The Ilitch organization is set to receive $74M in "additional Detroit taxpayer subsidies for meeting nearly all of its contractual obligations for the new commercial district surrounding Little Caesars Arena," according to JC Reindl of the DETROIT FREE PRESS. That money will be on top of the $324M "public tax contribution toward construction of the arena itself." Ilitch-owned Olympia Development has made at least $200M in "building investments within the arena district." That spending "fulfills the organization's minimum legal commitment for so-called 'ancillary development'" around LCA. The $200M goal was "met by development of two parking decks, the Google office at the south side of the arena and the still-under-construction Little Caesars headquarters." The bulk of the $74M arena district bonus "would go to Olympia Development once the arena's construction bonds are paid off, likely in the late 2040s." Meanwhile, the $74M reward for arena district progress "stands in contrast to criticism that led to an HBO report last month that chided the Ilitch organization for the pace of development work within the roughly 50-block District Detroit, which was originally envisioned to feature five new neighborhoods, lots of street-level retail and hundreds of new apartments" (DETROIT FREE PRESS, 5/12).
