WWE Invades the D

Just two weeks after hosting the 2007 NCAA Wrestling Championships, the Detroit area prepares to welcome another wrestling event to town this Sunday: Wrestlemania 23.

Attendees of this year's event will see John Cena and Shawn Michaels square off for the WWE championship, and watch current World Heavyweight Champion Batista defend his title to Undertaker, the 305-pound pro wrestling veteran who maintains a 14-0 Wrestlemania winning streak.

It wouldn't be a WWE event without a goofy charade by Vince McMahon, and this year is no exception. The 61 year-old billionaire and real estate mogul Donald Trump, also a billionaire, are set to raise B-List celebrity antics to a new level of outrageousness in -- yep, you guessed it -- the Battle of the Billionaires. The duo have really outdone themselves promoting the event so I won't bore you with the details ... except to say that at night's end, one of the two will leave the ring bald.

If that doesn't have you running to ticketmaster.com for remaining WWE 23 tickets, perhaps the night's other highlights - Aretha Franklin's passionate rendition of America the Beautiful or Stone Cold Steve Austin as guest-referee of the Trump/McMahon bout - should. Yes, people, love it or hate it, this will be one big night in the D.

Catch Wrestlemania 23 live from Detroit's Ford Field at 7 pm on April 1.

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March 24 in Detroit History

March 24 may seem like just another day to you and me, but not to die-hard fans of Motown hockey.

Those that bleed red and white know that on this day in 1936, the Detroit Red Wings and the now-defunct Montreal Maroons battled it out in the longest NHL playoff game ever: a gut-wrenching 176 minutes and 30 seconds.

Right-winger Mud Bruneteau scored the only point of the game in the sixth round of OT, and the Wings skated off with a 1-0 victory. And their first Stanley Cup.

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Detroiter wins Michigan's Mr. Basketball Award

Congratulations to Detroit-resident Corperryale Harris for winning the Hal Schram Mr. Basketball award last night. Given annually by the Basketball Coaches Association of Michigan in conjunction with the Detroit Free Press, the accolade recognizes the top male player in the state.

Corperryale, who goes by the nickname Manny, is a 6'4" senior at Detroit Redford High School. He plans to attend the University of Michigan in the fall.

Harris is the ninth Detroit Public School student to garner the award since it began in 1981 - Lansing Eastern, Detroit Country Day and others follow DPS' dominance with two wins each.

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Autorama revs up Detroit this weekend

Start your engines, folks.

Autorama is taking over downtown Detroit's Cobo Center this weekend, and trust me - there's nothing else like it.

From hot rods and motorcycle displays to celebrity guests, contests and drag exhibits, the 2007 Detroit Autorama is celebrating its 55th year in the Motor City with a bang.

Other highlights include:

• Special odes to the '32 Ford Deuce and the '57 Chevy;
• The Motor City Pinstripers Panel Jam and Auction to benefit the Rainbow Connection;
• Spirit Industries Build A Rod;
• Autorama Extreme, featuring traditional and custom rods, breakdancers and Halo2 tournaments;
• Toy-a-rama;
• The Detroit Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau's D-Rod, a '32 Ford with a 525 horsepower Chrysler Hemi, designed to promote Detroit's new brand identiy.

Detroit Autorama runs from March 9 - 11 at Cobo Center in downtown Detroit. Admission is $16 for adults, $5 for kids 6 -12, and free for kids 5 and under (tip: discount tickets are available at Murray's Auto Parts stores).

Autorama show times are as follows:

Friday, March 9: noon - 10 pm

Saturday, March 10: 10 am - 10 pm

Sunday, March 12: 10 am - 8 pm

Another tip if you head to the show on Saturday evening -- before you call it quits for the night, make a break for Bookies Tavern around the corner for an Autorama after-party sponsored by energy-drink Cintron. There's no cover and drinks mixed with Cintron will be on special.

Happy hot-rodding!

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Ground broken on massive Gardenview Estates project in Northwest Detroit

If you live near the former Herman Gardens site in Northwest Detroit, take a good long look at it the next time you pass by - the barren 139 acres you're used to seeing is about to get a major makeover.

Last month, Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, Assistant HUD Secretary-Orlando Cabrera and the Detroit Housing Commission (DHC) broke ground on the area, which is being developed into a 920-residence community called Gardenview Estates.

The development, which is set to include single-family homes, lofts, condominiums and townhouses, will include market-rate housing (a mix of rentals and residential sales).

The new community will also be home to Detroit's new NFL Youth Education Town - a 35,000 square foot facility scheduled to open in May 2007. New retail and green spaces are also likely in the future Gardenview Estates neighborhood.

Infrastructure installation - new lighting, roads, sidewalks, water and sewer systems - is currently underway. Construction on the first phase of the housing of Gardenview Estates is set to begin this summer. Overall, the projected investment of the project tops $227 million.

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