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Heading to the autoshow in a couple weeks and heard good things about pizza papalis what does hf say?
 
dsc75 said:
Heading to the autoshow in a couple weeks and heard good things about pizza papalis what does hf say?
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I was actually just down there saturday night after the Walleye game got postponed. Its definitely a great place to get pizza, a little pricey but well worth it IMO.
 
OT: Whats a good hotel beside the arena?

I'm from Canada and going to see the Wings/Preds game on the 17th, wondering whats a good hotel beside the Joe Louis Arena? any help would greatly be appreciated.

Thanks
 
I stayed at the Westin Book which was about a 10 minute walk from the arena. Absolutely fantastic. There is a shuttle bus at the hotel next door if you cbf walking.
 
Last time I went, I stayed at the DoubleTree. Nice place and literally next door. But there's not much to do immediately nearby before / after the game.
 
Best place to stay for a wings game

Coming over this weekend for the Wings Preds game to meet friends coming to town for the game. Looking for somewhere between the Joe and the Airport that is decent as I am not really familiar with the area.
 
A few years ago I stayed at the Greektown Casino...A little pricey, but really nice rooms with a great view of the city, and there's a plethora of bars/restaurants that offer shuttles to the Joe as well as there's the 'People Mover' light rail which will pick you up by the casino, and drop you off at the Joe.
 
Got a question for you guys: my parents joked about Detroit being a city where one can purchase a home for retirement on the cheap. But has Detroit actually experienced an influx of elderly people due to the collapse of real estate prices that took place a few years ago?

http://www.realtor.com/realestatean...it_MI_48203_M30156-32503?row=3&ex=MI575388069 (or some other home in the $10-20k range)

If I was to attend Michigan-Ann Arbor for a PhD, I would purchase an used car prior to departure and a house in Detroit... and, once I graduate, I would rent it out until my parents retire.
 
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Mathradio said:
If I was to attend Michigan-Ann Arbor for a PhD, I would purchase an used car prior to departure and a house in Detroit... and, once I graduate, I would rent it out until my parents retire.
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If you can buy a home for $10K, what do you think the rental market is like for that house?
 
Bench said:
If you can buy a home for $10K, what do you think the rental market is like for that house?
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One can purchase a house in a city for $10k today, but the rental market in that particular city today may well differ from the rental market in the same city five years afterward. For the first couple of years I would own the house and reside in it, but upon graduation I would find myself in a much different real estate market.
 
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Mathradio said:
One can purchase a house in a city for $10k today, but the rental market in that particular city today may well differ from the rental market in the same city five years afterward.
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The people who make bank on the Detroit land grab are going to be large developers, not the dude trying to flip a house.

The city has a long way to go before there's a revitalization, more than 5 years, and it's going to be on the backs of adventurous young people, not retirement community seniors.

What I'm trying to say is, I don't know anybody in Michigan who thinks it's smart to buy a 10K home and then put their parents in it for retirement. Maybe some others can chip in here, but all my friends who are from the Detroit area don't ever bring up this plan of buying those homes. If anything, they're all setting their sights out of the city.
 
Mathradio said:
Thank you for this reality check...
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Didn't mean to pile on you there, but I'd feel bad if I didn't at least give some really strong words of caution. The cheap housing boom is in part a result of Detroit wanting tax revenue on the home, which is of course the big factor people forget when they see the low, low prices.

Plus homes that sit for any period of time have significant wear that requires a lot of work to fix. These Detroit homes are also usually pretty old, so you're looking at all kinds of plumbing, heating, and wiring issues. That "steal" fixer-uper is now a monthly payment on top of significant renovation expenses.

Now that still could be worth it... if there were a bunch of other neighbors around you that did the same thing. But that seems unlikely to happen quickly or even at all. Many homes will remain vacant and decaying, ripe for exploitation by transients. And nobody will want to buy it, no matter how nice, unless the neighborhoods offer good schools and public services - both of which are in a state of turmoil at the moment.

Now all of that said, I'm far from an expert. This is what I pieced together from reading the news over the years, so maybe there's more to the story.
 
Bench said:
The people who make bank on the Detroit land grab are going to be large developers, not the dude trying to flip a house.

The city has a long way to go before there's a revitalization, more than 5 years, and it's going to be on the backs of adventurous young people, not retirement community seniors.

What I'm trying to say is, I don't know anybody in Michigan who thinks it's smart to buy a 10K home and then put their parents in it for retirement. Maybe some others can chip in here, but all my friends who are from the Detroit area don't ever bring up this plan of buying those homes. If anything, they're all setting their sights out of the city.
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Agreed, I also don't think you are going to want to be that far from U of M daily. Detroit is a pretty spaced out place, sure you will go down there for the odd thing, but to commute daily for Graduate school is going to get pretty old pretty fast.

Detroit is rebounding in my opinion. It is going to be hard, but I think connecting downtown to Midtown through the entertainment district is a very big deal. Other projects and money needs to go in, but this is the most confident I have been about a downtown rebound in a while. With that said, I don't think we are to individual buyers level.

There are also the issues that until the arena is erected that remain. Sparse grocery stores, department stores and things you would probably count on daily. These are a big part of the development project surrounding the Wings stadium project, along with several prominent money people in Detroit and the ongoing efforts of Wayne State for a while.

Now I don't live there anymore though I have considerable family ties that still call the area home, but I cannot really endorse this plan in terms of what I know of the area today or probably in the five year projection.

I have several friends that attempted living in Detroit out of college that quickly relocated to the suburbs. I think it is getting closer to a day where more stay, I just don't think it is there yet. There are a lot of variables that impact this.

Bench puts in an excellent point, many of the lots were bought as so called lottery tickets to be cashed for the billionaires developing land. The Ilitch's, Ford's and Gilbert all have interests in what they are doing though, it doesn't necessarily mean they will help all of Detroit, though the city benefits a great deal from their commitment. 10K plus probably double that just to fix the home is a pretty big investment given the uncertainty of which areas might come back and which will not. You could still be sitting on a 10K investment with almost no probability of moving it a decade from now if the fix up area you go for doesn't take off.
 
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Hey Red Wings Fans, I'm a displaced Winnipegger coming to Detroit from Toronto this weekend to catch the Jets/Wings game. I've heard that I can pay for beer in CAD, any truth to that or am I just going to end up annoying a cashier? thanks!
 
tyler302 said:
Hey Red Wings Fans, I'm a displaced Winnipegger coming to Detroit from Toronto this weekend to catch the Jets/Wings game. I've heard that I can pay for beer in CAD, any truth to that or am I just going to end up annoying a cashier? thanks!
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Good question. I've never seen Canadian currency exchanged in Detroit but I've used American currency in Windsor but they gave back the change in Canadian.
 
Just wondering, is it better to stay in Windsor if your staying there overnight because I'll probably go with my brother, dad (both are Wings fan) and with my uncle (Hawks fan who got me to like them growing up) for a Hawks vs Wings game before they move out of the Joe.
 
ToewsForDays said:
Just wondering, is it better to stay in Windsor if your staying there overnight because I'll probably go with my brother, dad (both are Wings fan) and with my uncle (Hawks fan who got me to like them growing up) for a Hawks vs Wings game before they move out of the Joe.
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Staying in Windsor is a good idea, then take the tunnel bus from the bus station downtown and drops you at Cobo Hall and walk through the Hall to the Joe.

Picks you up in the same spot after the game.Cost is $15 total Cdn.

Beats all the parking hassle.I do it alot for events in the D.:yo:
 
Sec108 said:
Staying in Windsor is a good idea, then take the tunnel bus from the bus station downtown and drops you at Cobo Hall and walk through the Hall to the Joe.

Picks you up in the same spot after the game.Cost is $15 total Cdn.

Beats all the parking hassle.I do it alot for events in the D.:yo:
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Alright, thanks. I'll have to remember that :)
 
ToewsForDays said:
Just wondering, is it better to stay in Windsor if your staying there overnight because I'll probably go with my brother, dad (both are Wings fan) and with my uncle (Hawks fan who got me to like them growing up) for a Hawks vs Wings game before they move out of the Joe.
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If you stay in Greektown you can walk a block to the people mover which takes you to The Joe for a measly 75 cents. Plus, you're in the thick of a lot of bars & resturaunts. It's less travel hassle and more lively than Windsor. No offense to our neighbors, just my personal take.
 
Well we ended up having a blast in Detroit, even saw the Jets in our hotel before the game. Took a random bus from the Joe to a bar after the game and all was well!
 
Posting this here because I took the time to type it out in another thread. (Somebody bashing Detroit, no white people live there, wasteland, etc)

chupanibre said:
I'd be interested to hear what Red Wings fans have to say, Detroit doesn't have a very good reputation internationally, I remember watching a documentary on the city and some parts looked like a war zone.
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Yeah Detroit gets a bad rep. Just like almost all other large american cities, there is terrible parts. Detroit is on the rise and there's SO many great things to do in the city.

Alot of Detroits recent comeback can be attributed to the Quicken Loans owner Dan Gilbert. There's amazing new businesses sprouting up everywhere. The new arena is going to create thousands of jobs also.

The downtown area speaks for itself. It gets nicer everyday and the river-walk/Ren-Cen is a beautiful and SAFE area. Nothing will happen to you in many areas of Detroit if you're not trying to do anything stupid. Just like EVERY other city.

Construction is underway on an M1 rail that will go far, far down Woodward. (Street where Comerica Park and Ford Field are)

The Midtown area surrounding Wayne State is absolutely flourishing right now.
http://midtowndetroitinc.org/

Corktown - Where Tiger Stadium was, is also an amazing area.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corktown,_Detroit

Woodbridge - An artsy hip area filled with mainly students and young professionals
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woodbridge,_Detroit

Campus Martius - An incredible spot in the center of downtown. Outdoor ice-rink, fountain, family events, etc
http://www.campusmartiuspark.org/

Some of the greatest restaurants in the mid-west.
http://slowsbarbq.com/
http://greendotstables.com/
http://www.texasdebrazil.com/

Just one example of one of awesome not-so common things you can in the city.
http://www.whatsfowling.com/

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This is all inside the city limits. In near-by Suburbs (where the players live) are some of the richest and most lavish in all of the United States, and I'm not joking.
 
I'm not going to say there isn't reason for people on the outside to have reason to look on Detropia as a wasteland. There are a lot of parts that you could film a post-apocalyptic movie in. There's 47 square miles of vacant or derelict land in the city limits. To put it in perspective; enough vacant space to fit the city limits of San Francisco in. There's the crime stats as well that are staggeringly high, but it's pretty well concentrated in certain areas...it's not like people are going to get jacked walking to a Tigers game. Speaking of which, my brother, a Detroitophobe, came up from Ohio for a game and raved how much he liked it. I think most people are pleasantly surprised when they visit here.

Personally, I've never had a problem in the city. As long as you're not doing something dodgy, looking for drugs, etc., chances are you won't find trouble, as Edison mentioned.

I've lived in a lot of big cities, including Chicago (gah!), and I've never seen the spirit of civic pride like I have here. There are a lot of enterprising people reinvigorating the city and it's great to be able to see the 'rebirth' so to speak. I have to say the new arena, which will be amazing, has potential to beproblematic for the people in The Cass Corridor, aka Midtown, that made the area so great to begin with. It'd be a shame to see the city overrun with Royal Oak d-bags now that there are safe areas. The city has great soul, I hope the influx of money doesn't ruin it.
 
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