Looks Like Another Name Change for Former Cobo Center in Downtown Detroit
What's in a name? Well, if you are the former Cobo Center in downtown Detroit, apparently, a name is something that can change....a lot.
For the second time in less than three years, the convention center in Detroit will be changing its name. The convention center has been known recently as TCF Center and before that, Cobo Center will be changing its name to Huntington Place.
According to WXYZ in Detroit, the name change is a result of a merger between Huntington Bancshares Incorporated and TCF Financial Corporation. Back in 2019 Chemical Bank was been awarded the naming rights to Cobo Center, the Detroit Regional Convention Facility Authority (DRCFA). The naming rights were for the next 22 years and were all part of a $33 million deal. Since then, Chemical Bank has made a merger with TCF, and now TCF has closed their merger with Huntington.
“We are proud that following the TCF-Huntington merger, the name of our new combined bank now graces the walls of this civic center that means so much to the people of Detroit and all of southeast Michigan. From high school graduations to the North American International Auto Show, from speeches by sitting presidents to the annual NAACP Fight for Freedom Fund Dinner, this venerable facility is part of the fabric of our community and Huntington is fortunate to now be a part of it,” Gary Torgow, Chairman, Huntington Bank told WXYZ.
Detroit's convention center had carried the name "Cobo" for nearly 50 years when there were increased calls to rename to popular location for concerts, professional fights, and other major events. The facility was originally named after former Mayor of Detroit, Albert Cobo, but there was a strong push to change the name in lieu of Mayor Cobo's passing heavily segregationist housing laws that are widely viewed to have played a role in escalating racial tension ahead of the 1967 riots.
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