DETROIT - Detroit Tigers owner Mike Ilitch has hired FleetBoston Financial Corp. and Merrill Lynch & Co. to refinance a $145 million loan that helped build the new Comerica Park baseball stadium, the Detroit News reported.
The financing would help Mr. Ilitch, who also owns the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League, recoup additional costs from building the new home of the Detroit Tigers. The original loan was made Sumitomo Bank, the paper said.
Mr. Ilitch, the founder of the Little Caesars pizza chain, and his wife, Marian Ilitch, formed Ilitch Ventures Inc. last year to own and manage businesses including the baseball and hockey teams; Little Caesar Enterprises; Olympia Entertainment; Olympia Development; and the Detroit Rockers professional indoor soccer team.
