Hey, it’s Jer. How’d you make it through Monday? The fall back time change always gives me a little bit of the blues, so I hit play on this LoFi mix and got to work.
A few coming attractions on the podcast. Friend of the pod Steve Friess, a contributor to Newsweek and Hour Magazine, will be on the show later this week to analyze what happened with the election.
Tomorrow, we’re talking about the real reasons why gas prices are the way they are with Gas Buddy’s Patrick De Haan, and what the holidays are (probably) going to look like when you fill up your tank.
And today, we dove into the Porter Burks case with attorney Vince Colella. While Porter Burks was in mental crisis, the 22 year old black man was shot 19 times by Detroit Police on the city’s west side a little over a month ago.
We got into the particulars of the $50 million lawsuit against the city of Detroit, the chances for its success and what’s next.
As always, my analysis around headlines is in italics. And if this is your first time here, sign up for our free newsletter so you don’t miss another note.
📰 What to know…
» A lawsuit filed by Republican secretary of state candidate Kristina Karamo was dismissed. It aimed to stop absentee ballots from being counted in the city of Detroit, among other things. It was dismissed by a Wayne County judge Monday because did not have “any shred of evidence.” [Fox 2 News] [Freep]
I wasn’t born yesterday. Trying to suppress the count of tens of thousands of mail-in ballots from the city isn’t about election fairness; I think it’s about trying to use the system to give Republicans an edge because if Detroit’s ballots were invalidated, R’s would have a better chance of winning.
» Tyrone Winfrey Sr., executive director of community affairs for the Detroit public schools has died of colon cancer at the age of 63. Dedicating his life to improving educational opportunities and lifting up the city, he was a former president of the school board among many other posts. His wife? Janice Winfrey, the longtime Detroit city clerk. [Detroit News] [WXYZ]
» What matters to Detroit city residents ahead of the election? A survey out from the University Michigan puts it in perspective. [Policy Brief PDF]
Some takeaways:
- 1 in 3 Detroit residents are unsure if they will vote
- K-12 Schools, inflation, affordable healthcare and housing, plus crime round out the top five highest priorities.
- COVID-19 rates, abortion, opioid drug use, immigration and LGBTQ+ rights are the least important
» A new contract with police officers was agreed upon in September, but Detroit City Council hasn’t approved it. Cities from the suburbs and around the country are recruiting DPD officers, and officers are taking the positions because of the far better pay. Nearly 2,000 officers have left the department after being trained on the city’s dime since 2014. [ClickOnDetroit]
» A whistleblower outed corruption in the suburb of Garden City, but wonders if the personal cost since then was worth it. He shined light on a trip to Florida costing taxpayers thousands to a conference that the in-person portion was canceled, but the officials went down anyway on the city’s dime. [Hometown Life]
» Janice is the most popular Muppet in Michigan, according to a graphic shared by the Kermitment podcast.
I’m setting aside all journalistic responsibilities on this one. I don’t know the methodology behind it, but I’m gonna guess it has to do with Google searches and I completely believe it with how many times I’ve seen Joumana billboard memes. You can chime in on our Facebook page.
» The historic Book Mansion in Indian Village has sold for $1.2 million, quite a bit less than the $3.5 million asking price. They buyers? A couple who grew up in Windsor, Ontario. First on the list to repair? The roof. [Crain’s Detroit]
According to the realtor’s Instagram post, there were a ton of complexities with the deal. “This deal had all the Detroit challenges; it was a foreclosure, zoned commercial, had a low appraisal, historic tax credits involved, and needed a complex analysis for the scope of rehab cost.” [Instagram]
I reported back in 2017 that work was ongoing with it, but very few details were shared with me. [Daily Detroit]
A Realtor.com piece said that the previous owners spent $4.2 million restoring. If so, they took a big money bath on this one. [Realtor.com]
Built in 1911 by Louis Kamper, this is like a mini Versailles in Detroit. We talked about on the podcast back when it was listed that it needs a lot of TLC. I honestly don’t know what I’d do with all 12,000 square feet.
🦫 Did you know…
…about the Beaver Moon? If you get up early tomorrow (Tuesday) you can check it out as there should be clear skies.
It’s doubly special as there will be a full lunar eclipse, causing a blood moon. It won’t go away from sight, but there will be a reddish hue to our favorite orbiting friend.
The blood moon lasts from about 5:15 am to 6:45 am. The peak will be at about 6 am. You’re going to want to look to the horizon in the west.
So why is it called a Beaver Moon? According to the Old Farmers Almanac:
This is the time of year when beavers begin to take shelter in their lodges, having laid up sufficient stores of food for the long winter ahead. During the time of the fur trade in North America, it was also the season to trap beavers for their thick, winter-ready pelts. 🎉 New things…
» New Order Coffee is returning with a cafe, but this time in St. Clair Shores on the Nautical Mile. New Order had a spot slinging breakfast cereal lattes on Woodward in Detroit. They have had an ongoing coffee roasting business. [Instagram]
» A “Mad Nice” Italian restaurant is coming to Detroit’s Cass Corridor. A press release says that Mad Nice will be “a perfect blend of modern Italian specialties and fresh California vibes.” [Eater]
» Slows BBQ opened a ghost kitchen in Westland. The spot near Cherry Hill and John Hix will allow for online delivery orders to the western part of the region. [Slows]
» Third Wave Music is looking for some support after a recent break-in. The little music store in the basement of a historic building has been open seven years without issues, but was recently hit. They’ve started a GoFundMe. [GoFundMe]
Some of our gear in the podcast studio and that we’ve sent to contributors remotely is from Third Wave. I’m glad they exist where they do, and it’s great to have something for musicians.
» Detroit City FC is changing ticket providers. They’re throwing in with a number of teams in their league and switching from locally-based Passage to SeatGeek. SeatGeek just raised $238 million in new investment after ditching plans to go public. [USL Championship] [Detroit City FC]
Here’s my conversation from July of this year with Passage CEO, Alex Linebrink.
And we’re done for today. I’ll be out and about covering the election tomorrow, if you see our Daily Detroit shield on a black jacket — say hello.
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Remember that you are somebody — and I’ll see you around Detroit.
-Jer
