We had been talking about taking an afternoon to do a Detroit Walkabout on his next trip down. The weather was cooperative and off we went.
Our first stop was the Russell Industrial Center.
The Russell Complex is an interesting and uniquely 'Detroit' example of Adaptive Re-use. I can't think of many other cities with so many massive abandoned industrial buildings. But what's happening at Russell is pretty cool, and hopefully a harbinger of good things to come, for a few reasons;
Firstly, Artists are typically pioneers in cases involving Adaptive Re-use and the very early stages of economic redevelopment, and this is no exception. Apparently there are about 140 artists studios in the Russell Complex in addition to the Bazaar.
The Bazaar is interesting for a few reasons. There is a pretty broad mix of sellers/merchants as well as a few services like a traditional Barbershop and a few food stalls. Overall, there is kind of a cheap, flea-market feel to the place overall, but the whole project is still in the very early stages of gaining 'acceptance' with a broader audience and clientele, and is definitely a step in the right direction for the City of Detroit.
Sellers are generally very friendly and you get the sense that everyone is welcome, regardless of race. This has not always been the case in Detroit.
Also, there is a lot of parking space - given that the site is an enormous, abandoned factory that built Bombers during the Second World War - so that works well for 'curious suburbanites' who might not otherwise take the trouble of checking it out.
You can't help being a bit overwhelmed by the sense of scale here. Driving into the complex - you enter through a cavernous gateway carved into the side of the factory and into an enormous 'courtyard' which is like a canyon made of red brick.
We wandered into one of the artists buildings and then into the public bazaar, but that must have been just the smallest fraction of the whole complex. I'm sure much of it is still vacant.
Longer term, I wonder if the sheer size of the place will work for it or against it. Right now, there is a very cool sense of 'pioneering' to the place that I'm sure will start to fade - or maybe it already is fading - as more people discover the place and more artists, craftspeople and merchants set up shop.
The balancing act between sustainability and "keeping it real" is hardly a new theme in the history of neighborhood redevelopment and gentrification - you need a critical mass of cool people to make the neighborhood or the project viable, but the second, third and fourth waves that bring Starbucks with them kill some of that pioneering feel and commoditize the "heart and soul" brought by that first wave.
I can't say that I have very strong feelings on the topic of gentrification. I'm sure if I lived in New York, Chicago or Toronto and I saw yuppies (or whoever the bad guys are now) moving into the neighborhood I loved, bringing Whole Foods and Four-Dollar-Latte places and doubling my cost of living, I'd be pissed. I would feel like I spent all day in the kitchen cooking, and they barge in, eat everything I've prepared before I even have a chance to taste it, then act like I'm not there.
But, I'm from Windsor, and just to contrast 40 years of neighborhood abandonment, car-centric Sprawl Planning and the thoughtless and systematic demolition of beautiful and historically significant structures, I would welcome a bit of gentrification with open arms.
On our way out, we stopped and asked a security guard for directions to the Packard Plant. We had the bug - We wanted to see more industrial decreptitude.
Next - Hamtramck & The Packard Plant
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