The Detroit International Riverfront is a popular tourist attraction and landmark in Detroit, Michigan. It stretches from the Ambassador Bridge in the west to Belle Isle in the east, covering a total of 5.5 miles (8.8 kilometers) along the Detroit River. This area includes a cruise ship terminal and dock, a marina, many parks, restaurants, shops, tall buildings, and apartment complexes. It also features Huntington Place, as well as hotels like the Marriott at the Renaissance Center and Robert's Riverwalk Hotel.

Private companies, foundations, and government groups at the city, state, and federal levels have invested several hundred million dollars to develop the riverfront. Key public spaces, such as the RiverWalk, Dequindre Cut Greenway and Trail, William G. Milliken State Park and Harbor, and the cruise ship terminal at Hart Plaza, fit well with the buildings around them. The area hosts many annual events and festivals, including the Detroit Electronic Music Festival, Detroit Free Press International Marathon, Detroit International Jazz Festival, Motor City Pride, North American International Auto Show, River Days, and the Detroit China Festival.

In February 2021, the Detroit International Riverfront was chosen as the best riverwalk in the United States by USA Today readers. It received the same honor again in 2022.

History

In 1981, the City of Detroit bought the site from Uniroyal for $5 million. The city spent an additional $3.6 million to tear down buildings and prepare the area.

The Detroit Riverfront Conservancy, which was formed as a 501(c)(3) organization, helped collect money for the International Riverfront project. The initial plan for the east riverfront promenade required an investment of $559 million. This included $135 million from General Motors and $50 million from the Kresge Foundation.

Features

The area includes the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge, which is the only international wildlife preserve in North America. It is uniquely located in the center of a large city area. The Refuge covers islands, wetlands, marshes, shallow water areas, and land along 48 miles (77 km) of the Detroit River and Western Lake Erie shoreline.

Belle Isle Park is a 982-acre (397 ha; 1.534 sq mi) island state park in the Detroit River, managed by the State of Michigan. Before November 12, 2013, it was operated by the City of Detroit Recreation Department. The park connects to the city through the MacArthur Bridge. It includes the Anna Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory (1904), the oldest conservatory in the United States, the Detroit Yacht Club, the Detroit Boat Club, the Dossin Great Lakes Museum, a Coast Guard post, and a municipal golf course. A Nature Center allows visitors to walk through wooded trails and see natural wildlife habitats. The island also has a half-mile (800 m) swimming beach.

The Aretha Franklin Amphitheater, formerly called Chene Park, is located on the near east side of Detroit, at the foot of Chene Street, along the Detroit River. It is near William G. Milliken State Park and Harbor and has a 6,000-seat amphitheater where summer concerts are held. Jazz, classic soul, and rhythm and blues performances are common. The park also includes trails, the Chene Park Fountain, and the Lake Lounge bar. The Detroit Riverfront Conservancy connected the park to the Renaissance Center through a riverside path.

The park was originally named for Charles Chene, a French immigrant who owned land along the Detroit River. On September 4, 2018, Detroit City Council voted to rename Chene Park the Aretha Franklin Amphitheater after the famous singer who died on August 16, 2018. The name change was completed before the 2019 season.

The Dequindre Cut Greenway is a trail for biking and walking that runs from the Detroit River northward. It may connect to another greenway in Oakland County in the future. The one-mile (1.6 km) trail links the Lafayette Park neighborhood and Eastern Market to the Riverwalk. It uses half of a corridor with a 20-foot (6.1 m) wide paved path, separated for biking and walking.

Phase I of the Dequindre Cut Greenway, which extends one mile (1.6 km) north from the river to Gratiot Avenue, is complete. It was funded by MDOT’s Transportation Enhancement Program and the Community Foundation of Southeast Michigan. This section includes a 20-foot (6.1 m) bituminous path, access ramps, landscaping, lighting, signs, and security cameras. The trail opened on May 14, 2009, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Woodbridge Street entrance.

Phase II North of the Dequindre Cut Greenway starts at Gratiot Avenue and extends over half a mile to Mack Avenue. The plan for this phase builds on lessons learned during phase I construction.

The Dequindre Cut is known for its high-quality graffiti on the walls of the corridor. The Riverfront Conservancy, which manages the greenway, allows current and future artwork to remain as long as it is not offensive. The trail is one of the city’s few public art parks and attracts urban photographers.

The Renaissance Center, also called the RenCen, is a group of seven connected skyscrapers in Detroit, Michigan. It is the tallest building in Michigan since 1977 and is located on the Detroit International Riverfront. The entire complex is owned by General Motors. The central tower houses the Detroit Marriott at the Renaissance Center, the tallest hotel skyscraper in the Western Hemisphere, with a rooftop restaurant called Coach Insignia. The complex includes many restaurants, shops, and a vehicle display called GM World. General Motors donated part of the plaza and promenade to the Riverfront Conservancy after completion. A cruise-ship terminal is located on Hart Plaza, next to the Renaissance Center. In 2003, General Motors spent $500 million to renovate the Renaissance Center for its world headquarters, which it purchased in 1996. Architects involved in the renovation included Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, Gensler, the Smith Group, and Ghafari Associates. Turner Construction Company led most of the construction. The renovation added a five-story Wintergarden, which connects to the Detroit International Riverfront.

Work on the complex continued until 2005. The Renaissance Center covers 5.5 million square feet (511,000 m²), making it one of the world’s largest office complexes.

Philip A. Hart Plaza is a city plaza in downtown Detroit along the Detroit River. It is located near the site where Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac landed in 1701 to build Fort Pontchartrain du Détroit, the settlement that became Detroit. In 2011, the Detroit-Wayne County Port Authority opened a new cruise ship terminal and dock at Hart Plaza, next to the Renaissance Center. The 14-acre (5.7 ha) plaza, named after U.S. Senator Philip Hart, opened in 1975 and can hold about 40,000 people. At its center is the Horace E. Dodge and Son Memorial Fountain, designed by Isamu Noguchi and Walter Budd in 1978.

The Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Centennial Park is a 22-acre (8.9 ha) park on the former West Riverfront Park grounds at the western end of the Riverwalk. It includes a 20-foot (6.1 m) bear-shaped slide, large-animal themed play structures, a water garden, public grills, green space, and views of the Detroit River, Ambassador Bridge, and Gordie Howe International Bridge. The Huron-Clinton Metroparks Water Garden within the park is a 2.5-acre (1.0 ha) water garden with a pebble beach and walking paths. It is the first Metropark presence in Detroit. The William Davidson Sport House at the park is a large covered pavilion over two NBA-sized basketball courts themed after the Detroit Pistons. The courts are planned to be open year-round. The park opened to the public on October 25, 2025.

The historic Stroh River Place complex is a mixed-use residential development near the Roberts Riverwalk Hotel and Residence, which was built on the site of the Parke-Davis research laboratory, a National Historic Landmark along

Riverfront activities

Detroit River Days is a five-day festival held on the International Riverfront. It celebrated the opening of a new path along the east side of the river in 2007, which leads to the Detroit-Windsor International Freedom Festival fireworks. Detroit and Windsor, cities in the United States and Canada, jointly host the festival during the last week of June each year. The event attracts about 3.5 million visitors and honors both countries' national holidays—U.S. Independence Day on July 4 and Canada Day on July 1. The festival began in 1959 and is organized by the Parade Company, a nonprofit group managed by the Michigan Thanksgiving Parade Foundation.

The festival includes several days of events, ending with one of the world's largest fireworks displays, sponsored by Target. In past years, the fireworks have been called the world's largest. On the Windsor side, a carnival area with rides and food vendors, known as the midway, is open during the festival. This area operates independently as a separate attraction at the end of June and beginning of July.

The Detroit Electronic Music Festival (DEMF) is an event featuring electronic dance music performances held in Hart Plaza every Memorial Day weekend since 2000. Other similar festivals, such as Movement (2003–2004), Fuse-In (2005), and Movement: Detroit's Electronic Music Festival (2006–present), have continued DEMF's traditions. Each name change showed changes in who organized the event. All these festivals included performances by musicians and DJs and highlighted how the culture of electronic music has evolved.

The International Riverfront is also home to part of the Detroit International Jazz Festival, which takes place in Hart Plaza every Labor Day weekend. Hart Plaza is also where people gather to celebrate sports championships won by Detroit's major teams. Both Detroit and Windsor have hosted the Red Bull Air Race World Championship on the International Riverfront.

Photo gallery

• Riverfront around 1901
• View of Detroit from Caesars Windsor casino resort
• Looking upriver toward Belle Isle State Park
• Rivard Plaza has a merry-go-round
• Dry Dock Complex historic area being redeveloped
• Skyline along the International Riverfront
• Renaissance Center
• Detroit's skyline seen from Belle Isle

References and further reading

• Cantor, George (2005). Detroit: An Inside Guide to Michigan. University of Michigan Press. ISBN 0472030922.
• Hill, Eric J. and John Gallagher (2002). AIA Detroit: The American Institute of Architects Guide to Detroit Architecture. Wayne State University Press. ISBN 0-8143-3120-3.
• Rodriguez, Michael and Thomas Featherstone (2003). Detroit's Belle Isle Island Park Gem (Images of America). Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 0-7385-2315-1.
• Sobocinski, Melanie Grunow (2005). Detroit and Rome: Building on the Past. Regents of the University of Michigan. ISBN 0933691092.