About the Survey

Purpose:

To form a baseline for the development of a comprehensive residential data set and support a neighborhood reporting system for on-going updates.

History:

In early 2008, local foundations recognized a need for coordinated data and strategy development and assigned resources to launch the Detroit Office of Foreclosure Prevention & Response (FPR) and Data Driven Detroit (D3) (formerly known as the Detroit-Area Community Information System - D-ACIS) in early 2009.

The establishment of the City DNA data platform (provided through Social Compact and funded by The Ford Foundation and Living Cities) at FPR helped position Detroit at the leading edge of gathering and analyzing data to inform decisions and strategies around foreclosure issues. The data is generated through First American CoreLogic, which gathers information from publically recorded transactions and other proprietary sources. While this information fills a large data void, there is still a need for real-time information based on observations of neighborhood conditions.

The resource of City DNA has been a catalyst to bring together community partners. FPR, Community Legal Resources (CLR), and D3 began to collaborate to share data and services to position foreclosure data as part of a broader analysis of housing, land, vacancy, and demographic information and formed an advisory group - the Detroit Data Collaborative.

Moving Ideas into Action:

One of the first projects of the Collaborative was a review of the results of a neighborhood supported data collection pilot conducted by FPR through Community Legal Resources. This review identified an urgent need for data on residential structure condition and vacancy to inform neighborhood stabilization activities.

The joint project was a bold undertaking - a survey of every residential parcel in the city of Detroit (around 350,000 parcels) that would provide a baseline and a process that would engage the community in keeping the data fresh to the greatest degree possible.

To complete the project on an accelerated timetable, each partner shared responsibilities. Collaborative members served jointly as a project management team with each partner overseeing a specific aspect of the project.

Project Coordination and Administration:

The Detroit Office of Foreclosure Prevention & Response approached Living Cities with a proposal to fund the survey and provided administrative and communications support for all phases of the project.

Technical Support and Services:

Community Legal Resources provided technical assistance - drafting the survey instrument, training materials, and providing links to community organizations for the neighborhood reporting system, as well as providing technical assistance during all phases of the project.

Field Work Coordination:

The University of Michigan Ginsberg Center, along with Eric Dueweke from UofM's Taubman College recruited, trained, and supervised more than 40 surveyors - both students from several disciplines and Detroit residents - who drove the streets of Detroit in 3-person teams to record the data. The work was completed in less than two months. Data collection included assessment of:

• Address Verification
• Property Type
• Property Condition
• Vacancy
• Vacant or Dangerous
• Fire Damage
• Vacant Lot

Technical Coordination:

Data Driven Detroit coordinated field materials, data entry, analysis of the data with other data sets, the development and distribution of data products and tools, and will house and maintain the data updates.

Neighborhood Reporting System Coordination:

Data Driven Detroit and Community Legal Resources will work together to implement the new neighborhood reporting system.

Using Data to Inform Strategy:

A core principal of the project was a commitment to develop a data set that would have purpose beyond a single organization's need.

Data products and tools were developed to inform resource and strategy decisions for partners with a broad range of needs, from the neighborhood to government and institutional levels.

Three levels of web-based products provide a variety of entry points for entry level through advanced users. The entry-level public website (www.detroitparcelsurvey.org) allows users to enter an address and receive a specialized report for their census geography. Additional mapping features will be added to this site this spring.

Special Acknowledgements:

The Collaborative would like to thank everyone who participated in the conception, support, and execution of this project. Without the vision of the Detroit Data Collaborative partners, the financial support and advice of Living Cities, the administrative support of the Detroit Economic Development Association, and our partnership with the University of Michigan we would not be able to launch this exciting new resource.

Each of our organizations provided encouragement and support to the greater team well beyond the individuals involved in the execution of the project.

Patience, flexibility, and creative thinking were key elements in the process.

However, in the end, it was the contributions and commitment of nearly 100 individuals who supported this work with their unique contributions that made this project come together.

From our dedicated field supervisors, and the students and Detroit residents who worked together every day for weeks to compile the data from our home base at the University of Michigan Detroit Center, to the data entry and analysis teams based at Data Driven Detroit - each member made a lasting contribution to the City of Detroit.

Thank you for being a catalyst for a new era of data supported work in Detroit.