Mayor Mike Duggan's 11th State of the City Address: Detroit's 'ruin porn tours' are canceled

DETROIT (FOX 2) - Neighborhoods and downtown development were front and center during Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan's State of the City Address Wednesday night.

Duggan spoke at Dexter Avenue Baptist Church on Detroit's west side – with no shortage of items to highlight Detroit's comeback since he was first elected 10 years ago. Watch the speech in the live players below or on the FOX Local app.

The mayor highlighted a commitment to knocking down blight, improving safety, and elevating Detroit residents' quality of living – while boasting major accomplishments in the city.

From blight to beauty

Duggan said 10 years ago, Detroit attracted visitors for a "ruin porn tour." 

However, with the NFL Draft coming to Detroit April 25-27, the 300,000 people expected to visit the city and the 50 million people expected to watch on TV will see a whole new Detroit.

"When they get here, they're going to see a very different city," Duggan said. "They won't be able to look at the Packard plant anymore. So this year, when they show up, we're officially declaring Detroit's ruin porn tours canceled. Instead of blight, they can visit beauty like… the new Riverside Park. DTE took this eyesore on Grand River and built Beacon Park. Our industrial riverfront, as you all know, is now rated by USA Today as the finest Riverwalk in America. That's what they're going to find."

The City of Detroit recently announced the now-planned effort to take down a vacant and blighted structure along the Joe Louis Greenway.

Earlier on Wednesday, the city said it plans to demolish a 31,000-square foot structure along the greenway on West Chicago near Oakman Boulevard.  The city expects the project to be finished in about a month, clearing the way for future development.

General Motors announced earlier this week its plan to move the headquarters from the Renaissance Center to the historic J.L. Hudson's department store site – now known as Hudson's Detroit, expected to be completed later this year.

"The Hudson's property, abandoned for 40 years and (is) now home to the second-tallest building in Michigan," he said. "And when it's finished next year, it's going to become the new GM world headquarters."

Crime reduction in Detroit

Duggan also touched on the investment into public safety, saying that Detroit never "defunded the police." as some cities may have.

"We invest in our police with $10,000 raises, which our officers deserve," he said. "We put 230 more cops on the street. We invested in technology, creating one of America's most advanced, real-time crime centers. …And here's what happens when you all work together – the homicides are down to 252. Now that's still 252 of our neighbors that lost their lives last year, but we're going to keep working at it."

Project Green Light has contributed to reducing crime in Detroit, the mayor said. About 10 year ago, Detroit was known nationally as "Carjack City."

However, carjackings in the city have decreased from 15 incidents per week in 2013 to 2 incidents per week in 2024, through April 16.

The Detroit Police Department’s Real Time Crime Monitoring Center and community collaboration helped identify and apprehend carjackers and other suspects using cameras, helicopter tracking, and cooperation between police and car manufacturers, Duggan said. This has made Detroit a safer city through technology and community partnerships.

Growth in homeowner wealth

A new study released on Tuesday found that home values in Detroit, especially for Black residents, has increased by billions of dollars in the years since Detroit's bankruptcy.

"$3 billion gain in black wealth for Detroit homeowners in the last nine years," Duggan said. "That's for the people who stayed."

The University of Michigan Poverty Solutions report says added home value for Black residents increased 80% between 2014 and 2022.

For Black homeowners, estimated home values rose from $3.4 billion to $6.2 billion over that period, while the net value of all owner-occupied homes in the city increased from $4.2 billion to $8.1 billion.

"Interestingly, the highest percentage were Latino homeowners whose values tripled. They grew 400 million," Duggan said.

Duggan, 65, is serving his third four-year term. He was first elected in 2014.