Features

Feature Story City Café Owner Kyle Dudek poses for a photo outside his New Baltimore restaurant.

Little cafe with city charm opens in New Baltimore

Kyle Dudek has spent years behind the counter in the restaurant industry as a cook and manager. Now, he’s stepping out on his own as a restaurant owner to breathe new life into City Café – formerly A Little Mustard Seed – in New Baltimore.

Feature Story Michigan's first mass timber building built with Michigan wood.

DNR marks mass timber milestone with Newberry building

The new DNR Customer Service Center in Newberry is Michigan's first mass timber building constructed with Michigan wood.   

Longform Sienna Troy, Eli Harris, Nick Corvera-Garay, Jaylah Cotton, Josephine Smith, and Tuula Martinez at a Growing Hope Teen Leadership Program meeting.

Teens fight food insecurity in Ypsi through Growing Hope leadership program

In the latest installment of our Voices of Youth series, student writer Tova Weiss takes a look into the work of the Growing Hope Teen Leadership Program. 

Feature Story Ann Arbor Economic Development Director Joe Giant.

Q&A: Ann Arbor's first economic development director on affordability, growth, and more

Now that he's had two months to settle into the job, we sat down with Joe Giant to discuss the future of economic development in Ann Arbor.

Longform Lauren LaPine

Medicaid cuts would destabilize mental health care: How Michigan is responding

Proposed Medicaid funding cuts would dismantle critical services, especially for residents facing poverty, mental illness, or substance use disorders — and reduce access to mental health services for all.

Feature Story Blue Water YMCA hosts VOY discussions to uplift youth voices.

A peek inside the gang scene in Port Huron and its impact on youth

During a discussion with middle school students for the Voices of Youth at the Blue Water YMCA, one of the kids talked about his involvement with gangs and why he joined. Sgt. Ryan Mynsberge from the Port Huron Police Department weighs in on what the police are doing about local gangs.

Longform Kids participate in a water safety class at Adams Butzel Complex in Detroit.

Free swimming classes and equipment help improve water safety across Metro Detroit

A network of programs across Metro Detroit seeks to address high drowning rates and low swimming skills with free water safety education.

Feature Story Big Brothers/Big Sisters list image

More than 60 kids are waiting for mentors in the Great Lakes Bay Region

Big Brothers/Big Sisters of the Great Lakes Bay Region needs adult volunteers to serve as mentors to at-risk kids in the area. The program makes a big difference in the lives of kids.

Feature Story War Water Event Space

War Water Brewery is expanding its brand in St. Clair with the opening of a large event space

War Water Brewery in St. Clair recently opened an approximately 10,000-square-foot event space, offering one of the largest event rentals in the Blue Water Area. The addition to the growing restaurant might boost foot traffic for other St. Clair businesses and offer another option for organizations that benefit from hosting big events.

Feature Story playgroundimage

$1 million grant brings first-ever park to Benton Heights

A new park is being planned in Benton Heights in Benton Charter Township in Southwest Michigan, thanks, in part, to a $1 million grant from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. 

Development News “The Mobile Library allows us to reach residents in new and engaging ways,” says Sterling Heights Library Director Tammy Turgeon.

City unveils latest in lifelong learning opportunities with the Sterling Heights Mobile Library

“The Mobile Library allows us to reach residents in new and engaging ways,” says Sterling Heights Library Director Tammy Turgeon.

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