Redefining Detroit: Live Detroit Program Attracting New, Young Detroiters

(Detroit) - Jacob Smith is saying goodbye to the 'burbs, and hello to midtown Detroit.

"I'm from West Bloomfield...trapped. Love ya ma - but I gotta get outta there," said Jacob Smith.

The Live Detroit Fund is pretty unique. Unlike a lot of other incentive programs, you're not judged on where you work. Instead, applicants are evaluated based on their potential to become strong ambassadors for Detroit.

Smith is excited about the idea of living in midtown. He was one of the first to be awarded with the grant.

"There's a real sense of community," he told Fox 2's Alexis Wiley during the latest installment of Redefining Detroit. "And something very special bubbling beneath the surface."

Twenty-six-year-old Ana Cukovic also has the kind of passion Live Detroit is looking for.

"There's such an array, and a vast amount of opportunity to create and to change, and start something," Cucovic said.

The fund will select 25 people to receive an extra $250 a month to rent a place in some of Detroit's trendiest neighborhoods for a year.

There are still 20 grants available. But make no mistake, this is not free money.

"We're looking for leaders, influencers in your community," said Rachel Lachover of CommunityNEXT , a program of the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit. "Who are you going to impact? Who are you going to bring to the city of Detroit?"

In fact, everyone who receives a grant is required to come up with events every month that bring people into the city to experience what it has to offer.

"You can't understand it unless you come down and experience it," Smith said.

But urban living isn't for the faint of heart. Still, it seems these young leaders are up for the challenge.

To apply for a Live Detroit Fund grant, please visit their Web site at www.livedetroitfund.org .

To watch the latest full installment of "Redefining Detroit: Live Detroit Fund," please click on the video player.