Quote Originally Posted by EastsideAl View Post
The crack epidemic of the '80s, and the resulting rise in truly violent crime, seems to have been a real turning point in the decline of neighborhoods in the city. It seemed like some neighborhoods went from being intact and reasonably well-populated with only a few vacant homes to being terrifying wastelands virtually overnight. That's also when 'black flight' really seemed to get going and joined 'white flight' in emptying out whole areas of the city over the next 20+ years. But, interestingly, even as crime fell in the late '90s the population outflow continued.
Stats show the population was actually stabilizing in the 1990s until Engler lifted the residency requirement and subsequently the mortgage bubble kicked into full gear [[which IMO were the final nails in the coffin).