Will Generation Y Drive a Rust Belt Redux?

In search of cheap rent and an urban experience with some bona fide street cred, young people are making the move out to the Rust Belt, Will Doig reports.

1 minute read

May 17, 2012, 10:00 AM PDT

By Ryan Lue


Facing economic challenges of historic proportions, some youngsters are leading the move back to the old manufacturing powerhouses of the Midwest. Young people (anywhere between 18- and 34-years-old) have been bucking the trend of decline in Rust Belt cities from Cleveland to Pittsburgh, from St. Louis to Detroit.

Part of the shift, of course, has to do with affordability – in 2009, the median price of a home in Detroit was $7,500 – but for many, it has just as much to do with the edgy image of urban decay.

"I think there's a backlash in the American psyche that's longing for
that," says Cleveland native Richey Piiparinen. "Look at Miami. We've
learned that all that glitters isn't gold." 

But Doig warns that "Rust Belt Chic," as Piiparinen calls it, must be taken with a dose of realism: it's "at least partly a romantic fantasy, and that makes
it a risky way to try to revitalize. Last year, Guernica magazine ran a
withering critique of what it called 'Detroitism,'
the fetish for crumbling urban landscapes mixed with eccentric utopian
delusions, 'where bohemians from expensive coastal cities can have the
$100 house and community garden of their dreams.' What these dreams
seldom include, however, are the almost unimaginable systemic problems
many of these cities suffer from: failed schools, violent crime, the
threat of municipal bankruptcy."

Saturday, May 12, 2012 in Salon

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Cover CM Credits, Earn Certificates, Push Your Career Forward

Aerial view of town of Wailuku in Maui, Hawaii with mountains in background against cloudy sunset sky.

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly

Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

July 1, 2025 - Honolulu Civil Beat

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

July 9, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Green vintage Chicago streetcar from the 1940s parked at the Illinois Railroad Museum in 1988.

Chicago’s Ghost Rails

Just beneath the surface of the modern city lie the remnants of its expansive early 20th-century streetcar system.

July 13, 2025 - WTTV

Bend, Oregon

Bend, Oregon Zoning Reforms Prioritize Small-Scale Housing

The city altered its zoning code to allow multi-family housing and eliminated parking mandates citywide.

2 hours ago - Strong Towns

Blue and silver Amtrak train with vibrant green and yellow foliage in background.

Amtrak Cutting Jobs, Funding to High-Speed Rail

The agency plans to cut 10 percent of its workforce and has confirmed it will not fund new high-speed rail projects.

3 hours ago - Smart Cities Dive

Green Skid Row mural satirizing city limit sign in downtown Los Angeles, California.

LA Denies Basic Services to Unhoused Residents

The city has repeatedly failed to respond to requests for trash pickup at encampment sites, and eliminated a program that provided mobile showers and toilets.

4 hours ago - Los Angeles Public Press