Ilitches finally moving on Fine Arts Building facade & Blenheim Apts?

[Richard]

They own 72 properties around the casino.

It does appear to be a cluster phuck but their mission seems different then Mr. Gilbert who buys randomly.

In the 80s Bob Snow bought up many blocks in a section of Orlando that was derelict and most would not dare to venture into,he created a multi block entertainment district,multiple levels of dining,shops and comedy clubs,piano bar etc.

It was called Church Street Station and it was packed 7 days a week with tourists and locals. He did the same thing in Vegas and in South Beach somebody else did the same thing.

As the downtown Orlando became populated again,church street station is now high rise condos and apartments.

That seems to be the difference between Bedrock and Olympia and now Ross in some,Bedrock randomly targets singular buildings,mostly because they were acquired cheap.

Olympia targets large blocks in order to change that entire block verses one building on the block.

You guys have to remember,you hired as taxpayers Bedrock to do what they are doing.

Olympia and the others were not specifically hired to do what they are doing.

But they also paid the city the $850,000 to complete the survey for the long term future plan for Corktown.

What they are doing is more complicated then what Bedrock is doing,it does take years to put projects of that scale together verses just buy a building,and many things have to fall into place to pull it off,verses buy a single random building fix it and rent it.

Two totally different strategies between the investors.

When it comes to the condition of buildings in the city,investors and speculators are going to do what they do,it is up to the city to set mothball standards and enforce the security of the buildings and hold the owners accountable,that clearly was not done in the past,but that is not a Detroit specific thing.

Olympia and related companies are seeking close to 1 billion in taxpayer funding,tax credits etc

Given their mission and strategy taxpayers investing in those types of projects are not going to see quick returns,taxpayers have a limited pile of money at this stage it may be more prudent to deal with quick flips as in Bedrock style of investments verses these massive multi block projects.

Timing has a lot to do with it all and it sucks that large sections of the city remain in that condition, but in the city you have long term goals and short term goals,then clearly really long term goals.

But those large multi block projects have to be done right the first time.

When you look at for instance,rebuilding a section of highway,that took up to 10 years in planning before the first machine rolled.

These big projects,you cannot just throw them up on top of 100 YO infrastructure it becomes a case of building a city within a city from scratch,but more expensive because it is not raw land .

You guys are basically rebuilding an entire city,one that was developed over a course of 100 years,it took other cities over 40 years to get back up to the point you are seeking to achieve.

When I first moved to Orlando 1980,downtown was no different then Detroit,if not worse,the only people there were people sleeping on bus benches and the random cop on a bicycle that was so bored they would give you a ticket for jaywalking when it could be an hour before you would even see a car driving.

Many cities were like that,you will get to where you are going,it takes time.

[Gistok]

<SNIP>

That seems to be the difference between Bedrock and Olympia and now Ross in some,Bedrock randomly targets singular buildings,mostly because they were acquired cheap.

Olympia targets large blocks in order to change that entire block verses one building on the block.

You guys have to remember,you hired as taxpayers Bedrock to do what they are doing.

Olympia and the others were not specifically hired to do what they are doing. <SNIP>

^ I'm not even sure what this all means??

Let me put this into laymen's terms... both Gilbert and Ilitch get taxpayer money for their development...

Gilbert fixes buildings up and restores them, with new construction as infill.

Ilitch bulldozes, and makes a ton of money for parking lots... and when something is needed they prefer to start anew, since they don't have much expertise at restoration.

Ilitch gets criticized because their 1999, 2015 and 2023 District Detroit plans keep showing up with dazzling ideas for developing the north end of Detroit for public money... with not much to show for it [yet].

Gilbert also gets public money, but follows thru on much [although not all] of his plans.

But I guess they are both in it for the long haul.