Many cities have initiated a variety of steps to renew the inner city. Baltimore was able to pull off a respectable renewal of their waterfront area in the 1990s with the completion of Camden Yard and the Ravens football stadium (http://www.mdoe.org/urbanrenewinnerharb.html). The 16th Street Mall and LoDo redevelopment in Denver is another success story. Most of these initiatives revolve around replacing or renovating buildings. Detroit's idea of urban renewal is quite radical, replacing buildings with high tech farms.
Article supporting Farming Detroit: http://money.cnn.com/2009/12/29/news/economy/farming_detroit.fortune/index.htm?cnn=yes
Article against Farming Detroit: http://www.fastcompany.com/1571975/farming-the-city-in-order-to-save-it-demolishing-density-in-detroit
Article Farming Detroit: http://www.guernicamag.com/spotlight/1182/food_among_the_ruins/
If this idea moves forward, Detroit should consider adopting the Zero Waste Zone concepts that Atlanta has implemented (Zero Waste Zone Blog Entry). In particular, the idea of composting the waste food from restaurants and using this as fertilizer for the urban farms.
What do people think about locally grown food vs. dependence on importing food from other states or internationally?
It seems like all other ideas to revitalize Detroit (for example the casinos) have failed. Do people think that farming could help bring jobs back to Detroit, bring families back to Detroit, and be beneficial to the community?
