ABSTRACT
This chapter highlights the significance of the highly diverse social and economic character of metropolitan Detroit. Detroit can be divided into five regions: the central business district, the central city, the Standard Metropolitan Statistical Area, the southeast Michigan region, and the automotive region. The Detroit central business district is distinguished from other parts of the city by its concentration of commercial activity and high land values. Detroit's economy, as well as that of the entire southeast Michigan region, is in transition. Manufacturing is the primary economic force in the area, but, consistent with national trends, the service sector and office-oriented employment have been growing. Detroit became one of the largest industrial cities in the United States because of the heavy manufacturing and durable goods industries, particularly the production of automobiles. Modernization of industrial processes is already occurring in Detroit and this means automation.
