Detroit and Lansing officials are cooperating productively on at least one giant step for the city, Tom Walsh reports on the Free Press' front page.

Detroit Mayor Dave Bing, Gov. Rick Snyder and a majority of the Detroit City Council are on the verge of an agreement to have Belle Isle operated as a Michigan state park, city and state officials have told the Free Press.

Things appear to be moving swiftly. A public hearing is expected Thursday, Walsh writes, and a council vote could come Jan. 29.

The deal would lop $8 million in operating costs from Detroit's budget, adds the Free Press. It sketches these terms provided by unnamed insiders:

  • The state would lease Belle Isle for 10 years at a time, not 99 years as proposed earlier.
  • The city would own the 985-acre island and could decline to renew the lease when each period ends.
  • Michigan's Department of Natural Resources would run the park, selling $10 annual vehicle passes.
  • Pedestrians, cyclists and bus passengers still would visit for free.

    • Business leader Roger Penske tells Walsh:

    "The governor and the mayor and the City Council are now all on the same page. . . . We will see enormous benefits. . . .

    "It's a crown jewel of the city, and with the state park fund and oversight, it can be amazing. It's going to be back to the level where it was many years ago." 

    Read more: Detroit Free Press