the public even as construction pushes ahead on nearby blocks.
The river’s return marks a turning point for a property that hosted harness racing for decades before the track shut down in early 2024, which cleared the way for redevelopment, PlayMichigan reported. For neighbors, the emerging park already offers a new public greenway, even as the rest of The Downs works toward full buildout over the next two years.
