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Ruling is win for city, loss to Detroit labor unions09/07/12 In the ongoing contest of unions vs. the city of Detroit, the Michigan Administrative Hearings System has issued another win for Detroit. Administrative Law Judge David Peltz issued a decision on Aug. 30, ruling against a coalition of city labor unions and upholding the city's ability to impose contract employment terms on the unions. So this is a little complicated. During the winter of 2011-2012, a coalition representing 33 of the city's labor unions reached tentative contract …more »Dan Gilbert to buy One Woodward Ave., sources say09/06/12 The downtown real estate empire of Quicken Loans Inc. founder Dan Gilbert may be growing. Brokers around town are saying that Gilbert's Bedrock Management has One Woodward Ave. under contract to be sold. Quicken wouldn't confirm the story — Paula Silver, Quicken's vice president for communications, told Crain's "we have nothing to report at this time." While a closing date isn't known, brokers estimate that the building …more »If state loses EM law, Detroit's situation gets complicated. Yeah, I said 'gets'08/07/12 About 15 years ago, I was in Belize. Our tour guide, a native Mayan, was taking us up the side of a mountain. We'd been climbing what seemed to be a vertical mountainside for quite some time (this reporter was an unattractive sweating, nasty, lobster-colored mess) when our guide finally called for a rest break. As we prepared to move on, the guide said, of the next leg of the climb, "Now we go up." Which reminds me of Detroit. Yesterday, Michigan Atty. Gen. Bill Schuette issued an highly …more »Court's ruling raises question: Do contracts imposed under PA 4 stand?08/06/12 And there it is. The Michigan Supreme Court ruled Friday that the state Board of Canvassers must place the repeal of Public Act 4 on the November ballot. After the Board of Canvassers acts, PA 4 will be suspended pending the November vote. What everyone wants to know: Will contracts (or in the case of Detroit, employment terms) imposed under PA 4 stand, now that PA 4 has been suspended? As usual, with any question involving lawyers, there are at least …more »Hantz is going to a lot of trouble if a farm isn't his true motivation
08/02/12
I'm going to trot out an idea here: If financier John Hantz wanted to build a factory in Detroit, he could do it.
Hantz seems to have plenty of money, and Detroit's got plenty of land. Detroit even has available land that's zoned for industrial use. (Like, for example, a 189-acre industrial park on the east side that never got off the ground.)
Ditto a luxury condo development. Credible developers who want to build housing tend to be met with open arms.
If I were John Hantz, and I wanted …more »
Detroit consent agreement opponents lose in court, but much is still uncertain07/26/12 Bad news today for those holding out hope that the city of Detroit's consent agreement with the state of Michigan could be invalidated on the grounds that the state is in default to the city. Good news for those who don't want the city to go bankrupt by mid-August. Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Amy Hathaway today issued a full-throated ruling in the city and state's favor, deciding against three union leaders who'd brought suit seeking to void the consent agreement. The union leaders' …more »Detroit's financial peril doesn't take a vacation — unlike me — so let's recap07/17/12 I feel like some kind of weather joke is obligatory here — it's heating up outside, and inside City Hall as well. The mercury is rising in metro Detroit, and so are tensions between the city and its labor unions. That kind of thing. But I'm going to skip it today because it really is too hot to be clever. (See what I did there?) So I made the mistake of going on vacation. While I was gone, it turns out, a lot happened in Detroit. Let's recap: The biggest Detroit news happened …more »Union contract confusion? Bond sale uncertainty? Must be time for an update on Detroit's finances06/29/12 It's Friday — must be time for a blog about the Detroit financial crisis. This week, I'm taking you deep into the world of parallel union contracts. But stick around to the end, because there's an exciting update on Detroit Mayor Dave Bing's feud with city Law Department chief Krystal Crittendon and some riveting info about an upcoming bond sale. Can you stand it? Back to labor contracts. In the first world we'll discuss — let's call it Bing World — under the consent …more »Detroit bond sale in jeopardy while corporation counsel drama takes center stage06/22/12 Everyone and their brother (including me, I admit it) has been busy covering the contretemps between Detroit Mayor Dave Bing and Detroit Corporation Counsel Krystal Crittendon. But here's what's going on under the hood of Detroit city government. The city's financial future hinges on a bond sale set for next week, and right now, it's not clear if that sale is going to happen. In short, the city borrowed about $80 million this spring on a short-term basis, with the understanding that a …more »It’s Krystal clear, Detroit’s future isn’t being decided at today’s City Council meeting06/22/12 Will the Detroit City Council fire Corporation Counsel Krystal Crittendon today? Probably not. How important is this in the grand scheme of things? Um ... Crittendon catapulted into the spotlight when she filed a lawsuit challenging the legality of a consent agreement between the city and the state. The city and the state can’t have contracts, she claimed, because the state owes the city money. And according to the new charter, the city can’t enter into a contract …more » |
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