Once overlooked and underused, nine alleys across Detroit are being transformed into public spaces filled with art, culture, and community programming. The Arts Alleys initiative, led by the Office of Arts, Culture and Entrepreneurship, is turning neglected infrastructure into places where people can gather and connect.
Each alley is shaped in collaboration with local residents, organizations, and artists, ensuring the spaces reflect the character and needs of the surrounding neighborhoods. From murals and sculptures to gardens and gathering areas, the goal is to create safe, welcoming environments that celebrate Detroit’s creativity and strengthen community ties.
“This was given to us as a great assignment,” recalls Rochelle Riley, Detroit’s Director of Arts and Culture. “Arts alleys were being done in other states and in some neighborhoods in Detroit, so when our office got funding, we were asked to use it for that. But what we’ve done here is make it Detroit’s own, part of the larger effort to make the city more beautiful, whether through development, nature, or art.”
ROCHELLE RILEY
For Riley, the inspiration also came from her own experience. “I used to live in Louisville, Kentucky, where alleys were a natural part of the landscape. That wasn’t the case here,” she says. “The City and communities were spending weeks every month cleaning alleys. The Arts Alleys were the next step, a way to take spaces people were already using and make them even better.”
In some cases, that meant building from scratch. In others, it meant elevating what was already there. Old Redford’s alley, for instance, had long been in use but needed improvement. “Now, with murals and enhancements, it’s an even bigger place of pride,” Riley says.
Other projects were driven directly by neighborhood organizations. The Bailey Park Alley emerged from work with the Bailey Park Project, while the North End’s Agri-Arts Alley grew out of the Oakland Avenue Urban Farm’s creative and agricultural programming.
“They’ve been hosting farm-to-table events and community education for years,” Riley explains. “Now they’ve got a beautiful alley to match.”
The Snowden Hartwell Alley, guided by environmentally conscious neighbors, was redesigned without concrete, using grass, rain barrels, and stormwater strategies. Meanwhile, the Passage to Wellbeing Alley features solar stations, butterfly gardens and sculptures that make it both a space of beauty and resilience.
If there’s one unified theme, it’s that the alleys weren’t chosen from the top down. “We didn’t pick the alleys—they picked us,” Riley says. “We went to places where people were already doing great things, and our role was to enhance and support their vision.”
That commitment to collaboration is central to nearly every City initiative. That was true of the alleys as well. Every project involved extensive community engagement — picnics, design sessions, surveys and hands-on workshops. Sidewalk Detroit, a cultural partner, helped host meetings where residents could literally map out their ideas.
NORTH END ALLEY BEFORE AND AFTER
“People drew circles for where they wanted green space, where they wanted art, where kids could play,” Riley recalls. “Then our design company partner’s job was to match what the residents asked for with what we could afford. It wasn’t about us deciding—it was about reflecting what the community wanted down to the color palettes and plant choices.”
The results are as diverse as the neighborhoods themselves. In total, the new phase has added 47 murals, many of which turn alleys into what Riley calls “outdoor museums.” Artists were selected through an open call that drew more than 130 applicants from across Detroit and beyond. Final picks were made by the neighbors in the alley, using a comprehensive look book and a review of the artists’ past work.
“Every mural, every sculpture was chosen by the people who live there,” Riley emphasizes. “This is community engagement to the nth degree.”
Highlights include sculptural installations like a repurposed rowboat turned into art, and major mural commissions from local artists such as Chaz Miller in Old Redford.
For Riley, the value of projects like Arts Alleys goes far beyond beautification.
Sam White, who runs Shakespeare in Detroit, said it best: it’s business that brings people to Detroit, but it’s art that makes them stay, she says.
Riley sees arts and culture as essential to both economic and social vitality.
“People want to live where there’s beauty, music, culture—things that make their lives better,” she explains. “There shouldn’t be a workforce development conversation that doesn’t include creative workforce development. That’s how you keep talent here.”
Riley also places Arts Alleys in the broader context of Detroit’s comeback. “This is about turning Detroit into the city it was destined to be before the hiccup with finances,” she says. “It’s about pride, identity, and quality of life.”
By many measures, the program is already a success. The alleys are being actively used for bike rides, neighborhood gatherings, and cultural events. Each site has a designated “alley fellow” responsible for upkeep and programming, supported by two-year grants.
“The success is that we provided jobs, uplifted artists, and gave communities spaces they’re proud of,” Riley says. “We’ve already had outreach from around the world—people want to come see what Detroit is doing with arts and revitalization.”
International recognition has included an invitation to Tokyo, where Detroit was one of four U.S. cities asked to share its approach to creative placemaking. “That tells you how far this has reached,” Riley notes.
While philanthropy has powered much of the initiative so far, Riley is focused now on securing long-term funding. “We have to make sure this work continues,” she says.
“That means ensuring artists are paid what they deserve, maintaining an Office of Arts and Culture permanently, and raising pride in Detroit as an international city of performing arts.”
In just five years, her office has helped re-established the post of Detroit Poet Laureate, seen the appointment of the first-ever Composer Laureate and commissioned new public art like the upcoming series of Joe Louis statues focused on his life “outside the ring” as a horseman and golfer.
Partnerships with organizations like the Detroit Black Film Festival and Canvs’ Detroit Mural Map continue to extend the reach of Detroit’s creative community.
For Riley, Arts Alleys are one piece of a larger vision. “My goal is that people around the world know how great our artists are,” she says. “This is about more than alleys—it’s about who we are as a city.”
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