WDET News
- Detroit Council Approves Settlement With Bankrupt Greektown Casino
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Feb 4, 2010Automotive & BusinessThe Detroit City Council has approved a settlement with the Greektown Casino that will allow the gaming hall to emerge from bankruptcy more quickly.
WDET’s Quinn Klinefelter has more…
The Greektown Casino’s plan to regain solvency hinged in part on reaching a settlement with the city of Detroit over development and tax issues.
The settlement transfers ownership from the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians to other investors who have secured funding…and in the process re-configures the original development agreement to provide Detroit with more than 13 million dollars.
But the settlement…approved by the City Council…also rids the casino of most of its original local investors.
That bothers a man who helped approve the original agreement…and has lobbied against turning the casino over to out-of-state investors…former City Council President Gil Hill.
“They did not put up the original monies. They didn’t suffer. They haven’t been a part of the city of Detroit. These are people from New York and Atlantic City. These are not Detroiters – Detroiters who worked like the devil to get this thing done.”
Council Members counter that they approved a settlement that had guaranteed money involved…at a time when Detroit faces more than 300 million dollars’ worth of red ink.They argue that the local investors were not able to show they had solid financing to continue operating the gaming hall…or buy it back from its new owners.