EDC votes to demo Tiger Stadium

[casscorridor]

It was a valiant effort by those trying to save part of the stadium. Unfortunately with the state of our local economy it was nearly hopeless. The downside now is that the price of scrap steel has plummeted since the prior demo contract, the work is going to cost the city a lot more this time around.

Hopeless? Saving it with the millions already raised is hopless?.... And demolishing it, costing the city millions of dollars isn't???

You are out of touch my friend.

[Blarf]

I can understand how somebody wouldn't want MCS or the Lafayette Building to be torn down. They are potentially usable space. Renovation and rehabilitation could lead to them being productive and usable property. But I don't see the use for a rusty old baseball stadium that has been left alone for 10 years.

What can they do with it? Keep in mind the area is already probably 80% open space [[playing surface, torn down outfield walls). I don't see what the hell you do with what is left???

The Lafayette and MCS are less likly to be used before Tiger Stadium would have. Ten years ago, the Book-Cadillac was deemed useless with no chance at ever becoming viable.

[GREENTROIT]

Yes I know. Everyone is telling me how Tiger Stadium must be saved, but nobody has told me what it will be. MCS could be lofts, offices, apartments, a train station, etc. Lafayette offers the same things.

What would a saved Tiger Stadium be? Would it have any use? Would people go inside of it or just look at it like they have for the last 10 years? I love the idea of saving the field, but what would the two levels of stadium seating from dugout to dugout provide?

[Maple Leaf Rag]

Fine, then you pay for the demolition. I for one am getting tired of the City pissing away large chunks of cash on demolitions like this and then claiming that it's too broke to take care of other things.


C'mon Frank, you're better than that. IF we believe the City's somewhat dubious numbers, the cost to sit and watch that building rot was about $250,000 per year. Roughly the same to, in the words of the great George Clinton, "Tear The Roof Off The Sucker".

[Alley]

I was all for it being saved until most of it was torn down, and dugout to dugout remained, looking confusingly ridiculous. What's done is done, and it's time for Tiger Stadium to go. The effort to save it was there, it didn't work, but that doesn't mean you can't hold on to your good memories.

[professorscott]

The City could've got the demolition done for, basically, nothing, if they'd allowed the contractor to demolish all of it in the first place.

Now, I haven't got enough detail to make up my mind about something, so help if you can. How much did the Conservancy raise, and how much was the City requiring them to raise? [[And, by when?)

[Beech Cricker]

WWJ audio featuring a short debate between the OTSC's Gillette and DEGC representative:

http://www.wwj.com/topic/play_window...dioId=3769246-

[nouthen]

when will they get to the brewster projects? Why not just move all of the historic stuff to Greenfield Village?

[Ravine]

If Alley doesn't mind a creepy-looking, beat-up piece of a guy briefly standing next to her, I'm with her on this one.
Nobody loved Tiger Stadium any more than I did, but the Tigers quit playing there, the dead stadium sat there for ten years, and now a truly depressing piece of a whatever that is that's left sits there, causing me to feel bad every damned day of my work-week.
See, one of the pleasures of working where I work was that I was able to see my beloved Tiger Stadium from the north windows, and the drive to & from work featured a pass right by it.
Now, every day I drive past the ruined, partially-destroyed remains of the place. Tiger Stadium was the whole structure, in its complete form, and that was finished off when they first knocked down a wall.
Too late, now; what's done is done, and the sad little image I now see, every day on my ride to work, makes my heart ache.
Please, somebody, take it away. My love is gone, and I have no wish to hang onto an arm, a foot, and some hair & teeth.

[detourdetroit]

for all those confused and disturbed about the stadium's current configuration, remember what's left on the corner of michigan and trumbull is not some half assed frankenstein tiger stadium. the structure was scaled down to an earlier version of itself which was completely appropriate in the mind's eyes of detroiters for over two decades...Attachment 1519

this shows the evolution
Attachment 1520

here's information about from the conservancy about their plans for all those who are confused about what could possibly be done in such a place...
http://www.savetigerstadium.org/the_plan.htm

here's a reasonable example of what could be done... nickerson field in boston [[former home of boston braves), now host to boston university games and matches...Attachment 1521

this would be stupid terminal waste of urban fabric, especially when so much effort has gone into a visionary, progressive alternative. the fact that detroit finds itself at the epicenter of an economic catastrophy doesn't mean that demos such as this can be rationalized. b-c sat vacant for 20 years...it was heralded by many as much of a white elephat as navin [[ne tiger stadium). the conservancy was paying for security. give them time to put something together, MOST ESPECIALLY if there is NOTHING funded to replace with anything more meaningful. detroit will never again stand tall as a city if it continues to flatten everything that it can't figure out.

[ghettopalmetto]

EDC stands for "Everything Demolished Corporation", right?

[Beech Cricker]

detourdetroit, you are a breath of fresh air!

[Ravine]

Detour, I know about Navin Field, but what you call a "scaled down... earlier version of itself" is what I call the depressing remains of a once-beautiful, and whole, stadium.
Nobody who is still alive is going to have sweet memories fired up by that sight, or look at it and say, "Ah!! Now that's the place I remember!!"

[ghettopalmetto]

Where's our old buddy Skulker to remind us how preservation-minded the City of Detroit is?

[detourdetroit]

i know. i feel you ravine. i'm saddened by the fact that we couldn't have figured something out with baseball's version of the globe theatre. so unique in its wholeness. a stage in the round for the most intimate of baseball drama. but as with so many things, having a touchstone to the past with even a remnant of the fabric can enliven the senses and elucidate the sweetest of visions. what is powerful about what could still be is that our children and grandchildren could continue to use the space in a meaningful way and create their own memories, made the more sweeter, richer and deeper if they're sitting in the upper deck behind home plate, gazing into the outfield and imagining whether or not the popup to right field would land in the overhang, or miss it by a few inches.

[detourdetroit]

skulker...doing god's work somewheres near the mason dixon line...that lawless, backwards backwater due south wheres all they can think of to do is to build them some light rail...

[FlyingJ]

This guy nails it-not everything old in baseball is good, but that doesn't mean you should get rid of the good old stuff

http://ebbetsfieldflannels.blogspot....n-and-now.html

[rjk]

Since I donated money to save it, and it's not being saved, when do I get my money back?

From their web site:
"Note that, as stated on our Web site, donations will not be refunded in the event that the Conservancy’s plan does not receive approval by the City of Detroit. The Conservancy expects to utilize all donations in the fight to save Tiger Stadium, and any unspent donations will be directed to a non-profit organization that is harmonious with the OTSC’s mission."

[urbanoutdoors]

Amen Detour! I cannot fathom how this would benifit Corktown or Detroit in anyway shape or form. I am sure we will have a lively discussion on this issue at the Corktown Residents Council Meeting tonight...

[ghettopalmetto]

Amen Detour! I cannot fathom how this would benifit Corktown or Detroit in anyway shape or form. I am sure we will have a lively discussion on this issue at the Corktown Residents Council Meeting tonight...

Give 'em hell!

[Ravine]

Urban, since you mentioned your participation in that community group:
There is a BIG white house on Church, at the corner just up from Rosa Parks.
Fabulous. I am so envious.
If the owners are part of your group, please pass along my admiration and tell them that I deliberately drive by it, almost every day around 3:40, just to gawk at it.
I'm in the beat-up green Dodge with the 50's jazz blasting.

[urbanoutdoors]

will do ravine

[jt1]

Has the conservancy ever released how much they raised. It seems they have been saying 'We are so close' for years. It also seems to me that their campaign to raise funds was half assed at best.

They didn't even get a website up until right before the first deadline.

[Fnemecek]

C'mon Frank, you're better than that. IF we believe the City's somewhat dubious numbers, the cost to sit and watch that building rot was about $250,000 per year. Roughly the same to, in the words of the great George Clinton, "Tear The Roof Off The Sucker".

The cost to the City of Detroit to let Tiger Stadium sit was exactly $0.00.

All costs for security and such were paid for by the Old Tiger Stadium Conservancy.

[kraig]

According to what the DEGC said in the paper, the Conservancy raised 4 million dollars. Assuming that's the money that was promised by Levin, was the money delivered to the Conservancy or simply earmarked to them? If the money was delivered, will it ahve to go back? If not, what will the Conservancy do with it?