  Ha_asfan Member Username: Ha_asfan Post Number: 28 Registered: 06-2006 |
Last night the city of Huntington Woods held a public hearing re the historic designation of the Rackham Golf Course. The public hearing is mandated by the state as the Historic District Study Committee had submitted their preliminary report. The final report will be presented to the city of Huntington Woods City Commission on October 17th. The city of Detrit is trying to push through the sale as quuickly as possible to Premium Golf Corp who will destroy the landmark clubhouse and out buildings to build more than 400 houses. If you support saving the golf course and it's structures for continued public use [a heavy percentage of users are Detroit residents] please send an email of support to: hberry@ci.huntington-woods.mi. us All letters willbe entered into the final report and certainly will have an important on the future of this public jewel. | ||
Jt1 Member Username: Jt1 Post Number: 7976 Registered: 10-2003 |
I support the city balancing the budget and directing as much funding as possible to public jewels within the city of Detroit. | ||
Rrl Member Username: Rrl Post Number: 640 Registered: 12-2003 |
Here's an article from today's fish-wrap regarding the hearing. http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.d ll/article?AID=/20060928/METRO /609280403 | ||
Kpm Member Username: Kpm Post Number: 7 Registered: 08-2005 |
Detroit should sell the course to the City of Huntington Woods; everyone wins -- city gets $6.25 million, Huntington Woods maintains the open space, and all SE MI residents maintain access to a great historic golf course. | ||
Spacemonkey Member Username: Spacemonkey Post Number: 96 Registered: 03-2006 |
That golf course is the worst. Just sell it and put housing there already. | ||
Jt1 Member Username: Jt1 Post Number: 7981 Registered: 10-2003 |
Talk of regional cooperations. What a concept. What I wonder is about the 6.5 M amount. Huntington Woods is considered one of the prime suburbs in the region. $6.5M for 121 acres is less than $54K per acre. I would suspect that land in a top suburb would be worth considerably more than that. (Message edited by jt1 on September 28, 2006) | ||
Flybydon Member Username: Flybydon Post Number: 24 Registered: 01-2005 |
6.5 mill. sounds like a good price to me!  north  west  south  east Aerial images June 2005 | ||
1953 Member Username: 1953 Post Number: 1018 Registered: 12-2004 |
Sell it to Huntington Woods if you are so blind as to abandon public jewels in the face of poor public budgeting. | ||
Hornwrecker Member Username: Hornwrecker Post Number: 1649 Registered: 04-2005 |
What's going to happen to this deal when the HW zoning board refuses to change the zoning to residential use? | ||
Danny Member Username: Danny Post Number: 5036 Registered: 02-2004 |
I can't wait to see if the private developers want to devlop some megacondos so that the property rates in the surrounding suburbantopia neighborhoods can go up. | ||
Trainman Member Username: Trainman Post Number: 214 Registered: 04-2006 |
Sell Rackham ???? A much better idea is to sell DDOT for one dollar. It's time to fire the officials who caused the Livonia Opt Out by running late buses. They get to keep their high paying jobs but the bus riding workers in Livonia will lose their jobs. So, sell DDOT and Detoit will save $70 Million per year and also will have a good decent bus system. This is no joke. Many cities are selling their bus systems and our state is very serious about REPLACING the state fuel fuel tax with county taxes which include fast food. Yes, some of our leaders in Lansing want to punish the hard workers with even higher taxes, which will drive more jobs away and further reward the top transit officials by getting them to tell the public that they are broke and need more local taxes. If anyone thinks DeVos will save the city of Detroit and protect state revenue sharing for mass transit and our cities, then good luck. | ||
Detroitej72 Member Username: Detroitej72 Post Number: 284 Registered: 05-2006 |
quote: This is no joke. ______________________________ ___________________ Actually it is. Trainman how can anyone take you seriously? You have become a parody of yourself. | ||
Ha_asfan Member Username: Ha_asfan Post Number: 29 Registered: 06-2006 |
The proposed plan, proposed by Premium Golf, is to develop 400 houses. They will honor, maybe, Ben Davis, the first black golf pro by erecting a statue of him in the clubhouse. This is nothing but a developer raping land for $$$. | ||
Toolbox Member Username: Toolbox Post Number: 992 Registered: 10-2003 |
If the sale does happen I predict a very ugly court battle funded by the citizens of The Wood's. | ||
Dillpicklesoup Member Username: Dillpicklesoup Post Number: 186 Registered: 05-2006 |
It's a crime how the city of Detroit has been mismanaged and lost most of its middle class- those folks that pick up the tab for most everything and take care of their properties- It's a darn good thing Kwamme couldn't get his hands on the art at the DIA- What next? Belle Isle? That ought to fetch a nice price and get plenty of kick back money for all of the concerned parties- Good luck! | ||
Shave Member Username: Shave Post Number: 1229 Registered: 06-2005 |
Is anyone using common sense here and realizing that the city cannot prop up and save these "public jewels?" Why must a struggling bureaucracy salvage and preserve the history of a by-gone era as well as by-gone citizens? The city cannot thrive by the long-distanced hugs and verbal support of those living afar. The city is strengthened by tax revenue generated by a tax-paying citizenry. The city coffers are stretched incredibly thin and city leaders, unfortunately, can no longer rely on innovation to move forward. Tough choices regarding the city's assets will have to be considered. | ||
Rrl Member Username: Rrl Post Number: 645 Registered: 12-2003 |
Don't forget that the golf course was a self sustaining entity, Greens fees likely paid for most of it's upkeep without a lot of additional funding from the City, if any. Thats why the City brought in American Golf to run it's courses. This is simply a cash grab sell-off by the City. | ||
Ha_asfan Member Username: Ha_asfan Post Number: 34 Registered: 06-2006 |
Rackham Golf Course is the ONLY city of Detroit course that makes a profit. Detroit earns several hundred thousand dollars a year from Rackham. There is a guaranteed minimum and a % of revenues contract. That money isn't anything though when compared to the MILLIONS the city needs. Being prepared for the Belle Isle sale is a good thing to do...you know the deal to sell that jewel will be coming around and to lose Belle Isle to developers, what a damn shame that would be, total and complete tragedy. Belle Isle, if not allready, needs to be designated an Historic site and district, it's deeds should be investigated, it's public use history be thoroughly docmented...it's no question the loss of Belle Isle would be the city's greatest loss yet. How do you replace an island ? | ||
321brian Member Username: 321brian Post Number: 178 Registered: 02-2006 |
Has anyone involved with the development company asked themself who is going to buy whatever they build on the site? Last time I looked times were tough around here and there are already a ton of houses for sale in Royal Oak and Huntington Woods. What will the city need to sell off next year to balance its budget? | ||
Bobj Member Username: Bobj Post Number: 1152 Registered: 11-2003 |
I think they are banking on the idea that about time all this works itself out, the economy is better and houses sell. I used to live in Huntington Woods, great location to live in and you can communte anywhere from there very easily. | ||
Trainman Member Username: Trainman Post Number: 217 Registered: 04-2006 |
Regional County SALES taxes are on the way to be placed on the ballot, should some of our leaders in Lansing get their way. They will pay for the Detroit Department of Transportation, DARTA, SMART and light rail, if we want them to. So, the next time you eat in a restaurant, think about paying the union bus drivers in Detroit and at SMART. And think about the $1.4 Billion dollars of federalt money and $500 Million dollars in state funds to expand Detroit freeways. Our leaders claim these freeways will improve public bus service because buses and cars share the same roads. So, how do we save our regional gems?? when Detroit can no longer pay? Obviously Detroit can't support a bus system alone, so how do we pay? Should we raise the property tax more? Will a county and/or city sales tax on fast food be among the answers? How about a sales tax to save Rackham? | ||
Rrl Member Username: Rrl Post Number: 655 Registered: 12-2003 |
This deal isn't over yet.
http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.d ll/article?AID=/20061004/METRO /610040382 | ||
Trainman Member Username: Trainman Post Number: 219 Registered: 04-2006 |
Kwame also wants to sell DDOT so he can slash %70 Million dollars per year from the city budget to the Wayne County Transit Authority W.C.T.A. Then the county property taxes will pay and not the city taxes from Detroit. This is why DARTA has so far failed and why Livonia opted out of the W.C.T.A. We all should help Detroit and work to keep Detroit a world class city. So, please provide comments as to how? We need to save the Detroit gems and this does include public bus servcie so DY'ers please tell me how??? Because Kwame knows the truth and yes he needs our support. So, I say let's give him the support he needs. But, How?? | ||
Kpm Member Username: Kpm Post Number: 11 Registered: 08-2005 |
Detroit may sell Rackham Golf Course, but it must abide by a deed restriction that requires the property to stay a golf course or a public park, a judge ruled today. Details at: http://www.detnews.com/apps/pb cs.dll/article?AID=/20061011/U PDATE/610110444 | ||
Gistok Member Username: Gistok Post Number: 2926 Registered: 08-2004 |
OK, if the land MUST REMAIN a golf course or a park, then the city of Detroit will be out of the picture... but the purchasers of the land are now left holding the proverbial bag. (At least that's my non-legal POV.) Actually this could be a win-win situation for Huntington Woods, couldn't it? I mean they didn't have to spend any money buying the land. And the new owners cannot use it for any purpose except as a golf course or a park, correct? And since it is private property, Huntington Woods can put it on the tax rolls. The only losers are the new owners of the land. Or am I missing something here? | ||
Rrl Member Username: Rrl Post Number: 665 Registered: 12-2003 |
The sale to the developers was probably contingent on the clearing of the deed restrictions. The sale to the developers will likely be scrapped, or the case taken to court by the City/developers. Perhaps HWoods will still attempt to buy it? Stay tuned. Still think this is a victory for the region, IMHO. | ||
Ha_asfan Member Username: Ha_asfan Post Number: 38 Registered: 06-2006 |
The City of Detroit's deputy Mayor met with Premium Golf, developers for Rackham Golf Course late last night and signed a sales agreement with them. Premium Golf tried to join the city in it's suit, Judge Chabot ruled against it. | ||
Gistok Member Username: Gistok Post Number: 2934 Registered: 08-2004 |
Is Detroit's Deputy Mayor signing stuff again?? I remember a few months back where City Council give him a warning about that kind of stuff. | ||
Ha_asfan Member Username: Ha_asfan Post Number: 39 Registered: 06-2006 |
Yes, he is doing it again and this time, it seems, quite in the middle of the night without even talking to the city council...I thought the city council needed to approve these types of sales, ooops, guess not. What is really good though..if the sale is binding, then Premium Golf [which has nothing to do with golf] will be owning about 130 acres of golf course which, as the judge says MUST REMAIN A GOLF COURSE. Ofcourse, Premium will fight the deeds but I have the feeliing their battle will be for naught. The Rackham heirs can enter the picture at any time and contrary to what has been reported in the media reports, there are FAR more than two heirs...we're into three digits. | ||
Gistok Member Username: Gistok Post Number: 2941 Registered: 08-2004 |
These Premium folks must really have deep pockets for lawyers, because there is a long litigious road ahead. Even if they get past the deed restriction legal hurdles, they have another legal challenge ahead against Huntington Woods, which will refuse to rezone the land. | ||
Jjaba Member Username: Jjaba Post Number: 4404 Registered: 11-2003 |
Remember the Glenview Naval Air Station in the suburbs in Glenview, Illinois? It was sold and the result is a mixed use new neighborhood with new suburban RR station on the Metra system. Tons of walking to shops, rec. ctr., trains, and a variety of housing. Times change, we need to consider such changes. jjaba doesn't propose the sale just for the budget but if the golf course isn't really very good and that swath can be used for other purposes, without racial or sexual segregation. Can that be written into the contract? Black and white together in the suburbs. Wow. Thanks for the great aerial shots of the land, such green space in the middle of the metropolis. jjaba, Cityboychick. |
