 You are about to witness the very exciting story of a city and its people. It will be an adventure that will open new sights in familiar surroundings. It is a story of a city seeking new horizons in a resolute contest with great challenges. That city is Detroit, home of nearly two million people. Back in 1701, long before this land became a nation, Cadillac planted the colors of France on Detroit's shore, and thus began a rich and inspiring history which has brought Detroit to its finest hour, the today of which we are apart. Yes, Detroit is enjoying its finest hour. There is a renaissance, a rebirth in the city. There is a newness in Detroit. I am honored to be serving as mayor at this most eventful and productive period in Detroit's history, and I'm honored to be a participant in the Detroit story. What we call the most cosmopolitan city of the Midwest, Detroit today stands at the threshold of a bright new future, one rich with the promise of fulfillment. In this bustling city on the Straits, where British and American flags soon followed the French, a spirit of brotherhood was born and nurtured, foreshadowing the city's national character. Here, people from many nations have met and mixed and built a metropolis of thriving commerce and culture. The Detroit River flows past the city's front door, the world's busiest waterway. This river is a vital passage to the Great Lakes and to the St. Lawrence Seaway beyond. Detroiters just naturally take to the water. They enjoy more sparkling pure water than any similar area in the world. Detroit, the crossroads of half the population of the United States is but minutes away by Bridger Tunnel from Canada. In these friendly neighbors, the Detroit River forms part of the world's longest undefended boundary. Detroiters are responding to an exciting new vision. There is a resurgence of civic pride and unfettered imagination. A new renaissance is changing the face of the city. This renaissance, seen everywhere, is the direct result of considered planning, the applied skills of planners, IDMN, organizers, builders, Detroiters who welcome and respond to challenges. Today they are charting new courses, taking new action, creating a new concept of urban efficiency. This concept of a finer Detroit takes bold new form. Planning skill blends with imagination and experience. Sleeves rolled up, Detroit levels and shifts and carves the contours of a new city, and a new spirit of progress matches the vision of its people. New buildings put solid roots in the ground and stretch toward the sky. Reflected here is planning with a purpose. New office buildings alter the landscape, each in turn becoming a bright landmark of progress. Detroit is rebuilding to a master plan of beauty and public service. Detroit is daring to reach up. The inner city is becoming an exciting place to live, into shops, offices, and the most modern of school. New Detroiters prefer to dwell in these new, self-contained cities within a city, others in new cooperatives or friendly neighborhoods. Whatever the choice, Detroiters rate their city high for living, working, and sheer enjoyment. Fine restaurants call you to good food. This popular restaurant also features a breathtaking view of the city and river. Having dinner, there's the excitement of a night on the town. The opera, perhaps. Detroit is one of the few cities outside New York which attracts the metropolitan opera year after year. The Auditorium, a claim for its acoustics, is the home of Detroit's world-famous symphony orchestra. Its summer symphony, community-sponsored, plays under the stars. Detroit is an established prior-to-Broadway tryout town, as well as a center for many other theatrical activities. Tryouts and top-touring attractions have helped make the city second only to New York in legitimate theater attendance. What more fitting than that Detroit, the world's automobile capital, should hold the world's largest automobile show? Mammoth Cobo Hall, geared to conventions of every kind and size, houses all kinds of national and regional events. But Detroit's manufacturing vision, its automotive genius, is matched by its cultural activities too. The Detroit Institute of Arts houses many of the world's most famous paintings and sculpture. Nearby is Cranbrook, where arts and sciences are taught, enhanced by gardens and fountains of unparalleled beauty. The Detroit Public Library houses the world-famous Burton Historical Collection. Adjacent is the Detroit Historical Museum. And within the metropolitan complex stands Historic Greenfield Village, one of the greatest tourist attractions in the United States. The village and museum stand as an enduring monument to the genius of Henry IV, Detroit's many institutions of higher education, the vigorously growing campus of Wayne State University. Like other colleges and schools in the metropolitan area, its modern architecture is creating a new image of beauty and function. Medical research at Wayne State University puts Detroit in the forefront of the never-ending battle to conquer disease. The most modern of hospitals serve Detroit's needs. The city's many medical facilities are soon to be joined by a magnificent new medical center to rise on these grounds. This as well as the other vast reaches of the city, where once lay the ugliness, the poverty, and sickness of slums has been condemned and cleared. Such progress in medical facilities and research attracts the nation's leading doctors and surgeons. Typical of Detroit's spiritual heritage is the painstaking restoration of historic old Mariners Church. Here is reflected the city's many old and new churches and synagogues. Detroit, an exciting place to be, to live, to grow, to work shoulder to shoulder, regardless of national origin, color, or creed. Detroit has earned an outstanding record in community relations, a reputation which is nationally recognized. Here are found 92 ethnic groups, more than in any other major American city. Small wonder, Detroit is a foremost city in international relationships. Detroit's progress in good ethnic relations owes a great deal to international institute, the largest of its kind in the nation. Here is a focal point for the multiracial strains that compose so much of Detroit's population. International goodwill is perhaps experienced most frequently at the border between the United States and Canada. Countries go back and forth daily between Detroit and Windsor, Ontario. Such comradeship is underscored by the International Freedom Festival, staged annually by Detroit and Windsor. Crowds of over 500,000 gather on the USA and Canadian banks of the Detroit River to celebrate with a roar the idea of freedom. Like a stout heart within the city is Detroit industry, the vital pulse beat of technology and resources which has put the world on wheels. Detroit's strategic location, its reservoir of know-how, its ability to deliver manpower, places it in the vanguard of choice spots in which to build, manufacture, and expand. By research in depth, proves Detroit is ever seeking the new way, the better way. Detroit shares indeed leads in each forward stride today as it builds for an even more prosperous tomorrow. With all the city's dedication to getting things done, Detroiters also know-how to temper work with play. Beautiful beaches beckon its people to sun and sand and water. The world's largest freshwater beach is but minutes away from the heart of the city. A day at the zoo, the Detroit Zoological Park ranks with the finest in the world. Detroiters love sports and Detroit provides an abundance of facilities as befits a sports-minded town. Here is what the late president, John F. Kennedy, said about Detroit as it bid for the 1968 Olympic Games. The United States Olympic Committee has chosen Detroit, Michigan as its nominee for the 1968 Olympic Games. Should Detroit be selected as a result of your deliberations in Baden-Baden, I want to assure you of the warmest and most cordial welcome in the United States. Detroit is the center of a great sports community in Central United States. We are anxious to open our doors in this section of the country and indeed throughout the entire United States to you all to share our nation and our hospitality with participants and spectators from all over the world. I appreciate this opportunity to appear before you and may all of you have the wisdom of scribe to the Olympian gods in arriving at your very difficult decision. Thank you. A strenuous pace is balanced by moments of relaxation and serenity. Detroiters enjoy their water wonderland and their winter wonderland as well. Detroit's beautiful island park, Belle Isle, and many other wooded parks put playgrounds virtually at every front door. Detroiters not only participate, they are avid and vocal fans as well. Detroit is fiercely proud of its tigers and just as partisan about its lions. The Detroit Red Wings are internationally famous. The pistons have made basketball a favorite of many Detroiters. Many facilities, arenas, and tracks make Detroit a great hometown for sports lovers of every bend. Whether you come to live, to work, to visit, to attend a convention, to establish a business, to build things, Detroit is unsurpassed for opportunity and growth. The friendliness of its people reaches out. The warmth of the city, the excitement of change, the dedication to progress, social, spiritual, cultural, and material is equaled only by its 20th century vision. The city on the Straits welcomes you to share that vision as it continues to plan, to build, and yes, to dream.