Rust Belt: the New Secret Capital of American Cool?

[Lowell]

Just in time for Summer, a rust belt tour? I came across the following while planning a long-over trip to explore Cleveland. This one recommends a Lake Eire circling tour of Detroit, Cleveland, Buffalo and Pittsburgh.

I found the Detroit description rather shallow - Shinola, Jolly Pumpkin and other usual suspects. But, hey, anything that brings business...

"So why are the Rust Belt’s cities suddenly cooler than they have been, in, well, ever? Every where you look in the region, downtowns are coming back on the grid, declining neighborhoods are filling up with young, creative types, food and drink scenes are growing like wildfire. It’s almost too much to keep up with.

Difficult times are no doubt still ahead, but it’s safe to say that the Rust Belt’s cities haven’t shown this much promise in a good while. Here are four essential stops, all within easy driving distance of one another — not to tell you your business, but it would make for one hell of a summer road trip."http://www.huffingtonpost.com/David-Landsel/is-the-rust-belt-is-the-n_b_10119872.html

Then there's the other side of vacationing in Detroit, voluntourism. This on a little pickier.

The Social-Impact Vacation Is Here

A new kind of tourism doesn't appeal just to students.

When you think about a summer getaway, Detroit might not be the first place on your list. But on June 10, that’s where Nathalie Molina Niño, 40, an adviser to female entrepreneurs, will fly to from her home in New York. She took the same trip last year, paying $1,500 along with 125 other bright, young, civic-minded individuals to tour the city and talk to the business community. The highlight: a brainstorming session with Amy Peterson, co-founder of Rebel Nell, a company that hires disadvantaged women to turn chunks of graffiti into jewelry. “We spent close to three hours with her,” Molina Niño says. “We created a Facebook group so after we left she could stay in touch.” Attendees were booked at the Greektown Casino-Hotel and did a nighttime biking tour, Molina Niño says, but mostly they were there for one reason—to offer their opinions to struggling business owners.
It’s not a weekend on the beach, but excursions like these are more and more popular among a new generation of mostly millennial travelers. Molina Niño’s trips to Detroit were organized by Breakout, a leading company in what’s known as the social-impact travel industry. Unlike “voluntourism” programs such as Habitat for Humanity, which appeal mainly to students, Breakout targets professionals age 29 to 36. A third of its 1,500 core members work in tech, a quarter in media and creative fields; 98 percent went to a four-year college. Becoming a member requires an interview.

[Detroit500]

People want to live in Cities... They recognize the benefits to themselves, and to society at large. Humans are social creatures, the new type of urbanization allows for a [[relatively) clean and healthy living that previous city life would have never allowed for. Additionally, the social interactions that can happen in a city are much more present and varied than that of a small town. I believe we will see Detroit proper see population over a million people over the next fifty years.

[Wesley Mouch]

People also want to live in places where they feel they can make a difference. NYC just allows you to be part of society. Detroit and the Rust Belt is where society can be improved.

I've been noticing the trend, but never once thought of it as 'social-impact travel'... but of course it is. What started on Heidelberg Street makes a lot of people feel good.

I spent much of my days in downtown Detroit before the renaissance. Enjoyed having Detroit to myself. Wanted it to return to its glory in my mind. But I find the actual return distasteful. All those people. Won't they go away, please. You can't be a trail-blazer when the trail is so crowded.