Bankruptcy might be Detroit's only option - Freep article

[casscorridor]

Detroit Works plan is destine to fail, or at the very most fail to live up to its expectations if turning the city around.

What is needed is more along the lines of a Marshall Plan, but this is impossible without outside investment by state and federal governments.

- Repopulate the center of the city. We need high-density, walkable neighborhoods with excellent public transportation, parks and well-funded schools.
- Depopulate a few isolated areas within the City of Detroit, but the scale won't be what many expect. There are only a few sections where this makes sense. See: areas around Detroit City Airport.
- Massive expansion of our education system including the founding of a new university in central Detroit, and free four-year education for all Michigan high school graduates at any public university in Michigan.
- Massive investment in clean energy infrastructure, eliminating any need of fossil fuels for energy production.
- Grants would be given to small businesses or individuals who invest in existing communities, especially within the core of the city.
- Create an RTA to coordinate transit in all of Southeastern Michigan and Metro Detroit, with a 5-10 billion dollar subsidy to build an extensive rail network throughout the region including light or heavy-rail, commuter rail, streetcars and buses.
- Create a Regional Government that would supplant the county and municipal level and allow for region-wide planning and coordination. The RTA could be part of this or completely separate. The extent of this regional government would would have to be determined, but I would say at the very least it needs to include the Detroit urbanized area [[population 3,863,924).
- Even though this new super-municipality would overtake the municipal and county level, there could still be local governance for issues specific to a locale. Districts could be formed based on historical city, township or neighborhood boundaries, and representation in the regional government could come from each of these districts.
- Through this regional government, resources can be directed toward existing communities rather than further subsidizing sprawl. New "village centers" can be built in the suburbs that are connected to regional transit. Any new development outside of certain boundaries would then be de-incentivised.

[j to the jeremy]

I agree that smart growth boundaries should be implemented in every municipality in the region, however, good luck getting suburbs to agree to this.

[illwill]

Illwill,

So they have not payed the taxes because they want to walk away from the house? I feel you on not wanting to purchase anything, but if it's already paid for..

Yes, the house is free but I still would have to pay taxes. I'm an experienced investor and even thought the house needs work, it's not something that is a big deal. I like fixing up homes. No, I wouldn't be living in the property and I figure I could rent it out for $500 per month and make a little something on it. What scares me is being legally obligated to something that could possibly become a liability and something that I might get stuck with. Yes, I could walk away but then I'm still legally responsible for paying taxes. I also worry that taxes "might" double or increase drastically.

It's an easier decision to just not get involved.

[Novine]

" I'm still legally responsible for paying taxes"

I'm pretty sure that once the property goes through tax foreclosure, you have no legal obligation to pay the back taxes.

[313WX]

And corktownyuppie was right, all those tax breaks for Dan Gilbert are coming out of the pockets of those people struggling to survive in poor areas which are being omitted from every idealistic proposal floated by people living in Downtown and Midtown.

Actually, I'm the one who said that.

corktowntyuppie argued the exact opposite [[post #67 was sarcasm in poor taste).

[Coaccession]

The vultures are circling. Neither the sale of Belle Isle nor the works of the DIA are ever going to happen for all kinds of reasons. But that doesn't stop the vultures from coming out of the woodwork to push these "get rich quick" schemes that have no basis in reality but make people think there are easy solutions to Detroit's very serious problems.

Vultures? I'm just a newby here, but I thought these discussions were supposed to have a higher tone than just name-calling. And the implication that Detroit is a carcass is rather unpleasant, not to mention the implication that money -- which Detroit has by the billions in liquid art assets -- is the sole solution to Detroit's very serious and complex problems.

No, Detroit did not get rich quick. It took generations of art acquisitions and donations to make the DIA's collection the enormously valuable cultural and financial asset that it is today, not to mention the extraordinary performance of the art market. And it took the foresight of Detroit's city fathers early in the last century to say that if Detroit is going to support the DIA, then the DIA's assets will belong to Detroit. If anyone was a vulture, it was the Founders' Society, which has tried on occasion to take advantage of hard times to get Detroit to give it DIA assets that belong to Detroit's citizens. Fortunately the city fathers resisted.

Being asset-rich but cash-poor hasn't been much help to Detroit. The art market has added billions of dollars over the years to Detroit's wealth, but ongoing capital appreciation doesn't pay any bills. Detroit could convert its wealth into cash income by selling art outright, but I doubt anyone would favor that when alternatives exist that let Detroit keep its art on DIA's walls while letting investors buy its potential capital appreciation. The money investors put into Detroit's artworks can then generate interest and dividends -- likely hundreds of millions in interest and dividends, if not more -- to support arts, culture and essential services.

Detroit got wealthy over generations. It's wealthy now. It shouldn't sell off its legacy, but it should consider using tools that will put that legacy to work providing more benefits for the public. Just hanging on the walls and sitting in the basement, Detroit's art collection does single duty. It ought to do the double duty that it's capable of, generating financial benefits as well as cultural benefits.

And anyone who says otherwise is an ostrich! Nah-nah-nah-na--naaah-nah!!