After $36.5 million renovation of century-old downtown landmark, Hilton Garden Inn opens with two new restaurants, COVID-19 protocols
By Tom Travis The first guests have checked into their rooms and reservations have been made for the weeks and months to come, according to the new Hilton Garden Inn staff. A historic century-old building that sat vacant for two decades has been renovated into a new 101-guest room hotel in the heart of Flint’s downtown and is launching with several levels of COVID-19 protections. Towering over downtown Flint, the 11-story...
Commentary: Biden wins — What does it all mean? Ten takeaways from the 2020 election
By Paul Rozycki In a year of pandemics, racial division, economic crisis, and the most divisive election in the last century, it’s a challenge to uncover the things that really matter in this year’s presidential election. In the last weeks, we’ve all had wall-to-wall coverage and analysis of this year’s presidential contest. It may be months, or years, before we fully unravel the full impact and the meaning of the Trump presidency and...
Three newcomers elected make an all-female Flint school board; host of challenges await
By Harold C. Ford The Flint Community Schools (FCS) Board of Education will have a new look in 2021. Joyce Ellis-McNeal, (9.13 percent/9,409 votes), Anita M. Moore (8.78 percent/9,053 votes), and Laura Gillespie MacIntyre (6.09 percent/6,277 votes) were elected to six-year terms that begin Jan.1, 2021 and end in 2026. (Note: Percentages and votes are from the “Unofficial Results” posted at the website of the Genesee County Clerk’s...
PFAS in Buick City site so far not detected in nearby drinking water, RACER Trust reps report
By Coner Segren Despite the findings of PFAS contamination at the former Buick City site in northeast Flint, so far the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) has not found any red flags for any specific substances in the drinking water in the neighborhoods around the site, representatives from RACER Trust reported at a public meeting held via Zoom Oct. 22. RACER Trust, an environmental cleanup and redevelopment...
“I’m running as a proud Democrat but I’ll govern as an American,” Biden tells drive-in Flint audience
By Tom Travis Drawing sharp contrasts between the last four years of the Trump presidency and eight years of President Barack Obama and Joe Biden’s administration, candidate for president Joe Biden addressed a drive-in rally today at Flint’s Northwestern High School parking lot by declaring, “I’m running as a proud Democrat, but I’ll govern as an American.” On a bright sunny cold Halloween day, Rev....
Education Beat: As pandemic numbers surge, student return to Flint schools not likely, officials say
By Harold C. Ford “I don’t think that students will be returning to school in the 2020 school year.” –Anita Steward, Flint Community Schools superintendent, Oct. 21, 2020 As pandemic numbers surge in Flint, Anita Steward, Flint Community Schools (FCS) superintendent, told the FCS Board of Education Oct. 21 that students will not likely return to school buildings for face-to-face/brick-and-mortar instruction in 2020. Conversely, FCS...
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