Detroit files for Chapter 9 bankruptcy [UPDATED: Detroit is Eligible]

Originally posted by Senduko
reply to post by xuenchen

 

Yeah.. Tenth was so kind to remind me i was 30 seconds to late lol.

But doesn't matter, So what happens next? Marshall Law?

Martial Law? On people that can't even buy food, much less ammo?

I heard earlier today that back in the late '40s - '50's Detroit had the strongest
economy and standard of living in the country.. and a population of 1.8 million.

Now it looks like the pop's down to about a third of that-- and with over 85,000
abandoned or repo'd homes it could take decades just to see 'normal' again.
If anybody can put the constantly burning end of the yardstick for 'normal' on
Detroit and tell all of us how much coming up short it is. First to last in less
than 50 years, and sorry folks it was all due to just plain corruption, not pensioners.

When somebody shows me a pretty much undamaged home and lot in
a more remote part of town, and it's up for a tax auction at ten bucks: who'd
want to try and find a job there?

I was (still trying to be) a machinist and ME my whole life, looks like it's over
as far as manufacturing goes. We're not even growing real food anymore,
much less "making anything out of it" except debt notes. Really heartbreaking..
on the subject of Kevyn Orr; you mean the guy that killed the UAW Kevyn Orr?
Good luck on crisis management, using the person with the biggest axe in town.

Yes and no, when bankruptcy is declared you are asking to have your debts discharged. There are far reaching effects for those to whom you owe money, from small businesses to large government suppliers, and banks. There will be a domino effect which the government needs to keep an eye on. Its not the city itself that gets to wipes it debts, those who are owed money will get hit hard. A lot of business may fold as a result.

Creditors are typically large, multinational banks, insurance companies, and private investment firms. These creditors are vultures that have preyed upon the carcass of Detroit for years now.

Far-reaching effects? Domino effect? Doubtful. I don't have much sympathy for lenders that prey on the poor and downtrodden.

The city will finally be able to remove the shackles of debt that these vulture creditors have harnessed to Detroit's impoverished community, literally breaking the backs of the poor.

Orr, the Emergency Manager, offered to take the creditors on a bus tour to show them the devastation to the infrastructure and neighborhoods in Detroit. The tour never happened. The creditors refused, and instead wanted to spend their time dithering over the "assets of the city of Detroit" to see if they could pilfer anything further from the city's carcass.

This is a fresh start for the citizens of Detroit, and an opportunity to rebuild the city's infrastructure, improve the safety of its citizens, and to start to see some sense of normalcy return to a city that has been utterly devastated in recent decades by corruption, malfeasance, and criminal mismanagement.

Something else I thought about last night was a sale we've seen in the UK in recent months too... there are areas in the north of the UK where entire streets are abandoned and empty, and the local councils are selling the properties to single people and young families for £1.

This seems like a viable option. I posted before that they need to draw people in, but that there is no real industry to do it (what do people do for a living when they move there?). So, to solve this problem, they should create a new internet business hub, with a residential area surrounding it, for young people to move into for almost nothing.

In the UK we have small enterprise buildings dotted around the country, projects where young entrepreneurs move in for nothing and collaborate. They're programmers, app designers, internet start up companies, writers...

The problem Detroit has is a Chicken and Egg problem, you need the work for people to survive there, but you need the people there to create the work. So, they need to do both simultaneously. This is the only solution to get them out of the hole they're in. It needs to be big and impressive, enough to convince people to move there from all over the US, and a tech field is the obvious solution to me.

People long for that kind of environment to work in, and I really do believe that there are potentially hundreds of thousands of very talented young people all over the US who would move there if they had a free home, and were then surrounded by others in the same field as them.

This then creates more industry and more opportunities. Coffee shops and bars would be needed to serve the new population, construction would increase as more of the city becomes relevant again, new businesses would spring up to supply those businesses...

One thing I would say also is that wherever possible the city should shun corporations and encourage start-up's and local business. Otherwise, that tax revenue and the employment opportunities are diminished. Ten smaller stores employ more people and pay more in tax than a single WalMart.

After the consideration I've given this, I really don't see why they've had such a problem there. They have property ready to be used with a little fixing, they have an entire generation of people across the country needing somewhere affordable to live, it's just a matter of putting them together, and that's something even the most incompetent city management should be able to accomplish with just a little investment in policing, marketing and property.

Originally posted by Xtrozero
I'm shocked!! Detroit is such a lovely town with plenty of space. Hell there is only 700k people living there and in the 50s it was 2 million. You could have a whole city block for cheap.

You pretty much can. My friend bought an abandoned factory built in the 80's and paid $65,000 for it. It was in good shape still.Most of the houses in Detroit were built in the 50's and 60's though, they have not be kept up well for the most part and need tons of work to rehab. After the scrappers go through one, there isn't much to salvage.

Kwame needs a proper a$$ whooping. And the people of Detroit who voted for him TWICE need to be sent to a different country. I fear many people voted on him due to skin color oh and if you were related I'm sure you voted twice. I wonder if they have the same pride repersenting The D as they did post Kwame?

I think people need to start living after the model The occupyers displayed in NYC.

I have seen some awesome things since the down fall like a real estate company which were
Buying up land and building very cheap from the city and selling "inches, feet, etc" the buyers got some certificate in the mail and proceeds were reinvested into Detroit for gardens and revamping.

inchernet.com...

Cool Things Happening in Detroit pronounced [Day Twa]
makeloveland.com...

There are likely a handful of other cities in the U.S. that would have had the same fate if not for location. Either they have nice weather and/or are a located on or near a transportation or communications hub.

Detroit isn't alone in mismanagement. But it didn't have anything else to fall back on after the majority of manufacturing work went away. (Yes, some automobile factories are still nearby. But most of the parts used to make those vehicles aren't made near there anymore, and any remaining manufacturing is heavily automated.)

Looking at the mess... If somebody could setup some decent internet backbone into the area, there's likely some good opportunity to take advantage of the real estate fall-out there. Typical work hours would be compatible with business on the East coast and Midwest, and with a regional depression driving cost of living down the wages might be low enough to be competitive with some overseas IT support services.

Cant help but feel that Hollywood should start making more zombie films - using Detroit as its a prime location! This thread makes me want to watch the Robocop's. Ive come across this and that about the city since it declared bankruptcy, such as people breaking into each others houses and squatting - actually justifying it because the woman "left her home for a while"

I think there's more than one corporation that's going to be looking at this and thinking "We can make something of this" With so much land available, companies may be attracted by cheap prices, add on it tax cuts for starting up new business etc. All the usual ploys that encouraged people to set up shop. Of course im assuming that the cities law/policies be whipped clean and re-written. Quite literally, starting from scratch.

Hell, they might even end up calling it New Detroit

Why dose not the Goverments get together,, and set up all those from Japan,,effected by #USHIMA,,?hey,,,beats RADIATION CITY CENTRAL.

??u know emmigration.

Good wake-up call for the masses. Decades of corruption, mismanagement and globalism - offshoring our factories. Thank god Germany, Japan, China and Russia are our friends now. Just imagine what would happen if the US had to quickly ramp up for a world war... We don't even make boots or underwear here anymore!

Originally posted by BobAthome
Why dose not the Goverments get together,, and set up all those from Japan,,effected by #USHIMA,,?hey,,,beats RADIATION CITY CENTRAL.

??u know emmigration.

edit on 20-7-2013 by BobAthome because: (no reason given)

You must have it out for the Japanese. First the Tsunami, then Radiation and now you want to relocate them to Detroit?????

GM CEO says Obama’s bailouts sent Detroit into bankruptcy - See more at: rare.us...

Not really sure what impact this will have on the bankruptcy.....or what Conyers hopes to accomplish....but he's calling for a congressional hearing....
www.clickondetroit.com... ex.html

The Detroit Democrat says Chapter 9 bankruptcies by local governments are on the rise, and Congress should explore a number of "troubling" ramifications of Detroit's bankruptcy. Conyers wrote a letter to the House Judiciary Committee's Republican chairman saying he's concerned the bankruptcy process is being misused to "unilaterally" abrogate Detroit retirees' pension and health care benefits.

Originally posted by DontTreadOnMe
Not really sure what impact this will have on the bankruptcy.....or what Conyers hopes to accomplish....but he's calling for a congressional hearing....
www.clickondetroit.com... ex.html

The Detroit Democrat says Chapter 9 bankruptcies by local governments are on the rise, and Congress should explore a number of "troubling" ramifications of Detroit's bankruptcy. Conyers wrote a letter to the House Judiciary Committee's Republican chairman saying he's concerned the bankruptcy process is being misused to "unilaterally" abrogate Detroit retirees' pension and health care benefits.

Smoke and mirrors.

Those pensions were gone a long time ago he is just trying to muddy the water, so when they do find the truth out the corrupt regime can start pointing fingers and say "but they stole the money".

Most likely many Detroiter's will believer their lies.

Lots of cities are in the same boat, lots of people are leaving:

Pittsburgh
St. Louis
Baltimore
Birmingham
Buffalo
Cincinnati
Cleveland
New Orleans
Chicago
Newark
Scranton
Youngstown

and even cities with little population loss are still stuck in a financial pinch like San Diego and San Jose. Now that Detroit has gone bankrupt, how long before other cities start to do the same (I guess it depends if Detroit gets a bailout)

Originally posted by Realtruth

Those pensions were gone a long time ago he is just trying to muddy the water, so when they do find the truth out the corrupt regime can start pointing fingers and say "but they stole the money".

Really?

Why would you say that?
The pension fund is still solvent....although not fully funded.....and stand to lose a bit more when the accounting standards change nationally on Jan 1st.

The funds are separate from the city monies.....hence the shenanigans involved in trying to borrow from it when Kilpatrick was in office.
The Board made bad decisions and if found criminal should be held accountable....but why punish people...the retirees...most of whom are less than middle class anymore.
Are they just an easy target?

reply to post by DontTreadOnMe


Yes, they are an easy target and the ones who raided those funds don't care if people go without.

reply to post by DontTreadOnMe


They say they are solvent, but the problem is to what degree.

Honesty has not been a political option for a long time and though they claim to be solvent I have a hard time believing it.

It will be interesting to see what happens here.

reply to post by Realtruth


Between the pension corruption, which is just coming to light [ www.freep.com... and plansponsor.com... ] and the obligations which first Detroit, and then Orr are refusing to pay the fund...they ar not close to 100%
But health care obligations.....well, it looks like they NEVER set anything up to pay for that !!!!!!!!!!!
www.washingtonpost.com...

I saw a graph on some pension site...which now I cannot find....and it appeared that according to Moodys...bot fund were 69% funded....and that number was roughly the same as Orr's.

Originally posted by DontTreadOnMe
Not really sure what impact this will have on the bankruptcy.....or what Conyers hopes to accomplish....but he's calling for a congressional hearing....
www.clickondetroit.com... ex.html

The Detroit Democrat says Chapter 9 bankruptcies by local governments are on the rise, and Congress should explore a number of "troubling" ramifications of Detroit's bankruptcy. Conyers wrote a letter to the House Judiciary Committee's Republican chairman saying he's concerned the bankruptcy process is being misused to "unilaterally" abrogate Detroit retirees' pension and health care benefits.

Conyers is a symptom of the politicians who have drove Detroit into Bankruptcy. Take a Look at his wife Monica, who was on the City Clowncil. Like I said previously, clueless politicians.

Originally posted by marg6043

So when a Bankruptcy happens on a city I wonder now, if the Federal government step in and pays for the debt to the banks so they don't lose the money, or if the banks can go after the taxes the city of state gets.

You can bet that the taxpayers will bear the brunt of it somehow.