Grandmont Rosedale citizens rally together to keep neighborhood alive

The New York Times' recurring Detroit Journal column took a journey to the stately brick homes and graceful tree-lined streets of Grandmont Rosedale to capture the spirit of a neighborhood anchored together to keep the streets plowed, lawns mowed, and homes full. While the population of this collection of neighborhoods dropped 14 percent during the 00s, Grandmont Rosedale's citizens, with their community meetings, crime patrols and sports leagues, won't give up without a fight.

Excerpt:

And if falls to people like Tom Goddeeris, a resident who leads the nonprofit Grandmont Rosedale Development Corporation, which has been using donations and grant money to buy vacant properties, rehabilitate them and sell them -- typically at a loss -- to protect against the decay that follows emptiness and neglect.

"We're a neighborhood that can recover and return to stability," he said. "You can't say that about the rest of the city."

Check out the article here, or view the accompanying slideshow.