Mysterious land clearing underway in Detroit; Bing's office tight-lipped

DETROIT A mysterious 6-block land clearing project is underway on Detroit's east side, but no one is admitting why.

Since Wednesday, heavy machinery has rumbled through the mostly forgotten lots tearing down the few remaining time- and fire-ravaged homes.

Pickups blocked Pierce between St. Aubin and Dubois Friday afternoon while a bulldozer dumped boards and innards from on razed home into a semi-trailer dumpster.

There are at least three occupied homes in the clearing area to the south of Mack, which encompasses plots from Scott south to Watson and St. Aubin east to Chene.

One homeowner said he has no idea what they are up to. No one will say.

One employee in a truck Friday laughed when he was asked what the crews were doing out there and said he couldn't say.

A black Chevy Tahoe with tinted windows and at least two passengers seemed to be overseeing the project. It was present most of Friday, parking for several minutes then moving to another location but never straying far from the area.

Detroit owns some of the involved properties, according to the Detroit News, but officials are mum on what the intent of the work is.

"I don't have any information to share with you," is the response Mayor Dave Bing spokesman Anthony Neely gave MLive Detroit.

He declined to say why the information can't be shared with the public.

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Mysterious land clearing underway in Detroit; Bing's office tight-lipped