Policy Plan for Detroit

DETROIT: A PLAN OF ITS OWN
Over the past several decades, Detroit has been the target of constant scrutiny and criticism from the rest of the nation. A once thriving city, alive in jazz, techno, swing, and hip-hop, is now facing rapidly rising numbers of vacant and abandoned homes and businesses. This abandonment of properties in general, along with an increase in “white flight” and industrial blight following the end of World War II, has slowly but surely labeled Detroit with its current, damaging reputation. In an interview with Susan Mosey, President of the University Cultural Center Association, she stressed that land usage is the biggest issue currently facing Detroit, the Midtown area in particular. In ten years from now, Mosey hopes that “more buildings will have been built in some of the vacant land and parking areas [and there will be] more commercial and retail for people who are here.” This is a vision necessary for the advancement and future of Detroit, and with the help of several House bills passed in recent years, we may be on the right track to the economic development and diversification of this great city.
The University Cultural Center Association (UCCA) is a non-profit organization based in Midtown Detroit that focuses on supporting the physical maintenance and development of the area to enhance public awareness, appreciation, and use of Midtown Detroit. They represent the area’s cultural, academic, medical and service institutions, corporations, businesses, and community organizations (UCCA). The organization is well aware of the current state and availability of property in Midtown, which is why people frequent the UCCA offices in search of aid in opening small businesses and the steps that go along with it, mainly finding an area in which to open their business. However, with so many abandoned establishments still standing, rotting away in what they could have been, Detroit’s land available for commercial businesses is growing scarcer and...