Discuss Detroit » Archives - January 2008 » Neighborhoods you have never been to... « Previous Next »
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Umbound
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Username: Umbound

Post Number: 154
Registered: 02-2008
Posted on Thursday, May 22, 2008 - 5:02 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I was just wondering, i wonder if there is anybody here (currently or not living in the city) that has never been to some nighborhoods. I hear its common in NYC for people that grow up in Manhattan with out ever steppin a foot on some boroughs. just an interesting idea i thought of.
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Detroitrise
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Username: Detroitrise

Post Number: 2189
Registered: 09-2007
Posted on Thursday, May 22, 2008 - 5:11 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Well compared to New York (or even Chicago and Los Angeles), Detrot is a very tiny city areawise.

So you will be hard pressed to find a person that hasn't at least *driven* through a neighborhood.
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Detroitnerd
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Username: Detroitnerd

Post Number: 2345
Registered: 07-2004
Posted on Thursday, May 22, 2008 - 5:16 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I've never been to the old "Copper Canyon" on the west side.
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Tetsua
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Username: Tetsua

Post Number: 1617
Registered: 01-2004
Posted on Thursday, May 22, 2008 - 5:27 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I think the Metro area of Detroit instead of just the city itself might make a better discussion. Over the years I've met a few people who were raised in the burbs, and said they learned to avoid the city at all cost, for as long as they could remember. A buddy of mine from college had to come get some software from me, and was suprised to see my neighborhood (Rosedale Park) wasn't on fire with crackheads trying to slit his throat.

I've also known people who live in the city, who've barely been outside except to go to Fairlane mall or something.

On a side note most NYers I know mostly just stay in their own neighborhood, not even exploring other parts of the bourough they live in. They do work / shop in Manhattan, but that's IT.

All in all I've come to find I can't stand the any of the above, they come off quite ignorant to me.
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Iheartthed
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Username: Iheartthed

Post Number: 3142
Registered: 04-2006
Posted on Thursday, May 22, 2008 - 5:44 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

quote:

Well compared to New York (or even Chicago and Los Angeles), Detrot is a very tiny city areawise.

So you will be hard pressed to find a person that hasn't at least *driven* through a neighborhood.



Area wise, NYC and Chicago aren't that much larger than Detroit. Nearly a fourth of the land area of NYC is Staten Island, which is the least populated borough of the city.

The land area of Manhattan is a fraction of Detroit's (area wise Manhattan is about the same size as Livonia) but nearly twice the population.
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Jjaba
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Username: Jjaba

Post Number: 6523
Registered: 11-2003
Posted on Thursday, May 22, 2008 - 6:12 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

jjaba was born and raised in Detroit and to this day, he's hardly been on the Eastside. Growing up, we did go to Belle Isle, but that's about it.
Dad worked on E. Grand Blvd. and duBois so we visited there.

But really, why go there? There's nothing there back then and even less now.

jjaba, Proudly Westside.
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Ray1936
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Username: Ray1936

Post Number: 3155
Registered: 01-2005
Posted on Thursday, May 22, 2008 - 6:19 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

"But really, why go there? There's nothing there back then and even less now. "

Well, you could wander back for the fish fly invasion about this time of year.

I'm sure I've been in every Detroit neighborhood in my time due to my DPD days. Haven't been down every street, of course, but few have.

Like Jjaba, I spent all my 'voluntary' time on the west side. But my dear wife was an east sider, with her family line going back to the mid 1800s as farmers in Erin Township (now the City of Roseville).

How we met is something I never did figure out.
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Detroitrise
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Username: Detroitrise

Post Number: 2190
Registered: 09-2007
Posted on Thursday, May 22, 2008 - 6:27 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Iheartthed, the point was, all of NYC takes up 5 counties (the size of 4 Detroits), where as Detroit only takes up 1/4 of a county at best.

Also, Chicago areawise is the size of 2 Detroits.

If you were to factor in the density and congestion, then that would make them seem even bigger.

It's so easy to get around Detroit because there's hardly any heavy congestion around here.

Where as it could take hours just to get from Brooklyn to lower Manhattan,

(Message edited by DetroitRise on May 22, 2008)
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Crawford
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Username: Crawford

Post Number: 235
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Posted on Thursday, May 22, 2008 - 6:34 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Detroitrise, have you ever been to NYC?

NYC isn't 4 times Detroit's size; it's slightly more than 2 times Detroit's size.

As for "hours" to get from Brooklyn to Lower Manhattan, WTF? Brooklyn is one subway stop and directly across the narrow East River from Lower Manhattan. Unless you're walking very slowly from the furthest reaches of the borough, there is no neighborhood in Brooklyn that is "hours" from Lower Manhattan.
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Detroitrise
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Username: Detroitrise

Post Number: 2191
Registered: 09-2007
Posted on Thursday, May 22, 2008 - 6:45 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Crawford, I meant to say Staten Island and the far NE corner of Brooklyn.

Also, including the water, New York is 468 sq. mi. while Detroit is only 143 sq. mi.
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Detroitplanner
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Username: Detroitplanner

Post Number: 1636
Registered: 04-2006
Posted on Thursday, May 22, 2008 - 8:15 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Its nearly impossible to simply compare cities. Each are different in terms of density, population, and size. People also have different definitions of a City. For example, when I think of Detroit, it includes the suburbs; though I know each suburb is a separate political unit. I look at a City as a giant social and economic network. Without the suburbs the current City of Detroit (political unit of) would be dead. There would be few places to buy food, few places to work, and no money coming in from baseball games, football games, hockey games, and casinos as your average person who lives within the corporate limits of the City cannot afford such things.

I consider Chicago to be about 2-3 times as big as Detroit, but New York to only be about twice as large. Having driven around and been on mass transit in both places it is much harder to get around Chicago than it is to get around New York. I know in terms of population of the Central City, New York is much larger than Chicago, but somehow it feels smaller to me. Chicago is surrounded by the kind of sprawl that makes some of out worst outer ring suburbs look like New York City.
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Focusonthed
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Username: Focusonthed

Post Number: 1841
Registered: 02-2006
Posted on Thursday, May 22, 2008 - 9:44 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

The outer reaches of the city of Chicago resemble Detroit: fairly dense bungalows on 25x125 lots. A pocket of the far NW side is probably the least dense. The SW side as a whole is the least dense. The least-dense neighborhood in Chicago still approaches the density of Detroit as a whole, as even the least dense neighborhoods have apartment blocks on the main streets and corners.
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Jgavrile
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Username: Jgavrile

Post Number: 98
Registered: 09-2005
Posted on Thursday, May 22, 2008 - 9:45 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

What do you call someone who grew up along Woodward?? Not an Eastsider, not a Westsider.
I too, like Jjaba spent most of my time either up and down the Woodward corridor or on the West Side. My Grandmother and other relatives all lived on the West side ,so I know it like the back of my hand. However the Eastside is still a mystery to me? I know just about all of the downtown area and a little out E. Jefferson. but when I get past Dequinder, I might as well be from another town.?
As to Suburbanites knowing the town.
What I have learned over the years is that most of them never spent much time ,if any here in the city. Most of them ,are afraid to even drive in Detroit? But give them some kind of sports , and they will run their little sorry asses down here in their car, park in the designated parking area for that particuliar sport , and then jump back in their cars and head for home as soon as the game is over.
I think, us who have grown up within the city limits or the inner city, are a different breed of people than the ones who grew up in the Burbs.
We have so much more street savvy and knowledge of what to do and what not to do. I don't think most of them even know how to cross a busy street ,without getting run over?
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Mackinaw
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Username: Mackinaw

Post Number: 4815
Registered: 02-2005
Posted on Thursday, May 22, 2008 - 10:04 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I have never seen Detroit in its complete state. The Detroit that completely utilized all of its land, the Detroit that contained nearly 2 million people. I missed the built-out Detroit of 1940-1950 by 40 years, and that's kind of sad...

I've never been through many of the 8-mile adjacent neighborhoods (i.e. the first mile in from 8-mile) in the northwest corner of the City and in the north-central areas (i.e. Van Dyke to Woodward). I've never really explored Delray or a few areas in the central-west portion of the City i.e. N/W of the Livernois rail yard and around St. Francis Assisi Parish.
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Dtowncitylover
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Username: Dtowncitylover

Post Number: 127
Registered: 02-2008
Posted on Thursday, May 22, 2008 - 10:31 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I know a friend of mine who was surprised I knew where Ecorse was and what "Downriver" meant. I told another friend of mine about the new Sonic is Southgate and she didn't know where that was. It's kinda sad, people should get to know the city and metro area. If Lincoln Park, Southgate, Ecorse, etc are Downriver...then what is RO, B-ham, Warren, Berkely, Rochester, Southfield, Troy called?
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Downriviera
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Username: Downriviera

Post Number: 492
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Posted on Thursday, May 22, 2008 - 10:38 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Jjaba,

We should call the eastside, The Forbidden Zone, like in Planet Of The Apes.
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Nainrouge
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Username: Nainrouge

Post Number: 1654
Registered: 05-2006
Posted on Thursday, May 22, 2008 - 10:48 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Most suburbanites know nothing about Detroit. Most Detroiters seem to be surprised when they find out that suburbanites (if they know anything) only know how to find Comerica Park and the casinos. I was born in Livonia and almost NEVER went to Detroit. The first time that I can remember was as a teenager for an event at Wayne State.
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Olddetroiter
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Username: Olddetroiter

Post Number: 291
Registered: 04-2008
Posted on Thursday, May 22, 2008 - 10:51 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Jjaba was never one the east side because he could never get past the checkpoints we set up on Woodward to keep him out.
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Mackinaw
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Username: Mackinaw

Post Number: 4816
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Posted on Thursday, May 22, 2008 - 11:09 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Sad but true and too common, Nainrouge.

As a younger child, before I expressed more interest in doing stuff downtown etc., I was taken to Detroit only occasionally for events, excursions, etc [although I did often visit my grandparents who lived near U-D, and although my parents did work in Midtown], but at least it was better than never going. If I was sheltered and lived in a far-flung location with no familial ties to the City, I probably would have turned out much different (i.e. more ignorant).

Interesting, Dtowncitylover. Downriver suburbs do seem awfully cut off from other parts of metro Detroit. Most sprawl has gone north and west, which reflects what places people are interested in. Maybe that's why I like some of those downriver communities.
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Eastside61
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Username: Eastside61

Post Number: 1470
Registered: 07-2006
Posted on Thursday, May 22, 2008 - 11:10 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Jjaba's Clown Road Show lost its compass many many years ago and his limited experiences keep him focused on Northlawn and Sussex ... what a sad existence even as a westsider...... The dynamic Eastside Outreach program has offered him many opportunities to enhance his experiences and self-concept
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Umbound
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Username: Umbound

Post Number: 155
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Posted on Thursday, May 22, 2008 - 11:10 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Well i am not comparing cities, i was using an example but i have never ever been to a lot of Detroit's neighborhoods, just know of like the main street names. but i am a suburbanite and i am not scared to go into the city at all. My family has 4 liquor stores in the city, so i really am not scared to go.
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Sean_of_detroit
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Username: Sean_of_detroit

Post Number: 427
Registered: 03-2008
Posted on Thursday, May 22, 2008 - 11:43 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Same song right here about both the Suburbs and the West Side. Today I've been all around the city. Many are learning the CBD and surrounding areas, but don't seem to be learning the other areas. I have been about everywhere on the West Side but nowhere on the East Side. Going over there confuses me every time. The way they drive over there is SO different too (especially how often they don't use their signal to change lanes). Not sure if you all will know what I'm talking about when I say that.

Many city folk don't seem to know the suburbs either, other than maybe Hamtramck or Highland Park. They always seem to get lost in a expansive suburban neighborhood trying to cut through, thinking it's a grid and they'll end up on the other side. They'll drive around for hours trying to find the single exit that they entered (Seriously, how many of you have done this?). Suburbanites on the other hand usually get confused with one way streets. How many suburbanites on here have ended up on a one way going against traffic somehow?

As someone who spent my youth in the inner suburbs, I have had the pleasure of being the victim of both mistakes. As I was once new to the city, and am not familiar with the suburban landscapes of the exurbs.

Now the North burbs is the worst of all for me. Confusing layouts, a mix of East and West drivers, expansive roads to nowhere (col-de-sacs that should go through), ticket happy bored cops, and horrible traffic. Pure Hell on Earth up there to a local driver in my opinion.
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Eriedearie
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Username: Eriedearie

Post Number: 1684
Registered: 08-2007
Posted on Thursday, May 22, 2008 - 11:50 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I can't think of anywhere in Detroit I have not been. I used to work at an appliance warehouse, many moons ago. Sometimes when a couple of us girls were done with our work, some of the afternoon delivery truck drivers would ask us if we wanted to ride along with them and collect the CODs from our customers. We'd do it for the thrill of riding in a big truck! So I believe I've been to every neighborhood there is.
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Mackinaw
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Username: Mackinaw

Post Number: 4817
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Posted on Friday, May 23, 2008 - 12:04 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

East side drivers drive differently? Now that's a new one, Sean!

Your post points out the idiocy (and purpose) of modern suburbia-- confusing and inefficient for those who don't know exactly where to go, such that only people with a reason for going to this single-use pod or the other single-use pod can get to said pod easily. Collector roads with offshoots leading to dead-ends where people live...that's the basic model, and it's pretty mindless.

I can give you a huge list of metro Detroit places I've never been to, and a few which I have no idea as to their location (Clawson-- by Madison Heights? Waterford-- near Pontiac? Commerce Township? Brownstown Township? Shelby Twp? Where's Farmington in relation to F. Hills? Just how big is West Bloomfield Twp? Where does Livonia begin and end?) All of Oakland County is a maze to me. Macomb is easy to get around because of all the straight roads, but it's hard to know what municipality/twp. you're in at any given time due to the lack of differentiation.
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Crawford
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Post Number: 236
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Posted on Friday, May 23, 2008 - 1:21 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Detroitrise, NYC is barely over 300 square miles. 304.8 square miles, to be exact.

Chicago has about 230 square miles.

If you remove Staten Island, NYC and Chicago are basically the exact same size.

Detroit has about 140 square miles.
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Gaz
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Post Number: 246
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Posted on Friday, May 23, 2008 - 2:27 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I've never been on the East Side, except for Belle Isle (I think that's kind of on the East Side.)

I lived in Westchester County, just north of NYC. Land-wise, it's not so big, but the city is built UP, esp. Manhattan. Staten Island is kind of like a stepchild to the rest of New York City. Manhattan, the Bronx, Queens and even Brooklyn kind of seem to forget about it.
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Rid0617
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Username: Rid0617

Post Number: 148
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Posted on Friday, May 23, 2008 - 3:07 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I grew up on East 8 mile road and 11219 East Jefferson. My father worked at 9400 Mack. That was the only neighborhoods I was aware of
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Kville
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Username: Kville

Post Number: 109
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Posted on Friday, May 23, 2008 - 5:17 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Size in area really has little to do with any of this - it's population density that tends to cause people to stay within neighborhoods. History also has a lot to do with it. There are still many ethnic enclaves all around New York, which also causes people to hang out in their own neighborhood. When I lived in New York and with most of the people of Manhattan not owning a car, you naturally tend to stay in your neighborhood for socializing, shopping, etc. Detroit used to be similar until our cars moved people farther and farther from the central city. New York never had that same mindset. Driving is too expensive and burdensome, so people walk or use mass transit. Either way is faster than a car. People DO move out of their neighborhoods, but they're not as likely to go across town like we do.

So, it's much less likely for a Detroiter to have never seen parts of the city because it's so convenient to just drive everywhere without the terrific traffic issues like New York or Chicago.
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Hpgrmln
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Username: Hpgrmln

Post Number: 474
Registered: 06-2007
Posted on Friday, May 23, 2008 - 7:36 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

"If Lincoln Park, Southgate, Ecorse, etc are Downriver...then what is RO, B-ham, Warren, Berkely, Rochester, Southfield, Troy called?"

Personally, when talking to citizens of Downriver
cities, I call that area "upstream" (ha ha)

I deal with a lot of people who aren't familiar with the vast suburban area. When I first bought my abode in Hazel Park and was buying new supplies at Home Depot, the cashier that was engaging in small talk with me though Hazel Park was a neighbor of Dearborn. And a few days ago, I was talking to someone from Dearborn, and when I mentioned that I live north of Detroit (they didn't know where my miniscule city of residence was either), they thought I was out by St. Clair Shores.
For as long as I have been driving, I have made a point to drive all over the area and see the different cities. It just makes sense to me to be familiar with the different places, especially since I'll eventually encounter people living there and I'd prefer to be somewhat knowledgeable.

"I can give you a huge list of metro Detroit places I've never been to, and a few which I have no idea as to their location (Clawson-- by Madison Heights? Waterford-- near Pontiac? Commerce Township? Brownstown Township? Shelby Twp? Where's Farmington in relation to F. Hills?"

Clawson borders Royal Oak and Troy. Its sort of wedged between the 2.
If you know where Walled Lake is, you know where Commerce is.
Do you know where the Ford Woodhaven plant is off 75? Go a mile west and youre in brownstown. Taylor is the next municipality north.
Shelby Twp-Surrounds Utica.

Farmington is at the south end of Farmington Hills, between 9 and 10 mile. Grand River Ave runs through it. And yes, Waterford is next to Pontiac.
Hope I was able to help.
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Mackinaw
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Post Number: 4818
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Posted on Friday, May 23, 2008 - 8:03 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Walled Lake also draws a blank...I know it's Oakland County, but I don't know if its north or south.

Anyway, good points Kville. A New Yorker might have no reason (other than their own interest or the fact that a friend might live somewhere) to go a certain neighborhood because everything they need is in a small area or corridor, thanks to density. Their life could be built around one or two subway routes, for example. In Detroit, not only is it a struggle to do all your business in the City itself, but many people simply need to go to certain suburbs, often on a frequent basis, to get things or see people or work.

And yeah, you have to judge the city on more than size. Density matters, and the distance between key points. Detroit is kind of vast, though, especially east to west across its northern sections. Mack/Moross to Telegraph/8 would be a annoying distance to drive everyday.
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Pam
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Username: Pam

Post Number: 4083
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Posted on Friday, May 23, 2008 - 8:49 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

quote:

Walled Lake also draws a blank...I know it's Oakland County, but I don't know if its north or south.



You could check out a map or mapquest sometime. Just a thought.
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Paulmcall
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Post Number: 1051
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Posted on Friday, May 23, 2008 - 11:38 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

There was never a reason to go to the east side when we were younger. We had everything we needed at Grand River-Greenfield. Unless you had relatives or friends (who had moved) the east side was like the other side of the moon.
Probably closest came when we went to the zoo but that was still west of Woodward in Royal Oak.
Everything else we got downtown or at Northland.
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Mackcreative
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Post Number: 233
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Posted on Friday, May 23, 2008 - 11:46 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

After taking my daughter to school in Indian Village this morning the spirit moved me to walk back home to Woodbridge, as it is an absolutely lovely morning. I had read this thread and it seemed silly to me, but as I was walking it occurred to me that I had never been in that area, along Mack East of Woodward, outside of a car.
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Neilr
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Posted on Friday, May 23, 2008 - 1:37 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Mackcreative, the next time you make that walk, let me suggest that you make a small detour and take an up-close look at Field Avenue (one block east of East Grand Blvd.) between Mack and Kercheval (especially the block between Charlevoix and Vernor).
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Grumpyoldlady
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Posted on Friday, May 23, 2008 - 2:28 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I lived in Detroit for 40 years, and in the area for even more. I can count on one hand the number of times I was anywhere south of 8-mile and west of Woodward. I'd say I've never been in 99% of the west side, but have been all over the east side. I had no reason to be on the west side...all my friends were east siders, or east side suburbanites. I'd imagine there are a lot of folks who haven't much knowledge of the east side, if they are west siders.
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Mrsjdaniels
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Post Number: 921
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Posted on Friday, May 23, 2008 - 2:43 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

that is a big problem in Detroit - the EASTSIDE v. WESTSIDE.

They do everything on their side of town. So much so that I have relatives who'd never been to my house in Oak Park even though we'd live their for 4 years and had several parties that they were invited too
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Bearinabox
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Posted on Friday, May 23, 2008 - 4:14 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I'm least familiar with the southwest side/downriver area, south of Michigan and west of the Boulevard out to wherever you think the metro area ends. There are parts of that area I've been to--Melvindale, for example, and Delray--and I think I could find my way around most anywhere without too much trouble, but on the whole I've spent much less time there than the rest of the metro. I'm also pretty unfamiliar with the exurbs--my known universe ends around 26 Mile to the north and Haggerty to the west. I grew up just off Woodward, so the eastside/westside thing is pretty irrelevant to me.
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Downriviera
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Post Number: 498
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Posted on Friday, May 23, 2008 - 4:54 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

With apologies to the man in black:

I've been everywhere, man
Crossed the Cadillac Square, man
I've breathed the incinerator air, man
Of travel I've had my share, man
I've been everywhere

I've been to:
Lincoln Park, Allen Park, Grosse Pointe Park
Brightmore, St Clair Shore, Taylor
Cass Corridor, Roseville, Northville,
Ferndale, Melvindale, Woodbridge,
Pleasant Ridge, Sterling Heights,
Dearborn Heights, Corktown,
Downtown, Garden City, Detroit city, what a pity,
I've been everywhere.
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Jgavrile
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Username: Jgavrile

Post Number: 102
Registered: 09-2005
Posted on Friday, May 23, 2008 - 5:44 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

A lot of the places we are discussing used to be satellites to Detroit. They were little farm towns outside of the sphere of Detroit proper. back in the 50's, Detroit basically ended North at 8 mile. probably West at Telegraph, South at Fort St. and east at Gratiot. anything past that was out in the sticks, as my Father use to tell me. As industry and subdivisions got built further out, the city blended into what is now,the tri-county area.If you never had relatives or a job, or some particular store you needed to go to outside of your own little area, then you never got acquainted with it.
I grew up in Highland Park, met a gal at Edgewater Park one day, that lived in Southfield, in the ten mile Beech area. Well if you didn't have a car. there was no way to get there. Luckly, I had a car and I could go out that far to visit or go on a date with her. One night , my car wouldn't start,and I had to call my Dad to come and get me. Man I never heard the end of it. First of all he had no idea ,where the hell I was at and how to get there. Took a lot of explaining as to where to go. Then when he finally picked me up, he kept telling me that I must have found some hillbilly gal that lived out in the swamps,a s he called it. Couldn't understand how people lived way out there, without city water, sewers,unpaved roads, city transportation? That was a long ride back then.
Now adays we take that distance for granted.

Speaking of subdivisions, some of these suburban subdivisions are laid out by dyslexic people I think. I feel sorry for the delivery people. Damm ,you can get lost for a half hour in some of these subs. The roads have no sense to them, they wind around and around and some dead end, some end up in a court. The mailman in these subs must have a great memory?? I like to go to garage sales ,once in a while and I will see a sign at the main road with an arrow pointing toward the street for the subdivison,with a street name on it. Well I turn in and then keep driving ,looking for another sign showing the street?? Sometimes I never find the street?? I don't know how some of these people find there house ,once they leave it.?
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Pam
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Username: Pam

Post Number: 4094
Registered: 11-2005
Posted on Friday, May 23, 2008 - 6:19 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

quote:

With apologies to the man in black



That was good. (Hank Snow did the original though.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v =tIwzGtlHOwo
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Retroit
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Username: Retroit

Post Number: 108
Registered: 04-2008
Posted on Friday, May 23, 2008 - 9:35 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Umbound, the neighborhoods you have not been in are not much different than the neighborhoods you have. The McDonald's, Burger Kings, Wall Marts, etc. look the same wherever you go. One depressed area of Detroit looks like every other depressed area. Sure, there are some "unique" neighborhoods, but they make up such a small percentage of the city. I've been to cities all across the country, and except for a few notable areas, I can't tell one city from another.

Sad commentary on the current state of cities, perhaps, but when you're only used to your own area, you don't realize that there are many more practically identical to it.
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Tayshaun22
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Username: Tayshaun22

Post Number: 415
Registered: 02-2005
Posted on Friday, May 23, 2008 - 9:57 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

If anyone wants to come Downriver, I'll be the guide.

Being a maps/roads freak since I was 5, I've been everywhere.
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Jjaba
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Username: Jjaba

Post Number: 6526
Registered: 11-2003
Posted on Friday, May 23, 2008 - 11:31 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Going to the Eastside of Detroit?
Check the tires, have a good AAA map, plan your trip, fill up with gas, check the oil, carry water and tire chains, and pack a lunch.
Bon voyage.

jjaba.
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Jjaba
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Username: Jjaba

Post Number: 6527
Registered: 11-2003
Posted on Saturday, May 24, 2008 - 1:29 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

With credit to Hank Snow:

I've been everywhere man.
I've been everywhere man.
Crossed the deserts bare, man.
I've breathed the mountain air, man.
Of travel I've had my share, man.
I've been everywhere.

I've been to:
Reno, Chicago, Fargo, Minnesota,
Buffalo, Toronto, Winslow, Sarasota,
Wichita, Tulsa, Ottawa, Oklahoma,
Tampa, Panama, Mattawa, La Poloma,
Bangor, Baltimore, Salvador, Amarillo,
Tocapillo, Baranquilla, and Perdilia.

I've been everywhere, man. I've been everywhere.

jjaba, on the Westside.
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Detroitrise
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Username: Detroitrise

Post Number: 2201
Registered: 09-2007
Posted on Saturday, May 24, 2008 - 2:52 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Yeah, you westsiders just aren't accustomed to driving the surface streets, that's all. :-)

Compare Grand River and Gratiot (the traffic volume) during rush hour and notice the difference.

"Going over there confuses me every time. The way they drive over there is SO different too (especially how often they don't use their signal to change lanes). Not sure if you all will know what I'm talking about when I say that."

That's because eastsiders know how to drive and to get where they're going. :-)

"What I have learned over the years is that most of them never spent much time ,if any here in the city. Most of them ,are afraid to even drive in Detroit? But give them some kind of sports , and they will run their little sorry asses down here in their car, park in the designated parking area for that particuliar sport , and then jump back in their cars and head for home as soon as the game is over."

Yes, don't you hate that too? They crowd Mack Ave in the middle of rush hour, just to get on one sorry expressway (out of all the other choices and surface streets, that's your typical westsider) just to get back to Oakland County.
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Reddog289
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Username: Reddog289

Post Number: 309
Registered: 08-2007
Posted on Saturday, May 24, 2008 - 4:14 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

went down Gratiot from downtown to 8mile for the 1st time last year, saw where faygo&better maid chips are made. i really grew up for the most part in GardenCity{westside} have cousins in Warren{eastside}, i could go there and think i was going to Ohio or upnorth, was allways a good time. 696 was billed as the great connector, yet i still stay here on the westside, yet i,ve been to the east . it,s not so bad, fact to prove that i eat more jet,s than little ceasers.
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Jcole
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Username: Jcole

Post Number: 1102
Registered: 04-2005
Posted on Saturday, May 24, 2008 - 9:31 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I lived at 7 and Kelly growing up, and the only time I can remember going past Woodward was to go to Edgewater with school, and Camp Dearborn with my god-mother, except when we went downtown. Then we went to Lafayette Coney Island.
I was never to Eastern Mkt until I was in my 40's and lived 40 miles away.
My dad was a Detroit cop and didn't like to travel around the city much, for some reason.:-)I think he saw enough during his shift.
But he was a HUGE Michigan supporter. In the 19 years that I had him, we took only one vacation outside of the state, and that was Niagara Falls.
It was always 'a Michigan thang'
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Jjaba
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Username: Jjaba

Post Number: 6530
Registered: 11-2003
Posted on Saturday, May 24, 2008 - 12:44 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Jcole, great HOF post. Some Detroiters have been going "up north to the cabin" for many generations. Same vacation, same friends, same lake. There is a great pride in living in such a beautiful state.

In jjaba's case, his parents preferred the American road trip. Dad would get some money from the boss to attend a Printing Convention and off we'd go in the car. We stayed in the bg hotels, ate great food, and saw all the sights.
By graduation from HS, jjaba had been in 43 states. His first airplane ride was after graduation from college, to Europe in a Vickers Viscount on BOAC, via Gander, and landing in Preswick, Scotland.

jjaba, recently went back to Mackinac Island.
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Jcole
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Username: Jcole

Post Number: 1109
Registered: 04-2005
Posted on Saturday, May 24, 2008 - 1:12 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

We travelled the Lower extensively, but only went to the UP on one occasion that I can remember. Dad wanted to watch ships go thru the Soo Locks. Not very exciting, but on the same trip we went to Mackinaw Island, saw Superior, and crossed the Bridge, then travelled downstate on the Lake Michigan side. It was great. I was 11.
My brother lived in Rogers City, Cadillac, Ada and Middleville, so just travelling to see him gave us a state circle trip over the years.
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Blueidone
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Username: Blueidone

Post Number: 235
Registered: 03-2007
Posted on Saturday, May 24, 2008 - 2:10 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I have not been to many of the neighborhoods in Detroit proper. I have driven through the east side via Gratiot when I worked downtown. Of course, I have travelled Jefferson many times, especially at the Holiday season, and to go to Belle Isle.

I know the city and it surroundings to travel through from one area to another, and I am aware of where the Detroit neighborhoods are but haven't driven through most of them. I really enjoy the pictures that you folks post on here. Some day when I have more time, I will go to each of them just to say I have done it.

As to the suburbs...I have been to most, and lived in many. I was born when my family lived in Detroit, but at age 2 moved to Lathrup Village, then Pleasant Ridge, then Berkley, then Huntington Woods, then back to Berkley, then Washington Twp. Married a gent from Clinton Twp, then moved to Warren and to Fraser. After marrying 2nd hubby, moved to Roseville and now back to Warren again. I have family all over the burbs.

It's tough to get me lost anywhere as long as I can find a major street, even around the state. I too am a map freak. I love to study them. And my hubby loves to drive, so we combine our talents and drive around the state.

It is only since finding DetroitYes! that I have become anxious to learn more about the City itself. So our new adventures will be driving through places like Boston-Edison, Indian Village, and all the other neighborhoods you have taught me about.
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Macknwarren
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Username: Macknwarren

Post Number: 38
Registered: 10-2007
Posted on Saturday, May 24, 2008 - 6:55 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I'll bet most Detroiters have not been in most Detroit neighborhoods,whether in 2008 or 1978 or 1958.
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Sean_of_detroit
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Username: Sean_of_detroit

Post Number: 467
Registered: 03-2008
Posted on Saturday, May 24, 2008 - 8:02 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

"That's because east siders know how to drive and to get where they're going."

It's true too. They get downright irate when someone in front of them doesn't seem to know exactly where they are going. I just don't understand that. If you're not from there, they hate you.

I see someone mentioned Camp Dearborn. We used to go there every Summer when I was younger. Do you know exactly where it is located, and what kind of state it is in? I miss the ferry boat rides, toboggan hill, and fishing ponds. Remember the water melon cooling water fall? That was the coolest thing when I was little. How about the green cabin tents? How about the nasty bathrooms, group showers, and yellow well pumps? Oh remember the dances every night at the Can-tine? LOL, how about the expansive playgrounds, and the morning "chicken fat" workouts every morning?

And those camp fires... I miss that place. Last time we went was years ago. It was so run down and crime ridden. They had some guy brake into the wpmen's group showers and hide a video camera last time I was there. He was caught though.

(Message edited by Sean_of_Detroit on May 24, 2008)
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Jcole
Member
Username: Jcole

Post Number: 1138
Registered: 04-2005
Posted on Saturday, May 24, 2008 - 8:09 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Sean, here is a link to Camp Dearborn.
It's in Milford, and looks as if it's been repaired. It's owned by the City of Dearborn, which I think it also used to be.
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Sumas
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Username: Sumas

Post Number: 142
Registered: 01-2008
Posted on Sunday, May 25, 2008 - 3:06 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I know pretty much the whole city. I love it all. I am an eastsider by birth. My husband is a westsider. Met in the middle at WSU. I do have a bias against the burbs. Sub divisions drive me insane. We did live briefly in Ferndale (ok), Northville Twsp (very nice)Macomb Twsp (blow it up)and Grosse Pointe Park (great). We are back in Detroit to stay. Warts and wrinkles, it is still a good city with good people. Diversity, culture, crime... we have it all. We live in EEV. Great neighbors and meet more every day. We have a problem with foreclosures and the criminal elements that prey on opportunities that are present. Given the bond in this neighborhood, we will prevail.

My husband and I have volunteered for many organizations city wide. The real Detroit is impressive. If only we could lose our mayor and council, we might realize our future potencial.
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Sean_of_detroit
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Username: Sean_of_detroit

Post Number: 481
Registered: 03-2008
Posted on Sunday, May 25, 2008 - 8:32 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I'm going to argue against the often accepted argument (stated above) that the suburban style layouts (col-de-sacs and such) are much safer. Where did this come from? Anyone have any facts and sources to back this up? It seems like it's an urban legend.

I spent much of my childhood in both the city and the suburbs, and some of the most safest areas have older style layouts. Old Rosedale and Coventry Gardens in Livonia come to mind. They are at least as safe (if not safer) than some of their newer subdivision counterparts nearby in Livonia. Those off Seven Mile West of Farmington had several entire families slain (the owners of the Italian Jewelers comes to mind) within the past decade. Also, the area has been host of several high speed chases, one of which took place in Canton, off Newburgh. In that case, there were several fatalities at a liquor store robbery.

Then you have regular speeding in the exurbs, which is a criminal act. Also, many exurbs and suburbs have drug problems that I have seen. How many suburban kids have nothing to do, and contribute to this problem?

Attempted burglaries are also common on some of those mc mansions in the exurbs too. I like to call them crimes of opportunity. We all know how often suburbanites in the exurbs lock their cars and front doors. We also can safely assume many probably don't bother with security alarms. I even remember one case in Novi in which kids simply went from car to car (on a friends street) and stole all the change and electronics (MP3 and GPS systems mainly). I think it was said that they made off with about $100 dollars in change and a few thousand in stolen goods.

You seldom here about this kind of stuff in the news though. Anyway, I don't believe that these streets deter crime enough to make them relevant. The effects they have on traffic far out weigh the benefits in my eyes. If someone has any way to validate this assumption, please do.
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Jrvass
Member
Username: Jrvass

Post Number: 707
Registered: 01-2007
Posted on Sunday, May 25, 2008 - 9:58 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

When I was a child we lived on a "fire lane". And our house was robbed.

Mom now lives on a cul-de-sac and they have robberies. I live on a dead-end street and the worst that has happened is a kid went through the dead-end and into the canal. A cop's 16-yr-old kid in the middle of the night.
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Hpgrmln
Member
Username: Hpgrmln

Post Number: 476
Registered: 06-2007
Posted on Sunday, May 25, 2008 - 10:25 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Boredom is definitely one contributing factor, but kids are kids. Doesnt matter if you live out in a rural area like Sanilac county or deep into the city. Kids experiment, and kids act dumb. Kids also want money and cannot make the same kind of living their parents do, so some see stealing as a way to get a lot of quick cash when they sell whats not theirs. It all comes down to the whole "young and dumb" thing. A majority of folks out there are guilty of it, but some to a higher degree than others.
The jeweler killed in Livonia had nothing to do with the neighborhood. It was premeditated and influenced by the victims obvious wealth.They sensed he had a lot of money and targeted him. It had to do with his job and not his neighborhood.

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