Downtown Detroit

Could Detroit’s future hold more bikes, trains and farms?

Mother Nature Network made Detroit its destination of the week. As it says in the piece, Detroit hasn't yet cracked the top ten lists of green cities in the nation... but if you look closely, Detroit might have the most potential out of any of them. They only thing is we have to do is nurture it and let it grow.Excerpt:Committed to socially and environmentally responsible business practices, strengthening local community, and, above all, making incredibly delicious breads, muffins and other baked goods, the Avalon International Bakery has emerged as a beacon of deliciousness in downtown Detroit. The bakery opened in 1997 in Cass Corridor, which at the time was notorious as Detroit's skid row. These days, the restaurant is a neighborhood fixture, serving more than 500 customers daily.   Avalon is joined by the neighboring Cass Corridor microbrewery, Motor City Brew Works, as well as other sustainable restaurants and food organizations, including the Golden Gate Cafe and Slow Food Detroit.   Local and organic produce seekers can head to the Wayne State or Clarkston farmers' markets, or make a pilgrimage to the famous Detroit Eastern Market, the largest historic public market district in the United States. Founded in 1891, the market hosts 150 farmers and vendors from Michigan, Ohio and Canada. Shoppers can find everything from fruits and vegetables to cider, cheeses and baked goods.Read the entire article here.

DSE @ Grand celebrates one-year anniversary with renovation and expansion of product mix

Tweet of the Week: City chicken and Elvis in Detroit

What's unique about Detroit? Well, quite frankly, a lot. In this week's Tweet of the Week, Detroit tweeters reminded us to take a second look at a few things we might have forgotten about.@meggo420 reminded us about the city skyline: sunrise in detroit looking over the city = love love love A reason to get up in the morning? We think so.Another tweeter, @cevan, reminded us that though Detroit is known in some circles for having aggressive drivers, we're also known for our aggressive pedestrians: In Detroit, one crosses the road by jumping into traffic + going one lane at a time. Out here, this maneuvre causes SUVs to swerve off road. We agree that Detroit definitely has its own take on traffic.In fact, @jazzneophyte gave a little history lesson reminded us that the world's first traffic light AND the first freeway showed up right here in the city of Detroit, in 1915 and 1942, respectively. She also  threw down another local first: The world's first carbonated soft drink? Vernor's ginger ale - James Vernor, 1866, Detroit pharmacist. Pretty cool. And speaking of food and drink, everyone seemed to be buzzing about Anthony Bourdain's mid-winter visit to Detroit, which finally aired on his Travel Channel show "No Reservations" this past Monday. He had a lot of good things to say about the city. And @lindseywoho reminded us that - though they may be strange - there's nothing like the comforts of home: Anthony Bourdain ate Polish food in Detroit - including city chicken. No matter where I go, that slop on a stick will be my comfort food.It's a nice sentiment, however, @lindseywoho, he ate city chicken at Hamtramck's Polonia. It's near Detroit... but not Detroit. What other Detroit gems are hidden under the radar? @markparton seems to think we're hiding something big: Elvis where are you? (I'm told Elvis is in Detroit at the moment).Yep, he's here. He's one of the 168 city council candidates, actually. (Just kidding.)Have something else to remind us about Detroit? Let us know on Twitter. Until next week, keep readin' and keep tweetin'.

Local group, Detroit Summer, is trying to revolutionize Detroit’s public schools from the ground up

Detroit Summer is trying to fix the schools from the bottom up and giving students a unique way to have their voices heard.Excerpt:After “Chronicles of a Dropout” was released, the LAMP Summer Program of 2008 created three videos inspired by the themes raised in the previous year’s album, specifically cooperative economics, alternatives to criminalization, and respect. These videos developed solutions through participatory research with youth in the city and researched other places where similar solutions have been implemented successfully.  This summer, LAMP is developing a curriculum around the videos in order to broadcast their ideas throughout the community and beyond. Detroit Summer’s LAMP project is revolutionizing Detroit Public Schools from the ground up, and giving Detroit students the unique opportunity to have their voices heard in a medium that sparks their interest and creativity.Read the entire article here.

Free Press lists 10 arguments for charter change, picks best choices for Charter Commission

The Detroit Free Press gives you ten compelling arguments to changing the city's charter and, in another piece, lists their selected choices for the Charter Commission.The first three arguments:1. Voters need more protection from elected officials who violate the charter with impunity. Kilpatrick melodrama proved even a united City Council lacks the necessary authority to oust a rogue mayor.2. The current method of selecting a council president is a recipe for disorder. Council members would be more collegial if they could select their own leader, as the U.S. Congress and Michigan Legislature do.3. Council members would be more accountable if they were elected by single-member districts. Prevailing at-large elections give disproportionate advantage to untested candidates with high name recognition (hence, Monica Conyers and Martha Reeves) and special interests with wherewithal to finance expensive citywide campaigns.Read the entire ten here.The Freep's choices for the Charter Commission here.

Freep says Bing shouldn’t waste time to start ‘right-sizing’ the city

Despite Detroit's economic shortfalls, this Freep editorial says Detroit Mayor Dave Bing needs to think about right-sizing the city now rather than later.Excerpt:Bing must set in motion some long-term fixes, or Detroit will lurch from crisis to crisis. At the very least, he should order the city’s planning department to begin studying neighborhood population and economic development trends over the next 25 years. That information will be needed before the city revises the master plan. The city’s fiscal emergency gives the mayor and city a teachable moment — a telling example of why this process is necessary. Urban experts like John Mogk of Wayne State University have pressed the issue of consolidating population for more than a decade, and most city leaders now understand that it is necessary.Youngstown, Ohio, a smaller city with similar problems, has given Detroit, and the entire nation, a blueprint for how a city can creatively downsize by consolidating neighborhoods and creating parks and greenways.Right-sizing Detroit will take years. The city must start the process now if it wants to sustain a quality-of-life that will stabilize its population and tax base and avoid continual fiscal emergencies.Read the entire article here.

Cobo deal is a victory for city, cooperation

The new Cobo deal is a win for regional cooperation.Excerpt:The legislation on Cobo's renovation, approved by lawmakers in Lansing and signed by Gov. Jennifer Granholm this month, allows for up to $300 million from hotel and liquor taxes in Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties, and state tobacco tax revenue. In return, operation of the center is to be turned over to a regional authority.Clearing the final hurdle to renovate Cobo Center, at long last, is a huge step, both symbolically and economically, for metro Detroit.Although some view the final deal as an imperfect proposal, it secures Cobo Center and Detroit as the future site of the North American International Auto Show and should boost the Detroit convention center’s ability to compete for other events."The regional cooperation that took place to get this done is unparalleled," said Doug Fox, cochairman of the 2010 North American International Auto Show, which is, by far, the largest annual event at Cobo.Read the entire article here.

Newsweek explores why urban gardens — including Detroit’s Earthworks — grow

Urban gardens grow during recession and economic hardship.Excerpt:Proponents say there are several reasons why urban agriculture makes sense in 2009. "Before the recession, there was an interest in greening and thinking about food systems," says Patrick Crouch of Detroit-based Earthworks Urban Farm. But he believes a perfect storm of economics, ecological awareness, and basic supply-and-demand could push urban agriculture forward in cities. "A huge number of vacant lots is usually seen as a detriment to a community," he says. But by turning these spaces into farms and gardens, they present long-term greening and financial opportunities for residents that lack basic health and nutritional care, not to mention radically decreased economic opportunities during the recession.Read the entire article here.

‘It Came From Detroit’ garage rock doc premieres in L.A.

The garage rock documentary "It Came From Detroit" just had its Los Angeles premiere.Excerpt:Well, the Los Angeles Premiere of “It Came From Detroit” was an incredible time.  Allison Anders and the rest of the Don’t Knock the Rock team did an amazing job putting together a wonderful night at the Silent Movie Theater.  The show was hosted by Michael ‘Murdoc’ Des Barres who was both hilarious and motivational.  The house was packed and I thought the film played very well.  I’m glad our cynical Detroit style humor translated well over here. Read the entire article here.