Detroit Institute of Arts executives now have a better answer for federal mediators seeking a way to head off possible art sales and pension cuts for city retirees.
They'll tap businesses and wealthy benefactors to raise $100 million toward a pending plan, Robert Snell reports for The Detroit News.
The fund-raising goal is a stark reversal from earlier in the city’s bankruptcy case, when a DIA official said a $100 million contribution was “not doable.”
The museum said it would raise the money from corporate and individual donors and add it to a pool of approximately $720 million pledged by private foundations and the state of Michigan. . . .
The $100 million will not directly aid the museum. The money will go to an unnamed third party and will be spent on pension payments.
In exchange, the city will transfer to the DIA clear legal title to the museum building, art collection and related assets.
The commitment opens "a new page” in the effort to revitalize Detroit, U.S. Bankruptcy Court mediators say in a Wednesday afternoon statement quoted by The News.
Ten foundations have pledged $370 million and Gov. Rick Snyder wants the state to contribute $350 million toward the plan.
