I live just over an hour outside of downtown Detroit (with no traffic), almost took a job there a few months ago, and plan on spending a decent amount of time there in the over the next year. Detroit definitely isn't the best city, but there are lot of people heavily involved in making it a lot better. If the local government can miraculously get its act together, the city stands a chance to significantly improve over the next 10-15 years.

Also, I see many more negative articles about Detroit than positive. The city water fiasco that is currently ongoing comes to mind.