MICHIGAN
Engler highlights spread of auto industry
The automotive industry has been an unforgettable part of Michigan’s past and, according to Gov.
MICHIGAN
Skate park nearly done; bikers still out of luck
Lansing - Skateboarders and skaters are one step closer to getting their own skate park - but bikers may be out of luck. Residents gathered Wednesday to talk about the progress of Ranney Skate Park, 300 Frandor Ave.
MICHIGAN
E.L. may paint more crosswalks
Jen Hubinger doesn’t own a car. The child development junior said she prefers to walk, but isn’t always happy with drivers.“Some drivers, when the signal to walk flashes, turn right even though I have the right of way,” she said.The city is examining a proposal to place several crosswalks between Bogue Street and Hagadorn Road on Grand River Avenue.Approximately 30,000 vehicles travel on Grand River Avenue daily, said John Matuszak, the city’s engineering administrator.“We are aware of the problem pedestrians have had and not only that, the roadway is fairly poor,” he said.The area is under review by city officials who are considering painting crosswalks, adding pedestrian lights and replacing sidewalks with 6- and 8-foot pathways.If the project gets a green light, it is estimated to cost $550,000 and may not see completion until 2004.
MICHIGAN
Workshop to help women plan finances
In February, women will have a chance to learn more about financial management. Jane Fahey, president of Fahey Financial Inc. will present “Taking Control: A Financial Management Workshop for Women” on Feb.
MICHIGAN
State lacks small farm pollution plan
The Ingham County Health Department has kept track of E. coli levels in the Red Cedar River for four years, but has just now started to work out what is contributing to the problem.And while the Red Cedar is just one small river in the middle of Michigan, the issues of its health coincide with the state’s efforts to develop a general plan to protect Michigan waterways.“Water and the Great Lakes literally define Michigan,” said Matt Resch, spokesman for Gov.
MICHIGAN
HOPE scholarships open doors
Lansing - Dart Auditorium at Lansing Community College was packed Tuesday, but Yolanda Botello was one of the lucky few to have a seat. She could hardly sit still. Botello was one of more than 500 proud parents who filled the auditorium to watch their children receive an opportunity of a lifetime. Five hundred Lansing-area sixth-graders received the Helping Other People Excel Scholarship, granting them two years of paid tuition at LCC, providing they graduate from high school. “I was so excited when I found out,” said Botello, whose son Thomas is a student at Dwight Rich Middle School in Lansing. “I have five children.
MICHIGAN
Lansing officials meet about free skate park plans
Lansing Parks and Recreation Department will meet at 7 p.m. today about Ranney Skate Park, the area’s first free skate park.
MICHIGAN
Englers plans could alter auto industry manufacturing in state
The Motor City could be making new kinds of motors if the goals Gov. John Engler reveals at tonight’s State of the State address are reached.State officials say Engler hopes to lure more high-tech businesses involved with fuel-cell technology to the state.
MICHIGAN
Engler to deliver final State of State address
Gov. John Engler, in his final State of the State address at 7 p.m. today, is expected to promote his new HiSpeed Internet plan, talk of increased health care coverage and discuss the state’s ailing budget.Engler will be pushing for changes to Medicaid that will provide coverage to an additional 200,000 Michigan citizens.
MICHIGAN
Liquor store owners check prices on Web
Liquor resellers can now point and click for their products.The Michigan Liquor Control Commission and the Department of Information Technology has developed a price quoting Web site for liquor suppliers.Suppliers can now send in price quotations and commission staff can view the Web sites to determine whether products meets federal standards.The system, launched last week, is also part of the state government’s initiative to create more Internet commerce in Michigan.
MICHIGAN
Company begins redevelopment
Lansing- Mayor David Hollister and Combined Van Lines Inc. officially began construction Tuesday on the company’s new home.Combined Van Lines already maintains two facilities in the state capital, but will consolidate its operations in a 31,000-square-foot facility to be built on a vacant site at the end of Seager Street.The site, a brownfield, has been vacant for more than 40 years because of slag from nearby railroad tracks.
MICHIGAN
Speculation ends; Kmart files for bankruptcy
Lansing - Like many people, Lansing resident Selene Pryor grew up thinking Kmart would never go away. But recently, Pryor has rethought the permanence her weekly trip to the store at 5400 S.
MICHIGAN
Senators rewarded for protecting wildlife
Lansing - If Michigan Democratic Sens. Debbie Stabenow and Carl Levin have anything to say about it, the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge will remain closed to oil exploration, leaving Americans looking elsewhere for fuel.For their efforts in protecting the refuge and their opposition to drilling in the Great Lakes, Stabenow and Levin were awarded the Arctic Defender Award by the Mackinac Chapter of the Sierra Club in a ceremony Monday.“The senator has stated numerous times that he opposes opening the refuge to drilling,” said Levin’s spokesman Eric Weber, who accepted the award.
MICHIGAN
Community center ready to open
The Hannah Community Center blends classrooms and lockers from the past with modern computers and shining green floors.New wood trim surrounds glass cases on the second-floor lobby, where the work of local artists will be put on display, and wrought iron railings and lighting were installed to keep with the building’s original 1926 design.All of the center’s features, new and old, will be open to the public to view during its grand opening at 5:30 p.m.
MICHIGAN
CommUnity meets for its talks on ending racism
Lansing - The Unity in CommUnity Forum met Sunday and welcomed new members from Grand Ledge, DeWitt and Haslett. For four hours, more than 50 people divided themselves into different rooms of the Union Missionary Baptist Church, 500 S.
MICHIGAN
Byrum discusses election reform with student Dems
No-preference freshman Janee Steele arrived at the MSU College Democrats meeting without completely knowing what was in store. “I just wanted to kind of see what they were about,” she said.
MICHIGAN
Farms contribute to rivers E. coli count
Audiology freshman Abbey Smith hasn’t been at MSU for a year, yet she already has developed a less-than-favorable impression of the Red Cedar River.“I always see garbage in it, especially over here by Brody (Complex),” she said.For many students like Smith, the river presents a generally bad impression, but health officials now are starting to piece together a less obvious problem with the Red Cedar.
MICHIGAN
Officials debate governors Internet access initiative
Lansing - Gov. John Engler’s New Year’s resolution is to provide Michigan residents with fast, stress-free Internet service through thousands of miles of government-subsidized broadband cables. “The governor believes very strongly that Michigan needs to be positioned as a high-tech state that has the infrastructure it needs to draw businesses and investments,” Engler spokesman Matt Resch said.
MICHIGAN
Farmer Jack begins construction near E.L.
The former site of Pro Bowl East has been vacant since August. But the spot at 2757 E. Grand River Ave.
MICHIGAN
Lansing cuts citys budget
Lansing Mayor David Hollister announced Thursday that $1.5 million will be cut from this year’s budget.The budget cuts were largely a result of a decrease in state revenue sharing payments and also due to losses of current-year city revenue, Hollister said.The cut includes a hiring freeze on filling vacant city positions, deferments on vehicle purchases, a reduction in general administration expenditures and a reduction in supply and expense accounts by 10 percent, Hollister said.The deferments on vehicle purchases will mean 16 police cars are purchased instead of the intended 24 and the elimination of one fire truck purchase, said Robert Swanson, city finance director.Hollister also said the cut includes a recapture of city grant match funds for a major police department grant worth $125,000.No actual programs were cut and the only administrative actions made were ones to lower the total city budget, Swanson said.The 2001-02 budget ends June 30, and the new policy will take effect July 1.“It’s basically a straight-line budget,” Councilmember Sandy Allen said.