This one is cheating just a bit, as the Warrendale neighborhood is in Detroit around Warren Avenue and Southfield and the closest river it could be downriver to would be Grand River. Still, I think it is worth talking about as a viable neighborhood in Detroit that is near Downriver.
Any discussion about a Detroit neighborhood has to start with crime and emergency response times. Warrendale suffers from the safe deficit in city services that the rest of the city has. I will predict right now that city services will be markedly better in the future as Detroit resolves its financial challenges. Looking at crime statistics, it is not as hard hit as other areas.
This neighborhood has significantly deteriorated in the last 20 years or so. Once a home to many Detroit police, fire, and city employees, it suffered when residency requirements were relaxed. Driving through the neighborhood today you can see some blocks are still holding up quite well and some blocks are plagued by burned out houses and empty lots filled with trash. Things seem generally better south of Warren and closer to Ford Road.
My friend, Frank Nemecek at the Warrendale (Detroit) blog will be sad to hear that the neighborhood has less single females than the city average (18.7% vs. 22.4% city wide). It also has a higher median household income than the rest of the city.
Warrendale is a neighborhood that has taken the worst and kept battling. Houses are cheap compared to neighboring communities, and it might be a great place to live again in the future. My family lived here when I was a little boy and so it will always have a place in my heart.
Here is a link to more information, from Zillow:
http://www.zillow.com/local-info/MI-Detroit/Warrendale-people/r_270073/
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