Girl Scouts eye $40M Detroit campus plan

**Airforceguy** · July-27-23, 03:39 PM

Girl Scouts of Southeastern Michigan is developing plans for a $35 million-$40 million campus in Detroit that will offer free and fee-based programs to all youth, scouts and non-scouts, girls and boys alike.
It has identified a location and is exploring a possible lease or donation of the property, which could accommodate several new buildings, camping and other outdoor programs like a zip line and rope course, CEO Monica Woodson said.

The current thinking is to have a few different buildings that connect in some way" to create a campus with dedicated space to offer to all youth programs in GSSEM's four core program areas: science, technology, engineering and math; entrepreneurship; outdoors and life skills."The location is a driver in many ways of the plan. My hope is to have that locked in the next 60 days," Woodson said.

The LEAD [[learn, experience adventure and discover) Institute, as GSSEM is calling the campus plan is aimed at helping bridge educational and recreational gaps for youth in the region, the organization said.

GSSEM secured a $1 million state earmark, its first ever, to help fund planning, research and data collection for the project over the next 12-18 months. It's developing plans for a campaign to cover the capital costs and possibly raise a permanent endowment to subsidize program costs for those who need it and support ongoing operations of the institute, Woodson said.

https://www.crainsdetroit.com/nonpro...anded-programs

**Richard** · July-27-23, 05:29 PM

How many boys are going to be telling their buddies when asked what school they attend and have to reply - The girls scout school.

Sounds kinda like a charter school without the charter but they only have $34 to $39 million left to raise,chump change.

So if they cannot raise the balance what happens?

**Hypestyles** · July-27-23, 08:31 PM

hopefully something meaningful can come out of this. best of success.

**Gistok** · July-28-23, 01:53 AM

They may have to sell a lot of Girl Scout Cookies to build that campus!

**jcole** · July-28-23, 07:12 AM

Pretty sure they've already sold them.. and the money's in the bank. Council gets most of the money, not the troops

Originally Posted by Gistok

They may have to sell a lot of Girl Scout Cookies to build that campus!

**Dan Wesson** · July-28-23, 02:06 PM

Pretty ambitious plan.

I was under the impression the GSA was strapped for cash.
There are camps around Michigan that sit idle now days.
Them camps do occupy some fine real estate though.

**jcole** · July-28-23, 02:42 PM

There used to be on on Mack Lake outside of Mio that was large and well used for a long time. I think it closed and the land was incorporated into the Kirtland Warbler Breeding Grounds now.

Originally Posted by Dan Wesson

Pretty ambitious plan.

I was under the impression the GSA was strapped for cash.
There are camps around Michigan that sit idle now days.
Them camps do occupy some fine real estate though.

**Franksgoodnephew** · October-29-23, 03:35 PM

Cheaper Girl Scout cookies. Used to be 50 cents a box. Tasted better too. I'm just sayin'.

**JBMcB** · October-31-23, 07:28 PM

Originally Posted by Dan Wesson

I was under the impression the GSA was strapped for cash.
There are camps around Michigan that sit idle now days.
Them camps do occupy some fine real estate though.

Over the last fifteen years or so, they've sold off a lot of those camps. It's one of the reasons the Boy Scouts have started up girl scout troops, as they still do a lot of camping, and the GSA has been moving away from outdoor activities. It's good to have a choice.