Probably would take a book to list all the reasons. For certain they were never able to cope with the loss or downsizing of the operations of the big three car makers. Yet this even if it was the major factor is not the total answer.

I suspect there may be a reluctance to really get into this in some areas. The smarter ones moved out before the massive failure of the city hit bottom. One troubling aspect is if this is the real bottom yet?