As Detroit settles in for a long, tortuous trip through bankruptcy court, the public financing deal for a new arena to house the Red Wings will likely skate by intact, the Wall Street Journal’s Bankruptcy Blog reported on Friday. “I don’t see this being the death knell of the arena project,” said Brian Holdwick, executive vice president for the Detroit Economic Growth Corporation, which staffs the DDA and is helping structure the deal. Michigan’s state legislature on Wednesday approved a $450 million bond offering that would form the public backbone of Ilitch’s Holding’s $650 million entertainment center and development district near the heart of downtown Detroit. The bonds will be floated by the Michigan Strategic Fund, which handles all of the state’s private development funds. The $283 million public portion of the bonds will come from the Downtown Development Authority, which earmarks a slice of downtown property taxes for reinvestment there.
