Lawmakers request millions in state taxpayer funds to Dearborn attractions

Two House members requested millions in taxpayer dollars for cultural and recreational destinations in Dearborn, including Ford Field Park, The Henry Ford museum complex, and the Ford Community & Performing Arts Center.

Rep. Alabas A. Farhat, D-Dearborn, sought $3 million for The Henry Ford museum complex for what an official document called an ”integrated operations center.” The facility requires more robust emergency preparedness and operational coordination for its 1.7 million annual visitors, Farhat said.

The museum complex received no state or federal grants in the past five years, Farhart noted in a document required for earmark requests.

However, the complex received a 2025 state grant worth $819,200, according to Click on Detroit, as well as a $250,000 federal grant in 2024.

Farhat did not respond to an email seeking comment.

Rep. Erin Byrnes, D-Dearborn, requested $900,000 for Friends of the Rouge to develop recreational access at Ford Field Park, part of a planned 29-mile water trail along the Lower Rouge River.

The nonprofit received a $400,000 grant from the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy in 2020.

Friends of the Rouge reported that 22% of its annual income came from federal funding, according to a 2025 Fox 2 Detroit report.

The completed form Byrnes submitted to House leaders as part of the budgetary request gave an answer of ‘not applicable’ to the question of whether the nonprofit had received any government grants in the past five years.

Byrnes also requested $5 million for the Ford Performing Arts Center, which received $1.5 million in state funds and $292,167 in federal funding over the past five years, according to the legislative spending request.

Byrnes did not respond to a request for comment.

The Mackinac Center Legal Foundation sued the state in 2025 over two grants issued through a similar mechanism.

The lawsuit argues that the grants were unconstitutional because they did not receive a two-thirds vote of the Legislature as required by the Michigan Constitution. The case is currently before the Michigan Court of Claims.