Detroit and its surronding suburds/cities

[snoopygirlmi]

I really can't add much to what others have said, but as a relative newcomer to the area - there's a lot of distrust among both populations (black/white). A lot of suburbanites want to help out in the city, but Detroiters are really skeptical about white folks coming in and doing things because they are afraid that the white folks want to take over their city. And there's a lot of fear about going into the city because it's a shell of its former self and it really isn't well taken care of. So, it's hard to get suburbanites/central city people on the same page about anything because there's just a lot of suspicious because (I think) a lot of people don't want to let go of the past. I mean, the riots were 40 years ago, but people act sometimes like they were last week because a lot of the town never got rebuilt. It's hard for people to let go of their fears and perceptions when they've been there for a long time.

[chiroptera]

What she said. As a relative newcomer as well (2001) it took me a while to get used to the blatant racism/suspicion/segregation here. On both sides, I may add.

Many suburbanites are terrified of Detroit/Flint and feel all brave and all if they actually go there for some reason. Which is pretty amusing to those of us who actually live in these "scary" areas. On the other hand, many black people are unwilling to move to or work in predominantly "white" areas. So there's an impasse.

Originally Posted by snoopygirlmi

I really can't add much to what others have said, but as a relative newcomer to the area - there's a lot of distrust among both populations (black/white). A lot of suburbanites want to help out in the city, but Detroiters are really skeptical about white folks coming in and doing things because they are afraid that the white folks want to take over their city. And there's a lot of fear about going into the city because it's a shell of its former self and it really isn't well taken care of. So, it's hard to get suburbanites/central city people on the same page about anything because there's just a lot of suspicious because (I think) a lot of people don't want to let go of the past. I mean, the riots were 40 years ago, but people act sometimes like they were last week because a lot of the town never got rebuilt. It's hard for people to let go of their fears and perceptions when they've been there for a long time.

[ckhthankgod]

Originally Posted by chiroptera

What she said. As a relative newcomer as well (2001) it took me a while to get used to the blatant racism/suspicion/segregation here. On both sides, I may add.

Many suburbanites are terrified of Detroit/Flint and feel all brave and all if they actually go there for some reason. Which is pretty amusing to those of us who actually live in these "scary" areas. On the other hand, many black people are unwilling to move to or work in predominantly "white" areas. So there's an impasse.

I will say that some Blacks in the Detroit area have been moving to areas of the metro like Warren and Dearborn, among others, in a way that they didn't even 10-15 years ago. So, some of that has changed.

[djmilf]

Originally Posted by MTUCache

After fifty or so years of that kind of development, the city itself has become somewhat like a blackhole with very few business making the commitment to stay there, while the suburbs have actually thrived and continued to sprawl (even as distant as the far-flung Grand Blanc, over 60 miles from Detroit).

While I agree with your post, I must point out that Grand Blanc is actually a suburb of Flint, not a suburb of Detroit. Detroit's suburban sprawl doesn't extend quite as far as Flint.

[daddythreepointoh]

Originally Posted by djmilf

While I agree with your post, I must point out that Grand Blanc is actually a suburb of Flint, not a suburb of Detroit. Detroit's suburban sprawl doesn't extend quite as far as Flint.

That's what I pointed out in my post too. Detoit's sprawl ends about where I live...

[Daytonnatian]

Originally Posted by daddythreepointoh

Brilliant post. Regarding the parts I've bolded, I live in Ortonville and have always thought that Grand Blanc was more of a suburb/exurb of Flint...

I know people in Ortonville and it always amusing to see if they associate themselves with Detroit or Flint......

Anyways, yeah, great area. Still has a very northerney-rural feel to the area, and in a unique spot with relative proximity to both cities, that huge new mall with the Bass Pro and Rainforest Cafe, and a relative feeling of proserity and growth (although it is still too rural to have THAT much of a feel like this yet). Going there always makes me think I'm in metro Minneapolis or something, and I don't really have a good reason why.

Enough about Ortonville . One thing I have always found interesting about Detroit is that the closer you get to the central city on I-75, the worse the walking bridges across the highway look. Weird, but true.

Anyways, as this thread's posters have stated many times, Detroit is just... random. It's wonderful because it gives the area some real character, but odd and problematic, as well. I love how driving up 23 to Flint you would think you are in a really prosperous section of Ontario or something, and driving up 75 you know you're going to Detroit, because you can just FEEL the city around you. I love that.

[MTUCache]

Originally Posted by djmilf

While I agree with your post, I must point out that Grand Blanc is actually a suburb of Flint, not a suburb of Detroit. Detroit's suburban sprawl doesn't extend quite as far as Flint.

I'll concede the point, although if GB doesn't qualify as a "suburb" of Detroit I don't really think there's any real definition of "suburb" that would qualify Ortonville or even Clarkston as a surburb of Detroit.

If you're defining based on which major city it's closest too, I suppose Flint will have to do. But if you look at where most of the people who live in Grand Blanc commute to for work, in my experience it would be to places more closely associated with Detroit (although admittedly even those places are the "outer" suburbs of Detroit). Again, that's my experience, but the people I know who live in GB either work in GB or commute to Auburn Hills, Troy, etc.

Either way, my point was to illustrate how ridiculously spread out the area is, even for it's relatively small population. The Detroit-metro area is approximately as big as Chicago's, and with less than half the people.