Hello, Friends —We are pleased to share some thoughts today about personal mission and community engagement from our board chair, Cheryl Hutchinson, who is also a member of our Corporate and Community Partnership Program.—Stephanie Prall What’s your...
Soot. Boring word. Deadly thing.
What if, in our nation, there was no fossil fuel soot? (Hang onto that thought.) “Soot.” So blunt and primitive, the word is just right for the dark, greasy and pernicious thing it represents. The word time-travels us back to the dawn of the industrial age and...
Accessible Housing Moving Forward
In case you missed it, in January, Traverse City Commissioners voted in favor of a purchase agreement with HomeStretch, a nonprofit housing developer based in lower Northwest Michigan, making it possible for HomeStretch to acquire a city-owned parking lot in the heart...
Rep. Betsy Coffia Talks Priorities With Groundwork
Above: Michigan State House Representative Betsy Coffia, during a visit to the Groundwork office. Groundwork staff welcomed newly elected State House Representative Betsy Coffia to our office the other day for a two-way conversation about legislative priorities. Below...
Next Year’s Northern Michigan Rail Study Will Welcome Critics, Concerns
The idea of creating a passenger rail connection to northern Lower Michigan reached an exciting milestone this year when state and federal lawmakers announced funding support for the next phase of planning. But even though many people think the news is a win for...
Missing Middle Housing—
not too big, not too little, just right.
The image above shows in white the two primary dwelling types found in most cities: single-family homes and mid-rise apartment buildings. What’s lacking, shown in yellow, are the diverse and complementary missing middle homes, such as duplexes, triplexes,...