Community
Revitalization Newsletter
494 Lakewood - Detroit, Michigan 48215
St. Patrick’s Day Redux: A visit to Dublin, one of THE Cool Cities
Create Detroit Kicks Off, Time to go to work
Create
Detroit, the event, has come and gone (big kudos BTW to Ann Slawnik
from the Van Dusen Endowment at Wayne
State University and Karen Batchelor from the
Detroit Regional Chamber!!!). Create Detroit, the organization and
the movement, lives on. Keep an eye on the Create Detroit website for
upcoming events and opportunities to help build a better community.
As expected, Mr. Florida’s Wednesday night address delivered a
rousing epitome on the need to rethink how we look at place and the
need to for greater diversity. Thursday’s Regional Transformation
Process (RTP) was a good primer on some of the actions steps needed
to build the creative community that defines the new economy.
So, what is next? Create Detroit is intended to be an ongoing effort
to find solutions to our problems and to find ways to capitalize on
our strengths. Create Detroit isn’t a pep-rally for Detroit. There
is a lot of work that needs to be done, including healing some of the
racial divisions that have plagued our region for the last fifty years.
Juergensen & Associates is an active partner in revitalization efforts
including defining the elements of Cool Cities in Michigan, helping
state agencies develop their urban revitalization strategies, helping
to rewrite the state’s building code to be friendlier to older
buildings and working with area non-profits to facilitate real estate
investment in tough markets. We believe in Create Detroit and are optimistic
about the future of our region.
Richard Florida said Detroit could be the comeback city of the decade.
As an active participant in Detroit’s revival it has been and
will continue to be a challenge for us to maintain that buoyant optimism
if we don’t transform our (private, institutional, political and
citizenry) thinking around the issues Mr. Florida addresses in his research
and book.
Mr. Florida spoke eloquently and persuasively about the need to look
strategically at the benefits of historic preservation and the need
for increased tolerance in our community, including gay friendliness
– two areas where Detroit has not shown great leadership as demonstrated
by the on-going controversy over the Madison-Lenox (see
the February Juergensen Report) and Mayor Kilpatrick’s commentary
on Real Time with Bill Mahr, a politically program broadcast nationally
on HBO. (click
here for the transcript)
Ironically, while a computer glitch put a small damper of the day’s
events, it was still as success. If you haven’t already done so,
visit the Create Detroit website
and take the RTP poll. The suggestions included in the poll were
derived from the morning's brainstorming sessions and are not an all-inclusive
list of ideas suggested by the group in attendance.
Stay tuned!
Affordable
Housing’s Dirty Little Secret (Part III)
The
April edition of the Main Street News, the monthly newsletter of the
National Main Street Center, will focus on developing housing in downtown.
In a
series
of articles authored by Juergensen & Associates, the newsletter
addresses a variety of housing challenges and opportunities in downtowns
and a considerable piece of that equation is affordable housing.
The dirty little secret about affordable housing is that it touches
everybody. Unlike low-income housing, which is aimed at a specific at-risk
population, affordable housing by any measure is aimed at solidly middle
and working class families. Hardly the champion of liberal/social justice
causes, many chambers of commerce and business organizations have recognized
the importance of this issue and have taken up the struggle for affordable
housing.
Why? Affordable housing, sometimes called workforce housing, brings
employees to job centers and makes the region more attractive to employers.
Just look the statistics, for all of our emphasis on “high tech”
job creation, much of the service sector jobs that support those high
tech jobs do not earn enough to live in or near their place of work.
Our colleague Donovan Rympkema, of PlaceEconomic and consultant to the
National Trust for Historic Preservation, recently suggested:
Over the next 10 years, about 20 million new jobs will be
created in the United States. Of these, about 7 million - or
34% of the total - will pay less than $20,000 per year. At that
salary level, people can't afford to pay more than about $500
in rent. Where are these people going to live? Vacant, abandoned
or underused buildings represent a significant resource we can
tap into finding answers to that
question.
At the same time, affordable housing is affecting a much larger spectrum
of residents in the US. The Millennial Housing Commission (http://www.mhc.gov/),
a bipartisan commission created by Congress in 1999, reported a growing
gap between the demand for affordable housing and the supply.
Ok, so why downtowns, haven’t people already moved out years ago?
Yes and no. Over the last half century, the focus of our zoning laws,
(which have a direct impact on development patterns), emphasized single
use zones that often excluded housing from upper story buildings in
downtowns and made revitalization efforts difficult. Furthermore, even
with residential disinvestments, most downtowns still serve as the center
of commerce for regions even if it is only rural county.
Downtowns offer significant competitive advantages in providing quality
affordable housing. Typically, older communities do not require the
costly infrastructure improvements to make the development happen, allowing
limited public sector expenditures to be focused directly on the bricks
and mortar. In addition, downtown housing tends to be closer to transportation
links, along with jobs and other basic services.
Economic restructuring in the second half of the 20th century led to
widespread disinvestment in our traditional centers of commerce. In
larger urban cities, population has decreased 5% in the last 10 years
while increasing 10.6% in the suburbs. The percentage of homeowners
in urban cities is approximately 55% as opposed to 78% in suburbs.
While
the scenario above describes the plight of our urban cities, it is replayed
to some degree in dozens of small towns throughout the state and country.
Once-stately homes adjacent to Main Streets were divided into 2-4 unit
rental properties and are showing signs of deferred maintenance. The
pre-and post-war settlement boundaries of the community are clearly
visible where the rectangular grid of two-story homes on small lots
gives way to ranch-style homes on wide, curving boulevards designed
to move cars quickly through, and out of the neighborhood.
In these small towns, where the pressures of racial diversity, economic
disparity and loss of jobs may be less extreme, the result is still
similar. As households with discretionary income move out, economic
incentives for business to remain downtown are reduced, stores close,
and an impression of overall shabbiness discourages investment by entrepreneurs
and new arrivals to the community.
Conversely,
some communities are spreading as a result of a countervailing trend:
the economic exclusion of low- and moderate-income households from revitalized
urban centers where market forces are limiting these opportunities.
This trend is most evident in the communities that have been the most
successful at bucking the tide of disinvestments identified above. In
Michigan, larger cities like Ann Arbor and Holland, along with the affluent
communities of Oakland and Livingston Counties and many of the state’s
coastal resort communities, have been successful in retaining sufficient
vibrancy to maintain a vital urban core.
Either way, affordable housing is a critical component of both revitalizing
and sustaining economic growth in downtowns and in the regions that
support them, especially as we continue to feel the effects of the hemorrhaging
of manufacturing jobs from the US economy. Sooner or later, we will
need to confront the fact that our country’s economy has shifted.
Lifetime long, high wage jobs at the local plant will likely continue
to slip away from communities of all sizes throughout our country.
Making housing affordable for America’s solidly middle and working
class families will not allow us to limit our thinking on this issue
to the stereotypical high-risk population served by low income housing.
Next issue – We suggest some solutions
to our affordable housing challenges.
J&A in the April Main Street News
Jay
Juergensen co-authored the lead piece in this month's Main Street News,
the monthly newsletter for the National Main Street Center. Entitled,
"Living Downtown: Promoting Affordable Housing on Main Street,"
the article addresses the benefits of affordable housing on Main Street
and talks about the need for managers to become knowledgeable of the
Real Estate development process.
Lansing's Old Town is a featured case study, courtesy of Richard Karp, Buildtech Ltd. of Lansing. In addition, Elisabeth Knibbe AIA of Elisabeth Knibbe Architects contributed to the discussion on compliance with building codes.
The full article cannot be accessed online. If you do not recieve the Main Street News and would like to read the full article, please contact Mike Scholl at mscholl@j-assoc.com.
If
you thought that financial institutions and the network of lenders,
secondary markets and the like were enlightened and responding to decades
of regulation and no longer red lining – think again!
Community activists that fought to stop red lining in our communities
would be rolling over in their graves if I shared my recent refinancing
experience, which demonstrated that some lenders and even Fannie Mae
(www.fanniemae.com) maintain
questionable lending practices.
About a year ago, I began the process of refinancing my home in a transitional
neighborhood in Detroit. Like many, I hoped to take advantage of lower
interest rates and recent value appreciation in my eastside Detroit
neighborhood and home. I also hoped to “pull-out” some cash
to complete some improvements and so I sought a “cash-out/re-fi”
(industry term) from my lender.
As an entrepreneur, my personal finances are strongly linked to the
financial strength of my companies and a few years ago, in the wake
of some slow paying clients with significant receivables the business
took a temporary hit and so did my personal credit. The business and
I both successfully recovered and are doing very well, but the chink
in my credit armor exists. In addition, like many folks, I had some
resolved items that had never been removed by the creditor several years
ago and the net result was a “borderline credit score.”
In the wake of mergers and acquisitions, decision-making regarding lending
has been reconciled to a few numbers evaluated by administrators in
cubicles far away from the lendees causing the further institutionalization
of banking and the removal of any authority or responsibility of staff
at the local level with greater understanding of the market and the
individual.
At the same time, I am in the real estate business, so I would like
to think I have a better understanding of the process of financing,
which includes appraisals, underwriters, secondary financing, etc. and
the numbers game they play.
While the process took longer than expected, I was never officially
quoted a rate until my appraisal was received, at which time I was informed
by my lender that Fannie Mae had been having an increase in default
rates with cash-out/re-fis. The combination of my borderline credit
score AND my property value, would require me to pay an extra half-point
in interest and an additional 1/8 point in closing costs for Fannie
Mae’s Expanded Approval with Timely Payment Rewards Program.
This suggested that if my home were simply six (6) blocks east, in Grosse
Pointe Park, its value would be more consistent with its actual worth.
It further suggests, that anybody seeking financing in a distressed
market (aka Detroit or other urban centers) is still not playing on
an even ball field with lenders and the institutional systems that support
them.
I wonder how Saul Olinsky would feel about that?
St.
Patrick’s Day Redux: A visit to Dublin, one of THE Cool
Cities
Courtesy
of Mike Hickey, Program Director, Revitalife
We arrived in Dublin on a cold, damp Sunday morning. Being Detroiters,
and used to a little "grit" in our lives, we were not surprised
when our first view of Ireland was an airport under construction. My
first impressions of Ireland have something to do with missing panels
from a "drop ceiling", looking at wires and bare light bulbs.
Well, this is like Detroit. That's the worst part of the story.
A
bus driver walked us to a bus, and we handed him a bunch of change,
because we couldn't count the money yet, like a couple of five-year-olds
taking the city bus to kindergarten. He threw in the correct amount,
and told the driver of our double-decker bus where to let us off, and
then, with a mixture of humor and pity, told us to get on the bus. We
had figured that out already, but we thanked him, anyway. What a nice
man...maybe.
The driver assumed a look of really polite disgust as we sat obediently
right behind him. After two tries of asking us questions; using some
form of English, he gave up, and read his Irish equivalent of the "National
Enquirer" at every stop light. We tried to look like seasoned and
cosmopolitan travelers, even though every Irish man and woman that morning
had our American number within seconds.
"No
more Burger King," I thought. "We're fatter than everyone
on this bus!" Besides, in Ireland, a Whopper Combo will cost you
about eight dollars. My self-conscious obsessions gave way to amazement
that every single person that got on the bus wished the driver a good
morning, and everyone that got off thanked him.
We were dropped off near our guesthouse, although we didn't know it
at the time, 'cuz it took us, over an hour to find it. The street was
completely closed down for Sunday morning, (but thriving by noon) and
we walked up and down and up and down with every pound of our luggage,
while a burglar alarm whined out over the ancient and used city street.
This is just like Detroit, only no steam vents. No biggie. I asked a
gentleman in a little car if he knew where Camden Place was. He didn't,
but, like a lot of Irish people, gave us directions anyway. But he came
back in his car like ten minutes later with exact instructions. To be
sure, this gent was feeling the pain of two lost lads, and felt really
bad that he couldn't direct us properly.
This is Ireland. It's a beautiful thing.
Dublin grew from the largest Viking City of its day to the "Silicon
Valley" of Europe. A city of around a million, with no building
over five stories, most of Dublin was built in the 1750's. It is the
largest city in Ireland, and twenty percent of Ireland's population
of over four million live there. One and a half million workers support
the entire country.
Renowned
for it's Georgian architecture, Dublin's townhouses, with their meticulously
painted front doors and brass trimmings; are filled with thriving businesses
and residences. The public transportation actually works, the retail
thrives, and it bustles with people and little cars.
It has lovely, emerald green, nineteenth century parks, and canals and
swans for the quieter moments. It is a survivor of occupation, oppression,
famine, and out-migration, and has survived to become an international
city that is enjoying its longest economic boom since its "Georgian
Renaissance"; one hears the languages of all nations and sees the
faces of the world. The nightlife isn't too bad, either. Go to one of
the friendly pubs and try a "Smithwick's" instead of a Guinness.
'Tis like Mother's milk, to be sure.
Dublin
is the home to Trinity College, founded in 1592, and is one of the oldest
Protestant Universities in the world. Founded by that heretic daughter
of a whore, Elizabeth I, known to the English as "Good Queen Bess",
it is the home of the famous "Book of Kells." Written around
800, by Irish Monks, it is one of the world's premiere masterpieces
in the art of manuscript illumination. A "must see" at Trinity
is the famous "Long Room" which houses the University's collection
of books up to about 1880. It also houses the famed harp of Brian Boru.
It is fascinating to see. It is a walk straight back in time.
Dublin is a city that abounds in amazing experiences, be it shopping,
culture, architecture, people, food, and excitement (they drive on the
left, by the way, so some of the excitement is just stepping off the
curb!). All of this, and you are only a half of an hour from the wild
green countryside and friendly villages of the Emerald Isle!
Guest Column: Historic Preservation in Michigan
Michigan
Historic Preservation Network (MHPN, the Network) is the statewide historic
preservation organization with over 2,000 members.
Our mission is:
1. To educate and create awareness of the value of Michigan’s
rich
cultural heritage and architectural history
2. To encourage preservation and stewardship of historic resources which
add strength
and vitality to Michigan’s communities
How do we accomplish our mission in an environment that favors rampant
sprawl and new construction over restoration of old buildings?
For
starters, MHPN holds its 24th Annual Conference in Rochester on April
22-23. Brad White, well-known activist and Vice President of LR Development
Company, LLC. will keynote the conference and he will be joined by our
Construction Trades Council’s (CTC) demonstrations and tours,
along with information sessions on current preservation issues. To register,
download the conference brochure by clicking
here or on the image to the right.
The conference also offers Historic District Commissioners and Study
Group Committee Workshops on Saturday, April 24. MHPN and CTC plan on
offering workshops throughout the state.
Building upon our recent success, we partnered with the Jackson HDC
to work in low- to moderate-income neighborhoods, where we educate residents
on how to apply practical preservation methods as a way of maintaining
their homes, while preserving the treasured historic character of the
neighborhood.
Hands-on workshops are offered to residents in painting, window restoration,
masonry and other repair. Through local partnerships, this Network project
integrates historic preservation tools with traditional community development
to initiate grassroots, development-friendly preservation.
MHPN has recently worked with local preservation groups in Detroit and
the National Trust for Historic Preservation (NTHP) to save the Madison
Lenox Hotel. Our perspective was recently published in a
feature in the Detroit Free Press.
A Field Representative will soon join our staff in early April as a
result of a grant from the Americana Foundation and the NTHP. This will
allow for more effective and responsive support to local communities
and projects, and greater advocacy across the state. The Network’s
Public Policy committee is taking an active role, along with the State
Historic Preservation Office, is pursuing state legislation to mandate
preservation plans and historic resource surveys in planning at the
township and municipal level.
On the national level, MHPN is working with Michigan’s federal
representatives to protect historic, cultural, recreational, wildlife
and park resources that receive special attention under Section 4(f)
of the Department of Transportation Act of 1966. The Senate is currently
considering changes that would weaken Section 4(f). The Network’s
aggressive letter and phone campaign was recently followed by Preservation
Day when I and several other MHPN leaders visited Washington. We are
confident our efforts were successful.
Historic resources are essential to maintain a rich economic and cultural
life in Michigan. Join our efforts to sustain and promote Michigan’s
historic resources by becoming a member of the Network. See you in Rochester!
By Nancy Finegood, Executive
Director of the Michigan Historic Preservation Network.