Industrial Development Toolkit

Every day, local leaders across the Detroit Region make decisions that shape their communities for decades. DRP’s new Industrial Development Toolkit helps municipalities and developers navigate, evaluate, and guide modern industrial development on their own terms, clarifying what it looks like today, how communities can attract it intentionally, and why it matters for long-term prosperity.

Every community’s vision for the future depends on a growing economy. Industrial development funds the tax base behind schools and roads, the career pathways that let residents prosper close to home, and the quality of life we all want.
The Detroit Region’s industrial legacy is complicated, including real disinvestment, pollution, and job loss. This Toolkit doesn’t ask communities to set that history aside; it asks them to weigh it honestly against modern development. People deserve accurate information, not outdated assumptions.
Industrial land here is finite, and how we use it will shape our economy for decades as we compete globally for investment.

Communities told us they want industrial development but lack the tools to attract it, and no shared framework exists. This Toolkit responds directly, giving both communities and developers a shared, honest resource. We’re grateful to the 50+ experts who helped build it.