Detroit is dead.... and will take the State with it....

[serpico]

Serpico is a lifelong resident of Michigan. I have lived in Wayne and Oakland counties my entire life, moving back into Wayne county [[River Rouge) last month. Touring the city of Detroit today with my buddy from high school we saw no hope. As we walked and drove past block after block of destruction I wondered what remained of the infrastructure below. Specifically the water and sewage mains....When Detroit does collapse.. it will take the state of Michigan with it... This picture was one of many we took today.. it is no longer "east side or west side".. The entire city of Detroit has become "Robinwood street".....
Yes we did see a few nice homes in Woodbridge, Midtown, Corktown, Brush Park etc.. but even within these neighborhoods the blight, decay and neglect clearly won...

[KJ5]

What are you, the Anti-Strong? Go to City Club or something, dude.

[Sehv313]

I can't even disagree, I live in city limits, the inner city is getting rapidly worse as downtown slowly grows.

[erikd]

Serpico is a lifelong resident of Michigan. I have lived in Wayne and Oakland counties my entire life, moving back into Wayne county [[River Rouge) last month. Touring the city of Detroit today with my buddy from high school we saw no hope. As we walked and drove past block after block of destruction I wondered what remained of the infrastructure below. Specifically the water and sewage mains....When Detroit does collapse.. it will take the state of Michigan with it... This picture was one of many we took today.. it is no longer "east side or west side".. The entire city of Detroit has become "Robinwood street".....
Yes we did see a few nice homes in Woodbridge, Midtown, Corktown, Brush Park etc.. but even within these neighborhoods the blight, decay and neglect clearly won...

If you think that Detroit looks hopeless now, then you have no idea of how bad the city looked in the mid-late 90s. Downtown, Midtown, Woodbridge, and Corktown are all ten times nicer than they were 15 years ago. If you could see how depressed all these areas were 15 years ago, it would blow your mind.

[SWMAP]

Was driving around on Friday and had the same feeling. How did huge stretches of Grand River get destroyed? Everything gutted, ruined, blocked up, grated, peeling, bent, painted over?

I do think most of City just ruined.

[Meddle]

How did huge stretches of Grand River get destroyed? Everything gutted, ruined, blocked up, grated, peeling, bent, painted over?

July 1967. Much of it was never rebuilt.

But I also get the impression from posts on this board that areas beyond Hubbell are almost as bad now.

[serpico]

I would like to believe that the neighborhoods are getting better in Detroit.. but there're not. Where are the developers living? Jonna? Illitch? Gilbert? Ford? etc.... they have all fled.... When I do see new lofts going up it's a positive sign, yet I ask, "will you live here?" How many church ministers have fled Detroit? How many police/fire officers have fled? The leaders of Detroit have abandoned the city and it shows. I want to believe, I want to be positive, I want to have faith. Yet all signs point downward. Arson fires break out in the middle of the day as if it's a "normal" thing in Detroit. Residents in Woodbridge all have "the club" on their steering wheels parked in front of their homes.. this too is "normal".. The level of decay and crime is just "normal".. Living in fear, has become "normal" in Detroit.... Detroit has the resources to change.. but it uses those resources to protect the bridge...Instead of stopping arson, Detroit police protect Moroun's bridge, protect Moroun's private Jefferson Ave, protect Moroun's private Riverside park.... yes I saw some nice homes... but this is what I saw most of...shear neglect and no one gives a damn......

[Zacha341]

The "Anti-Strong"... that's funny! ----

What are you, the Anti-Strong? Go to City Club or something, dude.

[Detroit_uke]

This neighborhood is not getting better....makes one want to ask which "war" was "Warrendale" named after?????

[softailrider]

If you think that Detroit looks hopeless now, then you have no idea of how bad the city looked in the mid-late 90s. Downtown, Midtown, Woodbridge, and Corktown are all ten times nicer than they were 15 years ago. If you could see how depressed all these areas were 15 years ago, it would blow your mind.

Those particular areas you refer to [[and there are some others, not mentioned by you) do look somewhat better the they did in the late 90's. However, most of the other areas of the city look much worse. I have lived and or worked in the city for 40 years, I've never seen Detroit's neighborhoods look worse then they do now.

[Honky Tonk]

Those particular areas you refer to [[and there are some others, not mentioned by you) do look somewhat better the they did in the late 90's. However, most of the other areas of the city look much worse. I have lived and or worked in the city for 40 years, I've never seen Detroit's neighborhoods look worse then they do now.

I agree. For the first time I feel like the City has given up on the City.

[Richard]

In January 2010 Detroit was awarded 40.8 million to combat blight,at $8000 per home to demolish that would be equal to 50,000 homes cleared,demolishing the Ford and the like took priority ,I would think questioning the motives of some that are helping or blaming a bridge on all of the woes would be a bit misplaced.

[Zacha341]

^^^ Yep, the bridge guy is but one of many systemic problems that brought us to this place...

[Honky Tonk]

In January 2010 Detroit was awarded 40.8 million to combat blight,at $8000 per home to demolish that would be equal to 50,000 homes cleared,demolishing the Ford and the like took priority ,I would think questioning the motives of some that are helping or blaming a bridge on all of the woes would be a bit misplaced.

I would LOVE to look @ the books to see where that money went, or how it's being used.

[Hamtragedy]

If the general disarray at city and county tax / assessment offices is any indication, it will take years to figure out who OWNS what, yet alone who OWES how much.

Case in point, I/we have made several trips to the offices on Randolph to provide proof of ownership/guardianship/transfer/discharge, complete with mailing addresses, on several properties, mostly in an effort to receive the tax bill in a timely manner to the proper mailing address. It's as if the previous trip never happened.

Here's an excerpt of the conversation:

"You're here for what?" "You need to do this." "Already did that." "Well you should have done this." "You told me to do that, so I did it. Twice in fact." "Well we don't have any record of it." That's a shame cuz I've done this twice already, once on x date, again on x date". "Well, we show so and so as having title." "Yes, we're aware of that. We've been here twice previously to change that" "Who are you? Do you have the paperwork?" "Yes, for all three-four-five properties in question" "You said you've done this before?" Yes, twice for these properties, once for this." " We're showing no record of this"

Detroit is going SPLAT. It is a colossally huge mess.

[Honky Tonk]

If the general disarray at city and county tax / assessment offices is any indication, it will take years to figure out who OWNS what, yet alone who OWES how much.

Case in point, I/we have made several trips to the offices on Randolph to provide proof of ownership/guardianship/transfer/relinquishment, complete with mailing addresses, on several properties, mostly in an effort to receive the tax bill in a timely manner to the proper mailing address. It's as if the previous trip never happened.

Here's an excerpt of the conversation:

"You're here for what?" "You need to do this." "Already did that." "Well you should have done this." "You told me to do that, so I did it. Twice in fact." "Well we don't have any record of it." That's a shame cuz I've done this twice already, once on x date, again on x date". "Well, we show so and so as having title." "Yes, we're aware of that. We've been here twice previously to change that" "Who are you? Do you have the paperwork?" "Yes, for all three-four-five properties in question" "You said you've done this before?" Yes, twice for these properties, once for this." " We're showing no record of this"

Detroit is going SPLAT. It is a colossally huge mess.

I'm glad you posted this. I always thought it was just me.

[Richard]

I agree. For the first time I feel like the City has given up on the City.

Or are they systematically encouraging those to move to other areas,a few weeks back there was a piece about a lady that bought a house from foreclosure auction,it was livable by the time she signed the papers it was demolished by the state,so I guess the state is now in charge of demolitions.

Karla Henderson went from running a retirement home to deciding what should stay or go in the city of Detroit ,her view is if it is not boarded up it will be demolished to make way for future development even though many cities have now passed anti boarding rules as boarding in itself creates blight and have encouraged the owner accountability aspect,but it is easier to acquire fed funds and demolish,according to Ms Henderson 90% of all demolishing are occurring with fed funds,they are being received but where are they going?

[Zacha341]

I hear the state is going to take over city delinquent taxes. Now that's gonna be some stuff for the citizens with bank accounts... garnishments and levy's will be the rule of order - FAST! Money in mattress time I suppose.

[Richard]

I would LOVE to look @ the books to see where that money went, or how it's being used.

That and each state and city was awarded millions by the feds from a fund set up by the banks to combat foreclosure related blight,it was supposed to be used for boarding up and maintenance on the empty houses to prevent future blight and to stabilize the neighborhood,it was also supposed to be used to help homeowners fight the foreclosure process and stay in their homes.So now you are up to 80 million plus in the last two years to combat neighborhood blight,where did it go?

[Richard]

I hear the state is going to take over city delinquent taxes. Now that's gonna be some stuff for the citizens with bank accounts... garnishments and levy's will be the rule of order - FAST! Money in mattress time I suppose.

The city contracts to the county for that now,but how many areas are considered blight because of the speculation aspect ,over by the airport,three large sections for a proposed stadium.

IMHO I think they should say if you live out of state or country and own property in the city and do not maintain it,say good bye to it and lose your investment.

Could you imagine the CC if the state said they were in charge of collecting revenue for the city,rightly so but it is all lame duck now until next year and anything can happen as you are already seeing.

[Gistok]

If the general disarray at city and county tax / assessment offices is any indication, it will take years to figure out who OWNS what, yet alone who OWES how much.

Case in point, I/we have made several trips to the offices on Randolph to provide proof of ownership/guardianship/transfer/relinquishment, complete with mailing addresses, on several properties, mostly in an effort to receive the tax bill in a timely manner to the proper mailing address. It's as if the previous trip never happened.

Here's an excerpt of the conversation:

"You're here for what?" "You need to do this." "Already did that." "Well you should have done this." "You told me to do that, so I did it. Twice in fact." "Well we don't have any record of it." That's a shame cuz I've done this twice already, once on x date, again on x date". "Well, we show so and so as having title." "Yes, we're aware of that. We've been here twice previously to change that" "Who are you? Do you have the paperwork?" "Yes, for all three-four-five properties in question" "You said you've done this before?" Yes, twice for these properties, once for this." " We're showing no record of this"

Detroit is going SPLAT. It is a colossally huge mess.

Hamtragedy... I know the feeling... over 2 years ago my sister and I had to go downtown to get a Quick Claim Deed to my now deceased mothers house. The lady at the county office on Monroe said that we need to get a certain code, but that they are not allowed to give it out to us... we had to get a lawyer and find it out ourselves... Luckily my friend in the building where Lowell has his offices... [[after a few expletives about the worthiness of the employees at the county level) came up with that number in less than 2 minutes and we headed back to the county offices... with our cell phone at the ready in case they were going to give us another road block... [[in case I needed to call my friend)... but all finally went smoothly.

But there's enough ineptness in both city and county government to go around...

[Hamtragedy]

IMHO I think they should say if you live out of state or country and own property in the city and do not maintain it,say good bye to it and lose your investment.
.

The problem with that is if they are paying taxes, even if the property looks like crap, they are a source of revenue, which the city clearly lacks. Or at least the city lacks the ability or ineptitude to collect the revenue it is due.

[poobert]

If the general disarray at city and county tax / assessment offices is any indication, it will take years to figure out who OWNS what, yet alone who OWES how much.

Case in point, I/we have made several trips to the offices on Randolph to provide proof of ownership/guardianship/transfer/relinquishment, complete with mailing addresses, on several properties, mostly in an effort to receive the tax bill in a timely manner to the proper mailing address. It's as if the previous trip never happened.

Here's an excerpt of the conversation:

"You're here for what?" "You need to do this." "Already did that." "Well you should have done this." "You told me to do that, so I did it. Twice in fact." "Well we don't have any record of it." That's a shame cuz I've done this twice already, once on x date, again on x date". "Well, we show so and so as having title." "Yes, we're aware of that. We've been here twice previously to change that" "Who are you? Do you have the paperwork?" "Yes, for all three-four-five properties in question" "You said you've done this before?" Yes, twice for these properties, once for this." " We're showing no record of this"

Detroit is going SPLAT. It is a colossally huge mess.

I had these exact same experiences at the City-County Building [[yes, that is what it is called), which I have shared in the past, and care not to recount. Long story short, the troglodytes working there were incapable of understanding a deed, leading to much wailing and gnashing of teeth. Eventually I won, through sheer attrition [[what do they care? they're still getting paid) All over a single purchase of a foreclosed, vacant house in Detroit as my homestead. They should be rolling out the red carpet, frankly.

While I think the OP is slightly over the top [[having the club, and whatnot, I'm not all that broken up about), they're mostly spot on.

We can recount the half-a-dozen areas [[most of which are essentially just greater downtown) that are doing better these days, but the vast majority of the city is now heavily blighted. I can tell you it wasn't even like that 10 years ago. You could drive down a given side street and chances are it wouldn't be totally shelled out. Shitty, maybe, but people still lived here.

That isn't the case today. Except for the "big name" neighborhoods and greater downtown, the rest of the city has been essentially decimated beyond repair. Taken together you've probably got 20 square miles of okay/salvageable areas and 120 square miles of Dresden circa 1945.

Also kind of a taboo subject is how even these better areas - yes, every single one of them - has been hit with significant blight.

So what do we do with the vast majority of the city? Fill it with crappy infill housing that will get stripped before occupied? Turn it into a rainwater retention pond? Nobody seems to know or care anymore. Just write some happy-slappy article about some white guy moving downtown, open some police-mini-stations, talk about some guy from Brooklyn painting a mural someplace, and pretend everything will be fine. Meanwhile 10 U-Hauls just hit the onramp and 10 families are looking at Detroit from the rear-view mirror for the last time with relief. Denial is a powerful thing.

[PizzaMan]

Real estate is cheap and if we could some how get people to buy property again I am sure the city can turn around.

[Honky Tonk]

So what do we do with the vast majority of the city? Fill it with crappy infill housing that will get stripped before occupied? Turn it into a rainwater retention pond? Nobody seems to know or care anymore. Just write some happy-slappy article about some white guy moving downtown, open some police-mini-stations, talk about some guy from Brooklyn painting a mural someplace, and pretend everything will be fine. Meanwhile 10 U-Hauls just hit the onramp and 10 families are looking at Detroit from the rear-view mirror for the last time with relief. Denial is a powerful thing.

Good Post. You echo my feeling exactly. You can put all the "crappy infill housing" you want, and unless perspective residents feel warm and fuzzy about moving and living here, it won't do you any good. Homes are being stripped, not only in Detroit, but in neighboring areas, while people are @ work. I can just see the results of this kind of construction project now. And I have no intention of moving into a $1700 a month crackerbox, so I can ride the elevator down to an espresso shop, for a $12 coffee and doughnut. I don't know what the answer is, I just know I'm starting to care less.