Detroit is NOT all 'gloom and doom' ... there is hope

[LuckyTheDog]

Six neighborhoods that collectively were christened "Midtown" in 2000 have steadily improved and, in some pockets, boomed -- even as other areas of the city slip further into decay. An estimated $1.8 billion in public and private investment have poured into the area that includes the infamous Cass Corridor, as well as Wayne State University and Brush Park.

With the investment came more residents.

The 2000 Census counted 17,000 people in the Midtown area, north of downtown and south of New Center. And while no one has kept count of how many moved out during the decade, an estimated 3,200 new residents moved in.

Some 1,500 housing units and 44 residential projects have been added to accommodate them, according to the nonprofit University Cultural Center Association, which promotes the area's growth.

From The Detroit News: http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20100125/METRO/1250372/Detroit-s-Midtown-district-is-a-Boom-Town#ixzz0debUR9GT

[louis-t]

1. Sadly, some of Detroit's most beautiful areas

are falling into ruin. Boston-Edison and Indian Village are crumbling. Any house that becomes vacant is immediately stripped by thieves. Boarded up windows are way too common. Palmer Woods (near Wayne State)has private security and break-ins there are almost non-existant according to their association. Progress is slow, but it is happening.

[last1standing]

2. I wish I could say this was completely true.

I mean, it is true to the extent that Midtown is doing better than other parts of the city. It has some decent bars and restaurants, an opera hall, beautiful lofts, theatre, etc... However, the reason all of this is here is because Kwame Kilpatrick (you might know him for having been jailed a few years ago) pushed tons of investment capital into this area at the expense of the rest of Detroit. So while I can go to Enotecca, a very cool little wine bar, I can also drive 3 minutes away and find some of most decimated neighborhoods in the country.

Speaking of Enotecca, I was speaking with the manager and bartender there last week. The said the owners are likely going to sell because they can't get the business in to make it very profitable. This is the problem with much of Midtown, they aren't getting the business to support the infrastructure improvements and increased rents so they are slowly folding as few people come to the "revitalized" area. It stands as an island, slowly decaying around the edges, within a sea of poverty and deprivation.