We thought when we went into the office today, it’d be a short day. We were wrong.
Here’s what to know around town:
I-75 is crumbling. Both the Northbound and Southbound lanes have major emergency repairs underway.
A highly dispiriting for Martin Luther King Jr. Day – The Detroit News reports that a former political aide to Warren Mayor Jim Fouts says the mayor called former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick the N-word on election night in 2007. More: https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/macomb-county/2019/01/21/warren-mayor-jim-fouts-called-kwame-kilpatrick-n-word-ex-aide-says/2636161002/
According to PropertyShark, the difference between the median home sale prices in Detroit’s neighborhoods and downtown is one of the largest in the nation. But we dig deeper into just how odd Detroit’s real estate market is, with 15x less mortgages than the national average per 100,000 people. https://www.propertyshark.com/Real-Estate-Reports/2019/01/14/the-rise-and-fall-of-the-american-downtown-a-look-into-the-home-price-evolution-of-the-nations-urban-cores-in-the-decade-since-the-downturn/
A newly released court memo in the bribery case of Troy’s former city manager argues that Brian Kischnick had a “god complex” and ran a pay-to-play operation rivaling that of former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick. https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/oakland/2019/01/21/troy-city-manager-bribery-case/2632999002/
Henry Ford Health System plans to convert a vacant commercial building near its anchor hospital into an arts destination focused on offering youth and family programming and highlighting the talent of local artists. It’ll be called ArtBlock.
Michigan’s new Secretary of State, Jocelyn Benson, has filed a legal brief that seeks to settle a lawsuit challenging the Republican-drawn legislative and congressional districts. That could lead to new maps drawn for the 2020 election.
Last month we told you about Lincoln’s plan to make a limited number of Continental sedans fitted with suicide doors. Today, the company said all 80 models sold out within two days, despite a price tag north of $110,000.
Grammy-nominated rapper Nas will perform with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra on March 5th.
Could Buddy’s Pizza be expanding to Grand Rapids?
In more food news… Ann Arbor based Seva has been named one of the best Vegetarian and Vegan restaurants in the country by Thrillist.
A longtime Detroit watering hole, The Detroiter Bar, will not be serving alcohol for 21 days.
And, the founder of Olga’s Kitchen, Olga Loizon, has passed away.
If you have questions or feedback for the show, hit us up at dailydetroit@gmail.com.