Haunting images Detroit

[cornerstore]

I grew up in the Detroit area in its golden years of 1950- 1970 I find these pics both intersting and disturbing .Any current Detroiters out there, if so do these pics really represent what is happening there? http://business.financialpost.com/20...ial-emergency/

[conrail]

It's too bad - those are beautiful old buildings in what were once lovely neighborhoods (many years ago). Unfortunately they are left to such disrepair that the only option is demolition. Too bad they couldn't have caught them earlier and saved them, although that would have required entire neighborhood cooperation.

[cornerstore]

Originally Posted by conrail

It's too bad - those are beautiful old buildings in what were once lovely neighborhoods (many years ago). Unfortunately they are left to such disrepair that the only option is demolition. Too bad they couldn't have caught them earlier and saved them, although that would have required entire neighborhood cooperation.

Very sad there is a link in the article to 100 pictures. One of the neighborhoods I remember well growing up, a nice upper middle class area, now looks like a war zone.

[bayerische]

I remember seeing the documentary "Roger and me" some 15 years ago by Michael Moore.

I'll be at Detroit airport soon, sadly It's only a short stopover. No chance to see the city.

I feel bad. Hope the city will rise again. Lots in the press over here.

[Adam.]

I drove past Detroit and I can say the southern suburbs are nice. Lots of big houses on golf courses. Once the highway hits the city and a little north of the city, it turns into a ghetto.

[AzPaul]

Detroit makes me think of that Springsteen lyric . . . .

Foreman says these jobs are going boys
And they ain't coming back

[Art 1]

I have seen those pics before. Sad what has happened to that once proud city.

[DiamondJack]

Scary ..... Like a war zone ......

As they say.....location, location, location......

[dddrees]

Originally Posted by DiamondJack

Scary ..... Like a war zone ......

As they say.....location, location, location......

Practical total devistation of the industry that created the city.


Probably not much different than Gary Indiana (STEEL). Except that it's bigger and there are still some nice neighborhoods in Detroit.


Hopefully Detroit can comeback, Gary has never yet been able too.


I've driven by Gary many times, it's real scarry.

[77T]

I don't need pictures to know the devastating economic environment there. The State of Michigan is stepping in to control the city's purse strings as it approaches insolvency.

I hope for... Resurgence

New York had its brush with bankruptcy.
San Francisco came back from oblivion after the quake in early 1900's.
Atlanta rose from the flames after the Civil War.

It can happen again I hope.

[dddrees]

Originally Posted by 77T

I don't need pictures to know the devastating economic environment there. The State of Michigan is stepping in to control the city's purse strings as it approaches insolvency.

I hope for... Resurgence

New York had its brush with bankruptcy.
San Francisco came back from oblivion after the quake in early 1900's.
Atlanta rose from the flames after the Civil War.

It can happen again I hope.

I've got my fingers crossed.

[Cesium133]

I grew up in city that was similar to Detroit but on a much smaller population scale. The local economy was based on manufacturing along Lake Michigan. It was a great place until the factories started closing in the 70s and 80s. By the mid 90s it was a completely different place. Now there is lots of crime and poverty and I don't think it will ever turn around.

[TheVTCGuy]

Very sad Patrick.... I am not really from there but went to boarding school in Bloomfield Hills (Ever hear of Cranbrook?), class of 79. I have lots of fond memories from that area... really too bad it has gone down so much.

I heard that possibly, (maybe it's a dream) but that MAYBE Detroit could make a comeback as an arts-center. Because rent is so low, and you can get a lot for your money, that starving-artists from all over the country are moving to Detroit. It might be a long shot, but if that's the future of Detroit, and it brings it out of this death spiral, then I hope it works out.

[Boothroyd]

I am no urban planner, but I understand the idea is to actually reduce the size of the city proper by knocking down properties to boost the central core. Net is, that is one of the reasons architecturally significant neighborhoods are being abandoned and knocked down.

Sure hope it works out long term, but it's a long, long way back.

[jhilly8982]

Originally Posted by Boothroyd

I am no urban planner, but I understand the idea is to actually reduce the size of the city proper by knocking down properties to boost the central core. Net is, that is one of the reasons architecturally significant neighborhoods are being abandoned and knocked down.

Sure hope it works out long term, but it's a long, long way back.

Just a fun fact

Detroit is close to 140 Square miles, Boston, San Franciso and Miami could all fit inside of it.

I was born and raised in a western suburb of Detroit. It is an inside out city that keeps on expanding. Bordering suburbs have become less safe and crime riddled over the years as the city proper disinigrates.

[Lion]

Actually one of the neighborhood kids I grew up with and was only a distant friend of is a City Planner in Detroit, Michigan.....now I wonder what the heck he actually does(besides tearing down neighborhoods)!!!

Take it easy.....Leo

[rr-nyc]

I grew up in the northern suburbs of Detroit and spent a lot of time downtown. Detroit's demise wasn't the ailing auto industry, it was the city's inability to recoup from the riots of 1967 and the urban sprawl that followed...Metro Detroit is hugely populated. Couple that with one the country's most corrupt mayors (Coleman Young) of all time and you have a cautionary tale of how to ruin one of the countries original big cities.

I travel back there 3-4x's a year. I love it there but its getting harder and harder to keep loving it.

[Kingair]

It really is a shame . . . .

I also read the comments at the end of the article . . . these explain a lots. . .

Thanks for sharing

HAGOne

[Gagebuilder]

there are still good areas, some are improving.

This past summer, I saw 20 - 30 people riding bicycles on Jefferson Ave, east side, more than I've ever seen, off of Belle Isle.

My 20 something cousin has a bunch of friends living in the D. They are slowly taking over and making good of small pockets of the city.

I see the big problem is convincing people, like me, to move back. High taxes, high car insurance, and, yeah, if you're gone a lot (like working) you will be broken into.

Up until 4 months ago, I worked in Detroit for 19 years, I see good, but, yeah, there is really bad.

But, I still never hesitated to drive around in the city with the top down on my convertible.

Also, after a business is broken into 3-4 times, they can't get insurance. So, they move out of the city.

Hey, the way I see it, Pittsburgh reinvented itself, no reason the D can't.

600px-Corktown_Detroit.jpg

[Kingair]

Originally Posted by Gagebuilder

. . . . Pittsburgh reinvented itself, no reason the D can't.

Attachment 366584

Was Pittsburgh the same story ?

I was there about 3 years ago and where I have been . . . seemed to be ok ?

HAGOne

[Gagebuilder]

Originally Posted by Kingair

Was Pittsburgh the same story ?

I was there about 3 years ago and where I have been . . . seemed to be ok ?

HAGOne

That's just it, you need to go back to the '80's, when the Steel Mills went away. Good jobs and pensions vanished. But people put on their boots and got to work, creating jobs in other sectors.

We go to Bloom's Cigar Co. during the Pittsburgh GTG. The next time I'm in the 'burgh, I'm gonna hang out in that area for a couple days, my kind of people. Blue collar and still on it's way up.

And, yeah, there are still some bad areas in Pittsburgh, my GPS sent me to the wrong place once. Bad area, but still not like Detroit. But what city, especially a large one, doesn't have these areas?

[ROGERWILCO357]

I grew up in Detroit and was down there last week and was shocked at how bad it has gotten. Breaks my heart how lacking the leadership is in Detroit seems they get elected take what they can and move on from city council to the Mayors office just sad that the people are the ones with closing parks with no where for kids to play , neighborhoods are just disappering . On one block there was like 2 houses that people lived in and like 5 plots of land where houses used to be and another 3 burned waiting for the dozers. Maybe in another 20 years when big companies come back maybe..all the out sourcing put this into motion..so sad..I was thinking of taking some pictures of the Churches still standing .

[andromeda160]

most of detroit looks like that picture sadly, Only reason I go there is for the eastern market(big farmers market) Hritt(a major cheese importer) recently shut down which sucks. less and less is becomming of the city, but the casinos are thriving

[cornerstore]

Great to hear somethings are turning around there. Certainly a place with opportunities for someone with some vision .

[andromeda160]

Originally Posted by cornerstore

Great to hear somethings are turning around there. Certainly a place with opportunities for someone with some vision .

If you had $5-10 million, and teamed up with a construction company whose business isn't going so well for. you could demo and create a nice ass neighborhood. and if you got multiple investors on it, plenty of people could become rich. Unfortunatley detroits too big of a project for one person. It'd take billions in investors to bring it back, and once they did who knows if it'd be worth it.

[Gagebuilder]

Originally Posted by andromeda160

If you had $5-10 million, and teamed up with a construction company whose business isn't going so well for. you could demo and create a nice ass neighborhood. and if you got multiple investors on it, plenty of people could become rich. Unfortunatley detroits too big of a project for one person. It'd take billions in investors to bring it back, and once they did who knows if it'd be worth it.

Actually, it's been done and it's still going on.

http://midtowndetroitinc.org/develop...pment-projects

At issue? How do you renovate 100 square miles?

And, when an old lady lives in a house valued at $8,000 and she is in the middle of your project area, you offer her $24,000 and she says "no."

Now, back in the '90's, I did see a developer build over 300 houses around about 30 residents who refused to move, might be a possibility. I'm going to be in the Pointes next week, I think I'll drive thru to see how it's holding up. I do know there was a Kroger put in close by that development, but it went out of business. Not enough customers and, it was rumored, too much employee theft.

[jhilly8982]

Originally Posted by andromeda160

If you had $5-10 million, and teamed up with a construction company whose business isn't going so well for. you could demo and create a nice ass neighborhood. and if you got multiple investors on it, plenty of people could become rich. Unfortunatley detroits too big of a project for one person. It'd take billions in investors to bring it back, and once they did who knows if it'd be worth it.

The Illitch family that owns the Tigers and Red Wings, pretty much every parking venue near there is trying to do that. They built a new stadium for the Tigers a decade ago which is walking distance to the casinos and Greektown. They are now seeking help from the state to build a new stadium/retail center revival area for the wings in the same vicinity.

There are plenty of revival efforts but one of the biggest problems is the size of the city at 138 square miles. I am 30 years old and since I can remember people have been fantasizing about the "revival" of detroit. Sadly with the crumbling U.S. economy Detroit is going to be one of many. They even declared bankruptcy last week and were taken over by the state of Michigan.

[rr-nyc]

Originally Posted by jhilly8982

The Illitch family that owns the Tigers and Red Wings, pretty much every parking venue near there is trying to do that. They built a new stadium for the Tigers a decade ago which is walking distance to the casinos and Greektown. They are now seeking help from the state to build a new stadium/retail center revival area for the wings in the same vicinity.

There are plenty of revival efforts but one of the biggest problems is the size of the city at 138 square miles. I am 30 years old and since I can remember people have been fantasizing about the "revival" of detroit. Sadly with the crumbling U.S. economy Detroit is going to be one of many. They even declared bankruptcy last week and were taken over by the state of Michigan.

As a native Detroiter and current NY'er, I wouldn't walk that stretch between Tiger stadium and Greek Town or any other casino in Detroit for that matter. It's just not walkable by any city dweller's standards.

The city has a lot of great little neighborhoods. Unfortunately, like you said, the city is large in area. There are just too many gaps in between to favorably shrink the city and not leave out a lot of the good parts.

It would be smart to scale back the city and tear down the garbage but the city will lose a lot of the charm that makes it tolerable

[advocatia]

Good post but sad. A nice relief from "can I shower with my Rolex".
Those pictures show damage that had to have taken 20 years to get to that point.

Cities have come back. Miami Beach used to be a ghost town. I don't have answers but how about redeveloping pockets of affordable housing for military families? I promise you the crime rate around that type of neighborhood would drop.

[cornerstore]

Originally Posted by advocatia

Good post but sad. A nice relief from "can I shower with my Rolex".
Those pictures show damage that had to have taken 20 years to get to that point.

Cities have come back. Miami Beach used to be a ghost town. I don't have answers but how about redeveloping pockets of affordable housing for military families? I promise you the crime rate around that type of neighborhood would drop.

South beach in 1987 was a hell hole.I went there looking for an investment but could not get passed the decay at the time.Now it is a world class destination again.However they have a tropical like beach unlike Detroit.A good starting point would be to make Detroit a center for recycling and demolition businesses .Start over on a fresh canvas as unlike South Beach the decay in Detroit is largely irreversible.I like your military housing idea.