Sven Gustafson - Daily Detroit (Page 3)

Why Those Auto Insurance Coronavirus Rebates Aren't All That

Perhaps you’ve heard that, because people are driving so much less and accident claims have plummeted during the coronavirus lockdown, your benevolent automobile insurance carrier is planning to give you a big wet kiss in the form of a refund. Well, our guest today not only gives us the lowdown on why this might be happening, but he suggests that in reality, it’ll more likely be a credit rather than a check for cash. Steven Gursten is the managing partner at Michigan Auto Law. He tel...

PODCAST: Michigan Sees Big Coronavirus Spike; Gig-Economy Unemployment Benefits Start Next Week

Well, so much for a possible reprieve in the coronavirus spread in Michigan. The state on Friday reported 205 deaths in the last 24 hours, an increase of 43%. There were 1,279 new confirmed cases of COVID-19. Meanwhile, good news for the Uber drivers, freelancers and other independent contractors of the world: You’ll be able to file for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance starting Monday at michigan.gov/UIA. That brings an extra $600 a week on top of the maximum $362 in state unempl...

PODCAST: Do New Numbers Offer Glimmer Of Hope In Dismal Season Of Coronvirus?

On today’s show, we bring you a slew of short updates on the coronvirus situation in and around Detroit. The state on Wednesday reported 1,376 new confirmed cases and 114 deaths, bringing the overall total to 20,346 confirmed cases and 959 deaths. That might not seem like much to celebrate, but it’s the smallest jump in new daily cases since March 31. In Detroit, the epicenter of the outbreak in Michigan, Mayor Mike Duggan says testing at the former State Fairgrounds site is way ahead...

Minsk, Belarus: Detroit’s Sister City Living Under Russia’s Shadow

Today we have a special narrative edition of the show for you. We take you out of your coronavirus confines to Minsk, the capital of Belarus in far eastern Europe. It’s where I recently traveled to talk about Daily Detroit and podcasting at the Press Club Belarus, an organization promoting an independent, free press in the former Soviet republic. Belarus has also been in the international news lately as the only country in Europe that is continuing to play professional s...

Tips To Help Your Small Business Make It Through The Coronavirus Pandemic With Matthew Roling

This is a scary time for small businesses. That’s why we wanted to talk to someone with practical advice. So our guest for this episode of the podcast is Matthew Roling, the Executive Director at the Office of Business Innovation at Wayne State University and a certified public accountant. He spent a combined seven years at Rock Ventures and has also worked as a turnaround consultant in the aftermath of the Great Recession at Alex Partners. Below is the audio of the conversation and...

PODCAST: New Coronavirus Cases Top 1,000 In Michigan, And An Economist Puts Unemployment Claims In Historical Perspective

It’s Tuesday, in the decent chance you need a reminder of what day it is today, and we’ve got another full episode worth of coronavirus updates. I also speak with Anson Smuts, a senior economist at O’Keefe, a Bloomfield Hills business consultancy, about the historical implications of the massive unemployment filings in the wake of the outbreak. Also on today’s show: * The state of Michigan reported that the number of new confirmed cases of COVID-19 climbed above 1,0...

PODCAST: Detroit Police Chief James Craig Has Coronavirus, And Ventilators Get Political AF

The coronavirus pandemic is intensifying in Michigan on multiple fronts. The state reported a jump of 801 new cases, Detroit Police Chief James Craig has now tested positive for COVID-19, and Ford and GM spent much of Friday on the firing lines of President Trump’s Twitter feed. Even Gov. Gretchen Whitmer wasn’t spared POTUS’ wrath. To recap, GM and Ford in the past week have both announced partnerships with medical device manufacturers to help increase production of critically n...

Coronavirus Wreaking Havoc On Middle-Aged Patients, Causing 'Robust Diarrhea,' Doctor Says

As the coronavirus outbreak worsens, doctors on the front lines are learning some surprising new things about symptoms and who’s susceptible to the contagion. Dr. Joel Fishbain, an infectious disease specialist with Beaumont, Grosse Pointe, joined us Tuesday on the Daily Detroit podcast to discuss what doctors are learning about the pandemic, how it sometimes contradicts early information about the fast-spreading novel coronavirus, and the wisdom of using unproven anti-malarial drugs...

What We're Learning About Coronavirus From Infected Patients, According To A Beaumont Doctor

Dr. Joel Fishbain, an infectious disease specialist with Beaumont, Grosse Pointe, joins the show today and tells us about what’s happening on the front lines of the battle against the coronavirus. Fishbain tells Daily Detroit that he was initially among those who thought this was simply a version of the common flu. But now he’s seeing alarming numbers of people in their 40s and 50s who have to go on ventilators — as well as a phenomenon he called “robust diarrhea.” Beaumont h...

PODCAST: COVID-19 Updates And What The Governor's Shelter-In-Place Coronavirus Order Means

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Monday issued a stay-at-home order to all Michigan residents, ordering non-essential businesses and work places closed and outlawing all public or private gatherings between people who aren’t part of the same household. It sounds, and is, extreme, though it’s necessary to minimize the worst effects of the COVID-19 outbreak. And if you’ve already been following best-practice advice, then it frankly isn’t a big departure from the new norm. Just don’t go out and hoa...

Tips For Maintaining Good Mental Health During The Coronavirus Shutdown

On this special Sunday edition of Daily Detroit, we’ve got more updates on the fast-evolving COVID-19 outbreak, plus an interview with Dr. Joel Young, founder of the Rochester Center for Behavioral Medicine, for some tips on keeping good mental health during this difficult time. We have updated figures on confirmed coronavirus cases and new orders from Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and other leaders. Among them is a new order temporarily closing hair salons, barber shops, tattoo parlor...

PODCAST: Regional Transit Plans Die On The Vine Plus Detroit City FC News

We’re gonna need a new hashtag to keep track of all these false starts on expanding transit in Detroit. Maybe #TransitFailDET? On today’s show, we dissect the latest blow to hopes that the Detroit region might finally be able to come to its senses and expand public transit. This after House Republicans in Lansing chose to shelve a bill that would have allowed Macomb County, long an opponent of regional transit expansion plans, to opt out, while letting Oakland and Wayne counties...

Paczki, Pot And Passenger Trains: A Daily Detroit Mardi Gras Edition Podcast

If you like listening to people eating telling stories over a box of paczki, this episode is for you. Because it’s Fat Tuesday, and that can only mean two things here in Detroit: jelly-filled paczki and drinking. We also discuss an interesting report in the Freep that looks at Amtrak ridership in Michigan. Turns out, we have the worst on-time rates of any state that Amtrak serves, just 33%. And keep in mind, Amtrak defines “on-time” as anything within 29 minutes of the scheduled...

Inside Philip Kafka's Long-Game Vision For Detroit

Philip Kafka has made a big splash since arriving in Detroit during the last decade. He’s helped open two of the city’s most celebrated restaurants, Takoi and Magnet, and he’s the developer behind the Quonset hut development “True North,” public spaces and retail storefronts popping up in a once-sleepy pocket of the core city neighborhood. Now, he’s looking to expand his development. Kafka joins us on the podcast for a wide-ranging discussion about his plans, his love of trees, and...

PODCAST: Detroit Launches New Arts Fund, And A Lawsuit Targets Recreational Marijuana Licensing Delays

City officials today unveiled their sweeping vision to boost support for arts and culture with a multi-faceted plan that envisions it as a tool to attract talent and use the arts as a catalyst for economic growth. It will all be housed in the city’s new Office of Arts, Culture and Entrepreneurship, headed by former Detroit Free Press columnist Rochelle Riley. She said she spent the past year meeting with more than 100 artists and went on a listening tour of neighborhoods across the city...

Ferndale OKs Spending $1M After Mixed-Use Parking Deck Mixup

Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story mischaracterized Council member Greg Pawlica’s remarks. It has been corrected. The Ferndale City Council authorized spending up to $1 million more on the mixed-use parking deck under construction downtown after the developer reported that funds needed to bid out the 25,000 square feet of office space that was a key part of the project had been left out. The unanimous vote came near the end of contentious and lengthy back-and-forth betw...

Sterling Heights

PODCAST: Pontiac Reconsiders The Woodward Loop, Plus 7 Things To Know

Today we’re catching you up on some things happening around town. First up, Amazon has released a new video and some details about the battery-electric Prime delivery vans that Plymouth-based Rivian will build for it. The online retailer has ordered 100,000 vans from Rivian, which has designed the vehicle and will supply the skateboard electric-vehicle platform it will ride on. They’ll come in three different sizes, offer different battery configurations and feature things like d...

Auto Sales Continued A Tear in 2019, Plus Blake Griffin News And Recycling In Detroit

On today’s episode, we wrap up 2019 auto sales with Michelle Krebs, executive analyst at Autotrader. The industry finished the year above 17 million cars and trucks for the fifth straight year, the first time it’s ever gone that long above that number. We go over results at each of the Detroit automakers, including surprising troubles for some of Ford’s popular SUVs and how Ram trucks have leapfrogged the Chevy Silverado in popularity. Then, we talk recycling. The city of Detroit...