Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
The news this week that Detroit's population plunged more than 25% to just 714,000 in the last decade shouldn't be surprising. The city's collapse is as well-documented as it is astonishing - the population peaked at nearly 2 million in the 1950s, driven in part by a post-World War II auto industry boom now long gone.
An exception is being made since this is a city-specific topic, however, anyone wishing to discuss it, let's try to make comparisons to Detroit's decline to other cities that are doing the same (or reversing the trend) since this is city-vs-city. Thank you.
I know 5 people from Detroit. 3 are white, 2 are black. The white people enjoyed growing up in Detroit and visit family frequently there. They'd consider moving back. Of the two black people 1 hasn't been back since he left for college (he's 34, and has a weird family situation). The other only goes back out of sheer necessity and dread it completely, preferring to visit the in-laws than his parents so he can avoid going to Detroit.
I live in Oakland, which is forever being compared to Detroit. There is also an alleged population shrinkage (CA state measure are higher than the census) of about 2%. Lots of African Americans are leaving town, but when they dug into the numbers, there were lots of neighborhoods with huge growth in the denser downtown area. Tons of people left the dangerous areas of flatlands (around 25%) where the vast majority of crime is concentrated. There is a lot of redeveloment planned for Oakland. Luckily most of it isn't displacing many existing residents, it is concentrated in areas where there was never much residential development.
There is some gentrification, in West Oakland, and interesting part of town that went downhill when it was cut off by a freeway and the industries left. Today there are abandoned warehouse and grand Victorians in various states of repair. There are cute blocks with original victorians restored completely and others where empty lots are mixed with dilapidated victorians. The issues of urban blight are nowhere near the levels of Detroit and the focus on smart growth in the past 20 years has worked out well for Oakland. Oakland has a prime location in a growing metro area and an existing transit infrastructure to support growth.
I've seen lots of stories on people in Detroit creating urban farms and reclaiming green space. I've never been there, and had no idea there was such grand architecture, or how spread out it is. I am in full agreement of creating zones of development for the new Detroit, perhaps making the city center an Oasis in the midst of the trees.
Gary, Indiana was probably the first city in the rust best to feel the effects of abandonment. Though on a smaller scale, it is probably worse than what's happening in Detroit. My parents are from Gary and it's almost impossible to even begin to imagine how different their lives were growing up in the 40's and 50's to what that city is today.
It's all so sad.
Cleveland is also lumped in with Detroit, and saw a significant population decline, too. (though not quite as severe as Detroit's) Here is an interesting map that shows the beginning of an interesting trend in Cleveland--growth in the center. Is there a similar map of Detroit, and are there similar neighborhoods that are bucking the trend?
From what I've read over the past few years, we are in the midst of a large black migration from cities to suburbs and from North to South. The census numbers seem to back this up. My guess is that a lot of the story in Detroit revolves around this phenomenon. For comparative purposes, Boston, where I live, has a much smaller black population than most major northern cities, and we are seeing decent population growth. But it is whites and Hispanics offsetting a decline in African Americans.
I believe that Downtown Detroit is improving and there are some areas near the Detroit River that have been redeveloped. Areas like the Cass and Woodward Corridors are still doing alright and some neighborhoods are still stable.
From what I've read over the past few years, we are in the midst of a large black migration from cities to suburbs and from North to South. The census numbers seem to back this up. My guess is that a lot of the story in Detroit revolves around this phenomenon. For comparative purposes, Boston, where I live, has a much smaller black population than most major northern cities, and we are seeing decent population growth. But it is whites and Hispanics offsetting a decline in African Americans.
That's what I see in this part of the South (the southeast coast - GA, SC, NC, VA - the trend is playing out differently in the Deep South, which has seen slow growth and declines in some areas) - the black "returnees" and also some immigrants (Asians particularly) tend to be educated, middle-class, and are moving South for college, grad school, retirement, to start families, or to start businesses.
Not in the rural parts of the GA-to-VA stretch of the East Coast, but definitely in the cities, the black middle-class is heading into well-integrated suburbs, as as the Asian population (which is soaring in places like Atlanta, Raleigh-Durham and NoVA), and given the economics, educational background, or entrepreneurial activity in these folks, they are precisely who you would not want to see leaving someplace like Detroit or Cleveland. Because - with the exception of small numbers of hipsters and gentrifiers, much of what is left behind is folks who have the fewest options, least education, least money, and least hope, so rebuilding and re-inventing a city is a colossal, colossal task.
wth does the decline in population have to do if they are blacks or not. It is about our jobs in the country going to places like Mexico and China, etc.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
