DIA Thanks Voters for Millage as Some Cities Continue Fight to Keep the Funds

Wyandotte and other communities are fighting to keep part of the tax dollars for their downtown districts.

The Detroit Institute of Arts recently thanked voters for approving a millage last August to support the museum even as some communities continue a fight in court to keep a portion of those tax dollars. Voters in Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties approved a tax of 0.2 mills for the next 10 years to help cover the museum's operating costs. In return, tri-county residents will receive free admission to the DIA for the next decade. In the meanwhile, the museum's fundraisers will work to build a sustainable endowment. "I cannot tell you what an important and critical vote that was," DIA chief operating officer Annmarie Erickson said after the 2013 Inside|Out communities were announced at the museum this month. "Your help really did an …

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Wyandotte Reacts to City's Practice of Keeping Tax Money Earmarked for Detroit Zoo, DIA

The majority of Wyandotte Patch readers criticized the action of withholding the money from the cultural institutions. What do you think? Should the money go to them or be kept here locally? Ultimately, a judge will decide as a lawsuit has been filed.

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Mick Bo

9:20 am on Tuesday, February 12, 2013

I think this is an excellent idea! Give us our money back!   more ›

Wyandotte Joins Other Communities in Lawsuit for Right to Keep Tax Money Earmarked for Zoo, DIA

Wyandotte is one of nine cities asking a judge to decide a dispute they have with the Wayne County treasurer.

Now that voters have passed special millages for the Detroit Institute of Arts and the Detroit Zoo, all Wyandotte residents must pay the tax.  However, the money collected from about two-thirds of the city’s population never gets to the DIA or the zoo. Instead, it’s kept locally to help fund the city’s Downtown Development Authority and other special taxing areas. And that’s by design, according to Wyandotte City Administrator Todd Drysdale, who is now trying to defend those actions in court. But he’s not the only one. Leaders of nine communities have banded together to file a lawsuit in Wayne County Circuit Court, asking a judge to decide whether the practice is legal. The lawsuit, filed Friday, is against Wayne County Treasurer Raymond …

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UPDATED: Boutique Hotel Could be Coming to Wyandotte

City officials are considering a plan for a boutique hotel moving into the city-owned Sears Building.

A luxurious hotel with up to 33 rooms could be coming to downtown Wyandotte. City officials are studying a plan that calls for a boutique hotel moving into the city-owned Sears Building at the corner of Biddle and Maple. At Monday night's City Council meeting, officials plan to consider changing a city ordinance that requires hotels and motels to provide parking for its guests. The current ordinance stipulates that hotels and motels with 15 or more rooms must supply parking. Officials are set to lessen that requirement and only force establishments with 34 or more rooms to provide parking. City Administrator Todd Drysdale acknowledged that the proposed change is in direct correlation to the plans for a hotel moving into the Sears site. "We…

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Jason Alley

7:53 pm on Monday, September 17, 2012

Hey, Sam123. I checked with Natalie Rankine, director of Wyandotte's DDA, and she said there is not a bar already built inside the Sears Building.   more ›