Imagine moving to Detroit, buying a house and spending three years getting to know the people and places that make up the Brightmoor neighborhood. That’s what Netherlands native Sharon Cornelissen did a decade ago as part of an experiment for her college dissertation, as well as for her upcoming book, “The Last House on the Block.”
The book, which comes out next month, takes a look at failed gentrification in the northwest Detroit neighborhood, such as white residents buying foreclosed homes for cheap prices and taking vacant land and converting it into urban gardens.
However, the area is still struggling to gain population years later. Since 1970, Brightmoor’s population declined from 26,040 to 9,372 residents in 2017, a 64% population loss – and shifted from all-white to 83% Black, Cornelissen wrote in a 2021 report.
Cornelissen is a sociologist and national housing expert who now lives in Washington DC. She serves as the director of housing for nonprofit the Consumer Federation of America, where she advocates on behalf of American consumers for fair, affordable housing and equitable mortgage lending. Prior to joining the CFA, she worked as a postdoctoral fellow at the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies, where she published research briefs and advocated to address contemporary housing discrimination in Massachusetts. While earning her PhD in sociology from Princeton University, Cornelissen embedded herself in the Brightmoor community to experience the challenges of being a homeowner in the city when she bought a house for $7,000.
In her new book, Cornelissen takes readers into the world of her Brightmoor neighbors, whom she lived with from July 2015 to August 2018. She reveals their struggles to keep their homes while keeping violence, tall grass and gentrification at bay. White residents in Brightmoor are also part of the story, where readers learn about their real estate bargains, urban farms and how they became the unlikely defenders of urban desolation.
Cornelissen is going on a national book tour to promote “The Last House on the Block,” including two stops in Detroit. On Nov. 6, she’ll be at Detroit Rosa coffee shop in Grandmont Rosedale from 7-8 p.m. for a talk with Belle Isle Conservancy CEO Meagan Elliott. The event is in collaboration with bookshop 27th Letter Books. On Nov. 10, Cornelissen will be joined by BridgeDetroit reporter Malachi Barrett for a conversation from 6-7 p.m. at Source Booksellers in Midtown.
While the official release date is Nov. 19 through the University of Chicago Press, Source, 27th Letter, and Literati Bookstore in Ann Arbor will be selling copies of Cornelissen’s book ahead of and during the upcoming talks.
I spoke with Corneliseen about how she became interested in ethnography (a branch of anthropology where data is collected through observations and interviews to determine how societies and individuals function), why she chose to live in Brightmoor and her experience owning a home in Detroit.
BridgeDetroit: When did you become interested in ethnography and sociology?
Cornelissen: I was still living in the Netherlands at the time and that’s where I read some of my first ethnographic books. One is called “Body and Soul” (by French sociologist Loïc Wacquant), which is about men on Chicago’s south side becoming boxers. It was just so rich and impressive to me that I was like, “I would like to be an ethnographer.” That’s how I ended up at Princeton. This book started as a dissertation when I was at Princeton. I was living in Brooklyn at the time and when I was thinking of what to write about, Detroit was in the news a lot because of the bankruptcy. It portrayed a lot of the city as very empty and sort of abandoned. I thought, “Well, there’s a lot more to this story, right?” And that’s how I started that project.
BridgeDetroit: There are more than 200 neighborhoods in Detroit. What made you choose Brightmoor to live and study in?
Cornelissen: When I moved to Detroit, I was staying with some friends in Midtown because I didn’t really know enough about the city to understand where I’d want to live. But Brightmoor was on my radar because I knew that there was a lot of community organizing happening there, so I thought that would make it easier for me to meet people.
I actually ended up in Brightmoor with the unlikely help of the Dutch diaspora. I was just going everywhere I could, going to the Detroit Eviction Defense, going to city meetings, going to different neighborhoods. One Friday, I went to Brightmoor to the very first farmers market. There were only 20, 30 people there. And one of the first people I talked to said, “Oh, you’re Dutch. Have you met the other Dutch person in the neighborhood?” That’s how I met Riet Schumack, a well-known community organizer in Detroit. We’re both from the south in the Netherlands, so she quickly offered me a place to stay (at her home).
BridgeDetroit: What was it like living with Riet and her husband Mark for that first year in Brightmoor?
Cornelissen: It was such a new experience for me. I mean, before that, I was living in Brooklyn in a tiny apartment in South Williamsburg. It was very vibrant, but also I didn’t really know any of my neighbors. Moving into Brightmoor, it was just such a different world. I would walk down the block and people would look out for me or say hi. It’s almost like you live in a small town rather than a city. It was just great living with Riet and Mark. We would have breakfast together, dinners together. I learned a lot about the political situation in Detroit and the mayor. Ethnography is really putting yourself into situations to learn and that’s what that was.
BridgeDetroit: What are some things you learned about homeownership in Detroit when you bought a house in Brightmoor?
Cornelissen: I never set out to be a homeowner in Detroit, but after a year of living with Riet and Mark, I wanted to find a place on my own. When I started looking into it, I realized that, especially at the time (in 2016), renting could be more expensive than owning a home. When I started looking for homes, one thing I learned is that most Detroit homes are not move-in ready, especially Brightmoor. They take a lot of work, and the cost of that work is often more than what the house is worth. It’s nice to have your own front porch, but it also comes with a lot of responsibility. The houses in Detroit are always slowly falling apart, so there’s always something new that you have to take care of. That was a big lesson for me. My front door fell on me one day, like it just fell down. I had a leaking roof one winter. There’s just a lot of maintenance that is ongoing, and that’s very expensive for people to keep their house together.
I also learned that it was–and I write about this in the book at the end–it was very difficult to sell the house. I wanted to sell it to a Detroiter, I didn’t want to sell it to an investor. For most Detroiters, it’s really difficult to qualify for a mortgage, especially when the mortgage is less than $10,000. Most lenders don’t want to do mortgages that small. It was really difficult to find someone that could either get a mortgage or bring cash, but also would be a homeowner that would want to live in a house. It took me a long time to sell the house and to find the right family. I didn’t want another empty house, or just a speculator that’s sitting on the house and hoping that it will be worth more one day, and doing nothing with the house. I wanted there to be another neighbor for my neighbors.
BridgeDetroit: What was the rest of your time like in Detroit? Did you enjoy living in the city?
Cornelissen: It was great! There’s so many characters in Brightmoor, so many personalities, so many stories that people come with. And it energized me to be able to learn from Detroiters and meet them in all these different spaces like church, the soup kitchen, a blight cleanup or when they’re mowing the grass. It was very rich to learn and connect with people. I think my world became much bigger and I think they (residents) enjoyed hanging out with me because I brought this weird, Dutch perspective. I also think that Brightmoor is a very hopeful place. I tried to write my book from a perspective of hope. A lot of people that are still there, they are united by a hope for the future of their neighborhood. They know that it can turn around and it can be better, and they’re willing to stick it out for it. That’s a positive mindset to be around. I really appreciated that.
As always, have a great week!
Until next time,
Micah
313 Scene
- The All-City Marching Band for Detroit Public Schools Community District performed with Detroit techno artist Carl Craig last week in Paris. The performance was part of Detroit Salon, a new arts initiative that highlights metro Detroit as an emerging global art hub, as well as attracting new visitors to discover Detroit’s art scene.
- BridgeDetroit executive editor and managing editor Laurén Abdel-Razzaq and Christine Ferretti snapped photos during the grand opening of the new Ralph C. Wilson Park Saturday.
- Environmental activists representing Clear the Air, Michigan Sierra Club and Urban Neighborhood Initiatives, among others, debuted an ofrenda, or offering, for the Detroit Institute of Arts Day of the Dead exhibit. Titled, “Where the Air Remembers and the Trees Dream,” the ofrenda features three local residents whose families say they died from air pollution-related illness. (Planet Detroit)
- Detroit’s newest bagel shop is collaborating with a revolving door of some of the hottest local chefs. Its new “Bagels with Buds” series will see Bev’s Bagels team up with big names in Detroit’s dining scene for a special monthly, one-day guest menu. The series launches Thursday with Mexican-inspired items by Carlos Parisi of Aunt Nee’s chips and salsa, including a Mexican chocolate and spiced pumpkin twist bagel with marzipan schmear, a chorizo and muenster bialy with salsa verde, and shrimp ceviche on a sesame bagel tostada. (Detroit Metro Times)
- On the heels of her new pop comeback album, Demi Lovato has revealed a 2026 North American tour that will include an April 29 stop at Detroit’s Little Caesars Arena. Lovato will be joined by rising pop singer Adéla for the 23-city run, set to kick off April 8 in Charlotte. Tickets for the LCA show and dates on the tour will go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday through Ticketmaster, following a series of presales this week. Registration is open now through 10 p.m. Tuesday for Lovato’s artist presale window. (Detroit Free Press)
What’s Going on in the D?
- Stevie Nicks–whose witchy persona has long fueled rumors that the Fleetwood Mac singer practices witchcraft–is making a stop at Little Caesars Arena beginning at 7 p.m. Tuesday. Tickets are still available on Ticketmaster, starting at $121.
- The city of Detroit is hosting its annual Halloween in the D event Friday at police precincts, recreation centers and fire stations across the city. The trunk-or-treat events begin at 4 p.m.
- The Redford Theatre is showing a Halloween screening of the horror classic, “The Evil Dead” at 8 p.m. Friday. The 1981 film follows Ashley “Ash” Williams (Bruce Campbell), his girlfriend and three pals as they hike into the woods to a cabin for a fun night away. They find an old book, whose text reawakens the dead when it’s read aloud. The friends must fight for their lives when the book releases evil spirits. “The Evil Dead” was written and directed by metro Detroit native Sam Raimi. Tickets are $7.
- Brand collective HouseParty is hosting a Halloween party beginning at 9 p.m. Friday at Spotlite Detroit. Tickets are $33 on Eventbrite.
- The Detroit Riverfront Conservancy is hosting a Día de los Muertos celebration from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday at Robert C. Valade Park. The event will feature food, live entertainment, vendors, children’s activities and more! While the event is free, people can register on Eventbrite.
- The DIA is hosting its 13th annual, “Ofrendas: Celebrating el Día de Muertos” exhibit. The display is designed to familiarize visitors with ofrendas and the Mexican traditions of the Day of the Dead as families honor their loved ones with altars. The exhibit is open until Sunday and is free for residents of Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties.
