Impressive New Detroit City Planning Director Appointed by Duggan

[Lowell]

Maurice Cox comes with an outstanding resume, a promising mix of art, architecture and politics with an impressive academic background. Check out these bio items from Tulane University School of Architecture where he is currently dean. Welcome to the D Mr. Cox!

"Maurice Cox, a nationally respected community designer and leader of the public interest design movement, serves as associate dean for community engagement at the Tulane University School of Architecture in New Orleans.


Cox, who studied architecture at Cooper Union in New York under the guidance of John Hejduk, comes to Tulane from the faculty of University of Virginia.

Cox served as design director of the National Endowment for the Arts in Washington, DC from 2007-2010. In that capacity, he led the Mayor’s Institute on City Design, the Governor’s Institute on Community Design and oversaw the award of more than $2 million a year in NEA design grants across the United States.

Cox has received national acclaim for his ability to incorporate active citizen participation into the design process while achieving the highest quality of design excellence, leading Fast Company business magazine to name him one of America’s “20 Masters of Design” for his practice of “democratic design.”

Cox’s appreciation of the civic process led him to serve as city council member and then mayor of the City of Charlottesville from 1996-2004.

During Cox’s mayoral term [[2002-2004) the city was ranked as the “#1 Best Place to Live in the USA & Canada” by Frommer’s Cities Ranked and Rated.

The city was also the smallest in America to maintain a AAA-bond rating for excellence in fiscal management with a municipal city budget of $100 million."

PS this is an announcement of appointment. City Council must approve, but it should be a done deal.

[DetroiterOnTheWestCoast]

Indeed, quite impressive. Here is a link to Crain's coverage.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article...nning-director

In the Crain's article there is a link to an interview where he discussed "adaptive re-use". Detroit can certainly use someone with such a vision as City Planning Director.

http://wwno.org/post/tulane-city-cen...-oc-haley-blvd

[Hypestyles]

Well, kudos to this gentleman. I hope he has some genuinely progressive ideas on how to re-vision the city for the future, near- and long-term.
Side note: What is his presumed salary... and how long before he starts getting called Uncle T*m, sellout, CIA plant, etc.? Wait for it..

[EastsideAl]

Finally, someone in city planning who seems to have a vision beyond the mid-20th century. Hopefully, we're finally at the end of the "tear that schitt down" [[and replace it with a strip mall or townhouses built around parking lots or a vacant lot 'awaiting development') era of Detroit urban planning.

[ABetterDetroit]

Let's hope he is successful at restoring value to property so that it doesn't become a blighted crime lure that ends up in government hands and tearing it down wound not have to be considered a option by the city.

[Wesley Mouch]

Let's hope he is successful at restoring value to property so that it doesn't become a blighted crime lure that ends up in government hands and tearing it down wound not have to be considered a option by the city.

Planning Directors can't restore value.

Be curious to hear what kinds of steps people think he can take that could make a difference.

[Gannon]

Side note: What is his presumed salary... and how long before he starts getting called Uncle T*m, sellout, CIA plant, etc.? Wait for it..

Just under $150k, according to one article.

CIA plant...LOL...it's not like he's the President!

[ABetterDetroit]

Planning Directors can't restore value.

Be curious to hear what kinds of steps people think he can take that could make a difference.

I just gave you one and you said he "can't" do it. Nothing like setting a low bar for a new employee. Increasing property values of private property in a city that just emerged from bankruptcy and the abandonment of private property has been rampant should be high on his list.

[Smirnoff]

Background check completed yet.....?

[Wesley Mouch]

I just gave you one and you said he "can't" do it. Nothing like setting a low bar for a new employee. Increasing property values of private property in a city that just emerged from bankruptcy and the abandonment of private property has been rampant should be high on his list.

He cannot raise property values by fiat. He can only do so by creating a good plan. If its a good plan, investment will follow. He can direct public investment, to some degree. But again he can't mandate it. He can only plan. Ultimately politicians have to buy in, or its meaninless.

Have we not seen plan after plan discarded.

I'm not setting a low bar. I'm suggesting he be the head of planning and PLAN. And lobby for your plan. And make it happen politically. Great ideas are meaningless. Implementation is king.

[Hypestyles]

.. so what is the role-- if any-- for the DEGC now that this gentleman has a cabinet position? I'd like to see the "validity" of the DEGC addressed once and for all. I'm sick of all the quasi-public, private-records holding groups.

[Jayp213]

Hopefully he can bring in a much needed input to these proposals that contain ideals from the 1960s...

[ABetterDetroit]

He cannot raise property values by fiat. He can only do so by creating a good plan. If its a good plan, investment will follow. He can direct public investment, to some degree. But again he can't mandate it. He can only plan. Ultimately politicians have to buy in, or its meaninless.

Have we not seen plan after plan discarded.

I'm not setting a low bar. I'm suggesting he be the head of planning and PLAN. And lobby for your plan. And make it happen politically. Great ideas are meaningless. Implementation is king.

That's what I mean, sound planning that realizes that development and investment is a good thing. Not something you chase away.

[JBMcB]

Faux city council outrage because he isn't from Detroit coming in 5... 4... 3...

[artds]

"Mr. Mayor, what would you like to do about the Director of Urban Planning vacancy?"

"GET ME MOE COX!"

[Wesley Mouch]

Faux city council outrage because he isn't from Detroit coming in 5... 4... 3...

Duggan selling himself well to city residents just might make pandering to populist Detroiters pointless.

[MSUguy]

Faux city council outrage because he isn't from Detroit coming in 5... 4... 3...

Really? You say this based on what? Quite a few people in the mayors cabinet are not from Detroit haven't heard any outrage faux or otherwise.

[Wesley Mouch]

Really? You say this based on what? Quite a few people in the mayors cabinet are not from Detroit haven't heard any outrage faux or otherwise.

Well, it might be because of 30 years of that kind of self-serving behavior.

The City's voters have empowered 'anti-privilege' candidates long before the current national climate of 'anti-privilege'. Fortunately for Detroit, the realities of our beloved city have put the politics of 'anti-privilege' aside in favor of electing and appointing qualified candidates.

In this way, Detroit is running against the trend of electing and appointing people based on their attitudes rather than their qualification. Good for us.

Can we talk more here about the qualifications of this guy now? I do worry that city council will fall back to bad habits, but in the meantime can we hear more about this guy, and can we discuss how good planning can help a distressed city? Are there examples of good planning in other cities making a difference?

[Scottathew]

I hope there's no issue with him not being from Detroit.

Residency requirements are dumb for jobs that require highly educated people. Get the best qualified people for the job.

Residency requirements can start to make sense when you look at lower-paying job, lower-skill jobs in cities that suffer from unemployment.

[DetroiterOnTheWestCoast]

Faux city council outrage because he isn't from Detroit coming in 5... 4... 3...

Apparently no "faux city council outrage" since there was a unanimous approval.

http://www.detroitnews.com/story/new...oods/24702357/

I think this appointment is another example that the mayor is NOT ignoring the neighborhoods:

“It’s great to see the hustling and bustling of a downtown, but a much quieter indication of whether a city is thriving is whether you see that in the neighborhoods where people live,” Cox said.

[Honky Tonk]

“It’s great to see the hustling and bustling of a downtown, but a much quieter indication of whether a city is thriving is whether you see that in the neighborhoods where people live,” Cox said.

"Hey look everyone, a carrot on a stick. Let's go get it"

[Wesley Mouch]

I hope there's no issue with him not being from Detroit.

Residency requirements are dumb for jobs that require highly educated people. Get the best qualified people for the job.

Residency requirements can start to make sense when you look at lower-paying job, lower-skill jobs in cities that suffer from unemployment.

Residency requirements may have appeal, but they are never good policy.

It should be illegal to discriminate on the basis of residency. Some people may not have legal residence. Others might need to move to care for an elderly relative. We have no right to treat people differently because of the location of their legal residence.

[Hypestyles]

residency rules for police make perfect sense.

[mwilbert]

Residency requirements may have appeal, but they are never good policy.

It should be illegal to discriminate on the basis of residency. Some people may not have legal residence. Others might need to move to care for an elderly relative. We have no right to treat people differently because of the location of their legal residence.

This is not clear thinking. People have to live away from their relatives because of their jobs all the time. It isn't obvious why a city has a higher obligation in this area. And cities tread non-residents differently in all kinds of ways already--what do you think a municipal school district does?

[LiveWire]

I don't mind that he's not from Detroit. In fact I think it's kind of a good thing. That way he won't have any negative connections and won't be swayed by self interest "friends or family".
I think Detroit needs fresh blood with new ideas.