Metro Detroit-Windsor 2020 Predictions

As we enter a new decade in Detroit, it's time for another prediction thread.

For historical purposes, below are links to the previous new year prediction threads:

2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019

And here we go:

1. [[Since I failed on this last year) After yet another disappointing season, which sees the Lions finish with a 1-15 record, Matt Patricia is himself booted away from his Lions head coach job.
2. [[Since I failed on this the past four years) Eastland closes.
3. The final height of the Hudson's Tower is revealed, and the height that is revealed will be surprising to some.
4. Some progress on the Monroe Blocks are made by the end of the year.
5. Pistons, Red Wings and Tigers all each, once again, miss the playoffs.
6. At least one other off-the-beaten-path Detroit neighborhood gets revived.
7. Further demolitions of historic buildings for parking lots in District Detroit are witnessed, even despite protests.
8. One or the other main newspapers discontinues their print edition.
9. SMART reveals two new Fast routes.
10. Trump's Chinese tariffs begin to show a severe effect on the local economy.

Add your predictions!

1. K-Mart\Sears ceases operations [[everywhere)
2. Whitmer signs new law enabling municipal stormwater utilities
3. I-75 Phase Two finished early
4. Dow Jones Industrial Average hits 30,000 before election, but falls to 25,000 before the year is over
5. Clawson Public Schools executes annexation with Troy School District, lowering the number of school districts in Oakland County to 27. At least one other metro Detroit school district begins annexation\merger discussions
6. Hudson site steel over 100 feet high
7. Hudson Tower height announced, 750 feet
8. Nothing happens at the Monroe blocks
9. Gilbert's empire rakes in record profits
10. Significant road funding deal in Lansing reached before election

1. Hudson Tower height, hotel partner and office tenant officially announced. First steel starts to rise in March.
2. NAIAS sets record attendance numbers with the new summer show.
3. Another bad year for Detroit sports; Tigers show glimmers of hope and rumors of new ownership swirl.
4. The census doesn't go as well as people are hoping; population has not bottomed out in Detroit.
5. Recurring issues plague the QLine and force changes, which include blocking off the lane to traffic where possible and updating the arrival tracking.
6. For the 3rd year in a row on my list, Hart Plaza redesign plans announced. Hoping to will it into existence at this point.
7. Road diet announced for Main Street in Royal Oak and Old Woodward in Birmingham, will include protected bike lanes.
8. Bad year for Uber, which throws a monkey wrench into the ideas of people who think Uber is a solution for our lack of transit in the region.
9. Serious conversations begin around shutting down the People Mover.

1. More mass layoffs will be announced at GM / Ford, while FCA will announce mass layoffs in preparation for the merger with Groupe PSA.

2. At least one major retailer will file for bankruptcy and will be liquidated [[besides Sears/Kmart).

3. Plans to rejuvenate Eastland Center will be revealed.

4. Plans for City Airport will be revealed.

5. At least one large suburban employer will announce it's relocating downtown.

6. It will be announced that only the podium for the Hudson will be constructed now, while the tower portion is put on indefinite hold.

7. There will be no movement on the Monroe Block.

8. More retail will be announced on Woodward Avenue downtown.

9. Gabe Leland will be found guilty of extortion and will face jail time.

10. BJ's Wholesale Club will announce at least one new location

1. More black folks from Detroit are still moving the suburbs.

2. More Detroit hoods are getting abandoned only to replaced by secret investors from all over the world.

3. More brothers killing brothers in the Detroit ghetto hoods.

4. Detroit Lions still lose.

5. Detroit Red Wings still lose.

6. Detroit Pistons still lose

7. Detroit Tigers still lose.

The Bright side.

8. More white folks are still moving in Detroit starting with Gilberttown to Midtown and setting their eyes in New Center Area.

9. Our next Mayor will be black.

10. The Auto Show will be in June with a record attendance of over 1,200,000 to 1,500,000.

1. Gov.Whitmer decides to revive the Film incentive proposals

2. Gov. Whitmer's road funding plan will include the use of the gas taxes.

3. The RTA Mass Transit vote will FAILED again. It will pass in Wayne, Washtenaw and Oakland County by a small margin. But failed in Macomb County. [[This is due to residents in Northern Macomb cities don't want to pay taxes for buses not running in their areas.)

4. The SMART Bus Millage has passed in Wayne and Oakland County and failed in Macomb County by a small margin. As a result industrial business are threatened to leave most Macomb County cities if Hackel don't come up with a district comprise. [[to let cities vote to opt in or out of SMART Bus Transportation)

5. Chick-Fil-A will open it's outlet franchise in Allen Park, MI.

6. The former owner of the stamping plant in Madison Heights who is responsible of illegal dumping Hexavalent Chromium "Green Ooze" is found guilty and given up to 30 years in a federal prison. His jail cell will be next to Former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick.

7. Northland Mall is proposed for a pricey condo development. But investors will not agree due to its property values in the area.

8. Eastland Mall might close and proposed to built a retail strip with affordable subsidized housing.

9. Wayne State University STEM Project building at the Old Science Library Building has been competed.

10. Wayne State University State Hall Building may become the home headquarters of Math Corps Summer School program. Teaching students from all over SE Michigan basic mathematics increasing graduation rates.

11. Kid Rock's Made in Detroit Restaurant at the Little Caesar's Arena will be closing its doors for good in April.


12. Detroit Lions once again still have a struggled season finish with 4-12. Head Coach Matt Patricia and GM Bob Quinn will be fired. QB Matthew Stafford decides to retire.

Sure hope so.

"6. The former owner of the stamping plant in Madison Heights who is responsible of illegal dumping Hexavalent Chromium "Green Ooze" is found guilty and given up to 30 years in a federal prison. His jail cell will be next to Former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick."

1- Steel will rise up for the TCF Bank HQ. Posters will have very mixed feelings as it will be great to have more infill, but sadly the structure’s built architecture will be even more aesthetically disappointing than the renderings.

2- The 375 Boulevard plan will finally get approved, and scheduled for construction in the next few years. Most people will actually be ok with the concept.

3- The Gordie Howe Bridge towers will begin to emerge, and many D-Yes posters will be monitoring the bridge construction updates constantly much like they monitored the 2019 progress in the Hudsons Site hole.

4- Site work will begin on just the Monroe Block [[not blocks), and it will only be on the block closer to Campus Martius. The height of the Monroe Block Tower will be reduced by about a third from what was previously announced, making the height of the tower approximately equivalent to the First National Bldg across the street, and shorter than the Cadillac tower behind it.

5- The Mid Project goes the way of the Jefferson Meijer, and nothing happens nor is anything officially cancelled... but everyone will assume it is not happening.

6- A Hampton Inn, Hyatt Place, or some other low end hotel chain gets proposed for the CBD... possibly on property owned by Illitch.

7- Many of the one way streets in downtown get reassigned for two way traffic, making business owners mad as on street parallel parking is lost.

8- Work will continue on the MCS renovation, but Ford will start to struggle with deciding what they actually want to do with the place [[functionality wise) once completed.

9- No significant state legislative progress is made on anything, including roads, and a partisan stalemate continues between the Dem Gov and the GOP legislature.

10- Plans fail to actually materialize on the UM site near Gratiot and 375. Despite’s this, fortunately progress does continue on justice site near 75/94.

Y'all really like going bold with your wildly negative predictions huh, notice how it's never anything wildly good which is what we've seen this year and years past.

None of you predicted a massive bank merger benefiting the city or Ford buying MCS or UofM building a major campus in the city backed by some of the richest investors in the country but all you can do is chip at it, typical.

It's what you want to happen not an actual prediction. /rant

1. Things DYES could never in their dreams predict happen

There...

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Metro25

It's what you want to happen not an actual prediction. /rant

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Is it? Because I think it's the opposite.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by EGrant

Is it? Because I think it's the opposite.

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Just look at all the trolls in the last thread who were all giddy and gleeful with predictions of a great depression happening in 2019 oh and it was ONLY going to happen in Detroit and Michigan. Renovators in the city were going to lose their shirts!

Strange how the opposite was reality with the state closing in the year at a bit over 2% growth and property values in the city continued to rise.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Metro25

Y'all really like going bold with your wildly negative predictions huh, notice how it's never anything wildly good which is what we've seen this year and years past.

None of you predicted a massive bank merger benefiting the city or Ford buying MCS or UofM building a major campus in the city backed by some of the richest investors in the country but all you can do is chip at it, typical.

It's what you want to happen not an actual prediction. /rant

1. Things DYES could never in their dreams predict happen

There...

---

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Metro25

Just look at all the trolls in the last thread who were all giddy and gleeful with predictions of a great depression happening in 2019 oh and it was ONLY going to happen in Detroit and Michigan. Renovators in the city were going to lose their shirts!

Strange how the opposite was reality with the state closing in the year at a bit over 2% growth and property values in the city continued to rise.

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Cool story brah!!! :cool:

1. Another national chain retail announcing opening downtown by summer.
2. Major company to build 10 to 20 story high rise on the near Eastside near Federal Reserve Building around E Warren and Chene area.
3. Mary Sheffield announces her bid for Mayor in 2021.
4. Mayor Dugan indicted
5. Lions get a quarterback and plan an exit strategy for Stafford.
6. Ford will give tours of the then renovated part of the MCS.
7. Walmart announces opening store in Corktown area.
8. Tigers make it to the playoffs
9. Plans announced to extend Qline to 8 mile rd.
10. Dan Gilbert offer to buy Lions from Ford family
11. Art Van announces opening a store in downtown/midtown Detroit

Quote:

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Originally Posted by 313WX

1. More mass layoffs will be announced at GM / Ford, while FCA will announce mass layoffs in preparation for the merger with Groupe PSA.

2. At least one major retailer will file for bankruptcy and will be liquidated [[besides Sears/Kmart).

3. Plans to rejuvenate Eastland Center will be revealed.

4. Plans for City Airport will be revealed.

5. At least one large suburban employer will announce it's relocating downtown.

6. It will be announced that only the podium for the Hudson will be constructed now, while the tower portion is put on indefinite hold.

7. There will be no movement on the Monroe Block.

8. More retail will be announced on Woodward Avenue downtown.

9. Gabe Leland will be found guilty of extortion and will face jail time.

10. BJ's Wholesale Club will announce at least one new location

---

Well damm, #10 didn't take long.

Just saw an ad that they're opening a store in Chesterfield.

1. Result of US 2020 Census for Detroit: show no change in decrease of population.
2. Local bus service between Ann Arbor and Detroit begin.
3. Wait times for combined DDOT/SMART buses decrease by 4%
4. Arby's opens in Detroit.
5. Increase in rent by 30% overall in the city of Detroit.
6. Miguel Cabrea is let go from the Tigers. Riley Green is brought in after time in the Minors.
7. Red Wings take time to rebuild in hopes of going to the playoffs next year.
8. Pistons don't make playoffs this time. Still working on it.
9. Decrease in price for Lions tickets, because Ford will get the money, even if their stadium is empty.
10. Despite protests, the city of Detroit will implement facial recognition throughout the city after spending two years doing it in secret. Main cameras will be centered around Downtown and through main streets in certain neighborhoods.
11. The Charter of the City of Detroit is brought to the people for approval after revision.
12. Douglas MacArthur bridge to Belle Isle is crowded after the barricade is built at the entrance to prevent fee dodgers from getting in.
13. MoGo expands bike rental services throughout the rest of Detroit, to provide alternatives to waiting forever for the bus.
14. Plans are considered to expand the Detroit/Windsor Tunnel.
15. Bike lanes continue to expand throughout the city and traffic slows down.
16. Dan Gilbert buys the Detroit City Football Club and uses the team as a bid for a MLS franchise.
17. Highland Park runs out of money, pleads for annexation to Detroit. Detroit accepts and population increases.

17. Highland Park runs out of money, pleads for annexation to Detroit. Detroit accepts and population increases.

That one should have happened decades ago. Hamtown, too.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Tig3rzhark

17. Highland Park runs out of money, pleads for annexation to Detroit. Detroit accepts and population increases.

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Fascinating prediction, it makes a lot of sense.

I had a similar prediction for small school districts starting to merge.

1. Gilbert will somehow convince another major employer to move downtown.
2. Population will go up another 50K in Detroit
2. Property values and rents will skyrocket another 25%-50%.

more new but affordable apartments are needed. Beyond downtown.

On the small school districts merging discussion, I see Clarenceville, Flat Rock, and Madison districts folding into Livonia, TBD, and Lamphere, respectively.

Not sure if Livonia schools could handle that diversity though.

Despite the fact that COVID threw a monkey wrench into most of 2020, there were still some spot-on predictions from a year ago.

mtburb, time to start a new thread?

My prediction for 2021 is Mayor Duggan will narrowly win reelection, Covid will still be here but fatalities will start to decline to a much lower rate than last year. The Auto Show will go on with safety standards installed for attendee. It will be mostly outdoors. The Grand Prix will return but no one in the stands. Maybe some unrest in Detroit from the Trump supporters vs Antifa. Another retailer opens in Downtown Detroit