Gov. Rick Snyder's decision to appoint an emergency manager for Detroit, expected today, is an epic fall for a once-great American city, a humbling end for a generation of political leaders who ignored the markers of decline until it was too late, Daniel Howes writes in the Detroit News.
The controversial move, officially opposed by Mayor Dave Bing, the City Council and the usual contingent of self-appointed community leaders, is certain to draw stiff legal and civic pushback. But it also offers the possibility for the kind of fresh start the city's business leaders already are mounting on their own.
"Enough of kicking the can down the road," Matthew Cullen, president of the Rock Ventures Inc. arm of Dan Gilbert's Quicken Loans Inc. empire, said Thursday to a conference hosted by the Detroit Regional Chamber. "People are all worried about an emergency manager. Enough. Let's get going."
