Masonic/Cass Project

[nain rouge]

The idea of urban development is to get synergy with one project benefiting other projects. The whole is more than the sum of the parts.

I wouldn't say that an arena is particularly urban. Sometimes an arena can be a good asset for a city, such as the Madison Square Garden, which has events almost all year round. But look at Ford Field - besides the Lions, I think there is only one other event planned this summer. And the Lions only play 10 games at home, excluding the possibility of playoff games.

Cleveland has been doing your style of "urban development" arguably more successfully than Detroit, and the results have been largely inconsequential. If Cleveland's population trends continue, the city could end up with a population about equal to Toledo's population by the next census. That's quite a fall from glory. Somehow, despite the new sports stadiums and arenas, Rock & Roll Museum, aquarium, and etc., people aren't rushing back into Cleveland.

Reason Saves Cleveland With Drew Carey looked into this trend, and I think they really provided some scathing criticisms of this type of development that are hard to just shake off. In the end, most people just want good schools and good jobs. They don't care that much about having a major arena in their backyard. They'll live an extra 20 minutes away from Ford Field if it means they can put their kid in the kind of school they want, even if dad absolutely loves football. All an arena does is turn your city into a temporary tourist destination.

I mean, we have Joe Louis Arena, and that's practically in downtown already! But I get it, it's easier to find funding for a few megaprojects than it is to reverse broad socioeconomic trends.

So no, I won't be that excited if they put a new arena in the heart of Midtown. I'd rather see investments in schools and businesses in the area.