From NYTimes.com: An Effort to Save Flint, Mich., by Shrinking It

Dozens of proposals have been floated over the years to slow this city's endless decline. Now another idea is gaining support: speed it up.

Instead of waiting for houses to become abandoned and then pulling them down, local leaders are talking about demolishing entire blocks and even whole neighborhoods.

I find this to be an interesting solution to Flint's problems.  Downsizing is something that businesses do all the time, but it's unusual to see a city contemplating doing so.  It does make sense, though.  If the population of your city has shrunk dramatically and you have a limited amount of resources, concentrating the resources in a smaller area means better services and decreased costs.