Tourism in metropolitan Detroit

the area around its downtown headquarters into an urban oasis with parks, walkways, and a reflecting pool. Completion of the MGM Grand Detroit resort in 2007 has opened new prospects for future development downtown with the west riverfront area and the area from MGM Grand Detroit to the Michigan Central Station. The question of how to finance a new convention facility to accommodate the expanding needs of the North American International Auto Show generated media attention and speculation with Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson’s proposal for a fourth casino resort to anchor the convention center following the example of the Las Vegas Sands Expo convention center which would need approval from a state wide referendum. Governor Jennifer Granholm ultimately signed legislation on July 2, 2009 for a nearly 0 million expansion of Cobo Center; the plan calls for a