Muskegon has made major cuts in public spending in recent years. And the city’s fiscal stress score looks much better in a recent analysis by Munetrix. (Bridge archive photo) A gritty, blue-collar city on Lake Michigan, Muskegon faces headwinds similar to many Michigan communities: factory closings, job losses, an eroding tax base. But in the […]
Ted Roelofs
Ted Roelofs of Kentwood, has written extensively on healthcare as well as prison and juvenile justice reform. Roelofs spent nearly three decades at the Grand Rapids Press where he covered politics, wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, rural poverty and mental illness among the homeless. He is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin. Reach Ted at ted.roelofs@gmail.com
Posted inMichigan Government
Stressed cities hear little sympathy from State Capitol
DISCUSSION CLOSED: Republican leaders who run the State Capitol have rebuffed appeals from local governments to boost the flow of tax dollars from the state. Will last week’s announcement of nearly $500 million in “new” revenue change the debate? (Bridge archive photo) Michigan cities expecting a helping hand from Lansing as they dig out of […]
Posted inMichigan Government
New rankings find fiscal troubles for city halls across Michigan
TROUBLE AHEAD: An analysis by Munetrix found that dozens of Michigan communities were in troubling financial shape in 2011, with 2012 data still to be filed. (courtesy photo/used under Creative Commons license) While the financial problems of Detroit have captured the headlines this spring, a new analysis released today on government finance finds that […]
Posted inMichigan Government
No answer to the call button: Nursing shortage looms in Michigan
In 2007, warning of a nurse shortage in Michigan and long admission waiting lists for nursing schools, then- Gov. Jennifer Granholm proclaimed: “Something’s wrong with this picture and we are going to fix it.” ON CALL?: Michigan soon may confront a shortage of nursing professionals, say industry leaders. (courtesy photo/used under Creative Commons license) Well, […]
Posted inQuality of Life
Volunteers offer short-term foster care for families in crisis
Nothing matters more to Stephanie Murphy than her girls. So when the single Holland mother of three had a medical crisis in 2011, she felt backed into a corner. Her oldest, Alexis Borgman, then 13, could stay with her father, who had visitation rights. But she feared that her other two daughters — Aaliyah and […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
Tax shift adds to fiscal woes at city hall
After years of political wrangling over the issue, business advocates hail the phase-out of Michigan’s tax on industrial machinery and business equipment as a welcome tonic for job growth. Public officials in places like River Rouge and Warren are not so sanguine. BILLIONS MORE LOST, BUT PROPERTY VALUE DROP SLOWING “This is not going to […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
In Michigan suburbs, once-pricey bedrooms worth less
Some 15 miles southeast of Ann Arbor, the cozy bedroom community of Milan belies stereotypical views of Michigan’s economic decline. Largely white, nestled around a quaint downtown and dotted with upscale, newer homes, it projects the very image of suburban prosperity. Analysis of property values in 2011 and 2012 tells another story. In a city […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
Property value drops exceed 30 percent in parts of SE Michigan
It might be only a slight exaggeration to say that as Southeast Michigan goes, so goes the state. The region, with roughly 50 percent of the state population and the driver of half its economic activity, suffered the steepest drop in the state in total property value over the past five years. And though there […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
Billions more lost, but property value drop slowing
In five years, total Michigan property values plunged by more than $260 billion, according to an analysis of state records by Bridge Magazine. But while the decline continued over the last year, it slowed considerably. Values dropped from $725.5 billion in 2011 to $698.6 billion in 2012. Adjusted for inflation, that amounts to a drop […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
Detroit’s problems echoed in a (far) smaller Flint
The website is not the type of brand identity any city would seek. Called “Abandoned Flint,” it posts photos of ruined homes and businesses and a running commentary that reads like a post-modern apocalypse. Under photos of “Abandoned Travelodge,” it notes: “… people have totally trashed and looted it. Every single window was shattered. And […]