Prompt #9: Recognizing Significance

Owners of large businesses and corporations in America have a great deal of money and power, giving them influence over others. A lot of these individuals use their power and excess of money to help people. The influence the owner and company have can also be used to accomplish great things. Businesses like Walmart, Wells Fargo, Nike, ExxonMobil, and Microsoft are all companies have a lot of money, power, and influence. These companies also happen to be some of the most generous companies in the world, all donating $100+ million to charity every year. These donations went to a number of different organizations and causes but all the money is intended to make life better for everyone. Major companies and the people that run them are extremely important to the whole country.

Dan Gilbert is an American businessman from Detroit who attended Michigan State University. He is founder of Quicken Loans, owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers, and is worth $6 billion (Forbes, 2017). Quicken Loans is the largest online mortgage lender in the US and is headquartered in Detroit. Like most other billionaire business owners, Gilbert is a philanthropist. He has done a lot of work to try and help rebuild the city of Detroit, his hometown. Gilbert is working to revitalize the city by bringing in more businesses and jobs.

An article from The Detroit Free Press published on September 20, 2017 highlights Gilbert's $2.1 billion plan to start up four developments in downtown Detroit. These include the restoration of The Book Tower, a new skyscraper, a 35-story tower on Monroe block, and building additions to the Compuware Building. This could potentially create 24,000 jobs for people in the city, 15,000 being construction jobs and 9,000 being permanent jobs. The restoration of The Book Tower would create 180,000 square feet of office space and retail shops along with 95 apartments. The new skyscraper would be the tallest in the city and open up 1 million square feet of space for residences, offices, and retail. It is expected to take around 5 years to complete these plans.

The tower set to be built at Monroe will open up 814,000 square feet for restaurants, retail space, and apartments. Once completed, the tower will take up the space between Greektown and Campus Martius. The additions made to the Compuware Building will add 310,000 square feet to the building, opening up more space for offices and job opportunities.
These projects are a great way to create jobs and bring more activity to Detroit. The only way projects like these can happen is if the government or a wealthy individual steps in to help with funding. The city of Detroit doesn't have the money to fund these projects so in this case, Dan Gilbert is the only way these plans can be completed. Gilbert is one of very few individuals that has the money and the power to get these projects completed. His importance to the city of Detroit goes beyond just his money. He gives the people the hope that the city will be prosperous again. Gilbert is far more than just a businessman, he is a beacon of hope. He is extremely important to the future of the city of Detroit.

Jack H

Tompor, Susan. “Dan Gilbert Announces Plan to Bring 24,000 Jobs to Detroit.” Detroit Free Press, www.freep.com/story/money/business/michigan/2017/09/20/dan-gilbert-bedrock-jobs-detroit/684344001/.