DETROIT (WWJ) -- Some Southwest Detroit residents are receiving free upgrades to their homes as construction progresses on the Gordie Howe International Bridge.
The City of Detroit, having received around $30 million from the Canadian government as part of a land swap deal to accommodate for the bridge project, is using $6 million of that money to help homeowners in the area of Springwells Street and I-75 who chose to stay, despite the construction.
The help comes in the form upgrades to their homes that include insulation, double-paned windows and new central air units that offer improved air filtration, alleviating the expected noise and dust from the construction on the bridge.
Ground broke last year on the bridge, which is set to link I-75 and I-96 in Detroit with Highway 401 in Windsor. Construction is expected to last until 2024, and Simone Sagovac with the Southwest Detroit Community Benefits Coalition says the program to help homeowners "has been good for everybody."
"If we're going to have increased truck traffic, there's most likely going to be increased impacts to the community," Sagovac told WWJ's Jon Hewett. "So we really fought for options and a good option for us was to look at how we could protect people inside their homes who wanted to stay in the area and that included a program we collaborated with the city on to put these new windows and air filtration in the homes."
Those eligible for the free upgrades include any home within 300 feet of the construction site.
Jose Guzman, who lives on Central Avenue, was the first resident in the area to have the work done to his home.
"The work is excellent. I can't complain at all," Guzman told WWJ. "They do a very good job and if they see any problem, they come and they fix it right away. I'm very pleased with the work and the contractor of the city."
Officials say 39 homes are expected to receive upgrades by the end of 2019 and up to 200 total homes could be upgraded by the end of the project. 90 percent of the homeowners in the area have taken the city up on its offer.
The bridge is named after Detroit Red Wings legend Gordie Howe, who played more than two decades in Detroit.
