Mar 11
24
What Will Bring People Back to Detroit?
Today on Twitter the Detroit Regional Office of the US Census Bureau ask me what would bring people back to Detroit? We all heard this week that Detroit has dropped to a 100 year low of population living in the city. Detroit has gone from the 11th largest city in the US, to the 14th. They are now behind Columbus Ohio. This is not a new problem for the City of Detroit, they have been losing population for the past 50 years. Michigan was the only state in the country not to grow in the past 10 years according to the 2010 Census. There are many reason why this has happened, and we could dwell on the reasons forever, that was not the question. The question was what is needed to bring people back to Detroit?
The short of my answer is Entrepreneurs, Schools, and Neighborhoods.
I believe that the key to Detroit recovery will lie on the shoulders of the entrepreneurs, who are going to set up their businesses in Detroit. Let’s face it, Detroit really needs people give it a chance. Entrepreneurs are the exact type of person who would take a chance on a city that most believe is in decline. There are definitely political issues that I do not want to get into that can make it hard for big companies to open up shop in Detroit. Some of the advantages that Detroit holds is that real estate is cheap, labor is cheap, and there are groups out there that are dieing to help people start companies in Detroit. These entrepreneurial companies are going to bring jobs to the city. Lets face it, people are not going to live in Detroit if they have to leave to go to work. These start-up companies also could attract the type of person that Detroit really needs to start a trend of moving back to Detroit. They are young, risk taking, and are looking for a urban experience.
The second facet of what will bring people back to Detroit is Neighbor hoods. Cities are built on small neighborhoods. There is a strength in these small communities that bonds them together and makes it a home. When I hear my father and grandfather talk about when they used to live in Detroit, most things they did were around their neighborhood. These neighborhoods need to have local grocery stores, drug stores, parks, and restaurants. A reason for people to stick around after work. The would be that these neighborhoods would build up around the new companies. Detroit has a few areas like this, Corktown, Midtown, New Center, etc. We just need a few more. Once the jobs and the neighborhoods start to pop up, then the stabilizer will be the biggest and hardest to have that is a school system.
If Detroit really want to attract people who are going to not only move to Detroit but also invest in their homes, and build striving neighborhoods, they are going to need a much better school system. For Detroit really to make a come back, they need to attract families. The only way to this is have a school system that rivals those of the suburbs. Without this, then people will only live in Detroit for 3-5 years, and then will be off to the suburbs. Once families move into the city they are making a long term investment. It is hard for families to move all the time, they accumulate much more stuff. Most families buy a home expect to live in the home for a longer time. Since they plan to live in these homes longer they have a better sense of ownership, and will improve and take care of the house, which in turn with make the neighborhood better. Again if the families can send their kids to school in the city, then there is no reason to live in the city.
This is a very simplist view of what will attract people to move into Detroit. There are a lot of factors that need to be taken in to account, with all these factors that were not discussed in this blog. The three factors that I think will attact the people to Detroit, will take a period of time that could be as long as 25 years. I would really love to hear your ideas and thoughts on what will bring people to Detroit?
