“I was born not knowing and have had only a little time to change that here and there” — Nobel-winning physicist Richard Feynman (1918-1988). * I like the idea of paying car insurance by the mile, since my commute is less than 10 minutes. I don’t like the idea of an insurance company sitting in […]
Derek Melot
Derek Melot is a former assistant editorial page editor, columnist and reporter at the Lansing State Journal, where he covered state and local issues extensively, earning awards from the Associated Press and Michigan Press Association. The Oklahoma native moved to Michigan in 1999, and served as Bridge editor through mid-2013.
Posted inMichigan Government
SE Michigan is hotbed for government collaboration talks
Michigan is well-populated with organizations and people studying how to develop better public policies and better governments. One such group is the Center for Local, State and Urban Policy at the University of Michigan. A key part of their work is to survey government leaders to discern what’s going on in the trenches of delivering […]
Posted inTalent & Education
Welcome to Bridge
It took me 46 years, but I finally attended summer school. This summer, I studied up on the nuances of inflation-adjusted dollars, website design, employment practices, marketing and, frankly, stuff I can’t remember right now. All this led up to what you see before you: Bridge Magazine, a project of the Center for Michigan to […]
Posted inSuccess
Michiganians find paths to success
Many Michigan entrepreneurs found ways to fly out of the ashes of the state’s lost decade. Bridge presents three such stories, drawn from the list of 50 Companies to Watch compiled the Edward Lowe Foundation: Higher Grounds of Traverse City ground out a new niche in the crowded coffee market. NOVO Motor Acoustic Systems in […]
Posted inChildren & Families
100,000 Michigan kids still lack health insurance
(Originally published Aug. 18, 2011) Imagine a city somewhere between the size of Lansing (114,000) and Sterling Heights (129,000). Imagine this city is populated only by children. Imagine every single one of these children lacks basic health insurance. That’s the reality in Michigan, says a health expert engaged in a campaign to get tens of […]
Posted inQuality of Life
Win cool stuff: 'Two Great Bridges' contest!
To celebrate the debut of Bridge, we’re launching the “Two Great Bridges” contest. The grand prize: An all-expenses paid weekend for two at the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island, overlooking the Mackinac Bridge. Second prize is a weekend for two at Greektown Casino-Hotel in Detroit. Here are the contest details: · To enter, simply subscribe […]
Posted inTalent & Education
CRC reports on what Prop A hath wrought
There’s political dynamite to be detonated in the latest report on education funding out of the Citizens Research Council of Michigan. Not from CRC, mind you. As usual, the invaluable nonprofit, nonpartisan organization does what it does: tackle the numbers and details to show citizens who want to know what is actually going on with […]
Posted inMichigan Government
Voters back taxes on local level
Voters across Michigan continue to show themselves willing to approve tax requests for local governments and schools, though some requests fare better than others. That’s the conclusion of a Center for Michigan analysis of May 3 tax elections around the state. More than 80 percent of the tax issues for schools and local governments gained […]
Posted inLand O Links
Land O Links
“There is much pleasure to be gained from useless knowledge” — British author and mathematician Bertrand Russell. * Muskegon County looks for cuts in spending. “The proposed budget anticipates $42.9 million in revenues for 2012, the lowest in at least six years and $1.3 million less than the current projection for 2011.”: http://www.mlive.com/news/muskegon/index.ssf/2011/08/muskegon_county_proposes_healt.html * In […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
Income is small share of business taxes
Emerging from a long debate over the second major revision of the state’s business income tax in a decade, Michigan residents, and maybe some policy-makers, may be surprised by the results of the Council on State Taxation’s annual report on business taxes. Gov. Rick Snyder and allies in the Legislature and business community argued consistently […]