"Detroit’s historic Belle Isle park will soon be leased and operated as a Michigan state park.
But for how long and under what terms?
Those are the questions that remain after the Detroit City Council approved a 10-year lease of Belle Isle in the face of public criticism at a special meeting on Monday.
The deal council approved by a 4-2 vote will be one of two lease agreements a state panel will consider over the next 30 days. The other is a 30-year lease proposal emergency manager Kevyn Orr and Gov. Rick Snyder approved earlier this month. The council unanimously rejected that plan on Monday".

"Councilman James Tate, who spearheaded the effort to craft an alternative lease, said he is confident the state panel, known as the Local Emergency Financial Assistance Loan Board, will back the shorter lease council approved on Monday.

The board, composed of Snyder appointees, is required under state law to choose the best plan for Detroiters. Although Orr is in charge and Detroit is in a financial emergency, the state board has final say on the deal because it involves the sale or lease of city assets worth at least $50,000".




http://www.freep.com/article/2013101...state-michigan