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Final phase in Hamtramck construction project to put discrimination case to rest

The longest-running housing discrimination case in the U.S. is coming to an end.

A federal court in the early 1970s said Hamtramck had targeted African-American homes for demolition in the name of urban renewal. The city agreed to build 200 homes for the plaintiffs. And 40 years later, they're finally going to be finished.

"It's a huge deal for the city," said Jason Friedmann, the city's community and economic development director. "We're pretty proud of the fact that we're making right the problems that did occur in the past, and we're excited to give these plaintiffs a new opportunity in the city of Hamtramck."

Plaintiffs and their descendants get first dibs on the homes.

"Some of them are great-grandchildren of the original plaintiffs," said Friedman. "Quite a few of them still live in the Detroit area, but we have one person moving in from from California, and I believe there's another person actually moving from overseas."
 
Friedman says the city's fulfillment of its legal obligations will also lift a court-ordered ban on city-owned residential property sales. He says the ban has put a stranglehold on the city's development for 40 years.

Sarah Hulett is Michigan Public's Director of Amplify & Longform, helping reporters to do their best work.