Downtown Detroit

Tweet of the Week: Cyborgs and techno

By Newsroom

●

August 25, 2009

Fedde le Grand's techno favorite "Put Your Hands Up 4 Detroit" seemed to summarize the mindset of tweeters this week, as many seemed to be putting their hands up (literally or figuratively) for Detroit in some way. It seemed to start with Panic at the Disco's member Brendon Urie, @brendonuriesays, who tweeted lyrics from the song: "put your hands up for Detroit... I love this city."And by the time @DJSnakes showed up to say: I'm deep in Detroit techno right now, it was very likely that he was also putting his hands up for Detroit at that time.Not to be outdone, @Citizen_Pags was willing to risk a limb for the city: If my knee is injured badly enough I hope the Drs. insist on me being turned into a crime-fighting cyborg to clean up DetroitNot very likely, but a wonderful thought just the same. Sounds like it'd be a great movie idea... oh, wait... well, at least maybe another sequel.We'll keep you updated on the policing cyborgs... but, until then, be sure to follow Model D for all our updates and news about the city.

Ferry company is in talks to link the Windsor/Detroit border by boat

By Newsroom

●

Arts & Culture

●

August 25, 2009

A ferry company is looking to set up a link between Windsor and Detroit.Excerpt:“Commuters are a big piece of it,” he said. “That would be critical to the success. Downtown Detroit hospitals shuttling to the ferry creates a regular schedule so they know when people will get to work as opposed to the bridge and tunnel (where wait times are unpredictable). I believe they see this as a real benefit.” Just over a month ago, the U.S. Department of Transportation committed $7 million in federal stimulus money to Detroit to build a shoreline passenger terminal and offshore wharf which is under construction. Work on the location between Hart Plaza and the Renaissance Center is expected to be completed by next spring.The funding announcement was done with an eye toward supporting passenger ferry service. U.S. Sen. Carl Levin (D — Mich) told the Detroit Free Press the grant will enhance transportation and tourism along the Detroit River that will “hopefully provide a much-needed economic boost to the region.”Read the entire article here.

Redevelopment authority proposed for Detroit/Wayne County

By Newsroom

●

Arts & Culture

●

August 25, 2009

A plan to establish redevelopment authority for Detroit and Wayne County was announced by a Kalamazoo state senator. The organization would make it easier for the city to redevelop vacant land.Excerpt:A Kalamazoo state senator has proposed the creation of a Detroit/Wayne County redevelopment authority to help the city and county redevelop tax-reverted properties. Sen. Tom George, R-Kalamazoo, announced the plan during a press conference in Detroit Thursday. He said the plan would grant powers beyond those typically given to land banks; permitting investment in public infrastructure such as lighting, curbing, and landscaping; putting affordable housing on a level playing field with commercial redevelopment by enabling the redevelopment authority to waive its tax capture on housing parcels; designation of urban agricultural zones; and empowering the authority to rezone parcels in its possession if necessary to return parcels to productive use.Read the entire article here.Listen to a Michigan Radio piece about the same subject here.

From Metromode: Film industry is becoming a new business genre for Michigan

By Newsroom

●

Arts & Culture

●

August 25, 2009

Michigan is changing and the film industry might be it's new business genre.Excerpt:While there is no illusion that Michigan's generous incentive to lure film productions here will solve our financial woes, it is a small effort intended to inject some energy and creativity in a sector that has never been able to flourish in the Mitten State. Proponents say that anything that creates so much buzz, entices young creatives to stick around and opens Michigan to the rest of the country is a welcome step in the right direction. They say that all discussions should look beyond the immediate dollar in, dollar out impact of the program and instead focus on the potential long range gains from the incentive. After all, when was the last time you heard someone from California complain that Michigan was stealing their jobs. The incentive also represents a tiny part of the state's enormous annual budget (estimated to reach $40 billion). Still, there is little doubt that it is emblematic of a new way of thinking about the transformation of our industrial and creative centers. Keep this simple fact in mind: The only products the United States exports more of than it imports is software and media. Michigan's film incentive has allowed us to put a foot, well, more like a toe, in that door. And through that toe-sized crack Genre Film Partners has squeezed through to set up shop in Metro Detroit.Read the entire article here.

New York-based public design blog tours Detroit on a bike

By Newsroom

●

Arts & Culture

●

August 25, 2009

Public design blog DesignTrust comes to Detroit, posts its highlights. Excerpt:The Dequindre Cut is a new pedestrian/bike path on an abandoned rail bed. It connects the RiverWalk with the popular Eastern Market (see below). A Metropolis feature on the Dequindre Cut has more information and pictures. Paths like this are planned for over 400 miles around Detroit.Bordering the Dequindre Cut are many concrete walls that once supported overpasses and now only support large-scale graffiti works. An informative video by the Detroit News talks about this graffiti "Hall of Fame" from the artists' point of view.Read the entire article here.

What’s really local? Metro Times runs down what is and isn’t a ‘Detroit’ product

By Newsroom

●

Arts & Culture

●

August 25, 2009

The Metro Times' Curt Guyette looks at some of products known as "Detroit" products... and finds out how "Detroit" they really are.Excerpt of one of the products:Faygo soda The iconic Detroit soda is still bottled here, but in terms of ownership, the company hasn't been a local one for a long time. Founded in 1907 by the Feigenson brothers — Russian immigrants trained as bakers — Faygo was sold to TreeSweet in 1986. A year later it was bought by Florida-based National Beverage Corp., which also includes another formerly homegrown favorite, EverFresh juices, among its labels. By the way, before it became part of a conglomerate, one of the owners of EverFresh was mobster Vito "Billy Jack" Giacalone.Read the entire article here.

Detroit indie rock band plays Gitmo… yeah, that Gitmo

By Newsroom

●

Arts & Culture

●

August 25, 2009

A Detroit-based indie rock band was asked to play an interesting show... the library at Guantanamo Bay. Vanity Fair picked up the story.Excerpt:The High Strung, an indie rock band from Detroit, received an invitation to play a show at the Guantanamo Bay library this summer. This wasn’t that weird. They’ve been playing shows in libraries for years, as part of a national program aimed at luring teenagers into these book-filled repositories. (This American Life did a piece about their first library tour.) What was weird was that they said yes. Made up of a trio of lefty pacifists with a profound distrust of the American Military, not to mention a penchant for florid and literary lyrics, they were a rather unlikely choice for entertaining our nation’s soldiers. “If we’re playing for a whole base full of troops who are used to listening to Kid Rock and Pantera, it’s going to be incredibly uncomfortable,” drummer Derek Berk (who happens to be my extremely talented younger brother) said prior to their departure. “But it seems like our whole career recently has been based on setting ourselves up for strange and uncomfortable situations. And this seemed like it was going to be at or near the top of the list.”Read the entire article here.

Detroit Renaissance goes statewide

By Newsroom

●

Arts & Culture

●

August 25, 2009

Detroit Renaissance is planning on moving from a Southeast Michigan organization to a statewide organization.Excerpt:Detroit Renaissance, which began as council of the CEOs of the 50 largest companies in Southeast Michigan, said it plans to become a statewide organization. The organization's board of directors approved the expansion at its Wednesday board meeting. “Detroit Renaissance has been evolving into a more Michigan-centric organization in recent years as many of the most important issues facing Southeast Michigan are statewide issues,” a prepared statement said. Detroit Renaissance said it will maintain a strong focus on urban areas, including Detroit, and a board committee will continue to be dedicated to that work co-chaired by Anthony Earley, CEO of DTE Energy Co.; and Cynthia Pasky, founder and CEO of Strategic Staffing Solutions.Read the entire article here.

Downtown Development Authority Awarded MEDC Grant for Solar-Powered Lighting and Facade Improvement

By Malik Goodwin

●

General

●

August 19, 2009

The Downtown Development Authority (DDA) has accepted a $100,000 grant from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) Downtown Urban Revitalization Program to install solar-powered lights to brighten the facades of several downtown buildings.

Detroit Brownfield Redevelopment Authority Approves Plans for $19 Million in New Investment

By George Jackson

●

General

●

August 19, 2009

Meijer, the Grand Rapids-based discount department store has confirmed it has signed a development agreement to build a 192,000 sq. ft. store in the new Shoppes at Gateway Park at Woodward and 8 Mile Road.