Whitmer tours Kalamazoo development, calls it example of ‘reimagining’ Michigan cities

KALAMAZOO, MI -- When it comes to affordable housing, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer made her approach clear during a Tuesday, April 2, visit to Kalamazoo: “Build, baby, build.”

Whitmer toured a new housing development in Kalamazoo called Zone 32 on Tuesday, on Kalamazoo’s Northside at 815 Pitcher St.

Zone 32 is the brainchild of Jamauri Bogan, CEO of Bogan Developments and former Western Michigan University running back. While attending WMU, Bogan saw the need for more affordable housing and access to child care in Kalamazoo.

After graduating, Bogan launched his own company and broke ground on Zone 32 in 2020. It’s a $4.5 million development.

“Thanks to projects like this one and so many others that are are being built across the state, we’re reimagining our cities and our small towns to make them better places to live to work and to invest,” Whitmer said.

Zone 32 serves tenants who make between 60% and 100% of Kalamazoo’s median income. Tenants began moving in in December 2023. The apartments are all leased out now, Bogan said.

Monthly rent for a studio starts at $850, while a two-bedroom starts at $1,794. Each unit features a washer/dryer and an interior designed with warm tones and natural light.

Bogan received $910,000 from Michigan’s Missing Middle Housing Program (MMHP) to contribute to the development. MMHP was launched after the pandemic to address the lack of attainable workforce housing in the state. The program is funded by state appropriated American Rescue Plan Act Funds.

“We need more and more folks across the state of Michigan to be just like Jamauri and become developers, help us create the housing we need to meet the families within the state of Michigan,” said Amy Hovey, executive director of the Michigan State Housing Development Authority.

Zone 32 was built in tandem with a YMCA Early Learning Program next door, meant for Kalamazoo’s Northside neighborhood. Priority enrollment for the YMCA Early Learning Program was given to students who live on the Northside.

Incorporating the day care and preschool was always part of the vision for Zone 32, Bogan said.

“I wanted to build a neighborhood here in the Northside that would give young children an elite start to their educational journey and provide families with elite housing that was affordable,” Bogan said.

Whitmer said Bogan’s development is “empowering” young people in Michigan, where housing is often their biggest concern, she said.

“Ensuring that every Michigander has a great place to live, can enjoy their life in dignity and know that their kids have a great educational opportunity, that is the bare minimum,” Whitmer said.

Rashidi Shobowale-Benson’s two sons attend the YMCA Early Learning Center. He was born in Kalamazoo and noticed a need for affordable housing and child care long before Zone 32 was built, he said.

Shobowale-Benson’s sons were born in 2019, right before the pandemic, he said. Once the lockdowns lifted, his family began seeking out child care.

“There wasn’t a day care anywhere,” he said.

This new learning center was ideal, partly because it’s so close to his work.

“We are very learning-focused family ... it’s so awesome to have this so close and in an area where it’s accessible,” Shobowale-Benson said.

Shobowale-Benson said he never thought he’d see the day where the governor was in town to recognize Kalamazoo developments making steps toward more affordable housing and child care.

After the governor left, he was still “shell shocked” he said.

“Kalamazoo deserves the attention,” Shobowale-Benson. “We do a lot.”

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