Pontiac Silverdome on the block for redevelopment

By Ilaina Jonas

NEW YORK, March 27 (Reuters) - The Pontiac Silverdome in Michigan, the site of Super Bowl XVI which allowed San Francisco 49ers quarterback Joe Montana to add Most Valuable Player to his trophy room, is on the block.

Real estate brokerage and services firm CB Richard Ellis Group Inc.(CBG.N) recently began marketing the 80,000-plus seat stadium and its 127.5-acre site in Pontiac, near Detroit.

Under an agreement with the city, CB Richard Ellis is to bring as many offers as it can within 120 days.

"It's very aggressive," said Jeffrey Bell, first vice president of CB Richard Ellis and leader of the marketing initiative.

The Pontiac Silverdome opened in 1975 and was home to the Detroit Lions football team, which played its last season there in 2001 before moving to a new stadium in Detroit.

In 1982, the dome hosted the Super Bowl, during which San Francisco scratched out a 26 to 21 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals.

"We're making the assumption that a developer will be attracted to the property from a redevelopment perspective, and we're assuming the dome will be taken down," Bell said on Tuesday.

The floor of the football field is 39 feet below grade, a feature that could allow it to be used as an underground parking facility. The seats and turf could be sold off to defray some of the demolition costs, CB Richard Ellis broker Myrna Burroughs said.

Local and state governments are considering offering economic and tax incentives to encourage redevelopment. CB Richard Ellis will throw a wide net to attract potential buyers.

"We are planning to market this not only locally, regionally and nationally but internationally as well," Burroughs said. "There are a lot of foreign-owned firms in the area. We think there is an opportunity for those types of companies to build a facility here."

Although the Silverdome is located in Oakland County, one of the wealthiest U.S. counties, Southeast Michigan is suffering from a downturn in the U.S. automobile industry. Still, Burroughs said she expects the new site's new occupant to be connected to the auto industry.

"The site lends itself as a corporate campus for one of the large automotive suppliers or automotive companies," she said.