Binder Park Zoo (Battle Creek,MI)

 Located 120 miles in Battle Creek, MI is a cultural center for natural history and substantial education, wildlife ethical conservation, and outdoor fun recreation.  It is home to It is home to 600 animals, 140 species, and protection to a lot of endangered species like the koala, tigers, and polar bears.  This place is Binder Park Zoo.

   In the 1960s members of the Battle Creek Jaycees, thought of building a children’s zoo in Battle Creek so they formed the Battle Creek Children's Zoo Steering Committee. With a lot of effort and fundraising the committee leased 83 acres of the then 655-acre Charles Binder Park from the City of Battle Creek for $1 per year, and in 1985, the zoo leased an additional 87.  In 1991,it was expanded again to 405 acres and finally in 1997 the zoo sat on an area of 433 acre this zoo was named as one of the largest zoo. This zoo abounds with umpteenth variety of colors and excitement making it a major attraction for revelers and nature fanatics

  The main zoo area features animal exhibits including prairie dogs, a snow leopard exhibit,cheetahs, and red kangaroo.  Also located in the main zoo is the Miller Children's Zoo, gift shop, a railroad station, the Binda Conservation Center, a restaurant, a habitat boardwalk called Swamp Adventure, and the new Conservation Carousel that opened in 2007.


   The Wild Africa Exhibit at Binder Park Zoo is a exhibit featuring giraffes, zebras, storks, and etc. This award winning exhibit allows the animals to roam around, cage free like they are in the savanna. To get a closer view, there is a loop that begins and ends in a small African themed village, selling souvenirs and food and beverages. The trail itself is themed to resemble a trail inside an African National Park complete with a ranger station and fake poachers. Along the trail there is an opportunity to feed giraffes. You can view the giraffes from a raised platform that places them at eye level with the animals. Other species are included in savanna settings and other small exhibits. Some of which include African Wild Dogs, Colobus Monkeys and Black Mangabeys, and a forest farm featuring several African Domestic Animals.


For more information please go binderparkzoo.org 

Renaissance Center (Detroit,MI)

   Located in Downtown Detroit  is the tallest all-hotel skyscraper in the Western Hemisphere that features the largest rooftop restaurant called the Coach Insignia.  It has been the tallest building in Michigan since its 1977.  It is home to one of the big three car company's in North America, it has a movie theater, and a great view of the Detroit River.  This place is the Renaissance Center. 
  
    In 1970, Ford Motor Company Chairman Henry Ford II teamed up with other business leaders to form Detroit Renaissance, a private non-profit development organization, which he headed in order to stimulate building activity in the city.  In 1971 the Renaissance Center became the world's largest private development with a building cost of $500 million. In its first year of operation it generated over $1 billion in economic growth for the downtown.
  
   The first tower of the Renaissance Center opened on July 1, 1976.  For tower 1 of the first five towers was covered with 2,000,000 square feet of glass, and used about 400,000 cubic yards of concrete.  Phase I of the Renaissance Center cost $337 million to construct, employing 7,000 workers.  Thousands of people moved Detroit, because they saw the opportunity of jobs here so in 1977, the central hotel tower of the Renaissance Center, which opened as the Western International Detroit Plaza Hotel or better known as the Detroit Marriott. Since 1986, the Renaissance Center's central tower has held the distinction as the tallest all-hotel skyscraper in the Western Hemisphere.  Since more and more tourist were coming to see the Renaissance Center the city of Detroit decided that the Renaissance would be one of the stops on the people mover.  Also they placed a GM World exhibit down stairs of the Renaissance where you can look at and even get in the new cars from GM.
   

The Wintergarden

   Down the line they wanted to remodel the Renaissance Center so all the offices was in one building and the entertainment was in another.The $500 million renovation of the Renaissance Center completed in 2003 has helped improve Detroit's economy. Together, GM's renovation of the Renaissance Center and the Detroit Riverwalk exceeded $1 billion; the project constituted a substantial investment in downtown. More than 10,000 people work in the complex.  In 2001 the Wintergarden was added to the Renaissance Center faces the Riverfront and provides panoramic views of the Windsor skyline. The complex connects offices, the hotel, retail specialty shops, restaurants, a jazz club, and a movie theater. A pedestrian-friendly glass entryway has replaced the former concrete berms along Jefferson Avenue. The redevelopment provides the GM World display of vehicles, a restored hotel, a renovated rooftop restaurant, and the addition of GM's corporate logo to crown the top of the building. Construction of the lighted glass walkway facilitates ease of navigation encircling the interior mezzanine.The completion of the Renaissance Center was in 2004.

Belle Isle Park (Detroit,MI)

 
 Located on Jefferson Ave. and 15 minutes from downtown Detroit is a 982-acre (1.534 sq mi; 397 ha) island park in the Detroit River that separates the United States and Canada, managed by the. It is connected to the rest of Detroit by the MacArthur Bridge which is 2,193 feet. It is the largest island city park in the United States and the third largest island in the Detroit River
   
The island was founded in the 18th century,  by French Colonist who named it Île aux Cochons (Hog Island).  The French saw that it was a great asset to be a recreation facility so in the 1880s, urban park designer,Frederick Law Olmsted, design the park.  One of Frederick's projects was the Belle Isle Casino building.  Everyone thought it was a actual casino but is actually used for occasional public events such as concerts and birthday party.  One of the highlights of Belle Isle is a beautiful botanical garden.  Alot of couples go there to see the exotic trees and have picnics.  They saw how much excitement was going on about the botanical garden so in 1952 Albert Kahn designed a greenhouse called Anna Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory. 

 Architect Cass Gilbert designed Belle Isle's James Scott Memorial Fountain and the William Livingstone Memorial Light, the only marble lighthouse in the United States, is on the east end of the island.  Additional recreational options include a nature center, wheelchair accessible nature trail, fishing piers, playgrounds, picnic shelters, and handball, tennis and basketball courts, baseball fields, and even a cricket pitch.  Belle Isle turned into the talk of  the city.  There was a canoe concession where you could rent canoes and stored private ones and just ride along the river and often stop to enjoy the concert at the Remick Band Shell. 

   Today Belle Isle is still up and running.  People come there for family picnics, the Detroit Indy Grand Prix, go to the zoo or just to get out of the house.  Belle Isle is the best park in the country.