Why I think Metro Detroit is Great (St. Louis, Atlanta: insurance, crime rate)

[mogo]

I'm not asking any question in this thread. This is simply something that I wish were pointed out more often.

When my wife and I were looking to flee the area amid the economic crisis, we looked at several cities around the country to move to (DC, Chicago, Phoenix, Denver, Miami, etc.). We kept coming back to one question: if you removed the attraction from these places that would not be part of your daily life (the beach, the mountains), are they better than Metro Detroit.

We always answered "no".

It just seems to me that there is an inordinate amount of attention paid to these places based on the things that you rarely use if you actually live there. Furthermore, all of them are ridiculously expensive compared to Metro Detroit.

If you take these places and strip them down to what they offer residents on a day-to-day basis, I have to believe that Metro Detroit is near the top of the list of great places to live in the US.

You won't find that in any of these BS surveys that Forbes and MSN keep pumping out.

[janet14]

Originally Posted by mogo

I'm not asking any question in this thread. This is simply something that I wish were pointed out more often.

When my wife and I were looking to flee the area amid the economic crisis, we looked at several cities around the country to move to (DC, Chicago, Phoenix, Denver, Miami, etc.). We kept coming back to one question: if you removed the attraction from these places that would not be part of your daily life (the beach, the mountains), are they better than Metro Detroit.

We always answered "no".

It just seems to me that there is an inordinate amount of attention paid to these places based on the things that you rarely use if you actually live there. Furthermore, all of them are ridiculously expensive compared to Metro Detroit.

If you take these places and strip them down to what they offer residents on a day-to-day basis, I have to believe that Metro Detroit is near the top of the list of great places to live in the US.

You won't find that in any of these BS surveys that Forbes and MSN keep pumping out.

I agree, although sadly, my hubby and I are casulaties of this awful economy and although I've lived in metro suburbs all my life we're coming to philly for my hubby's interview this week (fingers crossed). I'm a history buff and Philly is rich with history but I'm hoping to find at least some of the suburban life I know and love so well out here. But thanks for writing a favorable post about Detroit -- we're not all so bad, are we?

[mogo]

Originally Posted by janet14

I agree, although sadly, my hubby and I are casulaties of this awful economy and although I've lived in metro suburbs all my life we're coming to philly for my hubby's interview this week (fingers crossed). I'm a history buff and Philly is rich with history but I'm hoping to find at least some of the suburban life I know and love so well out here. But thanks for writing a favorable post about Detroit -- we're not all so bad, are we?

No, we're not. And, of course, just as I mention BS surveys from Forbes, I see that Forbes just ranked Metro Detroit as number 12 in its list of the top 40 safest cities in the country.

Congrats everyone.

[michsnowlvr]

To the OP- great post...I think metro-Detroit is great too.

[danielj72]

Yes metro Detroit is cheap, as is the rest of Michigan but there are some undeniable realities here. Only some of the suburbs are nice, and the city itself is almost third world. I have never seen an area as depressing as Detroit proper. Detroit is almost always on the top of any crime list and its unemployment is ALWAYS amoung the highest in the nation. The whole state of Michigan gets dragged down by Detroits bad press and its problems. That whole Kwame thing really made our whole state look terrrible. Michigan does have alot of good things like the great lakes, forest land, farmland and lots of recreational activites like camping fishing and hunting just to name a few. NONE of these things are in the metro Detroit area. Sorry to rain on your parade, but those of us outside the Detroit area see Detroit as an embarassment to our whole state

[Indentured Servant]

Originally Posted by danielj72

Yes metro Detroit is cheap, as is the rest of Michigan but there are some undeniable realities here. Only some of the suburbs are nice, and the city itself is almost third world. I have never seen an area as depressing as Detroit proper. Detroit is almost always on the top of any crime list and its unemployment is ALWAYS amoung the highest in the nation. The whole state of Michigan gets dragged down by Detroits bad press and its problems. That whole Kwame thing really made our whole state look terrrible. Michigan does have alot of good things like the great lakes, forest land, farmland and lots of recreational activites like camping fishing and hunting just to name a few. NONE of these things are in the metro Detroit area. Sorry to rain on your parade, but those of us outside the Detroit area see Detroit as an embarassment to our whole state

I really get sick of this type of post. I have been to a lot of major metropolitan areas in the country and I have found depressing geographic areas in most of them, primarily those that have a large population of historically oppressed peoples. Let me be racial here. The life in metro Detroit for whites is on par with the life of whites in most major metropolitan areas, aside from the recent economic downturn exacerbated by the areas Auto Industry. Here is the kicker; the life of blacks in Metropolitan Detroit is not that much off the life of blacks in most major metropolitan areas.

If you analyze the statistics in regards to poverty, crime, employment and the like, blacks in the city of Detroit are not that much different than blacks in the city of Chicago, Philadelphia, Milwaukee, Cleveland, Atlanta and many other cities. In fact, if you take the statistics on those same socioeconomic indicators for whites in Metro Detroit, you will find that they line up very good with whites in most major metropolitan areas, adjusted for cost of living factors, of course. So again, Metropolitan Detroit is not as much an anomaly as people make it out to be.

What makes the Detroit area stand out for criticism and what makes it an anomaly is that it is the only major metropolitan area in which its principle city is so overwhelmingly black. Blacks are a historically oppressed group in America and their socioeconomic indicators are reflective of that. Nationally black poverty is nearly 3 times that of whites and black unemployment is really over twice that of whites (when you factor in discouraged workers….long tern unemployed who don’t get counted as unemployed). In NYC and Milwaukee, it has been reported that the black male unemployment rate is 50%. Now, suppose if Milwaukee or NYC were 90% black? What would that do for the statistics of those cities?

When the principle city of a metropolitan area has a large white population, it offsets or negates the miserable statistics from the African American community for city data. I am African American and when I go to major Metropolitan areas, I have family or friends who live in the inner cities of these places. When a white person from Metro Detroit goes to these cities, I am sure that they are avoiding these areas like H1N1. You don’t know how depressing these areas are because you don’t see them. You visit the white areas of Chicago, Philadelphia, Milwaukee and others. You don’t know how bad they are but you know how bad Detroit is from years of living in the area.

Thus, in conclusion, in my opinion the thing that makes Metro Detroit stand out is racial polarization and really nothing else (ignoring the auto industry dependence). Detroit proper stands out against other major principle cities in America because it’s roughly 90% black. You show me another 90% black principle city in America and I will show you a depressed city, relative to principle cities that much whiter. How about Gary, Indiana? How about East St. Louise, Illinois? Of course, these places are much smaller and hence don’t get the attention that Detroit does. If the City of Detroit annexed part of Oakland county, to the degree that the city then became 50% white, Detroit would drop from the top 10 list of per capita crime rates, its poverty rate would drop, its unemployment rate would drop and it would have statistics as good or better than most major principle cities in America.

Hence, it is IGNORANCE and RACE that perpetuates a negative image for the Detroit areas due to the fact that the principle city normally is the signature for the metropolitan area. That assumes that the principle city is a microcosm of the metropolitan area, which was true 50 years ago, but has become less true each subsequent decade. In the case of the Detroit area, the City and Suburbs are almost complete opposites as one is 90% black and the other is 90% white. Therefore, when people here how bad Detroit and or how it sucks, that negatively taints the suburbs as well, when in fact the Suburbs are on par with any in the nation.

Detroit proper is run down and abandoned looking as a result of the process of becoming a racially polarized region. You don’t go from nearly 2 million residents to less than 900,000 without creating a lot of abandoned and run down dwelling. It’s the simple economic law of supply and demand. For whatever reason, it was whites who created that level of abandonment because the significant degree of difference in those numbers in the city is due to white flight. Detroit is down more than a million from its peak white population, while its black population peaked in 2001 and since has lost about 100,000.

I am sure some will say that I am blaming whites.....but that is the FACTS of what happened. If whites in Metro Detroit wished that their principle city was more vibrant like Chicago, Phily, Boston of the likes, they have no one to blame but themselves. Move to the City of Detroit and create a Gold Coast or NorthSide or move to expensive high rise condiminuums in the city like whites do in those cities. However, don't just sit back and point to how depressed looking a 90% black Detroit is and how it taints the whole region and state. Hell.....blacks in Chicago, Philly and most other cities are NOT doing anything different than are blacks in Detroit, yet, they have large vibrant white communities in these cities. SO really.....THATS THE DIFFERENCE. Therefore, if you are not willing to move to the city and make it like those cities that you think are so great.....then YOU are the problem. Whites did not abandon those cities like they have Detroit. You cannot cut off your nose to spite your face...as my mom says. In othe words, constant critisim of Detroit by people in the suburbs comes back to hurt the whole region.

[Wingnatic]

Don't assume its all white people fleeing the city . Many black people have left for the same reason white people left . Constant gunshots , drug activity , thugs etc. . I was born in Detroit , probably lived 30 years in Detroit total . The reason this '' white'' (actually I'm native american) person left is some of the examples I stated above plus more like have my car stolen twice , set on fire both times , gunshots , drug houses on my street , high insurance rates which is totally unfair . The city gave me no other choice but to escape with my family to the suburbs . I go into Detroit often , just don't care to live there anymore .

''You don’t go from nearly 2 million residents to less than 900,000''

I guarantee you many of those people were black and left for the same reason white people did . If the shoe fits , wear it .

[behindenemylines]

Back to the OP, why wouldn't you utilize the oceans or mountains if you moved to an area that has those features? I used to live in Southern California and we'd hike in the mountains or go to the beach on a regular basis. I'm not trying to bash metro Detroit because Michigan has plenty of attractions to offer as well, just wondering why you wouldn't want to enjoy or value those kinds of assets.

I judged areas based upon their economy, education levels, cost of living, housing market, crime, downtown areas, future outlook, local attractions and ammenities, etc when we decided where to move. There are plenty of places that beat Detroit when you take future financial considerations into account and there are plenty of markets that are a lot less expensive than Detroit as well.

Everyone needs to do what works for them.

[Indentured Servant]

Originally Posted by Wingnatic

Don't assume its all white people fleeing the city . Many black people have left for the same reason white people left . Constant gunshots , drug activity , thugs etc. . I was born in Detroit , probably lived 30 years in Detroit total . The reason this '' white'' (actually I'm native american) person left is some of the examples I stated above plus more like have my car stolen twice , set on fire both times , gunshots , drug houses on my street , high insurance rates which is totally unfair . The city gave me no other choice but to escape with my family to the suburbs . I go into Detroit often , just don't care to live there anymore .

''You don’t go from nearly 2 million residents to less than 900,000''

I guarantee you many of those people were black and left for the same reason white people did . If the shoe fits , wear it .

The shoes do not fit. Again, the black population in the city of Detroit peaked in 2001 at about 770,000. The white population in Detroit peaked about 1950 at about 1.6 million people. There are about 700,000 blacks in the city of Detroit today. Or let’s just say 670,000 blacks. Do the math. That means that Detroit's black population is 87% of peak. In contrast, however, there are about 100,000 whites in the city, being overly generous, today. That means that Detroit’s white population is only 6% of its peak. Now, any person literate in first grade mathematics would not try to draw equivalence between those two numbers. However, someone with first grade math skills who was being disingenuous and practicing subterfuge would indeed make such equalization.

You see, people who have a trouble with the TRUTH always result to the fallacy of absolutes. In other words, they attempt to find comfort or repudiation in the fact that it was not ALL of something. Thus, if they can point out a valid exception to the rule, that is supposed to negate the rule. In other words, the US economy has not lost millions of Jobs due to the fact that Fargo, North Dakota gained jobs. The exception is applied in an attempt to override the rule hoping to find acceptance from the ignorance or willing or credulous of readers of certain mind sets and predispositions. No. That subterfuge and obfuscation will not work. This is the problem of Metro Detroit. People cannot HANDLE THE TRUTH. The abandonment level of Detroit is the product of white flight. Business soon followed…..as they were white owned too. Go to any so called vibrant city in America and I guarantee to you that it is a city characterized by a large presence of whites and with large sections of white wealth residing in the city. Hence, the ONLY reason Detroit does not have that is because whites choose to abandon the city. Now many complain about how the City is so abandoned and depressing looking. Its laughable in its ignorance and hypocrisy.

Note.....those population numbers represent net population, which aggregates Births/Deaths/migration. Hence, even though blacks have been moving to the suburbs births or migration into the city by blacks have kept Detroits black population near its peak. This cannot hardly be said of Detroits white population, where Detroit only has 6% of the white population it once enjoyed. This is simply a truth many white Metro Detroiters refuse to swallow. It is THEIR CHOICES, which has made the area the way it is. Hell, the crime rate in the black communities of this nations major cities are pretty much the same....yet, most of these cities have large white populations. They did not abondon their city due to the fear of black people.

[jeanniepep]

What a surprise, a positive post about Metro Detroit turns into another "You're stupid, Detroit sucks" : "No YOU'RE stupid, Detroit is awesome" thread. Don't we already have about 500 of these on this website?

Personally, what I like about Metro Detroit is that there is so much variety between the towns and neighborhoods. There are working class neighborhoods, charming family-oriented towns, upscale areas with big houses and fancy shops, college towns, hipster towns, party towns, quiet farming towns, and of course lots of lakes where you can live and/or play (and I just don't mean the Great Lakes, there are TONS of small recreational lakes around here). Whatever lifestyle agrees with you is here! Unless, of course, year-round sunshine and heat agrees with you, there isn't much we can do about that ;-)

Downtown Detroit has it's problems, but anyone who sees ONLY problems has not been there in a while. Would I live there? NOPE! But I love living close enough to visit whenever I want, there are some fun things to do down there that aren't quite like anywhere else in Michigan. Yes, there are some bad areas - lots of them. But do you think Chicago is a perfect golden shining city with no crime anywhere? Are there no bad areas full of crime and blight in Philadelphia? DC? Miami? New York? I love a good downtown, but you can't go into ANY of them with blinders on, or thinking that you can walk around any of them alone at night if you don't know where you're going.

I have a GREAT life in Metro Detroit! I don't think that anyone living here is blind to the problems of Detroit, and certainly NOBODY is thrilled with how corruption in city management makes us look to the rest of the world. But passing judgement based on an outsider's perspective is just ignorant, and telling people who love it here that we live in a third-world country is just plain rude.