The notion that Detroit is in the midst of a renaissance is not true. A look across its 142 square miles shows that it is still mired in poverty. Although it has probably leveled off, the city has lost a massive number of residents. It also has many abandoned houses that will remain indefinitely. A small part of downtown has made a comeback, led by Rocket Companies founder Dan Gilbert, who has invested or brought hundreds of millions of dollars into the area.
The populations within the boundaries of principal cities rose 5.9%, while the number of residents living in the boundaries of the outer suburbs of those principal cities rose 11.9%. In some metro areas, the difference is far more pronounced, with suburban growth outpacing the growth of the inner city by over 40 percentage points.