I-75 resurfacing begins Monday night in Detroit
Community 06-17-2013 Hits:360 
The Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) will resurface more than 4 miles of I-75 in Detroit beginning Monday, June 17. The resurfacing will take place between Piquette Avenue (just north of I-94) and 7 Mile Road, and will be done during overnight hours on weekdays. Weekend hours will vary to accommodate special events. All work on this $4.7 million investment is expected to be completed in October. Beginning Monday, two lanes will be closed on southbound I-75 from 7 Mile Road to Piquette Avenue starting at 9 p.m. and reopening by 5 a.m. the next morning. Weather permitting, these restrictions will be in place throughout the first week on the project. Selected ramps will be closed while crews are working in the two right lanes. Detours will be posted for ramp closures. Motorists are advised to check the Mi Drive Web site at www.michigan.gov/drive for up-to-date lane and ramp closures during the project.
Read moreSarah Palin’s Advice on Syria: ‘Let Allah Sort it Out’
Prime Politics 06-17-2013 Hits:144 
News One
Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin seems to have an endless supply of inappropriate and ignorant comments when it comes to politics, and her latest comments do not disappoint. While speaking at the annual meeting of the Faith and Freedom Coalition Saturday, Palin criticized President Obama and his decision to intervene with the fighting in Syria. “We’re talking now more, new interventions, I say until we know what we’re doing, until we have a commander in chief who knows what he’s doing … well, in these radical Islamic countries aren’t even respecting basic human rights, when both sides are slaughtering each other as they scream over an arbitrary red line, Allahu Akbar, I say until we have someone who knows what they’re doing, I say: Let Allah sort it out.” This past Thursday President Obama agreed to supply military support to Syrian rebels after intelligence agencies confirmed the Syrian military had used chemical weapons on its people. The use of weapons like the nerve agent sarin crossed ...
Read more‘Michigan Modern: Design that Shaped America’ exhibition and symposium now …
Community 06-17-2013 Hits:298 
A four-month exhibition at the Cranbrook Art Museum will showcase how modern design was inspired and influenced by Michigan industry and design.The exhibit, which runs from June 14- Oct. 13, will focus on such iconic pieces as the Eames Lounge Chair, the expressive styling of the fins on a Cadillac, corporate campuses like the General Motors Technical Center and office environments revolutionized by Herman Miller."In the late 1930s, a remarkable group of artists and designers were at Cranbrook – notably Eliel and Loja Saarinen, their son Eero, faculty members such as Harry Bertoia and promising young students like Charles and Ray Eames, Ralph Rapson, Florence Knoll, and many others," Gregory Wittkopp, director, Cranbrook Art Museum and Cranbrook Center for Collections and Research said in a statement. "Collaboratively, and then individually, they used the Academy's studios to experiment and create the furniture and products that became the icons of the 20th century. It is no exaggeration to say that mid-century Modernism was conceived at Cranbrook."Eliel Saarinen developed the Cranbrook Educational Center in 1925 at the request of George G. Booth.Eero Saarinen designed the GM Technical Center in Warren. Other works include the St. Louis Gateway Arch. He also designed such furniture as the "Tulip Chair", the "Saarinen Executive Arm Chair" and the "Womb Chair."According to a Cranbrook release, the exhibit will establish Michigan's role in American Modernism from the early industrial architecture of Albert Kahn to the role of the automobile and furniture industries that contributed to Michigan's design explosion after World War II.The architects and designers met the challenge of a new century with optimism and spirit," said State Historic Preservation Officer Brian Conway. "What happened in Michigan – in the automotive industry, the furniture industry, in architecture, and in education – influenced design throughout the country and internationally. This...
Read morePresident Obama Hosts Father’s Day Luncheon At White House
Top News 06-16-2013 Hits:4416 
This morning, President Barack Obama hosted a special Father’s Day Luncheon inside the White House’s State Dining Room as part of his ongoing commitment to fatherhood and families. Joining the president at the lunch were fathers and their children, along with students and officials from the Becoming A Man (BAM) program in Chicago. Stressing a message regarding the importance of strong families bonds and the value of mentorship, Obama has made fatherhood a focal point of conservation since his first term. Today’s lunch was an informal affair, and served as an unofficial follow-up from the president after a February visit to Chicago’s Hyde Park Academy High School. From the BAM program, 14 students and five chaperones were present to partake of simple fare such as burgers, fries, salads, and other snacks. “It is good to see all of you here, so many young people, so many outstanding dads, a few moms chaperoning,” said Obama to his guests, according to a Chicago Tribune report. “Obviously, this is a great way for us to celebrate Father’s Day and just to remind ourselves, those of us who are fathers, how lucky we are.” After lunch, Obama gave his visitors a quick tour of the Oval Office before breaking with the group who went on to participate in a roundtable discussion focused on mentoring with White House officials. Obama, a father of two daughters, 14-year-old Malia, and 12-year-old Sasha, said at the event that fatherhood is “the best job I’ve got.”
Read moreDetroit’s payroll system is poor, Orr tells creditors
Community 06-14-2013 Hits:243 
Bankole Thompson
By Bankole Thompson CHRONICLE SENIOR EDITOR Kevyn Orr, Detroit Emergency Financial Manager today gave a blistering account of Detroit’s state of affairs to 150 stakeholders including creditors meeting at the Detroit Metro Airport Westin Hotel about the future of the city. The Detroit Restructuring Plan, as the report is called, is a massive inventory of the entire apparatus of the government of Detroit that has long been operating at the Coleman A. Young Municipal Center without giving much to hard pressed taxpayers, residents and those invested in the city. The plan for example cited the city’s payroll system as one that “currently uses multiple, non-integrated payroll systems,” noting that “a majority of employees are on an archaic payroll system that limited reporting capability and no way to clearly track, monitor or report expenditures by category.” According to the plan, the cost of payroll administration for the city is significantly higher when compared to other cities. The current cost to process a payroll is $62 per check, which amounts to $19.2 million annually, and “four times more costly than the overall average of $15 per paycheck and almost 3.5 times more costly than other public sector organizations, which average $18 per paycheck.” Orr said in the plan that the primary driver of this cost is labor, which is more than the 70 percent of the total cost for the city. “149 full-time employees are involved in the payroll, 51 of which are uniformed officers (high cost personnel performing clerical duties,” according to the plan which also indicated how the current payroll process is “highly manual (some done by hand) and prone to human error, including erroneous payments to individuals.” Orr’s proposal also takes a look at the city’s income tax noting that tax collection and data management are highly manual. “The city’s...
Read moreDetroit Group Teaches Men How To Be Better Fathers
Community 06-14-2013 Hits:8489
For a lot of men, being a father can be a daunting task. Some are unemployed. Many have poor relationships with the mother of their children. In the worst of circumstances, some are even in prison. But Steven Dandridge and his Detroit-based group, New Young Fathers, is working to help men learn how to be better men to their children–regardless of how rough their circumstances are. “If you want to be a father, this is what it entails,” Dandridge told Fox 2 News Detroit. “You always have to be able to take care of your children, so you have to find employment. In order to do that, you have to be qualified for something. In order to do that, you also need to be able to get along with the mother of your children, whether you’re with her or not. You have to work together. You have to be on one accord when it comes to raising children.” Being part of a family in which both parents are not together does not help. According to the U.S. Census, one out of three children live without a father at home. These children are at a high risk of ending up behind bars and abusing drugs and alcohol. “A lot of children I come across, they come from single-parent homes and they don’t have a relationship with their father,” Dandridge said. “And that’s horrible because they didn’t ask to be here.” Since the group’s site was launched in 2008, it has helped thousands of fathers across the state with advice on how to form better relationships with their children. The group helps organize field trips that helps fathers form loving relationships with their sons and daughters; it also leads conversations at local churches and schools. Any way Dandridge can reach out to dads and help them...
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