A new study from the University of Michigan shows that Black stroke patients arrive at the hospital significantly later than their white counterparts.

Subscribe to the Detroit Evening Report on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

Published Sept. 5 in collaboration with Brown University, the research included data from more than 600,000 patients in the American Heart Association Get With The Guidelines Stroke Registry from mid-2015 through 2019.

The study revealed that it took on average 28 minutes longer for Black patients with stroke symptoms to receive emergency care. Researchers also found that EMS workers were roughly 20% less likely to notify emergency departments ahead of a Black patient’s arrival compared to a white patient.

The disparity was most prevalent in areas with a high poverty rate. 

Regina Royan, one of the lead researchers on the study, says getting a stroke patient to the hospital quickly is crucial for positive health outcomes. 

“The therapies that we have for stroke are really effective, but they are only available within a short time frame from the time that symptoms start,” Royan said.

Royan says there has been significant effort to making health care inside hospitals equitable, and it’s time to bring those efforts outside the hospital as well.  

“This is a disparity that must be addressed, as Black Americans have a higher prevalence of stroke, get strokes younger and die at greater numbers from the condition,” said Royan in a news release.

Other headlines for Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024:

•  Michigan Attorney Dana Nessel announced charges this week against 11 people stemming from pro-Palestinian protests on the University of Michigan’s campus in May.
• Detroit Police Chief James White confirmed to BridgeDetroit on Wednesday that he is one of eight finalists in the running for CEO of the Detroit Wayne Integrated Health Network.
• The American Arab Chamber of Commerce is hosting its “East & West Mezza Fest,” a culinary tour of Dearborn, from 5 to 9:30 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 13.

Do you have a community story we should tell? Let us know in an email at detroiteveningreport@wdet.org.

Officials in Detroit are again offering a photo identification card that allows residents access to various businesses and city services.

Local 283 President Steve Hicks says they are asking for union security, seniority rights and an increase in pay.

“Since the pandemic, inflation is sky high from 2019 in double digits, and has cut into the spendable income of our members here,” Hicks told WDET. “So we need to get [a] percentage that’s a lot higher than what they are offering, which is 3% per year.”

Hicks says the union sent several emails asking to bargain over the last offer made by Marathon, but were denied.

In a statement issued Wednesday afternoon, Marathon officials said they were “disappointed” that union members decided to go on strike, saying the company has met with union leadership regularly for the last nine months to reach a new labor agreement.

“The company has negotiated in good faith, but the union thus far has been unwilling to agree to acceptable terms for an agreement and, instead, has decided to engage in a strike in support of its bargaining positions,” the statement read. “We are fully prepared and have implemented plans to continue safely operating the facility with trained and qualified Marathon employees, and a safe and orderly handover to these experienced team members has been completed.”

On this episode of the Detroit Evening Report, we cover the continued power outages across metro Detroit following this week’s severe storms; the upcoming Detroit Jazz Festival and more.

Subscribe to the Detroit Evening Report on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

Thousands still without power after storms

More than 60,000 metro Detroit residents are still without power on Thursday after severe storms hit the region Tuesday evening and continued into Wednesday. DTE Energy says crews are “continuing to work as quickly and safely as possible to restore power to everyone impacted by the extreme weather.”

The company says it has restored power to more than 80% of its customers and expects to have 90% of customers restored by end of day Thursday, with remaining customers expected to be restored Friday.

Detroit market offers up fridge space during outages

Neighborhood Grocery in Detroit’s Jefferson Chalmers neighborhood is offering refrigerator space to those who are still without power. The market posted on Facebook Wednesday offering up fridge space for medications or freezer space for perishables for those in need of temporary storage until power is restored. 

Corktown ranked top ‘up-and-coming’ neighborhood in US

Detroit’s historical Corktown neighborhood has been ranked a top “up-and-coming” neighborhood in the nation by Travel Mag. The magazine cited spots like Mercury Burger and Bar, Bobcat Bonnie’s and Brooklyn Street Local as hot spots to grab a bite, and also mentioned the reopening of Michigan Central as part of the neighborhood’s resurgence. The neighborhood was listed among 16 others in cities like Chicago, Los Angeles, New York and Miami. 

Freedom Arts Festival continues

Programming for the Detroit Parks Coalition’s annual Freedom Arts Festival will continue throughout the fall season. The free festival series kicked off in June and will run through November with a variety of events hosted across nine parks and public spaces in the city.  Supported by the Knight Foundation and the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan, the festival features live performances of music, dance, storytelling and art reflecting Detroit’s rich multicultural history, weaving together narratives of freedom, racial justice, connections to place and more. For more information on future programming, visit detroitparkscoalition.com/freedom-arts-festival.

Detroit Jazz Festival returns

The Detroit Jazz Festival kicks off at 6:40 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 30 in Hart Plaza. with performances continuing in downtown Detroit through Labor Day weekend. Over 60 performances are scheduled to take place throughout the long weekend, including from The Bad Plus, Carmen Lundy, artist-in-residence Brian Blade and the Fellowship Band and more. The festival will have stages in Hart Plaza, Cadillac Square and after hour specials in Midtown at Wayne State’s Valade Jazz Center. For more information, visit detroitjazzfest.org.

Do you have a community story we should tell? Let us know in an email at detroiteveningreport@wdet.org.

It’s called Hood Camp: Urban Survival for Today’s Youth.

“We call it Hood Camp because it is a camp that’s in the hood,” said Mama Shu, CEO and founder of Avalon Village — the sustainable eco-village on Avalon Street in Highland Park that hosts the camp. “And we do it because there are a lot of children who are not able to afford camp.”

The program, for only $50 per child, offers local youth a chance to have an outdoor camping experience in the comfort of their own neighborhood.

Shu says she started the camp because as a young girl she always wanted to camp in her backyard, but her mom wouldn’t let her. But now as an adult, she can share that dream with others.

“I was like ‘You know what? I’m doing this! Let me see if I can get some children and parents who would let their children come and start this Hood Camp.'”

The first camp, in 2011, was just one night with 17 kids — and later up to 40. That lasted for the first 10 years. Eventually, by popular demand from the kids, Shu extended the camp to an entire weekend.

“Because the kids used to always say, ‘Mama Shu we want to spend another night.’ Because they loved spending the night outside,” she said.

After the COVID-19 pandemic, the camp reduced its attendance down to 25 -30 children.

At the camp, children learn all about emergency preparedness and surviving outside. They learn how to cook outside, how to garden and purify water. They even learn about different plants that most typically would classify as weeds, and how they can be used for medicinal purposes.

Shu also recruits the Highland Park Fire and Police Departments to teach fire and gun safety and general community safety.

Each camper gets a survival kit with items like batteries, matches, candles, a first aid kit, and a solar backpack. And at the end of the weekend, they go home with a certificate that reads: “I survived in the hood.”

“We are showing them basically how you can fit in and how you can utilize these things first and how to survive in your own neighborhood,” Shu said.

Shu gave the example of a blackout in the neighborhood as an opportunity for the children to use their skills.

“We had out light go out for days in Highland Park,” Shu said “They still have to go to school. Well, they have the solar backpacks so they can charge their phones and their computers. And hopefully not miss a beat with their studies.”

Shu said she always receives positive feedback from the children and their parents about the Hood Camp program. Some former students return each year to participate again, while some who have grown up and graduated return as volunteers.

“It’s just wonderful seeing them still be interested in helping out in the community. And being able to volunteer and support something that when they were kids, they were involved in,” Shu said.

Hood Camp runs Aug. 30 through Sept. 1, 2024. For more information or to register a camper, visit www.theavalonvilllage.org.

Wayne County officials met this week to discuss the lack of transparency from the federal government following a unilateral decision to haul radioactive waste from a site in New York where the Manhattan Project was developed, to a metro Detroit landfill.

Officials were not aware of the shipment until the Detroit Free Press reported last week that the waste was being moved to be stored at a landfill in Van Buren Township by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Republic Services’ Wayne Disposal is one of five landfills identified by the corp that can handle the waste.

“When permits and sites are expanded we need to know what can we do as a county commission to have a say in these decisions?” said Wayne County Commission Chair Alisha Bell at Tuesday’s meeting.

Officials voiced similar concerns last year, when a Norfolk Southern train carrying hazardous materials derailed in the city of East Palestine, Ohio, releasing toxic chemicals like the known carcinogen vinyl chloride into the environment.

Nearly 15% of the solid waste and about 7% of the liquid waste removed from that derailment were eventually disposed of in metro Detroit, yet local officials weren’t notified of their transport until the chemicals were already here, The Detroit News reported.

Just a few weeks after the East Palestine derailment, a Norfolk Southern train derailed in Van Buren Township. While there was no evidence of that derailment resulting in the exposure of hazardous materials, it only added to intensifying concerns in Michigan about the transportation of hazardous waste to disposal sites in the state.

Those concerns where echoed on Tuesday by both residents and local officials in attendance. However, Patrick Cullen of Wayne County’s environmental services department said the decision was made by the federal government — not the county — and cannot be blocked.

U.S. Reps. Rashida Talib and Debbie Dingell were both present at the meeting and expressed concerns about the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) not having higher restrictions on what materials can be transported in.

“When’s the last time they denied a permit? I want to know that.” Talib said. “Because every permit I’ve seen come forward to the state seems to get approved or delayed because they need more information.”

Bell suggested the commission could take action to help make the county more unattractive for companies looking to store waste by establishing protocols and enforcing them with fines, increasing tipping fees, and tracking permits of these companies.

In a letter to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Republic Services, Dingell reiterated that the lack of notice to local officials and the public about the hazardous waste shipment only heightened anxiety about the potential risks associated with transporting those materials through local communities.

“While I understand this facility is licensed at both the federal- and state-level and must adhere to strict regulations that ensure the community is protected, my constituents remain concerned about the impact on their health and environment,” the letter read. “Given the recent history of hazardous waste disposal incidents in Michigan, it is imperative that we take every precaution to protect our community.”

A representative from EGLE was present at the meeting via Zoom, but technical difficulties prevented them from providing a clear response.

A town hall is scheduled to take place on Wednesday, Sept. 4 with the county and local officials to further discuss the transport.

WDET’s Jenny Sherman contributed to this report.

A family is suing a Wayne County judge after he ordered a teenager into jail clothes and handcuffs during a field trip at the courthouse.

Subscribe to the Detroit Evening Report on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

On a field trip with The Greening of Detroit Aug. 13, 15-year-old Eva Goodman was singled out by 36th District Court Judge Kenneth King for falling asleep and having what he considered a bad attitude, the Associated Press reported.

King had Goodman handcuffed, changed into jail clothes and threatened in front of her peers with juvenile detention. The family is accusing the judge of humiliation, false arrest and unlawful detention in the lawsuit filed on Wednesday, which seeks more than $75,000 in damages.

The lawsuit states that King’s actions were “extreme and outrageous and calculated for the purpose of inflicting fear and severe emotional distress.”

Goodman’s mother told reporters that her daughter was probably tired because they do not have a permanent residence.

King was removed from courtroom duties last week until he completes training. 

Reporting by Ed White, Associated Press

Other headlines for Thursday, Aug. 22, 2024:

• School starts next week for many districts, and Michigan State Police is reminding parents to check on the safety history of local school buses.
• The Episcopal Church of the Messiah will be hosting its third gun destruction event from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 24 at the church, 231 E. Grand Blvd., Detroit.
• The community group Avalon Village is accepting applications for “Hood Camp,” a unique camping experience designed to teach urban survival skills to kids ages 12-18.

Do you have a community story we should tell? Let us know in an email at detroiteveningreport@wdet.org.

The Detroit Water and Sewerage Department has received $90 million to accelerate its lead line replacement project.

Thanks to the funds, the city can now replace up to 8,000 lead service lines a year, both public and private.

Listen: Detroit water department receives $90M in grants to replace lead service lines

The acceleration is possible through state and federal dollars. The department received $75 million from the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes & Energy (EGLE) using the American Rescue Plan Act money, $10 million from the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund, and $5 million from the Environment Protection Agency.

DWSD is currently upgrading 20 neighborhoods, replacing over 200 lines per week. Director Gary Brown says the city is on track to have all lead lines replaced by the federal mandated deadline of 2035.

Brown estimates there are about 80,000 lines that still need to be replaced — and about 20,000 that have not yet been identified. You can learn more about the Lead Service Line Replacement Program at their official website.

Brown spoke to WDET about the water lines replacement process. Listen to the interview using the media player at the top.

Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan says while testing shows Detroit’s drinking water is safe, replacing the lines is a priority before the pipes begin to deteriorate and cause problems.

The city has replaced 9,500 lines since 2018 — 5,000 were replaced in 2024.

City officials and community stakeholders gathered in Rouge Park on Thursday to celebrate the newly revitalized Tireman-Minock Park in Detroit’s Warrendale/Cody Rouge neighborhood.

Subscribe to the Detroit Evening Report on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

Detroit City Councilman for District 7, Fred Durhal, said Thursday that the new park symbolizes something great: “Community ideas,” he said.

“When we go to these community meetings, folks talk about, ‘we need a place to recreate; we need a walking track so we can walk at least a mile; we want to have swing sets; we want to have playscapes for our children so they can stay active; we want a picnic place so we can congregate and even in the summertime hold some of our meetings here,'” Durhal said. “So what you see here today is indicative of that type of thought that you guys put out into the community that we take back to our public-private partnerships and bring all this into fruition.”

The park was funded as part of the city’s Strategic Neighborhood Fund initiative, with additional funding from the American Rescue Plan Act, Huntington Bank and the Gilbert Family Foundation.

The park sits on the former site of Dixon Elementary School on Detroit’s west side. Dr. Patricia Butler, community development manager for the Cody Rouge Community Action Agency, said at the park’s unveiling on Thursday that she has hoped the area would be revitalized ever since the day the school closed. 

“And when I saw the school going down I didn’t get discouraged, because I said when something comes down, something else is going to come up. And out of the ashes came this beautiful park,” said Butler.

The park, located within the bounds of the much larger Rouge Park, features a playground, picnic tables, picnic shelters, walkways, and fitness equipment.  

WDET’s Jenny Sherman contributed to this report.

Other headlines for Thursday, Aug. 8, 2024:

• Detroit Home Accessibility Program applications are now open for Detroit residents who need accessibility modifications made to their homes.
• The Detroit Regional LGBT Chamber of Commerce is conducting a survey to ask about the potential of developing an LGBTQ+ business district in metro Detroit.
• Metro Detroit is offering a mix of summer music events this weekend, including the annual Ribs and R&B festival at Hart Plaza; The Queens of R&B tour coming to Little Caesars Arena on Friday, headlined by groups Xscape and SWV; and The Lathrup Village Music Festival outside the Southfield Municipal Center, featuring Thornetta Davis, Stacey “Hotwaxx” Hale, Paul Hill and more. 

Do you have a community story we should tell? Let us know in an email at detroiteveningreport@wdet.org.

The Michigan Supreme Court said Monday its 2020 decision stopping local governments from keeping profits from the sale of foreclosed homes can be applied retroactively.

Subscribe to the Detroit Evening Report on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

The decision means anyone who lost their home due to unpaid taxes prior to 2020 — when the decision was made — could receive any money made by the county on the sale of their foreclosed home.

Previously, counties had been able to keep all money made from a foreclosure sale, even if the sale far exceeded the amount of unpaid property taxes.

Christina Martin, an attorney at the Pacific Legal Foundation who argued the case for former property owners, told the Associated Press that local governments were “essentially stealing from people.”

“It doesn’t matter if it’s going to be expensive to pay them back,” she said. “They have to pay them back.”

The Supreme Court in 2020 said the practice violated the Michigan Constitution.

Writing for the court, Justice Brian Zahra said the case “involves governmental violation of the constitutional rights of numerous individuals.”

He said “we are not without sympathy” toward communities that kept the surplus cash because state law had allowed it.

“Nonetheless, while the problem originated with the Legislature,” Zahra wrote, “at the foundation of our government is the precept that no state officer or local government can justify a constitutional violation on the basis of a statutory directive.”

The Michigan Municipal League, which represents local governments, says complying with the ruling could cost local governments hundreds of millions of dollars, and communities should not be penalized for following what was allowed under law. 

Associated Press reporter Ed White contributed to this report.

Other headlines for Tuesday, July 30, 2024:

• Leaders within the Asian American community are celebrating a $1 million investment into Detroit’s former Chinatown neighborhood.
• The Belle Isle Aquarium will have extended hours of operation during the month of August thanks to a $10,000 contribution from Comerica Bank.
• American Indian Health and Family Services is hosting a free traditional Native American powwow in Detroit this weekend, in collaboration with Wayne State University. 

Do you have a community story we should tell? Let us know in an email at detroiteveningreport@wdet.org.

A proposal to renew a millage for the Detroit Public Library will be on the August 6 ballot for Detroiters.

Subscribe to the Detroit Evening Report on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

Homeowners in the city currently pay $3.99 for every $1,000 of taxable property value.

If approved, Proposal L would not increase taxes — it would just renew the millage already passed in 2014. The renewal would last for the next 10 years.

Christopher Korenowsky, the chief operating officer for the Detroit Public Library, says about 85% of the library’s operating budget is funded by the millage.

“The vote is really the strongest majority we have of funding, to keep our 21 branches, to keep our mobile library van operating and of course, the historic Main Library in Downtown Detroit all fall under this operational vote,” he said.

Korenowsky said if the proposal doesn’t pass they would have to start shutting down branches.

Still, some voters say they oppose the millage because Proposal L would be subject to what’s known as “tax capture.” The phrase refers to a process where city government can take property taxes from one millage and use it to help pay for other projects.

The Detroit Public Library lost almost $4 million due to tax captures in 2023, and is expecting to surrender more next year. Some Detroiters say they’ll vote no on the library’s tax millage to prevent that from happening.

But if the new millage is approved, that wouldn’t be the case. The city’s Law Department determined in March 2023 that any library millages approved by voters after 2017 would be exempt from tax captures, unlocking an additional $3.2 million for the library in the next fiscal year, starting July 1.

Regardless, Russ Bellant, co-organizer for the group Detroiters For Tax Justice, says opposing Proposal L will do more harm than good.

“Proposal L gives you a very easy way to help perpetuate and supplement the educational capacity in our city. Which is in crisis,” he said. “One simple yes vote puts [a] whole lot on the plate for a lot of people in Detroit.”

Other headlines for Monday, July 29, 2024:

• Developers have broken ground on a new affordable housing project in Corktown.
• The Corktown Business Association launched a campaign last week to “Save the Bricks,” referring to the historic brick paving on Michigan Avenue between the Lodge Freeway and Rosa Parks Boulevard.
• The Detroit Water and Sewerage Department is launching a new payment plan today for customers with overdue bills who don’t qualify as low-income.

Do you have a community story we should tell? Let us know in an email at detroiteveningreport@wdet.org.

“We just literally would not have the funds to operate."

Christopher Korenowsky, Detroit Public Library C.O.O

The millage is expected to generate about 42 million dollars in the first year if it’s renewed. However, the Library won’t see that entire amount.

A Michigan law passed in 1975, and recodified in 2018, allows cities to skim money from property taxes to develop downtown areas.  The process is called ‘tax increment funding’ …otherwise known as ‘tax captures.’  City governments can collect money from millages on entities like schools, parks, and public libraires.

Russ Bellant is the co-organizer for the group Detroiters For Tax Justice.  He’s also a former member of the Detroit Library Commission. Bellant said residents vote to authorize property taxes, so those funds should only be used in the way that voters approved.

“A private state law allows local officials to take money largely unreported and do as they see fit with little notice to the public, you know its problematic,” Bellant said.

The Detroit Public Library reported it $3.9 million dollars in tax captures in 2023.

Korenowsky says while the institution could benefit from the eliminating tax captures, it’s still able to operate efficiently without that money. And thanks to the library’s budget team, the tax captures have not caught them off guard. They know how much is anticipate to be captured and make allowances for them.

Russ Bellant is against the practice, but he says voting no on Proposal L is NOT the best route to block tax captures and will do more harm than good.

“Proposal L gives you a very easy way to help perpetuate and supplement the educational capacity in our city. Which is in crisis,” Bellant said. “And anything that we take away reduced the future of the children of Detroit, and the people who need library services and culturally benefit from the services across the board.”

"One simple yes vote puts whole lot on the plate for a lot of people in Detroit."

Russ Bellant, Co-Organizer for Detroiters For Tax Justice.

Bellant advises voters to talk to city council about ending tax captures instead of eliminating tax millages all together.

Bellant said the benefits of the libraries far outwey the impact of the tax capture. The library often serves as a resource for civic services like heating and warming centers during extreme weather.  The library currently has a “laptop to go” program to help close the digital divide, and even provides a safe space for kids to go after school until their parents get off work.

Korenowsky added that public libraries help build strong neighborhoods, provide support for academic success, and help generate jobs in the communities they serve.

Prop L appears on the August 6^th primary election ballot in Detroit.

The man accused of killing Detroit synagogue leader Samantha Woll could face a new trial on two charges.

Subscribe to the Detroit Evening Report on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

Last week, a jury found Detroit resident Michael Jackson-Bolanos not guilty of first-degree murder and guilty of lying to police officers in relation to Woll’s brutal murder last fall. However, the jury was unable to reach a consensus on the felony murder and home invasion charges.

A pre-trial hearing was held Thursday before Wayne County Circuit Judge Margaret Van Houten, as prosecutors consider whether to re-try Jackson-Bolanos for the two outstanding charges.

Defense attorneys for Jackson-Bolanos filed a motion to dismiss the charges on Wednesday, and prosecutors requested time to review the motion during Thursday’s hearing.

“Given the court’s schedule and given the nature of the motion, it does deserve some time to give a response and for the court to do its own research as well,” Van Houten said during the hearing on Thursday.

The judge asked prosecutors to file a response to the motion by Aug. 2, with a hearing on the motion to dismiss set for 1:30 p.m. Aug. 9. Jackson-Bolanos will be sentenced for the lying to police officers count that same day.

Defense attorney Brian Brown asked Van Houten if she’d be willing to entertain bond for his client, which she declined. As a habitual offender, Jackson-Bolanos faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison for the lying to police officers conviction.

Defense lawyer Purna Krishnamoorthy launched a petition drive on Monday asking prosecutors to drop the remaining charges against her client and let him out of jail, which has amassed nearly 600 signatures as of Thursday afternoon.

WDET’s Jenny Sherman contributed to this report.

Other headlines for Thursday, July 25, 2024:

• Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed a bill this week that will prohibit criminal defense attorneys from using a victims sexual orientation or gender identity as a defense argument.
• Detroit Public Schools Community District is creating the Social Studies Student Think Tank to collect opinions on how the school system can create more representative course materials.  
• Detroit Soccer Group BlackStar is partnering with Detroit City Football Club to host a variety of on-field events for players ages 7-18 this weekend.
• Ethiopian food pop-up Konjo Me is hosting an immersive Ethiopian cooking class at Café Prince in Core City on August 3. 

Do you have a community story we should tell? Let us know in an email at detroiteveningreport@wdet.org.