A crowd of several hundred gathered in a fallow 14-acre field in Northwest Detroit on Monday to testify, cheer and applaud for the vision of what is in store for it: to become the largest urban equestrian center in the United States with stables to accommodate 17 horses for use by students of the Detroit Public Schools Community District.

The project has commitments totaling $8 million from the state of Michigan, Wayne County, and others, including the Kresge Foundation, the largest philanthropic donor, with more than $500,000 granted to the effort.

Speakers praised the tenacity of the Detroit Horse Power organization and its founder David Silver in pursuing the dream of the center in Detroit. They cited the organization’s ties to the Hope Village neighborhood and the impact the organization will have on students with its own facility after years of busing Detroit students to cooperating stables as much as an hour’s drive away.

And often speakers cited their own experiences, or the impact of horses on others that they personally witnessed.

Wayne County Executive Warren Evans cited a life of engagement with horses: “They’re therapeutic, they’re fun, they’re solid athletes. … Nobody dominates horses; you form partnerships with horses, and the skill in developing that partnership is where … great things happen.”

Detroit Deputy Mayor Todd Bettison talked about what Detroit Horse Power has meant to shy children like his own son in “getting them out of their shells. … I just saw the growth.”

Le’Airra Jones, now a student at Oakland Community College, related her involvement with Detroit Horse Power from elementary school through high school and on to today. It has been “nothing but exhilarating,” she explained. Before, she was timid, nervous to speak up for herself. She credited Detroit Horse Power with allowing her to grow into the confident person taking the stage. “Our future participants are so lucky to have this right in the middle of Detroit.”

Kresge Detroit Program Managing Director Wendy Lewis Jackson said that horses had taught her courage: “I learned the hard way what happens when a horse recognizes the barn, and you cannot tell them what to do. So, I learned the power of courage and staying on the horse and just sticking with it.”

Jackson linked the day’s energy to the story of Detroit today.

“Detroit’s resurgence is a story that is really capturing the attention and imagination of the entire country, and today is one of our most compelling chapters,” said Jackson. “And in many ways, the future of our city hinges on the opportunities like this that we can provide to young residents.”

The center – on the site of the former Paul Robeson/Malcolm X Academy, destroyed in a 2011 fire and purchased from Detroit Public Schools Community District –– will serve students through classes, after-school programs and summer camps.

About 100 students participate per year currently. More than 1,000 students are expected to participate when the center opens in 2026. The experiences of riding, grooming and caring for horses are combined with exercises to instill what are referred to as PERCS –– Perseverance, Empathy, Responsible risk-taking, Confidence and Self-Control to help prepare students to become successful adults, emphasizing social-emotional learning that supports positive academic and life outcomes.

When completed, the facility will have:

• A 75-by-160 foot indoor riding arena
• Outdoor spaces including a 100-by-200 foot outdoor arena and a half-mile bridle path
• 7 acres of grazing paddocks
• 10,000 square feet of conditioned space for classrooms, nonprofit offices and community gatherings
• A high-performance building thermal envelope to reduce energy demands that will be met by renewable solar and geothermal energy production resulting in a net-zero capable building.

“We cannot stress enough the importance of how the city of Detroit and residents in the surrounding neighborhood have embraced our organization and our plans for the revitalization of the property,” said Silver. “It’s incredibly rewarding to be closer than ever to the organization’s ultimate vision and providing a future that kids and our community deserve.”