The architect of Detroit's bankruptcy filing 10 years ago says it was the best fix for a broken city
The architect of Detroit's bankruptcy filing admits it was a miserable process
DETROIT — Detroit's newly hired emergency manager, Kevyn Orr, stood before reporters in March 2013 and issued a warning to city creditors, unions, vendors and others: “Don’t make me go to bankruptcy court. You won't enjoy it.”
On July 18, 2013, the restructuring expert did just that, making Detroit the largest city in the U.S. to file for bankruptcy.
What followed was months of negotiations, federal court hearings and an unlikely coming together of foundations to keep city-owned artwork from being sold to help pay off the debt.
“Bankruptcy is a miserable process," Orr, 65, told The Associated Press earlier this month, ahead of the 10th anniversary of the filing. «It puts everybody outside of their ordinary course, their common spaces.”
Detroit was determined by a state-appointed review team to be in severe financial distress in 2012. Soon after, then-Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder hired Orr — an attorney with the international law firm Jones Day — to take on the heavy lift of fixing a broken city.
Massive population loss that began in the 1950s and a decadeslong downturn in the auto industry and other manufacturers had severely slashed Detroit's tax base. Many neighborhoods were rife with vacant and burned out houses. Empty lots became dumping grounds for trash, used tires and even boats.
Poverty, unemployment and crime rates were among the highest in the nation.
The city’s budget deficit was north of $300 million. In the months before the bankruptcy, state-backed bond money helped the city meet payroll for its 10,000 employees. In the bankruptcy filing, Orr cited debt of $18 billion or more.
“This is a problem that’s been evolving for 50-plus
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