Wheelhouse Detroit — a bike rental and repair shop — is coming to Rivard Plaza on the
RiverWalk at the beginning of May.
Owners
Karen Gage and Kelli B. Kavanaugh plan to start operations as early as
May 2, to coincide with the carousel's opening for the season.
(Editor's note: Kavanaugh is Model D's Development News writer.)
Wheelhouse
will rent bikes, offer guided tours of the city, sell bike accessories
(like horns, helmets and lights), and do bike repairs.
The
success of the Tour de Troit event, which Kavanaugh and Gage helped to
organize and attracted 600 people last year, inspired the two hopeful
entrepreneurs, who had been discussing what kind of business to open.
"We kind of just looked at each other and said: 'bikes,'" Kavanaugh
says.
They approached the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy about the Rivard Plaza location, and sought funding through the
Detroit Micro-Enterprise Fund.
Kavanaugh says the fund, which helps small businesses start up and
expand in the city, was invaluable to getting their business off the
ground.
The Wheelhouse will be open Friday through Sunday until
Memorial Day weekend, and daily after that. They will offer hourly
rentals — starting at $15 for two hours — as well as daylong, weekly
and weekend packages.
Bikes for rent will include:
• simple cruisers, city or hybrid mountain bikes, and road bikes – "for people who really want to ride," Kavanaugh says;
• plus tag-alongs, trailers and kids bikes.
Along with
Inside Detroit,
they will offer tours of downtown and Midtown, as well as special tour
events in other neighborhoods. "People want to get bikers into their
neighborhoods. We're working with businesses that we already know to be
bike friendly," she says.
"Detroit is not a dense city, so in
many ways it is better to get around on a bike than walk," Kavanaugh
says. "Corktown to Midtown is less than 10 minutes on a bike, so it can
be better to bike than drive."
The Wheelhouse will offer
something visitors expect from a city. "You go to big cities, and you
expect to be able to rent a bike. It's an amenity that Detroit needs to
offer," Kavanaugh says.
For more information, e-mail
info@wheelhousedetroit.com or go to
www.wheelhousedetroit.com.
Writer: Clare Pfeiffer Ramsey
Source: Kelli B. Kavanaugh, Wheelhouse Detroit
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