Catch Up On Our Reporting From the Week
It was a busy week in East Lansing!
Happy Saturday!
After a short publishing break, ELi was back this week, reporting on a proposed expansion to a popular downtown development, police transparency and more.
Planning Commission recommends rooftop expansion for The Graduate.
At this week’s Planning Commission meeting, the body voted unanimously to recommend that The Graduate be allowed to greatly expand its rooftop bar and dining area. However, some commissioners think that the hotel may run into road blocks when the project goes to City Council for approval. Read Reporting Intern Allison Treanor’s story here.
ELPD, oversight commission clash over complaint transparency under new union contract.
This spring, a police union representing some ELPD officers and the city reached a new collective bargaining agreement. The city’s police oversight commission and ELPD leadership continue to disagree about how far the contract goes to keep information hidden from the oversight commission and public. At this week’s meeting, the oversight commission voiced disagreement with ELPD withholding complaints until after a final ruling on discipline is issued. Read Managing Editor Luke Day’s coverage of the meeting here.
Local business owner helps East Lansing family hurt by theft.
When an East Lansing couple realized the wagon they used to transport their son had been disconnected from their bike and taken, they worried how they’d get the 23-month-old child around. When local business owner Lawrence Bledden saw a Facebook post asking residents to keep an eye out for the wagon, he took it upon himself to purchase a new wagon and build a connection with the family. Read Reporter Dustin DuFort Petty’s story about the act of generosity here.
City looks to the future in comprehensive plan update.
For more than a year, the city has been working on updating its comprehensive plan. The plan helps the city plot out the best uses for land. In the update, the city set three main goals, to improve climate resiliency, housing and public health. Read Allison’s story about the comprehensive plan and the goals set within it here.
ELHS girls tennis team secures success through togetherness.
The ELHS girls tennis team recently wrapped up a season where it won the CAAC Blue tournament championship, regional championship and finished 12th in state tournament. The success didn’t come out of thin air, as the team would routinely arrive early to practice for warm ups and helped each other build techniques that translated to wins on the court. Read Reporting Intern Belle Potter’s story on the Trojans’ season here.
City Council is back next week, and several other commissions meet.
There are city meetings scattered about the schedule next week. Monday (July 14), the Human Rights Commission meets. Tuesday (July 15), City Council will convene. Wednesday (July 16), the Library Board of Trustees will hold a pair of meetings. Then on Thursday (July 17), the Arts Commission will gather. When meeting agendas are posted, they can be found here.
Also next week, the East Lansing Board of Education has a meeting. School board meetings are held downstairs in the high school starting at 7 p.m. The agenda for that meeting can be found here.
ELi is searching for a new executive director.
After serving as executive director since 2023, Beth Peck is stepping away from ELi. We’re searching for Beth’s replacement during an exciting period of growth, where we are adding reporters and expanding our coverage of East Lansing. Read more about our search for a new executive director here.
East Lansing name origins: Burcham
East Lansing’s mighty Burcham Drive derives its name from one of the city’s founding families. Robert Burcham purchased approximately 80 acres in 1849 in the area that is now East Lansing. Within two years, he had built a home in the spot that the MSU Music Building now sits. The 1975 book At the Campus Gate: A History of East Lansing tells readers that Burcham sold vegetables from his garden to the indigenous population that lived and fished on the Red Cedar River.
When the state of Michigan purchased the land for the young college, Burcham built successive homes, first at the location of today’s People Church and then at where Stoddard and Grand River Avenues now meet. His descendants would continue to write the history of East Lansing for years to come.
Burcham died in 1870 and is buried in Okemos’ Riverside Cemetery.
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