I don't know if this is great but it adds jobs I guess...
heres the link.
http://www.crainsdetroit.com/apps/pb...1/newsletter04
Salvation Army makes deal to buy Detroit land for center
By Sherri Begin
6:00 am, August 24, 2006
The Salvation Army/Eastern Michigan Division has negotiated purchase agreements with the city of Detroit and the Detroit Housing Commission for 30.24 acres in Detroit for construction of a 100,000-square-foot community center.
The center would be named for Joan Kroc, the late wife of McDonald’s Corp. founder Ray Kroc who left the Alexandria, Va.-based Salvation Army network $2 billion late in 2003 for construction and endowment of community centers across the country.
The Southfield-based affiliate received tentative approval for $50 million of the bequest early in 2005, provided it could secure land for it, obtain commitments for donor support and meet other criteria as part of a lengthy application process.
The nonprofit had until mid-August to work out the purchase agreements or it stood to lose the funds.
The land purchase agreements received approval from the Salvation Army’s regional office in Des Plaines, Ill., last week , said Russ Russell, executive director of development at the local Salvation Army.
The Detroit City Council must approve the city’s agreement before it becomes final, said Douglass Diggs, director of the Detroit Planning and Development Department.
Under the tentative agreement with the city, The Salvation Army will pay $10 for 11.78 acres at Conner and Frankfort on the east side of Detroit, Diggs said.
“It’s a significant investment The Salvation Army would be putting into the property with the construction of the facility and the programs they’ll be offering,” he said.
“It will provide a valuable recreational opportunity for the citizens of the east side of the city of Detroit.”
The project won’t fail entirely if the City Council does not approve the agreement, Russell said, because The Salvation Army could build the center entirely on the HUD land.
Under terms of the agreement with the Detroit Housing Commission, The Salvation Army will pay $10 for 18.46 acres of land owned by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, provided it builds on the land within two years, Russell said.
If it takes two to four years to build on the HUD land, the nonprofit would pay $10,000 for it, he said.
In addition to securing land for the center, The Salvation Army must also get final approval of a 1,500-plus page application that details construction plans, programs for the new center and fundraising goals, among other things, from its regional office, Russell said.
“We’re hoping that our application will be approved before the end of the year,” he said. “Once that is approved, we’ll start with our (fundraising) campaign the first of next year.”
The nonprofit has set a goal to raise an additional $48 million to support construction and operation of the center.
Provided it can raise that amount within two years, it plans to break ground on the new center late by early 2009, Russell said.