As part of our commitment to provide you with safer, more reliable energy, we are rebuilding and modernizing the electric infrastructure in the East Village, Elmwood Park, Gold Coast, Indian Village, Islandview, Joseph Berry Sub, Lafayette Park, McDougall-Hunt, Rivertown and West Village neighborhoods of Detroit.
This $270 million project — which began in 2022 and is expected to be complete in 2031 — includes:
- Constructing a new electric substation in your community. This new substation will help ensure electricity continues to be delivered safely and more reliably to homes and businesses, particularly as electric demand continues to grow.
- Rebuilding more than 100 miles of electric infrastructure including replacing poles, power lines, transformers and electric equipment that help deliver power to homes and businesses.
- Trimming or removing trees growing close to power lines to reduce the chances limbs will fall on the power equipment and cause outages.
Benefits for you
This work is expected to improve reliability by up to 90% for the customers served by the new substation and upgraded equipment. The project will also boost safety and support the area’s increasing energy demands, including more electric vehicles and appliances.
This map illustrates where DTE Energy crews will be working this year adjacent to Gratiot Avenue.
Project progress
Spring 2025: Crews will be working along Gratiot Avenue between E. Vernor Highway and Mt Elliott St., along with nearby cross streets, over the next six months. We are replacing more than six miles of electric equipment in this area, including installing new power lines, replacing more than 420 poles, installing new pole-top equipment, swapping out transformers and more. The new equipment is stronger and can better withstand strong winds and extreme weather.
2023-24: DTE Energy completed construction and energized the new Islandview substation on Detroit’s East Side. The new substation doubles the capacity of the electric grid in the area and paves the way for more reliable electric upgrades through 2031.
Crews installed around 30 miles of new utility poles, wires and overhead electrical equipment, which will help deliver more reliable power from the Islandview substation to customers living in the project footprint.
Crews also trimmed more than 50 miles of trees on the East Side. Trees account for more than half of the time our customers spend without power, and trimming trees will reduce the chance of limbs falling on power lines and causing outages.
Rebuilding work like this is part of our plan to build the grid of the future, which also includes accelerating our transition to a smart grid, upgrading existing infrastructure and trimming trees. Learn more about work happening across Detroit or visit the DTE Power Improvements Map.