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Lettera da Detroit

LA SETTIMANA DEI MOTORI

Every August thousands of cars roll into Motor City suburbs to participate in the Woodward Dream Cruise which has become the world’s largest single-day celebration of car culture. The event dates from 1995 when Nelson House brainstormed in search of funds to build a soccer field for local kids. To his chagrin, word of his gathering spread and a quarter-million spectators showed up to witness hot rods, muscle cars, and classics motor sedately 16 miles from the edge of the city of Detroit north along a main corridor through the suburbs to Pontiac. Woodward Avenue was the locus of street racing throughout the muscle car era and aging collectors and car enthusiasts have never lost their admiration for its historical significance. In recent years, the turnout has grown to an estimated 40,000 cars and spread over the better part of the week. On Saturday August 19, Woodward’s only official day, more than one million spectators are expected, a few traveling from Europe and Asia.

This year Woodward will be different for several reasons. Auto-industry lay-offs are directly or indirectly influencing practically every household in the greater Detroit area so the mood is less than celebratory. This would not be the best time to parade a Hyundai or Toyota on Woodward Avenue. But the good news is that there are signs the city of Detroit recognizes the power of this gathering and is finally ready to participate if only by dipping a toe in Woodward waters.

Detroit Synergy, an organization of volunteers interested in promoting the Motor City, has scheduled both a car show and rock concert in the heart of Detroit the Thursday before the cruise and a grand tour of auto-related history sites near Woodward on the following Saturday. Drawing visitors toward the reason for the American car’s existence seems obvious but it’s in fact a major accomplishment for a city struggling to survive. Luckily, Detroit’s Hard Rock Café is located within a stone’s throw of the show and concert site at Campus Martius. Some of the first traffic lights ever erected in America were located at this hub of automotive activity.

Intrepid tourists will be offered a view of two historic Ford Motor Company factories, including the sprawling complex where millions of Model Ts were born. Other attractions are the original General Motors building, the Detroit Institute of Arts containing a mural depicting life on the assembly line, plus the homes and final resting places of many auto industry moguls.

Next year, visitors to Detroit will have other uplifting sights to see. For four years, a partnership between public and private interests has worked to raise $300-million to refurbish the shoreline along the Detroit River. Unsightly cement silos have been demolished, decrepit factories demolished, and vacant lots have been cleared of debris. GM, Ford, and DaimlerChrysler each donated $3-million to this cause. And GM spent another $25-million to construct the first half mile of what will by next year be a 3.1-mile River Walk. More than 80-percent of the necessary funds has been raised or spent on this project. To everyone’s chagrin, Toyota also kicked in funds. Last year GM helped raise the money needed to build a US pavilion at the World Exposition held in Toyota City, Japan. Chairman Fujio Cho repaid the favor by donating $2-million to the River Walk project. This is just the sort of international involvement that will be needed if Detroit is to have any hope of retaining its status as a world automotive center.

Local entrepreneur Roger Penske will certainly do his part to promote Detroit’s future. Earlier this year he chaired the committee that made the 40th Super Bowl (American football) a smash hit. Penske recently proposed bringing Indy Car racing back to Detroit’s Belle Isle with a semi-permanent road course, infrastructure improvements, and a city venue perfect for television coverage. Motorsports is a critical leg of the Motor City’s foot stool. When Roger speaks, civic leaders listen so prospects are finally excellent for expanding tourism in Detroit.

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