7 responses to “Duh.”

1. 

   brian stouder said on September 19, 2005 at 11:51 am

   An interesting piece. I was struck by the comment �Never go into Detroit. Just�.don�t�. It reminded me of that (somewhat silly!) movie The Village (see http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0368447/ )

   I think that fearful sentiment is a key ingredient in any suburbanite �community�. And maybe it is more basic than that; afterall, big cities have their neighborhoods and their enclaves � and their (subtle) mutual �no-go� zones

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2. 

   Nance said on September 19, 2005 at 12:00 pm

   I said this before, but one reason the whole Katrina situation so bothered me was that it’s so, SO easy to see the same thing happening here, only faster, and with more violence. Yesterday I extended my bike ride a few blocks into Detroit, and as always, I’m amazed and appalled by what I see. It’s not the decay so much as the emptiness — blocks where only two houses stand amid acres of unmowed vacant lots.

   Note this aerial shot of the GP/Detroit border, and note the density of development north and south of the line. I read an interview this weekend, by a guy who grew up in the city and left — years after most whites had fled. He said, “In New York, Chicago, if something goes, it’s replaced. In Detroit, when things go, they’re just gone.”

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3. 

   brian stouder said on September 19, 2005 at 12:30 pm

   “”In New York, Chicago, if something goes, it’s replaced. In Detroit, when things go, they’re just gone.”

   And the suburbanites (many of them) harumph and say ‘good riddance’ or ‘one less crack house’ or whatever.

   It is exactly the same sentiment amongst those who question the wisdom of rebuilding New Orleans, as if Katrina’s destruction – and not the coming massive reconstruction effort – was the really sensible “urban renewal”

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4. 

   brian stouder said on September 19, 2005 at 12:32 pm

   btw – forgot to say that the Det Freep piece about the guy who wrote the book was excellent!

   You shoulda’ linked it to your blog piece over there (never hurts to pimp the company store)

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5. 

   Nance said on September 19, 2005 at 12:53 pm

   Although they share a building, the Freep and the News have separate owners and compete editorially against one another. You should be familiar with the setup, Brian — it’s much like the one in FW.

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6. 

   brian stouder said on September 19, 2005 at 1:19 pm

   My turn to say “Duh”!! Guess I shoulda noticed Det News and not Freep at the blogsite.

   Anyway – I drive several miles across town when I go to mom’s house, and I’ve noticed the same proliferation of open-lots where old houses once stood.

   Ft Wayne is doing many of the classic things to renew areas – new curbs and sidewalks, renovating all the neighborhood libraries, and some subsidized new home construction (including Habitat for Humanity and HUD financed) – houses that are in the style of their neighborhoods.

   To me, public money couldn’t possibly be better spent. If we can offer millions to corporate giants like GM – why not incentives and subsidies to devolopers – and home buyers – to drop new homes into areas where sewer lines and all the rest already exist? (I’ve read that San Francisco offers tax abatements to home-owners who promise to move in and stay put for 10 years in areas where warehouses become lofts and so on)

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7. 

   Lucy said on September 20, 2005 at 11:34 am

   Nancy, I like your DetNews blog, but maybe you should suggest to them that they overhaul their comment system. If I want to read comments on your blog, I have to scroll through the comments on everyone else’s blog… it’s kind of an unnecessary pain in the ass. I would have suggested it to DetNews, but they wanted my name, address, blood sample, etc. — frankly, I don’t have that much time on my hands.

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