Get this --  22,504 properties are going up for auction next month in Wayne County because of nonpayment of taxes. That’s a record, says the county treasurer.

Most of those foreclosures -- 20,040, are in Detroit.

It’s mind-bending. The city is so huge and sprawling that it’s easy to forget about the neighborhood decay when you’re watching a football game at Ford Field or eating dinner at the Renaissance Center. Last Friday, I took in the free Rockin’ the Riverfront concert on the  Detroit River. It was beautiful. The bands, The Tubes and The Sweet, rocked the house, even though there was no house – just the sky. My highlight was standing up front and taking photos of the band alongside WCSX radio’s legendary Doug Podell. A few blocks away, thousands of fans took in the Detroit Lions’ first exhibition game of the season. Later, I ended up at the Magic Stick on Woodward listening to some band from Chicago. I didn’t catch their name. Who cares, they were good.

Detroit can be an exciting town, full of wonderful people. But the truth is: Many of those people can’t pay their taxes. And residents must be consolidated geographically. Nobody likes to tell an 80-year-old woman she has to move, but if she lives in the only occupied house on a street........

The 22nd of each month is now a "No Violence Day in Detroit," following a proclamation by Mayor Dave Bing.

Naturally I’m skeptical. Why the 22^nd? Why not the 21^st? Hizzoner Bing’s number was 21 when he played for the Pistons.

Why not the 17^th? Some bars, including Dooley’s in Macomb County, celebrate the 17th of each month in honor of St. Patrick’s Day.

Maybe the 22nd has proven to be Detroit’s most crime-ridden date. Maybe thugs say: “Heck, I’ve behaved for the first three weeks of this month -- now I’m going to cut loose.”

I’m afraid this new idea will turn out to be like Devil’s Night, which Detroit’s amateur arsonists celebrated on Oct. 30.

If Devil’s Night was a spin-off of Halloween, I’m afraid of what might be spun off the day before No Violence Day.

I’m thinking the 21^st of each month might be a good night to stay home, or play some midnight basketball with the mayor.

Nothing embodies Detroit like the city’s hockey team, the Red Wings. They’re winners, they’re battlers, they’re a bunch of toothless, white guys. Well, two out of three isn’t bad.

Detroiters loved Steve Yzerman and, before him, Gordie Howe. But those guys were sophisticates when it comes to the world of hockey. The real fan favorites are the fighters, the full-blown goons. Bob Probert chalked up as many KOs as goals. His bad-guy persona was sealed when he was busted at the border with cocaine in his underwear.

Another fan favorite, Darren McCarty was in court this week to drop a personal protection order against his former friends. These were friends who allegedly were mad because McCarty wouldn’t party with them anymore. C’mon Darren. Let down your hair, Poligrip those dentures, and go paint the town as red as a red wing.

By the way, what is a red wing?

Get this --  22,504 properties are going up for auction next month in Wayne County because of nonpayment of taxes. That’s a record, says the county treasurer.

Most of those foreclosures -- 20,040, are in Detroit.

It’s mind-bending. The city is so huge and sprawling that it’s easy to forget about the neighborhood decay when you’re watching a football game at Ford Field or eating dinner at the Renaissance Center. Last Friday, I took in the free Rockin’ the Riverfront concert on the  Detroit River. It was beautiful. The bands, The Tubes and The Sweet, rocked the house, even though there was no house – just the sky. My highlight was standing up front and taking photos of the band alongside WCSX radio’s legendary Doug Podell. A few blocks away, thousands of fans took in the Detroit Lions’ first exhibition game of the season. Later, I ended up at the Magic Stick on Woodward listening to some band from Chicago. I didn’t catch their name. Who cares, they were good.

Detroit can be an exciting town, full of wonderful people. But the truth is: Many of those people can’t pay their taxes. And residents must be consolidated geographically. Nobody likes to tell an 80-year-old woman she has to move, but if she lives in the only occupied house on a street........

The 22nd of each month is now a "No Violence Day in Detroit," following a proclamation by Mayor Dave Bing.

Naturally I’m skeptical. Why the 22^nd? Why not the 21^st? Hizzoner Bing’s number was 21 when he played for the Pistons.

Why not the 17^th? Some bars, including Dooley’s in Macomb County, celebrate the 17th of each month in honor of St. Patrick’s Day.

Maybe the 22nd has proven to be Detroit’s most crime-ridden date. Maybe thugs say: “Heck, I’ve behaved for the first three weeks of this month -- now I’m going to cut loose.”

I’m afraid this new idea will turn out to be like Devil’s Night, which Detroit’s amateur arsonists celebrated on Oct. 30.

If Devil’s Night was a spin-off of Halloween, I’m afraid of what might be spun off the day before No Violence Day.

I’m thinking the 21^st of each month might be a good night to stay home, or play some midnight basketball with the mayor.

Nothing embodies Detroit like the city’s hockey team, the Red Wings. They’re winners, they’re battlers, they’re a bunch of toothless, white guys. Well, two out of three isn’t bad.

Detroiters loved Steve Yzerman and, before him, Gordie Howe. But those guys were sophisticates when it comes to the world of hockey. The real fan favorites are the fighters, the full-blown goons. Bob Probert chalked up as many KOs as goals. His bad-guy persona was sealed when he was busted at the border with cocaine in his underwear.

Another fan favorite, Darren McCarty was in court this week to drop a personal protection order against his former friends. These were friends who allegedly were mad because McCarty wouldn’t party with them anymore. C’mon Darren. Let down your hair, Poligrip those dentures, and go paint the town as red as a red wing.

By the way, what is a red wing?