Fourteen school districts in northwest Lower Michigan are among 32 statewide that have extra funding this school year to purchase locally grown fruits, vegetables and dry beans. That’s thanks to a second year of the state’s 10 Cents a Meal for School Kids & Farms pilot grant program. Together the districts serve 22,567 students in our region.
The effort to reestablish passenger rail between southeast Michigan and the Traverse City and Petoskey areas reached another major milestone when the Groundwork Center and the Bay Area Transportation Authority (BATA) selected rail industry experts, Transportation Economics and Management Systems (TEMS), to explore costs and create a business plan for regular train service.
Elementary School, K-6, and preschool students at East Jordan Public Schools are eating more local farm-fresh fruits and vegetables thanks to “Try Days” which the Charlevoix County school is holding early each month. In order to connect nutrition with classroom learning, students also watch a series of videos featuring one-minute health tips, and vote whether they “tried it”, “liked it” or “loved it”.
Affordability is often discussed as a housing issue, but in mostly rural, sprawling northwest Michigan, affordability is inextricably linked to the costs of transportation. We strive to provide affordable transportation alternatives for our workforce and celebrate when those options are made available. BATA’s regional bus service is an underutilized asset that is well positioned to address the region’s affordability and affordable housing dual conundrums.
Andrew Vriesman, a 22-year-old senior at Central Michigan University, is excited about passenger rail that will one day connect Mt. Pleasant with Ann Arbor to the southeast and with Traverse City and Petoskey to the northwest. The route will travel through thriving downtowns that include growing businesses, tech sectors, and colleges that are collectively home to 90,000 students.
Tricia Phelps’ relationship with local food began the first time she tasted a butternut squash. It was the fall of 2009—harvest season—and she was a junior at Michigan State University (MSU). A co-worker at MSU’s Residential Hospitality Services’ sustainability office...