Detroit Future City: The Statistics

image credit: HuffPost Detroit

I just finished reading Detroit Future City, the most recent product of the Detroit Works Project's long term planning.  Before discussing the report, I'd like to re-state some of the statistics that motivated its creation.  They are startling. They demand our attention.  They scream for a plan of action.  As Detroit declares bankruptcy, the shear size of the problem is revealed in numbers.

But the numbers aren't all negative.  There are definitely assets to strengthen, to grow and to promote.  The positives are just outshone by the depth and overwhelming nature of the negative.  The key to the report is re-fashioning the negatives as opportunities.  Vacant land is seen as an opportunity to invent a new urban form.  Under capacity industries are seen as opportunities to create jobs.  Oversize streets are seen as opportunities to recondition them to accept high-speed buses, bicycles and stormwater treatment.  In the words of the report,

"...Detroit is facing head-on what many other cities are on the cusp of: the need to create more sustainable, resilient civic centers for the new millennium.  The world needs Detroit's example.  The country and the world also need Detroit's success, as a critical American city in the next century global economy." (page 325)

All of the statistic listed below are taken from the 2012 Detroit Strategic Framework Plan. 

The Economic Growth Element: The Equitable City (page 42)

• 61% of employed Detroiters work outside the city
• 21.5% of Detroiters do not have access to a private vehicle
• 70% of Detroit jobs are held by commuters
• There are 27 jobs per 100 Detroit residents
• 20% of Detroit two-year degree holders live in poverty
• 68% of Detroiters without a high school diploma are unemployed or do not participate in the labor force
• 83% of Detroit's potential workforce is African-American
• 12% of the revenue earned by all Detroit firms was earned by African-American owned firms

The Land Use Element: The Image of the City (page 98)

• Detroit has suffered a 61% population loss between 1950-2010
• 20 square miles of Detroit's occupiable land area is vacant
• 22% of Detroit's industrial zoned land is vacant
• 36% of Detroit's commercial parcels are vacant
• The amount of money spent on groceries outside the city could support approximately 583,000 square feet of additional grocery retail space in Detroit
• Detroit contains 6.7 acres of park space per person (National Recreation and Park Association recommends 10 acres of park space per 1000 residents)
• 65% of Detroit's total citywide housing supply is single-family detached
• 66% of the total housing demand in Detroit's greater downtown is for multi-family

The City Systems Element: The Sustainable City (page 160)

• Detroit has suffered a $336 million decline in property tax revenue from 1950-2010 (60% decline)
• 20% of Detroit's potential revenue generating land area is vacant
• The average Detroit household spends 32% of their annual income on transportation
• 27% of Detroit's 3000 miles of public roads are in poor condition
• Only 35,000 of the existing 88,000 street lights work in Detroit
• Buses run at 75% capacity during peak hours.  The national average is 105%
• Detroit's water system operates at 40% of its overall capacity
• Detroit classifies 42 billion gallons of water as 'unaccounted for water'
• Detroit has three times higher rate of children with elevated blood lead levels than the national average
• Detroit has three time higher rate of children with asthma than the national average
• There were 36 combined sewer overflow discharges into the Detroit river in 2011.  All but 5 could have been prevented with a comprehensive citywide blue infrastructure system (pages 186-187)

The Neighborhood Element: The City of Distinct and Regionally Competitive Neighborhoods (page 210)

• $1.5 billion of Detroit resident expenditures are made outside the city each year
• Detroit has the 2nd highest violent crime rate in the U.S.
• Detroit has suffered a 66% loss in median housing sales prices (2006-2010)
• Detroit is ranked last in acres of park space per resident
• 69.1% of Detroiters are obsess or overweight
• Deaths resulting from heart disease in Detroit are 50% higher than the national average
• Detroit has suffered a 60% decline in public schools enrollment from 2001-2010

The Land and Buildings Assets Element: A Strategic Approach to Public Assets (page 272)

• 13,000 Detroit properties were in Wayne county's October 2011 auction
• 50% of all properties from the October 2011 auction reverted back to public ownership
• 45,000 Detroit parcels have been tax foreclosed since 2010
• 98% of all contiguous publicly owned parcels in Detroit are less than one acre in total size
• 46% of Detroit's recreation centers have closed since 2005 (14 out of 30)
• 130 public schools have been closed or converted to charter schools in Detroit since 2005
• 83% of Detroit's vacant parcels are zoned residential

It is from within this context that Detroit must now create a framework for developing its future.