DETROIT – Dan Gilbert doesn’t speak in public often, so when he does, he gets everyone’s attention.
The mortgage mogul and NBA team owner spoke for about an hour to Detroit’s executive class in Birmingham, Thursday, Nov. 30.
Gilbert spoke about his past, his current projects and even teased how Apple might, in some small way, come to Detroit.
The richest man in the state said he started his billionaire trek by selling pizzas out of his mother’s kitchen and having his brother deliver them by bicycle, but it didn’t last long.
“But it is true the health department called us and said we were not allowed to do that and the zoning commission said we weren’t zoned for that, so there’s possible jail time ahead here,” Gilbert recalled. “That happened in college.”
He said he never thought about becoming a billionaire and once he got there, his passion became making Detroit an attractive, vibrant and competitive big city that attracts young workers.
Gilbert said the development at the former Hudson’s store site will change Detroit’s skyline. He talked about rehabbing historic Detroit architecture, including the Roost Hotel, emphasizing what amounts to a regional mall along Woodward Avenue.
He believes the city hosting big events -- like the 2024 NFL Draft -- can only help.
“People from every city that has an NFL team come to the draft and that’s great for two reasons,” Gilbert explained. “It’s great because they’re here and it’s great they can go back to their cities and tell everyone how great Detroit is.”
He said Detroit’s biggest need is mass transit. It’s what millennials want and he said the QLine exists to show the federal government Detroit can come together and convince it to spend the billions needed.
“Just think about how great it would be if you had lines going to Metro Airport, up Woodward all the way to Pontiac and then going west and going east,” Gilbert said. “It would be unreal and it would be a different city.”
Gilbert also spoke lovingly about his late son Nick, who wanted to build a unique sports bar in Detroit. He said it’s currently under construction, is using Nick’s design, and will be open for the 2024 NFL Draft in April.
He and his wife Jennifer donated $400 million to Henry Ford Hospital to develop a world-class rehabilitation center to investigate neurological disorders, like the one that took Nick’s life.