The future of Riverside Park

By Joel Thurtell

Ever been to Riverside Park in Detroit?

It’s a pleasant place for a walk, or just to sit.

A short distance across the Detroit River lies the Windsor skyline.

Nearer than Canada are the freighters, tugs, speedboats, tour boats, barges and other watercraft that ply the river.

Like to fish or just sight see from the water?

The park has a fine public boat launch.

Sorry to say, the boat launch is closed.

Henchmen for Matty Moroun deny that the billionaire who owns the Ambassador Bridge next door to Riverside Park closed the boat launch. Since his minions posted a phony “Homeland Security” sign on the boat ramp fence and placed bridge company padlocks on the gate, that claim is a bit hard to swallow.

And although I keep hearing a persistent rumor that the mayor is talking to Matty about a park sale, the mayor’s office has denied it, after first sending me an apparently erroneous e-mail confirming that a deal was underway.

Meanwhile, I’m waiting to see what the mayor’s spokespeople have to say to my question whether the city might swap — not sell, but trade — the park to Matty for some other property.

Right now, though, I have to believe the park is NOT in play.

Which means the city still regards it as a place for rest and recreation.

Now, I have my biases, and one of them is that I LIKE BOATS.

I’ve never seen Riverside Parks’ boat launch, because it is locked. I’ve looked at aerial photos of the launch on Google Earth. What I see is a very fine launching area complete with docks for tying boats.

It’s a great boat launch, except for the fact that it’s been closed for years.

And that is the purpose of this essay: To explore the possibility that the boat launch might again serve the public interest rather than the private purposes of Manuel Moroun, one of the richest albeit most selfish men on the planet.

While the padlocks are Matty’s, for sure, we’ve also heard that the city is too poor to re-open and maintain the boat launch. It’s a bit hard to believe, since the state of Michigan operates dozens of public boat ramps, charging a nominal fee for each boat that goes in and out of the water.

But if poverty is the problem, there are other solutions.

Why not have the state operate Riverside Park’s boat launch? Or Wayne County?

That kind of arrangement is not unheard of. While the state owns the Fort Street drawbridge over the Rouge River, Wayne County has a contract to operate the span. Why not have Wayne County or the state contract with Detroit to operate Riverside Park?

Or maybe the Huron-Clinton Metroparks could lease or purchase the park and operate the boat launch. There might be other park functions, such as a food concession and additional recreational activities that could generate revenue — and public interest.

If the city can’t manage to do it, let another public agency with a PURELY PARK AGENDA give it a try.

The best option, though, would be to have the City of Detroit keep this jewel of a park and develop it as a park, with an operational boat launch.

Drop me a line at joelthurtell@gmail.com