Arboretum Detroit’s green oasis in Poletown East offers vision for reforesting city

August 16, 2026

Since 2019, Arboretum Detroit has been transforming vacant parcels in the Poletown East neighborhood by planting over 1,800 trees across five acres, creating interconnected green spaces on more than 55 formerly empty lots. Co-founder Andrew "Birch" Kemp shifted from informal tree planting to a strategic approach of acquiring land through the Detroit Land Bank Authority to prevent speculation and protect the forests being created. This initiative addresses the neighborhood's industrial legacy, including decades of pollution from a GM plant and a waste incinerator that closed in 2019, by using trees to filter air pollution and create community gathering spaces.

Who is affected

Residents of Poletown East neighborhood in Detroit
Andrew "Birch" Kemp and other co-founders of Arboretum Detroit
Community gardeners, urban farmers, and neighborhood organizations participating in the landscape
Birds and pollinators gaining new habitat
Residents in downwind neighborhoods who benefit from particulate pollution capture
Detroit Land Bank Authority (providing parcels)
Planet Detroit (organizing community walks)
Volunteers who plant and maintain the forests

What action is being taken

Arboretum Detroit is planting trees and expanding forests across vacant parcels
The organization is acquiring parcels through the Detroit Land Bank Authority and private donations
Volunteers are continuing to plant trees
Planet Detroit is conducting a community walk on Saturday, August 22
The city is identifying areas for long-term investment in parks and ecological restoration (guided by the 2022 Parks and Recreation strategic plan)

Why it matters

This initiative demonstrates an alternative approach to managing urban vacancy in cities with significant population decline and vacant land. Rather than viewing empty parcels solely as future development sites, Arboretum Detroit shows how intentional greening can address environmental justice issues in formerly industrialized neighborhoods by filtering air pollution, reducing urban heat, managing stormwater, and providing community spaces. The project is particularly significant for Poletown East, which suffered displacement and environmental harm from industrial development, offering a form of healing and improved quality of life. It also provides a replicable model for Detroit's 18 square miles of vacant land and positions the city as having unique potential for urban reforestation compared to other metropolitan areas.

What's next

Kemp envisions tree-lined corridors connecting neighborhoods to the Joe Louis Greenway
Expansion of the forest network depends on future policy decisions and volunteer engagement
Volunteers will continue planting as the work remains unfinished
The tree canopies are expected to continue spreading over time as young forests mature

Read full article from source: bridgedetroit.com