Wednesday, February 8,2012

Eyesore of the week

by Andy Balaskovitz

Property: 1020 Trowbridge Road, East Lansing Owner: CCPL Real Estate Group Assessed value: $286,000 Owner says: Could not be reached for comment Architecture critic Amanda Harrell-Seyburn says: It is highly likely that this vacant building is the victim of low visibility.

Read more Read it in print

Wednesday, February 8,2012

Recovering from the loss

Coping with the loss of a daughter, Lori Black opens up about the final hours of Shayla Johnson’s life and why she thinks the media haven’t accurately portrayed her family

by Andy Balaskovitz

“This is pretty much what my life has become,” Lori Black says while walking into the dining room of her west Lansing home. She’s carrying two stacks of paper. The first is about 3 1/2 inches thick with court hearing notifications. The second stack, of Lansing State Journal newspapers dating back to July 2010, is a little thicker.

Read more Read it in print

Tuesday, February 7,2012

Kids in the Hall

Kicking around the casino proposal

by Andy Balaskovitz

Tuesday, Feb. 7 — Monday night marked the start of the Lansing City Council’s formal discussion on the Bernero administration’s plans to bring a casino downtown.

Friday, February 3,2012

No need for ‘fat cat’ lists

Mayor’s Office: You can keep your highfalutin rankings, Forbes

by Andy Balaskovitz

Friday, Feb. 3 – The Bernero administration is hardly impressed that the publishing company Forbes ranked Lansing 13th this week on its list of America’s Most Miserable Cities.

Thursday, February 2,2012

Foot-in-mouth disease

The mayor’s loose cannon strikes again, and other memorable Bernero blow-ups

by Andy Balaskovitz

“I was stunned,” Rossman-McKinney said Monday. “The way he specifically referred to Jim Nye in front of hundreds of people. You know our mayor. He gets pretty worked up — and he was really worked up about the thing. It was undignified and uncalled for.”

Read more Read it in print

Thursday, February 2,2012

Miserable old Lansing

Lansing ranks 13th in Forbes’ list of America’s Most Miserable Cities

by Andy Balaskovitz

Thursday, Feb. 2 — Don't look for Capital Gains to pick up this story. No, the publication focused on positive news in the area likely won’t mention that Forbes placed Lansing at 13th on its recent list of America’s Most Miserable Cities.

Monday, January 30,2012

Kids in the Hall

A State of the City timeline

by Andy Balaskovitz

Monday, Jan. 30 — Following his 30-minute State of the City speech tonight, Lansing Mayor Virg Bernero said “not much” changed in preparing for this year’s compared to last.

Friday, January 27,2012

An east side raid

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration raided a doctor’s clinic on Lansing’s east side yesterday, but will not give details

by Andy Balaskovitz

Friday, Jan. 27 — A Lansing physician’s clinic was raided yesterday, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has confirmed, but the federal agency will not comment on details about the “ongoing investigation.”

Thursday, January 26,2012

Lansing casino: A closer look

MSU indigenous law expert shows a little more confidence in Lansing’s ability to bring in a casino, but serious doubts remain

by Andy Balaskovitz

Thursday, Jan. 26 — When Matthew Fletcher examined the Michigan Indian Land Claims Settlement Act a little closer this week, he thought, maybe the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians can open an off-reservation casino in Lansing.

Wednesday, January 25,2012

The gamble

Reconfiguring the Stadium District and how a pair of attorneys came to believe in bringing a casino to Lansing

by Andy Balaskovitz

Some legal experts dismiss the Lansing plan because of ongoing federal litigation between the Bay Mills Indian Community and the state in which the Bay Mills Community tried opening an off-reservation casino with money from its self-sufficiency fund. The case is before the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Read more Read it in print