By Patrick Hayes

Although Magic Johnson‘s vast business empire is currently mostly associated with the West Coast, particularly the Los Angeles Dodgers, the native Michigander has certainly shown interest in investing in his home state as well. MLive’s David Muller reports that Johnson is part of a development team that could help revitalize the former Michigan State Fairgrounds property in Detroit:

The proposal calls for mixed-use development along Woodward Avenue on the western boundary of the fairgrounds, multi-family townhomes and a recreational park on the southern boundary along State Fairgrounds Road and big box retail and a movie theatre built along the 8 Mile Road corridor.

Of the 20 buildings currently on the property, all structures except for the Coliseum, Joe Dumar’s Fieldhouse, the State Fair Band shell and the Dodge pavilion will be demolished and removed from the site.

The developers call the Coliseum a “significant icon in terms of its high visibility and architectural image.” That building could be re-purposed for private or public use, and the developers note in particular that it could be used a business incubator.

Muller said developers estimate that the new retail space created could bring in up to 900 new jobs.

Subscribe to the BallinMichigan RSS feed, like BallinMichigan on Facebook and follow @BallinMichigan on Twitter.