(courtesy photo/used under Creative Commons license) My mother’s driving career ended with both a bang and a whimper. From her hospital bed she told me, “I was admiring the beautiful autumn leaves when the truck pulled out in front of me.” As a matter of fact, the truck hadn’t moved. It was parked. The police […]
Detroit
Posted inQuality of Life
Mammoth Belle Isle Park poses huge challenge for citizen-saviors (with video)
Michele Hodges, 45, became the first full-time president of the Belle Isle Conservancy in January 2013. A Grosse Pointe Park resident, she will guide the year-old organization, with a budget of approximately $1.3 million, as it seeks to improve Detroit’s singular, but neglected, park, designed by Frederick Law Olmstead in the late 19th century. PARK ADVOCATE: […]
Posted inQuality of Life
A photographic tour of Belle Isle
Belle Isle Park is Detroit’s signature green space. According to the city of Detroit’s records: “Detroit’s city fathers purchased the 983-acre island in 1879 for $200,000, against the opposition of those who thought the price was too high. They elected to retain the name Belle Isle (beautiful island) by which the property was popularly known. […]
Posted inLand O Links
Land O Links: So you want a new arena?
SUPPORTING THE TEAM: The Detroit Red Wings are owned by a firm that reported $4.2 billion in revenue in 2010. That same firm, however, has convinced Michigan lawmakers to use tax dollars to aid a project to build a new arena for the hockey franchise in downtown Detroit. (Bridge archive photo) *What is a new […]
Posted inBrunch with Bridge
Under the postcard-perfect U.P., a reality only natives see
WHAT DO YOU SEE?: Michigan’s Upper Peninsula is a land of grand vistas, but also a land of blood, of joblessness, of heartache, writes Ron Riekki. (Bridge photo/Nancy Derringer) I’ve lived in Mount Pleasant, Oshtemo, Forest Park, Rogers Park, and worked in Chicago, Detroit, Kalamazoo, Oak Park and Mackinac Island. I’m probably forgetting some places. […]
Posted inLand O Links
Land O Links
*Of all the … the federal government has been giving students money to mess around with experiments in burning animal dung. HELP FROM HOUGHTON: Students at Michigan Tech University used federal grants for research on making cooking fires safer. (courtesy photo/used under Creative Commons license) That’s one way to look at it. Here’s another: Michigan […]
Posted inLand O Links
Land O Links
(Bridge archive photo) *Not all charter schools in Michigan are alike. Some focus on quality; others focus on marketing to attract parental attention, reports Michigan Radio. This leaves some high-quality charters still struggling to enroll students. *In Indiana, “lawmakers are considering forgiving $12 million in loans that ‘failing’ charter schools accepted from the state. Isn’t this […]
Posted inQuality of Life
Michigan’s STD belt: It’s not what you think
(Bridge illustration/A.J. Jones) A line of Michigan counties, stretching along Interstate 94 from the Detroit River west to Lake Michigan, carries a dubious distinction: some of the highest rates of a sexually transmitted disease in the Great Lakes State. This phenomenon – an (un)chastity belt, if you will – is not, however, the result of […]
Posted inSuccess
Who are you? Detroit branding expert will help figure you out
WITH NEARLY 10 MILLION PEOPLE … : Each day, countless Michigan residents go about their routine business – but in the process do some far from routine things. Bridge will regularly feature some of their stories and the impact they are having on our state. (Bridge illustration/A.J. Jones) DETROIT – Hajj Flemings is an expert […]
Posted inLand O Links
Land O Links
*Two Michigan suburbs are ranked in the top 10 nationally for offering the best in the way of suburban life. Hint: One is in metro Grand Rapids and one is in metro Detroit. Click through to see if your guess was right. UNCOVERED: Ice coverage of the Great Lakes is on a steady decline, says […]