Will the North American International Auto Show leaving Detroit be the last nail in Michigan's coffin?
May 30, 2008
As a kid in the sixties, I remember going to the North American Auto Show in Cobo Hall as a time to engage in the Michigan pride. I remember one year we went that a special "Wheels of Freedom" postage stamp was issue to commerate the show and Detroit.
Now, the show is looking at leaving Detroit where the show has been a staple for our state to show off one thing that it was really good at: making cars.
The problem seems to be about getting political leaders in the Detroit metropolitan area to agree on expanding Cobo Hall, the showcase for this event which draws millions of dollars to the city and provides positive media attention for a city that need it.
The area's political establishment can't set aside their parochial interests to get the new addition built to Cobo Hall.
While the leaders dawdle, there's a high-risk, according to Dan Howes of the Detroit News, that the show will be moved to another city or that a different host city will hold the show each year.
Who can bring these warring factions together?
Do leaders still exist with those kinds of skills to build consensus and then execute?