If the Downtown Detroit Partnership’s annual report for 2023 says anything, the DDP’s CEO points out it shows the momentum, economic and otherwise, that is building in the city.
That’s what a 200% increase in pipeline projects, generating some $2.8 billion in investments, will do for a city. And that momentum is the thing Eric Larson, who has been the CEO of the Partnership since 2014, says is the thing he’s “most excited about.”
“That’s remarkable,” Larson said after the DDP’s annual meeting at the Motor City Casino and Hotel. “That’s probably more than pretty much any other major town. I’m very encourage with the level of investment. I’m very encouraged that, even with some of the challenges this nation has felt, that Detroit is continuing to see some pretty significant investment.”
It’s that kind of investment that has led to Detroit’s renaissance, a renaissance Larson believes will help showcase the city to a variety of new visitors when the NFL draft takes place in late April, and again when the Detroit Grand Prix returns to the streets of Detroit in May.ng to
As it did when the city hosted the Super Bowl in 2006, and as it has for every other city that has hosted previously, the draft is expected to draw a cross-section of fans from not only southeast Michigan, but from the eight NFL cities that feature teams within traveling distance.
Likewise, the Detroit Grand Prix will draw fans from outside the area.
“Events like the draft and the Detroit Grand Prix … the amount of outside perspectives we can change through these events,” Larson said. “Unless you see it you can’t believe it. We’re going to be able to show Detroit to a lot of people who haven’t seen it, and they’re going to start believing and, hopefully, they’re just going to keep coming back.”
Larson was upbeat following the annual meeting, which included a panel discussion featuring automotive giant Roger Penske; Dan Loepp, CEO of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan and a board director for the DDP; and popular NBC sportscaster Mike Tirico, who has taken Michigan as his adopted home state.
Tirico said the draft is a huge event for the city, much like the Super Bowl was in 2006. He pointed out that sports plays a pivotal role in life, and that the success this past season of the Detroit Lions – who won two playoff games and came within 30 minutes of going to their first Super Bowl – will heighten the excitement for fans.
Some estimates put the economic impact of those two playoff games for Detroit at some $40 million.
“Sports matter … look at our city,” Tirico said. “Look at what the Lions did for (Detroit). Sports brings a community together in a unique way … You come down here now and you think about what it was and what (the city) has turned out to be.”
For Larson, any success generated by the draft will only enhance the positive statistics contained in the DDP’s annual report. Consider:
- Annual visitors: In 2019 Detroit had 36.5 million visits. That number shrunk to just over 14 million in the pandemic year (2020), but climbed back to 30.2 million in 2023.
- Hotel occupancy was 68.2% in 2019, dropped to 24.6% in 2020, but was at 51% last year.
- Visitors to the city’s parks and public spaces was at just over 2 million in 2019 and fell to 916,000 in 2020. But it was back up to 2.195 million in 2023.
It’s a statement about the value of Detroit’s parks. So is the fact that Campus Martius and the Riverfront were named the country’s top public space by USA Today.
“For the riverfront and for Campus Martius to be recognized nationally now three years in a row … I think the parks are starting to get the recognition they deserve,” Larson said. “They are some of the most beautiful public spaces in the country … They represent a real commitment from our community to reclaim some of its most treasured assets.”
The annual report also showed some places that need improvement. The most challenging one, in Larson’s eyes, is the number of employees working in the city on any given day.
In 2019, that number reached an average of nearly 71,000 per day, then dropped to 14,223 in the pandemic year of 2020. Unlike many of the other numbers, that statistic isn’t returning to pre-pandemic levels as quickly as officials would like.
“I would not underestimate the challenge or significance of a reduced work population,” Larson said. “We’ve felt it the most in two areas … one is in the tax collection for the general fund which it ultimately provides. The other place that has been challenging is driving and sustaining business during the daytime to places like restaurants.
“It’s very difficult to gauge the level of activity during the week when you have episodic movement … now it’s hard to track that,” he added. “Over the last 12 months we’ve been able to track it better. We’re now starting to see more and more establishments open for lunch on more days.” Ilt’s not a problem at night.”
During his talk, Loepp said the “only way a community really can function is through partnership, through collaboration.”
Larson agrees and said the partnerships between leaders in Detroit’s public, private and philanthropic sectors is the key to success.
“If we weren’t able to convene that group of voices, and then understand how those impacts can be applied to the community as a whole, we are really lost,” Larson said. “It’s the collaboration between the public sector, the philanthropic sector and the private sector that DDP represents. Everybody in those three buckets sits at our table, and that’s the way we get things done.”
