Soul of the Community

The information in our study covers the Detroit-Warren-Livonia, Mich., Metropolitan Statistical Area.

In each community, the Soul of the Community Study identified factors that emotionally bond residents to where they live. Some of these community characteristics were rated highly by residents, and are therefore community strengths while others were rated lower, making them opportunities for improvement. This information can provide communities a roadmap for increasing residents’ emotional attachment to where they live, which the study found has a significant relationship to economic vitality.

In the Detroit area, openness (how welcoming a place is), social offerings (fun places to gather) and aesthetics (an area’s physical beauty and green spaces) are the most important factors emotionally connecting residents to where they live.

Aesthetics and education are perceived as community strengths. Ratings of the area’s parks, playgrounds and trails had a significant increase in 2009, making it the highest rated aspect of aesthetics. Ratings of K-12 public schools also had a significant increase in 2009, but still rated lower that local colleges and universities.

Openness and social offerings are seen as areas needing improvement. Specifically, while residents see the Detroit area as most welcoming to racial and ethnic minorities, it is perceived as least welcoming to college graduates. And while residents rate the area's nightlife and other social aspects nearly equally well, perception of residents' care for each other lags far behind.

Residents who feel a strong emotional connection to the area are most likely older, renting, urban-dwelling and retired residents. Those who are least likely to have an emotional connection are 35-64, non-employed (including students) and middle-earning residents.