Detroit: Our Voyage

So I’ve been doing some research on Detroit in an effort to get more familiar with this city that I live so close to and in this research I found some interesting facts. The whole city burned down in 1805 and as a result when the city seal was created the following motto was chosen “Speramus Meloria, Resurget Cineribus”. This is Latin for: We hope for better things; It shall rise from the ashes. How appropriate.  The city of Detroit and it’s residents have not given up, and continue to hope that Detroit can be better and in essence “rise from the ashes” left by the collapse of the auto industry.

Already a lot of things are changing in the city and for the first time in decades it seems residents are finally ready to start reinventing the city.  A new generation of Detroiters that are just not ok with the way things are have been doing their part to make a difference in the city. Case in point: Phil Cooley, 32 year old co-owner of Corktown’s Slows BBQ (situated directly across from Michigan Central Station). Cooley grew up in St.Clair county, went to school in Chicago and then lived in NYC and Paris as a model before settling back in . . . Detroit. Why? In his own words “Because, it was a place where a person my age could come and you know just be a part of something. I can come here, collaborate and meet interesting people that are doing unique things and be effective.”  (see full article on this interview by clicking here) In another interview about his work in cleaning up Roosevelt Park, he conveyed that the reason he liked living here was because he could make a difference. In big, booming cities like Chicago and NYC you can get lost. It’s hard to change anything that has been established there for decades, but Detroit is a clean slate where anyone can jump in and make a difference.

I started looking into some of the things going on in the city these days and found some very positive articles on what is happening in the “D”. These articles were a welcome change from the boatloads of negative press that it seems Detroit always gets. So here are a few I found, all published recently by “outsiders”:

The New York Times: May 8th,2011 – 36 Hours in Detroit

The New York Times: August 13,2010 – Detroit Goes from Gloom to Economic Bright Spot

MSNBC: August 11,2010 – Who do we love? Detroit!

Washington Post: July 30,2010 – City Parks Bringing Urban Centers Back to Life 

Wall Street Journal: September 17,2010 – Motown becomes Movietown

And there are quite a few local sites meant to encourage Detroiters to make a difference in their city and not be discouraged by the constant barrage of negativity we get. Again, here are a few:

Believe in Detroit – A city initiative to encourage civic engagement

Lemonade Detroit – Advertised as “The Story Dateline Won’t Tell”, a Local Film Project that is trying to answer the question of what is happening next for the city of Detroit.

There still is so much life left in the city that many have already left for dead, a major COBO renovation is already underway, a port is being opened this summer on the Detroit River, Hantz Farms has plans for the world’s largest urban farm, and it was announced last week that the iconic Michigan Central Depot has plans for renovations to start soon.

So yes, the city of Detroit isn’t what we might want it to be, but we can hope for better things. Yes, many parts of Detroit are mere shells of what this city used to be, but it can rise from the ashes. Speramus Meloria, Resurget Cineribus.