The Fall and Rise of Detroit

Posted by Sheila Redick on September 26, 2009

Time leads this week with a cover titled "The Tragedy of Detroit: How a great city fell -- and how it can rise again."  It is the beginning of a year-long series on Detroit from multiple angles by magazines in the Time stable.  The piece is generally fair, blaming the city's decline on the riots of 1967, subsequent white flight, the 20-year reign of Mayor Coleman Young and the deep friction he created with the suburbs, the auto industry and the UAW, and the politicians (particularly Rep. John Dingell) who enabled the industry to fight off higher standards that would have made them more competitive with foreign brands.

The result is a city of 900,000 residents, down from 1.85 million, spread over 138 square miles.  The city is literally falling down, and there is little hope in the near-term of filling the city's many vacant, crumbling buildings.

Time's solution is to convert Detroit into the "Arsenal of the Renewable Energy Future."  Arrgghh!  Let's hope the reporting gets more sophisticated than this.  A silver bullet for Detroit?  There is no such thing -- for Detroit or any other city.  Instead, it will take a combination of strategies big and small to revive the city.  Initiatives like 15x15 is one such effort.  Conceived by the Hudson-Webber Foundation but now owned by its many stakeholders, the goal is to put 15,000 young college graduates in the Woodward Corridor.  Also worth watching: The New Economy Initiative's efforts to drive new business start-ups and growth.

Anyone who cares about cities has to appreciate Time's commitment to covering this story. Let's hope that get it right, in all its nuance and complexity.