A Michigan state representative is constructing a House resolution to oppose considering domestic-partnership benefits in future contracts for same-sex state employees. Rep.
The Harris Nature Center, 3998 Van Atta Road in Meridian Township, is sponsoring "Holiday in the Woods" a seasonal family event. The event will take place from 10 a.m.
Some local liquor retailers say they don't plan to raise their liquor prices in response to a gubernatorial decision that allows them to do just that. The bill, which Gov.
East Lansing will host its annual Winter Festival and Chili Cook-Off from 1 to 5 p.m. on Sunday at the Marriott at University Place, 300 M.A.C.
East Lansing City Council members will get their first look at the semi-renovated East Lansing High School when they meet with the city's Board of Education tonight. The groups also will touch base on mutual concerns, such as snow plowing services, and will discuss the possibility of housing some school buses at a new East Lansing Department of Public Works site. Mayor Mark Meadows said the council is looking forward to touring the new high school during one of its quarterly meetings with the school district. "It was a big issue for the community when they voted to provide the school board with funds to make those changes," Meadows said. Construction on the $55 million project, which began in January 2001, is about 75 percent complete, said Paula Steele, principal at East Lansing High School. New music rooms, two gymnasiums, a 550-seat student union, an inside track and science laboratories are among the completed additions to the building, Steele said. The auditorium is scheduled to be completed in mid-December, and a media center will be finished by August 2005. "Everybody's been really patient," Steele said.
Former MSU student Denita Dorsey's circuit court trial was moved to an undetermined date, county court clerks said. The May graduate faces 27 charges for identity theft and fraud of more than $100,000 from earlier this year.
As a computer sits unused in a dorm room or office, a free program available online can contribute the idle energy to research for cures for diseases such as tuberculosis. IBM has unveiled the World Community Grid, a program designed to cut down on research time and increase cost-effectiveness for the companies who sponsor the projects, IBM spokeswoman Catherine Collins said, adding that anyone with access to the Internet can download the program into their computer. "The more people we get signed up for this, the more research we can get done," Collins said. Collins said because of the amount of computers at a university, MSU is an ideal place to implement the program.
Saturday negotiations between Lansing's Sparrow Health System and Michigan Nurses Association ended with a tentative agreement on a new contract. The previous agreement expired on Oct.
With the swipe of a card and the push of a few buttons, local postal customers can now mail letters and packages themselves.
East Lansing City Council members said at a meeting Tuesday they would like to discuss the East Village blight designation with property owners who want to opt out of the area before the decision is made.
Several services will be adjusting their hours for the holiday weekend. MSU's Capital Area Transportation Authority bus service will end at 11:30 p.m.
Entering the second week of Michigan's firearm hunting season, state officials and insurance companies continue to caution motorists about deer on the road. The number of monthly deer-car crashes commonly begins to increase during fall months and peaks in November, but deer can present problems for motorists into early December, said Jim Rink, a spokesman for insurance company AAA Michigan. "Fall is mating season for the deer so they're generally more active
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security named Lansing's Fire Department as one of 15 Michigan fire departments included in a $776,500 grant.
A local coffee shop chain is expanding into other parts of the state and country, opening in three southeastern states after operating in the Midwest for nearly a decade. Beaner's Gourmet Coffee, founded in East Lansing in 1995, is opening three locations in Mobile, Ala., Charleston, S.C., and Dacula, Ga., near Atlanta, said Michael McFall, president of the company. "The markets we're going into, like Mobile, Alabama, and Charleston, are really underserviced from the gourmet coffee perspective," McFall said.
Michigan had the nation's fourth-largest increase in seat belt usage during the last year, according to a report by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration released Tuesday. Statewide seat belt usage increased 5.7 percent between 2003 and 2004, jumping from 84.8 to 90.5 percent.
East Lansing officials are reminding residents that all sidewalks adjacent to their property must remain clear of snow and ice. The city will no longer issue warnings, but will immediately issue a ticket for failures to clear snow and ice. Owners or occupants of East Lansing residences must remove the snow and ice within 24 hours of snowfall and must use salt or another abrasive material on icy sidewalks within 12 hours of ice forming. East Lansing employees will open highly traveled main sidewalks so it is easier for residents to plow or shovel.
The East Lansing City Council will attempt to work out the kinks in another rental restriction district during its meeting at 7 p.m.
Unlocked doors, flaming turkey fryers and icy overpasses aren't usually topics of conversation when students talk about heading home for the long Thanksgiving weekend. That's why local officials are working to get out the word on lesser-known holiday dangers. "Put in big, bold print: 'LOCK YOUR DOORS,'" East Lansing police Capt.
Officials from East Lansing and Lansing are moving forward with a program to attract technology-based jobs to the capital region. The Lansing Regional SmartZone will join 10 other Michigan SmartZones, which are geographic locations designed to attract technology-based companies by combining resources to create more high-technology jobs. The Lansing and East Lansing city councils both scheduled public hearings for December to determine the district's borders and create a Local Development Finance Authority, which will fund programs in the SmartZone.
Lansing - Even a cement mixer can be part of the holiday season. Decorated with hundreds of strands of colored lights, the large vehicle rotated strands of colored lights in Lansing's Electric Light Parade on Friday night. Also in the parade route, local high school bands played holiday music, a Capital Area Transportation Authority bus was costumed as a bug and area groups rode on decorated Christmas-themed floats.