Detroit mayoral contender Benny Napoleon unveiled a $3.15 billion neighborhood redevelopment and economic growth plan Monday night, Matt Helms reports in the Free Press.
The plan includes a combination of get-tough policies on abandonment and neglect and tapping the public and private sectors for billions in investment in new shopping, dining and entertainment centers.
The Wayne County sheriff said the city would partner with private developers to build seven major anchor retail projects similar to those already completed or taking shape at 8 Mile and Woodward, where the city’s first Meijer store opened this summer. The state last week agreed to transfer the adjacent 157-acre former Michigan State Fairgrounds property to a group that includes basketball great Earvin (Magic) Johnson for a redevelopment project that’s still being formulated.
In six of Detroit’s City Council districts, the city and developers would build new police, fire and emergency medical centers near where private companies would build new shopping centers to rival suburban options, Napoleon said. The emergency services centers would serve dual functions, both as neighborhood resource centers, but also reinforcing safety at retail places. He said many residents currently shop in the suburbs for lack of choices and fear of crime.
Napoleon did not name any developers who would invest in the seven new major retail centers.
“This is not pie in the sky,” Napoleon told a crowd of 175 people at Peace and Goodwill Missionary Baptist Church on the city’s east side.
