New Look Coming for Flint, MI

Now that I am back in my hometown of Flint, MI, I am starting to pay more attention to what is going on. I have long argued that Flint would be a great place to live but that the people are what is holding it back. Flint is much like Detroit in that the politics are dominated by racial tensions and corruption. We don't seem to care much since we keep voting clowns into office. This is partly because good people are either too busy being productive to run for office or simply too lazy. Of course, the quest for some false sense of power and importance propels the wrong people to be aggressive in seeking office which they ultimately win.

All that aside, I really want to be excited about the downtown development. I took a stroll down Saginaw street last week and was surprised to see construction going on. Readers can see the plans for downtown at www.whatsupdowntown.com. The reason I want to be excited is because I want to see the city I grew up in succeed. The reason I am not excited is because of the list of investors I see on the website. Normally, a sign of good things to come is indicated by a large number of private investors realizing that property and opportunity in the downtown area is significantly undervalued thereby resulting in a flood of investment. Unfortunately, I don't see names of many private investors. I see a list of government funds and community foundations which tells me that the private market largely does not see much profitability in downtown investment at this point. So why is any money being put into downtown? Well, it is because of pride in the city and a want to see it succed. This is all fine and well, and it speaks volumes for those involved - they are true patriots of the city. However, as much as we hate to admit it, the profit motive is the ultimate signal that an investment is worthwhile. This "community patriotism" always works temporarily, but I will be a believer when foundations and governments are no longer needed to make Flint a great place to live. We need private investment in Flint in the form of a new industry, plant, etc. This will be the building block of a productive, profitable Flint. To get this, we need better government and more of the "right" people. Which residents will step up?

That all being said... those loft apartments look really nice....

Flint's first murder of the year.

This article arrived yesterday from my sister via Gtalk. It looks like Flint, MI, my hometown chalked up its first murder of the year. Flint constantly appears in the top 10 list for most dangerous cities. A recent survey shown on aol's news site lists Flint as the third most dangerous city. In the subcategories, Flint ranked first in rape, first in assault, second in burglary, and third in murder. It seems that the outliers were robbery (35th) and car theft (28th). This is likely due to the fact that there is nothing to steal in Flint and nobody drives a nice car.

The scariest thing about this article is that the murder happened just a few blocks from my home. I grew up in a middle class neighborhood where people respected one another, supported one another, and did all the normal things that good neighbors just do (save for the fact that no bike was safe). Every time something like this happens, it makes me worry about my neighborhood and about the city as a whole.

Flint has been so bad for so long that a turn around is inevitable. In fact, if I were an investor, Flint is one place I'd explore. We have a perfect setup to be Michigan's premier city. We have a very nice airport. I69 and I75, two of the most prominent interstate highways in the nation both go through Flint. No other city in the state can say that. Flint is located right in the middle of Lansing, the Tri-Cities, Ann Arbor, and Detroit - it's the perfect central hub for Michigan commerce. Flint has a very good community college, a fantastic engineering school, and a satellite school of the University of Michigan. Some circles in Flint have a new optimism. The Downtown Flint Development Authority looks like it is up to some great things. This sounds like a great setup, but it is unarguable that people are the most crucial resource. Articles like these show that we still have a ways to go.