Executive Committee Meeting 10-15-24

President's Report

Page 23 of 95

EXPLORE DETROIT

DETROIT TODAY

Detroit Today Better known than Lansing, the capital of Michigan, Detroit is the most populous and largest city in the state. Sprawling and bewildering, it is unlikely to bowl you over at first glance because it is neither particularly charming nor harmonious. But arguably more important than that, it is fascinating! A significant city in American history, it hosts a trove of treasures, emanates an infectious energy, and is forever reinventing itself. A real treat for curious- and open-minded travelers. A City in Revival Who could forget the images of Detroit as a number one destination for fans of ruins and explorers of urban wastelands? The abandoned Michigan Central station, the Packard Plant—one the world’s largest industrial complexes ever—left to rot, the walled-up 19th century mansions? This was its face in the 1990s, paired with a crime rate 4.5 times higher than the national average. The wealthiest

that rival those of Chicago and New York, many of which have been restored. As one of the country’s prime destinations for street art, Detroit has a visual surprise around almost every street corner. Unexpectedly perhaps, it has an innovative culinary scene, attracting foodies from all around. Detroit in the Future Variety and innovation: two words that describe the city to a tee. The epitome of the American melting pot, Detroit is a city built on immigration. It still has a Greektown, a Corktown (Irish neighborhood), and a Mexicantown, and although in Hamtramck, the “little Warsaw of Michigan”, today you're more likely to hear Arabic and Bengali spoken than Polish, Polish Mardi Gras is still celebrated there with donuts aplenty. The largest community in Detroit is African-American (76% of Detroiters), making Motor City the country’s second-largest Black city after Jackson (Mississippi) and ahead of Birmingham (Alabama). When it comes to innovation, Detroit has never been left behind. In the automobile industry, yesterday and still today, of course. But Motor City is a university and medical hub too, as well as the country’s fifth-largest financial center. In addition, it has diversified into transportation and new technologies. The city’s best asset is neither its privileged geographical location nor the know-how it has inherited but its exceptionally resilient citizens who invent new ways of living and doing things when things get tough. They set an example for other US cities facing the same problems, to varying degrees.

and social regeneration, the situation is far from perfect, unsurprisingly. Entire swathes of the city remain abandoned, while others are in the throes of development. Consequently, Detroit can feel like a jigsaw puzzle being completed before your eyes. The regeneration initiated in Downtown has spread out in concentric circles, but, here and there, neighborhoods, blocks, and even single streets are getting a new lease of life, interspersed with still derelict areas. At its peak, Detroit had a population of 1.85 million; today it is home to just over 620,000 people. Plainly, then, it is an oversized city. And between gentrification and real estate speculation, regeneration has not gone hand in hand with progress for all. Not that this has stopped Detroiters from moving forward with confidence There are plenty of reasons to come explore Detroit. The birthplace of the American auto industry cherishes the souvenirs of its past, particularly around Ford, whose plant you can visit, quite unique for a factory still in operation. Motor City produced the sound known as Motown, the label of Diana Ross, Marvin Gaye, and The Jackson 5, to name but three. This is also where techno began, which continues to thrive through Detroit's music labels, clubs, and radio stations, not to mention Movement, the world’s largest festival dedicated to the genre. The city boasts engaging museums, including the exceptional Detroit Institute of Arts, and skyscrapers and determination. A Happening City

city in the US in the 1950s would experience the most momentous bankruptcy in American history. What about Detroit in 2024? The Detroit skyline is studded with cranes, and the construction sites are in full swing. Michigan Central is now an innovation center, Fisher Body Plant, a previously abandoned auto-body factory, is being transformed to accommodate student housing. It's been labeled a revival for multiple reasons, including indisputable assets, a buoyant economy, go-getting entrepreneurs, and bold investors, all pulling together in the right direction. In 2022, Forbes held its Under 30 Summit for Young Entrepreneurs in Detroit; in 2024, the all-mighty National Football League (NFL) ran its draft pick there, a major event on its calendar that attracted more than 700,000 visitors. The Downside? As with any city undergoing urban

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The Tourist Districts at a Glance Detroit is bisected south to north by Woodward Ave , its backbone, extending far beyond the city limits. To the south, Downtown includes a portion of the Riverfront, the Financial District and its skyscrapers, Greektown with its lively bars, and Foxtown, the theater and stadium district. Beyond Downtown, Midtown is home to museums, medical institutions, and universities. Further still, Milwaukee Junction and New Center , in the throes of transformation, are linked to the history of the automotive and music industries. West of Downtown are Corktown and its bars, Mexicantown, then, further out, Dearborn , the hometown of the Ford Motor Company; to the east, Eastern Market , Belle Isle , a natural conservatory, then Lake St. Clair and its residential suburbs.