' Quality of Life'

Not much above par on Michigan’s scorecard

Not much above par on Michigan’s scorecard

Gov. Rick Snyder campaigned for the state’s top elected office in 2010 with a promise to “reinvent” Michigan. The Center for Michigan’s 2012 Michigan Scorecard, compiled in partnership with Data Driven Detroit, shows there’s still plenty ...

Poverty rises even as economy turns

Poverty rises even as economy turns

One trend belies the notion that a rising economy lifts all boats: Michigan’s growing poverty rate. Michigan’s economy bottomed out near the end of 2009, and employment and incomes have been creeping upward ever since. But ...

Michigan’s air cleaner, but watch out for carp and friends

Michigan’s air cleaner, but watch out for carp and friends

Michigan may be best known as the home of the domestic auto industry, but state officials are focusing more on creating a wider public image, focusing on the spectacular natural world found so near the auto ...

Rusty and rutted, infrastructure holds state back

Rusty and rutted, infrastructure holds state back

While Michigan’s roads and bridges crumble, lawmakers in Lansing dither. “Our infrastructure is in terrible shape,” said Michael Nystrom, executive vice president of the Michigan Infrastructure & Transportation Association, a trade group. “There is a unanimous ...

Urban farm plan reels in cash, tilapia

Urban farm plan reels in cash, tilapia

Gary Wozniak regards his domain with the enthusiasm of an evangelist. Where most people would look at these wide expanses of Detroit blight and see dark despair, he sees nothing but gleaming possibilities. “This is the ...

Conservationist’s message: Nature is just out your door

Conservationist’s message: Nature is just out your door

Ask John Hartig about his childhood, and you’ll hear about fishing with his father in Northern Michigan, biking around Belle Isle and hiking and canoeing at church camp Up North.  Hartig, who manages the Detroit River ...