Opportunities in Detroit?

by Tom aka Rusty Rustbelt

Opportunities in Detroit?

Detroit has lost about 60% of its population since the 1950s peak of about 2 million.

About 50 square miles of Detroit is so thinly populated that the Mayor wants to pay for people to move to more densely populated neighborhoods so the area can be abandoned for municipal services. No trash pick up, no police patrols. The first and second ring of suburbs are facing much of the same plight, and some may be headed for bankruptcy..

One idea for reclamation is urban farming, but that assumes people will not move into Detroit any time soon.

So does the 50 square miles provide us with an opportunity? New neighborhoods? New types of communities? A special immigration zone? Homesteading by young people? Entrepreneurial zones? If so, where do we get the money (Detroit and Michigan both being in various stages of broke)? Who leads the charge?

This is a country full of smart people. We should be able to think of something creative here.

Tom aka Rusty Rustbelt