Detroit Mayor Dave Bing last week held the first meeting of a “land-use summit” group that will help shape the long-term plan to reshape, and likely downsize, the troubled city.
Bing invited a group of community advocates, city officials, and urban planners to his office last week for the meeting to advance the plan. It was closed to the public, but the group is expected to hold a series of public forums in the future, according to local reports.
The summit comes as city officials have moved to calm growing unease about the plan to downsize the city.
Bing has said the plan would likely include relocating some residents out of empty neighborhoods.
The group, which will act as Bing’s advisers, will be led by Marja Winters, deputy director of the city’s Planning and Development Department, and Toni Griffin, an urban planner. The group will hold regular meetings and host public forums as it develops the plan.
Bing said it would take between 12 months and 18 months to develop the proposal.
