a newspaper for the rest of us www.lansingcitypulse.com May 8 - 14, 2019 'HAMILTON’ INSIDE THE MUSICAL PHENOMENON See page 15 Project1_Layout 1 4/1/19 10:44 AM Page 1 2 www.lansingcitypulse.com City Pulse • May 8, 2019 City Pulse • May 8, 2019 www.lansingcitypulseSUPER.com BOWLS!! 3 STORY PLATES Favorite Things by Mark Chatterley Blues songstress Twyla Birdsong An exciting collection of 10” and the Hunter Park gardens ceramic wall pieces each with unique graphics Created during a month long retreat in the Arizona desert 128 stories told on stoneware through the labyrinth of Mark’s imagination. My family moved here from you have to make decisions to feed Michigan City, Indiana, when I was everybody. 5. Every house we rented was on the Sometimes when you don’t know, east side. you tend to reach for the easy things My aunt would always bring us to do that. to Hunter Park and her daughter to When I got out of the military and play in the pool. This is a nice park saw convenience stores in our neigh- where kids have room to play. There borhood, the people on welfare and is a tennis court. My mom used to food stamps went to the party store bring us to play tennis and we would where it cost more. There, you’ll watch her. I’ve spent many great spend all your stamps to feed your summers here. family and will become unhealthy. I first learned about the garden So that’s why having a neighbor- because of the Allen Street Market. hood garden is good because they They do a lot of wonderful work don’t have to ship it in from a long for the community. One day, my distance with pesticides and preser- girlfriend invited me to a yoga class vatives in. there. Not only was it free, but they Instead, the community can come would give you a $5 voucher to use and pick produce here. When I was Wednesday at the market with the in the yoga program, I used to always farmers and vendors coming in with pick berries here in the summertime. fresh produce. They have raspberries, blueberries I love how they look out for the and all kinds of fruits and vegetables. community like that. Whenever I would have anxiety You can buy something that is or feel unsure because the world “organic” from the store, but if you becomes different or changes, I ride don’t have a hand in it yourself, you through the east side and it would be usually don’t know what’s in there. an anchor and homing beacon for me I still want quality food. It is to bring my spirit back to “It’s OK.” cheaper to raise it yourself and come It calms me to be here. It may not be to gardens like this. Now I’m a grand- the prettiest. I lived in the suburbs mother, so it is even more important and prettier places, but this place is to me to have this knowledge and home and it feels good. wisdom to pass on to my children to (This interview was edited and be a more informed consumer. condensed by Dennis Burck. If you Being here made me think that have a recommendation for “Favorite nobody seeks to be unhealthy. Things,” please email dennis@lan- Everyone wants to feed their chil- singcitypulse.com.) dren, but when you are low income, 4 www.lansingcitypulse.com City Pulse • May 8, 2019 VOL. 18 ISSUE 40 (517) 371-5600 • Fax: (517) 999-6061 • 1905 E. Michigan Ave. • Lansing, MI 48912 • www.lansingcitypulse.com ADVERTISING INQUIRIES: (517) 999-5061 or email [email protected] PAGE CLASSIFIEDS: (517) 999-6704 EDITOR AND PUBLISHER • Berl Schwartz 28 [email protected] • (517) 999-5061 ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR • Audrey Matusz Italian restaurant Tannin to open on Lansing's east side [email protected] • (517) 999-5068 EVENTS EDITOR/OFFICE MANAGER • Suzi Smith [email protected] • (517) 999-6704 DIGITAL CONTENT/PRODUCTION MANAGER • Skyler Ashley PAGE [email protected] (517) 999-5066 21 STAFF WRITERS • Lawrence Cosentino [email protected] • (517) 999-5065 Examining the history of Detroit's illegal numbers game Kyle Kaminski • [email protected] (517) 999-6715 Dennis Burck • [email protected] (517) 999-6705 PAGE SALES EXECUTIVE Lee Purdy • [email protected] • (517) 999-5064 14 Contributors: Andy Balaskovitz, Justin Bilicki, Daniel E. Bollman, Jeffrey Billman, Capital News Service, MSU's first African-American woman composition grad Bill Castanier, Ryan Claytor, Mary C. Cusack, Tom Helma, Gabrielle Lawrence Johnson, Eve Kucharski, Terry Link, Andy McGlashen, Kyle Melinn, Mark Nixon, Shawn Parker, Stefanie Pohl, Dennis Preston, Allan Cover I. Ross, Nevin Speerbrecker, Dylan Tarr, Rich Tupica, Ute Von Der Heyden, David Winkelstern, Paul Wozniak Art Distribution manager: Paul Shore • (517) 999-6704 Delivery drivers: Dave Fisher, Dale Gartner, Photo by Joan Marcus Thomas Scott Jr., Jack Dowd, Gavin Smith NOW AT 10:00 A.M. SUNDAYS on City Pulse • May 8, 2019 www.lansingcitypulse.com 5 C PULSE NEWS & OPINIONOF THE WEEK Court consolidation advances, savings decline C OF THE WEEK Despite reduced expectations for cost savings, a plan to consolidate Ingham County’s district courts is advancing in the face of growing opposition. A recent Ingham County fiscal anal- ysis by the controller’s office suggests plans to merge district courtrooms in Lansing, East Lansing and Mason into a unified 55th District Court could save, at most, about $230,000 annually. It’s a far cry from estimates that saved local municipalities as much as $1.5 million Simply Smitten Boutique when the plan was first introduced. 257 S. Bridge St., Dimondale Despite opposition from several dis- A carved limestone panel detailing trict judges, a few attorneys and the the history of this grand building may Schor Meadows NAACP, support for the initiative, led be found high in the upper wall of the by mayors Andy Schor of Lansing and that shared courthouse, but I just don’t District judges Andrea Larkin and front elevation. Along with the 1897 Mark Meadows of East Lansing, is pro- see how that can work anymore. We Richard Ball in East Lansing have construction date, the faint letter- pelling the long-sought plan. Savings couldn’t find a plan that seemed to expressed doubt about the poten- ing reads, “In memory of our heroes are savings, they explained to City work for everybody. I still think we’re tial savings and have also spoken out 1861-1865,” adding that the building Pulse, even though they are less than willing to move forward, just now more against a perceived lack of local control was erected by the local Grand Army first thought. from a public policy standpoint.” should a new chief judge be assigned of the Republic post and its auxiliary, “This is all up to the mayors to decide, Rather than focusing exclusively on over their courtrooms. the Woman’s Relief Corps. but I’d like to think that saving tax - the bottom line, Meadows is looking at Neither could be reached for com- The national GAR was formed by payer dollars — and we’re still talking a bigger picture of overall efficiencies ment for this story. veterans of the American Civil War, about hundreds of thousands of dollars through the reorganization of region- Several attorneys on the board of the engaging in political advocacy in — would still be a good sign,” said 55th al caseloads. But the comparatively Friends of Ingham County Veterans support of soldiers’ pensions and the Circuit Judge Thomas P. Boyd. “We watered-down savings still isn’t enough Treatment Court also recently wrote creation of a national Memorial Day still have a disjointed system that needs to convince some that the plans are the East Lansing City Council to oppose holiday. This building was occupied improvement. This is still about better worth the effort. the merger. by Post #107, named for veteran Tim service for less money.” The new “Consolidated District “I just don’t want to start jeopar- Lewis, which was mustered in 1883 State legislation passed last year dizing things by changing things,” and disbanded in 1936. The last GAR allows city and county officials to con- the group’s president, attorney Larry post, located in Duluth, Minnesota, solidate the 54A, 54B and 55th District Salstrom, said. “I think we’re doing a dissolved in 1956 following the death courts under a single, county-con- “Saving taxpayer dollars — and superb job. I don’t think anyone is say- of its last surviving member. trolled operating system by Nov. 1. The we’re still talking about hundreds ing they’d eliminate these courts but I This Italianate structure is clad in idea: Save cash by eliminating staffing of thousands of dollars — would just don’t want the possibility to exist. multicolored brick, frequently found redundancies and better serve local res- still be a good sign.” I just don’t see any type of clear gain to in Victorian-era buildings. Window idents by redrawing some inconvenient — Judge Thomas P. Boyd, justify this chaotic, reshuffling of our hoods cap the upper level openings, judicial boundary lines. 55th District Court local judicial system.” then continue a short distance down Prior plans included the ambitious Recent feedback surveys from those the window jamb to rest on a deco- construction of a courtroom com- who used the courtrooms also included rative string course encircling the plex to be shared by Lansing and East Court Preliminary Fiscal Analysis” rave reviews. Those who left satisfied building.