Firefighting crews responded to a blaze at the historic Maccabees Building on the campus of Wayne State University Wednesday afternoon. Officials say the fire was contained to one floor and there were no injuries.

Wayne State Chief of Police Anthony Holt says the fire broke out from an HVAC unit.

“Investigations still continue,” says Holt, “but it was an electrical fire that began on the 11th floor on a platform outside the building there.”

Officials say most of the building’s damage appears to be water related, caused by the sprinkler system going off. Detroit Fire Department spokesperson James Harris says crews were on the scene in under five minutes.

“The men and women of the Detroit Fire Department did an awesome job,” says Harris, “awesome response time. No one was injured, everybody got out okay.”

The 15-story Maccabees Building is about 100 years old. It was added to the National Register of Historic places in 1983.

The Maccabees is the former home of WDET. The station operated there for more than two decades, moving out in the 80s following an electrical fire.

Detroit Mayor Mary Sheffield gave her first state of the city address last night at Mumford High School.

She announced a new program starting today for Detroit Public Schools students. “Any K-12 student in the city can ride the bus for free, seven days a week, 365 days a year.” Sheffield said some of the school budget money for bus fare will be rerouted into after-school programs. 

And she announced a plan to lure businesses to economic corridors in the city, with a new position: the Director of Retail Attraction. 

“For too long, the city has waited for retailers to come to them. My administration will go out and compete for that investment, because strong neighborhoods need more than housing and infrastructure. They need vibrant commercial corridors where people can shop, work and gather close to home.” 

Sheffield also said she was working with billionaire Dan Gilbert and the Move Detroit Coalition to entice more people to move to the city. “Our first program will support 313 current and future Detroiters with real resources, $15,000 to support home ownership and business growth, and $1,000 in relocation assistance to make it easier to come home to Detroit.” 

The mayor also highlighted some of the things she’s already done since taking office, such as raising the minimum wage for city workers, and bringing the program Rx Kids to the city to help new mothers. 

Additional headlines from Wednesday, April 1, 2026

New personal finance education initiative

The Michigan Treasury Department is kicking of a new initiative today called Mi Money Matters Financial Empowerment.

According to the Treasury department, nearly 80% of metro Detroiters earning below 125,000 report never receiving formal education in personal finance. Roughly 25% of Detroiters do not have access to a bank.

The initiative includes a website that links to free tools and courses on credit, banking, and student loans. 

Neighborhood Enterprise Zone tax

Detroit City Council debated the value of Neighborhood Enterprise Zone tax incentives yesterday, questioning whether they are a useful tool for relieving the tax burden on residents.

NEZ tax incentives cap the city and county millage rate at 50%. Under the current structure, a $300,000 home would be taxed $6,000; in the suburbs, the same home’s taxes would be less than $2,000.

Councilmember Scott Benson says the city needs to be competitive with neighboring cities, which the NEZ does by lowering taxes—even if they aren’t as low as a suburb’s. 

Listen to the latest episode of the “Detroit Evening Report” on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

Detroit is often broken into two camps: Downtown and the neighborhoods. 

At last night’s state of the city address, Detroit Mayor Mary Sheffield declared she was investing in the latter. 

Between cash assistance for pregnant moms, potential pay increases for city employees, new initiatives to help young people, and plans for more affordable housing, Sheffield signaled she doesn’t want to have two separate, unequal classes living in Detroit. She wants everyone to thrive in the city. 

But Detroit has big problems, including homes that need repairs, poor public transit and generational poverty. With federal funds drying up, Sheffield’s administration will need to find a way to pay for all of its services. 

How does she plan to do that? And, what kind of coalition is she building to help her?

Donna Givens Davidson is the president of the Eastside Community Network and of the co-host of the Authentically Detroit podcast. She also was part of Mayor Sheffield’s transition team. Givens Davidson spoke with The Metro‘s Cary Junior II.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on demand.

Subscribe to The Metro on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

More stories from The Metro

Alissa Graff found out, despite the growing interest in women’s leagues, she would still need to fight for screen time if she wanted to watch women’s sports at her local bar. So, over the last year or so, Graf and others have taken things into their own hands—organizing watch party for women’s hockey, basketball and more.

Now she hopes to open her own sports bar called Bar IX. It’s a nod to the landmark Title IX amendment that, among many things, expanded women’s access in education and sports. 

Alissa Graff joined the program to talk about starting Bar IX and this moment in women’s sports. 

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on demand.

Subscribe to The Metro on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

More stories from The Metro

Michigan’s 13th Congressional District covers most of the City of Detroit. Since 2021, Shri Thanedar has represented the area. There has been criticism that the largest majority-Black city in the U.S. is not represented by an African American in Congress.

For his part, Thanedar has shrugged off the criticism and brought millions of federal dollars back to the district.

It has not stopped attempts to primary him.

State Representative Donavan McKinney lives in the 13th. He’s a progressive Democrat who—despite some similarities in their stance on issues—says he is to the left of Thanedar.

McKinney recently sat down with WDET’s Russ McNamara and discussed topics that are coming into play for the primary.

The following interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Healthcare

Russ McNamara: What’s your plan to fix healthcare?

State Rep. Donavan McKinney: We need Medicare for All. At the end of the day, people can’t afford life’s necessities, including healthcare.

I’m gonna be honest, it’s a damn shame that Republicans are attacking the ACA (Affordable Care Act) and and the wins on that to cover pre-existing conditions.

I have a story I love to talk about my mom in particular. She has a pre-existing condition, brain tumors, fortunately benign, not cancerous. However, she had to undergo emergency brain surgeries, and it wasn’t for the ACA, she would not be covered.

Wealth gap

RM: How do you plan to address the wealth gap? Because healthcare is tied up all in that too.

DM: The wealth gap is huge, and it’s climbing. Right now, I represent currently the poorest House District in Michigan. $14,000 is the median income. And you know, with folks that’s top of mind is the quality of life issues, right?

It’s unaffordable to live a life right now and I’m running to represent, I believe, the top five poorest [congressional] districts in the country. My constituents, the residents that I currently represent and looking forward to represent in the halls of D.C., they’re struggling with everyday bills. Whether it’s health care, auto insurance, whether it’s child care, housing, you know, you name it, gas, groceries, everything. 

And so for me, it’s all about getting the corporate influence out of our politics, and that’s why we’re running on a campaign that’s not taking any corporate PAC money. Sad to say, my opponent is.

Campaign finance

RM: Why make the choice to not take corporate PAC money? You could easily take the corporate PAC money and use that to campaign, but still vote a different way.

DM: I agree with that premise to some degree, but they also have a lot of influence, right? And so for me, the biggest influence that I want as an elected official should be the people that I represent, and so that’s why we’re taking a hard stance.

I introduced legislation in the state legislature last term and earlier this term that takes all corporate monopoly money out of our politics. It’s called Taking Back Our Power.

We’re targeting insurance companies and the big utility companies, because they have a lot of influence in Lansing, but once I get to DC, what we’re looking to do is overturn Citizens United, and we can do that through congressional action and ensuring that the people’s voices are heard.

Billionaires influencing politics

RM: The amount of money that billionaires are funneling into politics right now has gone up exponentially since Citizens United. Fundamentally and ethically, should billionaires exist?

DM: No. Bottom line? Hell no. I’ll talk about my grandfather in particular, who him and his parents, my great grandparents moved fled from the Jim Crow South to Detroit, Michigan. And one of the most interesting things about my grandfather was he worked at Ford Motor Company for 42 years. And guess what? He never missed a day of work. And I was at his retirement party a few years back, and you know, I asked him, I said, ‘granddad, like, how you never missed a day?’ Like, how was that? Because, you know, my generation, other folks, they’ll miss a day at work within 42 years. He said, “I took pride in what I was doing, and I knew that Ford had my back. I knew that the union had my back, but I knew that Ford Motor Company had my best interest at heart.”

If you fast forward to the year 2026, these companies don’t have the best interest of the workers at heart. What’s happening is they care about the bottom line more so than investing in the human capital, and so they’re figuring out ways to either automate folks out of a job. I mean, what’s happening recently with Stellantis, which, to me, will always be known as Chrysler. And to be honest, I’m a Detroiter, and [I see] how they’re funneling opportunities and increasing bonuses for salaried workers, but for not the workers on the line.

That corporate influence has to end. It has to stop. We have to do what’s right on behalf of the working class people. And right now, they don’t feel like their elected officials are doing the best they can for them.

Data centers and AI

RM: How do you feel about data centers?

DM: This is about understanding what’s possible and then also protecting the environmental harms that are happening from data centers across the country. In Michigan, the Democrats under the democratic trifecta, we led something called the Clean Energy and Jobs Act, and so we were able to ensure that protections for rate payers on water as well as for electricity and energy use are protected.

But in other states, and I’m seeing horror stories coming out of Memphis and Georgia. They have weak laws on the state level, but on a federal level, what’s happening is the AI groups, the folks, the mega sites that are trying to come to our communities, they’re influencing our legislators right now in Congress trying to pull back as many environmental protections from the people. And so for me, I cannot in good conscience support data centers if they’re going to continue to do environmental harm on our communities.

Now, if we can get that together alongside community solar and things of that nature, like we already have in place here in our state, then I can get on board. But in reality, this is all about the oligarchs, the corporate class, taking advantage of the people who live in our communities.

RM: So what’s your reaction when you hear that there’s room for a data center out near City Airport on Detroit’s east side?

DM: Just to paint the picture, in Michigan and other places of the country, we’ve already have data centers running. The question is mega sites. These are new to the equation, and so with the mega sites coming in I don’t necessarily support it until they don’t have an environmental justice plan that they follow. Until that all of those needs are met, and the community says no, then I got to rock with my community, with my constituents.

U.S. funding of Israel

RM: In 2024, the Biden Administration and the Kamala Harris campaign refused to change their stance toward funding Israel’s attacks on Palestinians in Gaza. I just want your thoughts on that conflict, because it’s still relevant here now two years on.

DM: Because I’m at the state level, you don’t really deal with foreign policy, but now that I’m running for a Congressional seat, I’m learning more and more about it. Some people might disagree with me when I say this, right now, from the experts, groups that are on the ground every single day, to the United Nations. What’s happening over there is a genocide.

Now, does that excuse what happened on October 7? No, I condemn any type of violence, any type of war, no matter who it is, because a human life is a human life. But I can’t in good conscience at the federal level support sending billions—and sometimes trillions over decades—for bombs and weapons to kill families and children. When literally in my own neighborhood I have to witness and see my neighbors struggling day to day, and we can’t find any type of money for them to have health care, for them to have good parks of recreation, for them to have real mass transit in our communities, access to clean and affordable water.

Every time we talk about progressivism and the things that the community honestly want and American people need, we say we can’t fund it. We say we don’t have the money, but right now, in Iran and different parts of the world, we’re spending over billions of dollars a day, and people are fed up with their entire politics. That’s why they don’t engage. That’s why they’re not involved. So for me, this is deeper than politics. This is deeper than “Oh, you’re pro Jew, you’re pro Palestinian.” I’m pro human life. I’m pro bringing resources back home to my district.

Where should the Democratic Party go next?

RM: Do you think there’s a leadership problem within the Democratic Party?

DM: I think there’s a leadership problem top down. I think if you look at the polling for our current administration, our current president, the numbers are like terrible, but the numbers on the Democratic Party is even lower than Trump’s.

Right now, [the people] don’t see the Democratic Party as the party of the people. I view the party as the party of the people. But right now, what’s happening is Democrats and Republicans are viewed the same when it comes to certain things, and that is literally pleading and doing everything they can for the corporate oligarchs in the corporate class. And right now for working people that are in my district struggling, they’re working two three jobs just to try to scrape by to make ends meet, let alone figuring out ways to thrive and have an disposable income, having health care and a retirement to look forward to. They have nothing, and so right now, they need a party that’s going to step up for them.

That’s why I’m a big believer that the party is going to have to make a choice. You either going to continue to serve the corporate class or you’re going to serve the working people. And that’s why we’re not taking corporate money, and that’s why my opponent is in trouble, because he continues to take corporate PAC money, AIPAC and everything under the sun.

RM: The right for transgender people to exist is under attack from the Trump Administration. What do you plan to do to protect some of the most marginalized people in this country?

DM: At the end of the day, human life is human life. I don’t I don’t care how you see yourself, define yourself at the end of the day, if you are a human being in this country, I will fight for you. So for me, making sure that at the end of the day, trans, Black folks, poor people, formerly incarcerated, our veterans, all of these groups are the most vulnerable populations of our communities, our seniors, our elders and our children— they need somebody that’s going to fight for them.

And so I have nothing better to do but to fight for human rights, no matter how you slice it, no matter where you live, no matter who you love, no no matter your race, your creed, your color, it doesn’t matter. And so yeah, to answer your question: I’m going to fight for every single person, not only in my district, but across the country.

RM: That sounds like some All Lives Matter kind of talk though…

DM: You could call it, All Lives Matter. But in reality, this is just common sense. Like, I’mma be honest Russ—the politics of the day, I have to partake in it, because I’m an elected official. But I like to see myself as a public servant first, and that’s what not only the Democratic party, the Republican Party, everybody in this system has forgotten.

It’s the service to the humans. We’re all humans. We might be different. We might like come from different backgrounds. But the reason why I’m sitting in office right now as a state rep in the district where nobody told me a Black kid can win in Macomb County, the reason why I won every single precinct is because we talked about the real issues, and they understood. They looked at me eye to eye at those doors, and they say, “You know what, I believe in this guy, I know he’s going to fight for me.”

It doesn’t matter what your politics is, I believe in you, and I’m going to fight for you no matter what, and that and that’s all I can do. I will fight for folks all across the congressional district of the mighty 13th.

Calls to abolish ICE

RM: There’s been an increase in the number of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is attempting to turn a warehouse into a detention center. There’s been a growing movement from the left wing of the Democratic Party to ‘abolish ICE’. Where do you stand on that?

DM: We must abolish ICE as it is right now, because at the end of the day, what’s happening in Romulus is not only in our congressional district, and it impacts people—it impacts folks all across our state.

One of the biggest issues with ICE in particular is that they’re not only targeting what Trump is calling the worst of the worst. No, they’re actually targeting American citizens, and they are known in recent history to not only kill American citizens, but deport American citizens. And I’m born and raised in this country. If you deport me, where the hell are you going to send me? That is my biggest question, and so I can’t in good conscience support this department.

My opponent, sad to say, was one of the one of the few Democrats last summer to thank the department, voted with the Republicans to do so. [He also] voted at least a couple times to increase the department’s budget. [NOTE: The vote thanking ICE also was tied to a measure condemning antisemitism] Because the community has risen up, and I’ve been hitting him hard on it, he decides, because it’s politically favorable to switch his tune and tries to introduce legislation to abolish ICE with no community input.

I introduced legislation last fall, long before we knew ICE was going to be here in Michigan, making sure that everybody has access to due process no matter your immigration status, making sure that ICE agents are unmasked when they conduct business here in our communities, and ensuring that at the end of the day, everybody has access to resources, no matter who you are.

We are a border city. We’re an international crossing. ICE has been terrorizing our communities, especially in southwest Detroit and the surrounding areas, for years now, over a decade.

And so where was he at? Where was my opponent at? We were there every step of the way, fighting back with our community, and we’re going to continue to fight back.

And so I’m proud of—I got to give a shout out to our Attorney General, Dana Nessel. I got to give a shout out to the Mayor Bob McCray and the whole entire Romulus city council, because they came together collectively as one, and they’re fighting against right now. They got a lawsuit right now to slow down a process of ice opening up that detention facility in Romulus.

President Donald Trump is scheduled to speak to the nation at 9 p.m. ET Wednesday, with the White House saying he will deliver an update on the war in Iran.

President Donald Trump said Tuesday the war with Iran could end in two to three weeks, while dismissing concerns over global oil supply disruptions. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said U.S. objectives have largely been achieved, even as uncertainty remains about next steps.

Watch live at 9 p.m.

A new report from the Detroit Regional Chamber is ringing the alarm with warnings that the house is on fire.

The report states that despite the resurgence of the City of Detroit the region itself is declining in national rankings of key economic areas, including per capita income education and population growth.

Chamber CEO Sandy Baruah says Michigan has fallen further and faster in key metric areas than any other state in the country. He spoke with WDET’s Bre’Anna Tinsley about the issue.

The following interview has been edited for length and clarity

Sandy Baruah, CEO of Detroit Regional Chamber: The state of Michigan and the Detroit region both really need to understand where we are in terms of our national peers. It’s hard to get where you’re going if you don’t know where we are, and our polling shows that Michiganians believe that Michigan is essentially dead average in key metrics such as our K-12 performance, our per capita income, our unemployment rate, our ability to attract high tech jobs. The percentage of our adults in our society that have a college degree, they think we’re dead average, but in reality, in most of those categories, we’re in the bottom 10, and we have to turn this around.

Bre’Anna Tinsley, WDET: Where do you think that disconnect is coming from?

SB: To be perfectly candid, I don’t think anyone has told the Michigan public where we really stand.

We have been dropping pretty dramatically since the year 2000. For example, as recently as the year 2000 we were a top 20 state for per capita income,  we were a top 20 state for fourth grade reading and K-12 performance. In both those categories, we’re now in the bottom 10.

So, we have fallen further and faster in some of these key metrics than any other state in history. You know, Republicans will point to the Democrats, and Democrats will point to the Republicans, and we think that’s just all bunk, because this fall has occurred under Democrat and Republican governors. It’s fallen under Democrat and Republican legislators. It’s fallen under, you know, mixed government over time.

So, we need a bipartisan, long-term path forward if we’re really going to address this issue.

BT: So if it’s not a political issue, do we know what the actual cause for this decline is?

SB: Michigan, as a purple state, has a tendency to ping pong back and forth between different political, economic and education strategies in the old days, you know, the parties would find a way to compromise and and kind of create some long-term solutions.

In Michigan, what we do is we go from a kind of a Republican approach for a few years, and we go to a Democratic approach for a few years.

We shift economic development strategies, we shift education strategies and the ping ponging back and forth, the inconsistency has not allowed us to really create a path forward, because successful change takes time. You can’t expect it in one legislative cycle or even one term as governor, it just doesn’t work that way.

BT: And so do you think that is the biggest change that needs to happen, or are there any other solutions that you have on how the state can improve?

SB: Well, I mean, certainly, you know, as a policy and economic development organization, the Detroit Regional Chamber certainly has our suggested solutions on various policy issues, but we really stress that what is desperately needed in the state of Michigan is the is the ceasing of the ping ponging policy back and forth between what you can call a  left policy or a right policy, because businesses won’t come here. They won’t invest, if one, they’re uncertain about what the policy environment is going to be. Businesses certainly won’t come here if we exacerbate the reputation that what was policy one year will be taken away the next year.

If we want to grow jobs, if we want to grow incomes, if we want to grow the percentage of people with post-secondary degrees, such as a four year degree or a community college degree or a skilled trade certificate, that’s just not going to happen if we just keep ping ponging back and forth.

BT: So the situation, though, is not all doom and gloom. There are some highlights in the state of Michigan, in the Detroit region, where exactly are we succeeding right now?

SB: There are areas right I mean, certainly when you look at some of the municipalities, the city of Detroit, obviously, is a shiny example that has been held up, not just nationally, but internationally, as the turnaround city really, of the globe. It would be hard to think of a place that’s been more celebrated over the last decade than the City of Detroit for all that has happened, but also places like Grand Rapids, they’ve been on a 25-year growth and development trajectory. Kalamazoo has been on a long-term growth trajectory.

The second is that we are an innovation powerhouse. What we’re not good at, however, is really capitalizing on our innovation that occurs from our universities, Michigan, Michigan State, Wayne State and Michigan Tech and in attracting even more new high level young talent that will start jobs, start new companies. You know, that is a huge plus.

And then, thirdly, we have all of these new innovation nodes being developed, Michigan central new lab, the University of Michigan Innovation Center, the Dan Gilbert Health Innovation Center on Gratiot. I mean, these are all amazing new innovation centers.

Detroit City Councilmember At-Large Mary Waters has dispatched a crew to clean up trash at a site on the city’s northwest side.  Garbage has been gathering at an empty apartment building near Six Mile and Greenfield.  Neighbors have been complaining about the mess, which has gained the attention of the media.  

Waters says Greenfield between Six Mile and Puritan should be permanently cleaned up, adding that Detroit’s neighborhoods should be as clean as “corporate downtown.” 

Additional headlines for Tuesday, March 31

Midtown’s Jolly Pumpkin closes 

Another brewery has closed in Midtown.  Jolly Pumpkin announced on Facebook that it has closed after 11 years of operation.  The restaurant was located on Canfield, just west of Cass Avenue.  

The Motor City Brewing Works on the same block  closed earlier this year.  

The Detroit News reports a new Mediterranean-themed restaurant will open in the Jolly Pumpkin space this summer. 

Fifth Third Bank moves regional headquarters 

Fifth Third Bank is moving its regional headquarters in Detroit.  

The Free Press reports the bank will leave its offices at One Woodward Avenue and move a couple of blocks north to One Campus Martius.  A number of employees at other locations in Metro Detroit will also move into the new headquarters.  

Fifth Third completed its acquisition of Comerica Bank in February. 

Strong storms possible this evening 

Many Detroiters woke up in the middle of the night to the rumbling of thunder.  Rising temperatures overnight created the right conditions for brief thunderstorms.  High temperatures near 70 degrees today, coupled with an approaching cold front, will bring another round of storms this afternoon and evening.  

Some of those storms could be strong or severe.  The National Weather Service says the threat of severe weather is a level two on a scale of five.  High temperatures Wednesday are expected to be in the 40s.  

Michigan women exit March Madness 

Fans of the University of Michigan’s women’s basketball team are feeling a bit down today.  The team lost to Texas 77 – 41 last night in the Elite Eight round of the NCAA women’s tournament.  

Texas led the game 22 – 9 at the end of the first quarter.   

Listen to the latest episode of the “Detroit Evening Report” on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

Many of the systems designed to keep us safe sometimes harm the most vulnerable among us. That’s often true of people who face financial hardship.

Detroit’s 36th District Court is trying to stop that from continuing. Chief Judge William McConico is running a court-wide amnesty program through April 2, waiving all late fees, penalties, and warrant costs for adjudicated cases when the original fine is paid.

McConico spoke with The Metro‘s Robyn Vincent about this, bail reform and controversy surrounding one of his judges.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on demand.

Subscribe to The Metro on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

More stories from The Metro

Mayor Mary Sheffield will deliver her first State of the City address at Mumford High School.

The annual Detroit event marks a historic milestone as Sheffield becomes the first woman to deliver a State of the City address as mayor. Holding the speech at Mumford underscores her focus on Detroit’s neighborhoods and young people as central to the city’s future.

You can listen to the Mayor’s address at 7 p.m. on WDET 101.9 FM or livestream on the web or in our app.

The address can also be found on the City’s cable channels; Comcast Channel 10 and AT&T Channel 99 in Detroit, and streamed on the City’s official YouTube, Facebook, X/Twitter, and Instagram pages.

Tens of thousands of metro Detroiters took to the streets to take part in another “No Kings” protest, where they opposed President Donald Trump, recent policies on immigration, war with Iran and more. 

No Kings marches took place in cities across the country. WDET’s Russ McNamara was on the ground talking with folks in metro Detroit about what motivated them to speak up and get out. He spoke with The Metro‘s Cary Junior II about what he found.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on demand.

Subscribe to The Metro on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

More stories from The Metro

Despite a year passing since the ice storm, damages are still visible in Northern Michigan forests with trees broken in half, uprooted, and debris crowding forests. 

Cody Stevens, the DNR’s Northeast Lower Peninsula District Manager, says they’re still working to clean up and restore damaged forests. 

Damaged trees

Red pine and Jack pine trees experienced the worst of the damage, so they were the DNR’s top priority for clean-up.

Stevens describes, “the Red pine and Jack pine trees [were] totally snapped off. Those trees were just dead; there was no recovering for them. That’s why you see a lot more harvests in the Red pine right away.”

As the DNR has made progress with cleaning up these forests, Stevens says they’re switching gears to focus on hardwood forests, which contain species such as Maple, Oak, and Aspen trees.

Many hardwood trees were able to grow through the damages of the storm. However, Stevens explains that despite their growth, there’s likely pockets of rotting wood in the trees, and they’re unable to grow at their typical rate. 

Once forests are cleared of damaged trees, the DNR’s next step is to replant trees. 

Restoring damaged environments

Because so much timber was being harvested and sold after the storm, the market became oversaturated, and the value of timber dropped.

Stevens says this affected the DNR’s budget for restoration, as they rely on timber sales to fund forest development. 

Stevens explains, “Our intent is to spend some of the work project money that we receive to reforest all of those stands. So, we’ll be replanting Red pine on the majority of those sites back to ensure that there’s a forest for the future.”

The restoration process is far from over, as Stevens expects it to take them at least 5 years to recover. 

Of the 3,000 miles of state forest roads that were blocked by the storm, Stevens says the DNR has roughly 250 miles left to clear. 

“There is active timber harvesting going on at a little bit higher rate than what there typically would be, trying to salvage all this timber,” he says. “So, when folks do go into the woods, just have their eyes out looking for timber producers, making sure there’s no conflict on their roads.” 

This story is a part of WDET’s ongoing series, the Detroit Tree Canopy Project.

This week on Visions is my last Women’s History Month episode. It’s been really fun to listen to, do research about, and uncover artists that were new to me as I put these episodes together. This hasn’t been a comprehensive list of all women in jazz, but what better way to celebrate the month than to hear from women all month long.

Tonight’s episode features vocalists Shirley Horn, Billie Holiday, Ruth Price and Rosa Passos. I include poet aja monet as well as two instrumentalists heard as vocalists on the episode, trumpeter Clora Bryant and saxophonist Tia Fuller. 

I feature instrumentalists Geri Allen, Brandee Younger, the Ellen Rowe Octet, Cindy Blackman Santana, Shamie Royston, Nubya Garcia, Marilyn Crispell, Dorothy Ashby, Bobbi Humphrey, Carla Bley, and ARTEMIS. 

Check out the playlist below and listen to the episode on-demand for two weeks after it airs using the media player above.

Visions Playlist for March 30, 2026

• “No. 3” – Geri Allen*
• “They Say It’s Spring” – Ruth Price
• “What the World Needs Now is Love” – ARTEMIS
• “This Can’t Be Love” – Clora Bryant
• “Spirit U Will” – Brandee Younger
• “Feitio de Oração” – Rosa Passos & Ron Carter
• “yemaya” – aja monet
• “Dear Lord” – The Marilyn Crispell Trio
• “The Soul Keepers” – Ellen Rowe Octet
• “Loads of Love” – Shirley Horn
• “Momma Said” – Tia Fuller, Shamie Royston & Fuller Sound
• “Let Love Rule (feat. Ravi Coltrane, Jacky Terrasson & Ron Carter)” – Cindy Blackman Santana
• “Life Has Its Trials” – Dorothy Ashby*
• “But Beautiful” – Billie Holiday
• “Strange Arrangement” – The Very Big Carla Bley Band
• “The Seer” – Nubya Garcia
• “Fancy Dancer” – Bobbi Humphrey

* indicates Detroit artists

WDET is talking to candidates vying to become Michigan’s next governor as the state heads towards party primaries and November’s general election.

That includes Michigan Senate Minority Leader Aric Nesbitt, who is part of a crowded field of Republican contenders for the top job in Lansing.

Nesbitt says Michigan’s next governor must focus on the state’s economy.

The following interview has been edited for clarity and length.

Sen. Aric Nesbitt: As a farm boy that grew up in southwest Michigan, I know how hard it is to make a living. I grew up baling hay and having to sleep on the main floor because it was 10 degrees cooler there. I worked my way through college, went to Hillsdale College and earned my economics degree. I had to take five different jobs there.

And the people of Michigan are hurting right now. It’s tough for families, for job creators and for kids to make it here in Michigan. We’re paying the highest insurance rates, the highest energy costs in the Midwest.

Our job creators are being crushed by regulations out of Lansing that are preventing them from expanding and growing and creating more wealth here in the state.

And then our kids, three out of five fourth graders can’t read at grade level. And we know if you can’t read at grade level, you have a nearly 70% chance of being on social welfare or in jail at some point. That paints a very tough and dark picture for the future of Michigan.

I want to paint a very bright picture for Michigan, one where every kid can read, every family can actually make it here in the state, and job creators can invest and grow so we can become a wealthy state again.

Quinn Klinefelter, WDET News: If you were elected to the governor’s office, how would you try to address some of those issues?

AN: The first thing is to help families. I was in north Michigan a little bit ago talking to a guy that moved here from Tennessee. You don’t meet too many of those folks because Tennessee is a right-to-work state with no income tax. He said he’d added up his cost for utilities, energy and his local property taxes. He says he’s paying about $5,000 more per year to live in Michigan than he did in Tennessee. And as a farm boy, $5,000 is a lot of money.

So you start off by looking at energy. Right now the Democrats in Lansing and Gov. Whitmer mandated this 100% renewable energy, banned natural gas, banned nuclear. It’s industrializing hundreds of thousands of acres of farm and forest land. Makes me sad seeing all these good corn fields going into industrial solar panels. If we’re going to grow and invest here in the state, we got to repeal the Green New Scam and allow them all of the above energy proposals. Actually allow nuclear and natural gas facilities to be built. Lower the costs for manufacturing and for families. Families are already paying the highest rates in the nation. Got to bring it back.

You look at our insurance laws, at the costs of auto insurance and homeowner’s insurance. We’re paying the highest prices in the Midwest. Ohio has a more competitive market. So does Illinois. If you take their laws and bring them to Michigan, you can cut our insurance rates. And that’s the same thing with why I’m running on eliminating the state property tax. That’s the start of finding how you can make sure that you put more money in hard-working families’ pockets and less money being sent up to Lansing.

QK: If one cuts or eliminates some of those taxes though, then that eliminates some revenue coming into the state. Is there a way that you would envision trying to make up that revenue? Or do you think we can just tighten the belt and go forward?

AN: Over the last seven years under Gov. Whitmer and the Democrats in Lansing, the state government has grown by 50%. I don’t know anybody who’s gotten a 50% pay increase around the state of Michigan. Hasn’t happened in our family and hasn’t happened in our neighbors’ families. If you would have only used funds from half the growth of government at the state level, you could have eliminated the state income tax.

This is the point. We haven’t been seeing that 50% increase in terms of services. We are a top 20 state in terms of spending on education. Yet we’re a bottom 10 state in reading scores, science and education. The state demographer says over the next 30 years, we’re going to lose upwards of another 700,000 people in the state of Michigan.

We’re on target to go down to 49th in terms of per capita income. We could become a poorer state closer to Mississippi. If we’re going to grow as a state and make sure our kids are able to learn, we got to shake up the status quo in Lansing and stop just tweaking around the edges, which is what we’ve seen.

So, as the next governor Michigan, I’m going to lower the cost of living, increase wages, create better job opportunities and make sure our kids have a choice to either go on to college or enter a trade school. I think we’ve lost that here in Michigan, having a good solid trades education. Those people are actually career ready.

QK: Earlier this year you had mentioned you thought it might be necessary to have a federal monitor oversee Michigan’s elections to ensure they were fair and legal. Do you still feel that way? Do you think that’s still something that needs to be watched for?

AN: This is the challenge Michigan has. We have the worst secretary of state.

QK: Who would possibly be your opponent if you were the GOP nominee for governor.

AN: Yes, Jocelyn Benson. We’ve seen time after time that she continues to ignore subpoenas from the Michigan House of Representatives and subpoenas from the federal Department of Justice I think that she needs to allow for federal oversight of these elections because she has a very poor history of administrating them. That needs to be corrected.

This is why it’s so important this fall that voters approve a constitutional amendment that’ll be on the ballot that makes sure every person in Michigan shows a photo ID to vote. It cleans up the voter rolls and ensures that you’re a legal citizen here in the state of Michigan.

QK: What would you say to those that argue those requirements will hurt voter turnout, because some people may not have some of that identification with them?

AN: These reforms happened in Georgia. They were saying the same thing there, yet they had a higher voter turnout the other year than the years before. These are just straw man arguments.

QK: If you are elected, you’d be taking over the governor’s chair from Democrat Gretchen Whitmer. Obviously she’s in the opposite political party. But she has gained a bit of a national profile. She’s had discussions with President Trump that seemed to at least affect some of the issues going on in Michigan. What are your thoughts overall about coming into that office if you were elected following Whitmer’s time?

AN: I joined with Gov. Whitmer a year ago when President Trump announced the new fighter mission at Selfridge Air National Guard Base. We worked together to be able to get that done. And to block the Asian carp in Chicago from entering the Great Lakes. And I worked with President Trump to find help for victims of the ice storms a year ago in northern Michigan.

I’m going to continue to partner with the Trump administration to make sure that Michigan issues are on the list of things they need to address.

And this is why the status quo in Lansing needs to be shaken up. It’s not about establishing a national profile. It’s about solving problems for hardworking Michigan families. And it matters. Detroit and Saginaw are two of the 10 cities with the highest crime rates in the nation. We got some tough challenges as a state.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Nesbitt says Gov. Whitmer banned nuclear power. But she has supported restarting the Palisades Nuclear Power Plant in southwest Michigan. The plant is in Michigan’s 20^th state senate district, which Nesbitt represents.

Michigan basketball fans are celebrating after a good weekend of March Madness.  

The University of Michigan’s men’s team beat Alabama on Friday night to make it to the “Elite Eight.”  The team then turned around and beat Tennessee 95 – 62 Sunday to advance further in the NCAA tournament.  

Michigan takes on Arizona in Indianapolis Saturday night at 8:49 p.m.  Both teams are No.1 seeds. 

Additional headlines for Monday, March 30, 2026

Iran war keeps gas prices high

The U.S. war with Iran continues to keep gas prices high.  AAA Michigan says the average price of a gallon of gasoline is $3.92.  That’s down a penny from last Monday, but it’s still 92 cents higher than a month ago.  

Wayne and Macomb counties have some of the lowest prices in Michigan.  Industry analysts say higher gas prices are driven by higher costs for crude oil.   

Despite the higher prices, AAA says demand for gasoline is rising across the country as spring break season continues. 

Michigan Republicans select state candidates 

Michigan Republicans held their state endorsement convention on Saturday.  Delegates selected candidates for Secretary of State and Attorney General at their meeting in Novi.   

Macomb County Clerk Anthony Forlini was picked to be the Republican candidate for Secretary of State.   The GOP also endorsed Eaton County Prosecutor Doug Lloyd to become its nominee for Attorney General.  

The party says on the convention website that it’s holding its endorsement event early to give candidates more time to raise money and prepare for the general election on Nov. 3.   

Metro Detroiters hold No Kings marches 

Thousands of metro Detroiters attended “No Kings” marches across the region on Saturday, protesting the policies of the Trump administration.  

Marches were held at Clark Park and Grand Circus Park in Detroit, as well as in Ferndale, Livonia, Dearborn and several other locations in the area.  More than 100 events were held across Michigan.   

Severe storms possible 

Metro Detroiters will see temperatures rise to around 70 degrees Tuesday, bringing a chance of strong thunderstorms. 

 The National Weather Service says Metro Detroit has a marginal chance of severe weather tonight.  That’s a level one on a scale of five.  

That risk increases to “slight” Tuesday.  That’s level two out of five.  There’s a chance of winds of 58 mph or higher, one inch hail and tornadoes.  

Storms Tuesday are most likely to occur between 4 p.m. and midnight. Keep up with the weather on 101.9 WDET FM. 

Listen to the latest episode of the “Detroit Evening Report” on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

Tonight in Big Sonic Heaven, we featured a new “60s-breezy” track from Miki Berenyi Trio, a new-ish song from Future Islands, who are celebrating their 20th anniversary with a rarities compilation album, and a dreamy collaboration between Hammock and The Flaming Lips, along with several other new releases.

In keeping with the recent trend of music benefiting charitable causes, we played My Bloody Valentine​ in recognition of Robert Smith’s series of curated shows at Royal Albert Hall for the Teenage Cancer Trust. These performances, which took place from March 23-29, featured My Bloody Valentine, Elbow, Mogwai, The Joy Formidable, Placebo, and Garbage. You can find clips of these performances online. The Teenage Cancer Trust provides specialized care and support for young people within the NHS.

Finally, ​we shared some details about the limited-edition Rough Trade release of Cocteau Twins’ “Head Over Heels“​ album on pearl vinyl. It includes an insert with interesting commentary from Robin Guthrie about the making of the album. It is a great read if you have the chance to check it out.

Of course, also your favorite classic shoegaze, dreampop, and postpunk.

Check the playlist below and listen to the episode for two weeks after it airs using the player above. 

• “Closedown” – The Cure
• “Birdseye” – Babehoven
• “Burrow” – AtticOmatic
• “Brighter” – Slowdive
• “Chemicals Make You Small (feat. The Flaming Lips)” – Hammock
• “Every Little Counts” – New Order
• “Poor Sweet Mary Millington” – The False Dawns
• “Musette and Drums” – Cocteau Twins
• “Sail” – Future Islands
• “Paris And Rome” – Cranes
• “Pagan Poetry” – Björk
• “Lights Out” – Roller Derby
• “Alfie” – deary
• “Pearl” – Chapterhouse
• “Our Day Will Come” – Dead Can Dance
• “Black Celebration” – Depeche Mode
• “Just Drive” – Postiljonen
• “Renaissance Affair” – Hooverphonic
• “Myth” – Beach House
• “Free, Free” – Ladytron
• “Fallin’ In Love” – Lush
• “No More Kissing In The Rain” – Trentemøller
• “We Have All the Time In the World” – My Bloody Valentine
• “Clusters” – Emma Anderson
• “Michael” – Beachy Head
• “Here And Now” – Ride
• “Island Of One” – Miki Berenyi Trio
• “Broken (Bedroom Version)” – The Haunted Youth
• “Black Boys On Mopeds” – Sinéad O’Connor
• “Fences” – Yndling
• “The Night Is Quiet” – Nonsense Rats
• “Dark Western” – Au Revoir Borealis
• “Sonnet” – The Verve

Seven people are confirmed to have contracted measles in Washtenaw County with exposure sites in Ypsilanti, Ann Arbor, and Canton. None of those people were vaccinated against the disease. 

Vaccination rates have declined since 2024, despite decades of medical practice and data that show the MMR vaccine that protects against measles, mumps and rubella, is safe and highly effective. 

Last year, an advisory panel appointed by Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. recommended the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) adopt new restrictions on the MMRV vaccine, which provides protection against measles, mumps, rubella and chickenpox. The panel advised that children under 4 should get protection against those diseases in separate vaccines.

In the time since Kennedy Jr. was appointed to head HHS by President Trump, vaccination rates have declined for toddlers, school-age kids and adults, making Southeast Michigan more vulnerable to outbreaks.

When the population’s vaccine rate dips below the level of ‘herd immunity’, the chance of a measles outbreak increases substantially.

What’s stopping people from vaccinating themselves or their kids, and who is most at risk when an outbreak happens?

Dr. Rupali Limaye is an Associate Professor at the George Mason College of Public Health. She is an expert in vaccine behavior, hesitancy and acceptance. She spoke with Cary Junior II on The Metro.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on demand.

Subscribe to The Metro on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

More stories from The Metro

Thousands rallied against the actions of President Donald Trump across Michigan on Saturday.

In Ferndale, about three thousand people lined Woodward Avenue near 9 Mile Road to express their displeasure.

Barb Anness of Rochester Hills believes the protests can bring about change.

“I’m very heartened by the diversity of people that I see out here, and I think Americans are at their best when we come together and we speak with one voice when something is wrong, and we call it out and we work for change in a positive way,” Anness said.

Anness says her objections to the cuurent administration fall outside of partisan politics.

“For me, it’s not a left or right issue, it’s a right or wrong issue. We have authority in government that are not adhering to norms and laws, and it needs to change, and this November, we have an opportunity to speak with our voice through our ballot in the ballot booth,” Anness said.

Anness came to Ferndale to protest with a friend – Holly Haran of Royal Oak. Haran isn’t happy with much of what’s coming from the federal government right now.

“There’s so much material that we can make signs for because there’s so many things that are being targeted,” Haran said. “Our voter rights, education, health care, there’s so many things that are being taken away. So and when they’re gone, it’s going to be really hard to get them back.”

A retired schoolteacher, Haran says she’s not happy with the tactics Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents are using—especially near classrooms.

“It’s a really bad position to put educators in, because our job is to help kids,” Haran said.

Romulus protests proposed ICE facility

ICE was the primary topic of discussion in Romulus, where protesters gathered in front of a proposed detention facility on Cogswell Street.

Maxwell Pizzurro made the trip to the city from Chesterfield Township.

“I just think it’s really gross with these new camps that are opening up and how they’re just treating regular people,” Pizzurro said.

“What’s the difference between me and my family who came here [from Sicily] and a new family from Ghana? Or a new family from Portugal or Brazil? There’s no difference between us. We’re all just looking to make a good life for us and our families,” Pizzurro said.

Terry Golden Davis is an Army vet and grew up in Romulus. He says things have gotten so bad he turned up for his first-ever protest.  

“Somebody’s got to stand up to this hypocrisy. This is so sad. I spent hours making  signs. Hours,” Davis said.

“Nobody wants this. The should use it [the warehouse] for something, but not this,” Davis said.

Clad in a Harley Davidson jacket, lifelong Romulus resident Ken Cullen is concerned about the mistreatment of detainees.

“I mean, this is a warehouse. There’s no showers. There’s no bathrooms. There’s nothing,” Cullen said. “You can’t just house people in a warehouse, and expect them to live.”

Gerod Funderburg does not want the facility in his city. and he doesn’t believe President Trump that the detainees are hardened criminals either.

“They are people who are looking for better place to stay, better place to live, better opportunities for themselves—and he’s not providing it. If this is going to be a jail, we don’t want a jail around the corner from our homes,” Funderburg said.

Romulus City Council unanimously passed a resolution to denounce the ICE detention facility, and more recently filed a lawsuit alongside Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel to stop its establishment.

Department of Homeland Security agents guarded the warehouse during Saturday’s protest, and approached U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib to redirect her when she tried parking in the driveway. 

Representative Dylan Wegela represents Romulus in the state house. He says abolition is the only way.

“We do not want this detention center here. We want, instead, to defund ICE. We want to abolish ICE, and we want to prosecute ICE.”

Many detainees have died while in ICE custody over the past year, and three American citizens have been killed by federal agents during President Trump’s push for mass deportations.

What people see as priorities

Wegela says President Trump is focused on the wrong things.

“He’s entered us into a war with Iran that is costing $2 billion a day,” Wegela said. “Instead of our money going towards bombing, say, a girl’s school in Iran, we would rather it be spent here to make sure that we are investing in our roads and our schools.”

Steve Conn of Detroit says if the people don’t speak out about injustice happening towards immigrants then the situation will get worse.

“We got to make sure people understand. If you don’t stand up now for immigrants, you too will be in there,” Conn said.

White House dismisses protests

Estimates place 9 million people in the streets for the ‘No Kings’ protests. The White House is dismissive.

“The only people who care about these Trump Derangement Therapy Sessions are the reporters who are paid to cover them,” White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said in a statement.

Ken Cullen is unmoved by that statement.

“Everything we hear is lies and propaganda. The truth is out here with all the people,” Cullen said. “They are showing we’re not that stupid.”

On this week’s episode of Acoustic Café, the band NEEDTOBREATHE joins us in the studio for songs from their brand new album “The Long Surrender.” Now 20 years on, the band is charting the course for the next phase with their 10th studio album.

Also this week, archives from Abraham Alexander, Ye Vagabonds, James Hunter and a cool cover from The Heavy Heavy.

See the playlist below and listen to the episodes on-demand for two weeks after it airs using the media player above.

Acoustic Café Playlist for March 29, 2026

• “Million Dollar Intro” – Ani DiFranco
• “Whatever’s For Us, For Us” – Joan Armatrading
• “Woncha Come Home” – kissing other ppl
• “Time Traveler” – Emily Scott Robinson
• “Just A Rock” – Jose Gonzalez
• “Don’t Do me No Favors” – James Hunter (Acoustic Cafe in-studio performance)
• “Obvious” – Wet Leg
• “Spread The Ashes” – NEEDTOBREATHE (Acoustic Cafe in-studio guest)
• “Sing To Me Savannah” – NEEDTOBREATHE (Acoustic Cafe in-studio guest)
• “At All” – Jon Batiste
• “Empty Trainload Of Sky” – Gillian Welch & David Rawlings
• “Paper And Stone” – Iron & Wine
• “Real Love Baby” – The Heavy Heavy (Acoustic Cafe in-studio performance)
• “I Am A Fish” – Carla Khilstedt (SongWriter Podcast)
• “Video” – India Arie
• “Different Light” – Rostam
• “Sitric Road” – Ye Vagabonds (Acoustic Cafe in-studio performance)
• “Love” – Beck
• “Sink” – waterbaby
• “You Without Me” – Brandi Carlile
• “Tears Run Dry” – Abraham Alexander (Acoustic Cafe in-studio performance)
• “The Long Surrender” – NEEDTOBREATHE (Acoustic Cafe in-studio guest)
• “Say It Now” – NEEDTOBREATHE (Acoustic Cafe in-studio guest)

Listen to Rob Reinhart’s Essential Music every Saturday from 2-4 p.m. ET on Detroit Public Radio 101.9 WDET and streaming on-demand at wdet.org