Originally Posted by
detourdetroit
if it's steve tobocman, he is a former state rep. not sure if you're speaking of someone else. also, not sure how much he had to do with the earmark. the community had been talking about it for years and have been making inroads for a long time, so am not sure how relevant that is. if projected differences in budgets are any measure of being inexperienced, then nothing would ever get built. i've heard "final numbers" for the book ranging from $177-$200 million....hmmm...that's a lot of money.
from the onset the city had little to no intention of handing over the property and they [[with countless projects) and other private for profits development projects have a long and storied history of being over budget... so that's kind of a red herring that you're driving at, as has been suggested elsewhere.
the OTSC does not yet have the development dollars in place for the project [[like many many many other projects all over the country right now), but it doesn't mean there aren't experienced people involved...lawyers, architects, succesful business owners, people with non-profit development experience, including real estate development, etc. etc.
i think the real point is NOBODY has had experience with a project like this...in the whole country...it would be one of a kind unique, which is the glaring, ugly travesty. knocking down this structure [[without a higher better use in place) only underscores with a dripping, irony laden black mark that the city and its leadership are woefully inadequate to the task at hand and have no vision to see an alternative, progressive vision for the city.