The success stories about Detroit leave out big pieces of the puzzle, including some just outside of city limits. The Detroit News looks at the ongoing struggles of one of the forgotten neighborhoods in the suburb of South Warren.
"Some residents and merchants along Van Dyke — a busy corridor that runs through south Warren — say they feel the city has neglected their community," according to an article by Nicquel Terry examining the situation in the city of Warren, located just to the north of the city of Detroit.
"Crime, poverty, unkempt rental homes and vacant or aging storefronts dot south Warren, while the northern section of the city thrives with cleaner neighborhoods, big box retailers and companies such as General Motors investing millions of dollars in new developments."
Terry includes reactions to the conditions in south Warren from Mayor Jim Fouts, who "recently announced plans to build a satellite police station that operates 24 hours a day, a city hall office and a new library near Nine Mile and Van Dyke." Mayor Fouts hopes that the civic buildings prove a catalyst for "other development, such as supermarkets and single-family homes that are owned and not rented."
The article includes a lot more detail about the struggles of South Warren, as illustrated by demographic and economic data as well as anecdotes from residents living in the city.
Read the full story: South Warren: The ‘forgotten’ neighborhoods
What (or Who) Can Make a Downtown Revival Happen in Warren, Michigan?
After past attempts to redevelop the downtown of Michigan's third largest city failed, Warren's mayor believes that the city's downtown and civic center is ready to transform into a bustling urban environment. What will it take to make that happen?
Evolution in Industrial Towns
Amid the recession, industrial towns in the Rust Belt have been forced to evolve as jobs dry up. But this is nothing new for the region, where towns have been re-imagining their economies for decades. NPR reports.
America’s Next Rust Belt Could be its Most Digitally Connected Cities
Research warns that the rise of AI is making some of the country’s most economically successful cities vulnerable to AI-driven decline.
Amtrak, CN end decades-long dispute with eight-year agreement
The new operating agreement establishes an updated framework for the companies to work together, including processes to resolve disputes.
Judges permit Denver to divert 77,000 acre feet from the Colorado River for reservoir expansion
Overuse and climate change have caused the Colorado River’s water levels to plummet.
Nation's most wind-powered state turns to coal as data centers increase energy demand
For the first time in decades, Iowa has increased its generation of coal power.
Boston has spent millions making the Green Line more accessible — and there’s no end in sight
While the city has invested millions into expanding and adding platforms to the Green Line to make it more accessible, new train cars set to arrive next year will be too tall for disabled passengers to board without raising the current platforms.
Idaho may see an 18% drop in federal surface transit funding — the largest estimated cut in the US
Transit systems in rural communities are much more reliant on federal funding to provide their services.
How ‘post-disaster gentrification’ alters neighborhoods after natural calamities
After hurricanes, fires or other calamities, the original residents of a community are often replaced by younger, wealthier residents.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Wisconsin Rapids
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
KFH Group Inc.
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello