A Detroit woman is on a mission to bring new life to a dilapidated eyesore on West Davison in Detroit.
Tina Castleberry said she's nearly finished with the second location of The Garden Bug, a business she started eight years ago out of her home that's flourished into a community staple in Rosedale Park.
Now, she's bringing her green thumb to Detroit's Russell Woods neighborhood.
“I hope this is an anchor in the community.," Castleberry said.
A place not just to find seeds and soil, but to find out why your roses aren't in bloom or why the skin on your summer squash is so tough.
Location number two for The Garden Bug will be a place to get your hands dirty and build community at the long-vacant corner in the Russell Woods neighborhood.
“This space will be where children will take classes. How to grow, what to grow, how to water," she said.
Sitting right next to the garden space, Castleberry bought a 3-bedroom home on W. Davison and Petoskey, turning it into a loft so people can take classes and get hands-on advice from the expert herself.
It's a skill she learned from a young age out of both love and necessity.
“The blessing was, 'Tina go get the squash, go get the cucumbers.' My mom didn’t have a lot of money," she said.
Eventually, she started landscaping and giving her friends gardening tips on the side.
The Garden Bug's flagship store is on Grand River in Rosedale Park.
“I don’t want people to feel intimidated about gardening," she said.
As for the second location, which received a Motor City Match grant last month, most people would have been intimidated taking on the build. The roof had a huge opening in it, but not the kind you want.
Castleberry estimates she'll need another $65,000 to finish the home's rebuilding. She's put in $65,000 of her own money already.
“What has the response been from people who see you working on this old house?” I asked.
“The neighbors have honked and blown and screamed out the window, 'thank you!'" she said.
Obie King was one of those people this week who drove by in support.
"I’m very excited to see such progress in the neighborhood," he said.
It's progress that's not only taken money and time, but a lot of work.
“The entire roof had to be torn off. We put in new windows, we’ve needed all new framing, LDLs had to go in. New flooring. Everything had been completely rotted from rain and snow dropping in for at least 30 years," he said.
Once finished, The Loft will offer free community classes. The outdoor gardening center offers soil, flowers, seeds, gardening tools and landscaping must-haves.
Tina has hired several staff members with disabilities, including her adult son, who has cerebral palsy. It was while she was caring for him at ome that she got her first landscaping clients. Her business only grew from there.
“Inside and out, it’s a labor of love," she said.
Castleberry is fundraising right now to help get her over the finish line with the loft space. The gardening center opened a couple of weeks ago, and there will be an official ribbon cutting at some point.
