What does meaningful reinvestment look like in communities experiencing long-term depopulation and disinvestment? Using Detroit's Brightmoor neighborhood as a case study, this conversation explores what happens when gentrification collides with deep depopulation, and what that reveals about investment, neighborhood change and who gets to shape a community's future.
Drawing on the book The Last House on the Block: Black Homeowners, White Homesteaders, and Failed Gentrification in Detroit (University of Chicago Press, 2025), the discussion will examine why traditional narratives about neighborhood revitalization often fall short in places where population loss, rather than growth, has defined the local economy. From there, the conversation will broaden to consider Brightmoor's longer history, the enduring leadership and resilience of residents, and the policy and financial tools that can help communities direct investment, strengthen local ownership and build toward long-term flourishing.
Bringing together research, lived experience and policy expertise, this webinar will explore lessons for practitioners working in depopulated and disinvested communities across the country.
Speakers: Sharon Cornelissen, Director of Housing, Consumer Federation of America and author of The Last House on the Block: Black Homeowners, White Homesteaders, and Failed Gentrification in Detroit Phyllis Edwards, Executive Director, Bridging Communities Pastor Larry Simmons, Executive Director, Brightmoor Alliance Josh Silver, Senior Fellow at NCRC and author of Ending Redlining through a Community-Centered Reform of the Community Reinvestment Act