Detroit rises again … mostly!?

The crazy cool 40 story Guardian Building built in 1929 built with Native American, Mayan, and Art Deco influences.

Golly, have we enjoyed our stay in Detroit. In 2013, Detroit was a complete and utter mess … bankrupt with an 18% unemployment rate, 78,000 unoccupied/decrepit buildings, and no obvious prospects.

13 years later, things have changed. The unemployment rate is down to less than 5%, the downtown and surrounding neighborhoods are becoming vital again, and we really enjoyed the energy there. This city, which for a while in the 1950’s was the wealthiest in the world, appears to be rising again.

We loved the skyline mix of old and new buildings in the downtown core. So many wonderful buildings from the early 20th century that showed off the town’s wealth. The healthy retail on Woodward Avenue includes the flagship store of Shinola, the luxury Detroit brand started in 2011 — and if I wore fancy watches, it would definitely be one of theirs.

Dinah being madly competitive in a racing simulation at GM headquarters.

Almost next door was a GM showroom in their new World Headquarters where they were currently showcasing all their racing cars — if I were buying a car, it would definitely not be one of those.

It seems that there are really cool murals on the side of every building. It’s also clear that the music and cultural scene remains vibrant.

We visited Corktown, a neighborhood just outside of downtown that is blossoming with restaurants and bars that highlight Detroit’s great food scene.

The gleaming Michigan Central interior.

The showpiece is Michigan Central, the 1913 railway depot for Detroit, built in a Beaux Arts style by the same architect who designed Grand Central in NYC. Amtrak abandoned the building in 1988 and it sat unused and decaying for 30 years. In 2018, Ford bought the property and has invested 900 MILLION DOLLARS — bringing the property back to pristine status. More than just a gorgeous building, they are using the 90-acre property as a new Startup campus focused on Mobility, which makes perfect sense in Motor City. I truly wish them luck in remaking Detroit as a center of the upcoming new world of self driving, drones, clean transportation, and smart roads.

Detroit has a long road ahead, and it still suffers from very low average incomes for its average resident, and I’m sure it remains in a delicate position. So while we can’t be sure of its future, it seems like a wonderful example of civic resiliency.