Quote Originally Posted by stasu1213 View Post
I wishe that Detroit could get back to having self sufficient neighborhoods that it once had years ago. I was a Gratiot VanDyke kid. I use to shop a Sears on the corner of Gratiot and VanDyke. Purchased my first pair of Chuck Taylors at Florsheim Shoes which sat across the street from Sears.. I know that the stripmalls in each neighborhood is a modern version of the old style but the strip malls need better retail in them. Jefferson Village is a prime example. What had caused that catastrophe?
Well for one, it's cheaper to build strip malls than the urban-friendly buildings that originally populated the main streets of Detroit.

Two, the buildings were also built in a time that Detroit wasn't as car cultured, and had a functioning mass transit system which aleviated the immediate need of convenient parking versus walkability. The businesses must have a low cost option for their customers to access their business so they can spend money there.

Bottom line, Detroit will never be what it was [[not even downtown).