Once home to the Kresge Missile Silos, these and the massive system of bomb shelter tunnels can be accessed from the Jr. High and City Hall (#1 on the map) and a large missile (unarmed) even adorns the city's Public Library.
Welcome to my home town. Population 14,000. Least crime in the state. Twenty miles away from Detroit and completely suburban. Most noted for being one of southeast Michigan's few spots to ski.
Once known as Mt. Trashmore (number 2 on the accompanying map), the Riverview Highlands has been an economic stronghold for our little town. You may have saw the piece on "20/20." Made completely out of refuse, a second peak is in the works and it is my humble opinion that Riverview probably gets some kick-backs and allows other cities to dump their waste in our backyards.
Not that Riverview doesn't have waste problems. We were fined for dumping way too much unprocessed sewage into the Detroit river (#6). The result was not a correction of the sewer system problem but a temporary quick fix and a massive public relations scam fed to kids about "Robbie the Rooter" or some horseshit (I was away at the time).
We here at Cashiers Du Cinemart don't tend to do serious exposes (except to perhaps divulge information on Quentin Tarantino) but we thought we could pretend to be responsible journalists and talk about the city of Riverview and its pollution problems.
[A hand-drawn map of Riverview accompanied this article, marking Allen Rd., Sibley Rd., Grange, King Rd., Fort St. (M-85), Longsdorf, Electric Ave., and W. Jefferson, with six numbered sites of interest and a star marking the author's house.]
The places marked #3 and #4 are two areas where houses are not allowed to be built, although they surround them. Why? Toxic waste is buried there. One sight is only a few yards away from the High School — not that anyone that attended RCHS will survive long anyway, not after the massive asbestos erosion that went on during our tenure there. Half of the school was closed and demolished because of the asbestos. Meanwhile, it would snow the stuff in my biology classroom.
A few years ago there was a story in the Detroit Free Press about a kid who lived near a creek in the southeast corner of Riverview who had blisters on his hands that would not heal because he was turtle hunting in the toxic waters.
Nice, huh? I have no hard evidence and I'm sure that the city would deny a lot of my allegations but what is journalism without libel?
These cases of waste material are those I know from common knowledge — I'm sure there are a lot many more violations and abominations I'll never discover. Welcome to Riverview (the star is my house — be sure to stop by on your way through).