Daily Detroit

Today's episode hits on three topics.

First, journalist Darren Nichols joins us to add context around a racially charged incident in Royal Oak that's made national headlines. A white woman called police on a black man who looked suspicious. And Royal Oak Police questioned him for 30 minutes outside of a popular restaurant, while a bystander broadcast the thing live on Facebook.

We dive into previous incidents in Royal Oak and in Detroit's history.

You may know Darren from his work at the Detroit News. Today he freelances and also hosts a weekly local podcast, Beyond the Headlines.

Recommended reading: Origins of the Urban Crisis.

Second, the drama around who will be Oakland County Executive next continues.

And third, Detroit City FC finally is truly going professional and Sven will tell you all about it.

Plus, Sven's back from up north!

On today's show, we go to the Two Way Inn to talk about celebrating the 198th birthday this weekend of Colonel Philetus Norris.

The civil war veteran who fought on the Union side built a place now known as one of the best dive bars in America - the Two Way Inn - and more in a village called Norris. Now, it's the Nortown neighborhood of Detroit, and they're looking to take Philetus's old house and fix it up into something good for the community.

It's an interesting story in a corner of town that doesn't get a ton of headlines. Here's a link to the event Saturday afternoon and early evening if you want to go. 100 percent of the proceeds go to the Norris House restoration.

Also:

Ford is now covering repair costs on clutches for 560,000 Focus and Fiesta vehicles.

Soft serve shop Huddle is open downtown.

Ilitch property up in Farmington Hills will become the headquarters for Mercedes Benz Financial

and Royal Oak has a new interim city manager.

The eyes of the nation have been on Metro Detroit, as this is where Chaldean Christian Jimmy Al-Daoud was picked up for deportation to Iraq.

The 41 year old Oakland County man came to the United States legally as a baby, and as an adult, dealt with health issues like diabetes and schizophrenia.

He also had numerous problems with the law, which got him the attention of the Federal Government.

A couple months after his deportation, Jimmy died in the city of Najaf.

But the story goes deeper, and beyond Mr. Al-Daoud.

Although all the media attention is on the Mexican border and talk of the wall, it is Michigan that has been the incubator for the U.S. government's recent policies and practices on deportation.

And the first group to deal with mass roundups was the Chaldean community, mostly in suburban Oakland and Macomb County.

So joining us is Clarence Dass. He's a lawyer who personally dealt with more than 25 of these kinds of cases.

We have an interesting conversation on something that is dividing the nation, immigration. With a very local angle.

Our public school system in Detroit has a lot of needs. Not just for the district itself, but as a lot of families don't have money, a lot of programs that kids in the suburbs just do? Well, they don't in Detroit.

Like travel and fees to robotics competitions, for instance. Often in the suburbs, parents pick that up. In Detroit, often, the families don't have the money.

Here's some context. The median household income in the city of Detroit is less than $30,000 a year. Statewide, it's nearly $55,000. It's not just about what the district itself gets per student in state funding, but the impact of poverty on families and educational outcomes.

Mix that with all of the other challenges big city districts have here in Detroit and around the country and there's a lot to deal with.

So my conversation today is with Pamela Moore.

She's the president of the Detroit Public Schools Foundation, a non-profit that works to raise money and give grants to the Detroit Public Schools Community District and non-profit organizations that provide programming to Detroit students.

Link to DPS Foundation: http://www.dpsfdn.org

Also on the show:

I-75 is gonna be a hot mess

Detroit's DDOT might be getting a new bus line (26 – Junction)

The Gold Dollar is no more

Popular noodle shop Ima is adding another location (First reported Freep)

And a sheep was recorded on Detroit's east side. Yes, a sheep. Video, where he calls it a Llama: https://www.facebook.com/wxyzdetroit/videos/953151331704115/

On today's show for August 9th, 2019:

Up in Royal Oak, there may be a new plan for the site of long-time Italian restaurant that recently closed.

A local brewing magazine, MIBREW, is ceasing publication after a controversial photo spread.

Electric buses are coming to DDOT and SMART.

Detroit bike share service MoGo is getting E-Bikes.

A Pokemon-themed bar is coming to town.

Shianne talks about her trip to the Lobster Pound up in Birmingham.

And Jer and Sven Gustafson try the newly released Stroh's Detroit Lager before it hits stores.

On today's show:

Wahlburgers opens in Royal Oak, Jeff Goldblum descends upon Detroit on a bicycle, Jack White is re-releasing some great stuff, there's a cat film festival coming and Arts Beats and Eats releases their lineup.

Also: Sister Mary Jane Herb stopped by the studio to talk about the future of the Marygrove campus after the closure of the college later this year. The plans are big and funded.

Fletcher Sharpe and Sven break down what's happening in the land of Detroit City FC ahead of their extra season and the possibility they will change leagues.

Thanks for listening to your Daily Detroit! Be sure to tell a friend about the show.

There's a beer battle brewing in Michigan.

Our guest on the show is Dayne Barscht, Managing Director of Eastern Market Brewing to talk about it.

They're leading a petition drive to change state law to make it easier for small breweries in Michigan to self-distribute their beer, without having to go through a distributor.

Also, Riopelle Street in Eastern Market is getting redone as a part-time pedestrian street that will be shut down during the evenings to create a space between EMBC and Detroit Distillery to enjoy.

Additionally on today's show…

We highlight election results from around town, including oft-criticized Warren Mayor Jim Fouts coasting to victory in his primary.

Townhomes in Detroit's Islandview neighborhood are going for $620,000 each. As part of the deal, developers have also rehabbed the home of an existing resident. They're calling it 'reverse gentrification.' It made us scratch our heads and we'll talk about it.

The giant tower being built on the old Hudson's may get downsized.

Kroger is hiring and Pizza Hut is closing some stores

And finally, we'll tell you about Pups in the Plaza.

Today on the show, it's Jer's birthday!

dBusiness Editor and Publisher R.J. King joins us at the Podcast Detroit studio to talk about Hantz Woodlands. Created with a lot of controversy during Detroit's bankruptcy, the operation has, well, grown. RJ talks about his cover piece for the July/August issue of dBusiness on newsstands now.

Also:

Dan Gilbert is sounding alive and recovering from a stroke.

Pizza-shaped windows are finally going into the Little Caesars HQ

And StockX lost 6.8 million records to hackers and wasn't exactly up front about it.

Thanks for listening to your Daily Detroit. Be sure to tell a friend about the show.

L. Brooks Patterson, who died Saturday at age 80 at his home in Independence Township, was one of the Detroit area's most consequential and controversial figures in local politics.

To some, he represents the ascendancy of an economic powerhouse, in Oakland County, and the very pinnacle of good governance and fiscal stewardship. But he's also a key player in the region's ugly racial divides, through his bitter rivalry with former Detroit Mayor Coleman A. Young and his history as an attorney fighting bussing and school integration in the 1970s.

Patterson was diagnosed earlier this year with pancreatic cancer, and while there were plenty of signs that the modern era was starting to pass him by, there is no denying that he left a major mark on the regional — and on regional politics.

On today's show, I go back in time to when I was covering politics in the mid-aughts for The Oakland Press.

We hear from state Sen. Jim Runestad, R-White Lake, who worked with Patterson when he served on the Oakland County Board of Commissioners. And I speak with the guy whose desk was across the divider wall from mine, Steve Huber. He covered Patterson for the OP starting when he was still the county prosecutor, then later transitioned to a job in communications in Patterson's office.

Then Jer and I share our own thoughts about Patterson's complicated legacy.

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.

Detroit's Capitol Park has a long, storied history. And it's seen a lot of transformation the last five years.

It also has a special place in my heart as it's a place I traveled often as a kid. My first Hot Wheels set was bought in a store where Prime and Proper is now. My McDonalds? As a kid, it'd be the one that was at State and Shelby streets when my dad went and painted offices.

On today's show, we dive in on the history with HistoricDetroit.org's Dan Austin.

We take a tour of the recently renovated Farwell Building. It had sat basically abandoned since 1984.

We talk to Capitol Cafe operator and Eatori owner Zack Yatim about his new spot.

And with Brian Rebain of Kraemer Design Group.