Ctrl-Alt-Del in a Big Way

The New York Times has an article on it's website today, about Flint, MI. Click here to read the entire article with photos.

Basically, the Genesee County treasurer is proposing to condense the size of the city, by demolishing abandoned and nearly-abandoned neighborhoods and letting the land sit vacant until things turn around.

I read the headline with shock and disbelief.

I read the article with shock and hope.

Residents who still inhabit some of the houses in these neighborhoods have posted signs announcing no tolerance for prostitution. "A lot of people remember the past, when we were a successful city that others looked to as a model, and they hope. But you can't base government policy on hope," said Flint's city council president, Jim Ananich. "We have to do something drastic, and we have to do it soon."

I think this man, who grew up in the city of Flint and has stayed and is now working in a Civil occupation, is taking a very brave and innovative step. Eliminating blight goes a long way in lifting the spirits of a community. Not to mention the money the city would save on services from trash pick-up, to sewer line maintenance, to the need for less police and fire. But he's talking ENTIRE NEIGHBORHOODS. Not just individual houses.

Now, don't misunderstand, I'm not that idealistic to think that IF this plan gains popularity, it will be a panacea for urban blight and declining cities. And I'm not a homeowner, so to be asked to leave the house you chose to buy, that you worked to make a home, that is something I couldn't even begin to fathom. But this is an opportunity that most cities never get. To start over, to hopefully learn from past mistakes, and to become a model of truly conscious planning. If this is done well, it could become the new model for post-industrial cities. A way cities with crumbling neighborhoods, decaying factories, and near-empty streets can find new purpose and pride.

A sort of Ctr-Alt-Del, if you will.

Having experience in Urban Planning, I can only begin to imagine the scope of this project. And selfishly, I've already started to apply these concepts to Detroit. (Not that the Detroit City Council would ever be that forward-thinking, but that's another story.) And my conclusion; It's just THAT crazy, it might actually work.

Oh Great Geekness!

I swear to Stan Lee, I just saw Sam Raimi driving a mini van Downtown. I was sooo close to his slowly moving vehicle that I could almost read from the sheet of paper he was holding in his hand. I can only assume that he was scouting locations for his next movie. Because he couldn't possibly have any other reason to be in Detroit. You know, having grown up in the Posh 'Burbs and all.

Edit: I now realize that I just saw TED Raimi. There is no difference.

Well Said, Little Troll

Say what you will about Mitch Albom, I know I have. It may be harsh to call him a "troll." He definitely is arrogant, but he sure can write. If you live in, or grew up in, Michigan, you HAVE TO read his article in Sports Illustrated. The Free Press ran it a few days ago.

It sincerely sums up most of what I feel about Detroit myself.

"We don't talk about whether Detroit will be fixed but when Detroit will be fixed."

"...To watch these lawmakers hand out, with barely a whisper, hundreds of billions to the financial firms that helped cause this current disaster, then make the Detroit Three beg like dogs and slap them with nothing? Honestly."

"Do you think if your main industry sails away to foreign countries, if the tax base of your city dries up, you won't have crumbling houses and men sleeping on church floors, too? Do you think if we become a country that makes nothing, that builds nothing, that only services and outsources, that we will hold our place on the economic totem pole? Detroit may be suffering the worst from this semi-Depression, but we sure didn't invent it. And we can't stop it from spreading. We can only do what we do. Survive."

When I first started my office job, I had to explain to people that I actually LIKED working downtown. I had to explain this to people who lived LESS THAN 15 MILES AWAY from the center of the city. I was constantly telling them that I never felt unsafe. And yes, there were dirty and abandoned neighborhoods, but you just had to be smart and aware, as with any major city.

Now, nobody bats an eyelash. In fact, they will tell me about the last time they went Downtown and had a great time. Sometimes I'm asked for the best places to park, or grab a bite to eat.

It seems that people are more likely to embrace The D. And as Mr. Albom wrote that piece for Sports Illustrated, it has a lot to do with the Sports Teams. But along with that is--all we have is each other. Nobody but a Michigander knows what it's like to live in Michigan, right now. I'll take it. And along with that, the promise of Hope from a new Presidency.

Co-misery and Hope. Yeah, I'm still working on that attitude adjustment.....

Back on the Bus

I am again a Rider of the Transit. I ride the bus to work! Oh, Naps! How I have missed you. Now instead of dealing with Crazy Midwest Winter Drivers, I'll be dealing with what to watch on my ipod.

And perfecting my "I'm not looking at you, please don't talk to me" look.

Oh, and on my first day, I saved a fellow rider from a dead car battery for his drive home. Look at me--nice to the environment, nice to people. Its a positive change from wanting to punch people in the face.

Oh NO They Di-int

The Detroit News is now Dead To Me. They officially endorse McCain.

"The Republican presidential candidate has the character, pragmatism and independence necessary to lead a united America...."

And yet-- "We readily acknowledge that McCain has run a distressingly ineffective presidential campaign."

Oh, and this-- "Palin is a promising governor and has excited the Republican base, but she is clearly not prepared for the role she was chosen to play and is costing McCain support...."

But, yup, still endorsing McCain. Wow, just WOW. Even The Salt Lake Tribune, a newspaper in the heart of the most conservative state in the nation, is endorsing Obama.

Checking My Ego At The Door

As I was walking to get lunch today, somebody asked me for directions. Some stranger, who was lost and wondering the streets of Detroit, saw me and thought, "hmm, this person looks like she knows what's what, perhaps I'll ask her for directions." The irony is, I stare at maps all day, so usually I do know where things are.

I just find it funny, because I never look like I know where I'm going. I hardly look like I know where I am. My face has this tendancy to form itself to match whatever is running through my brain. And I usually look confused. At least that's how it feels.

So, I am able to give the polite stranger directions and I now Feel Very Important and Smart.

Until I get caught in the revolving door to my building.

This is an image I took this spring at the Downtown Hoedown. Man, do I love this town!

Two Elderly Gentlemen Discussing Escalator Maintenance

Today got off to a rough start.

I think I totally fried my iPod. ARRGGGHHHHH! Then, pulling the trash can off the curb, I got dirty and had to change. When I got to the office, I realized that I look like I was dressed by a family of clowns--pink and brown plaid pants, kelly green undershirt, and turquoise snowflake turtleneck sweater. If Tim Gunn saw me he would weep at the atrocity.

But as I was walking through Cobo Hall, I overheard two gentlemen discussing the state of the escalator. "The skirt is nice and tight." "Yeah, but this truss is showing a little wear."

It made me smile.

Ignorance Is Not Bliss

I'm sitting here, at my desk at the office, and I'm hearing a street musician playing the sax. The music floats in and out. Sometimes only just audible over the hum of the CPU. I can't make out what they are playing, but that's not important.

There is all kinds of Life going on just outside my experience, and I'm a little overwhelmed. I have this feeling that something Big is about to happen--in the city, for the Brit, between my friends, for my family.

It is a feeling of giddy happiness, with a hint of foreboding thrown in for taste. Maybe it's all the caffeine I've had, or maybe it's heartburn. But I'm inexplicably hopeful that everything is going to work out for the best.

Maybe I'm just that naive.

End of Hiz Reign

I was reading the news today, and it occurred to me that "Manoogian" kinda reminds me of "Magoo." As in, Mr. Magoo. And I realized that's a pretty fair comparison of the farce this whole situation has become.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mr._Magoo

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manoogian_Mansion

Mayor Kilpatrick, good riddance.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kwame_Kilpatrick

Oh, That Kwame!

So, I've often thought that parts of my life would make a great sitcom. Like the bookstore I work at (seriously, one can only hear "Um, can I buy this book here?" or "Where are your restrooms?" so many times before they start to loose their sanity), with crazy customers and even crazier co-workers.

Last week, Detroit became the basis for the sitcom in my head. Or, I should say, our great mayor-Hizonner-made us proud once again. I stopped at my coffee place downtown on my way to work, and on the TVs in the cafe, they had the live coverage of Kwame's bond trial-whatever. He was facing jail time. When I got to the office, I heard over the cube walls, "Kwame's going to the Clink!" I laughed so hard.

Then I was very sad. This man is beyond belief. I just don't understand how our mayor can't see the damage he is doing to the great city of Detroit. Then I'm reminded of our great president. And the lesson I've learned today is, idiocy crosses party lines.