Disappointed to see that after years of crafting and public hearings and community counter-proposals, the thing now suggested for the State Fairgrounds site in Detroit is mostly an amazon warehouse.

Really? That's the best use of that long-public plot?? Really???

I've been to multiple public hearings about this over the years. I've pled to please keep transit access on Woodward and build for a multi-modal future. I've talked about the need for preservation of structures on this deeply historic site.

The group Meta Expo has been proposing plans about what the former State Fairgrounds could be for yeaaaars. They didn't just go "Oh I don't like this," they have been organizing around a more vibrant and mixed-use and fine-grained future for years.

A giant plot of public land on a major street is maybe not the spot for a giant warehouse!!!!!!!! My two cents!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I've heard that Amazon may have chosen the State Fair & Woodward location due to transit access, but hear me out:

What if instead of letting giant corporations from hell say theyll only locate on our best bus line, we made them 1) pay taxes and 2) cover transit 2 their location?

Like what if a corporation owned by the literal richest man in the world didn't bust into one of the poorest cities in the entire country expecting special treatment, and they just... paid taxes so people could get some fucking services to live

Amazon is notorious--NOTORIOUS--for treating warehouse workers badly.

Detroit leadership needs to demand worker protections for this warehouse as a part of community benefits.

Demand it. In binding words.

Make a plan to follow up. In binding words.

I should have known some wild news was coming when they finally got their shit together to move the historic US Grant House off the Fairgrounds recently.

It is WILD to me how the plan is apparently to level basically everything there? Fuck history, fuck every Detroiter's connection to those buildings I guess. I grew up going to the State Fair there.

Again this was public land for a very long time.

The State Fair was in Detroit, and now it's at a place literally called the Suburban Collection Showplace, out in Novi.

We also need to talk about how "It's hard to assemble parcels" is not an excuse to put whatever rich white men / developers in general want whereever they want to put it.

I know you want to build a big thing. All the more reason to be thoughtful about where it goes.

And having worked in parcel and title research in Detroit, a HUUUUGE amount of our land is publicly owned. So so much of it. So maybe stop sulking about assembling parcels for these silver bullet projects. A lot of them are already owned by a couple entities.

In conclusion,

DEMAND WORKER PROTECTIONS FOR AMAZON WORKERS IN DETROIT. It should be part of a binding community benefits agreement.

And I don't want to hear about one (1) cent of tax abatement or public financing on this thing.

Let Bezos pay for it.