Mayor Mike Duggan drew Dan Gilbert, roaring audience for his final State of the City speech
Highlighting Detroit's historical arc, from the Arsenal of Democracy to the suburban exodus that left the Motor City a shell of its former self, Duggan spoke for an hour about how far the city has come since he took office in 2014 as the city was preparing to exit its historic bankruptcy, and he first pleaded for residents to "give him a chance" to turn things around.
Throughout the high-energy slideshow presentation, Duggan rattled off a laundry list of new commercial and residential developments throughout the city; new manufacturing deals, like Stellantis' Jeep assembly plant on Mack that hired 4,000 Detroiters; income tax collections that rose from $248 million 12 years ago to $470 million as more people moved into the city and new businesses opened, and a $550 million general fund reserve to help the city through any future fiscal storms. All of it news, that Duggan said, will equal a tax cut of at least $150 for city residents.
"Because you stayed in the city of Detroit," Duggan said to applause.
The mayor waxed poetic about the former Hudson's department store, where children would line up on the 12th floor for Christmas before the building eventually closed. And how, in 1998, the city demolished the building, leaving an empty patch in downtown Detroit for 30 years. Then, Detroit businessman Dan Gilbert took over the site and built the skyscraper standing today, marking Michigan's second tallest building.
"Isn't it beautiful?" Duggan said.
Duggan praised a host of his turnaround teamates in his speech, from the city council, to Detroit's 9,000 municipal employees, clergy, city and state officials, private residents and community groups, even former New York Mayor Mike Bloomberg, who Duggan said has given Detroit 12 years of support for city services, census counts and public spaces — including the building of Spirit Plaza outside the Coleman A. Young Municipal Center on Jefferson.
But the mayor had special praise for Gilbert for numerous other investments through his tenure, including moving Quicken Loans to downtown, restoring the Book Tower and covering delinquent property taxes for struggling residents.
"Now there are 1,500 former renters in the city of Detroit who are homeowners ... because of the program that Dan started," Duggan said. "Dan has changed the course of the city in the last five years .. .and not for a single time, did he stop worrying about the welfare of the city of Detroit."
Sitting in the front row, Gilbert received a grand applause from the audience. But he was not the only one Duggan thanked. The mayor said the city could not have emerged out of its hardships without the help of the community, including neighborhood block clubs, Detroit's clergy community and more, as he reflected on the last decade.
Leaning into history, Duggan spoke of Hudson's closing, how the city grew with the Packard factory employing about 40,000 people to make vehicles and President Franklin D. Roosevelt calling on Detroit to make bombers and tanks, giving it its reputation as the "Arsenal of Democracy." But things took a turn.
The Packard Plant closed in 1956 and the city's population began declining. Detroit was the fifth largest city in the nation in 1950, according to U.S. Census data Duggan referenced, and took a dip to 24th by 2010, resulting in a plethora of issues which followed.
Half of the city's streetlights were inoperative, neighborhoods were lined with abandoned houses, recreation centers and at least 250 closed city parks, 200,000 residents moved out of the city and political leaders were fighting with each other across the state, and with unions. Duggan then made a decision to leave his executive role at Detroit Medical Center to run the city.
Then, Detroit filed for chapter 9 bankruptcy in July 2013, months before Duggan took office. Within his first year in 2014, Detroit exited bankruptcy but Duggan still had several issues to tackle, including population decline, blight, crime and unemployment.
Tuesday marked Duggan's final State of the City address as the mayor prepares to leave office to run for Michigan governor as an Independent candidate. Duggan's campaign geared up for the address by emailing a plea for donations for his gubernatorial campaign on Monday, pledging to deliver promises for Michiganders as he did "for the city of Detroit."
When Detroit's unemployment rate reached nearly 20%, many predicted a "bleak" future for the city. Duggan attempted to maximize on the city's vacant land by bringing in manufacturers to develop sites, which would hire hundreds or even thousands.
"I took what everybody said was a problem, our vacant land, and I took advantage," Duggan said, adding that several experts and national media snubbed the city for any potential of restoring its manufacturing industry.
Flex-N-Gate in 2016 opened Detroit's first new auto industry plant in 20 years, hiring at least 500 employees. Lear Corporation took over the abandoned Hudson Motor Plant site to build a new seating plant, hiring 700 employees. Dakkota Integrated Systems opened a plant at the old Detroit Kettering High School site with 600 jobs. The Detroit Assembly Complex - Mack hired 4,000 Detroiters. Factory Zero hired 4,000 employees, along with 200 more at its parts facility at the former AMC Headquarters site.
The old State Fairgrounds holds a "major business park" anchored by an Amazon Fulfillment Center, holding 2,400 employees. Duggan also credited the Ilitch family for building two office buildings on Woodward Avenue, and Huntington Bank headquarters for bringing in hundreds of jobs.
Michigan Central Station was one of the more long-awaited developments, which reopened last year after years of abandonment and city leaders nearly demolishing the site. Ford Motor Co. purchased and restored the site, moving in 1,000 employees. In an effort to make Detroit competitive, the city offered discounts on new taxes, giving Ford a 25% discount to pay $300 million over 35 years instead of $400 million.
Detroit's unemployment rate dramatically dropped to reach its lowest years later. The mayor also touted Detroit's income tax growth, which the bankruptcy plan approved by the court projected a 2% increase, reaching $326 million by the 2026 fiscal year. In his latest budget hearing, Duggan touted the city for collecting a 7% increase, reaching $470 million.
"Our finances are better because of all the people working and living in the city, and paying their taxes," Duggan said.
As Detroiters left, so would police. Detroit was considered the "most violent city" in 2014, Duggan said. In an attempt to retain police officers, the city provided officers $10,000 in raises, adding about 350 more officers on the streets and invested in crime reduction technology.
"Ninety-nine percent of our positions are filled today because we're paying them," Duggan said.
Community violence intervention initiatives like ShotStoppers reduced gun violence in the city. A movement to "defund the police" emerged amid racial justice protests in 2020, but the mayor pushed for more police and community violence intervention to reduce crime in the city. Duggan touted a major drop in homicides in 2024, marking the lowest rate since 1969. Homicides dropped by 38% since 2023, shootings dropped by 53% and carjackings are down by 56%, Duggan added.
Additional investments led to hiring more EMTs, cross-trained firefighters and new ambulances. Detroit's fire department also reached response times below the national standard, which is eight minutes. The city at one point reported response times up to 58 minutes in 2013.
Duggan was confronted with balancing the city's budget since taking office. In his latest budget address for the 2026 fiscal year, he proposed a $3 billion budget — up from $2.7 billion last year — and proposed investments in multiple areas, including homelessness initiatives and the Detroit Department of Transportation.
Detroit's budget to address homelessness has more than doubled from $6 million in 2023 to $14 million in 2025, which is expected to increase shelters and beds.
DDOT expects to add 45 more buses, and hire at least 63 more drivers and 24 mechanics, if Detroit City Council approves his budget proposal. DDOT is also running 178 buses daily but expects to run 220 this year.
The city also expects to boost public safety by funding community violence intervention initiatives, if council approves.
Several job training organizations, including Detroit at Work, JumpStart, have also trained more than 1,200 for various jobs across the city, providing wages from $18 to $60 an hour.
Duggan highlighted that one of his main focuses was providing a riverfront for the public. The city planned a condo development 12 years ago on the east side of the riverfront, which would have taken up a large piece of it, Duggan added. He opposed the development and the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy stepped in to redevelop the East Riverfront into Gabriel Park, leading to further developments along one of Detroit's most visited attractions.
That included Riverside Park on the west side of the riverfront, near the Ambassador Bridge. The park was previously abandoned and closed due to contaminated soil. The city is also rebuilding AB Ford Park on the east side.
Duggan is also supporting a development plan to build a multisports complex on the former Uniroyal site. City Council recently nixed a previous long-stalled development plan.
Michigan's tallest building, an icon of Detroit's skyline, has been a subject of demolition and redevelopment in a proposed effort to reimagine the riverfront. General Motors moved into the building in 2000 but recently announced it would move into Hudson's Detroit.
"Since COVID, the RenCen is 80% vacant," Duggan said. "I had one request of Mary Barra. I said, 'Don't just sell the buildings.' "
He pointed to several examples of building owners leaving buildings behind to deteriorate, including the Packard Plant, which partially collapsed at one point.
"I love those five buildings, but I'm gonna be a mayor who faces reality," Duggan said.
He credited Gilbert for the idea of preserving three of the towers to redevelop them into a hotel, offices and apartments with affordable housing. The plan also includes a quarter-mile park for an entertainment destination similar to Chicago's Navy Pier.
After requests surfaced to transform the two proposed for demolition into housing, Duggan said it would be cheaper to build new apartments instead of renovating the towers, which would involve running plumbing through the building, and breaking through a concrete and steel plate ceiling.
"You have to fight through 39 stories of concrete and steel," Duggan said.
Duggan outlined a number of neighborhood developments and praised the NFL draft for the umpteenth time about its draw of 775,000 visitors. But he assured Detroiters that the city will be in a good shape in the next five years, indicating that if the city's income tax growth continues at its current rate, in five years, revenues will grow another $200 million.
"I don't think a day goes by when someone says, 'What happens when you leave?' " Duggan said. "This city's best days are in front of you, I deeply believe that. You're going to have more days like we had last April."
Touting the large visitor count with "no incidents," Duggan also celebrated that in two years, Detroit will have "an even bigger event ... when the Final Four comes to Detroit," receiving a grand applause and cheers from the audience moments before he ended his speech.
"I'll be sitting in the audience as a guest, not as mayor, and I'll be cheering," Duggan said. "Nothing stops Detroit."
Dana Afana is the Detroit city hall reporter for the Free Press. Contact: dafana@freepress.com. Follow her: @DanaAfana.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Mayor Mike Duggan delivers final 2025 State of the City address
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