Wednesday, July 25,2012

The Niowave fix

Experts say the possibilities are endless for redesigning the exterior of a pole barn

by Andy Balaskovitz

A public hearing before the City Council was initially scheduled for Monday night, but was canceled after Niowave pulled its request. The Council’s Development and Planning Committee will discuss the matter at a noon meeting today on the 10th floor of City Hall.

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Wednesday, July 25,2012

The enviro and the ethicist

On Aug. 7, Ingham County Democrats must choose between Ingham County Drain Commissioner Pat Lindemann, who has built an impressive environmental record, and Mark Grebner, who says the incumbent runs his office unethically and wastefully

by Andy Balaskovitz

What do you get when you give a pair of unorthodox politicians an hour each on public access television to bash each other? A lengthy fact-checking mission, for one.

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Wednesday, July 25,2012

Last stop

The "current culture" of CATA drives international traffic expert from board position

by Sam Inglot

With a Ph.D in transportation from Michigan State University and nearly 50 years of experience in the field, Thomas Maleck is resigning from the local public transportation authority's board in disgust.

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Wednesday, July 18,2012

Fivesome on the fairway

Big talk boils down to a handful of options for the Red Cedar project

by Lawrence Cosentino

Last week, Lansing received five proposals to develop 12.5 acres of the former Red Cedar Golf Course on the city’s eastern fringe. With sky-high hopes for regional transformation riding on the project, the proposals plopped on the porch with a lighter thunk than expected.

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Wednesday, July 18,2012

Keri Litwiller swims with the big fish

by Lawrence Cosentino

There's no financing and no developer, but there is a lot of passion. Litwiller has been thinking about the idea for two years. She proposed it to the Lansing City Council earlier this summer, but got no reply to her letter.

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Wednesday, July 18,2012

Singh, Schmidt race to photo finish in 69th

by Kyle Melinn

Early mornings, nights, weekends, I wrote candidate profiles and analyzed all 110 state House races taking place in the August primary and November general election. Not all 110 seats have competitive primaries. In fact, about only 40 do.

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Wednesday, July 18,2012

New in town

Biggby, Mikho's

by ALLAN I. ROSS

When Great Lakes Chocolate & Coffee closed, the owners issued a release blaming sluggish sales on a lack of adjacent retailers in the Stadium District, which prompted their decision to leave after four years. It will be interesting to see how Biggby deals with this challenge.

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Wednesday, July 18,2012

Far from over

Now the Lansing City Council will consider tying tax incentives for Niowave to exterior improvements at its pole barn

by Andy Balaskovitz

"The idea of tie-bars, I think, makes a lot of sense," Jeffries said following Monday night's Council meeting. Six residents spoke during the meeting against Niowave's new $10 million expansion that has yielded what they call a "monstrosity" amid their residential neighborhood.

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Wednesday, July 18,2012

He said, she said, they said

Automated phone calls hit on name-calling claims; Jody Washington calls them a "public nuisance" and wants them to stop

by Sam Inglot

Recently, when asked to identify the gossiper, Washington said she could not reveal who had supposedly leaked the mayor’s comments to her.

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Wednesday, July 18,2012

Eyesore of the week

by Sam Inglot

Architecture critic Amanda Harrell-Seyburn says: Good economy, bad economy: vacant buildings happen. Blight isn’t vacancy, but it begins with poorly kept properties that are all too often the result of vacancy. Unoccupied properties can avoid blight if owners attend to the vital maintenance, like the roof and grounds. Buildings experience vacancy: It is the steps taken to maintain the property in the interim that matters.

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