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Unemployment is now approaching 20 per cent and the total population has almost halved to 110,000.

The exodus - particularly of young people - coupled with the consequent collapse in property prices, has left street after street in sections of the city almost entirely abandoned.

I'd guess that they've gone where there's work. Especially the young, especially the graduates.  I spent my teens in an industrially devastated city.  When we went to university, we knew we weren't coming back.

by Sassafras on Sat Jun 13th, 2009 at 05:12:19 PM EST
People have moved from the old rust belt cities to the information age cities.

I saw my first dead city when I was 23, taking a train from New Haven, CT down to NYC. Bridgeport, in particular, was a ghost town being slowly reclaimed by nature. That first view was stunning.

you are the media you consume.

by MillMan (millguy at gmail) on Sun Jun 14th, 2009 at 02:55:29 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Well, downtown Bridgeport is certainly like that, and it did declare bankruptcy, but there are extraordinary old New England beautiful homes, and lush greenery, the closer you get to the Merrit Parkway. Bridgeport made its bread as a port, hence the name, and that downtown area off the port has suffered for it.
by Upstate NY on Thu Jun 18th, 2009 at 03:47:29 PM EST
[ Parent ]
... Housing Bubble cities. Phoenix is an example of a city where a surprisingly large share of the employment attracting people into the city was catering to the housing for the people that had been attracted into the city.


I've been accused of being a Marxist, yet while Harpo's my favourite, it's Groucho I'm always quoting. Odd, that.
by BruceMcF (agila61 at netscape dot net) on Fri Jun 19th, 2009 at 01:28:07 PM EST
[ Parent ]
New Haven is nothing to write home about either.

Nor is Waterbury.  Or New London.  Or Hartford.

Connecticut cities, in general, are pretty nasty in my experience.

On the other hand, small villages in CT are quite nice, and you can buy some nice, historic homes in those villages for pretty reasonable money, especially by BosWash standards.

Be nice to America. Or we'll bring democracy to your country.

by Drew J Jones (pedobear@pennstatefootball.com) on Fri Jun 19th, 2009 at 07:09:52 PM EST
[ Parent ]

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