What Lansing Council

At the August 25th meeting the Lansing city council updated the process for deciding who gets city contracts over $15,000 dollars. Council also did some self-regulating, to update attendance and punishment rules for missed meetings. Public comments include both angry and appreciative stances on trash collection consolidation and plans for unhoused residents. Our guest is State Senator Sarah Anthon...

The audience chamber at the August 11th Lansing city council meeting was packed! Folks voiced their opinions on how the city treats people experiencing homelessness. An East Lansing city council member, Ingham county health services workers, a reverend, land owners, current shelter workers, emergency services workers, community organizers, and many others gave comments. Council approved $650,000 f...

At the July 28th City Council meeting the Mayor is raked over the coals for a city lawsuit against local property owners allowing an unhoused encampment, other comment about construction bidding rules, property redevelopment plans, and tenant / landlord rule changes pack less heat - but it was an undeniably charged night at council.  Our special guest is Eric Tans! Eric works as an Environmental S...

Here is the Podcast's Patreon Page:Patreon.com/WhatLansingCouncil Vote on the perks for being a WLC patreon member! ***************** During the July 14th Lansing city council meeting the council got a slick update on Lansing airport happenings, there are continuing brownfield development plans on plans on plans, some multi-property landlords were not in-favor of proposed renter insurance ordi...

During the June 23rd council meeting, Council went bonkers for some planned property redevelopments, they bailed out a community picnic, and did their best to support retired firefighters and renters. The capital area district library (CADL) gave heartwarming updates but asked for help finding a new home downtown because their building is becoming uninhabitable.  Our special guest is Mike Dombrows...

During the June 9, 2025 Lansing city council meeting council faced a wall of red. Firefighters in their red shirts gave comments about broken promises made to retired members, this is due to a corrected oversight by the city that will cause these retirees to pay more for their health coverage going forward. Lansing’s Juneteenth celebration committee was honored, and discussions over rental insuran...

Hello Lansing, do you know all the candidates running for city offices this year? You’ll hear some of them now! I sent an invitation to all those running and here are the 13 out of 21 who responded. The city’s primary election is on August 5th and the general will be November 4th. What are you looking for in your city representative and who do you want to be your voice on council?  Thank you to th...

During the May 19, 2025 Lansing city council meeting our power utility manager gave a harrowing storm damage repair update. For those out of towners: Lansing was hit by severe winds or a tornado (depending on who you talk to) last Thursday night. The city budget was finalized with four last minute jobs added by council, they stuck with their story regarding blocking hard liquor license transfers,...

During the May 12, 2025 Lansing city council meeting concerns from “the rent is too damn high” advocacy group were voiced and heard, firefighter and city teamsters union reps want to see long term strategic plans for filling vacancies and increasing staff, also the Mayor gets his comments cut short by the buzzer.  Our guest is Lansing Community College’s professor Randy Watkins. Prof. Watkins was...

During the May 5th 2025 Lansing city council meeting the council starts a letter writing campaign: to the federal congress - please don’t tax municipal bonds - we prefer to use taxpayer dollars not to pay more taxes, to our state congress - please consider allowing red-light and speed cameras for automatic traffic enforcement, to the Mayor - give more monies to the police and fire departments. Als...

Here’s your April 28th committee of the whole review: Council heard budget presentations from three departments and one public commentor demanded action to reduce speeding along S MLK Jr Blvd. There was also one sneeze and two jokes! Our guest is Sophia Saliby, Sophia works at our local East Lansing public media station WKAR where she produces and hosts All Things Considered. She’s covered many st...

It’s the April 21st Lansing City Council meeting, the council hears comments in support of housing densification zoning amendments, they repeal the “no restroom use for the opposite sex” ordinance, and some departmental budget updates lead to swooning.  Our guest Metro Melik is a radio DJ for Stacks 92.1, he has been working in the Lansing media landscape since the 90’s producing shows for public...

At the April 7th 2025 Lansing city council meetings the strip-club Centerfolds had their business licenses revoked, general and departmental budgets were dissected, and restroom feelings were shared. There is some mention of violent crimes and sex crimes in this episode. Our guest Julie Vandenboom works for the State of Michigan’s Health and Human Services Department, she serves on the Capital Are...

It's the March 24th Lansing City Council meeting recap! The Council adopted an ordinance change making it illegal to park unregistered vehicles on city roads, they gave a tribute to a group honoring Cesar E. Chavez, and began discussions to revise a historic ordinance criminalizing the individual use of bathrooms designated for the sex different from the sex assigned at birth, and more!  Our guest...

It's the March 10th Lansing City Council meeting recap! The Council hosts LG Energy (hopeful battery manufacturing business owner), makes decisions on demolitions and liquor licenses, and they hear from property owners of unsafe buildings and Easter Highschool groupies.  Our guest Larry Wallace is a Senior Investigative Reporter for Fox 47 News - our local Lansing area TV news station. Learn m...

It's the February 24th Lansing City Council meeting recap! The council makes decisions about liquor license transfers and noise permits. They do allow advisory board appointments to go through ending the weeks-long stalemate. Many city department heads give guidance and many citizens ask for more time to “make safe” their buildings.  Our guest Joan Nelson was the executive director of the Alle...

It's the February 10th Lansing City Council meeting recap! The Council hosts the Board of Water and Light (BWL), the Women’s Empowerment Center leader, and folks who don’t want to be living in the Lansing Earthquake Zone six days a week!  Our guest Hannah Forsythe is an Epidemiologist with The Michigan Public Health Institute (MPHI), she is also a triathlete and cross country skier! Learn more...

It's the January 27th Lansing City Council meeting recap! The Council hosts auditors, finance department directors, developers, and board member wannabes. Our guest Ruelaine Stokes is Lansing's current Poet Laureate. Before recording she kindly gifted me a wonderful collection of Lansing poems: "My Secret Lansing". You can learn more about her at: https://www.ruelainestokes.com/ Learn more about c...

Thanks for joining for a listen about the second Lansing City Council meeting of the year. There's joy, heartbreak, evasion, and hair drama in the council chambers this January 13th. As well as discussions on sewer upgrades, human resources, MLK group recognition, belabored trash fee debate, and diverse criticisms of Downtown Lansing Inc.   Our guests Jerry and Shannon operate the fantastic eastsi...

Thanks for joining for a listen about the first Lansing City Council meeting of the new year! There’s an internal council election with several rounds of voting, seven public comments, and our best dressed guest yet - Clerk Chris Swope!

T’was the last Lansing City Council meeting of the year! Special guest MC Rothhorn, a member of the Michigan Redistricting Commission, provides his perspective on development plans for Lansing. We have a good time trying to find common ground between current council happenings and the wobbly world of Harry Potter. Thank you Lansing Public Media Center for allowing us to record at your studio, and...

Join us for a recapturing of the excitement at the Lansing Michigan City Council Meeting on Monday, December 2nd, 2024. Special guest Bob Peña, Ingham County Commissioner, discusses some differences between the way the city and the county are governed. Housing, transportation, and budgets, oh my! Thanks for listening!

Join us for a recapturing of the excitement at the Lansing Michigan City Council Meeting on Monday, November 18th, 2024. Special guest Mike Dombrowski, president of the Parks and Rec. Advisory Board, discusses his love of the river trail and wonders how proposed developments will help the city. Debate around increased punishment for signs in the right-of-way is spirited, and guess how many dogs ar...