“Shadows of the 60s Motown Holiday Tribute”: Motown Magic coming to Flint
By Linkin Carlson and Miriam Zayadi The "Shadows of the 60s Motown Holiday Tribute," led by Motown legacy and visionary Dave Revels, is poised to ignite the spirit of holiday cheer in Flint on Thursday, Dec. 14, at 8 p.m. at the Flint Institute of Music Capitol...
Commentary: You can’t “right size” a district by only closing buildings
Guest commentary by Paul Jordan To survive in the long term, the Flint district must provide every neighborhood with a local elementary school. Children can be well-educated in buildings that consist of only a few classrooms. (My parents, and perhaps yours, were...
Downtown parking update: 4,200 tickets issued per month, 22 per cent disputed; cost/benefits to the city unclear
By Liz Ireland-Curtis Continuing downtown metered parking, despite being extremely unpopular with the public, appears to be supported by the Downtown Development Authority (DDA). But the cost-benefit to the city is unclear, an ongoing investigation by East Village...
$324,000 grant allows for open enrollment for health care through Genesee Health Plan
By Miriam Zayadi GHP offers aid to community with CMS grant Genesee Health Plan (GHP) is set to aid residents of Genesee, Saginaw, and Bay County with their 2024 open enrollment from Nov. 1 to Jan. 15, 2024. Funded by a $324,365 grant from the Centers for Medicare and...
Education Beat Analysis: Flint School panel counters “we are the best board” after state superintendent warns there are too many buildings, financial crisis on horizon
By Harold C. Ford A takeaway that emerged from the Nov. 8 (Committee of the Whole or COW) and Nov. 15 (regular board meeting) meetings of the Flint Board of Education (FBOE): Link to Nov. 8 meeting Link to Nov. 15 meeting Michigan Superintendent of Instruction Michael...
The East Village Magazine – November / December 2023
The latest edition of The East Village Magazine is available for downloading and viewing here: [pdfjs-viewer url="https://www.eastvillagemagazine.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/EVM-Nov_Dec-23.pdf" attachment_id="40745" viewer_width=100% viewer_height=800px...
Review: “That’s My Moon Over Court Street — Dispatches from a Life in Flint” resonates with “improbable happiness” and moving beyond ghosts
By Robert Thomas That’s My Moon Over Court Street: Dispatches from a life in Flint is an intimate time capsule of a life in Flint composed of Jan Worth-Nelson’s collected columns from East Village Magazine, 2007- 2022. “My adult life in Flint,” she writes in her...
Commentary: The Flint water crisis criminal prosecution ends — landing another blow to the public trust
By Paul Rozycki What if the next winner of the Super Bowl was determined, not by players scoring touchdowns or field goals, but one team winning because of a referee’s ruling over someone being offside or taking too much time in the huddle? There would be an outcry...
Education Beat: Flint Schools seek Mott Foundation partnership for Holmes-Brownell campus upgrades
By Harold C. Ford The snarl(s) – those visible to the public, and those unseen – in ongoing effort(s) to upgrade the aging lineup of school buildings shepherded by Flint Community Schools (FCS) untangled a bit with the unanimous passage of a proposal by the Flint...
Flint City Hall now a “Gun Free Zone” — Councilperson still open carrying
By Tom Travis Update - since publication the Mayor's office has issued a statement clarifying the location of the 67th District Court within City Hall. The statement is located at the end of this article. ~ Editor Monday afternoon Mayor Sheldon Neeley declared City...
Emma’s Revolution Concert Friday to Support FEM Alliance Uganda
Emma’s Revolution Concert to Support FEM Alliance Uganda Emma’s Revolution, an American folk music and social justice activist duo, will perform a concert at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Flint (UUCF) at 7 p.m. Oct. 29 to support FEM Alliance Uganda, a social...
“I don’t feel safe” Councilperson Ladel Lewis says at press conference after receiving violent threats against her and her family
By Tom Travis Update: Since publication Councilpersons Tonya Burns (Ward 6) and Jerri Winfrey-Carter (Ward 5) have emailed statements to EVM. Those comments have been included in this article. Councilperson Quincy Murphy (Ward 3) has told EVM that he has not received...
Commentary: A Genesee County property sale could have a dire impact on Flint residents
By Patrick Hayes Editor's note: East Village Magazine and Flintside.com are happy to cross-publish this commentary written by local writer and Flint resident Patrick Hayes. Flint and its surrounding areas claim a long and colorful history of government...
Tribute: Remembering Flint Central’s Ray Bearden, teacher of “Truth, Beauty, Love, Justice, and Faith”
By Tim Retzloff Ray Bearden’s long career as a teacher at Flint Central High School left an indelible imprint on thousands of students whose lives he transformed. Mr. James “Ray” Bearden died in August at age 84. His obituary circulated on Facebook but, sadly, his...
Pierce School to close in 2024-25, Neithercut in 2025-26 as Flint school board moves toward “right-sizing”
By Harold C. Ford At a special meeting Oct. 5, the Flint Board of Education (FBOE) voted to close two elementary schools in the next two years. The FBOE voted 6-1 to close Pierce Elementary to students on Flint’s near east side at 1101 W. Vernon Dr. in the 2024-25...
The East Village Magazine – October 2023
The latest edition of The East Village Magazine is available for download and viewing here: [pdfjs-viewer url="https://www.eastvillagemagazine.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/EVM_Oct_23.pdf" attachment_id="40038" viewer_width=100% viewer_height=800px fullscreen=true...
Education Beat: Mixed results on post-pandemic assessment data for area schools
By Harold C. Ford Area student performance in the first post-pandemic year, 2022-2023, offers a mixture of good and bad news, according to data provided by the Michigan Department of Education (MDE), with Flint students showing a small gain in one area and losses in...
Commentary: What lies ahead for Flint’s colleges? — Centennials, conflict, change, and challenges
By Paul Rozycki The University of Michigan-Flint has a new chancellor; Mott Community College’s president is applying for a position in Kentucky; Kettering University has a new vice president, is looking to a “transformational decade”; and, since 2005, the Flint...
Taliah Abdullah, new Gloria Coles Flint Public Library director: “Community is at the heart of who I am”
By Canisha Bell and Jan Worth-Nelson “I believe in community – community is at the heart of who I am as an individual, what I believe in and why I became a librarian.” That’s how Taliah Abdullah, executive director of the Gloria Coles Flint Public Library since July...
UM – Flint enrollment up for first time in a decade: reaches 6,130
News from University of Michigan - Flint Director of Marketing and Communications Robb King: "For the first time in nearly a decade, the University of Michigan-Flint has recorded an increase in total fall enrollment as 6,130 students are enrolled at the downtown...
Council allocates $5.2 million from ARPA fund for home repairs; Berston Field House $30 million renovation capital campaign announced
By Tom Travis Editor's note - this article has been updated correcting Councilperson Eric Mays' return to council meetings on Sept. 6 after being removed for 30-days by a council vote in August. City council approved $5.2 million allocated from the city's ARPA...
Village Life: If a mouse could take a shower, what does a naked guy do?
By Tom Travis Both the mouse and I were upset with the positions we found ourselves in. I flipped on the light inside my shower and turned the water on as I’ve done every morning. But this morning a mouse scampered across the bottom of my tub/shower. It was clawing...
Village Life: the ballet of brick laying
By Tom Travis About 11 years ago I moved into a 100-year old house in Flint. The decision was made to remove all the big, heavy radiators that were connected to the old boiler heating system. There were a lot of them. What do you imagine is the heaviest thing ever?...
City council approves Phase 2 of the Buick City Redevelopment Plan – using a complex financing model
By Tom Travis The Flint City Council has approved an embattled resolution for the city to release the 350-acre former Buick City brownfield to developer Ashley Capital. Ashley Capital is under contract to purchase the site from Revitalizing Auto Communities...
“Mr. American Pie” Don McLean to perform at Capitol Aug. 31: after 50 years, he “still likes the song”
By Tom Travis Fifty-two years after his song "American Pie" became a surprise hit and thrust him him into sudden fame, singer/songwriter Don McLean, 77, says he's still not tired of it. "I'm not tired of the song because it makes people so happy," he said in a phone...
