'Haunting' is a good description of these photos of abandoned structures in Detroit. Some were elegant once, but they're probably too far gone to save even if money were available to do so.
http://www.howtobearetronaut.com/2011/01/detroit-in-ruins/ (http://www.howtobearetronaut.com/2011/01/detroit-in-ruins/)
Here's a sample:
(http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5090/5316064906_b26420b548_z.jpg)
Here is another interesting website on Detroit....
http://www.forgottendetroit.com/
Wow, would love to get my hands on some of that Art Deco stuff.
These photos are pretty amazing. I found some other photos of Detroit that were composed in a book after shot by photographer, Julia Taubman. http://detroit138squaremiles.com/julia-taubman-captivated-detroit
(http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5164/5316062456_f15eac1fdf_z.jpg)
Talk about a grand theater.....
(also from Detroit)
In fairness this is also an interesting site. http://www.urbanophile.com/2010/04/11/the-other-side-of-detroit/ (http://www.urbanophile.com/2010/04/11/the-other-side-of-detroit/) Was watching a story on the news last weekend talking about this very subject and the disparity in Detroit, and the methods, some good and some bad as to how people are trying to revitalize the area from the neighborhood based attempts to save areas, and the city's slash and burn approach.
Gorgeous photos, but very sad!
There was a recent article in Archaeology Magazine that mentioned this. They called it ruin porn. Seems that it's now a part of the tourism business. People get taken to these places by the busload to get out and take photos of old Detroit falling apart.
It was sad when Tulsa lost the Rialto and Orpheum - this is same on an even grander scale.