I am writing today to announce the closure of the Michigan Messenger. After four years of operation in Michigan, the board of the American Independent News Network, has decided to shift publication of its news into a single site, The American Independent at Americanindependent.com. This is part of a shift in strategy, towards new forms [...]
An abstinence-only presentation provided to numerous school districts in Calhoun and Eaton Counties in October of this year provided false and misleading information to students about HIV, experts allege.
Two county registers of deeds filed a class action lawsuit Monday on behalf of Michigan’s 83 counties alleging that the Mortgage Electronic Registration Services owes millions of dollars in property title transfer taxes.
Despite evidence of the impact of mercury on children and public health, Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette last month joined with 24 other state attorneys general in filing a lawsuit to scuttle new EPA regulations that would reduce mercury emissions from power plants.
DETROIT — Michigan Senate lawmakers voted 17-20 along party lines on Wednesday to pass a bill that revives a deal that would transfer control of the Cobo Convention Center from the city to a regional authority in exchange for $20 million and the $288 million needed to expand and renovate Cobo to continue to accommodate the North American International Auto Show.
The bill package revived Wednesday is the same one that the Detroit City Council rejected earlier in the year, but this time it comes with a secondary provision: If the council rejects the deal again, the expansion money that would have been used on the Cobo Center would go to fund expansions for the Rock Financial Showplace in Novi where the auto show could move if an agreement isn’t made to expand Cobo.
Because Detroit is in such dire financial straits, it can’t foot the bill for Cobo’s expansion. The effects of losing the auto show would be a crippling blow for the city of Detroit, which takes in approximately $500 million in revenue from the annual automotive showcase.
In March, elected officials and members of the community protested the same bill that is set to go before the council again in June. Leaders including U.S. Rep. John Conyers Jr., Detroit City Councilwoman JoAnn Watson and Monica Conyers, who was serving as city council president at the time, all spoke out fiercely against the transfer plan, insisting that the city use stimulus funds to expand the Cobo Center instead.
On Thursday, one Detroit grassroots coalition, Call ‘Em Out, issued a warning against the revival of the same “bad deal” that the council previously rejected. Call ‘Em Out leader Agnes Hitchcock said in the warning that the deal was “not in the interest of Detroit” and accused elected officials of being “spineless.” “We want our elected officials to stop dropping to their knees, being weak … when it comes to protecting the interests of the people,” she said as part of her statement warning against the deal Thursday morning.
But state Sen. Jason Allen, a Traverse City Republican, who drafted the legislation, is pushing for its passage. “We need to move this forward,” he said Wednesday, noting that auto show officials need to know where the show will be held by this summer, according to The Detroit News.
Senators who spoke out against the legislation this week are state Sens. Buzz Thomas and Irma Clark-Coleman, both Detroit Democrats.
Many Detroit city officials, including newly elected Mayor Dave Bing, support a different plan that would lease the convention center to a regional authority for 30 years with the city retaining ownership and still receive expansion funding.
Do you know where to vote on Election Day? Do you know what to bring with you? Get comprehensive voter information for your state here.
Sign up for our email newsletter