Will Woodward reopen? What's next for Spirit Plaza is up in the air

Winter decorations at downtown Detroit's Spirit Plaza are nearly gone but what's next for the site or whether it will reopen to traffic remains undecided, according to officials.

"There are not any final plans," said Eric Larson, CEO of the Downtown Detroit Partnership, which manages the site. "This is a process. We work very closely with our partner, the city of Detroit, the mayor's office and city council — but the plans and programming that not only have occurred but will occur in the future, if the plaza continues ... there really is nothing finalized."

Larson said the plaza — a pilot project for the city — was met with success but the concept needs fine tuning.

Read more:

"There are absolutely things that were very successful and and there are things we know we need to continue to address," Larson said. "Some of it is around the way we continue to involve the surrounding community ... We felt that the pilot had many successful components to it."

John Roach, a spokesman for Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, agreed.

The plaza initially stirred controversy because it involved shutting down Woodward between Larned and Jefferson to create an area where pedestrians could congregate, without being properly approved by the city council.

Some city council members, including Councilman Scott Benson and Council President Brenda Jones, worried that it would hurt small businesses in the area.

Neither Jones nor Benson responded to requests for comment about the issue.

A few restaurants, like Bangkok Crossing, Checkers Bar and Townhouse, said they saw no decrease in foot traffic while the food trucks were out during plaza's summer stint.

Austin Tinaj, owner of Cadillac Square Diner on the corner of Cadillac Square and said while his business saw a small drop-off in clientele, he welcomes the competition.

The plaza is set to continue through at least April.

Contact Brandon Patterson: BPatterson2@freepress.com Twitter: BPattersonLive