Detroit Blight Busters - Fighting Blight In Detroit For Over 30 Years

Southfield (CW50) - Detroit Blight Busters might sound like a funny play on the Ghost Busters, but the work that the blight busters do in Detroit nothing to laugh at.

The City of Detroit has been hearing the word "blight" for decades, as the city's wide-spread abandonment of buildings and residential homes is well-known. But for the last 30 years, John J. George and his Detroit Blight Busters have been demolishing and renovating blighted homes in the city to help stabilize, revitalize, and rebuild Detroit.

It all began in 1988 when John J. George saw the negativity that blight had brought to his neighborhood. He took it upon himself to demolish and board up one of the blighted homes and got his neighbors to join in. His work continued to grow and expand across the northwest neighborhoods of Detroit.

The expansion of Detroit Blight Busters has led to three areas of focus. Artist Village Detroit is one of these focuses, as blighted areas are refurbished and used to house beautiful street art from artists around Detroit. There is also Farm City Detroit, where a previous row of abandoned properties is now a community farm that has employed 32 Detroit youths and has engaged over 3,000 volunteers.

Detroit Blight Busters have demolished over 300 abandoned properties in the City of Detroit. In doing so, they have made a dent in Detroit's blight problems with more work to be done as they continue to grow.

John J .George, Founder of Detroit Blight Busters, joins Lisa Germani on Community Connect discuss his 30 years of work demolishing and renovating blighted properties in Detroit's neighborhoods.

To learn more about Detroit Blight Busters or how to get involved, go to DetroitBlightBusters.org