Duggan To Take Bankrupt Detroit’s Oath Of Office

DETROIT (AP) — When Mike Duggan is sworn in as Detroit’s mayor shortly after 11 a.m. on New Year’s Day, he’ll begin a four-year term with limited powers in an insolvent city whose finances are controlled by a state-appointed overseer.

He plans to start work immediately, holding initial staff meetings Wednesday at City Hall. But Duggan already has been busy on Detroit’s behalf since voters elected him in November.

The former Detroit Medical Center chief has attended a meeting of new mayors hosted by the White House, put together his own administration and lobbied with emergency manager Kevyn Orr for a greater role in the city’s immediate turnaround.

“He’s been engaged on issues and has been preparing to hit the ground running,” former Detroit Councilwoman Sheila Cockrel said of Duggan.

Read more: http://timesleader.com/news/news/1094513/Duggan-to-take-bankrupt-Detroits-oath-of-office

Residents Of One Scranton Neighborhood Praise City’s Blight Removals

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Lackawanna County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Kevin O’Boyle doesn’t own the empty lot alongside his home on Mineral Avenue in Scranton, but he is the one who takes care of it.

“I keep it clean because it’s next to my house,” Mr. O’Boyle said.

Other neighbors do the same thing, as de-facto caretakers of several vacant lots that used to have condemned homes on them in the tiny neighborhood called Sandy Banks encompassing Mineral Avenue and Barrett Court at West Olive Street near the Lackawanna River.

“It’s our neighborhood.  We want to keep it clean,” Mr. O’Boyle said of the community pride there.

Read more: http://thetimes-tribune.com/news/residents-of-one-scranton-neighborhood-praise-city-s-blight-removals-1.1538251

Blight Into Light – The Story Of Brookhaven, Long Island