Michigan may spend big on passenger trains, eying service to Canada, Up North
by Lauren Gibbons (Bridge Michigan) More money could be coming soon for Michigan passenger rail projects, which advocates hope could lead to better service and, eventually, new routes for Up North and Ontario getaways. Federal officials in recent years have made billions of dollars in grant money available for passenger rail, and Michigan has received nearly $85 million from […]
Michigan’s population crisis: What you need to know. Why it matters.
by Janelle D. James (Bridge Michigan) For years, there has been an ongoing conversation among economists, demographers and lawmakers about Michigan’s population growth, yet little has been done to fix it. Now, the clock is ticking as the population is expected to decline and hurt the economy. Businesses across the state are in search of […]
Census: Michigan cities lost population in 2022. See how your town fared.
by Mike Wilkinson (Bridge Michigan) Detroit and many other Michigan cities continued to lose population in 2022, according to population estimates released by the U.S. Census. Michigan’s biggest city lost nearly 1% of its population, about 7,791 people to 620,376, falling to 29th in the nation, with fewer residents than Memphis or Louisville, according to […]
Michigan officials propose changes to deer hunting regulations
by Ashley Zhou (Bridge Michigan) Spring has only just begun, but Michigan fish and game regulators are already focused on the fall. Deer season, specifically. Officials in the Michigan Department of Natural Resources last week recommended several changes to deer hunting regulations for 2023, including new opportunities for youth and disabled hunters, and changes to hunting limits […]
Book bans move from sex to war, as west Michigan school removes ‘Jarhead’
by Isabel Lohman (Bridge Michigan Michigan’s culture war over library books has moved to a book about actual war, as a west Michigan district has removed “Jarhead” from its high school library. In what the author of the memoir calls an unprecedented action, the Board of Education for Hudsonville Public Schools in Ottawa County this week […]
With lawsuits stalled in Michigan, Nessel seeks Line 5 shutdown in Wisconsin
by Kelly House (Bridge Michigan) After so far failing to win a legal judgment shutting down the Line 5 petroleum pipeline in Michigan, Attorney General Dana Nessel is lending her voice to a shutdown effort in Wisconsin. Nessel on Wednesday filed an amicus brief supporting the Wisconsin-based Bad River Band of the Lake Superior Tribe […]
Bill aims to allow backyard wildlife feeding, but critics fear deer disease
by Ashley Zhou (Bridge Michigan) A northern Michigan lawmaker is taking another shot at legislation that would allow residents to feed birds and other small wildlife near their homes. A similar bill was vetoed in 2021 by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who echoed the concerns of conservation groups that allowing people to spread feed in their […]
Fix the damn roads? Michigan must first decide who OKs the darn gravel mines
by Kelly House (Bridge Michigan) Michigan’s quest to “fix the damn roads” is prompting a fight in Lansing over who gets to decide where the gravel industry can mine for raw materials used in concrete and asphalt. For the fourth straight legislative term, bipartisan lawmakers are pushing bills that would shift permitting oversight of sand […]
Michigan is short on Adderall, penicillin, cancer drugs amid supply woes
by Robin Erb (Bridge Magazine) Drug shortages continue to dog doctors, patients and parents in Michigan and throughout the country, with deepening shortages in drugs that range from antibiotics for ear infections and strep throats, to penicillin to treat syphilis and two critical cancer drugs. In Ann Arbor, the latest challenge for Dr. Stephanie Goodson, […]
COVID public health emergency ended Thursday. What it means for Michigan
by Robin Erb (Bridge Michigan) On Thursday, May 11, the COVID-19 public health emergency officially ended in the United States after 13 renewals over three years. Its expiration means, among other changes, the end of free COVID testing for some people. But other COVID realities and culture shifts will remain. Some Americans continue to suffer […]
