Detroit
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9-year-old’s lemonade stand raises over $3,000 for Detroit parks
Due to Detroit's budget gap, the park in Joshua Smith's neighborhood was full of tall grass and trash. Instead of moping and watching TV, the 9-year-old took matters into his own hands.
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Have sledgehammer, will farm
We've covered a lot of good farmland with concrete over the years. But taking it back for urban farming may not be as difficult as it sounds.
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Detroit turns a freeway into a river
No, it wasn't an artistic statement about transportation and modern society. It was a busted water main -- just the latest in a city and state where infrastructure has been neglected for far too long.
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Detroit residents are turning the city into suburbs
Detroit is undergoing a remarkable process of un-building, its residents literally transforming its denser neighborhoods into sparse suburbs.
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Beyond ‘ruin porn’: Film gives farm’s-eye view of Detroit
The documentary Urban Roots shows us a new view of Detroit through the eyes of its dedicated urban farmers.
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The city, stripped down: How ruin porn can help rebuild the Rust Belt
Photo: BB and HHThis essay originally appeared in Rustwire. Living in the Rust Belt, one becomes accustomed to things that many people would find shocking. Examples: Not long ago, I saw the façade of an abandoned building fall out of itself on fire and into the street. Firemen and neighbors gathered around to look. Nobody […]
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New Agtivist: Edith Floyd is making a Detroit urban farm, empty lot by empty lot
Photo: Patrick CrouchEdith Floyd is the real deal. With little in the way of funding or organizational infrastructure, she runs Growing Joy Community Garden on the northeast side of Detroit. Not many folks bother to venture out to her neighborhood, but Edith has been inspiring me for years. I caught up with her on a […]
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Detroit everyman uses DIY moxie to turn his town into a solar mecca
Dave Strenski, resident of Detroit exurb Ypsilanti, got it into his head that he would help the local food co-op reduce its bills by installing solar panels on its roof. And he didn't let his complete lack of experience with solar stand in the way. At this point, he's not only put solar on the […]
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Bank of America is now paying to tear down foreclosed homes
Bank of America is paying for the demolition of some foreclosures in Cleveland, Chicago, and Detroit. Could this help these cities to find new life?