fun day with colleagues in detroit
starting on the detroit river
visiting the only mailboat in the world with its own zip code
still waiting for someone to claim this bag
then off to the detroit river fire boat
and one of the oldest fire stations in the city

sculpture in riverside park
featuring steel from the old joe louis arena
made my detroit’s nordin brothers
and on to detroit’s central station
brought back to life
and lovingly restored
by ford motor company
soon to be their new world headquarters
so many people in the city, working hard
keeping it running and building it back
—
“i think detroit is where muscle meets brains.”
-*dan gilbert
—
*Dan Gilbert is an American billionaire, Detroit businessman, and philanthropist. He is the co-founder and majority owner of Rocket Mortgage, founder of Rock Ventures, and owner of the National Basketball Association’s Cleveland Cavaliers. Dan Gilbert cofounded what would become Quicken Loans, the largest mortgage lender in the U.S., in 1985 at 22 years old. He and his companies have invested $5.6 billion to purchase and rehab a swath of buildings in downtown Detroit, with a plan to create 24,000 jobs.
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Good to see that lovely building restored and to be used again. We have fire-boats on the River Thames in London. We also have mail-boats that deliver to remote islands in Scotland. The boats don’t have their own post-code though. :)
Best wishes, Pete.
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I love the boats that have jobs to do and this building was used as a backdrop for many horror and armageddon films over the years, as it fell into such disrepair. I’m (and the city), are so happy it’s being restored and will be used once again
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I’m an old ‘Fords’ worker here in Geelong (now closed), back in the 1970’s … the revitalization of Detriot to create so many jobs, appears to be a truly fantastic initiative
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it is so good for everyone.
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Excellent
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How unique. From the mailboat to a billionaire who likes his city!
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it’s a great mix –
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Thanks for the visual tour of Detroit.
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a little taste of this and that, always so much more to discover
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That is true, I’m sure.
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Thanks for the bio on Dan Gilbert. I hope the lost baggage isn’t subject to compound interest.
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they said he owes 40$ and that will be forever)
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Lovely indeed Beth, glad to have the tour.
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my pleasure, always new things to discover
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For sure!
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Very interesting. Love the story of the mailboat.
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it was great, and the mailboat people are so enthusiastic about their job
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Love it. First time I have ever heard of mailboats.
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They play an important role. Detroit is on a river that runs between Michigan and Canada. Both side have boat pilots and mail carriers who lead freighters under our shared bridge, deliver mail and local supplies to these boats. The freighters never stop, just slow down, and the mail boats catch up with them to deliver mail and items and the pilots from both sides must board the freighter In international waterway
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Interesting. Thanks for educating me!😊
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It’s good to see the effort paying off for the people, Beth.
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it’s such a good thing for a city that has suffered so much
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That’s so cool! For having its own zip code, I would have though it’d be bigger. What a neat attraction and piece of history.
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just a tiny, but important part of the city
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What a nice homage to Detroit. “Detroit, Detroit…got a hell of a hockey team…” (Paul Simon).
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we did have some amazing hockey years, and hopefully more to come –
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Intriguing that a boat has its own ZIP code. And kudos to Ford Motor Company for saving that building.
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Yes, to both
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Definitely things to be proud of!
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Yes!
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The decline of Detroit has made me sad (especially being from Michigan), and I would love to see it built back up!
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They’ve be working hard ti bring it back and it’s well in its well
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Great to know!
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So happy for Detroit. It will be great again.
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Me too and I agree
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I’m so glad everyone is working together to make it happen.
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I have thought of moving to Detroit — I don’t think of it now, but for a few years it seemed plausible and very cool. I thought it would be wonderful to be part of its rebirth.
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Hope you enjoyed it!
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Wonderful day
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What a great day! And, cheers to Dan.
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Yes!
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What a great day! I love touring my city and discovering or rediscovering things I had forgotten; learning about new and old stuff. Love that the boat has its own zip code!
Thank you for the lovely tour. Go Detroit!
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It is always fun to discover new things
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This is true!
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I was rooted out of Detroit in the middle of 6th grade so my memories are dim except I was really mad at my parents!
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a universal rite of passage
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Motor City! I really enjoyed your visit!
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good to know!
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Interesting read, especially the mailboat one…
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thanks, it was really new to me
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Wow, looks like it was a great outing!
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