Free City Public Art Festival at Chevy in the Hole

Chevy in the Hole is the place to be this weekend...

"The Flint Public Art Project will temporarily reclaim Chevy-in-the-Hole, a mile-long stretch along the Flint River once occupied by a series of now-razed Chevrolet plants for Free City, a large-scale, open-air art festival taking place Friday, May 3 through Sunday, May 5, 2013. With this year’s theme—“Reclaim | Transform” —Free City will demonstrate that a critical mass of temporary activities can turn abandoned industrial properties into active public spaces, and will highlight the ongoing transformation of Flint. More than 40 artists from Flint, southeast Michigan, and the Great Lakes region will be joined by dozens of artists from across the country and Europe."

The Chevy Chevette Lives in San Francisco

 

Full venting to feed that powerful Engine!

How often to you get the chance to behold a near-mint Chevy Chevette basking in the California sun? This dent- and rust-free example of G.M.'s pathetic inspired approach to small cars was spotted on Mission Street near Cesar Chavez.

Ah, such sleek lines!

Rear bumper? Standard! No expense was spared.

Citizens Bank Mascot Out of Work

Is this little guy out of a job now that Citizens Bank has been sold to FirstMerit? At least he appears to have his interview suit on.

Flint Artifacts: Winners, Losers and Shuffleboard Gamblers

Flint Photos: Dance Marathon Contestants, July 1934

A press photo of Alice Holmes of Sioux City, Iowa and Mario Alessandro of Argentina dated July 10, 1934.

Flint Postcards: Kearsley Park

Flint Photos: Buckingham's Department Store Fire

 Firefighters respond to a fire at Buckingham's Department Store in downtown Flint in the 1940s.

A Prayer for Michigan

An invocation delivered at the Michigan House of Representatives by The Rev. Bill Freeman, minister at All Spirits Church in Holland.

Spirit of Love, known by many names: God and Goddess, Yahweh and Allah, Dios and Divine, Nature and Nothing.

May we be grateful for the cities and towns of Michigan: From Detroit to Decatur, from Lansing to Ludington, from Grand Rapids to Grand Blanc, from Holland to Howell, from Muskegon to Munising, from Flint to Farmington Hills, from Benton Harbor to Harbor Springs.

May we be grateful for the beauty of Michigan and may it always be preserved and protected: From the Southern border to the Northern expanse, from the West Coast to the East, from Sleeping Bear Dunes to Boyne Mountain, from cherry trees to blueberry bushes.

May we be grateful for the sports teams of Michigan and may they always exhibit good sportsmanship: From the Tigers to the Lions, from the Pistons to the Red Wings, from the Spartans to the Wolverines.

And may we be grateful for all the people of Michigan: Young and old, male and female, workers and retirees, police officers and firefighters, artists and artisans, those with various abilities and capabilities, native-born and immigrants, believers and doubters, married and single, straight and gay, people of color and those of us who wish we were.

Some of us may come here today having faith in freedom and democracy. Some of us may come here today having faith in truth and goodness. Some of us may come here today having faith in liberty and justice for all. We pray that our faith is fortified in this magnificent place, today and every day. 

Perhaps it’s providential rather than coincidental that our state is shaped like a hand. May it act as a divine reminder to us all, especially our elected leaders, to lend a hand to those in need, particularly the most vulnerable among us: The children, the elderly, and the poor. May we always treat the Have-Nots with at least as much dignity and respect as we treat the Have-Lots.

Now and forevermore. Let it be. Blessed be. So be it. And: Amen.

Flint Artifacts: Wayne Johnson's Buffet Matchbook

Was there a time in Flint's glory years when caterers boasted complicated facial hair and offered up their own airports?

Kildee Seeks Funds for Demolitions

 

U.S. Rep. Dan Kildee, who was instrumental in creating land banks in Michigan, has introduced legislation that would free up $1 billion in federal funds to demolish abandoned property in Michigan and several other states. Todd Spangler of The Detroit Free Press reports:

Kildee's legislation, which he plans to introduce today, would give the 18 states and Washington, D.C., that were promised funding under a foreclosure mitigation program the ability to spend up to 25% of that money on demolitions. Under the original interpretation of the program, which dates to 2010, the $7.6 billion in funding could not be used for razing buildings.

The legislation, which Kildee is sponsoring along with Republican Rep. Mike Turner of Dayton, Ohio, wouldn't change any of the existing allocations or spend more, it would only give states the flexibility to move up to 25% of their total awards into demolitions if they chose. The original program was intended to target programs that helped homeowners pay back taxes, make mortgage payments, or otherwise avoid foreclosures.

Kildee and his approach to "shrinking cities" like Flint and Detroit is profiled extensively in Teardown: Memoir of a Vanishing City by Gordon Young. The book is forthcoming from the University of California Press in June.