A few years ago, I began to think about tourist places that recreate
life in previous eras. Some examples are Plimoth Plantation (which represents
life in 1627), Colonial Williamsburg (the years leading up to the American
Revolution) and Old Sturbridge Village (representing 1790 to 1840). I know
there are also recreations of towns in the Old West. I began to wonder when some
more recent time periods might be preserved/recreated to illustrate life during
some more recent eras.
Then it
occurred to me that such a “historical village” could play a part in the
recovery of Detroit.
I do not
live in Detroit so I am not very familiar with it or its neighborhoods.
However, I am an urban planner interested in urban development issues. I began
to think about the fact that the City of Detroit has declined to such a point
that it is contemplating bulldozing large areas of the city in order to restore
the land as farm land and/or natural areas. Then the two concepts merged in my
head. Instead of bulldozing all of those neighborhoods, why not save some of
them in order to create a “historic village” representing some time period that
is more recent than exists now. It would make use of existing infrastructure,
preserve (hopefully) some buildings of architectural significance, and create a
tourist attraction that would boost the economy of Detroit.
As for
the appropriate time period, that could be determined by persons more familiar
with Detroit and its history than I am. However, my initial recommendation is
that it be the 1920's when the auto industry was growing like crazy, and it is
a popular era in the history of the country as a whole. It was the period of
greatest growth in Detroit as the 1920 population of 993,678 increased to
1,568,662 by 1930 (the increase during this decade equals about 80% of the 2010
population of 713,777). Surely, some of the areas now slated for demolition
were developed during this era.
Several
blocks could be preserved and restored to a 1920's-style atmosphere. Houses
would be decorated and furnished in 1920's style. Storefronts (and the interior
of stores and offices) would be restored to reflect that time period. Actors
would portray residents of the time. A factory or two could also be part of the
plan (and, not incidentally, an educational component could illustrate the role
of the labor movement in stimulating the prosperity of the era), as well as
schools.
Some of
the housing could be transformed into hotels so visitors could get a real feel
for life in the 1920's. There could be an option for visitors to assume roles
of 1920’s persons as can be done at Plimoth Plantation. Of course, bars and
restaurants would be part of the plan as well. Live performances of musicians
playing songs of the area could be featured. The neighborhood could become an
important tourist destination and create hundreds of jobs and generate
significant tax revenue.
If
successful, the concept could be expanded to adjacent areas to represent other time
periods (early 1800's, post-Civil War, etc.) And finally, there could be a
section on what the future of Detroit might look like.
Colonial
Williamsburg includes about 500 buildings and 300 acres. This is the sort of
scale I envision.
The
universities would be good resources to help design this concept. It could be
operated as City initiative, a private. non-profit organization, or as a
private enterprise. There could perhaps be a research component for the
universities as well.
Developing
such a facility would a huge investment, but it create many jobs both during
construction and in operations. I think it would be a popular attraction that
would increase tourism to the city significantly.
