Metro
The Suburbs from page A17
version of Mayor Young's Detroit
People Mover system, only this time
an actual train that will run north on
the Woodward Avenue median from
downtown to the Wayne campus,
and maybe some day all the way to
Pontiac:' he said.
"We obtaining private money and
matching county and state funds
and hope to open the first phase by
2011."
He said the city is "taking the ini-
tiative and aiming to fix up" several
neighborhoods, including the Grand
River-Greenfield area and the Seven-
Mile-Livernois "Avenue of Fashion:'
familiar to many Jewish shoppers who
popularized the stores in the 1940s-
50s.
"Our Detroit Neighborhood
Initiative is aimed at cleanliness,
safety and beautification and will help
improve everyone's quality of life he
said.
Audience Reaction
A skeptical Max Goldman of
Farmington Hills later said of
Kilpatrick, "He's dynamic and clever
and sounds real good — so how come
Detroit looks to be in such a terrible
condition?"
Added Anita Volk of West
Bloomfield: "He's very candid about
everything and seems to be doing
a great job, but I don't think he sees
the many gaps in Detroit's condition,
especially the school problems."
Phyllis Young of West Bloomfield
said, "It's all a matter of perception."
Debbie Silverman of West
Bloomfield, a teacher at Detroit's Cass
Tech High School, complained to
the mayor that the school lacks text-
books; many students are on drugs
and homeless people are all around
the premises."I know there are huge
problems with the school system, but
there also are many successes:' replied
Kilpatrick, who is an alumnus of Cass
Tech, which now is in a $140 million,
Fighting Back
Kilpatrick recalled how he was told by state-of-the-art facility
"The teachers union has to step
aides on inauguration day of his first
up and make some changes. We have
term that "we have no money!" and
several blue ribbon schools, like King,
that the city was $25 million in debt
Denby and Mumford high schools; 96
with a $96 million deficit.
percent of Mumford graduates now go
"My first four years in office were
on to college."
very tough, but we turned the tables:'
Kilpatrick chided the Detroit news-
he exuded.
papers and television channels for
"We now have 37 new parks, seven
"continued negative coverage of every-
new hotels, three permanent casinos;
we've fixed many streets, torn down as thing I do',' saying the daily newspaper
many old houses as the budget allows, editors have told him they sell many
more papers when "I'm on the front
hiring more police, and reducing
page."
expenses in general. Detroit receives
He said, "the investigative TV
11 percent of all casino revenues daily
reporters follow me everywhere. Also,
— they deliver the money to us at 3
I've been sued more times in five years
p.m. every day. And the new MGM is
than any official in the city's history. I
raking in about $2 million a day now
— even more than its Las Vegas coun- hosted the U.S. Conference of Mayors
meeting last week to work on the
terpart."
home foreclosure problem, and they
Citing Michigan's sluggish econ-
couldn't get over the negativity of the
omy, Kilpatrick said: "Usually, when
TV news reporting."
Michigan catches cold, Detroit gets
Agreed Marian Feldman of West
pneumonia; but we're trying to stay
Bloomfield: "The TV's never show
healthy. Years ago, you could almost
see tumbleweed in parts of downtown Detroit in a positive way. I was very
impressed by the mayor. He has done
because it was sparse; now, the area
a tremendous job:'
is filled with people and restaurants
Florence LoPatin of Bloomfield
on weekends, especially Campus
Hills, vice president of program-
Martius."
ming for IRP, which has more than
Detroit has renovated 75 structures
300 members and conducts about 30
and added 80 businesses in the past
classes weekly, was instrumental in
five years. Kilpatrick downplayed the
bringing Kilpatrick to the JCC.
most dangerous city" label hung on
"We want well-known speakers
Detroit by a national organization
on hot topics:' she explained. "Some
recently, saying, "that was based on
people told me he would never come
polls, not FBI crime statistics. We've
here. I contacted his office, explained
been hiring about 600 police officers
who we are, sent them some informa-
to help increase police visibility for
tion — and here he is." LI
our citizens."
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December 6 • 2007
A19