Category: Local News
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St. John Street neighborhood remembered by McCree Theater’s Winfrey
By Robert R. Thomas Charles Winfrey, Executive Director of the McCree Theatre, once wrote a play titled “The Saints of St. John Street” based on his fondest memories of growing up in Flint’s St. John Street neighborhood. He told his audience of 40 at the Flint Public Library recently he felt somewhat outside his comfort…
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EPA water use handout project aims at hard-to-reach residents, faces funding needs
By Jan Worth-Nelson Note: This is an updated version of a story appearing in the April hard copy of East Village Magazine based on information available when the hard copy went to press. More information has since become available. A two-sided color handout from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) developed explicitly for Flint details what residents…
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Column: While we were dealing with the water crisis…
By Paul Rozycki As Flint works its way through its water crisis, the range of problems seem overwhelming. Every time it looks like we’ve solved one problem, another rears its head. At first it seemed that all we needed to do was replace the old lead pipes in the homes that had them, as difficult…
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Flint Public Art Project evolving to local leadership, “Motion in Play”
By Stacie Scherman Flint Public Art Project (FPAP) is now under new local leadership as a result of recent changes to its organizational structure. Former director and FPAP founder Stephen Zacks stepped down into the newly created creative director position. He is succeeded by FPAP’s new interim director, Joe Schipani. Zacks has been commuting to…
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Marijuana dispensaries focus of planning commission discussion
By Nic Custer Proposals for medical marijuana dispensaries at three Flint locations were the main topic discussed at the March 8 Flint Planning Commission meeting, which drew more than 60 people to the city hall’s Dome Auditorium. Many audience members were College Cultural neighborhood residents who came for a public hearing about Bio-Med LLC’s…
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Confront America’s history of racism to understand Flint, activist asserts
By Robert R. Thomas Racism and economic inequality go hand-in-glove in America, an anti-racism activist told an audience of 150 at the Flint Public Library, and Flint’s recent travails are a pointed example. Tim Wise asserted to the St. Patrick’s Day crowd that the history of race relations most of us have been taught is…
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Gray Panthers stalk Flint events: remembering That Weekend (Part I)
By Robert R. Thomas The plan was to take a list of ten events surrounding the Democratic debate at the Whiting and participate in as many as chilly weather and aging bones permitted. My wife Ingrid and I were more interested in the scenes surrounding the main event than the debate itself. We were…
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Bernie makes it better: remembering That Weekend (Part 2)
By Teddy Robertson The March 6, 2016 Democratic debate is over. That it was held in Flint seems more amazing now than it did the Sunday I stood in a line that snaked around the Whiting parking lot—students, Flint old timers (“I walked to Flint Central 50 years ago!”), guys with union hall physiques and no…
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“Today and Tomorrow–Water in Flint” panel covers “confusing” bills, credits, leaks and lawsuits
By Robert R. Thomas Deciphering Flint’s water bills and the coming state “credits,” assessing the prospects of pending lawsuits, and considering the long-term impact of the city’s water crisis were among topics covered at a community meeting March 10 at the Flint Public Library. Titled “Today and Tomorrow—Water in Flint,” the gathering, featuring nine panelists, was…
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Beyond the Water Crisis: Ready for prime time? Too much prime time?
By Paul Rozycki Before last November’s election there were many who wondered if Dr. Karen Weaver, running for her first elective office, was ready for prime time. It seems that we have our answer. In just a little over three months, has any mayor of a similar sized city had as much national, state…
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