Flint Mayor Says People, Not Government Will Drive Urban Renewal

[Chris]

It's perhaps still too paternalistic but I think the mayor is taking a step in the right direction.

Flint Mayor Says People, Not Government Will Drive Urban Renewal

"Quality of life is how people feel about their community," says Dayne Walling, mayor of Flint, Michigan. "Government has to be a partner and has to facilitate the planning and organizational structure, but then it's citizen groups that are really the ones that are refining the plans and then providing the real people power to actually get the work done."

The story of Flint, Michigan is similar to neighboring Detroit. After the collapse of the auto industry, the city experienced severe economic hardship—nearly a third of the town's 33-square miles is abandoned and crime rates rival that of Baghdad, Iraq.

Forbes cited Flint as one of America's "most miserable cities" and an average of five people leave town every day.

To reverse the pattern of urban flight and decay, Flint mayor Dayne Walling has made it his priority to bring revive [sic] the manufacturing town by reforming outdated zoning codes and engaging citizen groups to take part in city planning. He talked about these efforts with Reason TV at the recent Atlantic CityLab conference in Los Angeles, California....

[Cigar]

Dan Gilbert, Chairman of Quickens Loans has already invested a Billion

http://www.businessinsider.com/dan-g...detroit-2013-4

[Chris]

Dan Gilbert, Chairman of Quickens Loans has already invested a Billion

http://www.businessinsider.com/dan-g...detroit-2013-4

Something different, and Detroit, not Flint. One's a business venture, the other an attempt to get the people involved.

[Cigar]

Something different, and Detroit, not Flint. One's a business venture, the other an attempt to get the people involved.

I watch an 30 minute documentary that Dan and several other Business who begs to differ.

But obviously you know more than them