All I Want for Christmas Is a Hulahoop See Page 11 2 City Pulse • December 11, 2019
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December 11 - 17, 2019 www.lansingcitypulse.com Locally owned • A newspaper for the rest of us All I want for Christmas is a Hulahoop See page 11 2 www.lansingcitypulse.com City Pulse • December 11, 2019 Make sure your last holiday season with Mackerel Sky includes gifts with the fabulous purple bow! Enjoy the shopping experience in Mackerel Sky’s welcoming atmosphere. As you would expect, we are chock full of wonderful treats for all. We always look forward to seeing you. The Gallery is wallpapered with 30 years of Please visit to sign our Mackerel Sky newsletters for you to enjoy a 30th Anniversary guest books. walk down memory lane. We are ready to help with our fantastic customer service! City Pulse • December 11, 2019 www.lansingcitypulse.com 3 Favorite Things John Olson of Wolf Eyes and his original Jesus Figs demo It was the summer of 1984. I just started skating with my friends. We were total nerds. Wearing loafers. Just dorks. Didn’t know about punk, didn’t know about anything. We were skating downtown East Lansing and this dude rolls up — it was Skater Dave. He’s like, “Hey you guy wanna skate a half-pipe?” And we said, “Nah, we don’t smoke man.” We didn’t even know what a fucking ramp was. “It’s this wooden thing that’s really high, and there’ll be some other skat- ers there,” Dave said. So we skated with him. It was way the fuck down Abbot. We get there, I walk into the screen; this went on for about an backyard and I hear “This Ain’t No hour. They were passing out beers Picnic,” by The Minutemen; I see and me and my homeboy were like skinheads and punks and I’m just like “Uh … What?!” “What the fuck!” Back then, because We went home, I woke up my mom nobody skated, everybody was cool and I said, “You’re not gonna believe with each other. It was just like, my day. I know what I’m gonna be for “Welcome to the community.” the rest of my life.” They showed me and my homeboy Fast forward to this summer. Dave how to drop in, and then at the end is like, “Yo, I’m friends with some- of the night they asked, “Do you want body in The Jesus Figs. I’ll let you to go to a gig?” We didn’t even know borrow the demo.” And up to this what a gig was. We just said “Huh?” point, I haven’t been able to find any They told us, “There’s gonna be information about The Jesus Figs at free beer there and there’s a skinhead all. Not only was that the first gig I band playing.” ever went to, it was the first weird We just said, “Uh, all right.” shit I experienced. To be honest, it’s So we skate to the gig, it was only such a magical thing I’ve never even two blocks over. We go up, and it’s listened to it. The image in my head is four skinheads on acid — we didn’t just too insane. That tape is the only even know what acid was — playing thing they ever did. They didn’t even in a kitchen on pots and pans with dub it. It’s the absolute original. towels over them to mute them. The Interview condensed and edited by singer was just singing into a static TV Skyler Ashley. 4 www.lansingcitypulse.com City Pulse • December 11, 2019 VOL. 19 ISSUE 18 (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 14 EDITOR AND PUBLISHER • Berl Schwartz [email protected] • (517) 999-5061 Celebrate the season with more holiday happenings ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR • Audrey Matusz [email protected] • (517) 999-5068 EVENTS EDITOR/OFFICE MANAGER • Suzi Smith [email protected] • (517) 999-6704 PAGE PRODUCTION MANAGER • Skyler Ashley [email protected] 21 (517) 999-5066 Composition • Abby Sumbler STAFF WRITERS • Lawrence Cosentino New in Town: OverDrive comes to Lansing Mall [email protected] • (517) 999-5065 Kyle Kaminski • [email protected] (517) 999-6710 PAGE SALES EXECUTIVE 25 Lee Purdy • [email protected] • (517) 999-5064 Contributors: Andy Balaskovitz, Justin Bilicki, Capital News Service, Bill Castanier, Ryan Claytor, Mary C. Make a gift or treat yourself to a unique workshop Cusack, Tom Helma, Gabrielle Lawrence Johnson, Terry Link, Kyle Melinn, Mark Nixon, Dennis Preston, Carrie Sampson, Nevin Speerbrecker, Rich Tupica, Ute Von Der Cover Heyden, David Winkelstern, Paul Wozniak Distribution manager: Art Garrett Clinard • (517) 999-6704 Delivery drivers: Garrett Clinard, Dave Fisher, Dale By Audrey Matusz Gartner, Jack Sova, Gavin Smith Interns: Matthew Stine • [email protected] NOW AT 10:00 A.M. SUNDAYS on City Pulse • December 11, 2019 www.lansingcitypulse.com 5 PULSE NEWS & OPINION ple downtown each year. Walter called the estimates “very conservative.” After a year of market research, public surveys “No crystal chandeliers here,” she said. “We say ‘It can be done’ and meetings, Michelle Walter of Connecticut- with confidence that it can be done.” based AMS Planning & Research gave her team’s The plan calls for a 1,400-seat music hall (or 1,800 Arts Commission accepts final recommendations to Mayor Andy Schor’s Arts standing), a 200-seat “performing lab,” studio and Commission Monday. classroom space for the Lansing Public Media Center performing arts center plan The commission voted without dissent to accept and a relocated Lansing Art Gallery. A national consulting firm pegged the cost of the report and pass it on to the mayor for further The Lansing Symphony Orchestra and the Capital Lansing’s hoped-for civic performing arts center action. City Film Festival, adding year-round programming, Monday at $45 million to $60 million and report- The center at a downtown location yet to be deter- would share the facility with nationally touring pop ed that it would likely operate at a yearly shortfall mined, would cost about $60 million as a standalone acts and dozens of other theaters, dance troupes, of $640,000, while generating millions of dollars in building, or closer to $45 million if it is part of a larg- economic impact and bringing about 150,000 peo- er private development with shared costs. See Arts, Page 6 Want overnight parking? Prepare to pay. Lansing City Council has been in the works for well more than a year — could pass through the expected to vote committee Thursday, head to the City Council before Christmas and take on new parking rules effect as early as March 2020. But The wild days of almost unchecked parking tickets can be a contentious overnight parking on the streets of the issue. It’s pushing some to ask: Why capital city may be coming to a close as bother changing anything at all? the Lansing City Council looks to ramp Under the ordinance, Lansing pro- up enforcement and introduce paid hibits street parking from 2-5 a.m. permits by sometime early next year. Enforcement, however, has been And that means local residents could scarce. And many drivers don’t com- soon be expected to pay a price for hav- ply. Records show police only issued ing curbside convenience at home. 743 tickets last year, down from 3,200 “It’s not enforced like we would like in 2017. Council Vice President Peter it to be,” explained Mayor Andy Schor. Spadafore said the ban is a “long-run- “The best way to do that is to have ning joke” around City Hall. more parking enforcement staff, but “I don’t believe we should have a law to pay for that, we want to do permits. on the books that we don’t intend to Kyle Kaminski/City Pulse I’m supportive of a permit system that enforce,” Spadafore added. “To that pays for itself and however many staff end, and the way I see it, we have two alternatives. And besides, the city can’t around the city with people parking on that we can afford to bring on to keep options: We either ramp up enforce- afford to bring on an additional park- either side of the road, and our snow this new ordinance enforced.” ment or we repeal the law. I don’t real- ing enforcement officer with just ticket plows and emergency vehicles just The City Council’s Public Safety ly like either of those options, so we revenue alone, Schor said. can’t fit past them,” said Councilman Committee will meet later this week have a third option to rewrite the law “A lot of people want to be able Jeremy Garza. “I know people who are to mull the passage of some fresh and allow for some exceptions.” to park from 2-5 a.m.,” Schor said. upset about these permits, but I really citywide parking rules that would put Enforcing the existing overnight “Maybe they have visitors. Maybe they have a hard time understanding that some added teeth into Lansing’s exist- parking ban could be messy — and need the extra space. I support some when 911 can’t get down the street.” ing 2-5 a.m. street parking ban while expensive. Many older homes weren’t type of an allowance there but we’d Added Councilwoman Patricia still offering residents the option of a built to accommodate multiple vehi- need to be able to keep it enforced.” Spitzley: “There are some areas in the $125 permit that would allow them to cles.