Wade

Offering more affordable homes than nearby neighborhoods and convenient access to major roads and highways, Wade is a quiet residential community on Detroit’s east side. With Interstate 94 to the south and Gratiot Avenue to the northwest, Wade residents can easily access all that Detroit has to offer while coming home to a quiet neighborhood that doesn’t have much through traffic.

Homes in Wade are mostly brick bungalows and cottage-style houses. You can find homes with spacious front porches where you can sit and enjoy a nice evening. Other homes have steep Tudor-style roofs on the façade of the house. There are some two-story Colonial Revival homes in the area, but most of what you’ll find are smaller one-story buildings. Houses are often built close together, giving the area a neighborly, urban feel, but there are plenty of vacant lots throughout the community. Sidewalks offer walkability along the street, while mature trees are scattered throughout the area, offering shade and a touch of natural beauty during the spring and summer. Wade is generally more affordable than other Detroit neighborhoods. You can find a fully renovated home for $130,000 to $200,000. Most three-bedroom houses cost between $80,000 and $100,000.

Students in Wade might attend Edward “Duke” Ellington Conservatory of Music & Art at Beckham Academy and Denby High School. Each school receives a C-minus overall rating from Niche. Duke Ellington Conservatory of Music & Art serves approximately 450 students from kindergarten through eighth grade and has a student-teacher ratio of 15 to 1. The school has a unique curriculum that combines performing and fine arts with expectations of academic achievement. The school has produced winners of the NAACP art and essay contest. Students regularly represent the district at the Detroit Jazz Festival and earn scholarships to attend Blue Lake Camp for Dance. Denby High serves approximately 575 students with a student-teacher ratio of 17 to 1. The school offers electives, including robotics, business and a JROTC program.

While there are no parks within the neighborhood, residents can head just south of Interstate 94 to the popular Chandler Park. This 200-acre green space is the fourth-largest park in Detroit and has several popular attractions. Bring your clubs and tee off at the Chandler Park Golf Course. Or grab a racket for a game of tennis or pickleball. The park also has space for basketball, softball and soccer. The skate park is popular with local skating enthusiasts to work on their tricks, while the Wayne County Family Aquatic Center is an ideal place to cool down on warm summer days.

Living in Wade gives you easy access to the Gratiot Avenue corridor on the neighborhood’s northwest side. You can stop in Rio’s Coney Island when you want a bite to eat. Dine in or run through the drive-thru at this popular restaurant, known for its classic Coney Island hot dogs as well as corned beef sandwiches, burgers and pitas. There are several chain restaurants nearby on Gratiot Avenue, including Long John Silver’s, Tim Hortons and White Castle. You can head 1 mile north on Gratiot Avenue to Mazen Foods to pick up groceries. Farmer John Food Center is another nearby grocery store, about 1 mile southwest of the neighborhood.

Easy access to major thoroughfares makes it easy to get around Detroit from Wade. You can get downtown via Gratiot Avenue, a 6.5-mile drive, or make the 9-mile drive on Interstate 94 downtown. Both roads make it easy to head to the northern suburbs, like St. Clair Shores, 7 miles northeast of the neighborhood. There are no bus stops within the community, but there are several bus stops three blocks south of the neighborhood on Harper Avenue and northwest of the neighborhood along Gratiot Avenue that make it easy to get around the inner Detroit area.

Written By

Matthew Atkins

Video By

Khalil Chisholm