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News | Michigan

MICHIGAN

Winter sports clubs host rail jam to raise funds for Relay for Life

About 4,000 pounds of imported snow blanketed the field behind The Rock on Friday, enabling members of the Spartan Ski Club and the Alpine Ski and Snowboard Team to host a snowboarding competition in the middle of campus. Kinesiology junior Sean Storey, the president of the MSU Alpine Ski and Snowboard Team, said members of both groups helped shovel the snow onto a large metal snowboarding ramp complete with jumps and rails the night before, working for nearly eight hours in preparation for the competition, called a Rail Jam.

MICHIGAN

New motorcoaches to have seat belts starting in 2016

Starting in 2016, new motorcoaches will be required to have seat belts, according to a statement from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Officials said shoulder and lap belts would help reduce the risk of death or injury in a head-on collision and also reduce the risk of occupant ejection from the vehicle in rollover accidents.

MICHIGAN

East Lansing gets high score in LGBT civil rights report

East Lansing has high marks in LGBT equality, according to a national advocacy group. Human Rights Campaign, widely regarded as a premier advocacy group for LGBT rights and equality, released a report measuring LGBT equality in the U.S. and scored cities for factors such as non-discrimination in city employment.

MICHIGAN

Recent graduate awarded prestigious packaging award

Success after graduation is all any recent college graduate could hope for. After getting her advertising degree in 2012, MSU alumna Megan Barry found just that with Leahy-IFP Space Saver juices, teas and lemonades. In Beverage Industry magazine’s Top Beverage Package of 2013 competition, which will debut in the December issue, Barry’s design placed third, with 17 percent of the 1,489 online votes rounding out the top five contestants.

MICHIGAN

New H&M, retail expansion on horizon for Meridian Mall

Swedish clothing retailer H&M will be a part of the Meridian Mall, taking the space currently occupied by Abercrombie and Fitch, according to Meridian Township Community Planning Development director Mark Kieselbach. H&M filled out a redevelopment permit that recently was approved by Meridian Township. Kieselbach said the timeline of the project redevelopment is up to the mall and has not yet been announced.

MICHIGAN

Politicians: Road funds unlikely to come through

At his State of the State address in January, Gov. Rick Snyder called for a $1.2 billion increase in funding to repair and maintain Michigan’s roads. But after a meeting last week between Snyder and legislative leaders, that goal seems no closer to completion than the day it was proposed. According to a Michigan Department of Transportation report released in May, the conditions of Michigan’s roadways will begin to decline without a significant increase in funding. To measure the condition of Michigan roads, the state surveys the roads and rates their condition on a scale of “good,” fair” and “poor.” According to data from the Transportation Asset Management Council collected between 2011 and 2012, 13.77 percent of roads in East Lansing are classified in good condition, 57.46 percent are in fair condition and 28.77 percent are in poor condition.

MICHIGAN

Insurance company opens on Grand River Avenue

One of East Lansing’s largest downtown business spaces is officially filled once again as Jackson National Life Insurance Co. opened its doors for business Monday, redesigning and taking over the former Barnes and Noble location at 333 E. Grand River Ave.

MICHIGAN

CD and record show draws music lovers to Lansing

Upon arriving at Lansing’s CD and Record Show, Andrew Moore had no intention of leaving empty-handed. Saturday’s free show was the fifth time the MSU College of Law clinician has filtered through the tables of CDs and vinyls throughout the years, and for him the adventure never gets old. His choices for the day included Frank Zappa, Led Zeppelin and David Bowie.

MICHIGAN

Woman reported missing after fleeing East Lansing residence

A mother of three is considered a missing person after fleeing from a home in East Lansing Saturday night, according to the East Lansing Police Department. Sarah Jane Jackson, 23, reportedly left a home on Chartwell Dual Carriage Way Saturday at about 9 p.m. with the father of two of her three children, according to a statement from police.

MICHIGAN

Museum offers hands-on archaeology experience

Groups of families, ?children and members of the MSU Campus Archeology Program played in the dirt acquiring artifacts during a day filled with learning and fun on ?Saturday at the MSU Museum. The children learned through involvement with hands-on activities in a Dig the Past event, which included sifting through dirt to find real artifacts loaned by MSU’s teaching education collection.

MICHIGAN

Bicycle upkeep in winter weather

As the snow melts and weather warms each spring, campus is pockmarked by long-forgotten bikes, hitched to racks and corroded from a long winter of neglect. But with proper maintenance, bikes can be ridden throughout winter without significant damage, MSU Bikes Service Center Manager Tim Potter said.

MICHIGAN

DTN unveils design drafts for Park District project

A public meeting held Thursday evening gave community members and city officials a chance to see the first drafts of designs in a project that could drastically change East Lansing’s downtown landscape. DTN Management Co. hosted the third and final design charrette for the Park District Project, a massive overhaul of the west side of downtown that would incorporate a mixed-use space with dining, retail and hotel.