But in the interest of appreciating council housing everywhere, here are some pictures of the Brewster-Douglass housing projects in Detroit. An early home to none other than Diana Ross (apparently all the Supremes met here) - she moved to this part of town in 1958 on her 14th birthday.
Like a lot of the buildings in the city the blocks are now vacant.
The housing, designed by local architects Harley, Ellington & Day, was built by the city of Detroit and finished in 1955 - a mix of low and high-rise buildings.
To give you an idea of how central this is to downtown Detroit, this is the view south towards the Renaissance Centre.
At first the commission stipulated stringent rules for tenants. They had to be working, earning a certain level of income.
By the 1970s these regulations no longer existed, and in a bid to keep down crime the city turned the blocks into housing for elderly people.
This strategy didn't work, and the buildings are now empty...even of squatters, who in Detroit can find much grander homes to bunk down in....
Amazingly, much of downtown Detroit has now returned to prairie, with small farms being established.
ReplyDeleteMore on the excellent BBC documentary Requiem For Detroit: http://bit.ly/gDUJ5I
Amazing brick work - almost looks like London brick. Shame we don't see much of that these days. Thanks for the photos - shape/ colours are quite inspiring!
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