What's being built in Inkster? Here is what the public record shows

INKSTER, Mich. Ask around town what is being built in Inkster and you will hear everything from rumors of new stores to complaints that nothing ever changes. So we went to the records: the state housing agency's board files, the Planning Commission's agendas and minutes, and the city's online building permit system.

Here is what we found, starting with the biggest project and working down. Everything below is in a public record, and we link to it.

The biggest project: 315 apartments getting a top-to-bottom overhaul

The largest construction project in Inkster this year is not new buildings. It is the renovation of two existing public housing complexes: Lois Demby Terrace, at 28078 Annapolis St., and Parkside Estates, at 3703 S. Henry Ruff Road.

The Michigan State Housing Development Authority's board approved financing in February. Its board report lists:

• 315 family apartments, 24 of them accessible
• An estimated $98.6 million total development cost
• A state-issued construction loan of up to $50.6 million
• About 120 temporary construction jobs and 20 permanent jobs

The Inkster Housing Commission says it closed on the deal April 10. In July, the lender CPC Mortgage Company announced a $42.1 million permanent loan for the project, which is being developed by Good Housing Partnership with the Housing Commission.

According to CPC, the work includes new roofs, windows, doors and exterior lighting; new flooring, water heaters and furnaces; modernized kitchens and bathrooms; and accessibility upgrades. The complexes are converting from traditional public housing to Section 8 under a federal program called the Rental Assistance Demonstration. All 315 units will stay affordable to households earning 60 percent of the area median income or less.

No completion date has been announced.

One more note: the developer of Annapolis Pointe points to a $42.1 million, 315-unit rehab in her federal lawsuit against the city, alleging, as CBS Detroit described it, that it was cleared under far fewer permits than her project. The city's attorney has called the lawsuit's claims inaccurate and misleading. Our coverage of the lawsuit.

In dispute: Annapolis Pointe

Annapolis Pointe broke ground on July 18, 2025, near Middlebelt and Annapolis. Builder ShaWanna Gajewski described it as a $21 million investment over four years in 72 new homes. FOX 2 reported it was the first time in almost 20 years that dozens of homes would be built in Inkster.

In September, Gajewski's companies sued the city and Mayor Byron Nolen in federal court. The suit alleges, among other things, that the city stalled the project through tax assessments and permit demands. Those claims are unproven, and the city disputes them. How many homes have been finished is not clear from public records.

New and coming businesses

A nail salon at 30245 Cherry Hill. A commercial permit filed Jan. 6 covers a "nail salon interior build out" with new walls and plumbing for 11 sinks, according to the city's permit records. It passed final inspection. The permit does not list the business name. If you know it, tell us.

A proposed cigar lounge at 27553 Cherry Hill. Brothers Bar & Grill took out a permit in January for new interior walls, which passed inspection in February. On July 27, the Planning Commission held a public hearing on a proposed cigar lounge there, listed as Brother's Smoke House, as an accessory use, along with a site plan, according to the meeting agenda. The city has not posted readable minutes showing how the commission voted.

A gas station at 2617 Middlebelt. The city approved a special land use for a gas station there in 2025. On March 23 of this year, the Planning Commission gave the developer a one-year extension, according to draft minutes attached to a later agenda. A representative told the commission the project needed environmental testing, including of underground storage tanks, and had business-related delays.

Churches, parks and city buildings

New Jerusalem Missionary Baptist Church, 821 Inkster Road. The Planning Commission approved a site plan for Phase 1 of an expansion on March 23. A city official said Phase 2 will need its own site plan. As of Oct. 25, the city's permit system showed no 2026 building permit at that address.

Tyrone Wheatley Park. The city filed a permit on Jan. 7 to build a restroom and pavilion at the park on Beech Daly. The permit system now lists that permit as expired. Whether the work was done, or will be refiled, is not clear from the record.

Department of Public Services, 26900 Princeton. The city held a ribbon cutting on June 17 for completed renovations to its public works building.

New homes

In the permits we reviewed, the city issued one permit for a brand-new house: a 1,691-square-foot brick-veneer home with an attached garage on Stanford Street, issued Jan. 30. We are not publishing the owner's name or house number.

What is not happening

The data center. A company proposed converting a vacant warehouse at 27181 Southern St. into a data center. The Planning Commission recommended conditional approval on Oct. 12. After hundreds of residents opposed it, the City Council took no action on Oct. 19 and the company said it would go elsewhere. Our story.

The rules are changing, too

Inkster is rewriting its zoning ordinance, the rulebook for what can be built where. In March, the Planning Commission recommended a full text update to the City Council. Officials have said the rewrite is required to become a "Redevelopment Ready Community" under the Michigan Economic Development Corporation. A separate public hearing on amendments to the zoning ordinance and the zoning map was held Sept. 28.

How we did this, and what we could not see

Inkster does not publish a list of permits or certificates of occupancy. Its permit system, run through BS&A Online, lets the public look up permits one at a time. We reviewed every permit the city issued from Jan. 5 to Feb. 3, 2026, 69 in all. Most were routine: furnaces, wiring, roofs and kitchen remodels. The system then began requiring a human verification check, so we stopped.

That means this list is not complete for the rest of the year. We plan to request the city's full 2026 building permit and certificate of occupancy records and will update this story with what they show.

Opening a business in Inkster, or see construction we missed? Tell us. We would rather hear it from you first.