When Madhavi Reddy and her husband, Jason Seifert, both 35, decided to move to Detroit, they were pretty sure they would settle in Midtown, Corktown or maybe Woodbridge -- the trendy parts of town they had read and heard about.
But a Realtor suggested that they look at a house in Green Acres, a community tucked along West 8 Mile between Livernois and Woodward.
"I was shocked quite literally -- here was this beautiful, quiet neighborhood nestled in the crossing of three busy intersections," said Seifert, an attorney, who moved from Brighton. "That was the first thing I noticed. The second thing I noticed was that people, now my neighbors, were greeting us!"

Jane's Walks are named in memory of Jane Jacobs, an urban activist and writer who believed bustling cities came through citizen engagement and activity. She wrote the transformative book that became a must-read for urban planners and others interested in what makes cities work, "The Death and Life of Great American Cities" [[Vintage, $16).The first Jane Jacobs Walk was held May 5, 2007, in Toronto. Since that one -- held to coincide with Jacobs' May 4 birthday -- the number of walks has exploded. Last year, there were 511 walks in 75 cities and 15 countries across the world, including walks in São Paulo, Brazil; Wuhan, China, and Colchester and Hereford in England.

A neighborhood walk may seem like a simple step, but it can have varied and tremendous benefits, said Reddy, who brought the idea from Toronto to Detroit. She had participated in and helped plan six Jane's Walks in the Toronto area.
"Walking gets neighbors out of their houses talking to each other," Reddy said. "When you get real people together talking about how they live, it can lead to discussions about policies and how to improve things. It's good exercise. In a car-centered society, people drive from Point A to Point B -- without building relationships. If nothing else, it's a chance for neighbors to get to know each other, and for people who don't know a community, it's a chance to get to know it by walking with the people who live there."


http://www.freep.com/article/2012050...text|FRONTPAGE