After nearly a 1 1/2 years of work, the streetscape construction in Detroit's Greektown is now mostly over and Monroe Street is wide open for business, casual strolling and outdoor dining – although never again for full vehicle traffic.
So far, the response to the new streetscape from Greektown visitors has been overwhelmingly positive. Many businesses have seen a surge in customers in recent months, which for them has made $20 million in improvements worth the wait and the slowdown that everyone experienced during construction.
“It’s super nice now. It's an improvement," Detroit resident Vincent Richardson, 64, said last week while walking through the commercial and entertainment district. "I think they probably had to do it to keep up with all
the competition that’s popping up (downtown), to make it more of a destination spot.”
Crews recently finished the bulk of the construction work that expanded and beautified three full blocks of Monroe Street in the heart of Greektown.
The streetscape idea originated from Greektown businesses nearly a decade ago and was led by the Greektown Neighborhood Partnership. One of the project's aims was to help Greektown compete for attention with newly revitalized areas of downtown Detroit, such as Capitol Park.
The Greektown work required shutting down those blocks and their intersections for months to all but a trickle of foot traffic.
Although most Greektown business, restaurants and bars, as well as Hollywood Casino Greektown, stayed open during the construction period, which began in spring 2025, many of the small business owners reported a 50% or greater drop in customers once the temporary barricades went up.
The project's $20 million cost was paid for entirely through state funds in the 2023 state budget surplus. A separate but related project at the edge of Greektown, the new Gratiot-Randolph Plaza, finished in July.
The three blocks of Monroe Street reopened in phases, starting in June with block 500 – home to the casino, Astoria Pastry Shop, Pegasus and Golden Fleece, among other businesses.
Block 400 – Fishbones, Firebird Tavern and a busy Wayne County public records office, reopened in August. And Block 300 – the Old Shillelagh, Delux Bar & Lounge, Table No. 2 – reopened a few weeks ago.
“It’s in its infancy and maybe just three weeks that our block has been done, but we’ve definitely seen an increase in foot traffic and curiosity and amazement,” said Firebird Tavern coowner Owen Burke. “People we interview here for jobs are like, ‘I bring my girlfriends down here all the time. We love Greektown.’ It haven’t heard that in awhile, so it’s refreshing to hear."
More room for walking
The new and much wider sidewalks on Monroe Street left room for only a single, one-way lane for vehicles down the center. And that traffic lane has not yet opened.
Ayesha Maxwell, executive director of the Greektown Neighborhood Partnership, said that vehicle traffic is expected to stay off Block 500 at least through the year and they are in the process of getting city approval to keep vehicles off Block 500 permanently.
Block 400 is expected to stay vehicle-free until after the Detroit Free Press Marathon, which finishes Oct. 18. Maxwell said that when Block 400 does reopen to vehicles, the one-way flow would move eastward.
There is no date yet for when Block 300 might reopen to vehicles, she said.
Every business along Block 500 expressed an interest in keeping it vehicle-free permanently, Maxwell said, so the Greektown Neighborhood Partnership petitioned the city for a pedestrians-only designation. The formal approval process likely won't happen until next year, she said.
While there is no similar petition underway yet for Blocks 400 and 300, Maxwell said that could change in the future.
“Ideally, I think the public would like to see all three blocks closed," she said. “It just feels really, really good not to have a car chasing behind you.”
Many visitors want cars banned
Mike Czerny, 80, who lives near downtown and often walks through Greektown, said he would like to see the district stay pedestrians-only.
“It’s a big improvement, if they keep the cars off," Czerny said. "People going down here don’t know how to drive. They’ll park – everything will get backed up. Or they’ll speed down here.”
Greektown visitor Daniel Parsons, who lives in Mount Clemens, felt similarly about the car ban being a good thing. He was enjoying lunch last week with his daughter at the Old Shillelagh to celebrate his 70th birthday.
“This is a whole lot better than it was," Parsons said of the streetscape. "I just hope they maintain it.”
Yanni Dionisopoulos, who owns Greektown's Golden Fleece and The Greek Restaurant, as well as Delux Bar & Lounge, said his business has been way up since the streetscape opened and better than he expected.
"As you can see right now we have a full patio, even though it’s not the warmest day," he said. “Finally we’re getting to do what we know best, which is offer the Greek hospitality that’s in our DNA. And people are loving it."
Contact JC Reindl: 313-378-5460 or jcreindl@freepress.com. Follow him on X @jcreindl
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Greektown bounces back to life after streetscape update. What changed
