July 16, 2008

Detroit development agency: Tear down Tiger already

The Detroit Economic Development Corp., which has never been eager to hear ideas for preserving Tiger Stadium, voted yesterday to call for the city council to okay complete demolition of the stadium, two weeks in advance of the Aug. 1 deadline Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick set for fundraising to preserve part of the structure. (Waymon Guillebeaux, VP of the Detroit Economic Growth Corp., the development agency's parent, insisted the vote was just to "give the city council a reasonable time to make a final decision," but given the group's letter to the council declares that "the Old Tiger Stadium Conservancy has not been able to demonstrate any commitments of funding for construction and operation or a feasible plan to obtain such commitments," you have to think they're pulling for one particular decision.

The conservancy, meanwhile, now says it's halfway to its initial $400,000 fundraising goal, though it's unclear from press reports whether that's its total take to date or how much was donated just in the wake of yesterday's announcement. As always, you can contribute to the cause on their website.