His passion helps revive Detroit

Dennis W. Archer

Age: 60
Residence: Detroit
Occupation: Former mayor of Detroit; chairman, Dickinson Wright PLLC
Honored: For revitalizing Detroit, stabilizing the city’s finances and working to restore relations between the city and the suburbs

ennis W. Archer’s garret offices atop the Comerica building are smaller than those he had in city hall. But they provide a spectacular view of the city he governed for eight years. He can watch the city’s skyline change — much of it the result of deals brokered on his watch.

    He worked with politicians and developers to get a new baseball stadium. He arranged with the Fords to bring the Lions back downtown. Archer wooed Farmington Hills-based software giant Compuware to downtown’s Campus Martius and secured General Motors’ move to the Renaissance Center.

    “I have the self-satisfaction of knowing I worked my can off for this city,” Archer said.

    Even Archer’s critics didn’t question his work ethic. He put in 15-hour days, working to change the governing, economy and reputation of the city. While problems remain, he left the city stronger than he found it.

    Crime declined 27 percent from 1991 to 2000. Archer erased an $88.5 million budget deficit. A string of balanced budgets moved the city’s credit from junk-bond to an A rating. More Detroiters had jobs, and property values generally increased after decades of decline. By the Archer administration’s estimate, $20 billion in new investment came into Detroit during his two terms.

    “For so many of us who worked so hard we can say, finally, the momentum is going in the right direction,” said Elizabeth Chappell, president of the Economic Club of Detroit.

    Archer also worked to improve the plight of urban America and the standing of African Americans in organizations such as the National League of Cities, the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the American Bar Association. This summer, Archer will likely become the next ABA president-elect, the first African American to hold the post.

    Robert Grey Jr., an announced candidate hoping to follow Archer as ABA president-elect, said Archer played a major role in breaking down racial barriers in the legal profession.

    “You could count the number of African Americans at an ABA meeting on one hand and still have fingers left over,” Grey said. “ ... You can’t do that anymore.”

    But all these efforts came at a price, including time with his wife, Trudy, and two grown sons. He declined to run for re-election last year.

    “I walk away from all that with no second thoughts,” he said. “I let the demands of the city run my life.”

    Born in Detroit, Archer grew up in the western Michigan town of Cassopolis. He became a Detroit school teacher, then a lawyer, then a state Supreme Court justice, then mayor of the state’s largest city.

    No longer putting in long hours for the city, Archer passes the time juggling various responsibilities. He is the chairman of the city’s third-largest law firm, Dickinson Wright PLLC. He serves on the corporate boards of Covisint and Compuware. He travels the country giving speeches. He administers his educational foundation. And once in a while he even finds time to go shopping with Trudy.

— Cameron McWhirter