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 so has poverty. The share of Michigan residents living in poverty jumped from 13.5 percent in 2009 to 16.8 percent […]
Poverty rises even as economy turns
Posted inQuality of Life
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 assembly lines. The state’s highly successful Pure Michigan tourism advertising campaign showcases many of them, including the Great Lakes, […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
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 recognition of the need among elected officials,” he added. “But no one can really figure out where we go […]
Posted inPeter Luke: Eye on the Capitol
The poison-pill politics of the personal property tax
Michigan residents trust local government far more than they do state government, according to the latest survey released Wednesday by Michigan State University’s Institute for Public Policy and Social Research. Nearly twice as many say they seldom or never trust state government than those who say they seldom or never trust local government. Municipal employees […]
Posted inLand O Links
Land O Links
“The saddest aspect of life right now is that science gathers knowledge faster than society gathers wisdom” — Isaac Asimov, American science fiction novelist. * Here’s a thorny one: Some Great Lakes shoreline property owners want to be able to groom the section of beach between the water’s edge and the ordinary high water mark […]
Posted inGuest Commentary
State waits for Legislature to do its job on transit
By Timothy R. Fischer/Michigan Environmental Council and Michele Hodges/Troy Chamber of Commerce Our state’s leaders must stop dithering and approve the regional transit authority bills (Senate Bills 909, 911-912) before the Michigan Legislature. An RTA matters for the entire state. It would control transit tax expenditures in Southeast Michigan, cut duplicative service, force efficiencies and […]
Posted inQuality of Life
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 center of the farm,” he said, gazing over the corner of Warren and Grandy on Detroit’s near east side […]
Posted inSuccess
Ethnic media alliance pushes stories of success, provides community leadership
Michigan is home to a variety of ethnic media outlets: the Jewish News, the Latino Press, the Michigan Chronicle among them. Dr. Hayg Oshagan, a professor at Wayne State University, looked at the outlets and had a vision: What would happen if they were brought together? So, in 2005, he met with editors from the […]
Posted inTalent & Education
Michigan goes hard after student loan defaulters
Former college students in the eastern half of Michigan get hauled into federal court for defaulting on their student loans at 10 times the rate of the national average. That doesn’t mean more Michigan residents are stiffing the federal government on their loans – but it does mean they’re more likely to face legal consequences if […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
State takes cautious approach to freight hub proposals
A dizzying number of transportation-related proposals centered on Detroit’s mid-continent location are floating around Michigan. They have funny names (Aerotropolis), links to faraway locales (Halifax, Nova Scotia) and impressive engineering goals (a rail tunnel tall enough to handle double-decker cars). One common thread through most of these proposals is a need for investment. The ideas are […]