Daily Detroit

Happy Thanksgiving Weekend! What's the big thing that happens around town this weekend? Sports!

So first Jer talks about the Lions 24-20 loss to the Bears and wonders if getting rid of Jim Caldwell was such a good idea, and if the curse of Bobby Lane is still in effect.

Then, Sven Gustafson and Fletcher Sharpe talk Pistons and reminisce about the Malice at the Palace. It was Fletcher's first NBA game.

Our show is every weekday on Apple Podcasts: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/daily-detroit-news-byte/id1220563942?mt=2

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Greetings, comrades! I'm back from my week-long visit to Minsk, Belarus, halfway around the globe and a world away, as a guest of the good people at Press Club Belarus and the U.S. Embassy Minsk.

It's good to be back and rolling with the podcast.

We're planning to release an entire episode devoted exclusively to my visit to the former Soviet republic and what I learned about one of Detroit's seven sister cities, sometime in the coming weeks.

But on today's show, we discuss my visit to Minsk and what it was like there. We also spend some time diving into a few big stories that broke here while I was in the same time zone as Moscow, eight hours ahead:

• The renewed push for a new Regional Transit Authority plan that would cover the city of Detroit and Oakland, Washtenaw and Wayne Counties, but not Macomb. It's an approach we've long advocated.
• Tesla's polarizing new Cybertruck, unveiled last week in Los Angeles. Will this electrified geometry-on-wheels find anything beyond a niche market of tech enthusiasts?
• And we discuss General Motors' bombshell racketeering lawsuit against Fiat Chrysler, alleging that its rival was complicit in rampant UAW corruption that hurt GM financially by saddling it with higher labor costs. The suit comes while FCA is simultaneously negotiating with the union for a new four-year labor contract and trying to finalize a massive merge with PSA Group of France.

Thanks for listening to Daily Detroit. If you like what you're hearing, tell a friend about us, leave us a review and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, or support us by becoming a Patreon member.

On today's podcast, we visit the new Viola flagship cannabis retail operation near the old Boblo Boat docks.

Viola, owned by NBA veteran Al Harrington, is a national cannabis company that's going to invest up to $10 million in the space, with a goal of creating more than 60 jobs as he rolls vertical integration into the facility.

We sit down with Harrington on the podcast and get an idea of what's in store. We have pictures up on http://www.dailydetroit.com

Also, we cover some interesting stories around town in our headlines section:

I-75 reconstruction is delayed between the weather, project additions, and a bad concrete mix that will have to be redone.

The Detroit demolition bond proposal is dead through the spring.

The aftermath of slain Detroit Police officer Rasheen McClain is getting messy, and it includes an allegation of the Chief's signature being forged.

Detroit buses are getting upgrades. New fareboxes, and a set of new bus shelters.

A train has been idling in Bloomfield Hills for days. It should be moving soon with the resolution of a strike in Canada.

And, WPP, the largest holding company of creative firms in the country, is taking over the old Marquette Building across from the TCF center. It was built in 1905 and will now be home to 1,000 workers that serve Ford.

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Today's episode is a first taste, if you will, of a new set of dining and drinking concepts that are to open today at the very top of Detroit's most iconic building, the GM RENCEN.

They're called the High Bar, Hearth 71, and Highlands. There is also an event space.

Of course, they'll have some amazing views, being the highest point in the state.

But do they have culinary promise? We check it out on the podcast.

Of course, as with all early access things to restaurants, this isn't a review. it's more of a peek.

So grab your fork, and let's dive in.

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Our guest on the podcast today is Steve Gursten.

He's the head of Michigan Auto Law and has been named one of Michigan's top lawyers by multiple publications.

Today's episode is a response to many listeners who are seeing their auto insurance rates go up in metro Detroit, anywhere from 10 to 30 percent.

That's in stark contrast to what politicians, including Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer and Republican Senate Majority Leader Michael Shirkey and promised on the big porch on Mackinac Island earlier this year.

They were reacting to mounting public pressure to do something about auto insurance rates. But so far, it seems that it's turning out to be more selfies than substance.

Our guest says that things like redlining and gender discrimination will continue, all legally.

Gursten lays out a case that Michigan elected leaders basically got outplayed by Lansing lobbyists, leading to a situation where affordable car insurance, especially in the city of Detroit, isn't going to be a thing.

Subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/daily-detroit/id1220563942

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On today's podcast:

- We share details on what happened on Wyoming Street in Detroit that resulted in the death of Detroit officer Rasheen McClain. It's the 239th in the department's history.

- UAW President Gary Jones resigns

- General Motors is suing FCA

- Shianne and Jer make a trip down to the new H&M in downtown Detroit and check it out. We talk with Ezinne Kwubiri and Patrick Shaner.

Shianne has her thoughts.

- And a yacht crashed into the GM Riverwalk.

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On today's show:

Our feature conversation is a deep dive into the proposed $250 million demolition bond that was denied by Detroit City Council this week. What was it? Why did it fail? And what's next?

We chatted with Chase Cantrell from Building Community Value. The organization is on the ground providing tools to help Detroiters rebuild their city. You can find out more about them and sign up for their classes here: http://www.bcvdetroit.org/

Also around the region:

A new scorecard is out for LGBTQ support in various cities around town from the Human Rights Campaign. Some scored well and some very much did not.

There are layoffs in Taylor at a sugar refinery.

A new road bridge opened in Canton Township, relieving a two and a half year detour.

And, the Detroit Saturday Night building in downtown Detroit is coming down. So we get another 12 parking spaces on a surface parking lot. There are photos up on http://www.dailydetroit.com

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On today's show for Tuesday, November 19, 2019: Two big stories.

More mass transit may be moving ahead in Southeast Michigan - minus Macomb County. Shianne went to Royal Oak to learn more.

And Greg Migliore of Autoblog joins me to talk about the brand new Mustang Mach-E from Ford. It's an answer to Tesla and was even revealed next door to Tesla property.

Mach-E Ridealong: https://www.autoblog.com/2019/11/17/ford-mustang-mach-e-ride-along-video/

More Mach-E Coverage: https://www.autoblog.com/2019/11/18/ford-mustang-brand-family-of-vehicles/

Even more Mach-E, including 300 miles of range: https://www.autoblog.com/2019/11/17/2021-ford-mustang-mach-e-revealed-la-auto-show/

Like the show? Don't forget to tell a friend to subscribe free in Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/daily-detroit/id1220563942

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Really like the show? Become a member on Patreon. http://www.patreon.com/dailydetroit

On today's show (yes, we're moving to mornings! Finally!)

- A film focusing in part on a Detroit automaker, "Ford V. Ferrari," takes the top spot at the box office

- Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer is in Israel

- Gas price update from AAA

- Taxpayers are on the hook for free health care for Warren's elected officials for life. In depth here: https://www.macombdaily.com/news/local/new-perk-for-warren-elected-officials-free-health-insurance-for/article_c6cc821a-070a-11ea-babc-070b87802b9a.html

- The UAW ratifies a new contracts with General Dynamics

- Lyon Township has doubled in population recently. Some are trying to curb sprawl to the township 50 minutes from Detroit. In depth here: https://www.hometownlife.com/story/news/local/south-lyon/2019/11/14/lyon-township-considers-buying-property-development-rights-slow-growth/4181856002/

- CNN has named a Dearborn woman as a top 10 hero. You can vote for Najah Bazzy to win here: https://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/cnn.heroes/vote/10/

- A massive bond to pay for demolitions in Detroit may get on the ballot at a Detroit City Council meeting later today.

- The city is also offering half-off parking tickets for residents

- Info on how to help a new bus park happen in Detroit's NW Goldberg neighborhood. Here's the page: https://www.patronicity.com/project/6326_rest__ride_park#!/

- And, before Sven Gustafson left for Minsk, we chatted about his trip this week at the Belarus Press Club.

Thanks for listening! Don't forget to tell a friend about the show.

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Michigan is the Great Lakes State. Detroit is literally named the city of the strait - our river.

And one of the most important assets we have, and resources to protect, is our water and our environment.

So when I heard Tracie Baker at TEDxDetroit talk about the contaminant soup we live in, my ears perked up. they perked up double when the Assistant Professor at the Institute of Environmental Health Sciences as well as the department of Pharmacology said that those contaminants can even impact our DNA, changing the course of future generations.

This is episode 378 of your Daily Detroit.

Tracie was kind enough to stop by the north end studio and talk about her work at Wayne State with me and Sven Gustafson. it's an eye-opening conversation about contaminants, fatbergs. But also, there's hope as there are people are starting to do to take action.