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News | Michigan

MICHIGAN

Eight to run for E.L. City Council

Eight people filed petitions for East Lansing City Council elections by the 4 p.m. deadline Tuesday, but Mayor Pro Tem Beth Schwarze was not one of them.Schwarze has been on the council since 1997 and was elected mayor pro tem in 1999.

MICHIGAN

FBI investigates possible robbery link

Though local authorities say it’s too early to draw a connection between a recent bank robbery and a previous one at the same location, an FBI agent stationed in Lansing believes the East Lansing bank that was robbed Thursday could possibly be connected to a November robbery. The Thursday incident marked the third time in six months the Michigan National Bank, 1390 W.

MICHIGAN

Officials say Lansing could retry for bond

After the Lansing school bond failed May 1, Lansing officials are now trying to decide how and when to have another school bond proposal.The $338.5 million proposal, based on an eight-year construction schedule, would have been used to renovate 39 Lansing schools.

MICHIGAN

E.L. tries to Stamp out Hunger

Letter carriers in the East Lansing area collected an unusual amount of outgoing mail Saturday - an estimated 10,000 pounds worth. But it wasn’t a standard load of letters that filled mail trucks at the end of the day; rather it was a collection of nonperishable food items donated by residents who took part in the U.S.

MICHIGAN

Commissioner to run for council

Kevin Beard says he’s ready to move on to the East Lansing City Council after seven years on the city’s planning commission.Beard, 45, has been an East Lansing resident for 17 years and has been chairman of the planning commission for the past five years.He said with the experience he has gained on the commission as well as six years on his neighborhood association board, he is more than ready to be a city council member.“I really think I am prepared and qualified to tackle the big challenges the city has before it,” he said.

MICHIGAN

Michigan celebrates Arbor Day

Kate Bernard, and 48 other local elementary teachers, are bringing their students to the zoo today, to help them learn about trees.More than 1,000 second- and third-grade students from the Lansing area will meet today at Potter Park Zoo, 1301 S.

MICHIGAN

Cameras catch motorists running red lights

Red lights, camera, preventative action.A study completed in Oxnard, Calif. by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety this week reported that cameras installed at intersections to catch red-light runners are decreasing the number of collisions and injuries.The institute estimates that more than 800 people are killed and 200,000 injured every year in red - light crashes in the United States.The city of Oxnard placed cameras at 11 of its 125 intersections in 1997.

MICHIGAN

Center to offer new shopping selections

LANSING TWP. - Krystal Teamer shops at Meridian Mall, 1982 W. Grand River Ave. in Okemos, because it is the closest one to MSU’s campus. The criminal justice senior has no car and said Meridian can be easily reached by bus. But next summer, Teamer and other students can enjoy shopping at the Lansing area’s newest shopping center, at the northwest corner of Lake Lansing Road and U.S.

MICHIGAN

Byrum to address voting reforms

LANSING - State Sen. Dianne Byrum will visit MSU’s campus next week to discuss concerns voters faced in last year’s troubled election. The Onondaga Democrat serves as chairwoman on the 19-person Michigan Task Force on Voting Reform.

MICHIGAN

Relations Coalition adds new members

The Community Relations Coalition family is growing - pending approval from the East Lansing City Council.The group of students, residents, city officials, landlords, business owners and MSU faculty work together to create bonds between student residents and permanent residents in city neighborhoods with the help of three new student neighborhood resource coordinators, which brings the total to six.“Our plan is to expand,” coalition member Pat Enos said.

MICHIGAN

Greeks awarded for efforts

A pair of marketing seniors earned the titles of “Greek Man” and “Greek Woman” for 2001. Jennifer Dirksen, former president of Sigma Kappa sorority, was awarded by the Panhellenic Council for her efforts in her organization.

MICHIGAN

LCC inaugurates fourth president

LANSING - More than 300 people attended the inauguration of Lansing Community College’s fourth president, Paula Cunningham, on Thursday at the Lansing Center, 333 East Michigan Ave. “As most of you know, being a community college president was not my plan,” Cunningham said during her inaugural speech.

MICHIGAN

Lawmakers seek to keep organs in state

The state Legislature may attempt to make it a little easier for Michigan residents in need of a vital organ to receive a transplant.A package of bills was examined by the state House Health Policy Committee this week.

MICHIGAN

Lawmakers consider hate crime legislation

State legislators are trying once again to pass new regulations including the term “sexual orientation” into previous discrimination laws.“This has been proposed before, and we decided we wanted to move it forward,” said Rep.

MICHIGAN

Community reflects on crime, victims rights

LANSING - Daniel Anderson had good reason to attend the annual Crime Victims’ Rights Awareness Night at the Capitol on Wednesday evening - he survived a blast from a 22-gauge shotgun more than 15 years ago.The Lansing resident, who spent two and a half months in intensive care as a result of his injury, was joined by wife Pat and son Brian to share his story and offer support to other survivors.“We want to give back to the community and try to help victims of violent crime,” he said.As Anderson shared hugs and smiles with other event-goers, he turned the group of seats around him into a community of support.The care of the Lansing Police and the Ingham Regional Medical Center opened Anderson’s eyes to the needs and concerns of violent crime survivors.

MICHIGAN

Education bond incites protest

LANSING - Less than a dozen people gathered on the steps of the Capitol on Wednesday to urge community members to “Vote No May 1” and protest Lansing’s school bond.Although hundreds of community members showed up at previous rallies supporting the $388.5 million school bond, only a handful of residents took a stand against the bond, saying they’ll “Vote No” when the city of 127,000 people sends voters to the polls on May 1.