On the Ground in the Effort to Save Detroit's Neighborhoods

Anna Clark provides a report from two neighborhoods in Detroit struggling to get a foothold in recovery, despite the ravages of decades of decline and the vacant properties that have followed. East English Village and MorningSide are the subjects of Clark's exploration—two neighborhoods on the East Side of Detroit at distinct stages of recovery relative to decline.

Specifically, Clark focuses on the efforts of the Detroit Land Bank Authority to stabilize and even improve the neighborhoods. For instance:

"Among the tactics: “judicious demolition.” Carrie Lewand-Monroe, senior adviser at the land bank, broke the news that the organization is reducing its estimate for the number of recommended demolitions in the city from the 80,000 cited in the 2014 Detroit Blight Removal Task Force Report to 40,000. More homes are rehabitable than previously thought."

Clark also details some of the programs in place to reactivate the lots created when vacant homes must still be demolished. Such programs include a new lot leasing program that will launch this summer, "where lots can be leased for $25 per year for up to three years. The only requirement is that the person with the lease has the approval of a block club for what they want to do with the lot."

The article includes more details about the work of the Detroit Land Bank Authority and the residents of East English Village and MorningSide in this massive recovery effort.