Symbols of Detroit's comeback

**Strong** · October-08-12, 03:56 PM

I want to ask the question, what would be symbols of Detroit's resurgence?
For example, I thought the:
Renovation of the Book Cadillac was huge
The renovation of Cobo Hall is huge
The plan to open a new police and fire department building is huge
The development along the riverfront is huge
The emerging arts and computer technology industries are huge
The Campus Martius park was huge
The building of the gateway project at Woodward and 8 mile is huge
The Meijer's coming to Grand River and Lasher is huge.
The Chrysler commercial was huge
The opening of the Fort Shelby hotel was huge.
The expansion of the casinos was huge.
The tearing down of the housing projects at Grand river and the Lodge and now the new housing units in its place is huge.
The new apartments and lofts downtown are huge.
Any others?

The Great Detroit? documentary will showcase these positives and will show the world, examples of Detroit's comeback. www.strongdetroit.net

**rb336** · October-08-12, 04:35 PM

here are some more
Broderik Tower renovation
TechTown [[and the nanoincubator)

How about some what-will-be huge things:
Knocking down the JLA for further Cobo expansion
Redevelopment of neighborhoods beyond Midtown
Book Tower renovation
The new bridge
Micro-manufacturing
Large scale urban farms

**401don** · October-08-12, 05:11 PM

Why not wait until Detroit actually starts to come back and then let the world see for itself? Nothing personal, but there are way too many of these stories out there fixsated on telling the world all that is right and wrong with Detroit.
Locally we can celebrate the small victories and mourn the defeats, but until the population stops declining and murders fall below one a day, I just do not see the point in another documentary about the comeback [[or decline) of Detroit.

**Bham1982** · October-08-12, 06:41 PM

Detroit will start to have the stirrings of a comeback when it actually starts growing again, and non-subsidized private investment flows back into the city.

So far, no signs of this.

**Wheels** · October-08-12, 07:03 PM

Detroit has some of the best medical facility's in the country. Yet you could die waiting for 911? The citizens have minimal Police and Fire personnel and equipment. The school system is a disaster. The Mayor and City Counsel have no direction. There are too many core issues to repair before you can celebrate a comeback.

**Honky Tonk** · October-08-12, 07:26 PM

The wait for a 911 call is huge.
The City debt is huge.
The number of police and fire fighters laid off is huge.
The number of Water & Sewerage employees to be laid off is huge.
The mass of land between populated areas is huge.
The number of people murdered is huge.
The amount of money pilfered by City Government employees is huge.
The amount of people that are illiterate is huge.
Because the amount of people that don't graduate is huge.

**renf** · October-08-12, 07:51 PM

What about some of the major investments firms have made recently in
manufacturing in the city of Detroit. GM will assemble Malibus and Impalas
in the Hamtramck plant as well as the Volt. Chrysler has invested in expanding
the Jefferson North Assembly plant and will likely invest in the two Mack Avenue
engine plans. Marathon will soon complete a 2.1 billion dollar investment in
their refinery in southwest Detroit. These firms are not going to leave Detroit
in the near future.

serpico · October-08-12, 08:15 PM

The only thing certain for Detroit is a declining population. No matter how many fancy subsidized projects are built, one thing is certain, Detroit will have fewer people living in the next year..and the next year.....

**p69rrh51** · October-08-12, 09:19 PM

Having lived through a couple of Detroit's "comebacks" or whatever they were called at the time, there is NO sign of anything that remotely resembles a comeback at this moment! Although looks like someone is fishing for ideas they should be developing themselves.

**rb336** · October-08-12, 09:23 PM

negative nellies have spoken. detroit is doomed

**louis** · October-08-12, 09:42 PM

how about the destruction of the Lafayette building? hear me out, the Lafayette building was a trademark of beauty and strength in the city in its prime, that time has faded and with it the Lafayette building. eventually the city tor it down and replaced it with an urban garden, a new popular movement that has been commonly associated with the rebirth of the city. idk i just get all worked up about symbolic stuff like that....

**p69rrh51** · October-08-12, 10:01 PM

Originally Posted by louis

how about the destruction of the Lafayette building? hear me out, the Lafayette building was a trademark of beauty and strength in the city in its prime, that time has faded and with it the Lafayette building. eventually the city tor it down and replaced it with an urban garden, a new popular movement that has been commonly associated with the rebirth of the city. idk i just get all worked up about symbolic stuff like that....

How about with 40 sq. miles of VACANT land we loose one of 2 skyscrapers designed by one of the 20th century's most significant architects only to have a worthless eyesore dumped on us! Symbolic NO beyond stupid YES!!

**Jimaz** · October-08-12, 10:02 PM

GM to add 2,000 jobs in Michigan

General Motors Co. and the state announced Monday that GM will create 2,000 new jobs in Michigan, beginning with up to 1,500 at a new information technology innovation center in Warren.

**313WX** · October-08-12, 10:10 PM

Originally Posted by rb336

negative nellies have spoken. detroit is doomed

I prefer Negative Nancy, thank you very much!!!

**313WX** · October-08-12, 10:11 PM

In any event, Gilbertown is doing better than what it was [[I won't say "booming").

Detroit, on the other hand, continues to rapidly decline as others in this thread have shown.

**Honky Tonk** · October-09-12, 07:51 AM

"Detroit News poll: Crime drives Detroiters out; 40% expect to leave in 5 years "

When life gives you lemons, make lemonade!
C'mon, turn that frown upside down!

"Having lived through a couple of Detroit's "comebacks" or whatever they were called at the time"

I've posted my opinion before, and I'll repeat myself. Until you have the area secured, and a conscientious government in place actually concerned with developing a liveable City, you have pie in the sky. I'm glad some new businesses are moving in, and youngsters are discovering City living for the first time. I wish everyone the best of luck. But I too have Stood Up And Told Them I'm From Detroit, Have Said Nice Things About Detroit, Had a Good Time In Detroit, Believed In Detroit, and I don't see enough improvement to warrant staying and continuing fighting the good fight. It always seems to go one step forward and two steps back.

**michimoby** · October-09-12, 08:31 AM

Originally Posted by serpico

The only thing certain for Detroit is a declining population. No matter how many fancy subsidized projects are built, one thing is certain, Detroit will have fewer people living in the next year..and the next year.....

Just so we're on the same page...are we inferring that population increase is the defining characteristic of a flourishing city?

**Bham1982** · October-09-12, 08:50 AM

Originally Posted by michimoby

Just so we're on the same page...are we inferring that population increase is the defining characteristic of a flourishing city?

Population growth is probably not a defining characteristic, but a necessary characteristic, for long-term municipal health.

There may be some exceptions in a few greying suburbs, but even those should eventually show growth at some point, as the elderly are replaced by younger families.

**michimoby** · October-09-12, 08:59 AM

Originally Posted by Bham1982

Population growth is probably not a defining characteristic, but a necessary characteristic, for long-term municipal health.

Necessary...well, possibly. Certainly important. However, if you're replacing two citizens at a per capita $30K with one citizen at a $90K per capita, you can have an increased tax base without necessarily increasing your population.

That's a really, really simplistic way of looking at it, I know.

**DetroitPlanner** · October-09-12, 09:41 AM

Originally Posted by Bham1982

Population growth is probably not a defining characteristic, but a necessary characteristic, for long-term municipal health.

Cancer and blight grows too but I sure don't want either.

I think what you are getting at here is an increasing tax base. What you need for that may be different than growth. Detroit needs enough growth to keep its infrastructure in good repair and to provide for services. In theory they should have an advantage over greenfield development that needs to install new infrastructure and provide services with revenues lagging growth. In reality however these areas seem to have an advantage because they do get a disproportionate share of the growth. Once they mature however and the growth stops these areas are in trouble as they get an expanding philosophy to cover costs and those revenues have stopped in their tracks.

**Danny** · October-09-12, 02:29 PM

Symbols of Detroit comeback is due to gentrification, regional development of Downtown Detroit, and migration of yuppified young professionals and hipsters. It's slow, but give it 50 years and it will quickly expand that most black ghettos of Detroit will be almost gone.

**Jimaz** · October-09-12, 04:46 PM

GM competing for 1,500 new IT recruits

You don't have to be a car junkie to get a job at General Motors' new software innovation center in Warren, but you might have to be a coding guru -- and software experts are in short supply.

GM announced Monday that it plans to add 1,500 software development and data management jobs at its Warren Tech Center as part of its effort to in-source 90% of its IT work.

The move catapults the automaker into a recruiting thicket crammed with the world's most innovative high-tech companies -- all competing to hire a limited number of software engineers coming out of college or mid-career retraining programs....

GM currently conducts only about 10% of its IT work while outsourcing 90%. Mott wants to reverse that approach, which could involve changes to several long-running IT contracts like GM's deal with Hewlett-Packard.

I would really like to know what prompted this change.

serpico · October-09-12, 05:42 PM

Originally Posted by michimoby

Just so we're on the same page...are we inferring that population increase is the defining characteristic of a flourishing city?

Generally yes. Detroit has a 60+ years of consistent population decline. No other large city in the world has experienced the population losses Detroit has gone through. Detroit is the modern equivalent of ancient Rome.

**Det_ard** · October-09-12, 05:51 PM

Originally Posted by Jimaz

GM competing for 1,500 new IT recruitsI would really like to know what prompted this change.

Based on discussions with someone in the middle of it, it was driven by the age-old "make vs. buy" dynamic that's constantly being revisited in the search for higher profits.

**Jimaz** · October-09-12, 07:49 PM

Originally Posted by Det_ard

Originally Posted by Jimaz

GM competing for 1,500 new IT recruitsI would really like to know what prompted this change.

Based on discussions with someone in the middle of it, it was driven by the age-old "make vs. buy" dynamic that's constantly being revisited in the search for higher profits.

Well, that kind of goes without saying doesn't it? I'd read that Hewlett Packard was going to be losing out as a former outsourcee. I'm curious if any Indian companies [[Tata, etc.) will lose out?