February 2003

In struggling economic times, cities across the country have been hard pressed to improve and provide recreational opportunities for the young people starved for something to do. Decreasing support from state and federal sources compels cities to get creative to meet the needs of their young people.

Detroit Mayor Kwame M. Kilpatrick certainly doesn't lack for creativity. While his city was in the process of finalizing agreements to create permanent casinos in the city, he seized the opportunity. Mayor Kilpatrick assessed a tax on casino revenues that will be designated to parks and recreational facilities in Detroit. Agreed to by each casino, cash is to be generated from a one percent tax on annual casino revenues up to $400 million, and two percent on revenues above $400 million beginning in 2006.

Based on the casinos' revenue projections, this move creates tax revenues of $400 to $600 million to significantly improve and expand recreation opportunities for kids over 30 years.

"This will generate about $20 million per year and will have a tremendous impact on the opportunities that we create for our young people in Detroit," says Derrick Miller, City of Detroit Chief Administrative Officer.

"Mayor Kilpatrick has a genuine concern for kids and their future," says Miller. "His vision is to make Detroit the number one city for children and youth."

Early in his administration, Mayor Kilpatrick created an agenda around providing learning and recreational opportunities for children, creating safer streets, and creating a cleaner city. This agenda has been entitled "Kids, Cops, Clean."

He created "Mayor's Time," a comprehensive program that increases after-school opportunities for children between the hours of 3 p.m. and 8 p.m. Mayor's Time and The Youth Connection began to serve as the Mayor's think tank on after-school and recreational initiatives and collaboratively, the focus of its campaign has been on improving the overall development of Detroit's youth. Youth Connection Executive Director Grenaé Dudley serves as Mayor's Time Director.

"Dr. Dudley led us through an assessment of the condition of our recreation facilities," says Miller. "While Detroit has some good facilities, many of them were in very poor condition. We would be ashamed to send our own kids to some of these facilities, so it became a mission make improvements and not to pass the buck."

Some areas in Detroit didn't have recreational opportunities at all, and in the past 20 years, there hasn't been a groundbreaking on one new recreational facility.

The infusion of money-which can be used for capital projects, as well as maintenance and operations of community centers, parks and the like-will help change all this. "Although the tax doesn't begin until 2006, it allows us to bond immediately," says Miller. "We are undertaking a planning process that includes looking at the greatest needs, current population/trends, location of kids, and what we can do to get the biggest bang for the buck."

"It's really a quality of life issue," Miller says. "We want to continue to build our community, attracting families back to Detroit."

For more information on this website about The Youth Connection, click here. For more articles on this website about after-school issues, click here.