A new four-story apartment building is bringing 60 affordable homes to Detroit's Woodbridge neighborhood, part of a $25.8 million development effort. The project includes 40 one-bedroom and 20 two-bedroom units, giving Detroiters more housing options.
According to the City of Detroit, the development — tied to Woodbridge Neighborhood Development and Cinnaire Solutions — brings 60 affordable homes to the neighborhood. The city's announcement frames the opening as a milestone for a project that broke ground last year. As Crain's Detroit Business reports, the building will feature a four-story structure split between 40 one-bedroom and 20 two-bedroom apartments.
From Groundbreaking to Grand Opening
The project traces back to a groundbreaking ceremony in May 2025, ahead of the planned addition of 60 affordable apartment units to Woodbridge.
Affordable-housing developments across Detroit typically set rents using the area median income, or AMI, formula — a standard the same BridgeDetroit report says virtually every affordable project in the city relies on. For a one-person household, 80% of AMI works out to $44,000 a year in income; for a four-person household, that threshold rises to $62,800, according to the outlet's analysis.
A Formula With Limits
BridgeDetroit's reporting points to a wrinkle in that system: Detroit's AMI calculation is based on the broader Detroit-Livonia-Warren metro area, whose suburban incomes can run $20,000 to $40,000 higher than the median income of Detroit residents themselves. That gap, the outlet notes, can make some nominally affordable units still out of reach for lower-income Detroiters, even as new developments market themselves as serving the community.
No income limits, rent schedule, or leasing details specific to the Woodbridge project have been verified, and it remains unclear how occupancy or waitlists there compare to other affordable developments around the city.
Part of a Broader Citywide Push
Woodbridge's new units join a string of affordable-housing projects moving through Detroit this year. In Jefferson-Chalmers, the Jefferson Avenue Apartments will add 52 affordable units with rents as low as $351 a month, serving residents earning 30%, 50% and 60% of area median income alongside supportive services, according to Fox 2 Detroit. Construction there is already underway and is expected to wrap up in 2027, the station reports.
Near Eastern Market, a 78-unit affordable development called The Hive on Russell opened on October 2, with units reserved for households earning between 30% and 60% of area median income — roughly $33,000 to $63,000 annually, according to MLive. The city contributed about $4.5 million toward that project, including $4 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding and $445,000 from Detroit's Affordable Housing Development and Preservation Fund, per the same report. MLive also notes that Develop Detroit has announced plans for a second phase at the site that would add 70 more affordable apartments for seniors.
Elsewhere, the Henry Street Apartments project converted seven historic buildings in Detroit's Cass-Henry neighborhood into residential housing and community space, according to CBS News Detroit. When finished, that development will feature 170 residential units, with 49% set aside as affordable housing for households earning 30% to 60% of area median income. Additional residential buildings tied to the nearby District Detroit development are expected to open through 2027 as construction continues on remaining phases, the station reports.
Together, these projects suggest Detroit's affordable-housing pipeline is expanding across multiple neighborhoods at once, even as debates continue over how affordability is defined and who ultimately benefits from it. For Woodbridge, the completed Canfield Parks building marks the latest entry in that citywide effort, adding dozens of new homes to a neighborhood long shaped by its historic housing stock.
