Detroit’s Palmer Park has seen many improvements over the years, from renovated tennis and pickleball courts and a new dog park to a variety of habitat restoration projects.

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Home to the largest old-growth forest in the Tri-County area — and one of only seven forests in the city of Detroit — the protection of the park’s 70-acre Witherell Woods has been a key focus for community groups working to restore and maintain the park.

People for Palmer Park President Stacy Varner, and Bobbi Westerby — whose company Environmental Consulting & Technology is leading the park’s latest restoration efforts — joined The Metro on Thursday to discuss their goals and the importance of this public space.

Varner described the scenery in Palmer Park as “magical,” noting that there is work underway to make improvements to both the park’s trail system and natural areas. 

“Just like with any living thing, [the park] needs maintenance, it needs nurturing, it needs preserving,” Varner said. “That’s part of this effort, of the habitat restoration project that is going on in Palmer Park.”

Westerby says part of their restoration work will include removal of invasive species, like buckthorn, from Witherell Woods to help promote native growth.

“We don’t want to do a lot,” said Westerby of the forest restoration efforts. “We want to remove the stuff that’s not supposed to be there and let the things that are supposed to be there thrive.”

Use the media player above to hear the full interview with Varner and Westerby.

WDET’s Jenny Sherman contributed to this report.

Related: CuriosiD: Are the woods in Palmer Park a virgin forest?

More headlines from The Metro on Sept. 12, 2024:

• The city of Detroit and its fire department want to train all city employees in hands-only CPR. It’s already trained 100,000 residents on CPR and AED use – giving the city a “HeartSafe city” designation by a national preparedness program dedicated to improving outcomes from sudden cardiac arrest. To discuss their efforts and the importance of CPR/AED training, Detroit Fire Department Commissioner Chuck Simms and Medical Director Dr. Robert Dunne joined the show.
• Two University of Michigan professors have teamed up for an initiative aimed at increasing college-age voting called the Creative Campus Voting Project. They joined The Metro to discuss their efforts. 
• The Detroit Documenters recently attended a hearing by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy about possible changes to a permit for the Detroit Assembly Complex on Mack Avenue run by Stellantis. Residents are asking for the permit to be denied. To discuss what happened at the hearing, we were joined by Detroit Documenter Anna Harris and Coordinator Noah Kincade.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 11 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

Outlier Media has a new and improved text service aiming to help residents get answers to essential questions. 

Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Outlier Media Sarah Alvarez joined The Metro on Wednesday to discuss how the TXT Outlier service is helping address information gaps about housing, utilities, and other critical community issues. 

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

Alvarez says while traditional news outlets across various mediums provide an essential service to the community, “radio segments and news articles are not always the most useful way to get information to people.”

“…and they’re certainly not personalized enough for people who are in some kind of information crisis,” she said. “So what would it look like, I thought, for a news service to really try to fill information and accountability gaps, and what would it take to do that well?”

The service — first launched in 2016 — allows residents to text Outlier keywords for additional information on related topics; or to talk directly with a reporter about a specific issue they might be facing.

Detroiters can take advantage of the service by texting “Detroit” to 67485. For more information, visit outliermedia.org/txt-outlier.

Use the audio player above to hear the full interview with Sarah Alvarez, Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Outlier Media, at the 25:23 mark.

More headlines from The Metro on Sept. 11, 2024: 

• About a week ago, Gen Z Democratic Congressman Maxwell Frost toured Detroit and the state of Michigan to stump for Vice President Kamala Harris. During that time, Producer Sam Corey spoke with the Florida representative about the biggest concerns facing young people, and what will turn them out to vote in November.
• Pollution from trucks and factories — coupled with poverty — led the city to be named the third-worst place to live for people with asthma in a new report from the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America. Allergy expert and native Detroiter Dr. Garen Wolff joined the show to talk about the report’s findings and what Detroiters can do to improve their air quality.
• The Funky Ferndale Art Fair is taking place Sept. 20-22. Director of the fair Mark Loeb joined the show to talk about what makes it unique.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 11 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

The Gordie Howe International Bridge is expected to be complete in 2025.

The bridge is being built in Detroit’s Delray neighborhood in Southwest Detroit — a place where, for years, residents have faced issues associated with heavy industry. Now, residents are dealing with the challenges that come with the construction of a roughly $4.2 billion international bridge. 

Simone Sagovac, director of the Southwest Detroit Community Benefits Coalition, joined The Metro on Tuesday to help us understand the impact the bridge has had and will have on residents.

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In 2017, the group helped secure an almost $50 million benefits package for people living in the area. One of the overall issues people in the community face has to do with truck traffic, Sagovac says. During the coalition’s data gathering efforts, they counted 1,200 trucks driving on Livernois Street in one day.

“Something that wasn’t really anticipated was, you know, the scale of a development like this. It is the largest infrastructure project that both countries have had in 100 years and it’s 165-plus acres,” Sagovac said. “And when they’re in the thick of construction, and there’s no grass, and no trees covering that dirt – the dust has been a huge problem for the community. People have chronic sinus conditions. Asthma accelerated in the area. And the project is trying to do things with street sweeping but the dirt gets carried on the trucks and these trucks are allowed to drive on residential streets.” 

Use the media player above to hear the full interview with Simone Sagovac, director of the Southwest Detroit Community Benefits Coalition.

More headlines from The Metro on Sept. 10, 2024: 

• The Detroit area is home to one of the largest groups of people with sickle cell disease in the country. The painful disease is caused by an inherited genetic mutation and most of the people who have it are Black. For decades, there weren’t many treatment options for the disease outside of pain medication. But in recent years, new medical technologies have helped alleviate and even cure sickle cell disease. Larenz Caldwell, a sickle cell patient who underwent a stem cell transplant six years ago; and Outlier Media Science Reporter Koby Levin joined the show to discuss. 
• The Detroit Fiber Club is hosting an immersive exhibit showcasing environmental- and fiber-based art at the Boyer Campbell Building in Milwaukee Junction through Sept. 28, as part of the Detroit Month of Design. To discuss the exhibit, we were joined by Co-Curators Sarah Rose and Lisa Waud, and Detroit Fiber Club Managing Director Meg Morley.
• Detroit Artist LeKela Brown is kicking off the College for Creative Studies’ Woodward Lecture Series. The CCS graduated joined The Metro to talk about her work and her first solo-presentation, “From Scratch: Seeding Adornment,” currently on display at the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 11 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

There are a lot of great eats around Detroit. But there’s one food that rises above the rest.  

Detroit is known for its iconic square pizzas. Whether it’s Supino’s, Buddy’s, Pie Sci or Amar, there are many great choices.  

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But one spot in the metro Detroit area got a lot of recognition recently. Loui’s Pizza in Hazel Park was recently named No. 1 on Yelp’s Top 100 Midwest Pizzas.

To discuss what makes Loui’s so great, we’re joined by owner Nyk Sulkiwskyj. 

Sulkiwskyj says his grandfather started Loui’s and has had his hands in shaping Detroit’s pizza history. He immigrated from France to West Virginia, worked as a mason and bricklayer, before getting a call from his grandmother’s uncle who was running Buddy’s Pizza at the time. 

“So my grandma, grandfather just came on over to Michigan and dropped everything to help out. So from there, my grandfather worked up to kitchen manager, lead pizza cook, stuff like that, and eventually moved on from Buddy’s Pizza, started Shield’s Pizzeria, and then from there started Loui’s Pizza.”

Loui’s puts great care into ingredients and how their pizzas are crafted, Sulkiwskyj said. 

“What makes the Loui’s pizza so great is our attention to detail. We don’t skimp around any technical processes,” Sulkiwskyj said. “Everything is done by hand. It’s an art form.”

Use the media player above to hear the full interview with Sulkiwskyj.

More headlines from The Metro on Sept. 9, 2024: 

• Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has helped Democrats through several legislative accomplishments over the last few years, but she hasn’t been able to get everything done that she said she would while campaigning for office. ProPublica reporter Anna Clark joined the show to discuss what Whitmer’s still got left on her agenda and how likely she is to pass certain policies.
• At the end of last month, Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan created the city’s first Entrepreneurship and Economic Opportunity department. We spoke with the Director Justin Owenu about what kinds of plans he has in store to create more job opportunities for city residents. 
• For its third year, If the River Could Sing: A Celebration of Writing and River with InsideOut is happening at Robert C. Valade Park in Detroit on Sept. 12. The evening will culminate with a sunset showcase of music and poetry. The program’s MC and Executive Director of InsideOut Literary Arts Suma Rosen joined The Metro to discuss the event.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 11 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

Like everyone else who is eligible to vote, young people matter in politics. But the difference between young people and everyone else is that they turn out to vote in much lower numbers.  

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That’s true for almost every generation of young Americans. But that doesn’t mean politicians don’t try to get them to the polls anyway.  

Kamala Harris’ campaign is working hard to get young people to vote in higher numbers during this presidential election. That’s why Florida Congressman Maxwell Frost and Detroit City Council President Mary Sheffield are meeting with voters at a Detroit Cafe on Friday.

To talk more about local efforts to turn out young people for Harris, and how young Detroiters feel about the Democratic presidential ticket, BridgeDetroit reporter Malachi Barrett joined The Metro. 

Use the media player above to listen to the interview with Barrett.

More headlines from The Metro on Aug. 30, 2024:

• Detroit Documenter Meghan Rutigliano and Coordinator Noah Kincade joined the show to give us a better sense of Detroit’s Board of Zoning Appeals and its member training session that took place on Aug. 26. 
• The Carbon Athletic Club is one of those places in Detroit that makes you wish the walls could talk. The members-only club has nearly 80 years of history. WDET’s Jack Filbrandt bellied up to the bar with Club President MaryBeth Beaudry to discuss the history they’re preserving and the service they provide the community today.  
• A collective of social justice organizations have teamed up to create a space for art and justice to thrive in Detroit. Kwaku Osei, executive director of the LOVE Building, joined the show to discuss its mission.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 11 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

When relying on clean sources of energy, like the sun and the wind, we need a way to store that energy for later use.

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That’s where battery technology comes into play. Batteries are used to store and transfer energy from solar panels and wind turbines. The problem with batteries is they’re expensive and can be dangerous. In some cases, people have died in explosions involving batteries in electric bikes.

UL Solutions hopes to change that. The global safety science company recently opened a new $100 million safety lab in Auburn Hills to conduct comprehensive testing on electric vehicle batteries.

To discuss the new facility and how battery technology works, Vice president and General Manager of Energy and Industrial Automation Milan Dotlich and Senior Vice President of Communications Kathy Fieweger joined The Metro.

Use the media player above to listen to the interview with Dotlich and Fieweger.

More headlines from The Metro on Aug. 29, 2024: 

• WDET’s comedy showcase “What’s so Funny about Detroit?” takes place at the Old Miami tonight! We’ll talk about the event, and some of the most interesting comedians in town with WDET’s Ryan Patrick Hooper.
• Lots of music events are taking place this Labor Day weekend, including the Detroit Jazz Festival. Chris Collins, president of the Detroit Jazz Festival Foundation, joined The Metro to share details about this year’s event.
• The Hamtramck Labor Day Festival is also happening this weekend. To discuss the festival, we were joined by WDET’s Mike Latulippe and festival organizer John Szymanski, whose band The Hentchmen are playing at the festival with Jack White on Monday.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 11 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

Over the past few years, the number of 911 calls involving individuals struggling with mental illness has increased in Detroit.  

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The number of mental health care workers responding to those calls has increased, as well. Those mental health care responders more frequently enter crisis situations along with police officers in Detroit and around the state. But there are also officials who respond to those situations without police officers at all.  

The Detroit Wayne Integrated Health Network (DWIHN) established a mobile crisis service last year to provide immediate care to people in need of help. Today, the organization is operating its mobile crisis service 24 hours a day, seven days a week.  

To discuss this, DWIHN’s Mobile Crisis Director JaKeya Kellom and Public Affairs Manager Michael McElrath joined The Metro on Wednesday. Kellom says calls to DWIHN’s crisis services have increased from 30 in December to 141 in the month of July.

“I think sometimes when you see an increase in numbers you may think, ‘well is that a good thing, is that a bad thing?’ But for us it’s a good thing because that lets us know there are individuals learning how to use our service, and knowing that it’s available,” Kellom said.

Use the media player above to listen to the full interview with Kellom and McElrath.

More headlines from The Metro on Aug. 28, 2024: 

• Only 45% of Michigan’s Class of 2024 seniors completed the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form, according to the Michigan FAFSA Tracker. Jill Marecki, director of the nonprofit Detroit Regional Dollars for Scholars, joined the show to discuss the organization’s scholarship program and an award from the Educational Credit Management Corporation to help students sign up for FAFSA.
• For football fans, it’s an exciting time as we’re getting closer to the kickoff of the NFL season. So close in fact, NFL teams just made their final roster decisions on Tuesday. Justin Rogers, founder of the Detroit Football Network joined The Metro to discuss what we can expect this season.
• Detroit’s District 7 City Council Member Fred Durhal joined the show to discuss the recent opening of the new Tireman-Minock Park, as well as the Motor City Match program to help local entrepreneurs.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 11 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

A new documentary from the ESPN series E:60 called “28 Outs: An Imperfect Story” is revisiting Detroit Tigers Pitcher Armando Galarraga’s near-perfect game.  

On June 2, 2010, Galarraga was pitching for the Tigers against Cleveland. Galarraga started the season with the Triple-A Toledo Mud Hens and was called up to Detroit the day before. One out away from a perfect game, a blown call created a very different moment.

To help us revisit the game, Cody Stavenhagen joins The Metro. Stavenhagen is a staff writer covering the Tigers and Major League Baseball for The Athletic. 

University of New Mexico Professor Larry Jones also joins the show. He taught a Law and Society class at Monmouth University in 2021 that took a deep dive into the game. At the end of the semester, the class submitted an 80 page document to the MLB, making the case to give Galarraga a perfect game.

More headlines from The Metro on August 26: 

• The new owners of Florian East Chris Burtley and Shang Kong join the show. The brewery wants to immerse itself in the culture of Hamtramck. Florian East will serve coffee and non-alcoholic beverages during weekend mornings, screen soccer games and host food pop-ups.
• International Overdose Awareness Day is Aug. 31. Dr. Andy King is the medical director for the Michigan Poison & Drug Information Center and the director of the Tolan Park Research Clinic. He joins the show to help us better understand addiction and treatment.
• There’s been many studies on hallucinogenic drugs and their potential benefits to treat mental health disorders. Dr. Cassius Drake is the founder of The Drake Center for Transformative Healing in Franklin, Michigan. He joins the show to discuss how ketamine, administered in a medical setting, is helping some people treat depression, anxiety and PTSD.

Detroit Month of Design is celebrating its 14th annual showcase of immersive design.  

In this case, the word “design” is meant to be used in the broadest sense — we’re talking fashion, mobility and technology. More than 100 events will take place across the city in September, which will include tours and workshops.  

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 11 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

The showcase will be hosted by Design Core Detroit, an organization that supports design-driven businesses to help grow Detroit’s economy. 

Kiana Wenzell, co-executive director of Design Core Detroit, and Detroit photographer Elonte Davis joined The Metro on Friday to discuss Detroit Month of Design and what attendees can expect.

“Design Core Detroit is about growth, growing the creatives that are here. We want to see Elonte and his business grow. We’re about attraction. We want to attract more talent, creative talent and visitors to our city using platforms like the festival to do that,” Wenzell said. “And we want to retain talent. We don’t want Elonte to move, we love him. We want to see him thrive and survive in our city. So the festival is about connecting creatives with each other, helping to introduce them to new audiences and opportunities, and highlighting the reason why Detroit was designated by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.”

Use the media player above to listen to the full interview with Wenzell and Davis.

More headlines from The Metro on Aug. 23, 2024:

• Detroit’s North End neighborhood is filled with history and community — a lot of it due to the work of the Vanguard Community Development Corporation. The group is celebrating its 30th anniversary with a party on Sept. 7. at The Henry Ford Health Detroit Piston’s Performance Center. Vanguard Chairwoman Leslie Graham Andrews joined the show to discuss the organization’s work.
• A new report on children from the Michigan League for Public Policy revealed a mixed bag when it comes to measures of child well-being. To discuss the report’s findings, Michigan League for Public Policy President and CEO Monique Stanton joined the show.
• Outlier Media Civic Life Reporter Laura Herberg and Detroit Documenters Coordinator Noah Kincade joined the show as part of The Metro‘s Detroit Documenters public meetings roundup each Friday.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 11 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

There is a new cohort of Detroit students who can now say that they’ve not only gone out of the country, but traveled all the way to Ghana on the continent of Africa for a cultural immersion experience.  

The trip was the grand prize to students in the Umoja Debate League that won the middle and high school debate tournaments in early summer. Students had the opportunity to explore the country and celebrate the similarities and differences they share with Ghanian youth — and even debate them on salient issues.  

Umoja Debate League is a nonprofit that works with Detroit schools to bring debate programming to students.  

Joining us on The Metro to share their experience was founder and executive director of the Umoja Debate League, Jerjuan Howard; student debate champ and recent graduate of Henry Ford High School Taureen Mitchell-Campbell, and eighth grader at Bates Academy Raeghan Stinson.

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“We believe that education is multifaceted, and we wanted to make sure that the award wasn’t just a trophy, but an experience — something they can take with them for the rest of their lives,” Howard said. 

Stinson shared that the kids who went on the trip made close friends and gained so much from a connection with a different culture. They brought Detroit with them and shared what their lived experiences in the city are. 

“We were basically telling them, how it was, like, really developed over here,” Stinson says. “So if you were to come over here, it wouldn’t be anything like here. And the thing is, over there, everything’s natural. I think that was why I was glowing.”

Connecting with Ghanian students made it much harder to say goodbye, Mitchell-Campbell admits. 

“You could feel all the love. Like it was just everybody was interested. It was just so many questions that we all had to ask each other,” Mitchell-Campbell said. “We were staying at a hotel at the time, and we had to go to another school to debate and interact with them. They couldn’t get us back on the bus…it was a very hard time.”

More headlines from The Metro for Aug. 22, 2024:

• In a recent article in the Detroit Free Press, author and journalist Tracie McMillan explores the story of Ferndale’s segregated schools and how her own personal story fits into it. She joins The Metro to discuss how her parents’ decisions impacted her own life outcomes and the ways that are woven into a broader story about American inequality.  
• Earlier this week, we spoke with the head of the Small Business Association, Brian Calley, about why some businesses oppose the decision. And now we turn to an advocate of paid sick leave. Founding director of Mothering Justice Danielle Atkinson joins the show. The nonprofit works to empower mothers of color and she’s been a big advocate for paid sick leave.
• This year’s Democratic National Convention is currently taking place in Chicago. WDET reporter Russ McNamara is at the convention checked in with The Metro to give his impressions of the DNC so far.

It’s that time of year again — back to school. Teachers are getting their classrooms ready and kids are soaking up the last days of summer vacation.

The Detroit Regional Dollars for Scholars is a nonprofit that helps students from around southeast Michigan prepare for life after high school. 

Kelli McCloud is a liaison for Dollars for Scholars and works at Utica Community Schools supporting a group of sophomores, juniors and seniors. She joins The Metro on Tuesday to talk about getting high schoolers ready for the next chapter of their lives.

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McCloud says Dollars for Scholars helps students overcome barriers that prevent them from education opportunities beyond high school.

“Students are able to apply to get into this program, and this program gives them the opportunity to get SAT prep, which we all know the SAT,” McCloud said. “As much as we don’t want that score to mean everything, it means a lot when it comes to college money. And then it gives them opportunities to be able to go on campus tours, so just kind of opens up to all the different colleges that are out there. And then at the end of the program they get $4,000. So that’s one of the biggest stresses: money.”

Use the media player above to hear the full interview with McCloud.

More headlines from The Metro on Aug. 20, 2024: 

• It’s the Detroit Public Theatre’s 10th Season! The organization produces nationally recognized plays from world-class writers, directors, actors and designers – all in the Midtown Detroit Neighborhood. Co-founder and Artistic Director of Detroit Public Theater  Courtney Burkett joined the show to preview the theatre’s upcoming season.
• Oakland County Parks is hosting its final Diverse-Ability Day event of the summer from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 22 WDET’s Sydney Waelchli spoke with Oakland County Parks and Recreation Supervisor Sandy Dorey on adaptive outdoor activities at the event and how they’re trying to make parks more inclusive.
• Last month, the Michigan Supreme Court made a pivotal ruling that will increase the minimum wage and require businesses to provide paid sick leave to their employees. President and CEO of the Small Business Association of Michigan Brian Calley joined the show to discuss the ruling. He says that paid sick leave makes life harder for both business owners and workers. 

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 11 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

Communities across metro Detroit host a variety of events to engage residents throughout the year. Another one of those celebrations is happening this weekend with the Hazel Park Art Fair.

The work from over 100 artists will be on display and for sale.  

Like previous years, there will be a host of family-friendly activities, with a few stops for beer lovers in attendance as well.  

Lily Ristau, secretary of the Hazel Park Arts Council, joined The Metro on Monday to share more about this year’s Hazel Park Art Fair.

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

Ristau says the event is “truly a labor of love.”

“We’re all volunteers who put it on because we just love the community and want to see, you know, the artists in our community shine and also giving Hazel Parkers and the surrounding area, you know, just a fun, free, family-friendly event this weekend,” she said. “We have art in all of its forms, which I think is so fun.” 

The Hazel Park Art Fair is taking place from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 24, and from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 25, in Green Acres Park, Hazel Park. For more information visit hpart.org.

Use the media player above to hear the full interview with Ristau.

More headlines from The Metro on Aug. 19, 2024:

• The city of Detroit announced Friday efforts to improve public transit with construction underway at the Coolidge Terminal. To discuss the construction that’s happening and the city’s plan for that project, Interim Director of the Detroit Department of Transportation Michael Staley joined the show.
• Michigan does not have enough housing. In fact, 41% of Michigan local officials report a shortage of single-family homes in their communities – up by 23% since 2017, according to a University of Michigan report. And now some have been trying to solve the problem. On Mackinac Island this past summer, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said she wanted to build or rehab 115,000 housing units by 2026. And in the spring, the Michigan State Housing Development Authority was granted the ability to use state funds to increase housing. On the latest episode of MichMash, Alethia Kasben and Zach Gorchow sat down with the agency’s director Amy Hovey to learn more.
• It’s a presidential election year and that means it’s another opportunity for candidates to stump for their positions and to make the case for what kind of society they want to create. The Metro has been talking with both liberals and conservatives from around the tri-county area to better understand the issues they feel are most pressing to residents. Producer Sam Corey sat down with Head of the Oakland County GOP Vance Patrick to discuss issues on voters’ minds.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 11 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

Southeast Michigan’s politics have changed a lot in recent decades.  

Oakland County has turned more Democrat, while Macomb has become more solidly Republican.  

But none of the tri-county area is guaranteed for either party — that’s even true of Wayne County. While Detroit is more difficult to win, Republicans have a better shot at organizing votes around Downriver communities and the more northern suburbs.  

So, what are state Republicans doing right now to win over voters in Wayne County? And is there a plan to persuade and turn out moderate voters?  

To discuss this, we’re joined by Vice Chair of the Michigan Republican Party Hassan Nehme. He says many Republican voters are hesitant to share and have conversations around their political beliefs.

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“There’s so many people that are Republican, but like undercover. I mean, we need to have this discussion out in the open and be able to talk to move our country forward,” Nehme said. “So we need to make it okay for them to speak.”

Nehme is seeing less of an allegiance to political parties.  

“It’s not because the Republican[s] and Democrat[s] fight anymore. I’ll say personally, mine is religious liberties,” Nehme shared. “But a lot of people — especially of color groups, minority groups, different faiths — are jumping into the Republican Party for these issues. Not so much the overall…the jacket term per se.”

More headlines from The Metro for Aug. 12, 2024: 

• Campus Martius Park was recently named the number one public space in the country by USA Today. The space holds some of Detroit’s largest events, like the tree lighting ceremony, free live concerts and movie nights. Party in the Park returns to Campus Martius on Thursday from 6:30-9 p.m. To talk more about the outdoor party and the gem that’s Campus Martius, Director of Corporate Partnerships for the Downtown Detroit Partnership, Soula Burns, joined the show. 
• CuriosID: WDET reporter Amanda LeClaire investigated the history of the Belle Isle Boathouse and how it fell into disrepair. Earlier this year, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources announced plans to demolish the building due to limited funding. But there’s been a valiant attempt to save it. State officials have placed an open call for proposals to rehabilitate the building. Those proposals are currently being evaluated by the DNR.
• MichMash: In the latest episode of MichMash, WDET’s Cheyna Roth and Gongwer’s Alethia Kasben talked about the state of weed in Michigan. Local governments have brought in millions in tax revenue and marijuana might be rescheduled on a federal level. 
• Created Equal: Host Stephen Henderson recently spoke with Ali Vitali, an NBC News’ correspondent and author of “Electable: Why America Hasn’t Put a Woman in the White House… Yet.” The Democratic Party has rallied behind its second female presidential candidate ever, Vice President Kamala Harris. They discuss how big of a moment this is for women in politics and what Michigan can tell us about America’s readiness to elect a woman to the presidency.

A new project is combining sounds and storytelling – rooted in Detroit’s parks and neighborhoods. 

The Joyce Foundation, in collaboration with the Detroit Parks Coalition, gave Detroit saxophonist Marcus Elliot a grant to curate Sounds from the Park. It’s a project meant to use music to tell stories about Detroit’s parks and neighborhoods.  

Elliot — who is also an instructor of jazz saxophone at Wayne State University and the director of the Creative Arts Orchestra at the University of Michigan — joined The Metro on Tuesday to tell us more about his new initiative. We were also joined by Ian Solomon, community engagement manager from the Detroit Parks Coalition.

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

Elliot has been tasked with creating musical works that connect to physical spaces in the city. The goal is to have music composed with intentionality about the park, and then allow people to experience the music from within the park.   

Solomon says arts and culture plays an important role in thriving parks and communities.

“The Detroit Parks Coalition, we’re a diverse group of park leaders, community stewards, and we’re working towards supporting healthy, equitable and vibrant parks in the city. And so we understand the role of not only programming, but arts and culture in achieving that mission,” Solomon said. “And so having this money to have Marcus not only visit these parks, but engage with them deeply, and kind of get this creative snapshot of the parks where they are now, and then offer it to people so they can come to these parks and there’s this accessible, beautiful music.”

While many Detroit parks share common characteristics, Elliot says he seeks to find and highlight what makes each park unique through the music. 

“There’s five different parks that I’m going to be kind of focusing on. And the themes that I’m going to be celebrating are really things that we see in all parks, but that certain parks may highlight a little bit more than others,” Elliot said. “So, you know, ideas of like joy, or community, or beauty. These are all elements that all of our parks have. But as I get to know these parks, I’m going to see just kind of which one of those elements speak more to me in those places.”

Use the media player above to hear to the full interview with Elliot and Solomon.

More headlines from The Metro on Aug. 6, 2024:

• Is now a good time to buy or lease an electric vehicle? Deputy Editor of Technology and Innovation for Automotive News Hannah Lutz joined the show to discuss the pros, cons, and the electric vehicle market.  
• Also on the show, we spoke with Region 1 Director for the United Auto Workers LaShawn English. The UAW endorsed Kamala Harris and we’ll discuss what the union hopes is on her agenda if she’s elected in November.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 11 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

The rich history of Chinatown in Detroit is often lost on those who aren’t old enough to remember.

The first Chinese immigrants began arriving in the late 1800s and by the 1930s, Detroit’s Chinatown was created just west of Downtown. Urban renewal forced the Chinatown to relocate to the corner of Peterboro and Cass. 

State Sen. Stephanie Chang (D-Detroit) held a press conference on Monday to praise the $1 million in funding allocated in the Fiscal Year 2025 state budget for the nonprofit, Midtown Detroit, Inc., to revitalize the old Chinatown neighborhood. 

Interim Executive Director of Midtown Detroit, Inc. Maureen Stapleton and Board Member of the Association of Chinese Americans Richard Mui joined The Metro to discuss the organization’s restoration efforts.

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

Stapleton said she has many memories of House of Chung’s, a restaurant and important institution in the community.  

“House of Chung’s was one of my favorite places to go. My family, we would get dressed up and we would go down and it was a vibrant area, even in the ’70s and the ’80s,” Stapleton said. “And so we at Midtown Detroit, Inc. – understanding the need to ensure culture, but to show a diverse culture, we’re very excited to work with some community developers, and others, and Senator Chang, to ensure that we could begin to replace or redo some of the things that have been taken away over the years to ensure that the Chinese heritage continues on in our city.”

Mui says preserving historic cultural spaces is important. 

“I’m standing outside of Chung’s restaurant right now. Just looking at the changes, it’s remarkable,” he said. “You know, driving up and down Cass you see it changing.  So yeah, definitely I can see that as [a] beacon, I can see that as an attraction. I was just in Philadelphia for our national conference and they’re working to preserve that Chinatown because they’re trying to build an arena on the edges there. And I think it’s, you know, I think there’s a demand for it and it’s just a matter of kind of getting the seeds going and growing it.”

Use the media player above to hear the full interview with Stapleton and Mui.

More headlines from The Metro on July 29, 2024:

• This month, the Milliken v. Bradley U.S. Supreme Court ruling turns 50 years old. It overturned a district judge’s ruling that would have desegregated Detroit’s schools by bussing students from the suburbs into the city and vice versa. Guest host Robyn Vincent reported on a story for Chalkbeat Detroit that looks back on that case and its impacts on us today. Detroit historian and journalist Ken Coleman joined the show to discuss the historical threads that led to the case. 
• On the latest episode of MichMash, host Cheyna Roth and Gongwer News Service’s Alethia Kasben sat down with former Democratic state Rep. Adam Zemke to discuss who Kamala Harris might pick for her vice president candidate.
• In 2023, Detroit opened a new office devoted to urban agriculture. The city believes gardeners are on the front lines of many things like rehabilitating soil often soaked in toxins from old auto plants, removing blight, or simply creating positive social interactions by rooting oneself in the food they grow. Patrice Brown recently became associate director for Detroit’s Office of Urban Agriculture. She joined the show to discuss how the office will continue to support green initiatives in the city.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 11 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

Detroit City Council is going on recess from July 31 to September, but that doesn’t mean all local government meetings will stop in and around Detroit.

WDET’s newsroom partner Detroit Documenters report on many public government meetings in southeast Michigan. And now, we’re starting a new project with the Documenters.

Each Friday, we’ll be joined by members of the team to discuss not only what’s happening at government meetings, but also how you can be civically engaged with Detroit and its suburbs.

Detroit Documenter coordinators Lynelle Herndon and Noah Kincade joined The Metro this week to discuss their work and a recent SMART transit meeting they covered.

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

Detroit Documenters are a collective of more than 500 southeast Michigan residents who are trained and paid to take notes on local government meetings. These notes are shared with the public to keep an open record of what happens at these meetings. 

“So anyone in Detroit or the surrounding area can be a Detroit Documenter. Documenters come from maybe up to 45 minutes to an hour outside of the city,” Herndon said. “Just live, love, work in the city of Detroit. You need to be 16 years or older and know how to read, write and navigate the internet and then we’ll train you to do the rest.”

Documenters covered the SMART Board of Directors meeting on Thursday. SMART bus operators have been working without a contract since January 2023. 

At the meeting, Kincade spoke with the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1564 President Kevin Colon, the union representing SMART operators. He told Kincade that contract negotiations are in a fact finding stage.    

“To come to an agreement, both sides kind of make their best offers and then a mediator tries to figure out what the best deal is for both sides,” Kincade said.  

It’s unclear when a contract will be reached, and Kincade says SMART operators have little leverage in negotiations as they can’t go on strike as government workers.

“It sounds like they may have come to kind of agreeable terms on their pay, but it’s really, the operators have been stripped from a retirement plan. So if you came in right now as a new driver, you’re not going to have any kind of retirement plan,” Kincade said.

A driver shortage is also having an impact on riders. Kincade spoke with Transit Riders United Engagement Specialist Lukas Lasecki. TRU is an organization working to improve transit in the region. Lasecki was in attendance to represent people who use the transit system. 

“The drivers, they’re working without a contract. And between that and the low pay that they’ve been given, it makes it difficult to attract new drivers. And SMART is short close to 100 drivers which is having major impacts on service reliability,” Lasecki said. “If two drivers call off sick, they start canceling buses. And that’s a daily occurrence in Oakland County. It’s not, it’s not sustainable and it’s leaving us bus riders stranded all the time.”

Want to become a Detroit Documenter? The next training session is on Aug. 1. You can find information on many public meetings at detroit.documenters.org.  

Use the media player above to hear the full interview with Herndon and Kincade.

More headlines from The Metro on July 26, 2024: 

• Today marks the 34th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which aims to end discrimination against people with disabilities. CurbCutOS CEO Mark Pound and Accessibility Support Engineer Al Puzzuoli joined the show to talk about technology’s slow adoption of ADA requirements. 
• Some of Detroit’s neighborhood names have a long history, like Corktown — Detroit’s oldest neighborhood. Others come from nearby landmarks, but changes in the city sometimes cause the original context to no longer make sense. Alex Hill, a local researcher, cartographer and founder of Detroitography.com, joined The Metro to discuss the many neighborhood names of Detroit.
• The Detroit Film Theatre inside of the Detroit Institute of Arts is celebrating its 50th year at the museum. WDET’s Ryan Patrick Hooper caught up with longtime director Eliott Wilhelm to find out what’s screening.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 11 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.

How do you raise young men with healthy masculinity? It’s something author Ruth Whippman explores in her new book, “Boymom: Reimagining Boyhood in the age of impossible masculinity.” 

According to the book, men today often feel they are without solutions for how to act in a range of situations, partly because parents and teachers don’t know what it means to raise boys who are balanced, confident and embrace their masculinity in a healthy way.

Whippman joined The Metro on Thursday to discuss how to address sexism perpetuated by boys and men. She also spoke about how society can create a more positive view of masculinity. 

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

“What I didn’t realize, and I found out while researching this book, was that a baby boy is born with his brain actually about a month behind baby girls’ in terms of right brain development. So that’s the part which deals with emotions, and emotional self regulation, and attachment and relationships,” Whippman said. “So baby girls are born a little bit more mature, a little bit more resilient and independent. Whereas boys need a little bit more support with those things. But because of the way that we think about boys, and we raise them, we actually do the complete opposite with them. They kind of need more of that kind of care, but we tend to see them as boys, as tough and sturdy and robust.” 

Positive male role models and healthy masculinity themes are difficult to find in the media, Whippman said. 

“Girls see so much content, which is all about emotions, and relationships,” Whippman said. “And I know this from having boys, if you just let the Netflix algorithm do its thing for a young boy and you don’t intervene, all they see is stories in which you know, there’s a hero, there’s a villain, a good guy and a bad guy, there’s a battle, someone dies and someone’s crowned a hero. So there’s none of that like relationship stuff, that like how you deal with real human beings, how you track somebody else’s emotions.” 

Use the media player above to hear the full interview with Whippman.

More headlines from The Metro on July 25, 2024:

• One of the ways cities create more land opportunities for housing is through downzoning. Detroit City Council is working through this process now, changing the zoning of areas to prevent future heavy industry from impacting residents. Council Member Scott Benson joined the show to share more about the process.
• Boxing is one of the oldest contests in the summer Olympic Games. And just like Motown and its musical artists, Detroit has produced some of the world’s greatest in the sport. Many came through Emanuel Steward’s Kronk Boxing Gym. To discuss the impact of Kronk on Detroit and the sport, former professional boxer Tarick Salmaci and Kronk Chief Operating Officer John Lepak joined The Metro.
• Detroit’s Lexus Velodrome has had a hand in supporting the training of track cycling Olympian and Canadian Dylan Bibic. Executive Director of the Lexus Velodrome, Dale Hughes, joined the show to discuss the sports complex and what they offer the community.

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 11 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on-demand.