Protest Of Minority Owned Business Loss At Cobo Center Gets Reaction

DETROIT (WWJ) - Detroit Activist Minister Maleek Sabazz planned a rally at Cobo Center on Monday at noon to protest the loss of an African-American owned and operated business at Cobo.

After more than 30 years serving up pizza at Cobo Center, Simons Pizza owned by Larry and Sandy Simons is leaving Cobo Center.

WWJ Newsradio 950's Florence Walton reports the company hired by Cobo Authority is not renewing the contract for Simons Pizza:

"God is going to open up some doors for us, as my husband said, where our longevity at Cobo, in the city, our intelligence, our education, our professionalism, quality - everything will be celebrated in a positive way. And now for whatever reasons, maybe they don't like the way we comb our hair, or the way we dress, or whatever- the doors are now closed for us at Cobo," said Sandy Simons.

The Detroit Regional Convention Facility Authority and Centerplate, Inc., is the food service contractor, and had this reaction to the planned protest.

The Detroit Regional Convention Facility Authority released this statement in regards to the non-renewal of the Simons Pizza contract.

• We recognize and appreciate the history of Simon's Pizza and thank them for their long commitment to Cobo Center and the city of Detroit.
• We are also extremely pleased with the work that Centerplate has done to date to improve and diversify Cobo Center's food offerings for customers and guests. The feedback from event attendees in the past months about the changes to food quality, cost, choice and service have been overwhelmingly positive.
• The situation with Simon's Pizza is a business matter between it and Centerplate. While the staff and board members of the DRCFA have been kept informed, the Detroit Regional Convention Facility Authority is not a party to the decision not to renew that contract. -DRCFA

Centerplate Statement:

• While we value and appreciate Simon Pizza's long history at the Cobo Center and their commitment to the City of Detroit, our charge at Centerplate is to administer the hospitality services at Cobo Center in a way that best benefits Detroit, the surrounding community, economy and tourism industry. As part of this mission, we routinely review and evaluate expiring vendor contracts, and determine whether renewing these contracts is in the best interests of all parties involved. This is a process applied to all vendors at the time their contracts expire. In the case of Simon's Pizza, our determination, after careful thought and review, was that renewing this particular contract was not in the best interests of the Cobo Center or its guests. We are proud to partner with many locally owned businesses at the Cobo Center, and we value and appreciate their contributions to the world class hospitality offered at the Detroit Auto Show and other events. Out of respect for Simon's Pizza & Subs, we will not discuss or disclose any details of our business discussions with them, and will make no further comment on this matter.