"We should not confuse progress with success," Dave Egner, president and CEO of the Hudson-Webber Foundation, said last week as copies of the latest edition of 7.2 SQ MI, a statistical portrait of the 7.2-square-mile greater downtown area, were being mailed to supporters. The new edition of the report that was first published two years ago is now available at the website detroitsevenpointtwo.com.

Among positive findings in the latest edition: The greater downtown saw 77 new restaurants and 41 new retail locations open since 2013 when the first edition of the report was issued. Between 2010 and 2014 there were 1,258 new housing units added and 1,754 housing units renovated.

But there are surprises, too, in the report. Despite fears that well-paid young professionals are entirely taking over downtown, per capita income in the greater downtown remains under $21,000, which is only about half the national average. In other words, a fairly significant number of lower-income residents remain in the district.

Sue Mosey, president of Midtown Detroit Inc., said the income numbers reflect in part the history of low-income public housing built around the downtown area decades ago. To make sure those long-time Detroit residents are not pushed out by gentrification in the future, Mayor Mike Duggan and civic leaders are encouraging developers of new residential projects to include a significant percentage of affordable units in any new housing project in the greater downtown.

Meanwhile, the population density of under 4,300 residents per square mile in the 7.2-square-mile district remains slightly below Detroit's citywide population density. A population density lower that the citywide figure reflects the large number of surface parking lots that still mar the greater downtown as well as the relatively small residential base downtown.

Overall, civic leaders say, downtown, while rapidly renovating after decades of losing people to suburbia, still has a long way to go.

"With all the excitement of new restaurant openings and new housing developments in Midtown, we can see progress being made in parts of the neighborhood, but the data story shows there is still much work to be done," Mosey said.

But taken as a whole the report is encouraging, Egner said.

"With the second edition of the 7.2 SQ MI report, we can begin to identify what progress has been made in making Greater Downtown Detroit more attractive to residents and businesses," he said. "The inaugural report gave us the first benchmark of centralized and agreed-upon data for this important section of the city. We are happy that this second edition will continue to fill a critical gap in data and understanding of the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead."

The partnership that produced the report includes the Hudson-Webber Foundation, the nonprofit civic groups Downtown Detroit Partnership, Midtown Detroit Inc., D:hive, and Data Driven Detroit, the quasi-public Detroit Economic Growth Corp., and the Invest Detroit fund that bankrolls redevelopment projects.

The report aims to give a snapshot of data on who is living, working, and investing in the Greater Downtown, an area that encompasses the central business district, Midtown, Woodbridge, Eastern Market, Lafayette Park, Rivertown and Corktown.

"We believe a strong core is critical to the success of Detroit and our region," said Eric Larson, CEO of Downtown Detroit Partnership. "Having this data assists us in shaping new programming and fine tuning our initiatives supporting a resilient city and downtown."

The goal now, Egner said, is to view the greater downtown not as an island unto itself but as a bridge to the rest of the city.

"The greater downtown should be an economic engine for all of Detroit, not just the 7.2," he said.

The report has proven useful as a reference for newcomers arriving in the city, said Dave Blaszkiewicz, president and CEO of the Invest Detroit fund. He said he often hands outsiders a copy of the 7.2 SQ MI report before anything else.

"We've got folks coming in from all over the country that are looking to invest in our real estate, that are looking to open their business here, and this is a great conversation starter on the city," he said.

http://www.freep.com/story/money/business/michigan/2015/03/21/detroit-midtown-egner/25121805/