An increase in Michigan’s minimum wage and required sick leave is set to take effect in February. This week on MichMash, host Cheyna Roth and Gongwer News Service’s Zach Gorchow sit down with Chris White, Michigan director of the Restaurant Opportunities Center; and Justin Winslow, president and CEO of the Michigan Restaurant and Lodging Association; to share their positions on the new law.
How the new minimum wage law will affect employees and businesses
How 9/11 influenced the Restaurant Opportunities Center
Concerns the Michigan Restaurant and Lodging Association has with the rate of increase
Following the recent Michigan Supreme Court ruling connected to the state’s new minimum wage and sick leave laws, the legislation is slated to take effect early next year.
Michigan’s $10.33 minimum wage will climb above $12 by February 2025 — and to $15 an hour by 2029. Additionally, the law will require all Michigan employers to offer up to 72 hours of paid sick leave per year to their employees, and end the tip credit system.
White says the law changes are necessary for progress.
“They don’t make enough money. They are essential workers. The cost of living is going up, so wages should go up with that cost of living,” he said.
However, not all Michigan residents and business owners agree that the changes will be beneficial to the state, and especially for small businesses.
“I think the rate and the speed by which we increase the minimum wage is important to the industry, like it would be any small business operator,” Winslow said. “But for the restaurant industry specifically, the tip credit really means life or death for a lot of folks; service, restaurants, dine-in restaurants.”
Stakeholders are now urging the Legislature to amend the laws set to take effect in February.
This week, we’re highlighting local makers and spaces, from Friday the 13th concerts to exclusive dining experiences.
But we’re also highlighting something else — community.
We know how to bring you the news that matters, the music you love and the events that you’ll add to your calendar because here at WDET, we’re in this community right alongside you. We’re out there in the heat of Movement and in the chill of the tree lighting. We’re tailgating at Eastern Market and perusing the DIA. We’re always out there with you, and now we’re asking you to be there for us.
As we begin our fall fundraiser, we need your support to keep the station strong. Consider how many concerts you’ve found out about from WDET, how many driveway moments you had when you just couldn’t turn off the radio yet, how many new things you learned from us that you had to share with someone else. What is that worth to you?
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On Friday, Sep. 13, four iconic acts from Michigan’s noise and punk scene are coming together for Beautiful Noise at the Ypsilanti Freighthouse. This immersive concert takes guests on a journey through the past, present and future, featuring live projections and music by Monster Island, Infinite River, Dr. Pete Larson and WDET’s own Liz Warner (host of Alternate Take, Thursdays at 8 p.m.). Doors open at 6 p.m. and the show starts at 7 p.m. All ages are welcome and tickets are pay-what-you-wish starting at $5. For more information, visit ums.org.
Then, head over to Ziggy’s for a Friday the 13th concert featuring music by Wolf Eyes and Twig Harper, and an inner critic hierarchy purge led by Sara Tea. The show starts at 9 p.m., tickets are available exclusively online for $20 and the event is 18+. For more information, visit their Eventbrite page.
Peruse local excellence
The Black Food & Wine Experience makes its Detroit debut on Thursday, Sep. 12 through Saturday, Sep. 14. This stop on the multi-city tour features three ticketed downtown events that showcase and celebrate Black excellence and the rich heritage featured in food, wine and cocktails inspired by African Diaspora. To see the full lineup and learn more, visit blackfoodwineexperience.com.
Also this weekend is E. Warrenfest, which returns to the community on Saturday, Sep. 14. This annual event features over 50 vendors, food trucks, a beer garden, an Eastside bike ride, a kids zone and live music from Alice King, Mic Phelps, Cye Pie and Sounds Like Detroit Winner Drey Skokie & The kLOUDs. Festivities go from 4-9 p.m. on E. Warren between 3 Mile and Grayton. For more information, visit their Facebook page.
Eastern Market After Dark returns for its 12th year on Thursday, Sep. 19 from 6-11 p.m. As a signature event of the Detroit Month of Design, this highly-anticipated festival showcases a wide range of talented artists, businesses, organizations and musicians. Visitors will be treated to a district-wide night market and open studios featuring galleries, retailers, brand activations and live music. This event is free and open to the public, but VIP Experience packs are available for purchase starting at $50. For more information, visit easternmarketafterdark.com.
Explore local spaces
In celebration of two years in the community, The Hawk Makerspace in Farmington Hills is hosting a free open house on Friday, Sep. 13 from 3-7 p.m. Creative community members from across metro Detroit are invited to check out this immersive shared technical and creative studio, which features professional-grade equipment like an embroidery machine, a 3D printer, laser engravers and more. There will also be giveaways, refreshments and discounts on Passholder subscriptions. For more information, visit fhgov.com.
Then, the University District Historic Neighborhood in Detroit is hosting its bi-annual home tour on Saturday, Sep. 14. Design enthusiasts are invited to tour six of Detroit’s most well-kept historic homes with unique decor and touches, many from the Art Deco era. Common features include stained glass windows, Pewabic and Flint Faience tile, grand foyers, crystal chandeliers and more. General admission is $30 in advance or $35 day-of for adults, and tickets are $5 for children 3-13. For more information, visit their Eventbrite page.
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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.
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WDET strives to make our journalism accessible to everyone. As a public media institution, we maintain our journalistic integrity through independent support from readers like you. If you value WDET as your source of news, music and conversation, please make a gift today.
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.
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.
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.
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The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) has approved new air permits for Marathon Petroleum’s Detroit refinery after a public comment period earlier this year.
The permit changes will allow Marathon to operate the refinery — located at 1001 South Oakwood — at “full capacity,” and set new pollutant emission caps for the facility. Previously, the refinery was limited to producing an average of 140,000 barrels a day.
Andy Drury, an environmental engineer with EGLE, says the department will require Marathon to continue air quality monitoring through at least 2030.
“One of the bigger things is Marathon has been doing ambient air monitoring at their facility, and they have agreed based on the comments to continue for at least six more years,” Drury said.
Key updates to the permit include the removal of outdated regulatory references, an extension of the air monitoring program, and increasing the height of a refinery stack to 35 feet.
Jeff Tricoff, a relief operator at Marathon’s Detroit refinery and a member ofTeamsters Local 283, was among several residents who expressed concerns about increased capacity at the facility at a public hearing hosted by EGLE in May.
“As workers, we know that operating everything at 100% has to be done effectively and efficiently and done by experienced people,” Tricoff said at the meeting. “Right now we are in a labor dispute with our current contract having expired on Feb. 1, and Marathon is preparing to bring in temporary workers to take our position.”
Marathon also operates an asphalt terminal at 301 S. Fort St., and a light products terminal at 12700 Toronto St., both in Southwest Detroit.
WDET’s Jenny Sherman contributed to this report.
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WDET strives to make our journalism accessible to everyone. As a public media institution, we maintain our journalistic integrity through independent support from readers like you. If you value WDET as your source of news, music and conversation, please make a gift today.
DETROIT (AP) — Thousands of documents turned over by Michigan State University reveal nothing new about what the school might have known about years of sexual abuse committed by Larry Nassar, the campus doctor who assaulted female athletes, the state attorney general said Wednesday.
“It was surprising to me that we did not find anything that was incriminating,” Attorney General Dana Nessel said at a news conference.
“It seems sort of improbable to us, right?” she said. “This is a major university, obviously extensive number of employees that work there. I guess the expectation is that we would find a little bit more than we did.”
Nassar, who also worked for USA Gymnastics, which trains Olympians, is serving decades in prison for sexual assault committed under the guise of treatment as well as other crimes. Michigan State in 2018 agreed to a $500 million settlement with hundreds of people, mostly women, who said he abused them with his hands.
For years, Nessel and her predecessor clashed with Michigan State’s lawyers and its elected governing board over the release of records. While more than 100,000 documents were initially turned over to investigators, another batch of 6,000 was withheld under attorney-client privilege until this year.
Since the Nassar scandal broke in 2016, Michigan State has repeatedly said that no one at the school covered up his actions. Former gymnastics coach Kathie Klages was found guilty of lying to investigators about allegations told to her back in the 1990s, but the state appeals court threw out the conviction.
Former Michigan State President Lou Anna Simon, too, was charged with misleading investigators during a 2018 interview, but that case was dismissed before a trial.
After seeing the records, Nessel believes the university was wrong to claim attorney-client privilege over all of the documents, though a judge in 2019 had agreed with the school’s position.
The attorney general accused Michigan State of giving victims a “sense of false hope” that the records would be revealing after finally giving them up. Nessel plans to make them publicly available.
“Simply put, there remains no fulfilling answer to the question of how this abuse was able to be perpetuated on so many, for so long, without MSU, or anyone else, putting a stop to it,” Nessel said.
Michigan State spokesperson Emily Gerkin Guerrant said the university has taken significant steps to improve campus safety and culture since 2016.
Ripples from the Nassar saga have spread widely. In April, the U.S. Justice Department announced a $138 million settlement with more than 100 people who accused the FBI of mishandling allegations against the doctor in 2015 and 2016, a critical time gap that allowed Nassar to continue to prey on victims before his arrest.
A Justice Department internal watchdog recently said the FBI has failed to report some child sexual abuse allegations to local police or social service agencies even after its poor handling of claims about Nassar led to changes.
A new study published this week found people with asthma have an especially hard time breathing properly in Detroit.
The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America rated the Motor City the third worst municipality in the nation for those who routinely need to use an inhaler or nebulizer.
The foundations’ president, Kenneth Mendez, says the group weighed how many people in a city have asthma, how frequently people die from it and the number of times the condition drives residents to visit an emergency room.
“Detroit ranks high in those three areas and that’s one of the reasons why it’s No. 3 on the list.”
– Kenneth Mendez, president of the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America
Listen: New report ranks Detroit as third worst city in U.S. for those with asthma
The following interview has been edited for clarity and length.
Kenneth Mendez: Detroit ranks high in those three areas and that’s one of the reasons why it’s No. 3 on the list. There’s social determinants of health, there’s family origins related to it, but certainly it really hits communities of color. Black Americans are three times more likely to be diagnosed with asthma, five times more likely to be treated in an emergency room. And Black women have the highest mortality rate of any gender or ethnic group. So those factors really are emblematic of things that we need to do in order to better control our asthma and work with our doctors.
Quinn Klinefelter, WDET News: Are those demographic groups especially at risk because they have less access to good health care? Or because the factories or whatever might produce pollution that could exacerbate asthma happen to be based in communities of color or poorer areas?
KM: There are a number of factors that go into it. Clearly, your zip code, where you live, has an impact. You can tell how long someone’s gonna live from that. But access to care, additional pollution in certain areas is a trigger for asthma. People in some communities can’t afford to live in areas that do not have high levels of pollution. Those are the kinds of things that go into asthma exacerbation and triggers if you have asthma.
QK: Michigan Congresswoman Rashida Talib, for one, has long pushed to get the Environmental Protection Agency to take into account the cumulative impact of pollution in a given area if they’re going to issue a permit through the Clean Air or Clean Water Acts. If that kind of legislation was passed, do you think it would really make a difference?
KM: Let me break that into two pieces. One is, I think the laws and policies will help. The EPA has come out with a “tailpipe rule” to reduce emissions from light trucks and cars, which are significant contributors to bad air and carbon dioxide. So I think having pieces of legislation passed, whether they’re at the federal or at the state level, can be very helpful to those with asthma. For example, in local communities, you can have an idling rule on school grounds basically saying when people are picking up their children, they shouldn’t have their cars idling. Reducing those kind of tailpipe emissions can go a long way towards helping people with asthma and allergies, in particular in some of those communities that are disproportionately impacted.
In the big picture, the longer growing seasons, the additional carbon dioxide, all those things have an impact on allergies. And allergies are a trigger for asthma. Those are the things that through federal policies and legislation we can try and eliminate. The Inflation Reduction Act clearly had some incentives to reduce pollution and try and amplify clean energy alternatives. So those kinds of things can make a difference. Climate change, with the longer growing seasons, more intense releases of pollen because of carbon dioxide, are all triggers for allergies and asthma. A lot of people say, ‘I’ve never had allergies before. They’re getting a lot worse.’ And that’s because of the additional load on your system from those triggers. We need to reduce our carbon footprint. That will go a long way towards reducing asthma and allergies.
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WDET strives to make our journalism accessible to everyone. As a public media institution, we maintain our journalistic integrity through independent support from readers like you. If you value WDET as your source of news, music and conversation, please make a gift today.
The event honored those killed in the terrorist attacks in New York City, Arlington, Virginia and Shanksville, Pennsylvania on Sep. 11, 2001.
Detroit Deputy Mayor Todd Bettison says ceremonies like the one this morning are important, because not everyone knows what happened 23 years ago.
“Last night, my son — he’s in the eighth grade — he asked: “Dad I need some help with my homework assignment for history.” I had no clue about what I was about to help him with, but it was a 9/11 assignment,” Bettison said. “He had really no clue, no memory.”
Nearly 3,000 people were killed in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Two hijacked jets flew into New York’s World Trade Center. Another jet crashed into the Pentagon. A fourth hijacked jet crashed into a Pennsylvania field when passengers struggled with the terrorists to prevent the jet from hitting a major target in Washington D.C.
Other headlines for Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2024:
A new report finds Detroit is one of the hardest cities in the nation to live in for people who suffer from asthma.
Detroit’s three casinos are reporting $112.5 million in revenue for last month — up nearly 6% from August 2023.
The Michigan Gaming Control Board has won an Emmy Award for its series of commercials touting responsible gambling.
The state’s first Klezmer music festival will be held from 3 to 7 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 15, in Detroit’s Cultural Center at the International Institute. Klezmer is a type of traditional Yiddish folk music originally created centuries ago.
Do you have a community story we should tell? Let us know in an email at detroiteveningreport@wdet.org.
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WDET strives to make our journalism accessible to everyone. As a public media institution, we maintain our journalistic integrity through independent support from readers like you. If you value WDET as your source of news, music and conversation, please make a gift today.
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.
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.
Trusted, accurate, up-to-date.
WDET strives to make our journalism accessible to everyone. As a public media institution, we maintain our journalistic integrity through independent support from readers like you. If you value WDET as your source of news, music and conversation, please make a gift today. Donate today »
The Detroit Home Accessibility Program — a joint project of the city of Detroit, CHN Housing Partners and Detroit Disability Power — dedicates more than $6 million in ARPA funds to home modifications for eligible residents to add ramps or lifts, widen entrances, modify handrails, or add alarms to the entries and exits of their home.
“Detroit has more than 129,000 disabled residents. Members of this large, diverse and important constituency deserve the ability to fully engage in all that our City has to offer,” said Ani Grigorian, disability access consulting manager at Detroit Disability Power, in a news release. “This program is an important step towards greater accessibility, and therefore increased well-being.”
Homeowners who live in single-family homes who receive social security disability benefits, Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) Children’s Healthcare Services benefits or Veterans Administration disability benefits can still apply.
The program is expected to provide accessibility upgrades to at least 250 homes.
Applicants must also have homeowner’s insurance and be current on property taxes or in a payment plan. There are income requirements for participation. For more information, visit chnhousingpartners.org/Detroit/dhap or call 866-313-2520.
Other headlines for Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024:
Mason K-8 Academy opened its newly renovated and stocked school library today. The Detroit Public Schools Community District (DPSCD) chose Mason to receive 18,000 new books from the Council of Great City Schools and Scholastic.
Cass Tech students who live in Hamtramck and “Banglatown” – an area close to Hamtramck – are asking DPSCD to provide bus transportation to the school. Education nonprofit 482Forward organized student and adult members to take their appeal to tonight’s school board meeting.
The Detroit Food Commons will host a concert series this fall. The Freedom Sounds fall concert series kicks off Sunday, Sept. 22 with jazz percussionist and Jazz at Lincoln Center alum Ali Jackson. Bassist and composer Marion Hayden will perform Oct. 27; and on Nov. 24, multi-genre percussionist and food justice advocate Aisha Ellis will perform. The series is curated by violinist and flutist Michelle May. The events, held in the Mama Imani Humphrey Banquet Hall on the second floor of Detroit Commons, cost $25 to attend with funds going towards Detroit Black Community Food Sovereignty Network’s community programs.
The Hamtramck Parks Conservancy has a new director of programming and communications. Alicia Chiaravalli has a background in environmental science, play design and sustainability. She will be responsible for developing recreation programs, coordinating volunteers and community partnerships for the conservancy.
Do you have a community story we should tell? Let us know in an email at detroiteveningreport@wdet.org.
Trusted, accurate, up-to-date.
WDET strives to make our journalism accessible to everyone. As a public media institution, we maintain our journalistic integrity through independent support from readers like you. If you value WDET as your source of news, music and conversation, please make a gift today.
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.
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.
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That includes Wayne County Executive Warren Evans. He says there’s a disconnect between federal agencies that regulate hazardous waste, the company that owns the Van Buren disposal site and Michigan’s government.
“It doesn’t make sense to me that we would be the location of choice so often for this toxic material.”
-Wayne County Executive Warren Evans
Listen: Warren Evans on toxic atomic waste coming to Wayne County
An aerial view of Republic Services’ Wayne Disposal Inc. facility in Van Buren Township.
This interview has been edited for clarity and length.
Warren Evans: I don’t believe that they level with us about what they’re doing. My trust level for them is almost zero. And it doesn’t lead to good results or good communications back and forth. The only time we hear about these waste issues is when a reporter writes a story and we read about it and they become automatically defensive. I’m concerned about the lack of notice (that shipments are coming to Michigan.) That leads me to be concerned about the level of hazardous waste in the material and the amount that’s coming and how it’s being transported.
Quinn Klinefelter, WDET News: The Army Corps of Engineers has said they’re not required to notify anybody if they’re sending waste to a facility that’s allowed to take those kinds of shipments, which the one in Van Buren is. So when you say you don’t think that they’re leveling with you, what do you think needs to be changed?
WE: They said they’re not “required” to. What the heck does that mean? Does it mean there’s a prohibition about doing it? They’re hiding behind a rule that doesn’t require them to do it. But good public policy does require them to do it, them or somebody, I think. Hiding behind a rule that doesn’t make you do it just tells me the rule doesn’t make any sense and you’re not concerned about the reaction of the public’s health concerns about this. If that’s the way you feel, then I’m troubled by the whole thing.
QK: You’ve had a couple of town hall meetings about this and other toxic waste that came from the East Palestine, Ohio train derailment. What are you hearing from residents about the situations?
WE: It’s real clear that residents don’t want it here. And what we hear from the federal agencies is how safe they claim to be and what the rules and federal regulations are. That’s not what people are asking for. They are asking for clear answers about why so much of it is coming here and just how safe is it? It’s troubling to me, because the agencies are answering questions in a very bureaucratic way. “This is regulation 207 and we’re required to do that.” It’s double-speak to me. People are asking about the health concerns that they have, the health concerns that they’re afraid of in the future. They are asking for solid, honest answers. Part of that would be alleviated if there was more discussion about the actual hazardous waste, the toxicity of it, how it’s being transported and how it is being kept in the landfill. That would help people determine whether the safety valves are there or not there. When you hear the agencies talk about it, they say they have a stellar track record for keeping us safe. And every year you hear about catastrophes that occur and violations that occur at these different waste treatment places. Those two notions don’t square in my mind or the minds of anybody else that has any sense.
QK: So you still have some concerns when state environmental officials say that they’ve tested this latest waste coming from the Manhattan Project, that it’s within the limits that the site is permitted to take? And there’s only seven similar sites in the country, so you just gotta grit your teeth and bear with it?
WE: Yeah but that doesn’t really make sense. There’s a significant amount of it that’s coming and there’s certainly no legal prohibition against dividing it into some different landfills. Why does it all have to come here? Particularly since the waste is rated at a level that would allow it to go to many other landfills — and many other landfills that are closer to New York than here. They can talk all day about how this landfill provides added security. But if the waste is rated low enough that it can go just about anywhere, then why don’t you send it just about anywhere?
QK: I have heard that it was somewhat cheaper to dispose of it in landfills here as opposed to other places. Have you heard that same reasoning?
WE: Absolutely. And I think that that, in and of itself, calls for a state solution. It appears to me that there are two solutions that we ought to be working on as a community. One is, we ought to act legislatively, get our legislature to refuse to take it. In other words, change the rules about Michigan being able to take the hazardous waste. That’s why it’s coming out of New York, New York won’t take it. That’s one option. That’s a pretty drastic one, but a significant one. The other one is to raise the tipping fees such that it is not so profitable for those who want to deliver the waste here. I think both of those are solutions that bear some close scrutiny and, I think, support.
There are many states that are less populated than Michigan. Wayne County is the largest by population county in the state of Michigan. It doesn’t make sense to me that we would be the location of choice so often for this toxic material. Nobody wants it. There’s no financial advantage to the county for accepting it. The disadvantages are creating a further health care risk. And we’re already rated poorly in the state of Michigan in terms of health indicators.
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Once dominated by non-local LLCs exploiting the system for quick returns, new data suggests that fewer outside investors are “milking” the system, and more Detroiters are taking advantage of opportunities to participate in Detroit’s recovery.
A new article entitled “Detroit’s Sweat Equity” from Alex Alsup, published in Substack newsletter The Chargeback, discusses the change from outside investors to residents purchasing and rehabbing homes from the tax foreclosure auction. Alsup says local buyers are flipping the script on the traditional narrative of Detroit real estate. By investing personal labor — or “sweat equity” — into rehabbing homes, they reduce the costs associated with renovation and create value in a way that large, outside investors can no longer exploit.
Foreclosures are at their lowest since 2005, and new ownership trends show a citywide gain of about 9,000 re-occupied homes since the pandemic. The old “milking” model — where the value was in extracting rent from undervalued properties — doesn’t work anymore because Detroit’s homes have gained too much value. This lucrative foreclosure-rental-foreclosure pipeline is drying up, and Detroiters are stepping up to take advantage of the opportunity.
Chase Cantrell, CEO of Building Community Value, a nonprofit that helps Detroiters become property owners and rehabbers, says that the Detroit Land Bank Authority now privileges local buyers, giving them a better chance to purchase and improve properties.
Alex Alsup is the Vice President of Research and Development for Regrid and the author of the Substack newsletter The Chargeback.
Chase Cantrell is the CEO of Building Community Value, an organization that provides training and resources for Detroiters interested in small-scale real estate development.
Listen to Created Equal with host Stephen Henderson weekdays from 9-10 a.m. ET on Detroit Public Radio 101.9 WDET and streaming on-demand.
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On the latest episode of the Detroit Evening Report Weekends, Sascha Raiyn spends some time with Garrett Dempsey of Detroit Outdoors.
Detroit Outdoors is a collaboration between the Sierra Club, the city of Detroit and the YMCA, focused on exposing Detroit youth to the outdoors.
This summer, the organization took a group of students to Yosemite National Park to camp, hike and rock climb. But the trip was centered around the history of the Buffalo Soldiers in the National Parks, and the Detroit native who is the park service’s foremost expert on that history, Shelton Johnson.
Garrett Dempsey is the program director for Detroit Outdoors. He spoke to WDET’s Sascha Raiyn about the trip and the organization’s work to get Black and brown youth into the great outdoors.
Listen to the episode using the media player above.
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Since the COVID-19 pandemic, Michigan public school reading scores have been taking a hit. MichMash host, Cheyna Roth, and Gongwer News Service’s Zach Gorchow find out why with Peter Spadafore who’s with the Michigan Alliance for Student Opportunity.
The latest Michigan public school reading scores and why they are are so low
The lasting effects of the pandemic on students
Policy interventions to help students improve their education
Results from this year’s Michigan Student Test of Educational Progress (M-STEP) were released this week, showing that 39.6% of third graders across Michigan passed the state’s English language arts (ELA) test, compared to 40.9% in 2023.
Spadafore, who serves as executive director for the Michigan Alliance for Student Opportunity, said the results were concerning but not surprising.
“I think like every observer around Lansing and across the state, we were disappointed in the numbers, but also not entirely surprised to see the lingering impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Spadafore. “The state superintendent talks a lot about the impact of virtual instruction. When we were not able to be in classrooms having an impact on those early learners when we’re trying to get at them, soon and quickly to grasp those early reading skills.”
Lansing is hard at work to pass laws to remedy this issue. But Spadafore said they need to make sure they pass the correct laws to intervene with the reading levels.
“It’s important that they move the bills when they’re right now. They’re overly prescriptive and change a whole lot of state law when really what we’re seeing is if we would have a better screening tool to identify students reading disabilities and characteristics of dyslexia, I think that’s when, we could be supportive of legislation.”
Spadafore says it will take collaboration between educators, lawmakers, the union, parents and more to help reading levels improve.
A recent study from three children’s hospitals has found that patient information relating to racial and ethnic designations is significantly inaccurate.
Mott Children’s, Helen DeVos, and the Children’s Hospital of Michigan participated in a study led by University of Michigan’s Dr. Gary Freed to identify and address racial and ethnic inequities in health care.
Dr. Freed found that between 22 and 59% of electronic medical records have inaccurate information about race and ethnicity. He says these errors may have impacted certain populations being either over or underrepresented health care.
“If we’re not accurately describing certain populations, any analyses that we’re doing about those populations may be wrong,” Freed said.
Dr. Freed hopes that his pioneering work with this study encourages other health care systems to conduct their own studies to identify and address disparities in their racial/ethnic patient records.
WEMU is a member of the Michigan Public Radio Network serving Ypsilanti, Ann Arbor and Washtenaw County. To read more from WEMU, visit wemu.org.
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There’s a new record store in downtown Petoskey. It’s called Hexagon Records and it’s one of the few places in northern Michigan devoted to selling vinyl.
Michael Griggs has two record players connected to some old speakers that he found at a garage sale.
His store is on Howard Street in Petoskey. It’s up stairs in a 700-square-foot space. Inside there’s a stuffed raccoon mounted to the wall, framed posters of the 70s sci-fi classic ‘Solaris,’ and tons and tons of records.
The store’s walls are sparsely decorated with unique decor like a mounted stuffed raccoon and framed posters of the 70s sci-fi film “Solaris.”
Between his personal collection, what he has in storage, and what he sells at the shop – it all totals around 20,000 vinyls.
One of his favorite sections is called “Difficult Concepts.”
“Some of it’s like, you know, kind of like that, the new music, kind of the new classical music, like Stockhausen and stuff like that,” Griggs said. “And, you know, there’s some unusual like this, this extremely bizarre record from Hungary.”
There’s some newer artists on display too. Sealed LPs from Beyonce, Chappell Roan and Tyler, the Creator are next to classic artists like Yes!, The Smiths and The Smashing Pumpkins.
Records are priced anywhere from $5 dollars to $150 dollars.The rarest is an album by the ‘60s psychedelic band Maze.
“I think there’s a fairly decent chance that I own one of the best copies of it in existence,” he said. “Yes, so I think that record is probably worth in the, maybe the $1,000 range?”
Records are priced anywhere from $5 to $150 at the shop.
Griggs is 51. He opened in June after he was laid off from a corporate job in the health care industry. He worked at record stores in the ‘90s and owning one has always been a dream of his. Griggs said getting laid off was good news.
“This doesn’t feel like work and the buying, cleaning and cataloging of records, definitely scratches some sort of OCD itch in me,” he said. “I think it’s good for me, mental health wise, kind of to be kind of immersed in something that I can kind of give myself over to.”
Griggs is sharing his passion with people of all generations. He said his customer base trends younger, but during our conversation, an older couple came in with some sealed records they were looking to sell. Everything from Perry Como to Harry Belafonte. But unfortunately:
“These really aren’t worth anything,” Griggs said. “Age doesn’t really mean anything to record value. It is interesting that these are still sealed. That said it would be very difficult for me to sell most of these.”
Griggs said they would fare better selling them online and offered to help do that.
Soon after the couple left, Ryan Cassidy, a younger musician from Petoskey came in. He’s a singer-songwriter inspired by alternative rock from the ‘90s and The Beatles. His CD is for sale at Hexagon. Cassidy said it’s a huge deal to have a record shop in Petoskey.
“Because we used to have to travel to Traverse City,” he said. “That’s the closest thing that we had, so to have something here right downtown, it’s huge. We needed it, there’s a big clientele for it, that’s for sure. It’s coming back, big time.”
Griggs wants more local musicians to sell their music at his shop. He gives all the money back to the artist. So for Cassidy, it could be 10 bucks in his pocket, but today it’s store credit for some Alice Cooper.
The customer base tends to trend younger at Hexagon Records, says owner Mike Griggs.
According to Billboard.com 2023 was the 18th straight year for growth in record sales. Vinyl albums sold in the U.S. nearly totaled 50 million. Griggs said there is an appetite for tangible media amid the plethora of streaming services.
“Streamed music is just really ephemeral. And the physicality to physical media is, like, there’s something that obviously does something for people,” he said. “And it’s not just a generational thing. And part of it is the, you know, just the design and art of album covers, that sort of thing.”
Griggs has also noticed people buying more what he calls “zombie media” – things like cassettes and VHS tapes. He might carry those some day as well.
Griggs said he has repeat customers and his sales are consistent. His approach to the business is pragmatic, but he’s been waiting to give this a shot for a long time.
“I’m under no delusion that I’m going to make, you know, become a millionaire doing this,” he said. “But I all I want is just to make enough money to live off of because it’s such a fun business to be a part of. Being able to talk to people all day about music is, you know, really fun.”
Griggs has other plans in the works, too. He’ll be hosting live music nights at Malted Vinyl, a cocktail bar in Petoskey where people can play vinyl. And eventually, he’ll have his own listening station at Hexagon so curious customers can try out some of the records.
Interlochen Public Radio is part of the Michigan Public Radio Network. To read more stories from IPR, visit interlochenpublicradio.org.
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The card is designed for people who might have trouble gaining a valid photo ID. It’s available for residents, no matter what their citizenship status or criminal background is, or if they are homeless.
They can use it as acceptable identification for everything from opening a checking or savings account to becoming a utility customer with DTE Energy. It also provides access to health care services, city buildings and libraries.
“Simply put, Detroit IDs remove barriers to access and create opportunities for participation; rather than exclude and deny, they include and accept,” said Detroit City Council Member Gabriela Santiago-Romero in a statement. “Longtime Detroiters and new arrivals alike should be proud of this program, and I encourage everyone to get one.”
Officials halted the identification program in 2022 over concerns that federal immigration officials could potentially discover applicant’s personal data from a third-party company used in the program, and target undocumented people. Now Detroit officials say they have a new vendor that will keep applicant’s information secure.
The program will officially relaunch this Saturday, Sept. 7, at the Health Department’s 3rd Annual Block Party — which will take place rain or shine from noon to 4 p.m. on John R Road between Mack Avenue and Erskine Street, adjacent to the Health Department.
-Reporting by Quinn Klinefelter, WDET News.
Other headlines for Thursday, Sept. 5, 2024:
Detroit officials celebrated the opening of 14 new affordable housing units designed for people living with disabilities this week.
Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan will name the city’s first Composer Laureate at an exhibit honoring Detroit composers of Jazz and opera music at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, at the Metropolitain Museum of Design Detroit.
Community Development group ProsperUS Detroit is hosting its annual Family Block Party from 5 to 8 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 11 at Eastern Market in Shed 5.
The neighborhood group People for Palmer Park is looking for volunteers for this year’s Harvest Fest on Saturday, Sept. 21.
Detroit Public Library’s Sherwood Forest branch is hosting a Digital Comic Book Club in-person and via Zoom at 6 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 3. The book club meets monthly for adult lovers of comics and graphic novels.
Do you have a community story we should tell? Let us know in an email at detroiteveningreport@wdet.org.
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One might believe that people perceive individuals who live in poverty as in greater need of help when faced with hardship compared to more affluent people, but research indicates the opposite is true.
The “thick skin bias” is a belief that individuals who live in poverty are more resilient than affluent people when facing a challenging situation. The assumption could, as a result, influence the degree of support those who are struggling receive from others.
Today on Created Equal, the team continued Wednesday’s conversation about a Wayne County judge who singled out a student for falling asleep in court during a field trip, and how society perceives and responds to people in poverty.
Psychology professor Nathan Cheek joined the discussion to help unpack the “thick skin bias,” where it comes from, and why this assumption is the wrong one.
“We are deeply uncomfortable with injustice and inequality, and we have deep motivation to believe in a just world. A world that is fair where people get what they deserve and deserve what they get, and so it’s really threatening to us when people confront inequalities.” he said. “So one of the strategies that people adopt to get through life is adopting beliefs that justify inequality.”
Guest:
Nathan Cheekis an assistant professor of Psychology at the University of Maryland, College Park.
Listen to Created Equal with host Stephen Henderson weekdays from 9-10 a.m. ET on 101.9 WDET and streaming on-demand.
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WDET strives to make our journalism accessible to everyone. As a public media institution, we maintain our journalistic integrity through independent support from readers like you. If you value WDET as your source of news, music and conversation, please make a gift today.
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