Detroit Free Press: Private groups push Detroit ahead | Freep.com

"That so outpaces anything else," said Michael Brennan, president of the United Way for Southeastern Michigan. "We're always going to have other things that will add to the pain in the region, but I think the economic contraction by far is the single largest driver causing the region to work, behave and move in a different fashion."

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Our Inclusion Problem

Detroit vs Suburbs. Oakland vs. Macomb. Black vs. White. Young vs. Old. Union vs. Management. Republican vs. Democrat. You vs. me. And the list goes on.

Read the papers. Talk to others. The common consensus – us vs. them, them vs. us.

Leadership Next members have been doing a lot of brainstorming lately; a lot of discussing and a lot of learning. A common theme binding this brainstorming, these discussions, this learning: a need for inclusive leadership in Southeast Michigan.

Leadership that recognizes and appreciates differences; but strives for consensus and the common good of all in the region, not petty political, geographic or corporate interests. Leadership that unites, not divides. Leadership that presents, accepts and implements long term solutions to systemic problems; and leadership that has the guts to build bridges across communities, races, special interests and generations.

Promoting and encouraging a culture of inclusive leadership in Southeast Michigan, and doing so requires more than brainstorming, talking and learning. It requires strategy, partnerships, knowledge, engagement, courage.

Over the next year, Leadership Next will deep dive into the world of inclusive leadership. It will share examples of inclusive leadership that is working in the region; will offer opportunities for members to refine leadership skills; and it will promote inclusive leadership through leading by example. Humility and action will be key. Look for partnerships, events, initiatives and opportunities to further this theme.

Matt Clayson,
Chair of Leadership Next

One D largely unknown to Southeast Michigan execs

One D largely unknown to Southeast Michigan execs

Source: Crain's Detroit Business
By: Sheena Harrison
Published: 6:00 am, June 11, 2007

Most Southeast Michigan business executives polled in the EPIC/MRA survey conducted for Crain's Detroit Business and Honigman Miller Schwartz and Cohn L.L.P. say they've never heard of One D, but believe the initiative will be effective.

According to the survey, 73 percent said they had never heard of One D, which is a group of six organizations working together on priorities for the region: the Detroit Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau, the Detroit Regional Chamber, Detroit Renaissance, New Detroit, United Way for Southeastern Michigan and the Cultural Alliance of Southeastern Michigan.

Its five priorities are economic prosperity, educational preparedness, regional transit, race relations and quality of life.

Once the goals and partners of One D were explained to survey respondents, 60 percent said they expected One D to be effective in achieving its goals.


A third of respondents said they expect One D will be only slightly effective or not effective at all.

Marcie Brogan, CEO of Brogan & Partners Convergence Marketing in Birmingham, said she's surprised more people aren't aware of One D since she said local media outlets have been reporting about the initiative.

She believes interactive marketing, such as Web sites and blogs, may help spread the word.

— Sheena Harrison

Edsel Ford: Make regionalism "a way of life"

Source: Crain's Detroit Business
By: Bill Shea and Jennette Smith
Published: June 04, 2007

MACKINAC ISLAND — An opening session for the Mackinac Policy Conference served as a rallying cry for the One D collaborative effort with participants urging more business and government leaders to join in.

In his opening remarks Wednesday, One D champion Edsel Ford asked for audience members to make regionalism a way of life. Afterward, a panel of members from the participating groups in One D discussed progress and challenges.

“Parts working together in harmony is an apt description of the communities of the Detroit region, when we are at our very best,” Ford said. “The way we pulled together for last year's Super Bowl is just one recent example. But that was an effort built around an occasion. For the communities of regional Detroit to shine their brightest, we need more than an occasional effort ... we need to embrace regionalism. We need to make it a way of life.”

For One D, a group of six regional civic groups that are working together on five priorities for the region, to succeed, each organization needs to exhibit organizational selflessness, Ford said. The groups behind One D are the Detroit Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau, the Detroit Regional Chamber, Detroit Renaissance, New Detroit, United Way for Southeastern Michigan and the Cultural Alliance of Southeastern Michigan.

The five priorities are economic prosperity, educational preparedness, regional transit, race relations and quality of life, with regional collaboration as an umbrella over all.

Maud Lyon, founding director of the Cultural Alliance, said “One D is about eliminating duplication of efforts.”

And, by laying regionalism over the top with Ford as “the guru of regional collaboration” Richard Blouse, president and CEO of the Detroit Regional Chamber, said the inter-related priorities can move along faster.

Doug Rothwell, president of Detroit Renaissance, said the five priorities are at different stages of evolution and some will require more change. And Michael Brennan, president and CEO of the United Way, compared the region's movement to a One D framework to a technology upgrade.

“We've operated for a long time on DOS,” he said. “We're trying to move to Windows.”


Ford, when interviewed after the panel discussion, said One D next needs to get more corporate leaders, nonprofit leaders and elected officials behind the effort. County executives, for example, would be a great addition. Ideally, Ford said, even after progress is made on priorities, the One D work plan can be updated and continue instead of disbanding.

“The theory is: This is a process,” he said.

For now, until more specifics about business support are announced, supporters can speak positively about the region and find ways to collaborate more often, panelists said.

One element has already been made public is the “Road To Renaissance” regional economic revitalization plan from Detroit Renaissance, the CEO council representing the region's largest employers. That effort, which has a $75 million-$80 million price tag, was rolled out in November. It identified six economic revitalization goals for the region, and 11 strategies to accomplish those objectives were made public on May 1. (See story, Page M65.)

One D has what it calls numerous supporting organizations involved in its specific efforts, said Christina Lovio-George, president and CEO of Lovio George Inc., which was hired to handle media relations for One D. Those include Ann Arbor Spark, Automation Alley and the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments, and is in talks with others, such as the Metropolitan Affairs Coalition.

Paul Tait, executive director of SEMCOG and president of MAC, said talks remain under way to get MAC involved in the One D effort. MAC is a regional public-private partnership that promotes quality of life and economic issues in the region.

“There needs to be a way for the other organizations to engage with One D,” Tait said. “All of those organizations need to make sure we're all working from a complimentary playbook.”

The notion of regional collaboration is driving force for all of One D's efforts, said Dick Blouse, president and CEO of the Detroit Regional Chamber

“One D is built on two pretty simply pinnacles — it's essential the region stands above any one municipality; the region has to be what's looked at as what is best for the region,” he said. “Secondly, all of us will learn to think that way. That's a huge change. It's saying, "How does what I do affect the region?' ”

The Michigan Minority Business Development Council is participating in One D's regional transit objective, said Louis Green, the council's president and CEO who said the importance of regional collaboration can't be stressed enough.

“Regionalism is a necessity if we are going to quickly emerge from the business malaise we're experiencing. We are only going to be successful as a region,” he said. “I don't see it yet, and what I'm hoping to see is people acting, speaking regionally.”

Green said his 2,500-member organization is happy to be involved because minority-owned businesses are an overlooked force in the region.

“We're not often part of these conversations,” he said.

One D is “deliberate in effort to not try to plan for everyone in the region,” Rothwell said. By limiting things, that helps eliminate the main criticism of regional plans in the past — money from the suburbs being siphoned to fix Detroit.

“Work in the past on regionalism has tended to gravitate toward win-lose scenarios: One community benefits at the expense of another,” he said. “That is a reason why this initiative can work so well — all priorities benefit the entire region; they certainly don't hurt anyone.”

What's next is “taking it to the next level” Rothwell said. In other words, finding additional outside organizations that can collaborate with the six charter organizations.

“Mackinac is the vehicle for allowing that to happen,” Rothwell said.

The Road To Renaissance plan, which includes significant elements from the chamber's study, is the major contribution to One D from Detroit Renaissance, Rothwell said, so he'll be on the island to tout the overall effort, network and answer questions.

“Right now, what we're trying to get across is, we haven't had anything like this before. This is a big first step for the region,” he said.

Bill Shea: (313) 446-1626, bshea@ crain.com

Jennette Smith: (313) 446-0414, jhsmith@crain.com

One D or bust

Source: Detroit Free Press
By: RON DZWONKOWSKI, FREE PRESS COLUMNIST
Published: June 3, 2007

Strategy must bring meaning to regional cooperation

MACKINAC ISLAND -- If you did not spend the past few days in meeting rooms at the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island, you have probably never heard of something called One D: Transforming Regional Detroit. And maybe you never will.

You're supposed to feel it.

"This is a movement we are trying to create," said Doug Rothwell, president of Detroit Renaissance, one of the six founding organizations of One D.

"This is like going from a DOS operating system to Windows," said Mike Brennan, president of United Way for Southeastern Michigan, another founder.

"It might be five years before you see the needle move on some of these issues, but it's going to happen," promised Maud Lyon, founding director of the Cultural Alliance of Southeastern Michigan.

What, exactly?

That's a fair question, since this One D thing hardly marks the first effort to pull the Detroit region together, nor the first to be rolled out in a big way at the annual Mackinac conference of the Detroit Regional Chamber, another of the founding organizations. Why is this one going to be different?

The leaders of the organizations involved -- the others are New Detroit and the Detroit Metro Convention and Visitors Bureau -- understand the question and the skepticism they face. But they appeared undaunted at meeting after meeting during the conference, insisting they have achieved a new level of cooperation and that now, in these tough times, is when change must begin.

That may be the best case they can make even if they can't say it too loudly because it sounds threatening. But we are threatened. We're in bad shape, in danger of becoming an economic backwater, and nothing in the current power structure can fix it. Something's got to give, and it might as well be all those old barriers that have impeded progress for so many decades.

Even if you don't know what One D is, you know where those barriers are: between city and suburb, black and white, Republican and Democrat, have and have-not, plus along county lines, city and township borders, and between the Detroit region and the rest of Michigan. Those barriers generate suspicion, closed-mindedness and a me-first instead of we-first attitude that has blocked movement on such basic things as a coordinated, comprehensive bus system.

Dick Blouse, CEO of the Detroit Regional Chamber, noted that the Chamber first adopted a resolution 40 years ago in support of regional mass transit. That's four decades. And today, more people than ever drive themselves to work every day and grumble about the traffic while those who take the bus have a harder time than ever getting where they need to go. That's progress?

One D: Transforming Regional Detroit has staked out six areas for measurable progress, with "measurable" being a key word. After all, if nothing changes, nothing changes, so this group needs to be all about results.

The areas are economic prosperity, with goals including job growth in the upper fourth of the nation's 50 largest metro areas; educational preparedness, with goals including high school graduation rates in the top half of the nation's 20 largest metro areas; quality of life, with goals including "fully sustainable arts, cultural and social service organizations"; and race relations, with one goal of increasing positive media coverage of the region's diversity; and the aforementioned regional transit. On that last, the goal isn't this specific, but the first thing needed is an end to the ability of communities to opt out of the SMART system. Bus service is never going to be regional if buses have to keep going around the likes of Livonia and Novi.

One D deliberately kept government agencies out of its structure because it intends to be a one-voice advocate for public policies that are consistent with economic development in the region. And government tends to start from what you can't do instead of what you can.

Edsel Ford II has been named to lead a Champions Council that is charged with evaluating One D's progress on each of its priorities and issuing an annual report. Here's hoping he issues more than one, because this region ran out of excuses for not changing a long time ago and now is running out of options.

"Regionalism is the only way we will be able to compete in a global economy," Ford said in a speech to the conference. "That is the essence of our motivation to act and think differently."

That, and a healthy measure of fear.

RON DZWONKOWSKI is editor of the Free Press editorial page. Contact him at dzwonk@freepress.com or 313-222-6635.

MACKINAC 2007: Improving race relations up to leaders, author says

Source: Crain's Detroit Business
By: Sheena Harrison
Published: June 01, 2007 5:28PM

MACKINAC ISLAND — Detroit has had a long history of racism and segregation that will continue to burden the region’s future if business and community leaders don’t step up to promote understanding between communities, said Kevin Boyle, a Detroit native and author of Arc of Justice.

The book, which was distributed to all Mackinac Policy Conference attendees, details the history of racial divisions in Detroit based on the murder trial of Ossian Sweet, a black physician who faced murder charges in 1925 for defending his Detroit home against a mob intent on keeping a neighborhood all white.

During a speech at the conference Friday afternoon, Boyle said Detroit’s early segregation history led up to the Detroit riots of 1967 — an event he said still plays into the region’s race relations.

Promoting racial understanding in metro Detroit means people must make a conscious effort to move forward from the past, Boyle said.

“We Detroiters continue to carry the heavy weight of our segregationist past, and it is an awesome burden,” he said. “We can shrug it off, but only if we’re willing to try.”

A panel of business leaders agreed that area leaders need to follow through on race-relations discussions by taking action in their community.

“We need to get beyond some of the rhetoric and break down barriers,” said Reginald Turner, member of law firm Clark Hill plc in Detroit.

“It is every one of our responsibilities to contribute to having a healthy community,” said Sandra Pierce, president and CEO of Charter One Bank in Michigan and Indiana.

Anthony Earley Jr., CEO of DTE Energy Co., said he believes the One D initiative is a step in the right direction because it includes multiple partners and aims to improve race relations as one of its goals.

“This integration of various factors is one of the reasons I believe One D has it right,” Earley said.

MACKINAC 2007: Big Five debate how region can compete

Source: Crain's Detroit Business
By: Amy Lane
Published: June 01, 2007 5:18PM

MACKINAC ISLAND — The traditional Big Five session at the Detroit Regional Chamber’s Mackinac Policy Conference generated few sparks but covered issues shared by leaders of the Detroit region, including collaboration, workforce development and transportation.

The topics included:

* The One D collaborative effort and regionalism. Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson, Macomb County Commission Chairman William Crouchman, Wayne County Exeutive Robert Ficano and Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick expressed support, and Windsor Mayor Eddie Francis said he applauds the effort. “You’ve achieved something that is remarkable, and that is bringing everybody together to speak with one voice for the region.”
“Investors abroad look at us as one region. When I’m out there promoting, I’m promoting the Detroit-Windsor area.”

Said Ficano: “It’s only when we really consolidate our resources as a region, that we’re going to be able to compete.”

*On the state’s moves to shore up its fiscal problems, and the possibility of future revenue-sharing cuts, Kilpatrick said the city has endured past losses in revenue sharing by looking for “creative ways” that include government reforms, cutting expenses and raising fees. Even so, he said, “I think everybody here has sustained their bond rating, while the state has not. I want them to leave me alone; it’s their problem.”

* On the role of the news media in shaping the region’s image, Kilpatrick said electronic media focuses on crime in Detroit and then “balloon day” in St. Clair Shores. He also criticized media decisions that dispatched reporters to follow his every move while Ficano could freely travel to Europe or Asia on trade missions. “It’s tied to that race thing we have to work on in the region,” Kilpatrick said, referring to an earlier conference session.

Ficano said the image shaped by news media affects young adults’ decisions on whether to live and work in the region.

* On preparing future workforces. Crouchman said Macomb County has dipped into its own general fund to replace the elimination of federal funds for retraining auto workers, and while the auto industry continues to be an important part of the county’s structure, “we realize that we’ve got to diversify. It’s absolutely essential.” For example, the county has added many new jobs in medical and service industries, he said.

Patterson highlighted his efforts to identify and attract emerging business sectors. He also said Oakland County school districts are teaching Mandarin, and “I think long term, and we stay with that program and the kids learn the basics of the society, culture…the kids will be in a position to compete.”

While some of the themes discussed during the Big 5 and other conference sessions were repetitive about regional collaboration, workforce development and other issues, some attendees said they felt the idea-sharing was productive.

“You never know what’s really going to work,” said Tom Shields, president of Lansing-based Marketing Resource Group Inc. “Sharing your best ideas is good…non of them (the panelists) are immune to the negative economic forces that have taken place in the state.”

* On the state budget. Patterson and Kilpatrick agreed that radical changes to state employee benefit packages needed to happen. And Kilpatrick even suggested health savings accounts rather than conventional medical coverage for state employees.

Jennette Smith contributed to this story.

One D talks transport, quality of life

Source: Mackinac Policy Conference Coverage blog

By: WWJ and the Great Lakes IT Report
Published: May 31, 2007

The One D regional economic development continued Thursday morning at the Detroit Regional Chamber’s Mackinac Policy Conference with a breakfast meeting of the One D leadership team.

The session covered the five initiatives of the One D effort – economic prosperity, educational preparedness, quality of life, race relations and regional transit.

Educational preparedness and regional transit received the most sharp commentary.

The educational preparedness effort includes a benchmark of getting every child in the region to read at grade level. Michael Brennan, president and CEO of the United Way for Southeastern Michigan, likened the effort that will require to the effort surrounding Super Bowl XL in 2006.

“Edsel (Ford II) said yesterday that we’re pretty good at mobilizing for events like the Super Bowl,” Brennan said. “We coordinated volunteers at the United Way. We had 8,000 volunteers, with 2,000 more on a waiting list, to stand on street corners in the rain to direct people to Ford Field that they (the volunteers) weren’t even going to get close to. Meanwhile, we have 8,000 third graders not reading at grade level. This is a changeable condition. It’s a matter of recruiting the mentors. We can do this.”

As for regional transportation, Detroit Regional Chamber president and CEO Richard E. Blouse Jr. blasted the region’s lack of a true regional transit system.

Blouse said he’s visited sophisticated, integrated air-rail-bus transit systems in cities from Amsterdam to Frankfort, Germany to Beijing to Seoul to Hyderabad, and he’s come away with the dispiriting thought that “We’re dead. These people are decades ahead of us.”

Blouse said that means that “We have to do it (regional transit) and we have to do it now. This is ridiculous. It’s time we put the things that stand in the way aside. A regional transit system has to go to all communities. This opt-out thing is the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard of. You can’t have a regional transit system if one community in the middle can opt out of it.”

As for race relations, panelists pointed out that race is less and less an issue for the young, and that those for whom it’s still a problem need to learn to celebrate diversity.

And the group said the region needs to learn to give itself enough credit for a quality of life that includes plenty of parks, lakes, health institutions and low living costs.

“All of us have lost economic development projects to one place or another because somebody perceived the quality of life as being superior somewhere else,” Blouse said. “Quality of life needs to be elevated as a priority, to be raised in terms of understanding quality of life and its importance to economic prosperity.”

One D leaders rally support for plan

Source: The Detroit News
By: David Josar
Published: Thursday, May 31, 2007

MACKINAC ISLAND -- Leaders of One D made their last effort Friday at the Mackinac Policy Conference to rally support for the newest effort to spur success in Metro Detroit.

"We have to behave as a region and constantly do that and monitor each other," said Maud Lyon, counsel for Cultural Alliance of Southeastern Michigan, one of the six major civic groups steering One D.

One D will now look for other organizations to partner with as they start putting their plan into motion.

Lyon said One D wants ideas that span the region and address One D's mission of improving economic prosperity, educational preparation, quality of life, race relations and regional transit. Goals include increasing per capita income, making sure every child reads at grade-level and implementing a regional transportation system.

"We're going to see some critical mass of people who want to contribute," said Michael J. Brennan, president of United Way of Southeastern Michigan, another of the founding One D members.

One D has a steep road to reach success because their path before has been littered with failure. The issues the group wants to address have for decades been targeted for improvement, often by the same organizations now leading One D, and are still problems. On that list of chronic failures is regional transportation and improved race relations.

For now, about 500 people at a Friday breakfast meeting on the final day of the Mackinac Policy Conference were solicited to contact One D with their ideas.

Four public sessions are to be announced in the next two months to inform more people about One D in Metro Detroit.

Those at the breakfast meeting were also told to begin thinking how they can integrate a new marketing drive and "brand" identity started by the Detroit Metro Convention and Visitor Bureau to attract 21-34 year olds.

The logo for the brand is an English-style "D" that floats above the words "cars," "culture," "gaming," "music," and "sports."

TV spots will start this summer in Grand Rapids and Cleveland touting the city as a place for young people to visit.

Lyon said tourism is akin to cleaning up your house for visitors. Not only do you have to spiff it up, she said, but you also have to promote the good and not focus on the bad.

The other groups working on One D include Detroit Renaissance, Detroit Metro Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Detroit Regional Chamber and New Detroit.

You can reach David Josar at (313) 222-2073 or djosar@detnews.com.

One D: Public input key to success

Source: The Detroit News
By: David Josar
Published: Thursday, May 31, 2007

Group of six Metro organizations plan to gather feedback as they work to improve region.

MACKINAC ISLAND -- Promising that One D, a consortium of six powerful Metro Detroit civic organizations, would succeed in improving the region in areas where other groups have failed, Edsel B. Ford II vowed there would be annual public report cards of progress.

"We need to make cooperation an ongoing way of life," said Ford, the point person for One D, whose members include the Cultural Alliance of Southeastern Michigan, The Detroit Metro Convention and Visitors Bureau, Detroit Regional Chamber, Detroit Renaissance, New Detroit and the United Way of Southeastern Michigan.

The group's goals would be steered by already-completed surveys of roughly 10,000 area residents, he said. The surveys, administered by the individual groups, found five areas residents agreed are important: economic prosperity, educational preparation, quality of life, race relations and regional transit.

"This vision is not by us, but it's by the community," said Maud Lyon, counsel for the Cultural Alliance. "It's about elimination of duplication -- when we go to Washington, it's together."

One D will be a major focus of this year's Detroit Regional Chamber's Mackinac Policy Conference with sessions daily on what the group can do to execute its goals.

By working together, One D hopes to have the region's private sector speak as one voice, whether in Lansing or Detroit; get private-sector funding to back their plans; and foster foundations, businesses and other groups to work together.

Being willing to share the group's successes and failures with the region is one way to ensure progress is made, Ford said.

Ford said the group's members looked at how regions in Charlotte, Denver, Philadelphia and Houston worked together successfully.

"If they can do it, the region that put the world on wheels surely can do it," he said.

Roughly 1,700 business, union, civic and political leaders kicked off the annual Detroit Regional Chamber's Mackinac Policy Conference on Wednesday.

In the past, the three-day session held at the posh Grand Hotel, had come up with exciting ideas but leaders were criticized for not following through.

In previous years leaders had touted expanded mass transit, such as large, multi-unit buses that would help commuters in the region, to Cobo Center expansion plans.

The group addressed that concern head-on.

"We want a public, transparent scorecard," said Michael J. Brennan, president of United Way of Southeastern Michigan.

That way, he explained, One D is under more pressure to perform.

"One D is all about removing roadblocks and leveraging our champions to do that," Ford said.

Last year, Ford and others used the conference as a forum to tout why a group like One D is needed and this year will use the conference as a forum to address how they will operate.

Detroit Renaissance President Doug Rothwell said progress is being made in all five areas.

"All (the) different priorities are in different stages of evolution, but all have equal weight," he said.

"But some are further along in terms of being resolved."

You can reach David Josar at (313) 222-2073 or djosar@detnews.com.

One D lays out goals to improve region

Source: The Detroit News
By: David Josar
Published: Friday, June 01, 2007

Group hopes to build transit system by 2015, wants all kids to be literate.

MACKINAC ISLAND -- All children in Metro Detroit will read at grade level and a true regional transit system will be in place by 2015, according to specific goals listed Thursday by the fledgling One D group.

The people driving One D, a consortium of six powerful Metro Detroit civic organizations, gave details for the first time here of what they wanted to accomplish in their initiative to bolster southeast Michigan.

"We don't want young people leaving and no one coming here," said Richard Blouse Jr., president of the Detroit Regional Chamber, one of the groups behind One D.

The group has promised solid benchmarks that will measure the group's success or failure.

Among those goals for Metro Detroit:

# Job growth would be in the top 25 percent of the 50 largest metropolitan areas in America.

# Per capita income growth would be in the top 25 percent of the 50 largest metropolitan areas in America.

# Increase the percentage of residents who are self-sufficient.

# By 2010 improve by 20 percent how the region is viewed nationally.

# Move into the top 10 of largest metropolitan areas in terms of the number of individuals with post-secondary education.

# By December 2008, have support for regional transit and the supporting legislation in all communities to establish a regional transportation authority.

The goals may seem lofty, but the group said it believes that focus and mobilization make the benchmarks achievable.

United Way for Southeastern Michigan President Michael J. Brennan noted that 8,000 people volunteered during Super Bowl XL last year to guide visitors along the streets of Detroit toward Ford Field. That total is the same as the number of third-graders in the region who can't read at grade level, he said.

"If you can get those same volunteers working with those children you can have change," Brennan said.

One D, spearheaded by Edsel Ford II, involves the Detroit Regional Chamber, Detroit Renaissance, New Detroit, the Detroit Metro Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Cultural Alliance ofSoutheastern Michigan and the United Way for Southeastern Michigan.

Leaders promised to issue annual report cards on progress in five areas residents agreed are important: economic prosperity, educational preparation, quality of life, race relations and regional transit.

Despite the gripes area residents may have, the region has many assets, such as a low cost of living and top-notch health care, said Larry Alexander, president of the Detroit Metro Convention and Visitors Bureau.

"There are things we have in our region that other places would love to have," he said.

And while Metro Detroit remains one of the most segregated areas of the United States, One D leaders touted the racial diversity as an asset.

"Young people don't want to live in a place where everyone looks like them," said Shirley Stancato, president of New Detroit.

Stancato said the area needs to attract and keep adults between the ages of 21 and 34. "Racial diversity is a key," she said.

Big Five talk cooperation, more

Source: Mackinac Policy Conference Coverage blog
By: Matt Roush, WWJ and the Great Lakes IT Report
Published: June 1, 2007

Detroit's county leaders and Windsor, Ontario officials pledged to support the One D regional development initiative during the so-called Big Five session Friday at the Detroit Regional Chamber's Mackinac Policy Conference.

Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson, who's opposed some regional initiatives in the past, touted his county's efforts, including the eight-county Oakland County-run law enforcement information network CLEMIS and Automation Alley, which he started in 1999.

Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick said that when it comes to regionalism, "We all need each other to be successful," and that the region needs to "share services and opportunities. I believe there are several more opportunities for regional cooperation."

Kilpatrick pointed out that Detroit "never would have joined Automation Alley 15 years ago because it's an Oakland County thing. We're in it now, let's market the region as a whole, as the next place to build your business in technology or alternative energy."

And Wayne County Executive Robert Ficano said that there's simply no way metro Detroit will survive "unless we go to the world now as a region."

The leaders also backed efforts to create an "aerotropolis" between Detroit Metro and Willow Run airports. Ficano said the county came up with the plan after studying airports in Asia and Europe, prompting this barb from Kilpatrick, who's been criticized for his travel expenses: "It's good that you got to travel, Bob, to Amsterdam and Hong Kong to see all this. Because they don't let me travel, Bob. I'm glad you can bring it back for all of us ... Y'all can go anywhere you want. I gotta hop around in a circle."

As for expectations of unions in the state, Kilpatrick said state officials must emulate what Detroit has done, getting major concessions from labor groups and cutting $300 million from the budget, and some wins at binding arbitration. He also said Granholm has shown leadership and is "ready to attack some of the structural problems in the general fund." Other leaders said they believe that union leaders acknowledge that something has to be done with retirement and health care costs.

The crowd also responded with applause from a suggestion from WJR moderator Paul W. Smith to the effect that maybe term limits aren't such a great idea.

-- By Matt Roush

MACKINAC 2007: Bill Ford advocates for energy policy, new biz tax

Source: Crain's Detroit Business
By: Jennette Smith
Published: 3:54 pm, May 31, 2007

Bill Ford Jr. urged swift action on a variety of fronts during keynote remarks Thursday including national energy policy, a new business tax plan in Michigan and implementation of Road to Renaissance plans to transform the state economy.

Ford, executive chairman of Ford Motor Co. used his address at the Mackinac Policy Conference as an opportunity to offer his view on a variety of economic issues, including thoughts on what Michigan can do to capture opportunities even as the automotive industry is going through a wrenching restructuring.

“Our industry is restructuring, causing plant closings, layoffs, rising unemployment and a falling tax base,” he said. “At the same time, legitimate concerns about global warming, energy security and the cost of gasoline have created a rush toward arbitrary and poorly conceived solutions.

“Clearly, it’s up to automakers to address the challenges we face, and that’s what we are doing. But the issues confronting us are bigger than any one industry, and they impact everyone in Detroit and the state of Michigan. It doesn’t matter if the leak is in someone else’s boat; we are all going to sink or float together.”

On energy policy, Ford said that while it is good news that many people finally understand the urgency and the business case for environmental stewardship, “no one person, company or industry can solve these problems by themselves.

“The automobile industry is getting a lot of attention in regard to CO2 emissions and global warming. But the fact is cars and trucks contribute about 20 percent of CO2 emissions in the U.S. and 10 percent of the worldwide total. We need to do our part as an industry, but we are only one piece of a much bigger puzzle.”

Ford called for a national consortium of auto and energy companies, utilities, nongovernmental entities, government agencies, universities and others to develop a more integrated plan. Europe, for example, does not have a perfect plan but has a more integrated framework for action, including tax incentives and the beginnings of a carbon trading program, Ford said. And policies target consumer and industry behaviors, he added.

“We are not shirking our duty, or asking for handouts, just relief from uncertainty and from a fragmented patchwork of arbitrarily set standards,” Ford said.

On the Michigan Business Tax plan, Ford offered strong support.

“This plan promotes a more competitive tax structure for manufacturers in Michigan,” he said. “It broadens the base of business taxpayers by including out-of-state companies who sell their products and services in Michigan but don’t invest here. It also encourages the retention of research and development in Michigan through tax credits.”

Michigan needs to pounce on opportunities for its R&D industry to play a part in alternative-energy industry growth, Ford said. The Road to Renaissance Plan from Detroit Renaissance has the organization, resources and detailed planning and vision needed, Ford said.

“Frankly, too often in the past lofty goals were announced without the resources or careful planning to make them happen,” he said. “Road to Renaissance is different.”

Ford also credited his cousin Edsel Ford for leading the One D collaborative effort that incorporates Road to Renaissance planning.

“We can transform ourselves into a leading center of technical innovation and sustainable mobility, but only if we act swiftly and boldly,” Ford said. “Before our engineers and scientists move somewhere else to find better jobs, before our tax base is too small to support a first-rate education system, before our children and grandchildren leave our state in search of greater opportunity … ”

“If we don’t change ourselves, the world will do it for us.”

Ford said he’s convinced Michigan can make the case for creating the next generation of high-tech jobs. The intellect and university resources are here. When Silicon Valley start-ups in environmental technology talk about planning sales offices in Detroit, Ford’s reaction is, “Why settle for just having sales offices? Why not encourage the development of research and development centers here?”

During the question-and-answer portion of his remarks, Ford said another problem plaguing the automotive industry is perceptions abut quality. Even though American products have proven on par with Toyota, for example, there’s a perception problem with the average American.

“It’s going to require us to be bold and up-front,” Ford said.

On mass transit, Ford said Ford Motor Co. would like to be helpful in crafting a solution and believes mass transit and auto makers can co-exist.

“There’s room for both,” he said.

On upcoming United Auto Workers negotiations, Ford said health care costs are a big concern.

“I’m not suggesting national health care, but we need a change,” he said. “It’s a broken system.”

Larry Alexander, president and CEO of the Detroit Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau, said Ford’s comments were direct and specific, and applauded the mass transit support.

Richard E. Dauch, chairman and CEO of American Axle & Manufacturing, said Ford Motor Co. has the leadership, product plans and energy policy stance it needs to have. Dauch said he agreed the U.S. government needs a comprehensive energy policy overhaul.

“Bill Ford is very crucial to our industry,” he said. “We’re all rooting for him.”

MACKINAC 2007: Regional branding TV spots premiered

Source: Crain's Detroit Business
By: Jennette Smith
Published: May 31. 2007 12:48PM

New TV commercials and plans for the business-to-business application of the new brand for the region were rolled out at a Thursday morning session at the Mackinac Policy Conference.

The region’s new brand is both a project to boost tourism and part of the One D collaborative effort that includes among its goals improving perceptions about Detroit. It is a project being led by the Detroit Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau.

The 30-second ads launching in June, initially in Cleveland and Grand Rapids, depict men and women whose friends send video of the fun they are having in Detroit to their friend’s cell phone. In one spot, a man is suffering through dinner with his girlfriend’s parents. In another, a woman is on a nightmarish blind date.

The ads, created by bureau agency The Berline Group of Bloomfield Hills, are to run on Comedy Central and MTV. The TV spots are part of a larger media mix that is heavily weighted with exposure on the Web through various channels such as MySpace and Google.

“A campaign like this will be all over the Internet and will be talked about,” said Christopher Baum, bureau senior vice president of sales and marketing.

The campaign reaches out to potential visitors age 21-34 by promoting Detroit’s assets, namely cars, culture, gaming, music and sports. The graphic for the campaign lists the assets under a brushed metal “D.”

The campaign seeks early adopter individuals who like to try new things first and share experiences with others, said Eric La Brecque, principal of bureau consultant Applied Storytelling.

The bureau also is reinventing its Web site, visitdetroit.com, with features like YouTube videos, and conceptual maps of the region that make it easy to see entertainment districts.

The idea is to give a better understanding of the entire region at a glance and provide the opportunity to drill down further for information about specific destinations.

On the business-to-business side, the bureau is working with three organizations, the Detroit Tigers, Strategic Staffing Solutions and the Detroit Regional Chamber’s new young professions group, Fusion.

Each plans to promote the D “brand” in specific ways. For the Tigers, the D brand story will be in team publications. For Strategic Staffing, the brand is being used to sell the city to potential future employees.

“From a business standpoint we view this as a recruitment tool,” said Cindy Pasky, CEO of Strategic Staffing. By selling the city, the company can gain the 400 employees it needs, particularly IT specialists under age 30. In turn, the company continues to become more profitable and grow.

The bureau and its Tourism Economic Development Council are working with the three organizations to gain some specific success stories that will be used to recruit the next wave of participants, said Larry Alexander, president and CEO of the bureau.

Businesses that seek to learn more can participate in a Webinar on June 15 and a brand summit to be held at The Henry Ford in mid-October, the bureau said.

One D outlines its goals at Mackinac conference

Source: The Detroit News
By: David Josar
Published: May 31, 2007

MACKINAC ISLAND -- All children in Metro Detroit will read at grade-level and a true regional transit system will be in place by 2015. Those are two specific goals the fledgling One D hopes to achieve.

For the first-time Thursday morning, the people driving One D, a consortium of six powerful Metro Detroit civic organizations, gave details of what they wanted to accomplish in their initiative to bolster southeastern Michigan.

"We don't want young people leaving and no one coming here," said Dick Blouse, president of the Detroit Regional Chamber, one of the groups behind One D.

The group has promised solid benchmarks that will measure the group's success or failure.

Among those goals for Metro Detroit:

*Job growth would be in the top 25 percent of the 50 largest metropolitan areas in America.

*Per capita growth would be in the top 25 percent of the 50 largest metropolitan areas in America.

*Increase the percentage of residents who are self-sufficient.

*By 2010 improve by 20 percent how the region is viewed nationally.

*Move into the top 10 ranking of largest metropolitan areas in terms of the number of individuals with post-secondary education.

*By Dec. 2008, have support for regional transit and the supporting legislation in all communities to establish a regional transportation authority.

The goals may seem lofty, but the group believes that focus and mobilization make the benchmarks achievable.

United Way of Southeastern Michigan president Michael J. Brennan noted that 8,000 people volunteered during Super Bowl XL last year to guide visitors along the streets of Detroit toward Ford Field. That total is the same as the number of 3rd graders in the region who can't read at grade level, he said.

"If you can get those same volunteers working with those children you can have change," Brennan said.

One D, spearheaded by Edsel Ford II, involves the Detroit Regional Chamber; Detroit Renaissance; New Detroit; the Detroit Metro Convention and Visitors Bureau; the Cultural Alliance for Southeastern Michigan, and the United Way for Southeastern Michigan.

Leaders promised to issue annual report cards on progress in five areas residents agreed are important: economic prosperity, educational preparation, quality of life, race relations and regional transit.

Despite the gripes area residents may have, the region has many assets, such as a low cost-of-living and top-notch health care, said Larry Alexander, president of the Detroit Metro Convention and Visitors Bureau.

"There are things we have in our region that other places would love to have," he said.

And while metro Detroit remains one of the most segregated areas of the United States, One D leaders touted the racial diversity as an asset.

"Young people don't want to live in a place where everyone looks like them," said Shirley Stancato, president of New Detroit.

Stancato said the area needs to attract and keep adults between the ages of 21 and 34. "Racial diversity is a key," she said.

You can reach David Josar at (313) 222-2073 or djosar@detnews.com.

MACKINAC 2007: Regionalism must be ‘way of life,’ Edsel Ford II says

Source: Crain's Detroit Business
By: Jennette Smith
Published: May 30, 2007

MACKINAC ISLAND — An opening session for the Mackinac Policy Conference served as a rallying cry for the One D collaborative effort with participants urging more business and government leaders to join in.

In his opening remarks Wednesday, One D champion Edsel Ford II asked for audience members to make regionalism a way of life. Afterward, a panel of members from the participating groups in One D discussed progress and challenges.

“Parts working together in harmony is an apt description of the communities of the Detroit region, when we are at our very best,” Ford said. “The way we pulled together for last year’s Super Bowl is just one recent example. But that was an effort built around an occasion. For the communities of regional Detroit to shine their brightest, we need more than an occasional effort … we need to embrace regionalism. We need to make it a way of life.”

For One D, a group of six regional civic groups that are working together on five priorities for the region, to succeed, each organization needs to exhibit organizational selflessness, Ford said. The groups behind One D are the Detroit Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau, the Detroit Regional Chamber, Detroit Renaissance Inc. , New Detroit Inc., United Way for Southeastern Michigan and the Cultural Alliance of Southeastern Michigan.

The five priorities are economic prosperity, educational preparedness, regional transit, race relations and quality of life, with regional collaboration as an umbrella over all.

Maud Lyon, founding director of the Cultural Alliance, said “One D is about eliminating duplication of efforts.”

And, by laying regionalism over the top with Ford as “the guru of regional collaboration,” said Richard Blouse, president and CEO of the Detroit Regional Chamber, the interrelated priorities can move along faster.

Doug Rothwell, president of Detroit Renaissance, said the five priorities are at different stages of evolution and some will require more change. And Michael Brennan, president and CEO of the United Way, compared the region’s movement to a One D framework to a technology upgrade.

“We’ve operated for a long time on DOS,” he said. “We’re trying to move to Windows.”

Ford, when interviewed after the panel discussion, said One D next needs to get more corporate leaders, nonprofit leaders and elected officials behind the effort. County executives, for example, would be a great addition. Ideally, Ford said, even after progress is made on priorities, the One D work plan can be updated and continue instead of disbanding.

“The theory is: This is a process,” he said.

For now, until more specifics about business support are announced, including two additional sessions planned at the conference, supporters can speak positively about the region and find ways to collaborate more often, panelists said.

IN OUR OPINION: Mackinac conference can make a difference if leaders stick to goals

Source: Detroit Free Press
Published: May 30, 2007

Mackinac Island lives in the past. The Detroit area cannot afford to any longer.

So the historic island between Michigan's peninsulas seems all the odder a setting this year for the Detroit Regional Chamber's annual policy conference. But maybe, as they share horse-drawn taxis and watch fudge being made by hand, the 1,700 attendees from business, politics, education and labor can find a shared path to the future.

While the Mackinac meeting is not known for accomplishing much, the gathering that begins today will focus on something that started on Mackinac a year ago. One D: Transforming Regional Detroit is a unified effort of the chamber, New Detroit, United Way for Southeastern Michigan, Detroit Renaissance, the Detroit Metro Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Cultural Alliance of Southeastern Michigan to assure that the area works together to achieve measurable goals in six key areas. Those are: economic prosperity, educational preparedness, regional transit, race relations, regional cooperation and quality of life.

The effort is unprecedented, but then just about every region-wide undertaking in recent history has been, too, with little to show for it. Hence the emphasis of One D on measurable goals. All conference participants ought to be leaving Mackinac with a clear idea of what One D is all about and a job to do in one of the six areas.

United Way has been conducting a series of e-mail surveys on those issues and, while not drawing a scientific sample, did ask about 1,000 people about their satisfaction with the quality of life in southeast Michigan. Not surprisingly, nearly 80% said they were unhappy with public transportation and more than 60% did not like the way suburban growth and development have been managed. Both are regional issues, best tackled on a region-wide basis, and both are historically divisive.

And if going up to Mackinac Island is what it takes to lay that history to rest and start planning a better future, this conference could be well worth the trip.

Bill Ford focuses on technology

Source: Detroit Free Press
By: Tom Walsh, Free Press Columnist
Published: May 27, 2007

Auto exec fears Michigan lags in industry's future

The recent explosion of interest and investment in alternative fuels and other so-called "clean technologies" feels a bit like vindication to Bill Ford.

"When I talked about this stuff in speeches 10 years ago, people thought I was some sort of Bolshevik," the executive chairman of Ford Motor Co. told the Free Press in a rare interview last week.

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Vindication aside, Ford is worried that southeastern Michigan is lagging behind other regions in developing new technologies that will revolutionize the global automotive industry in years to come.

He plans to call for an intensive effort to identify and recruit cutting-edge technology firms to metro Detroit -- even tapping high-powered business leaders to get personally involved -- in a speech Thursday to the Detroit Regional Chamber's annual policy conference on Mackinac Island.

"I've spent a lot of time recently in Silicon Valley, visiting companies and venture capitalists," Ford said, noting that all major California-based technology firms have Detroit offices because the auto industry is a big customer for them.

"But they shouldn't just have sales offices here. Why can't we be the incubators of ideas here? We need to be the intellectual locus of the technology that's going to transform our industry," Ford said.

Ford, 50, has kept a low profile since September, when he hired Alan Mulally as president and chief executive officer of Ford Motor. Ford, CEO for the previous five years, took the new title of executive chairman at the Dearborn automaker. He has done few interviews since then and limited his speeches to Ford employee and dealer groups.

But behind the scenes, he has taken a more active role in Detroit Renaissance, starting a two-year term in January as chairman of the influential CEO group's executive committee, just as it was launching Road to Renaissance, a new economic development strategy for the region.

Goals are to boost entrepreneurship, attract and retain top talent, and enhance Detroit's status as a global hub for automotive and other transportation industries.

"There's no question that, in the next 10 or 20 years, we're going to have very different propulsion systems for vehicles. And there's no reason why Detroit and southeast Michigan shouldn't be where the action is," Ford said.

Problem is, Detroit and Michigan are increasingly NOT where the cutting-edge automotive technology action is.

Not only have hometown car companies Ford, General Motors and the Chrysler Group been downsizing, but the national surge in clean-technology investment is mostly happening elsewhere.

Clean tech is the fastest-growing segment of venture capital. But of $2.9 billion in clean-tech investment in North America last year, only 9% was in the Midwest, said James Croce, CEO of Detroit-based NextEnergy, a nonprofit formed five years ago to accelerate Michigan's activities in alternate energy. Nearly 60% went to the West Coast or to New England, he said, citing data from the Clean Tech Venture Network in Brighton.

Just a few years ago, some pundits were scoffing at the notion of a self-professed environmentalist -- Ford -- running an auto company.

"Now all the automakers are out to prove who's greenest," Ford said.

But Michigan must do more outreach, he said, to attract more of the innovative companies in that field.

Doug Rothwell, president and CEO of Detroit Renaissance, said Ford has been "very intimately engaged in each step of the Road to Renaissance action plan."

Ford returned the compliment, saying he agreed to chair the Renaissance executive committee only because Rothwell and Domino's Pizza CEO David Brandon convinced him that the group was committed to action and measuring progress. "The last thing I needed was another committee studying the problems of the last 20 years," Ford said.

The Road to Renaissance plan dovetails with One D, a broader regional collaboration of groups ranging from United Way to the Detroit Regional Chamber and New Detroit, championed by Ford's cousin Edsel Ford II. Edsel Ford will kick off a series of One D planning sessions at the Mackinac gathering this week.

Other scheduled speakers at Mackinac include Teamsters union President James P. Hoffa on Wednesday and UAW President Ron Gettelfinger on Thursday.

Bill Ford, meanwhile, expects to become a bit more visible in the coming months.

Immediately after Mulally's arrival, "I thought, early on, that I didn't want any confusion, externally or internally," Ford said. "I certainly didn't want anyone internally going around Alan and coming to me."

Ford still consults regularly with Mulally on the car company's turnaround progress.

"You'll start seeing more of me as we roll into the rest of this year," he said.

Contact TOM WALSH at 313-223-4430 or twalsh@freepress.com.

State stagnant, but grows more diverse

Source: The Detroit News
By: Mike Wilkinson
Published: Thursday, May 17, 2007

For most of this decade, Michigan's anemic growth in population has been fueled entirely by minorities, with every one of the state's 140,000 additional residents either Hispanic, Asian, black or other minority.

Census figures released today also show that the white population in Michigan dropped for the second year in a row, leading to the state's first overall drop in population since the early 1980s.

The census estimates, drawn from birth, death and migration data, paint a picture of a more diverse state, mirroring changes across the country.

Nationwide, the Hispanic population surged by nearly 7 million since 2000, and minorities now comprise nearly a third of the country, with more than 100 million residents.

"There is a trend that metropolitan areas have the greatest amount of diversity," said state demographer Ken Darga. "And almost every part of the state has diversity."

That diversity may stress already strained race relations. Southeastern Michigan is the nation's most segregated region and solving racial discord is considered crucial to Metro Detroit's revival.

Dr. Alvin Poussaint, a teaching psychiatrist at Harvard University and an expert on race relations, cautioned that the initial reaction to a growing minority community can be flight as the majority population feels threatened.

"Often there is not acceptance but resentment and rejection," he said.

State and local leaders, he said, can combat those fears by putting out a "message to the people of Michigan that should be welcoming" and he said the state -- and the nation -- must confront racial issues.

"It has to be solved," he said.

The population estimates show there were just over 19,000 fewer white residents in Michigan in 2006 than in 2005. The black population also fell by about 2,400. Compounding the slow growth is an aging population, particularly among whites, that is having fewer babies. The disastrous economic situation has also caused many to leave the state to find work.

Meanwhile, the Hispanic population rose by nearly 7,000 from 2005 to 2006 and the Asian population grew by 6,100.

"They (Asians) are taking the higher tech jobs that go wanting because we don't have a qualified native population," said Kurt Metzger, a director of research for the United Way for Southeastern Michigan.

In the past, discussions about race in Detroit have centered on blacks and whites, said Ozzie Rivera, director of the multicultural affairs office at Madonna University in Livonia. Although blacks remain the largest minority group in the region and state, the growing Hispanic population must trigger a wider discussion in Metro Detroit about minorities, Rivera said.

"If that discussion is not held, there is room for cultural misunderstanding," he said.

You can reach Mike Wilkinson at (313) 222-2563 or mwilkinson@detnews.com.

Quality Of Life: The Survey Is In

Ed.'s Note: What follows are some of the results from the second in a series of metromode surveys that will help create a blueprint for changing the region. The next survey will appear May 17th in the Regional Activation Zone — metromode's place to get inspired, informed and connected to the community, found in the lower left corner of the metromode home page. To read more about the zone, click here.

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In November 2006, six of the region's top civic organizations - New Detroit, the Detroit Regional Chamber, Detroit Renaissance, United Way for Southeastern Michigan, the Detroit Metro Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Cultural Alliance of Southeastern Michigan - joined forces to form a unified group called One D: Transforming Regional Detroit to ensure the region works together to achieve measurable goals in six areas of priority:

1. economic prosperity
2. educational preparedness
3. regional transit
4. race relations
5. regional cooperation
6. quality of life

While each of these organizations works to meet specific objectives of its own, all recognize that they have a collective responsibility to the region as well. Input and data gained from the community, government officials and other organizations outside of One D are extremely important factors in the success of this unprecedented transformation effort, and will be used by One D to build a one-vision, one-plan blueprint for transforming Southeast Michigan. The final blueprint is expected to be unveiled at the 2007 Mackinac Policy Conference.

As part of this data gathering effort, Issue Media Group (the publishers of Model D and metromode) and United Way for Southeastern Michigan have partnered to regularly survey the Detroit region, on behalf of the One D partnership and each of its member organizations, regarding key quality of life and economic issues in order to get a better handle on " the pulse of southeast Michigan."

We want to serve up surveys that will better help us, and others, understand what our residents are thinking. We want to open this capacity to other organizations that are working to make the Detroit region a better place to live and work. We are at an important crossroads for this region and we want to be able to measure our progress through the opinions of its residents. We hope you will want to join us on this journey.

We will be delivering a new survey each month. Upon review and analysis, we will select the most pertinent questions and repeat them at regular intervals over the next several years. In this way we will be able to track perceptual change over time and match that to the demographic and economic indicators that will comprise the One D Report Card.

Our first survey appeared in the March 1st issue of metromode and was designed to obtain feedback on "quality of life" issues in Southeast Michigan. This report provides the results of that survey.

On March 22 we launched a survey designed to obtain feedback related to the new "branding" effort from the Metro Convention and Visitors Bureau. Late in April we hope to look at Race Relations in Metro Detroit. Future surveys will delve into Art and Culture, Transportation, Education, Economic Opportunities and more. We welcome suggestions from organizations and individuals regarding other issues of importance and hope that you will join us as we take the "Pulse of Metro Detroit."

Quality of Life in Metropolitan Detroit

Our first survey addressed a number of Quality of Life issues in Metro Detroit. Over 1,000 persons took the time to complete the survey during the three weeks it was available. This report provides a summary of the responses received, and ends with a brief overview of respondent demographics.

The first question asked the following:

Using a scale of 1 to 5, where 5 means "very satisfied" and 1 means "very dissatisfied," please rate your satisfaction with each of the following in the Southeast Michigan region – and in Your Community:

• Quality of public safety services (i.e., police, fire, ambulance)
• Flow of traffic
• Access to arts and cultural activities
• Public transportation (bus/rail)
• Transportation services for the elderly and disabled persons
• Access to financial services
• Social services for families that need them
• Availability of quality food (fresh fruits and vegetables)

The following only address the Southeast Michigan region

-Redevelopment/revitalization of urban core communities in the region
-Management of suburban growth and development in the region

Figure 1. Percent of Respondents Answering "Very or Somewhat Satisfied" for the Region

Figure 2. Percent of Respondents Answering "Very or Somewhat Dissatisfied" for the Region

Figures 1 and 2 paint a very clear picture of the issues that Detroit area respondents feel are strongly present and those that they feel are lacking in the region as a whole. Over half of respondents indicated satisfaction with the access to arts and cultural activities, access to financial services, and the availability of quality food. The only other category to rise above 40percent in satisfaction was the " quality of public services." On the dissatisfaction side of the aisle, nearly four of every five respondents stated that they were dissatisfied with the availability of public transportation. This was followed by recognition of the lack of coordinated efforts tomanage suburban growth while working to redevelop and revitalize our urban core communities. Two other transportation-related issues also exceeded a 40 percent level of dissatisfaction –" transportation services for elderly and disabled' and general " traffic flow."

We also asked respondents to rank the majority of these issues from the perspective of their own communities. Suburban growth and urban revitalization were only asked in a regional context.

Figure 3. Percent of Respondents Answering "Very or Somewhat Satisfied" for Their Community

Figure 4. Percent of Respondents Answering "Very or Somewhat Dissatisfied" for Their Community

The results provided some interesting counterpoints to the regional opinions – a result similar to that found when respondents look at politics on the national and local level. In general, respondents show greater satisfaction, and less dissatisfaction, at the smaller geographic level. Services – both public (government) and private (food and finances) received high satisfaction ratings. The high preponderance of arts and culture in Detroit tended to lower the satisfaction score for this issue. Transportation, however, remained the principal issue of concern – garnering dissatisfaction responses from over 70 percent of the respondents.

Due to concerns about public safety and the lack of services – particularly grocery stores – in Detroit, we took a separate look at how Detroit residents answered this question. Only 42 percent were satisfied with the availability of quality food, while 34 percent expressed satisfaction with the quality of public safety services. On the negative side, Detroiters agreed that public transportation leaves a great deal to be desired – 71 percent were dissatisfied, with 47percent of responses being " very dissatisfied."

We next asked respondents to consider the issues in Question 1 and tell us:

Which THREE of these items do you think should receive the most emphasis from community leaders over the next THREE Years?

The results are shown in Figure 5. Consistent with the views expressed in Question 1,respondents overwhelmingly listed Public Transportation as the issue that should receive emphasis from community leaders. Thirty-eight percent of respondents listed this as a "first priority," while 81 percent of all respondents listed it as one of their three top issues. Coming in second was the need to invest in the redevelopment/revitalization of Detroit and our other older, urban core communities. An assessment of the quality of public safety services, and improvements where necessary, came in a close third, followed by the issue of managing suburban growth and development.

The importance of these responses is that they point to issues that we must look at on a regional basis. We cannot continue to expect individual leaders to solve the problems. Rather, we must work across historical geographic and racial lines to get the job done. Respondents are tired of the "rhetoric" and want to see "action."

Figure 5. Percent of Total Responses – Three Items for Community Leader Emphasis

Our next question asked the following:

Several items that may influence your perception of living in the Southeast Michigan region are listed below. Please rate each item on a scale of 1 to 5, where 5 means "very satisfied" and 1 means "very unsatisfied."

• Quality of public schools
• Quality of post-secondary education (colleges, universities, vocational)
• Quality of governmental services
• Availability of quality jobs
• Availability of affordable housing
• Racial and ethnic harmony
• Availability of arts and cultural amenities
• How much the region values education and retains talent

Figure 6 provides a summary of the two ends of the spectrum – 5 (very satisfied) and 1 (very dissatisfied).While dissatisfaction ruled the day for most of the factors listed, respondents did show a great deal of satisfaction with the "quality of the region's post-secondary education" and the " availability of arts and cultural amenities." 72 percent of respondents were satisfied (very or somewhat) with our post-secondary educational opportunities, while 58% were satisfied with the region's arts and cultural opportunities.

On the other end of the spectrum, only 7 percent of respondents were satisfied with the "availability of quality jobs" (77% were dissatisfied), and only 10 percent were satisfied with "how the region values education and retains talent" (69% were dissatisfied).

Figure 6. Percent of Total Responses – Three Items for Community Leader Emphasis

We followed up the ranking question with the following:

Which THREE of these reasons will have the most impact on your decision to stay in the Southeast Michigan Region for the next 10 years?

An analysis of the results (Figure 7) spells trouble for our region. The availability of quality jobs far outdistanced any other response with 84 percent of all respondents listing it in their top 3 – and 48 percent listing it as number 1. The quality of public schools came in distant second at 48 percent, with regional values of education and talent retention placing third at 38 percent. All three of these issues ranked very low in their "satisfaction ratings."

Figure 7. Percent of Respondents Who Listed Item as Impacting Decision to Stay in SE Michigan

We also found that a number of respondents (almost 9 percent) wanted to provided other issues that were of importance to them. While they covered a wide range of issues, the primary categories were family, crime, cost-of-living, taxes and transportation.
The next question asked respondents to do the following:

Please rate the Southeast Michigan region on a scale of 1 to 5 where 5 means "excellent" and 1 means "poor" with regard to each of the following:

• The region as a place to raise children
• The region as a place to live
• The region as a place to work
• The overall image of the region
• The overall quality of life in the region
• How well the region is planning for the future
• How well the region works together

Figure 8. Percent Distribution of Responses Rating SE Michigan Region by Category

While respondents were stingy on giving an excellent rating to any of our quality of life categories, the region was rated positively by at least 40 percent of respondents as "a place to live" and as "a place to raise children." Almost 35 percent of respondents rated the overall quality of life positively. On the negative side, almost 80 percent of respondents rated the region as below average or poor in the area of "how well the region works together." "Planning for the future" and "the overall image" also came out on the negative end for almost 70 percent of respondents.

While the image is being worked on by a number of organizations, with the Detroit MetroConvention and Visitors Bureau (DMCVB) taking the lead in changing our brand, the lowratings for regional collaboration and planning should sound a clarion call to all " regional leaders." The ability to attract and retain young, educated residents and thereby build a knowledge-based economy that is attractive to a wide range of individuals and companies requires that we begin to work together as a region and develop regional plans for land use, transportation – public/mass and highways, housing, cultural amenities, and much more.

Our final question asked the following:

On a scale of 1 to 5, where 5 means "very safe" and 1 means "very unsafe," please rate how safe you feel in the following situations:

• In your neighborhood during the day
• In your neighborhood at night
• Overall in the community where you live
• Overall in the city of Detroit
• Overall in the Southeast Michigan region

Figure 9. Percent Distribution of Responses on Feelings of Safety by Location

Southeast Michigan residents generally feel safe in their neighborhoods, communities, and throughout Southeast Michigan. The only area where safety was an issue was in the City of Detroit. Nearly three in five (57 percent) respondents expressed feeling "unsafe" or "very unsafe" in the City of Detroit. An analysis by geography shows that Detroit residents feel somewhat safer in their city than nonresidents – 21% vs. 15%. Nevertheless, 50 percent of Detroit residents reported feeling "unsafe" or "very unsafe," as compared to 60 percent of nonresidents.

It is obvious from these results that the image of Detroit must be changed by addressing the issue of crime and safety. A previous study of Crime in Downtown Detroit by this author showed that the core of the city was safer than many communities in Southeast Michigan, as well as other downtowns in cities across the country.

Mayor Kilpatrick made crime a major topic of his 2007 State of the City addres