Demolition by neglect, the process by which a property owners allow a historic building to rot away until there's "no choice" but to demolish it, is supposed to be the kind of thing that gets property owners in trouble.
Though on a much larger scale, demolition by neglect is basically the same thing as a methed-out neighbor from hell with newspapers over his windows, a rotting car on the lawn, and a sagging roof. Also the cinder block replacing a proper front stoop.
When it comes to the increasingly shabby Metropolitan Building, in the heart of Detroit's central business district rebirth, it's hard to alert the proper authorities to its neglect because the proper authorities own the Metropolitan Building.
Curbed: Conditions at the Metropolitan Building are getting worse. Beyond the layers of graffiti, new gaps are appearing in the plywood barricading what used to be the front entrance. Vandals now enjoy easy access, climbing that semi-permanent scaffolding like a ladder. Demolition appears to be the goal of the ownership, the Downtown Development Authority, which is partially funded by property tax revenue.
Seriously, DDA, maintenance/renovation is one thing. We get the city is broke and all. But is it too much to ask that you properly secure--bricks, not plywood to seal the ground floor--the things that you (we?) own?
