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News | Michigan

MICHIGAN

Council: Financing terms key to approval of newly proposed downtown projects

Riley Murdock
February 28, 2017

The City of East Lansing is now considering two major downtown developments, and whether or not they come to fruition will hinge on the financing terms requested by developers, city officials said. The newly-introduced $130 million Center City District project and the long-awaited Park District project, valued at _ in its last incarnation, will both be financed in part by tax increment financing, or TIF.

MICHIGAN

$132 million 'Center City District' would drastically change downtown E.L.

Riley Murdock
February 23, 2017

A $132 million development project that would see two 12-story structures raised on Grand River and Albert Avenue properties was formally proposed Wednesday morning and informally presented to the Planning Commission later that night. The "Center City Project" is being developed by Richmond, Ill.-based developer Harbor Bay Real Estate Advisors on properties owned by the Brad and Greg Ballein, who also own Student Book Store and other properties in East Lansing.

MICHIGAN

22 additional charges brought forward against Nassar

Staff Reports
February 22, 2017

Former MSU employee Larry Nassar has been charged with 22 additional counts of criminal sexual assault, first degree, Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette said in a press conference Wednesday. Criminal sexual conduct is a felony punishable by up to life in prison for each charge, according to a press release from Schuette.

MICHIGAN

Candy and sweets shop, Velvet, closes

Riley Murdock
February 21, 2017

Velvet A Candy Store, an ice cream, fudge and candy shop located next to Bruegger’s Bagels on Grand River Avenue, announced in a Sunday night Facebook post that their East Lansing location has closed. Velvet had been in operation since July 2015.

MICHIGAN

After another hottest year on record, worries persist over climate

John LaVaccare
February 21, 2017

Each of the last three years has set a new record for hottest year in recorded history, according to studies by multiple government agencies. According to NASA, the Earth’s surface has warmed by more than 0.5 degrees Fahrenheit through the past three years, the largest three-year temperature increase in recorded history leaving parts of the MSU community tied to environmental research and scrutiny worried about the future.

MICHIGAN

Anti-gerrymandering forum draws capacity crowd at E.L. High School

Riley Murdock
February 20, 2017

A forum with the goal of educating and mobilizing voters to end partisan gerrymandering drew a capacity crowd at East Lansing High School’s cafeteria Sunday afternoon. ‘Gerrymandering’, or the practice of legislatures drawing congressional districts with the goal of disenfranchising opposing voters, has become a much-hated political practice whose detractors say essentially renders elections pointless.

MICHIGAN

4 East Lansing restaurants could keep 50/50 rule grandfathered status

Riley Murdock
February 20, 2017

At the request of East Lansing Mayor Mark Meadows, an ordinance draft put forth at the (date) Planning Commission meeting would allow four bars exempt from the city’s 50/50 rule to maintain their “grandfathered” status should they relocate or renovate. The 50/50 rule is an ordinance enacted by East Lansing City Council in the 80’s that requires businesses that sell alcohol to generate at least 50 percent of their revenue from food sales.