In March 2007, the developer broke ground on the Studio One Apartments project on the former site of the Vernors plant. The five-story building features 128 one- and two-bedroom apartments and 30,000 square feet of retail. It was the first major market-rate residential project in Detroit in more than 30 years and was the university's first partnership with a private developer. Located in an area with a 39% poverty rate and an unemployment rate of 13.5%, this mixed-use development is in the city's cultural center. This market-rate, mixed-use project created 195 construction jobs and 72 permanent jobs. A ribbon-cutting ceremony for the development was held July 29, 2008.
