Discuss Detroit » Archives - January 2008 » Looks like most of the city is in "fixer upper" condition « Previous Next »
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Iheartthed
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Username: Iheartthed

Post Number: 2393
Registered: 04-2006
Posted on Tuesday, December 18, 2007 - 12:22 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

At least according to the Free Press's interactive map. There are some classifications I don't agree with, for instance all of downtown is classified as "well-maintained". My definition of "well-maintained" doesn't include "half abandoned" but anyway...

The neighborhoods along W. 7 Mile from Woodward within Outer Drive were in decent shape by my recollection from as little as 5 years ago. The Freep classifies nearly everything west of Livernois and north of 7 Mile as "fixer upper". Have these neighborhoods shown that significant of a decline recently?

http://media.freep.com/driving detroit/interactive/index.html
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Jt1
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Username: Jt1

Post Number: 11055
Registered: 10-2003
Posted on Tuesday, December 18, 2007 - 12:29 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Fixer upper is a subjective term. Some are probably worse, some are probably better.
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Charlottepaul
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Username: Charlottepaul

Post Number: 2152
Registered: 10-2006
Posted on Tuesday, December 18, 2007 - 12:30 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Can't one have a "well-maintained" vacant building? Certainly is a different cat. from "abandoned".
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Iheartthed
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Username: Iheartthed

Post Number: 2394
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Posted on Tuesday, December 18, 2007 - 12:35 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

quote:

Can't one have a "well-maintained" vacant building? Certainly is a different cat. from "abandoned".



True. The old NYT building in Times Square would fall into well maintained vacant building, I guess. But most vacant buildings in downtown Detroit aren't so "well-maintained", IMO
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Dougw
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Username: Dougw

Post Number: 2012
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Posted on Tuesday, December 18, 2007 - 12:36 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

The map lumps too many areas into the middle "mixed" category. For example, the area bounded by Cadillac, St. Jean, Mack and Jefferson on the lower east side should probably be in the "Much abandonment" category. And some other areas such as the ones iheart mentions could probably be in the "Well-maintained" category.

Also, according to the map, it looks like only about 1% of the city is classified as prairie, and I think we all know it's higher than that.
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Detroitplanner
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Username: Detroitplanner

Post Number: 1483
Registered: 04-2006
Posted on Tuesday, December 18, 2007 - 12:39 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Yeah I would not too much stock into that map. The dogleg is in much worse shape than Warrendlae, but is rated the same.

Jt and Cp have some good points, without much other info it is subjective, and categories seem to not have a common theme other than housing.

Its odd that they were talking about how blight is impacting places like Palmer Woods, Rosedale, and Grandmont yet the map calls them well maintained areas.
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Charlottepaul
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Username: Charlottepaul

Post Number: 2154
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Posted on Tuesday, December 18, 2007 - 12:41 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Also too, this is all subjective. It was one reporter doing his own thing his own way. So the categories he chose, and his views on the neighborhood are his.
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Buyamerican
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Username: Buyamerican

Post Number: 242
Registered: 02-2007
Posted on Tuesday, December 18, 2007 - 12:50 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Conner to Alter, Mack to the River is much abandoned, burned out, boarded up. Dickerson has some newer condos and homes but the surrounding area is awful. Dougw is correct about the area he mentioned. I took a ride down there a couple of weeks ago and saw for myself. It's the neighborhood where I grew up. Very sad.

WHAT YOU DRIVE DRIVES AMERICA!
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Frumoasa
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Username: Frumoasa

Post Number: 94
Registered: 03-2007
Posted on Tuesday, December 18, 2007 - 12:53 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I found it to be subjective as well. If you look around the north east of Hamtramck area of the map, most of it is classified as mixed, except for one street, which appears to be Caely or something, which is well maintained. I find it interesting that the one street seems to be so different from the rest when in actuality, that whole corner at Carpenter and Conant south of Cleveland MS is quite nice. My neighborhood (E. of JC just north of Carpenter) is in significantly better condition than the area directly west of us...and one drive through would prove that without a doubt, but we are classified the same. This map is interesting, but they would need a lot more foot coverage and reporters to make the map as nuanced and diverse as we know the city truly is.
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Lefty2
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Username: Lefty2

Post Number: 779
Registered: 07-2007
Posted on Tuesday, December 18, 2007 - 1:17 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

a quick google map search will show which areas are vacant swaths.
With City of Detroit property taxes being the highest in the country (or second), it's no wonder people just leave them.
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1953
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Username: 1953

Post Number: 1501
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Posted on Tuesday, December 18, 2007 - 1:28 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Frumoasa...you are right about the distinction between your neighborhood and west of Campau/North of Carpenter.
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Paulmcall
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Username: Paulmcall

Post Number: 515
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Posted on Tuesday, December 18, 2007 - 1:45 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Unfortunately, things are trending down and outer.
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Gsgeorge
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Username: Gsgeorge

Post Number: 472
Registered: 08-2006
Posted on Tuesday, December 18, 2007 - 1:49 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Strange that Delray is called "mixed". Looks like abandonment and prairie lands to me.
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Hudkina
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Username: Hudkina

Post Number: 82
Registered: 12-2004
Posted on Tuesday, December 18, 2007 - 2:55 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Delray isn't abandoned everywhere. Only in certain spots. Some streets you'll find a prairie, while on others you'll find rows of housing in varying levels of upkeep. I guess that's why he called it "mixed". I think he only meant prairie as areas where entire blocks are completely wiped out, with streets that haven't been touched in years.
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Frumoasa
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Username: Frumoasa

Post Number: 97
Registered: 03-2007
Posted on Tuesday, December 18, 2007 - 4:58 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I agree with the much abandonment classification for the area behind and north of Jayne field. That place makes very little sense to me. It is in quite close proximity to the great shops on Conant and the housing stock is the same as the rest of the area, but that little wedge of land is way more "bombed out" than any of the surrounding areas (Especially Sunset St.), including the very very poor Yemeni area close to where Mt. Elliot turns into Conant across from the Poletown plant which is equidistant to the shopping district. If only that map was like Wikipedia and we could edit it with our knowledge of our unique areas.
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Waz
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Username: Waz

Post Number: 237
Registered: 11-2006
Posted on Tuesday, December 18, 2007 - 7:14 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Makes me wonder how much driving he actually did. I always considered the McDougall/St. Aubin area north of Gratiot and east of Eastern Market, most of the way up to I-94 to be "much abandoned" if not "prairie".

The only spot on the map I could find classified as "prairie" is the old Herman Gardens. Is that true, or ar my old eyes having a harder time distinguishing the colors?
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Bearinabox
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Username: Bearinabox

Post Number: 457
Registered: 04-2006
Posted on Tuesday, December 18, 2007 - 8:05 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

^There's a swath of prairie north of the Fisher and west of Rosa Parks, and another east of Mt. Elliott north of where it splits from Conant.
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Pinewood73
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Username: Pinewood73

Post Number: 62
Registered: 07-2006
Posted on Tuesday, December 18, 2007 - 10:06 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I agree there should be more prairies.
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Detroithabitater
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Username: Detroithabitater

Post Number: 93
Registered: 10-2006
Posted on Tuesday, December 18, 2007 - 10:24 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

this one is easier to read because you can zoom in

http://www.freep.com/assets/st atic/pdf/2007/12/driving-detro it.pdf

x3 on the prairies. Although I have to cut them some slack, its' hard to drive-by and give a good assessment for every square inch of the city.
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Greatlakes
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Username: Greatlakes

Post Number: 104
Registered: 07-2007
Posted on Thursday, December 20, 2007 - 8:51 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Some interesting stories, especially in the captions of the various photos:

http://media.freep.com/driving detroit/stories.html
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Trainman
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Username: Trainman

Post Number: 596
Registered: 04-2006
Posted on Thursday, December 20, 2007 - 1:11 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Our mass transit system is in the fixer upper condition. It's time for Wal-Mart in Livonia to pay. So, let's all stop shopping there until Wal-Mart gets the SMART buses back.

The top Wal-Mart officials refused to help us out at city hall and they destroyed a federally funded bus shelter which not only damaged SMART but also DDOT.
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Kahnman
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Username: Kahnman

Post Number: 37
Registered: 02-2006
Posted on Thursday, December 20, 2007 - 8:15 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I think I got Trainman figured out. It is actually HAL 9000 reprogrammed by SMART officials.

Anywho, I was checking out some of those "driving Detroit" photos and one of them is the "clown park" in Brightmoor.

Could someone give me the street location of it?

Thanks

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