Flint, Michigan: Government Considering Abandoning Parts of City, Cutting Off Police & Fire Service

reply to post by ProtoplasmicTraveler


I too would be curious to know where all these people went? As the OP seems to imply they didn't all join the military (LOL). So if an entire section of town is abandoned where did all the people go? Surely we're talking in the thousands of people. If it were just a couple city blocks this is severely overblown.

I read a news story about this the other day and home owners in the areas that might be razed will be offered $50,000 to move to another part of the city. The fire and police (city services) for the deserted area will no longer be available with will save the city millions of dollars a year. Other cities like Youngstown have already done it I believe. It makes alot of sense.

I believe that Youngstown, OH has already done something like what Flint is proposing. Like Flint, Youngstown also has been devistated by the loss of manufacturing. Their decline happened in the '80s when big American steel fell apart. As a previous poster had mentioned in Flint, Youngstown also has some vital areas. Instead of taking down the few positives with the many, many negatives, they cut off vast areas of the city from services. Their solution was to raze the abandoned homes and buildings and turn the area into greenspace. While many areas of Youngstown are still really bad, theirs has been a workable solution. Flint could do well to emulate their approach.

www.planetizen.com...

Ha! Sorry venividivici, you beat me to it.

First of all why is there a Temp. Mayor? and Second of all. if they shut down/block off part of the city , what do you think will happen to the people who acually live there and what not? If you cut out fire service to that part of the city a fire will never stop if one starts and the whole area will be burned down good people and bad people alike. So basically the Temp. Mayor is condemning them good people of the bad part of the city to in all purposes' HELL. Maybe instead of cutting it off they should tear down the abandoning buildings and make a park out of the area, at least that way people cannot hid in the homes and the area might have a brighter mood. (I know it might, okay it does sound CRAZY, but what if it works?))

I've been to Youngstown, last year in fact... didn't really look too bad, standard industrial town that grew, lost the industrial edge, whatever that was... And reconsolidated. I don't know the specifics, just my observations from a weekend spent there.

I was in Ann Arbor last year also, just in October. Granted, I was there for a football game, and was imbibing pretty heavily... The conversation got interesting later in the evening. My lifelong best friend moved outside Ann Arbor from Peoria, IL a few years ago to persue his doctorate at UMich... He told me there has been a mass exodus of homeowners out of the suburbs of Detroit, property values were in the toilet, basically Detroit was a combat zone... Our other friend was stationed there (Det.) at the time, and concurred, adding that the city itself was like a shooting gallery alot of the time. She personally knew an NCO in the Navy that was murdered last year.

The best friend is also USNR, so when he was underway on a ship in Lake Michigan last year he called me as they were sailing past Detroit. Direct quote: "What a complete and total $#1thole... what a shame." I respect his opinion alot, he's a Reserve LtCdr as well as my brother.

It's sad to hear what is happening to you folks up there. My buddy is pretty insulated from this crap... He's basically a professional student on a stipend. Smart guy, but he isn't blind to what is happening either, and I hear about it pretty regularly.

He and I really haven't talked about Michigan's militia. After reading some about them here, there, everywhere (after seeing a thread here, on ATS!). I wonder, like others here have voiced, how that particular organization feels about this new development in Flint?

Edit:spelling, general clarity and grammar

[edit on 2/4/09 by cbianchi513]

Why is there a temp mayor because the twice elected mayor got tired of the BS and quit. There's no cooperation in the city what so ever it's every man for himself. I grew up there and there's basically nothing left of value. look at the satellite photos what looks like hugh factories is really just the concrete that was floors and parking lots.

i live about 10 minutes south of detroit and its really bad in some spots, southwest high school got shut down because there was no money, and the police station across the street got shut down because they couldnt deal with all the # people were trying to do just to put some food on the table.

there are parts of detroit that police dont go into anyways, theres no official thing saying that theyve abandoned that part of the city, but youd be lucky to see a cop drive by once a day in some areas. theres an underpass in delrey that has a traffic signal that everyone rolls through, cops WILL NOT pull you over because theres carjackers waiting for stopped cars down there

i think this is a good idea, as long as they plan on taking down most of the buildings ASAP. that entire areas gonna turn to a warzone between gangs trying to set up trap houses without any police interference unless the city moves very fast

I live about 50 miles northwest of Flint. I was talking to a brother firefighter that is stationed in that part of Flint that is so bad. This Fire station gets thugs that drive by it and shoot at it, they vandalize the fire personnel personal vehicles and even take pot shots at the fire apparatus (read emergency vehicles) as they roll out to a scene.

How do you work under those conditions?

Firefighters dont do this as a job. We do this because we wanted to help, we wanted to make a difference. How do you keep empathy for the people that are shooting at you?

If a fire gets out of control if the area is abandoned by police and fire service they will just roll out from the area that is still viable. The response time will diminish but the fires wont spread out of control.

I wish I had an answer. The economy has hit in my area and our department went to part-paid department and I have to look at getting a different job myself.

May God help us all. I fear though we as a nation have become to greedy and too arrogant and God has left us to rot. We were given plenty of warning over the past decades. We let the Reagan era turn us into a dog eat dog society and now we pay the price. We no longer care to help our fellow man we just care for ourselves.

Let the wolves take it all back...its too late we had been given fair warning and we didn't change. Look at how so many here have zero empathy for the foreclosures and point the finger at each other and say sink, its your fault!

Im not saying anyone is putting a bit more spice on this subject than is there. I always kinda take things in here with a grain of salt since it seems ATS has become more of a entertainment forum. But I did pull up google maps and it would not let me zoom in to street level on some of the areas you guys are talking about? Maybe it's my CPU but that kinda raised my eye brow

That is where Michael Moore lives..
Everyone can go eat at his house!!

Chevy Mfg

Original Chevorlet plant. The part near Kettering used to be a plant too. Zoom in all thats left is the concrete 7500 people per shift in the 70's

Buick City

Once the largest auto plant in the world 15000 people per shift in the 70's

Fisher Body Coldwater Road

Fisher body Coldwater road 5500 people per shift

Delphi

Deplhi still shows a building but the water tower was the last thing to be removed some tine in the fall of 08

Hope all these work and you can get a better picture

So let me get this strait, If I live in flint, and I can't afford to live anywhere but the crappiest parts of town, and someone comes and burns my house down, i'm screwed. What are the gun laws in michigan? Cause if the people are not allowed to call the cops to their house when someone breaks in, then they better be allowed to shoot to kill.

reply to post by Hx3_1963


This is also on the board in northern Ohio my friends. The great thing is that the Dems on in control in Toledo and their spending has gone so far astray and their 'short term' forever taxes have gotten them nowhere. Why? Because they are corrupt and pocket the money instead of putting it towards what it was meant for. Now they are discussing cutting services to certain parts of the city there as well. Hell, the city is virtually empty now with tons of foreclosed homes so it won't make much of a difference. It's pretty pathetic.

I feel for anyone living in or around areas like this. It's disgusting to say the least and heartbreaking on a completely different level.

Big government gets the country nowhere and yet it will only continue to grow. Just sickening.

Originally posted by mikellmikell
Chevy Mfg

Original Chevorlet plant. The part near Kettering used to be a plant too. Zoom in all thats left is the concrete 7500 people per shift in the 70's

Buick City

Once the largest auto plant in the world 15000 people per shift in the 70's

Fisher Body Coldwater Road

Fisher body Coldwater road 5500 people per shift

Delphi

Deplhi still shows a building but the water tower was the last thing to be removed some tine in the fall of 08

Hope all these work and you can get a better picture

I saw all the old builing foundations? But that doesn't show a city thats closing down ya know. I was looking for signs of forclosures and unkept property on google. Can anyone who has google earth pull up some of these areas that are falling to the way side and post them? I mean if it's true then if people see first hand how bad it is then they will get the picture better. News stories don't have the visual effect as pictures do as they say a picture is worth a thousand words...I'm sure there will be a few who jump in and say they have been photo shopped and the economy is fine...

[edit on 2-4-2009 by tsloan]

Gun laws in Flint?? Thats why they are giving up on the neighborhoods. Not safe to go there

reply to post by tsloan


I would drive through and take pictures myself, but I know better than to drive through the north side of flint. I work on the south side of flint where things are somewhat alright still...airport, colleges, retail central, shopping mall are all on this side.

It's bad in Michigan right now. Unemployment is rampant. Parts of Detroit are already abandoned. I am not sure how much longer my boss is going to be able to keep his hotel running. We aren't getting the guests we should to sustain it's existance. (also due to it being a crappy place to stay)

Flint is in terrible shape, as is Detroit. What would be good is if some green energy jobs started moving into the state. Companies can purchase land here for little or next to nothing. I am also sure that you could find a workforce here that is so desparate for work they will work for next to nothing just to have a job.

I agree with this approach.

Bulldoze anything or any area that is abandoned, Detroit has been doing this but unfortunately the last mayor stole most of the money for demolition of abandoned houses.

Originally posted by larphillips
I believe that Youngstown, OH has already done something like what Flint is proposing. Like Flint, Youngstown also has been devistated by the loss of manufacturing. Their decline happened in the '80s when big American steel fell apart. As a previous poster had mentioned in Flint, Youngstown also has some vital areas. Instead of taking down the few positives with the many, many negatives, they cut off vast areas of the city from services. Their solution was to raze the abandoned homes and buildings and turn the area into greenspace. While many areas of Youngstown are still really bad, theirs has been a workable solution. Flint could do well to emulate their approach.

www.planetizen.com...

While Flint still ranks as one of the most crime-ridden places in America, it should be noted crime has actually been DECREASING over the past few years:

With homicides down 52 percent and rape down 36 percent this year, a contingent of city leaders is headed to Chicago this week to spread the news.

blog.mlive.com...

In the 2008 State of the State address, Governor Jennifer Granholm commended Flint on its 46% drop in crime in 2007. In May 2008, new crime statistics for the city were released, showing some of the most dramatic decreases in crime in decades. Murder had dropped 71%, Assault had dropped 48%. Arson and auto theft also saw drops in the 20% range.

en.wikipedia.org...