Detroit is a city. It is not supposed to be quiet and lack hustle. It certainly did not when it functioned as a city 50 years ago. Let's make a cleaner, less racist, and more perfect version of THAT. Transit plus smarter planning plus a dose of regional optimism-- done. While the transit has been botched over and over, Snyder may actually help, and I differ from fellow ex-pat Iheart in that I think the attitude and prospects are better now than 5 years ago.

I mean, I know what you're getting at, but it's all relative. For example, when I leave NYC-NJ to visit, say, Washington or Minneapolis, I enjoy the elbow room and the decrease in madness and dirtyness. NY is a city at peak energy and peak everything-- but there are other cities that are highly functional, quite ideal, and more amenable to a broader range of people. Detroit can be just that happy medium, but with the advantage all of its historical and cultural amenities that come from once being the fourth largest city.