Cleveland, changing a bit now, has been one of the most native-born cities in America for a very long time. The city led the nation for population loss from 1952 until around 2008 when it was unseated by Detroit. Even the last census confirmed it’s still losing prople, about at Detroit’s level.
Assuming the ones with the better resources, ambition and abilities probably fled a long time ago, perhaps leaving the less fortunate to deal with the failing city.
In such a place, during such a time, contact with locals, who became so endemic, indigenous and isolated, to almost speak their own language and live a culture of monadism, should be avoided, lest you end up a tire in a tree that has grown enough that the tire can only be freed by sacrificing the branch or tree itself.
Like Alexander, who sliced the Gordian Knot, fulfilling its prophecy, the tree itself is sliced, and the tire is freed in good shape, ready to roll.
The devastating consequences of depopulation, one being neglect, is a tired old story. Today, for the old cities, it’s empty fields or gentrification. Some choice.