Eric D. Lawrence

Detroit Free Press

Wayne County officials were quick to douse speculation Tuesday that Wayne County's unfinished jail site could become the future home of Major League Soccer in Detroit.

"We don’t comment on rumors, speculation or things said by unnamed sources, but our plan to finish the jail on Gratiot has not changed," said James Canning, a spokesman for County Executive Warren Evans, referencing previously announced plans to restart the jail project, which was halted more than 2 1/2 years ago because of concerns about cost overruns.

Canning was reacting to a report by the Free Press that the Gratiot site would be the No. 1 option for a soccer stadium as businessmen Dan Gilbert and Tom Gores team up in an effort to bring an MLS team to downtown Detroit.

Add several Wayne County commissioners to the list of skeptics.

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Commissioner Raymond Basham, D-Taylor, was quick to dismiss the idea of allowing the unfinished jail site to be used instead as a soccer venue.

“We should finish what we started,” Basham said, noting the work that has already gone into the Gratiot site. “We need to move forward in this county. … I think it would be worse than a step back, it would be a step and fall” to again switch gears on the jail project.

Wayne County Commission Vice Chair Alisha Bell, D-Detroit, offered a similar assessment.

"I am committed to continuing the jail (construction) at the current jail site. I would hope that we're able to find a way to complete that project that we've already invested in," she said, noting the expense to date and the work already completed at the site. "Until we have exhausted all possible measures, which we haven't done yet, I'm in favor of continuing to build the jail at the Gratiot site."

The county has been working in recent months with two of the companies involved in the original jail project to develop a plan to restart construction there, although nothing has been finalized.

In January, Gary August, outside counsel representing the Wayne County Building Authority and the county, used words like "extraordinary" and "incredible" to describe what has already been built underground at the site, despite what can be seen unfinished above ground. Evans and his staff have also said repeatedly said that restarting jail construction at Gratiot would be the most cost-effective option for the county, which spent an estimated $151 million for construction before it was stopped. The county continues to spend an estimated $1.2 million per month at the site.

Despite all the focus on a restart of the unfinished jail, speculation never seems to die that the jail and court facilities could instead be moved to the former Mound Road Correctional Facility on the city’s east side, paving the way for some other use of the Gratiot site. Critics contend the cost to do so, which would include massive changes to the facilities and the construction of a new court building, make the prospect wildly unrealistic.

Contact Eric D. Lawrence: elawrence@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @_ericdlawrence.