Detroit Works Project outlines plan for city's future

DETROIT (WXYZ) - The Detroit Works Project has unveiled a 340 page report that is designed to serve as a guide for decision-making in the city for the next 50 years.

Detroit 2020 got a preview of the report. It has recommendations for creating job growth, developing vibrant neighborhoods and using vacant land productively. There are also 21st century strategies for using land to clean our air and water.

The process began with extensive input from the public. Tens of thousands of people were reached through neighborhood meetings, community outreach and telephone town halls.

Then experts from the public and private sector were brought together to use that information and demographic data to develop the document that’s being called “Detroit Future City.”

The framework looks at five major areas of future development in Detroit. One is the investment in seven employment districts where job creation would be concentrated. One would be the McNichols Corridor where there is already a large presence of education and medical jobs. Land use would also be a big part of the plan.

New 21st century systems would use vacant land to help address water and air quality issues. And there are plans for a city of distinct and regionally competitive neighborhoods.

The vision also calls for different forms of open space within the city and the re-working of city systems to serve the public more effectively and more efficiently.

The Detroit Future City is more of a vision than a concrete plan. Government regulations will need to change to accomplish much of the work. And money is a big question.

Still, the vision is one many Detroiters would love to see in the years ahead.

This is all the result of more than two years of work. More details will be outlined at the news conference with Mayor Bing and others on Wednesday. Then a series of open houses is scheduled to give citizens a chance to learn more about this comprehensive framework for change. The first is at 2 p.m. Wednesday afternoon at the team’s headquarters on Russell Street near Eastern Market.