Working in Downtown Detroit (Troy, Royal Oak: apartments, renting, lofts)

[flipflopmom]

Hey! I'm moving from the Florida Panhandle to Michigan. I found a job in Downtown Detroit but was told not to apply because it's a really bad area. It's around West Fort Street and Shelby. Is this a dangerous area? I've never lived/worked in a big city so I am a little apprehensive about taking the job. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!

[y2c313]

You have nothing to worry about. Downtown Detroit has a pretty good police presence down there. The most you'll have to deal with are some bums asking for change. I worked downtown for over a decade until a year ago., but I still frequent the area when I can. You'll be fine.

[animatedmartian]

You'll be right in the CBD and it's totally fine there.

However, as far as residential options go, Detroit does have crime and vacancy issues in many of its neighborhoods. There's a few lofts and apartments within downtown and Midtown that are a short drive/walk away though chances are if you prefer a small house, then your options are limited to adjacent suburbs and your commute would range from 10 to 15 minutes.

If you're not too comfortable jumping headfirst into a big city environment, then I'd suggest renting a small house in a nearby suburb such as Royal Oak or Grosse Pointe Park. Though I should point out that as far as big cities go, Detroit is kind of tame and your first impressions would be highly different if going to any other big city.

[Tekkie]

Originally Posted by flipflopmom

Hey! I'm moving from the Florida Panhandle to Michigan. I found a job in Downtown Detroit but was told not to apply because it's a really bad area. It's around West Fort Street and Shelby. Is this a dangerous area? I've never lived/worked in a big city so I am a little apprehensive about taking the job. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!

Nah, that's a pretty safe area relatively speaking. Good luck on the new job prospect and definitely you should take it if all other things have been considered a good fit. Midtown/Downtown is coming along well these days.

[tonybahu]

I have had businesses downtown D for years. That area is safe and you should have no problems. Also parking will most likely be right under or across from your building. You'll have to live at least 15-20 min away to find good living unless you want to live downtown but that's a whole other story.

Btw why the heck would you leave there to come here? People are getting out of here given the weather, economy, etc?

[xfactor85]

Originally Posted by tonybahu

I have had businesses downtown D for years. That area is safe and you should have no problems. Also parking will most likely be right under or across from your building. You'll have to live at least 15-20 min away to find good living unless you want to live downtown but that's a whole other story.

Btw why the heck would you leave there to come here? People are getting out of here given the weather, economy, etc?

Credited….

The area is safe, but why would you want to move to the area?

Metro D area is making a small comeback, but I am still not bullish on the metro area. I just don't see where the jobs are going to come from for the masses.

Also, please note that we have had more than a couple days of -25-35 wind chill and almost every day has some kind of negative wind chill.

After being in 110 Phoenix in the summer and -25 to -35 wind chill here, I would say that -35 is a decent amount worse.

[Retroit]

As usual, very little information is provided by the original poster. And no responses.

It would be nice to know what kind of job this is, why no jobs can be found closer to current residence, whether weather is a factor, ability to afford housing, type of housing desired, means of transportation. etc...

...instead of letting us guess.

[flipflopmom]

Sorry it took so long to respond. I am moving up there with my boyfriend. He will be working in Port Huron. I am wanting to take this job because I am currently a federal employee and there aren't many federal jobs in the area. I do know it gets really cold. I was stationed in Upstate New York for a few years. Although, I know this winter was way more than I had to go through. I plan on living north of Detroit and driving down to work.

Thanks for everyone's response!!

[tonybahu]

If you are moving here because you have to I guess that's different So yes, you have nothing to worry about in the area you are talking of. The Detroit Police force is very thin due to budgets, however, you are in an area that is simply offices. As mentioned above, you might have an occasional bum here or there but you probably will not encounter that if I had to guess. Furthermore, some of the buildings downtown are connected by a tunnel above the streets so you can easily get around without using the streets depending on which building you are in (this includes the City County Building which is where many Federal Employees are. The dangerous areas are not really in the downtown area but more in the perimeters of the downtown area for the most part. Weekends and odd hours may bring crime downtown but for the hours you will be working I doubt you will ever witness any of that.

Also, the areas north of Detroit are nice depending on how far north you go. Troy and Auburn Hills are very nice.

All in all, no worries in taking the job, you should be fine! Hope that helps!!!!

[Bimmerfanboy]

It's well-known that Detroit proper is dicey, but the downtown is not as bad.
The majority of people who work downtown commute from the suburbs. Metro Detroit has over 4 million people but the city itself has 700,000. It's a large region and there's many housing options for you in the suburbs.