U of D Mercy Law School and living downtown, input? (Detroit: apartments, rentals)

[The_Cadillac_Lawyer]

Will be starting U of D Law downtown 48226 in the fall, and hope to find a place to live within walking distance. I've concentrated on either Millender Center, or 300 Riverfront. Has anyone had any experience with these locations, and getting to school. I seen Riverfront has a people mover stop, is it worthwhile to ride the people mover?

**disclaimer** I'm firm on my decision to attend U of D so not looking to be dissuaded. I'm not afraid of living in Detroit, as I grew up there for 14 years before moving to Ann Arbor, so I don't need the dangerous city lecture either.

[Coldjensens]

We had a law clerk who lived downtown and attended U-D Law, but I am not sure how he got to the school. He did not have a car. He lived on the riverfront for a time and near eastern market for a time. Obviously it can be done, but how, I cannot say.

[tabbcat]

I went to UDM Law, worked at the Ren Cen and lived in Riverfront Apartments and loved it! I used the People Mover to get to work, took it back home and then grabbed my car to go to evening classes although I suppose I could have taken the People Mover to class too. The Joe Louis station is always pretty empty (however you feel about that).

It was super convenient and living at Riverfront felt safe enough. The only pain in the ass was that there really aren't any grocery stores downtown really.... and you don't want to visit the gas station by the law school too late in the evening. It's really awesome being connected to the Joe though

[Dexterguy]

Originally Posted by trudawg

Will be starting U of D Law downtown 48226 in the fall, and hope to find a place to live within walking distance. I've concentrated on either Millender Center, or 300 Riverfront. Has anyone had any experience with these locations, and getting to school. I seen Riverfront has a people mover stop, is it worthwhile to ride the people mover?

**disclaimer** I'm firm on my decision to attend U of D so not looking to be dissuaded. I'm not afraid of living in Detroit, as I grew up there for 14 years before moving to Ann Arbor, so I don't need the dangerous city lecture either.

Millender Center or 300 Riverfront Towers are both good options. Like other posters have said, you may find it pretty difficult to find any type of shopping downtown, so I would suggest you may want to find someone that would be willing to let you borrow their car periodly or find a friend to drive to grocery stores, etc with.

[The_Cadillac_Lawyer]

good points!

I will have a car, just don't plan on driving it much if I can avoid it. I was really excited to see that Riverfront had a people mover station.
From the research I did it seems that the 100 and 200 towers of riverfront are rented apartments and the 300 tower are owned units. I was advised to try my best to find a owner leased unit in 300 as the other two towers have service issues being that it is all rentals.
If one was to ride the people mover to U of D, would you get off at Ren Cen and walk?
As far as the supermarkets, I am worried about that. My good friend lives just across the river in Windsor and I visit quite often, would it be foreseeable to do grocery shopping in Windsor?

Tabbcat, what was your experience at U of D Law? I'm taking evening classes as well, and hoped to get a part-time job at the law school if possible

[ForStarters]

Originally Posted by trudawg

Will be starting U of D Law downtown 48226 in the fall, and hope to find a place to live within walking distance. I've concentrated on either Millender Center, or 300 Riverfront. Has anyone had any experience with these locations, and getting to school. I seen Riverfront has a people mover stop, is it worthwhile to ride the people mover?

**disclaimer** I'm firm on my decision to attend U of D so not looking to be dissuaded. I'm not afraid of living in Detroit, as I grew up there for 14 years before moving to Ann Arbor, so I don't need the dangerous city lecture either.

Hey trudawg,

A lot of UDM Law kids live at Millender. Millender is only 2.5 blocks away from the school, has a workout facility, indoor pool, rooftop running track/tennis/basketball courts. The building is very secure, sometimes almost obnoxiously so. The apartments are decent, but very bland- no real character and the decor is 1980s. (You won't be getting stainless steel appliances and granite countertops.) Millender's residents are friendly and mostly young professional/grad student-types or empty nesters. The People Mover also picks up at Milledender, which is convenient if you need to get around downtown. Views from the apartments can either be absolutely stunning to horrible if you are facing south towards the river and are on floors 16 and under, which look directly at the side of Marriot Hotel. The best feature of Millender Center is its proximity to the local bars and UDM hangouts, i.e. Jacoby's, Sweetwater Tavern, the Detroiter, and Opus One. At the ground floor of Millender there is a convenience store which carries essentials but is not a great place to buy meat or produce. Head up Woodward or Midtown for that. Google Kim's Produce, also HoneyBee Market. Prices at Millender are not bad compared to other downtown places, but not cheap. A 1 bedroom is around $750-850/mo.

I don't know much about 300 Riverfront. I've never met any UDM Law students that live there but I’m sure it’s possible. The Riverfront towers are somewhat isolated from the rest of downtown (supposedly, they were designed that way). You could take the people mover from the JLA stop over to the Bricktown stop to get to school, unfortunately, since DDOT changed the the direction the train moves, it will take you longer as you will have to ride 3/4 of the circuit. My guess would be that it takes 10-12 minutes to get from JLA to the Bricktown station. Obviously, this would also make your ride home quicker as you will be traveling less distance.

Other places to consider would be Washington Square, which is off Washington Blvd. I know a few UDM Law students who live there. Again, you could also ride the People Mover, but at that point, you might as well just walk. Washington Square used to be Trolley Plaza, which had a lousy reputation, but apparently the new management has really cleaned things up. I think WS is somewhat cheaper than Millender and 300 Riverfront.
　
The Kales Building off Grand Circus Park, while further from school is a great apartment building with a lot of character. It is more upscale than all of the places mentioned but has apartments in a comparable price range. The building’s manager is great guy and will give anybody a tour anytime. The bonus of living at the Kales, or even at the Fyfe Building is the proximity to the new bars and restaurants on Park Avenue: Centaur, Bucharest, Park Bar, Town Pump, Cliff Bells, etc. And, Tiger Stadium is, literally, across the street. Walk to campus is probably around 12 minutes.

Also worth considering are the apartments in Lafayette Park, which are just east of the law school. From what I know, this was UDM law students’ main hub for years and is within walking distance, although, you will have to cross over the Chrysler freeway.

I know a few law students who also lived in lofts on Woodward, specifically, the Lofts at Merchant Row. I believe the rent was around $1,000/mo but the places were pretty nice. There are many other great lofts in the downtown area but my guess would be that prices are higher. Broadway Street Lofts is one example, I think they go for $1,250/mo, but their location near Detroit Brewing Company is awesome. Again, less than a 10 minute walk from campus for both places.

I almost forgot Cadillac Square Apartments, which are behind Millender Center. These are dirt cheap and the location is obviously as good as Millender’s, maybe even better, because you are a stones throw from Campus Martius. Also, you have a Subway and Domino’s Pizza next door, a coney island in your lobby, and across the street is Greenwich Time Pub, Checker Bar, and a new cigar bar. The apartments are okay, but since you are only paying like $450/mo for a 1 bedroom, you get what you pay for.

There's also other stuff along the river off east Jefferson. Riverfront Lofts is an example. They are brownstone-style apartments and are very cool located along the Riverwalk, which now runs from Belle Isle Park to past JLA. You could walk to school from these places, but it would take about 20 minutes, which isn't bad, but not as close as the others.

If you had a car, I would have dozens more suggestions as it would open up everything that is in Midtown, where many UDM law students also live.

Good Luck. And, Welcome to Detroit!

[The_Cadillac_Lawyer]

ForStarters, thanks for the plethora of info. Your post basically summed up everything that I have been searching on the internet for the past few days.
I am originally from MI, so I'm pretty familiar, but not that familiar with downtown
I will have a car but have set my mind that I want to be within walking distance of the Campus.
I currently live in an high-rise in Phoenix, and am absolutely hooked on the high-rise life with all the amenities and great views.
I was surprised that Millender Center was a tad pricey compared to some of the other units, but I guess you pay for that safety and piece of mind.
There are some REALLY nice units located in the buildings you listed, but again it's really important to be close to school
I know 300 Riverfront isn't that close, but those views of the river and city are unbeatable!

[Coldjensens]

For groceries, you can pick up a lot of staples at the Sav-on in the ren cen. They have quite a bit of grocery type items. You can also shop at Eastern Market and get a lot of what you might want. If you want frozen pizza, I am not sure where you would go. There is a party store out by Wayne State.

[The_Cadillac_Lawyer]

Originally Posted by Coldjensens

For groceries, you can pick up a lot of staples at the Sav-on in the ren cen. They have quite a bit of grocery type items. You can also shop at Eastern Market and get a lot of what you might want. If you want frozen pizza, I am not sure where you would go. There is a party store out by Wayne State.

You been peaking in my freezer!! LoL, Pizza and Shepard's Pie, the life of a poor college student

[Coldjensens]

I was there once.

There is a Sam's Club (or is it costco?) just down the 75 about 15 miles. You can go once a month and stock up on Mac N cheese and frozen pizza (but do not overlook the frozen Salmon filets. They are not that much more expensive and so much better for you). Get a small barbque and buy a lot of produce at Eastern Market and you will be in good shape.

You will find that there is plenty to do downtown. The summer is especially busy. The free concerts n Friday nights are great. You may not even need your car.

Keep in mind that during your first year, you will nto spend that much time in your apt. You will be in class, in study groups and in the library. The first three semesters are really really hard. After that, it does nto really change, but you change and it is not that hard. By the third year you are coasting.

However for the first year, you do nto need that nice of an apartment. You will be too busy to notice the cockroaches. Save your money and get a better place your second or third years.