What if a proposal to downsize Detroit happens?

[Bham1982]

It has the longest history, the largest stock of office space, the greatest population of any city in Michigan.

Southfield actually has the largest office stock in Michigan. It has quite a bit more space than Detroit [[I think 25%-30% more).

As for oldest city, Sault Ste. Marie isn;t just the oldest city in Michigan, but in the entire Midwest.

Now, what is the purpose of, say, Commerce Township? What sense of place does it have?

From my perspective, Commerce Township has a pretty clear purpose. It's a desirable bedroom community, built around attractive lakes and good schools. It benefits from a strategic location near highways that connect business and commercial centers like Southfield and Novi.

Now there's certainly no sense of place in Commerce, but no one looking for a sense of place would choose such such a community.

To be fair, I don't think too many folks choosing 6 Mile and Conant are looking for a sense of place. In most cases, they just don't have the resources to live somewhere else.