Taxes in Birmingham are really, really high compared to "peer cities", and residents believe Birmingham schools and services are the same or worse. I hear this constantly from neighbors, and you see a similar theme from the online comments in Birmingham Eccentric [[newspaper).
Birmingham Schools generally trail Bloomfield Schools, yet we're being taxed a lot more than in Bloomfield Schools. Services are the same as in neighboring communities, yet we're paying a lot more. Assessments are way up, and I don't see the rise in sales comps.
This is relevant because it's why folks move to Birmingham in the first place. The whole appeal is schools and community, in a walkable format. They aren't moving here for the same reasons someone moves to Corktown, or Midtown, or even Royal Oak.
Birmingham thinks of itself as more of a walkable Bloomfield Hills than a snobby Royal Oak. I don't know if that makes sense, but I think it speaks to a disconnect between traditional snobbytown values "schools+community" and revitalizating inner suburb values "sustainable+diverse". Birmimgham is the former, but some folks in city govt. think it's the latter.
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