Healthy Home Assessments in Ecorse

Ecorse, house by house

Downriver steel town on the Detroit River where the Michigan Steel Mill of 1923 grew into Great Lakes Steel, with a waterfront turning back toward recreation. On the record: A hub of Detroit River rum-running during Prohibition, when an estimated 75 percent of liquor smuggled into the United States crossed the Detroit River. Some 9,257 residents occupy about 3,476 households. Settled by French habitants in the late 1700s; the name derives from 'Riviere aux Ecorces' ('River of the Bark'), a reference to bark-covered dwellings, and the riverbank had earlier been used as a Native American burial ground.

Homes and households

Of units counted in 2023, 73.9% are detached single-family homes and 64.8% of occupied units are owner-occupied. Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher come to 8.8%. Also on the ground: Albert B. Buday Civic Center.

With detached stock at 73.9%, the walkthrough establishes the building type first and reads the air handling against it.

What stands in Ecorse:

• U.S. Steel Great Lakes Works. Steel complex descended from the Michigan Steel Mill, which rolled its first steel on July 5, 1923 and grew into Great Lakes Steel.
• Former Ecorse Rowing Club. Detroit Riverfront rowing club that served as a U.S. Olympic Development Center from 1967 to 1969; its building is slated for recreational reuse.
• Ecorse boat launch. City riverfront launch recently upgraded for Detroit River access.
• Dingell Park. Detroit River waterfront park improved with a kayak-focused access project.
• Pepper Park. Ecorse Creek park targeted for riparian habitat and recreation improvements under the Ecorse Creek vision plan.

Streets and settlements

Addresses fall in 48229. The city is far smaller than its historical footprint: the original 54-square-mile Ecorse Township seeded at least seven other Downriver municipalities plus part of Detroit.