Our story
About Us
We’re a small, family-owned business in Detroit with a simple belief: fresh, clean food should be grown close to home and shared with neighbors. So we grow it — by hand, without chemicals — right here in the city.
Rooted in the city
From a vacant shell to a working farm
It started with shrimp. We began in 2016 with the formation of Motor City Sea Farm LLC, and in November 2017 we bought a vacant 17,000 sq ft building — along with two empty city lots — on West Chicago in Detroit.
The place had sat empty for a decade: hit hard by scrappers and vandals, and used as a dump site. We spent two years cleaning it up and renovating it, and in November 2019 we sold our first batch of the freshest shrimp in Michigan.
When the pandemic hit in 2020, the shrimp business dried up. With space to spare, we pivoted to high-demand, healthy crops — microgreens, cut flowers and mushrooms. In 2021, Motor City Micro Farm was born, and by October 2022 it had our full attention.
What we stand for
Clean, fresh, local — no compromises
Clean growing
No pesticides, no herbicides, no synthetic chemicals — ever. Just clean water, good seed and care.
Sustainability
Indoor growing that sips water, skips the food miles and produces fresh greens year-round.
Community
Family-run and neighbor-focused — we grow for the people and city we call home.
The people behind the greens
Meet the team
A close-knit family crew — most with day jobs — who seed, tend, harvest, pack and sell every tray with care.
Mark Grzybowski
Co-Owner & CEO
Mark is the founder and runs the day-to-day operation of Motor City Micro Farm. He spent 20 years in hospitality management before changing careers and spending 18 years in development and fundraising in the city of Detroit.
Kelly Longo
Co-Owner & President
Kelly is Mark’s wife and idea sounding board. She has a day job as an SVP in Human Resources and helps out at the farmers market on weekends. She runs our cut flower business and makes all the bouquets we sell.
Chris Tylenda
Co-Owner & Director of Sales & Marketing
Chris is our sales guy. He also has a day job as a Transportation Broker and helps out on weekends and evenings as needed.
Nate Tylenda
Co-Owner & Director of Finance & IT
Nate is our “numbers guy” with a strong background in financial analysis. He also has a day job as an IT Security specialist and helps out on weekends and evenings as needed.
Megan Tylenda
Director of Social Media
Meg is responsible for all our social media — scheduling posts and bringing to life our delicious, nutritious microgreens. She’s also a very busy mom and helps out at the farmers’ markets as needed.
Apollo
Director of Security
Fearless and ever vigilant with an endless appetite, Apollo prowls the premises greeting everyone, protecting us from squirrels, alerting us to UPS and FedEx deliveries, and occasionally warming feet under desks.
2016
Family business founded
17,000
Sq ft renovated in Detroit
2021
Micro Farm born
100%
Pesticide-free
Come say hi
Questions? We’re happy to help.
Whether you’re a curious shopper or a chef sizing up wholesale, we’d love to hear from you.