Plans have been tossed out almost every year to expand thestate's largest convention center, but since funds are short, it'sbeen hard to find backers amongst the three major counties that areclosest to Detroit. In 2004, Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrickproposed building a new convention center for $665 million, but hecould not get enough buy-in to move forward. Ficano also proposed a270,000-sf expansion for $425 million in 2006.

Now, Ficano seems to have hit on a plan that many localofficials say they can live with. The details are that $200 millionwould be spent on renovating the entire property, $100 millionwould pay for the expansion, and $35 million would be used to buildtwo moving, covered walkways to directly connect the center tohotels at the Sheraton Pontchartrain and the Marriott at theRenaissance Center.

Ficano announced the plan Thursday during the Auto Show,alongside Gov. Jennifer Granholm. Financing would be through theextension of the tri-county hotel tax and statewide liquor tax forseven years. "Our first position is to be proactive to protect theAuto Show," Ficano tells GlobeSt.com in a private interviewThursday. "This is our trademark as a region. We've also found thatpeople who come here, including the 6,000 press that attend theshow, are usually surprised and appreciate the development we havegoing on Downtown. We need ambassadors going out and saying thesegood things, to lose the show would cut off our positive buzz."