On Monday July
18, 2011, a new public dock and terminal opened up on the Detroit River near
Cobo Hall. The dock is capable of handling cruise ships, and the first ship,
the 184-foot Grande Mariner, which originated in Cleveland, docked and her passengers disembarked to sightsee in Detroit.
Detroit Mayor
Dave Bing, Wayne County Executive Robert Ficano, U.S. Senator Carl Levin, U.S.
Representative Hansen Clarke, and Detroit Riverfront Conservatory CEO Faye
Nelson were among those present at the ribbon-cutting ceremony.
Building of the
21,000 sq. ft. terminal was begun in 2004 and was financed with a combination
of federal funds and grants; the project was spearheaded by Senator Levin.
In addition to
having space for the docking of larger ships, the Dock and Terminal will also
have meeting rooms with a view of the river, state-of-the-art maritime
technology capability, and a command room for visiting ships.
The project is
part of an overall plan to extend the RiverWalk, to expand and improve Cobo
Hall, and enlarge Hart Plaza.
In the last 19th
century and early 20th century, cruise ships regularly visited Detroit as a
port-of-call. Now in the 21st century, Detroit is a cruise ship destination
once again.
