Port Authority Requests Review of Controversial Agreement

After nearly a decade of silence, the Detroit/Wayne County Port Authority board is requesting formal rule on the legality of a controversial contract that gives Ambassador Bridge Co. free reign to run and profit from the Port Authority’s freight terminal, reports The Detroit News.

The board voted unanimously Friday to ask Attorney General Bill Schuette pass ruling on the 25-year agreement, in which the Port Authority designated Ambassador as “concessionaire” in exchange for a $2.1 million emergency loan on a 34 acre shipping terminal, according to The Detroit News. Even after 10 years of payments, the Port Authority is still struggling to keep up with the more than $2 million remaining balance.

Ambassador Bridge Co. President Dan Stamper blames the Port Authority’s woes on their failure to grow business.

“I wish Wayne County would hire someone more interested in growing business than being lost in action,” Stamper told The Detroit News.

Want to read more? Head over to The Detroit News’ website.