The $400 million worth or so of development happening at the State Fairgrounds site in Detroit with the new amazon distribution center has turned a lot of heads.

The project promises to create as many as 2,000 jobs at the amazon facility; not to mention the developments nearby on the same parcel.

But it’s not without some questions and pushback.

The part we’ll talk about today, since the fairgrounds is a site with generations of history. Should the long-standing buildings like the coliseum and the bandshell be preserved somehow, instead of demolished?

And what about transit connections? A quarter of Detroit households don’t have a car and buses are a way lots of people here get to work.

Our feature conversation raises some questions and gives us some historical context. Dave Gifford is a regional community and transit advocate who also has a passion for music.

He wrote an interesting piece that appeared on medium and in the Metro Times about it that's gotten a lot of traction.

Link: https://www.metrotimes.com/city-slang/archives/2020/12/14/dear-amazon-before-you-bulldoze-more-than-80-years-of-detroit-music-history-please-read-this

And we dive into the question - could this, with some adjustments, be a much better development than it is? And Amazon has a response, too.

Find Dave on Twitter: https://twitter.com/TransitGuideDET also https://twitter.com/DE_Gifford

Then, I’ll share three things to know around town: Including an update on coronavirus relief in Michigan, Marathon is looking to create a green zone near their Detroit refinery, and an update on community benefits money on Detroit’s east side.