Depressing city, few bright spots.
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7/2/2006
Despite the energetic grassroots efforts of some neighborhood and cultural groups, the city is dirty, crime-ridden and poor. Many neighborhoods trash-filled, abandoned houses, dead dogs left to rot in empty lots, high drug use and all that goes with it. Downtown with the cobbled streets, Flint River and neat old buildings closes up after business hours - no real nightlife in the city proper. Suburbanites are afraid of Flint (IMHO more a racist view than a realistic one) and only go to the Miller Road big-box shopping corridor. Racist attitudes - in all directions - are terrible. City services are woefully understaffed, personel underpaid and overworked. Public schools aren't good, economy is tanking along with the auto industry and roads and public transportation are pretty pathetic.
What's good? You can buy half-way decent houses for under 15K all day long; some in only marginally nasty neighborhoods. Property tax is extremely low. Some very nice parks and golf courses in the city and pretty county recreation areas. Since people around here don't go out and exercise much (this is a very fat state), parks are often quite empty. Excellent farmers' market. Nice library and cultural center. An hour from Ann Arbor, Detroit, Lansing. Good little airport. There are some very nice pockets of well kept, older homes and neighborhoods, though these in the minority.
I moved here from out of state, by an unfortunate twist of fate landed in Flint. I own my home outright (because it was so cheap) and am saving for the day when I can have a decent chunk of change and get the heck out.
carina | Flint, MI