Motor City Rises as Detroit Withers to Shadow of Motown Vibe

Sheila Cockrel remembers one early sign of Detroit’s decline: The retailer J.L. Hudson’s turned off the lights on floor after empty floor as shoppers abandoned the world’s tallest department store for new suburban malls.

“That’s nobody’s fault, that’s what happens in culture,” said the former Detroit councilwoman who now teaches history at the city’s Wayne State University. “You have these larger economic forces in play.”