Regional Transit Authority to seek new taxes for transit system

[jackmichigan]

Originally Posted by Arthur Digby Sellers

So you expect taxpayers in Oakland and Macomb to subsidize public transportation that is designed to hurt them? Good luck with that.

How on earth did you reach that conclusion??

[Arthur Digby Sellers]

Originally Posted by jackmichigan

How on earth did you reach that conclusion??

You want them to pay for transportation that will somehow stop people from moving to those areas.

[jackmichigan]

Originally Posted by Arthur Digby Sellers

You want them to pay for transportation that will somehow stop people from moving to those areas.

Wrong.

[SQL]

Originally Posted by MS313

Safety and insurance cost I can see. But lack of entertainment? compared to what? West Bloomfield? The majority of the entertainment hot spots are in or near the city. As for lack of good paying jobs it kind of depends. There's no lack of good paying jobs in downtown or Midtown. The traffic still heads toward Detroit from the burbs every morning.

Compared to other "vibrant" major cities, Detroit severely lacks in this area. It's not to say that it's not changing for the better, but it's still many years or decades away from being competitive with other comparable cities. There are only three neighborhoods I can name off in Detroit where I'd even want to spend time in. That would be Midtown, Greektown, and Downtown (Belle Isle).

Here in Denver, which recently surpassed Detroit in population, there is a plethora of neighborhoods with unique shops, bars, breweries, music venues, viable parks, and restaurants to go to. There's LoDo, LoHi, RiNo, Cap Hill, Baker, Wash Park, Glendale, Highlands, Larimer Square, Five Points, Tennyson, Platt Park, University. That's 13 distinct neighborhoods (off the top of my mind) in Denver that have a variety of entertainment options.

I lived right outside of Detroit for nearly a quarter of a century. Even in my young adulthood, it was difficult to find things to do in Detroit besides going to a Lions, Tigers, or Wings' game or the auto show or the few music festivals held at Hart Plaza. I spent a lot of time down there exploring and did come across a few gems. But even when I did find fun things to do, nobody my age wanted to go down there because of how "thug" and unsafe it was perceived as being. Instead, my peers preferred hanging out in Royal Oak or Ferndale, sometimes Plymouth and Ann Arbor.

I really hope that things continue to improve. But I really think the people in the city and metro need to change their attitudes about a lot of these "progressive" ideas.

[MS313]

Originally Posted by SQL

Compared to other "vibrant" major cities, Detroit severely lacks in this area. It's not to say that it's not changing for the better, but it's still many years or decades away from being competitive with other comparable cities. There are only three neighborhoods I can name off in Detroit where I'd even want to spend time in. That would be Midtown, Greektown, and Downtown (Belle Isle).

Here in Denver, which recently surpassed Detroit in population, there is a plethora of neighborhoods with unique shops, bars, breweries, music venues, viable parks, and restaurants to go to. There's LoDo, LoHi, RiNo, Cap Hill, Baker, Wash Park, Glendale, Highlands, Larimer Square, Five Points, Tennyson, Platt Park, University. That's 13 distinct neighborhoods (off the top of my mind) in Denver that have a variety of entertainment options.

I lived right outside of Detroit for nearly a quarter of a century. Even in my young adulthood, it was difficult to find things to do in Detroit besides going to a Lions, Tigers, or Wings' game or the auto show or the few music festivals held at Hart Plaza. I spent a lot of time down there exploring and did come across a few gems. But even when I did find fun things to do, nobody my age wanted to go down there because of how "thug" and unsafe it was perceived as being. Instead, my peers preferred hanging out in Royal Oak or Ferndale, sometimes Plymouth and Ann Arbor.

I really hope that things continue to improve. But I really think the people in the city and metro need to change their attitudes about a lot of these "progressive" ideas.

I thought you meant compared to the suburbs. My mistake but I think you could find quite a few more areas of Detroit to spend time in. Me being from the city, me and my friend aren't scared. For example: downtown, Greektown, Riverfront, Belle Isle, Eastern Market, Midtown, Corktown, Mexicantown, certain neighborhoods along the Detroit river, Hamtramck (since it's surrounded by the city), the Michigan-Martin neighborhood, alot of strip clubs along 8 mile lol, and Springwells all have plenty of gems, food, or bars/clubs to go to. All of these places I mentioned are frequented by suburbanites too so you won't feel that out of place. But you know Detroit's nightlife isn't as concentrated so of course many places are in various random areas.

As for restaurants they are literally all over the city. I lived near Harper on the eastside, many parts are very run down but there are plenty of options for food just on that street alone.

As for things to do these days you have of course sports, various bars/clubs, various events, various casinos, a HUGE HUGE selection of restaurants, various concerts/ plays, a few nice parks, ect off the top of my head. There are always things going on in this town especially when it's warmer outside. Not bad for a city that went through so much and back in the day had so much taken out of the city and moved to the suburbs. Of course if you have friends that are even afraid of crossing 8 mile I can easily see why it was difficult for you. These days it looks like the younger crowd is starting to hang out in the city alot more than the last generation.

And I completely agree with the last sentence... the disrespect Detroit gets from people in it's own state, country, and the media as a whole is criminal. The negativity is very overwhelming sometimes and yes I know other trouble cities have alot of negative people as well but I understand that's one of your main reasons for moving back to Denver. If the attitudes here changed Detroit could be a completely different city in 10 years. Who from out of state would want to invest or move here when some of the people born and raised in Michigan basically tells them their making a mistake smh. If your "Tekke" I think I told you a few years ago you should have moved downtown and tried to make some new friends in the city when you moved back, at least you know they wouldn't be afraid of their own shadow.

[SQL]

Originally Posted by MS313

I thought you meant compared to the suburbs. My mistake but I think you could find quite a few more areas of Detroit to spend time in. Me being from the city, me and my friend aren't scared. For example: downtown, Greektown, Riverfront, Belle Isle, Eastern Market, Midtown, Corktown, Mexicantown, certain neighborhoods along the Detroit river, Hamtramck (since it's surrounded by the city), the Michigan-Martin neighborhood, alot of strip clubs along 8 mile lol, and Springwells all have plenty of gems, food, or bars/clubs to go to. All of these places I mentioned are frequented by suburbanites too so you won't feel that out of place. But you know Detroit's nightlife isn't as concentrated so of course many places are in various random areas.

As for restaurants they are literally all over the city. I lived near Harper on the eastside, many parts are very run down but there are plenty of options for food just on that street alone.

As for things to do these days you have of course sports, various bars/clubs, various events, various casinos, a HUGE HUGE selection of restaurants, various concerts/ plays, a few nice parks, ect off the top of my head. There are always things going on in this town especially when it's warmer outside. Not bad for a city that went through so much and back in the day had so much taken out of the city and moved to the suburbs. Of course if you have friends that are even afraid of crossing 8 mile I can easily see why it was difficult for you. These days it looks like the younger crowd is starting to hang out in the city alot more than the last generation.

And I completely agree with the last sentence... the disrespect Detroit gets from people in it's own state, country, and the media as a whole is criminal. The negativity is very overwhelming sometimes and yes I know other trouble cities have alot of negative people as well but I understand that's one of your main reasons for moving back to Denver. If the attitudes here changed Detroit could be a completely different city in 10 years. Who from out of state would want to invest or move here when some of the people born and raised in Michigan basically tells them their making a mistake smh.

All I can say is keep fighting the good fight. Detroit needs more folks like you advocating for change and progress. I wish I could still be there at times, but I was ultimately recruited to go back to Denver for a new job and I've established roots here for now. I love Denver, but we have out own set of problems like high COL and dwindling housing inventory which makes housing very unaffordable for average folks.

Detroit is a great place for someone trying to get a start (just like Denver was 20 years ago and nobody wanted to live downtown here either). Keep your heads up and keep moving forward. Good luck!

P.s. Can't wait to see all the changes the next time I visit; it's been over a year.

[djmilf]

Originally Posted by MS313

Safety and insurance cost I can see. But lack of entertainment? compared to what? West Bloomfield? The majority of the entertainment hot spots are in or near the city. As for lack of good paying jobs it kind of depends. There's no lack of good paying jobs in downtown or Midtown. The traffic still heads toward Detroit from the burbs every morning.

Where did I see a really nice animation about commuting patterns?

Oh, yeah...right here.

[animatedmartian]

Originally Posted by SQL

What happened to the rail along Woodward? Did that plan get abandoned? I thought that was a pretty good start and figured they'd build off that line.

When it was first proposed (I forget what year), it would have gone from Jefferson to 8 Mile and operated by the city. The suburbs in Oakland County would then consider if they wanted it expanded farther.

Well, by 2013, Detroit infamously filed for bankruptcy and it was figured that the city couldn't support any mass transit expansions for the time being (in fact DDOT had went through some hefty downsizing and drop in service). The project was abandoned.

A few years later, the project is semi-revived, but this time by Dan Gilbert and a number of other local businesses and institutions. Though, they could only build the project enough to get it from Jefferson to Grand Boulevard (3 miles and some change). So right now the rail line is mostly privately funded and is operated by an non-profit transportation agency. To expand it the rail line, some other transit agency would have to take it over or the federal government would have to cough up some dough.

[MS313]

Originally Posted by SQL

All I can say is keep fighting the good fight. Detroit needs more folks like you advocating for change and progress. I wish I could still be there at times, but I was ultimately recruited to go back to Denver for a new job and I've established roots here for now. I love Denver, but we have out own set of problems like high COL and dwindling housing inventory which makes housing very unaffordable for average folks.

Detroit is a great place for someone trying to get a start (just like Denver was 20 years ago and nobody wanted to live downtown here either). Keep your heads up and keep moving forward. Good luck!

P.s. Can't wait to see all the changes the next time I visit; it's been over a year.

Thanks man. Good luck in Denver. And yeah you should definitely visit summer 2017 after alot of projects are finished including the Woodward light rail. I expect it to be a huge difference.

Where did I see a really nice animation about commuting patterns?

Oh, yeah...right here.

Yep, Wayne Co is still king. 63% of Washtenaw Co commutes into Wayne County? How is that not officially apart of Detroit MSA?

[animatedmartian]

Originally Posted by MS313

Yep, Wayne Co is still king. 63% of Washtenaw Co commutes into Wayne County? How is that not officially apart of Detroit MSA?

That's for people who commute farther than 20 miles (you have to click the 20 - 100 mi to adjust the distance). Plus that's only 3,402 commuters.

If you include people who commute under 20 miles, it's only 6,000 commuters and less than 6% of all Washtenaw residents who commute into Wayne County.

So really, the number of people who commute from Washtenaw to Wayne County is a very small group and well below the percentage that would make Washtenaw apart of Detroit's MSA.