DEGC reports $821 million in 2024 investment; council adds several small‑business and corridor items to executive session

Kevin Johnson, president of the Detroit Economic Growth Corporation, told the Detroit City Council the DEGC helped secure about $821,000,000 in investment in 2024 and outlined workforce and small‑business programs the agency manages.

“We’ve helped secure over $821,000,000 in investment throughout Detroit, in 2024,” Johnson said. He credited those projects with supporting new full‑time jobs, construction work and neighborhood development and singled out projects such as Fisher 21 and the Pistons‑related mixed‑use development for their housing contributions.

David Howe, vice president of real estate services for the DEGC, briefed the council on real estate and tax‑incentive work and said the agency underwrites abatements to ensure a net fiscal benefit. He noted recent projects and figures including the Fisher 21 redevelopment and a set of 16 abatement certificate approvals that DEGC says represent roughly $821,000,000 of total investment and about 733 housing units (62 of them affordable), as well as job estimates tied to those projects.

David White, vice president of business development, reviewed DEGC’s attraction and retention efforts and said the agency had won more than 1,200 jobs since Jan. 1, 2024 on corporate attraction work. Sean Gray, speaking remotely as DEGC’s small business services lead, described Motor City Match, the…