Detroit Reaches Draft Settlement With Herman Kiefer Hospital Developer, Who Gets Nine Months to Find a New Buyer
DETROIT, Mich. — The City of Detroit, in Wayne County, Michigan, proposed a settlement on November 9 that would end years of litigation with Ron Castellano, the New York developer who failed to redevelop the Herman Kiefer hospital campus.
Castellano bought the vacant 38-acre hospital campus from the city in 2018 for $925,000, along with two nearby former Detroit public school buildings, but never moved the redevelopment forward. The campus has been empty since the Detroit Health Department moved out in 2013.
Castellano missed a spring 2025 deadline to show development progress, and his limited liability companies declared bankruptcy in June 2025, days before the city says he was due to hand back title. In June 2026, he sued the city and the Detroit Land Bank Authority, accusing them of obstructing his project.
Under the draft settlement, Castellano would have nine months, until August 2027, to find a buyer for the campus, with the buyer and its redevelopment plans subject to city approval. If no buyer is found, his companies must transfer the campus and the school buildings back to the city, which would refund his original $925,000. In exchange, he would dismiss all of his claims against the city and the land bank. The City Council is scheduled to consider the settlement on November 10.
Deputy Corporation Counsel James Noseda said on November 9 that the settlement will end costly, protracted litigation and ensure the city controls the disposition and development of the site in the city's best interests. Castellano's lawyer did not immediately respond to a request for comment on November 9.
Source: Detroit Free Press
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 底特律赫尔曼·基弗医院大楼。（Ab5602 摄，CC BY-SA 4.0，经 Wikimedia Commons）
