Live News Updates for Sept. 18-24

Community members can donate coats for National Faith & Blue Weekend.

The East Lansing Police Department (ELPD) is partnering with local faith leaders to host a community coat drive for those in need during National Faith & Blue Weekend this year.

Community members in need will be able to pick up a coat or warm jacket during the Faith & Blue Community Coat Drive on Friday, Oct. 6 from 4-8 p.m. at the East Lansing Hannah Community Center (ELHCC), 819 Abbot Road. There will also be boxed lunches available and a list of helpful community resources.

For those who would like to make a donation to the Faith & Blue Community Coat Drive, ELPD is accepting clean, new or gently-used coats and warm jackets. Organizers request that donations have been recently laundered or dry cleaned and are free of stains, holes or tears.

Those wishing to make a donation are NOT to bring donations to the Hannah Center on Oct. 6. Instead, donations should be dropped off at the ELPD, 409 Park Lane or one of the following faith-based project partners on or before Wednesday, Oct. 4:

  • Ascension Lutheran Church, 2780 Haslett Road, East Lansing
  • Capital City Vineyard, 1635 Coolidge Road, East Lansing
  • Congregation Shaarey Zedek, 1924 Coolidge Road, East Lansing
  • Element Church, 219 S. Harrison Road, East Lansing
  • Greater Lansing Church of Christ, 310 N. Hagadorn Road, East Lansing
  • Lansing Church of God and Christ, 5304 Wise Rd, Lansing
  • Martin Luther Chapel, 444 Abbot Road, East Lansing
  • Saint Thomas Aquinas Parish, 955 Alton Road, East Lansing
  • The People’s Church, 200 W. Grand River Ave., East Lansing
  • Trinity Church, 3355 Dunckel Road, Lansing

Sponsors of this year’s Faith & Blue Community Coat Drive are Costco, Kroger and Meijer. Community members can learn more about National Faith & Blue Weekend here.

Reported by Julie Seraphinoff (Friday, Sept. 22, 2023)

Youth Commission will give teens a chance to have a voice in the City of East Lansing.

The East Lansing City Council recently passed Ordinance 1524 to create the Mayor’s Youth Commission, a governing body that will be made up of East Lansing teens who have an interest in shaping the future of the city.

The Mayor’s Youth Commission is now seeking applications from among the residents and students of East Lansing who are between the ages of 14 and 18 to serve on the new commission. The Mayor’s Youth Commission will consist of nine voting members, each of whom will serve a one-year term. The new commission, once established, will meet monthly.

“Whenever I have the privilege of working with the young people of East Lansing, I’m always impressed by how deeply they’re thinking about the world and their place in it,” East Lansing Mayor Pro Tem Jessy Gregg said. “I think that the best thing government can do is govern for a better future, so I am excited that we’ve created this opportunity to create a voice for our residents who are going to live in that future.”

To apply for a seat on the new commission, local teens must either be a resident of the City of East Lansing or attend an East Lansing school, be between the ages of 14 and 18 years old and have the consent of their parent(s) or guardians. Visit the City of East Lansing website to access the application form.

Reported by Julie Seraphinoff (Friday, Sept. 22, 2023)

This weekend’s MSU Homecoming celebration gets started with the Friday evening parade.

(Map courtesy of MSU)

Despite ongoing struggles on and off the football field, alumni and fans will converge on East Lansing as Michigan State University celebrates Homecoming this weekend (Sept. 22-23).

The first event of the weekend is the traditional parade beginning at 6 p.m. Friday (Sept. 22). The parade travels from the intersection of Abbot Road and Burcham Drive, will progress east down Grand River Avenue and enter campus at the intersection of Grand River and Farm Lane. Staging will take place in the parking lot of the Hannah Community Center.

Because of the parade, Hannah will close at noon and the nearby East Lansing Public Library will close at 2 p.m. on Friday.

Residents are advised there will be several road closures in the area as the university prepares for the parade and during the event itself. These areas include:

  • Westbound Burcham Drive between Abbot Road and Old Hickory Lane
  • Abbot Road from Burcham Drive to Grand River Avenue
  • Grand River Avenue between Abbot Road and Farm Lane
  • Abbot Road between Oxford Road on the west and Whitehills Drive on the east to Burcham Drive
  • Centerlawn Avenue from Abbot Road to Forest Street
  • Northlawn Avenue from Abbot Road to Forest Street
  • Evergreen Avenue from Centerlawn Avenue to Northlawn Avenue
  • Forest Street from Centerlawn Avenue to Northlawn Avenue
  • Fern Street from Abbot Road to Evergreen Avenue

The university invites spectators to line the route in their green and white attire and to participate in the Glow Green tradition, swapping out lights in their front porch or room with green bulbs.

Rhodes Scholar and former MSU Sportswoman of the Year Molly Brennan is this year’s Grand Marshall. The celebrated engineer graduated from MSU in 1982 and helped General Motors win the first World Solar Challenge.

The Spartans play Maryland with the football game beginning at 3:30 p.m.

Reported by Dustin DuFort Petty (Thursday, Sept. 21, 2023)

From the EL Insider Saturday Mailer: Pivotal city votes and more are on the agenda this week.

After the discussion-only City Council meeting and Planning Commission meetings were canceled last week, City officials have a busy slate ahead of them that includes big votes.

The agenda for Tuesday’s (Sept. 19) City Council meeting revealed the body will be voting on a proposed contract to appoint former Saginaw County Controller Robert Belleman as East Lansing City Manager. This vote comes more than a month after the 3-2 vote to appoint Belleman. Here is City Editor Lucas Day’s breaking news report from Friday (Sept. 15) where he explains the proposed contract.

See the story here

In advance of the vote, Investigative Reporter Alice Dreger provided an investigation  – including through use of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) – showing the road to Belleman’s appointment has been rough. Here’s her Sept. 14 story.

Also on the Council agenda is consideration of a rezoning request by Hagan Realty for the 700 block of Grove Street.Council heard several residents’ concerns and the vision of Hagan Realty at its Sept. 5 meeting. While Council pushed a decision on the matter back to Tuesday (Sept. 19), Reporter Dustin DuFort Petty reported on the Sept. 5 meeting. Dustin has been following the story, including a report on a lengthy May 10 Planning Commission meeting that brought several city residents – particularly from the 600 block of Grove Street – to speak against the rezoning.

ELi investigative reporter digs deeper into Bailey Street parking lot redevelopment.

See the story here

Alice reported on another controversial development in the city, as a document dive revealed that city officials expressed a desire for the Bailey Street parking lot at 530 Albert Ave. to be developed. The property is currently under a sale agreement and a five-story “workforce housing” apartment building has been proposed for the space.

The Bailey Street and Belleman stories were made possible by donors to ELi’s new Investigative News Fund. Join them today!

And, yes, election season is here.

See the story here

Election season is officially upon us, as the first of three forums for East Lansing City Council candidates was held this week giving candidates a chance to interact and share their platforms. Eight are vying for three open spots on Council in the Nov. 7 election.

Alice attended the first forum held at the Hannah Community Center Thursday (Sept. 14) to chronicle the event and highlight key moments. Here’s her report. For those who missed the two-hour forum, the League of Women Voters recorded the event. ELi will let you know when it’s available.

The Pinecrest Neighborhood Association is holding a forum from 7-8:30 p.m. Monday (Sept. 18) at the East Lansing Public Library.

The Associated Students of Michigan State University will hold a Council “debate/forum” 7-8 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 3, in the International Center on the MSU campus.

To help residents understand what will be on the ballot this November and get to know candidates, Luke put together a voter guide. In addition to candidate information, the guide covers ballot initiatives and resources to help plan out your election day. Let ELi know what other information would be helpful as Nov. 7 draws closer.

Meeting set to review Community Development Block Grants.

Monday (Sept. 18) a public hearing to hold a Consolidated Annual Performance Evaluation Report (CAPER) is scheduled. The meeting will provide an update on projects and activities funded by Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) from July 1, 2022-June 30, 2023.

The agenda for the meeting provided a document that says last year’s priorities were public infrastructure, public service and housing assistance. The meeting begins at 6 p.m. in Room 209 (Conference Room A) in City Hall and will discuss how CDBG was used to address those challenges.

Outside of Council, other city meetings are scheduled throughout the week. Monday (Sept. 18) the commission on the environment will meet. Wednesday (Sept. 20) the Library Board of Trustees and Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee will each gather. Then Thursday (Sept. 21) will see meetings for the Age Friendly Communities committee and Arts Commission.

Agendas for city meetings can be viewed here.

Plants, politics and tea do mix.

For gardening fans looking for a unique experience, the W.J. Botanical Garden will be hosting “Bizarre Botany Tour: Plant Politics and Yaupon Tea” Wednesday (Sept. 20) at 6 p.m.. An event description on the Choose Lansing website reads as follows:

“Join Education Director Maeve to learn about some of the more politically divisive plants. This tour will end with addressing a 300 year old smear campaign and trying yaupon tea. Tours often contain adult materials and meet at the Botanical Garden Pond.”

There are a variety of other events and activities going on around East Lansing. You can get information about those and live news updates for the week in ELi Now. Have an event, activity or announcement you would like to feature in ELi Now? Let us know!

East Lansing Insider members receive the live news updates first in their emails through the week. An ongoing stream of news can be found in the ELi Now column on the front page of  East Lansing Info. The website column begins fresh each Monday and is updated through the week with news and previews of upcoming events and activities.

Become an Insider member and support ELi’s public service journalism! Here are details on how to become an East Lansing Insider member.