Groundbreaking for a new Red Wings arena could be just a half year or so away, according to an Ilitch family business consultant quoted in a front-page Crain's Detroit Business article.
Construction is expected begin no later than autumn on a new downtown arena for the Detroit Red Wings, according to a sports economist who has done work for the team's owners and is familiar with their plans.
"I would hope that they would be able to get it in the ground by the fall," said Mark Rosentraub, a professor of sports management at the University of Michigan.
There's still no location announcement and no confirmation of the economic consultant's projection, adds Crain's writer Bill Shea.
Sandra van Meek, a spokeswoman for Ilitch-owned Olympia Development Co. that's overseeing the project, declined to comment.
The firm announced plans in December for a $650-million office, residential and entertainment complex anchored by the Wings' new home. Financing details aren't disclosed yet, She notes.
The Ilitches are thought to be looking to build on land they own in one of three locations: the area near the Ilitch-owned Fox Theatre, between Grand River and Cass avenues south of I-75, or west of Woodward Avenue north of I-75. The last location, largely vacant land that has been bought up in parcels in recent years, is the most widely suspected site for the district.
Rosentraub has said the district will be 35 acres, which strongly suggests the I-75/Woodward site.
The UM professor tells Shea the "best case" construction timeline is 20 to 22 months, which keeps the Wings at Joe Louis Arena for two or three more seasons.
