SECOND CLASS THE JEWISH NEWS SERVING DETROIT'S JEWISH COMMUNITY SEVENTY-FIVE CENTS AUGUST 31, 1990 / 10 ELUL 5750 JWF Approves Suburban Site KIMBERLY LIFTON p Staff Writer Tans by the Jewish Welfare Federation to follow its community to the suburbs are sailing smoothly as the board of governors gave overwhelm- ing approval this week to buy 5 V2 acres of land in Farmington Hills for future agency headquarters. No purchase can be made without the approval of United Jewish Charities, whose board is scheduled to meet Sept. 6. Purchase of the land, where an old mansion stands behind the Lutz building on 13 Mile Road east of Northwestern, would be made with private dona- tions. Price of the land is "The perception initially is an appearance of abandonment." — Stanley Winkelman under negotiation. "The issue has not been over whether we should move," Federation Exec- utive Vice President Robert Aronson said. "The issue has been where, and whether we can afford it." Mr. Aronson said the Fed- eration is not ruling out leasing an existing building or continuing to look for other sites. But, he said, the location in Farmington Hills is central to the Jewish community. If the purchase is made, he said, Federation will bank the land until a decision is made. Federation, which has maintained offices at 163 Madison partly as a symbol of its commitment to Detroit, has been studying a possible move for the past four years. The Jewish community has not been centered within the city limits since the 1960s, and a recent demo- graphic study confirms that the building is located far south of the main population centers of the Jewish corn- munity in the northwest suburbs. In addition, an in-house Federation study shows the Butzel Building needs an estimated $1 million in renovations. About 85 per- cent of Federation's business meetings take place out of the office, and the average staff person spends less than four hours a day at the Madison office. A move could take place in from one to five years, Mr. Aronson said. If Federation constructs its own head- quarters, the agency would remain at its present loca- tion for at least 2 1/2 years, he said. Talk of relocating comes amid trying times for the Jewish community, which has been financially stretch- ed by additional solicitations for Operation Exodus, the international campaign ex- pected to raise $420 million to help Israel absorb and resettle Soviet Jewish im- migrants. "We have had an un- precedented year in Jewish community activity and fund raising and our concern for the plight of Soviet Jewry will continue unabated as the mass migration to Israel continues," Federation Pres- ident Mark Schlussel said. "We believe that if we bank the land, and we plan, the move will not interfere with our other activities." Although some board members and longtime community leaders express- ed disappointment, most were accepting of the deci- sion to move. Of the near-60 board members who voted, only a handful dissented. Dissenters questioned the impact of the move on the community's relationship with the city of Detroit, cost of the project, the historical value of the Butzel Building and the centrality of the new location. "We are very sensitive to the fact that while most of us don't live in the city, Detroit is still important to each of us," said Dr. Conrad Giles, Federation immediate past president, who supports pur- chasing land for a future of- fice. "I feel very uncomfor- table moving to the suburbs, and any proposed future Continued on Page 14 A complete wrapup on last week's JCC-Maccabi Youth Games. The subtle effort to introduce the new immigrants to American Jewish life.