[riceadam]

Being from Detroit, it's great to see young tech companies springing up in the city but I think that video Knoxville did with Palladium Boots sugar coats things a bit too much. Hipsters starting underground bars/clubs and photographing urban decay is not going to revive the city.

A plan for a $500m railway was recently approved and I can't see any way it's going to be successful in its first phase. My main issue with the proposal as it is now is the fact that the line only extends to 8 mile.

For those of you unfamiliar with the city, the mile roads lie parallel to the Detroit River and span outwards all the way into rural areas. Driving into the city, things start to go downhill fast around 8 mile -- which is why everyone knows what it is now thanks to Eminem's movie. If I'm going to a sporting event or casino from my house in the burbs, I'm not going to drive 15 minutes to 8 mile, park my car in a shady parking lot, and get on a train when I could just drive another 15 minutes instead.

Anyway, for this new train venture to be even remotely successful I think the track would have to extend to at least 12 mile if the city is looking for an influx of wealthy suburbanites.