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Cleveland Lawsuit Thrown Out

A federal judge has thrown out the city of Cleveland’s lawsuit against a number of large banks that the city believes contributed to the crisis in foreclosures.

The city is appealing, according to this Plain Dealer blog post.

Braddock, Pa. Mayor Fetterman Wins Primary

Despite some criticism and a tough campaign, Braddock’s unconventional mayor won in Tuesday’s primary, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

He captured 294 votes to his rival’s 103 votes.

“Mr. Fetterman’s detractors were vocal in their criticism of him, accusing him of trying to become ‘Braddock’s landlord,’” the Post-Gazette reported.

Follow Jane’s Rust Belt Road Trip

Read about this group of urban planning students and their travels (so far) to Pittsburgh and Youngstown.

They’re on the road this week and still headed to Cleveland, Detroit, and Flint!

From Mills…To Malls?

This article in yesterday’s Pittsburgh Post-Gazette discusses the redevelopment of the Carrie Furnace site – “an expanse of blast furnaces that once produced as much as 1,200 tons of iron per day for the former Homestead Works of U.S. Steel.”

The 168-acre parcel is now owned by the county and is close to being ready for development, the article states, in the final stages of environmental cleanup.

What will replace the furnaces, which operated for 102 years?

Why We Need An Auto Industry

The New York Times asked a number of economists to respond to the question, “do we need a domestic auto industry? Many American manufacturing industries, like textiles and electronics, long ago moved to other producing countries. Why is the auto industry different?”

I know this is a few weeks old, but it took me awhile to get through it all.

Blog Spotlight: Detroit News Architecture Blog

From time to time, Rust Wire likes to highlight interesting or worthy blogs.

I know I always feel smarter -and more artsy – after reading the Detroit News’ Architecture Blog.

We previously posted on the blog’s video of Detroit’s abandoned Packard Plant. I like that the blog talks about all the city’s abandoned industrial buildings, as well as more traditional fare for an architecture critic, like mansions and downtown skyscrapers.

-KG

Chrysler Dealer Closings: What Does It Mean?

Chrysler will soon be closing almost 800 of its dealerships.

Those on the chopping block represent almost 25 percent of the company’s dealers, the Detroit Free Press reports. “Some of the 789 dealerships slated to close have survived world wars, recessions and Chrysler’s 1981 federal loan guarantee. Many are family owned.”

Laughing With Us Vs. Laughing At Us

Last month, Rust Wire had a brief post about a fake “promotional” video for Cleveland posted on YouTube. The video sparked quite a discussion, both on this web site and within Cleveland.

I thought it was somewhat humorous, but many didn’t like it. Some Rust Wire readers pointed out that humor like this can hurt the city and its image, others said we should be able to laugh at ourselves once in awhile. (It even prompted Cleveland’s tourism and promotional agency, Positively Cleveland, to launch a contest to make a more positive video.)

Well, if you didn’t like the video, be prepared to hate this article from humor publication The Onion, titled, “Detroit Mayor Throws First Brick in Glass-Breaking Ceremony for New Slum.”

How to Live in the Suburbs…Without Cars

A bike shed in Vauban, Germany

This is an interesting article from The New York Times about Vauban, Germany- an experimental suburb with few cars.

It is home to 5,500 residents, according to the Times, all living within a rectangular square mile. The community “may be the most advanced experiment in low-car suburban life,” according to the story.

The Reckoning

An economic slump.
Detroit and the auto industry in crisis.
The country taking a hard look at its dependence on foreign oil.

No, I’m not talking about the current crisis we’re engulfed in. Author David Halberstam described this very situation in his 1986 work The Reckoning.

A Look Inside an Old Steel Casting Plant

Check out this view of the old, abandoned Fort Pitt Steel Casting plant in McKeesport, Pa. (outside Pittsburgh).

White-Collar Unemployment

A sad story about Toledo in Sunday’s Washington Post.

The article describes how the downturn in the economy is hitting white-collar workers- hard. (I should know, I’m one of them!)

“In this corner of Ohio, the workforce is contracting at an alarming speed, with unemployment climbing to rates more typical of counties in Appalachia,” the article states. “In March, unemployment in Toledo reached 12.6 percent, an increase of more than 50 percent over March 2008.”

Dayton to Host “Dying Cities” Symposium

Upset with being named to Forbes’ “10 Fastest Dying Cities” list, Daytonians are taking action, The Dayton Daily News reports.

In Detroit, Hard Times…Even for the Wealthy

Today’s New York Times has a story on how the auto-industry downturn and layoffs have even impacted some of Detroit’s wealthiest suburbs.

Lessons From Greensburg?

What if your entire town was virtually wiped off the map in a single afternoon?

That’s pretty much what happened in Greensburg, Kansas, two years ago when it was hit by a tornado. (Not the Rust Belt, I know. But maybe we can learn something.)

Since then, the town has been rebuilding in a greener and more energy-efficient manner.

Grim News for Manufacturing

Today’s Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has an article describing a bad outlook for manufacturing.

“The decline in the numbers of manufacturing jobs lost in April may be a sign of even worse news: The country is running out of manufacturing jobs to lose,” the article states.

Alex Kotlowitz, Part 2

As promised, here is the second part of our interview with journalist and author Alex Kotlowitz, who is speaking Monday in Cleveland. 

Alex Kotlowitz, Part 1

Rust Wire was thrilled to be able to interview Alex Kotlowitz, one of our nation’s best journalists about urban issues and problems. Kotlowitz will be speaking Monday at Cleveland State’s Levin College Forum. Kotlowitz penned the New York Times story “All Boarded Up,’ about foreclosure in Cleveland’s Slavic Village neighborhood. He also authored “There are no Children Here,” the story of two boys growing up in one of Chicago’s toughest housing projects. Here’s the first part of our conversation:

Celebrate National Train Day

Saturday is National Train Day – celebrating May 10, 1869, the day when the “golden spike” was driven into the final tie to link 1,776 miles of the Central Pacific and Union Pacific railways, “creating the nation′s first transcontinental railroad.”