Study Shows Detroit Making a Hefty Comeback

Detroit Development Initiatives 2000, paid for by Detroit-based Comerica Bank, says city development projects have jumped 60% in the last two years. There are 86 new commercial and industrial projects planned, and about 60 residential projects. All together these developments are worth $7.3 billion.

More than 200 projects, estimated at $10 billion, were started or signed between 1994 and 1998. Since 1994, almost 400 new projects have come online in the last six years, totaling $17.7 billion, notes the study.

Three permanent casinos and the large Campus Martius planned office buildings have not yet begun construction, however. These projects make up a large portion of the new development investment. Detroit has pulled investments from nearby communities, such as Compuware of Farmington Hills and the Detroit Lions from Pontiac, as well as automotive suppliers from other states and countries, says the study.