Belle Isle Casino Rental Agreement
Under a lease agreement between the State of Michigan and the City of Detroit executed this week, Belle Isle will become a state park beginning Jan. 1, 2014, and receive upwards of $20 million in infrastructure improvements over the next three years. For more than 20 years, year-round, those five words were included in almost every plan for get-togethers, picnics and romps in the snow on Belle Isle. Among the earliest structures after Belle Isle opened as a park was its first casino, a wooden structure designed by the Detroit firm Donaldson & Meier, which opened in June 1887.
DETROIT — The state of Michigan will lease Detroit's signature park for 30 years, with two optional 15-year renewals, in a deal that will ensure at least $10 million in investment in the island's aging infrastructure and keeps Belle Isle under city ownership, Detroit Mayor Dave Bing's office confirmed Tuesday.
Though both the city and state governments have signed the lease, it's not a done deal. The agreement, which would save Detroit at least $4 million a year in upkeep, gives the Detroit City Council 10 days to approve the lease and, if not, an additional seven days to come up with an alternative that would save an equal amount of money. If no such alternative pans out, the deal stands, Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder's office said.
The lease is significantly shorter than an early proposal, which could have extended it to as long as 90 years. The state pledged to invest $10 million to $20 million in upgrades at the 985-acre island park in the first three years of the lease.
Belle Isle Casino Rental Information
Bing's office said the lease — earlier versions of which the City Council wouldn't take a vote on amid opposition — was signed by Detroit's emergency manager Kevyn Orr, along with Michigan Department of Natural Resources Director Keith Creagh and Michigan Department of Transportation Director Kirk Steudle and approved by Snyder on Tuesday.
'Detroit's current financial condition prohibits the city from investing in the much-needed restoration of Belle Isle,' Bing said Tuesday afternoon. 'As I stated last year, when a proposed lease agreement was developed, my administration strongly believes the state park structure is the best option for managing and maintaining the island and restoring it to its grandeur.'
Word of the signed lease deal came after City Council members disclosed the matter Tuesday morning at the council's regular meeting.
A proposal for the state Department of Natural Resources to lease the park in the Detroit River between the U.S. and Canada collapsed last year amid opposition from some residents and members of the council. They decried ceding authority of the park to the state amid concerns a lease would mean stricter rules about access to the island and a loss of revenue from events held there.
Bing and Snyder had championed the deal as a way to save Detroit in maintenance and other costs, money that could be freed up for use at other city parks and on other city services. Initially expected to mean an annual savings of around $6 million, the new agreement put the figure at around $4 million a year that Detroit will be able to use for other parks and public services.
'This is just a good way for the city and state to partner in a way that maintains the city's ownership, allows the state to invest in Belle Isle and frees up resources that can go to other priorities,' said Snyder spokeswoman Sara Wurfel.
Under the deal, the Department of Natural Resources would assume responsibility for managing Belle Isle using standards set for Michigan's 101 other state parks. The Department of Transportation would assume responsibility for the island's roads and bridges.
Bing's office said there would be a 90-day transition period to Department of Natural Resources management once the deal is approved, and the state would immediately begin a one-year plan for park improvements that had included new shelters and restroom facilities plus improved trails and other upgrades.
Beginning in January, entry to Belle Isle will require purchasing an annual parks passport at $11 per vehicle. Pedestrians, bicyclists and transit riders will be able to enter at no cost.
Park revenue from permit fees, rental fees, special events, grants and other sources — excluding passport revenue — would be placed in a natural resources department account dedicated to administering, maintaining and improving Belle Isle, Bing's office said.
City Council members said Tuesday morning they had not yet seen the lease. Some members said they would withhold judgment until they studied the details.
But members JoAnn Watson and Brenda Jones vehemently criticized the deal, signaling the council's upcoming vote on the lease will be close.
Belle Isle Rental Information
'There's nothing about Belle Isle that impacts the bankruptcy petition or the city's deficit — nothing,' Watson said during the meeting. 'And it flies in the face of all the public pronouncements about the state wanting to help the city. We don't need this kind of help.'
Contributing: Joe Guillen, Detroit Free Press