The unfinished Wayne County Jail.
Wayne County Jail site
Is the bid for a soccer stadium at the site of the uncompleted, Wayne County jail, over? It would appear that way.
Adrienne Roberts of Crain's Detroit Business reports that despite the efforts of businessmen Tom Gores and Dan Gilbert to build a soccer stadium there, it appears the county is moving forward with the jail after the county on Thursday reached a settlement with the original design engineers and architects.
Additionally, the county approved a nearly $4 million contract with Carter Goble Associates, which will serve as the county's owner representative on the jail project, Crain's reports.
Crain's reports:
On Thursday, the Wayne County Commission approved a settlement with Detroit-based AECOM and Dearborn-based Ghafari Associates LLC, which provides the county with a $2.5 million payment from the two firms, ownership of all design documents and dismissal of all counter claims against the county and the building authority.
In December, the county entered into an interim settlement agreement with AECOM and Ghafari, requiring concept plans and cost estimates to complete the jail, along with a road map for completion. After discussions with Carter Goble Associates, the administration recommended approving the current settlement agreement instead of the interim settlement agreement.
"The commission's decision to approve the settlement agreement with AECOM and Ghafari puts us one step closer to removing the eyesore that the unfinished jail site has become," Wayne County Executive Warren Evans said in a news release. "Now that we have settled with AECOM and Ghafari, we can focus on completing the Gratiot jail; the next step is preparing and then issuing a design/build RFP."
