Two professional basketball team owners have announced a $US1 billion ($1.45 billion NZD) investment plan to attract a Major League Soccer (MLS) franchise to Detroit aimed at revitalising the city.
Dan Gilbert, the owner of the NBA's Cleveland Cavaliers, and Tom Gores, who owns the Detroit Pistons, propose a 20,000-seat stadium with fitness facilities, an office tower, covered parking, a residential tower, plazas, a hotel, restaurants and retail.
The plan also includes relocating Wayne County Jail, a circuit court and a county juvenile detention facility.
Details were unveiled at a media conference by Gilbert and Pistons executive Arn Tellem, and officials said it was meant to help revitalize downtown Detroit, which exited the biggest US municipal bankruptcy in December 2014.
However, Wayne County executive Warren Evans said he wanted to see a proposal that would not cost taxpayers any extra money or delay the opening of the unfinished jail.
On Tuesday, Gores - chief executive of private equity firm Platinum Equity and a native of Flint, Michigan - and Gilbert, a Detroit native and chairman of mortgage lender Quicken Loans, announced they were teaming up to bring a MLS team to Detroit.
The effort is supported by MLS Commissioner Don Garber, who was present at the Wednesday media conference and recently said the league would expand to 28 teams.
MLS has 20 teams with plans to add four others. Detroit and Sacramento are the leading candidates to be added.
Historically, the league has looked at three areas when weighing expansion markets - strong ownership group, plans for a soccer-specific stadium and success as a market that supports soccer.
In 2014, the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor hosted the biggest soccer game played on American soil - a friendly between Real Madrid and Manchester United that drew 109,318 fans, topping the previous mark of 101,799 set in the 1984 Olympics final, Gilbert and Gores said in a statement.
The Pontiac Silverdome outside Detroit hosted four first-round matches in the 1994 World Cup tournament, won by Brazil.
Reuters
