What happens to the land after abandonment in the neighborhoods ofDetroit? Are the nascent traces of reappropriation and reuse signs of recovery, care, and belonging? Or is the uneven extent of recovery signaling yet another manifestation of increasing inequality? Our research examines five neighborhoods in Detroit largely characterized by the surplus of vacant land, the withdrawal of municipal services, disinvestment, and the continued loss of population and business base. Despite what might look like similar neglected urban landscapes, the production of decline in these neighborhoods has, in fact, diverged along alternative pathways. Our research addresses three interrelated questions:first, how can we account for the historical specificity that has characterized the patterns of sustained decline in these five neighborhoods; second, how can we explain the quite dissimilar responses to the resulting processes of abandonment; and third, how can we give visibility to the emergent traces of reuse and their constructed narratives of recovery, their agents of change and their distinct temporalities.

The investigation constructs layered profiles of five neighborhoods–Brightmoor, Delray, Poletown East, Mappleridge, and Riverbend–to give visibility to the alternate future imaginaries projected by the embryonic signs of recovery and grassroots stability. To shape these narratives of place, our research project uses a mixed-methods approach consisting of (1) ethnographic fieldwork; (2) mapping; (3) archival work and review of planning documents, public journalism pieces, and other media outlets; and (4) collection and data visualization of quantitative data on land use change patterns, property ownership, housing costs, and foreclosures.

Photo credit for slideshow images goes to Khary Frazier, and Tafari Stevenson-Howard, Justice Oshiyoye, and the Detroit after Abandonment team.