Downtown Detroit

Detroit has become a favorite test site for urban revival

Detroit has become a point of interest for not only urban decay but also urban revival.Excerpt:Studying Detroit and its problems appears to be a growth industry.This spring and summer, the British Broadcasting Corp. and the U.S. Public Broadcasting Service were filming documentaries about the plight of Detroit and the city's hopes for a revival. A gaggle of other documentarians and journalists were doing the same.Local experts say Detroit has achieved something unique. It has become the test case for all sorts of theories on urban decay and all sorts of promising ideas about reviving shrinking cities."It's unbelievable," said Sue Mosey, president of the University Cultural Center Association, who has been interviewed recently by two separate PBS crews and an Austrian journalist writing about Detroit."All of us have been inundated with all of these people who somehow think that because we're so bottomed out and so weak-market, that this is this incredible opportunity," Mosey said.Read the entire article here.

Could pay-as-you-ride bikes work in Detroit?

Bike sharing systems in Detroit? Nope, not yet. But, hey... you never know. We're getting more and more bike friendly each year. Well, maybe not friendly, but there are definitely more cyclists out there than five years ago.Excerpt:An important element of sustainability is environmentally conscious forms of transportation, like rail, of which Portland has been a great advocate. Now, the city hopes to further encourage another popular green form of transportation: bicycling. Portland is without a doubt seen as a bike-friendly city and was awarded the platinum-level award as a bicycle-friendly community – the first large U.S. city to be recognized as such—by the League of American Bicyclists. The city is researching a bike rental system that, if carried through, could make it even easier to travel and commute around the city. Portland transportation officials are currently studying other systems in place around the world to see if bike sharing would be a worthwhile project to pursue in Portland. Washington D.C. currently has the only bike-sharing system in the United States and other cities like Denver, San Francisco, and Chicago are also interested in rolling out their own.Read the entire article here.

Rosa Parks Transit Center could be spark for more improvements

The Rosa Parks Transit center may bring about more improvements to downtown and Detroit's transit world.Excerpt:With Michigan’s largest intermodal transit center now in place, the Detroit Department of Transportation and Suburban Mobility Authority for Regional Transportation should finally finish work on establishing a joint information line and printing joint schedules and route maps for major lines like Woodward, Gratiot, Jefferson, Michigan, Grand River, Fort and Van Dyke. Other changes that should have happened long ago include transfer passes between buses and the People Mover, and joint purchasing by SMART and DDOT of fuel and other products.Local and state shotcallers, including Gov. Jennifer Granholm and Mayor Dave Bing, dedicated the $22.5-million center this morning at Michigan and Cass, including 15 bus bays for city routes and space for connections with the suburban bus system, Transit Windsor Tunnel buses and a taxi stand. It’s a sleek, fresh-looking structure, encased by aluminum-framed windows with restrooms, a cashier station for bus fares and information, security booths, 24-hour video surveillance and a transit police office. Outside, under swooping canopies, riders will sit on benches and read arrival times on electronic signs. Unlike many structures in downtown Detroit, this one is open and inviting.Read the entire article here.

DEGC, CEO George Jackson Accept Revitalization Award from Friends School

Detroit Economic Growth Corporation (DEGC) and its President and CEO George W. Jackson, Jr., recently accepted a Revitalization of the City Award from Friends School in Detroit. The award spotlights individuals and organizations improving the quality of life for Detroit residents through community engagement and economic development.

Touring Turin and the Essence of Essen – Urban Turnaround Lessons for Detroit

A year ago Jonathan Quarles might have wondered how Turin, Italy could have any lessons for Detroit, Michigan. But, since then, Turin-based Fiat Motors has purchased a bankrupt Chrysler, LLC. And that alone might be reason to look closer at an automobile center in Europe.

New Transit Center is ‘An Airy Gem’

The Rosa Parks Transit Center has opened Downtown to rave reviews from local media. The Detroit Free Press called the Center "an airy gem," based on the visitor-friendly glass and steel building for waiting passengers and the huge flowing canopies that protect them when they board their bus. Columnist Jeff Gerritt said, "Its beauty and function say something important to transit riders: You are respected."

Quicken’s scaled down move to bring 1,700 workers downtown to Compuware

It's official, Quicken Loans will be moving their operation from Livonia to Detroit, into the Compuware Building.Excerpt:Livonia-based Quicken Loans Inc. is finishing the final details of a five-year lease and hopes to move about 1,700 employees early next year into 240,000 square feet of space on four floors of the Compuware Corp. building at Campus Martius in downtown Detroit. That move of the on-line mortgage company's headquarters, in the face of an economy in recession, comes instead of the new building that Quicken Chairman Dan Gilbert said two years ago he would build downtown to house 4,000 Quicken employees.Read the entire article here.

Coalition planning solution to Detroit’s shortage of grocery stores

Detroit groups are coming together to bring healthy grocery options to Detroiters.Excerpt:A broad coalition devoted to improving Detroit’s food security is working with underserved communities and state legislators to bring fresh food options to several neighborhoods.The M.O.S.E.S. Supermarket Task Force is a partnership anchored by M.O.S.E.S. (Metropolitan Organizing Strategy Enabling Strength), a group of around 60 area congregations, and the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW) Local 876. The diverse group hopes to rally around the opening of several planned grocery outlets throughout Detroit."We believe that quality markets are critical to good health and neighborhood security," M.O.S.E.S. President Reverend Kevin Turman says. "It's a moral issue -- and so it’s also a religious one."Read the entire article here.

Soaking up Detroit from a bike seat

Could Detroit be a bicycle utopia... or is it one already?Excerpt:A bike gives you the chance to soak up what’s left, hidden neighborhoods like Indian Village with its dappled lanes and old eclectic mansions. Out near the fabled Eight Mile Road you can cruise past an almost forgotten but now happily restored Frank Lloyd Wright house. Downtown, you can circle the ruins of the old Michigan Central Depot. Our abandoned landscape suggests an opportunity that alternative-transportation proponents should consider: instead of raging against their cities’ internal combustion machines, they might consider a tactical retreat to the city that cars have pretty much abandoned. Despite the press, survival here isn’t so hard. Businesses like the Wheelhouse and the Hub have already shown how well Detroit can work as a new business hothouse. With the legendarily affordable real estate and without needing to pay for car payments, gas or insurance, bicyclists could rebuild Detroit into a model of a two-wheeled economy. They could pass laws promoting bikes over cars and designate entire avenues motor-free zones, which, given the state of many of them now, wouldn’t be so much of a stretch.Read the entire article here.

Tweet of the Week: Do what your mother says

So vacation is behind us and we're back with the Tweet of the Week. So, what do you have to say?You should listen to your mother @miel_dulce, always listen to your mother.@miel_dulce: my mom said to stay in detroit, im totally thinking about it...We don't know where you are, but we wish you were still in Detroit, too. You can always come back.@Bizemisty: I wish I was still in Detroit. I hate this place.Congratulations Earthworks Urban Farm. Keep up the good work. And thanks @AshleySFlintoff for the heads up.@AshleySFlintoff: Congrats to Earthworks Urban Farm - Detroit's 1st Certified Organic Farm! Check out their work at www.cskdetroit.org/earthworksExactly @dlexus2001, don't forget about us, whoever you are.@dlexus2001: dont' forget bout detroitAnd finally, the winner, for our first week back from vacation Tweet of the Week is: @flamingowojack: Just got back from John K. King Used Bookstore in downtown Detroit. I'm there every week, but I find "new" stuff every time I go there...True that, @flamingowojack. True that.Keep reading. Keep tweeting. And see you next week.Follow us on Twitter here.

Our Partners

The Kresge Foundation logo
Ford Foundaiton

Common Ground Is Brewing

Support local stories and receive our signature roast straight to your door when you join at the Standard level (or above).

Drink Better, Read Local

Close the CTA

Don't miss out!

Everything Detroit, in your inbox every week.

Close the CTA

Already a subscriber? Enter your email to hide this popup in the future.