Bertie Marble’s death certificate points to pneumonia. But an attorney for her family, and her own medical records, raise questions about whether she was an uncounted victim of Legionnaires’ disease. Experts say toll may be far larger.
Flint
Posted inChildren & Families
Legionnaires’ disease timeline
Bertie Marble’s 2015 death coincided with a trio of emergencies in Genesee County: the Flint water crisis, an increase in pneumonia and flu deaths, and a deadly Legionnaires’ outbreak
Posted inChildren & Families
How high is rent in six Michigan cities?
(courtesy image/used under Creative Commons license) Finance guidelines say housing should not cost more than 30 percent of household income. But in 2013, thousands of Michigan rental households fall below that standard. Michigan Two-bedroom fair market rental: $768 Hourly wages needed to afford two-bedroom fair market rental: $14.77 Mean renter hourly wage: $11.62 Rent […]
Posted inGuest Commentary
One policy change can help end blight of abandoned property in Michigan
CURE FOR BLIGHT: Financial commitments commonly used in the mining, petroleum and telecom industries could, if applied to residential and commercial development, help bring an end to the scourge of abandoned buildings in Michigan, argue MSU’s Rex LaMore and Michelle LeBlanc. (Bridge archive photo)For decades, many U.S. communities have suffered from population loss and economic […]
Posted inBusiness Watch
New reports ID five housing ‘hot spots’ in Michigan
Michigan’s housing stock is thinning, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, which pegged the state as one of only two with fewer housing units in 2012 than in 2010. Neighboring Illinois is the other. But the state of housing is far from equal across Michigan. In fact, there are growing hot spots for housing – […]
Posted inLand O Links
Land O Links
This “heat map” shows the use of homophobic slur words via Twitter in Michigan. *Is the Traverse City area a “hateful” place? A new map presents a heat index of hateful words sent via Twitter and assigned to their origin points by county. As you zoom in on Michigan, the hottest spots are near Traverse […]
Posted inMichigan Government
Best, worst of Michigan communities’ fiscal ratings
(courtesy photo/used under Creative Commons license) David Hollister knows a bit about how public budgets work. He served as mayor of Lansing for a decade. Before that, he served two decades in the Michigan House, representing Lansing. And he says, “We need to recalculate how urban centers are funded.” A Munetrix review of data from […]
Posted inLand O Links
Land O Links
*Michigan is in the national mainstream when it comes to the identity of its highest-paid public state employee. In about 40 states, that person is the coach of a collegiate football or men’s basketball team. TOP OF THE HEAP: Michigan State University men’s basketball coach Tom Izzo places Michigan among the vast majority of states […]
Posted inPhil's Column
Philanthropic groups step up to lead Michigan’s urban revival
Phil Power is founder and chairman of the Center for Michigan. There’s no doubt that one of Michigan’s biggest stories this year is Gov. Rick Snyder’s decision to put Detroit under an emergency manager, and put attorney Keyvn Orr in that post. But Detroit is far from the first or only city in the state […]
Posted inLand O Links
Land O Links
*With the appointment of Kevyn Orr, Detroit, Pontiac and Flint all are under state emergency managers. Something else the three cities share: They have the three lowest rates of average household incomes among Michigan cities with at least 50,000 residents. Flint’s at the bottom at $24,779; Detroit is next at $26,253; and Pontiac is at […]