The daunting task of total blight remediation in Detroit could have a price tag of more than $1 billion, according to Glenda Price, co-chair of Detroit's new blight task force and former Marygrove College President.
The blight task force starts its citywide blight survey Monday. Seventy-five teams of two surveyors and a Gilbert-supplied driver will attempt to map an estimated 350,000 locations before February.
Linda Smith, executive director of U-Snap-Bac, and Dan Gilbert, founder of Quicken Loans and guy you've probably heard of before, are also co-chairs of the task force. Mapping will be organized by Detroit's number gurus, Data Driven Detroit, and Loveland Technologies, the team behind Why Don't We Own This.
The task force was created in September in conjunction with a visit from President Obama's cabinet.
“Maybe I’m out of my mind, which I am for various reasons,” Dan Gilbert said at the time. "You get these structures down and, I mean, all of them, not most of them, all of them.”
No one knows for sure where Detroit would find $1 billion, which presumes a $10,000 to $12,000 demolition cost per building and 70,000 or more blighted structures.
Price said that it’s a misconception that every blighted building will be razed regardless of opportunities to reuse them. Remediation could take many forms, from demolition to rehabilitation to sale to community members.
At this point, no one knows for sure how many blighted structures sit wallowing in Detroit, so the cost estimate for blight removal should become more accurate after the survey is complete.
Previous Coverage:
Remember The Last Time We Surveyed Detroit Blight?
Why Don't We Own This Unveils New Crowd Sourced Photos To Map Blight
Dan Gilbert Is Planning To Tear Down Every Single Abandoned Building In Detroit
