Back in the mid-1980s, AutoWorld opened in Flint.
It was an indoor theme park designed to bring tourists to a city hit hard by the recession/depression in Michigan in the early 1980s.
Frankly, it wasn't very good. The theme seemed a bit disjointed and it had the feel that was more state fair than museum or exhibit. It opened July 4, 1984 and closed after six months. It reopened but closed for good in January 1985.
After that, it was opened on special occasions for a while. It was finally demolished in 1997. No tears were shed.
Now Quicken Loans founder Dan Gilbert suggests Detroit create an automotive-themed tourist destination in Detroit.
Nathan Bomey of the Free Press writes that Gilbert is considering hiring an executive from Universal Studios or Disney to help formulate a proposal.
But Gilbert said he's not pitching a theme park.
He can only look to Flint to see what a disaster that was.
“We have to leverage the sexiness of the car, which we’ve had a hard time doing in the past,” Gilbert said, according to the Freep.
