I grew up in the suburbs of Detroit in Milford. My parents owned the most expensive piece of property in town. For years, a Detroit police officer and his wife, kept an eye on our house, patiently waiting for it to go up for sale.
Problem was, being a Detroit police officer, his residence had to be within city limits. He had to time his retirement with the purchase of our home. He was lucky it all worked out and he was able to leave the city and move into the home of his wife's dreams. It just took timing and they were patient.
I wonder how many people want to be employed by the city and remain forced to live within Detroit. It doesn't sound like an appetizing incentive to me.
By the late seventies lots of cops and firemen were living illegally in places like Milford, Brighton, Ann Arbor, and Novi. Some got caught and got fired, some didn't.
I think the residency requirement has been rescinded. After the eighties, there were so few white people left in town that it didn't make any difference where the police and firemen lived, becasue they were mostly black too.
Now, lots of Detroit cops live in Southfield.