What Lansing Council

Our World is a Product of Us and We Are a Product of Our World

At the May 18th Lansing City council meetings council approved the city’s budget for the 2026/2027 fiscal year, which spans from July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027. They gave a tribute recognizing May 19th as Malcolm X Day in the City of Lansing; May 19th was Malcolm X’s birthday. They unanimously approved a letter calling for an immediate end to unauthorized federal military escalation and an unlawful war with Iran. In public comment we heard from residents of the Fabulous Acres neighborhood plead for help with some extremely inconsiderate neighbors. Commenters brought stories of struggles with homelessness and the destabilization resulting from camp sweeps performed by city police officers with no safe option for relocation. ********* Support this podcast financially:  https://www.patreon.com/cw/WhatLansingCouncil [https://www.patreon.com/cw/WhatLansingCouncil] UPCOMING LIVE PODCAST SHOW EVENT!!!! JUNE 2ND!!! ⁠⁠https://www.therobintheatre.com/events/what-lansing-council-podcast-live-panel-discussion⁠ [https://www.therobintheatre.com/events/what-lansing-council-podcast-live-panel-discussion]

GOoooooo Money! - with guest Christopher Greene-Szmadzinski

At the May 11th city council meetings council heard from the community about the death of a citizen, who was for a time, a member of the fallen angels encampment. The Spec-Tran CATA (Capital Area Transportation Authority) service specifically for folks with ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) status received additional criticism for poor service. Council passed four changes to the parking code: 1) parking enforcement hours are reduced to 9am - 5pm instead of 8am - 6pm, 2) the timing for paying the least amount for parking tickets was amended from “within two hours” to “before midnight on the day of issuance”, 3) all ticket fine tiers increased by $10, and 4) the cost to park for longer than two hours in metered street parking spaces (where that is allowed) was increased.  Today our special guest is Christopher Greene-Szmadzinski. Christopher serves as the co-chair of the Mayor's Neighborhood Advisory Council and also sits on the Lansing Park Board. He posts about pazcki sightings and other important and random Lansing geography at Lansingography.com See Christopher’s amazing maps and infographics - including a visualization of the city’s 2026-27 proposed budget: https://www.lansingography.com/ [https://www.lansingography.com/] Support this podcast financially:  https://www.patreon.com/cw/WhatLansingCouncil [https://www.patreon.com/cw/WhatLansingCouncil] UPCOMING LIVE PODCAST SHOW EVENT!!!! JUNE 2ND!!! ⁠⁠https://www.therobintheatre.com/events/what-lansing-council-podcast-live-panel-discussion⁠ [https://www.therobintheatre.com/events/what-lansing-council-podcast-live-panel-discussion] Dolly Parton 9-5 music video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UbxUSsFXYo4 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UbxUSsFXYo4] Lansing Facts tourism video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smFvDuGiS0Q [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smFvDuGiS0Q] Lansing’s 2023 Parking study: https://www.lansingmi.gov/1248/Parking-Study [https://www.lansingmi.gov/1248/Parking-Study]

Same Money Same Problems - with guest Dana Watson

Council had a light agenda, with some heavy issues at the May the Fourth meetings. Six city departments gave budget presentations: the 54A District court, the Mayor’s office, Downtown Lansing Inc., Human Resources, Finance, and Treasury. Public comment focused on begging council to stop sending police to sweep unhoused people out of places where they congregate in the city.  Our guest this episode is Dana Watson. Dana served as an East Lansing city council member from 2020 - 2025, she continues to work as a Health Equity Social Justice Coordinator for Ingham County, and as a board member for the Justice League of Greater Lansing. Support this podcast financially: ⁠https://www.patreon.com/whatLansingCouncil⁠ [https://www.patreon.com/whatLansingCouncil?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTAAYnJpZBExRWZmNERicjFSUXFDVEd4dwEeYr1yDKVe0DWzxlFcD7GiEJLmMumDDGoCtL0GNyh7_gP5Pe-ILxIPCwnyerw_aem___6LD1ZA3nFkG7VRt7Qo_g] UPCOMING LIVE PODCAST SHOW EVENT!!!! JUNE 2ND!!! ⁠https://www.therobintheatre.com/events/what-lansing-council-podcast-live-panel-discussion⁠ [https://www.therobintheatre.com/events/what-lansing-council-podcast-live-panel-discussion] The 45 B (East Lansing) expungement clinic mentioned in the episode, unfortunately happened on May 1st this year, but it is an annual event. More information about the expungement process in Michigan can be found here: https://michiganlegalhelp.org/resources/crime-and-traffic/overview-of-michigans-expungement-laws [https://michiganlegalhelp.org/resources/crime-and-traffic/overview-of-michigans-expungement-laws] Working Families Party: https://workingfamilies.org/state/michigan/ [https://workingfamilies.org/state/michigan/] Greater Lansing Justice League 5K - May 12, 2026, 8:30 AM, Benjamin Davis Park: https://www.justiceleagueglm.org/event-details-registration/lansing-juneteenth-5k [https://www.justiceleagueglm.org/event-details-registration/lansing-juneteenth-5k]

In the Best Interest of the City - with guest MC Rothhorn

During the April 20th Lansing city council meetings the council passed ordinance changes with the intention of restricting the locations of new liquor stores - so they are not built right next to each other. They voted 6 to 1 to put the sale of the building currently operated as the Shuffle to a city wide vote, to see if the public would be interested in selling this public asset. They wrote a letter opposing federal legislation aimed at restricting voting rights. They also started the process to change a few things about metered parking. The Lansing area federal credit union chief executive officer was appointed to the Lansing entertainment and public facilities authority (LAFCU to LEPFA), and five departmental budget presentations included three 4/20 jokes. Our guest this episode is MC Rothhorn. MC is a co-owner of Eastside Compost and a member of the Genesee Gardens co-housing. Support this podcast financially: https://www.patreon.com/whatLansingCouncil [https://www.patreon.com/whatLansingCouncil?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTAAYnJpZBExRWZmNERicjFSUXFDVEd4dwEeYr1yDKVe0DWzxlFcD7GiEJLmMumDDGoCtL0GNyh7_gP5Pe-ILxIPCwnyerw_aem___6LD1ZA3nFkG7VRt7Qo_g] UPCOMING LIVE PODCAST SHOW EVENT!!!! https://www.therobintheatre.com/events/what-lansing-council-podcast-live-panel-discussion [https://www.therobintheatre.com/events/what-lansing-council-podcast-live-panel-discussion] Eastside Compost: food scrap hauling business service all of Lansing and East Lansing! https://eastsidecompost.com/ [https://eastsidecompost.com/] Eastside Compost Earth Day event at the Allen Neighborhood Center on Wednesday 4/22/2026 from 5:30pm - 6:00pm at 1611 E Kalamazoo St, Lansing, MI 48912 https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1CFczt1SEx/ [https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1CFczt1SEx/]

Love Lansing from Cradle to Grave - with Guest Erin Buitendorp

During the March 30th Committee of the Whole meeting, the City Council heard a budget overview presentation from the city’s chief strategy officer. They heard departmental budget presentations from the Fire Department, Parks and Recreation Department, and the affiliated agencies the Lansing Economic Development Corporation (LEDC), and the Lansing Entertainment and Public Facilities Authority (LEPFA). Also, members from the Economic Development and Planning Department presented their Community Development Block Grant Annual Action Plan - for federal monies from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Our guest for this episode is Erin Buitendorp. Erin is the Community Development Manager in the City’s Economic Development and Planning Department, Erin leads six dedicated staff members in ensuring federal HUD dollars reach the people and partners who need them most. A Licensed Professional Counselor, creative artist + Lansing Lore preservationist, Erin came to public service by way of a decade in higher education and a term of service as an AmeriCorps VISTA member serving the City. Project Erin worked on - The City of Lansing City Council Proceedings Collection digitized from 1916 to 2024: https://archive.org/details/lansing-council-proceedings?sort=date [https://archive.org/details/lansing-council-proceedings?sort=date] Community development office within the Department of Economic Development and Planning: https://www.lansingmi.gov/296/Community-Development-Office [https://www.lansingmi.gov/296/Community-Development-Office] Support this podcast financially: https://www.patreon.com/whatLansingCouncil [https://www.patreon.com/whatLansingCouncil?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTAAYnJpZBExRWZmNERicjFSUXFDVEd4dwEeYr1yDKVe0DWzxlFcD7GiEJLmMumDDGoCtL0GNyh7_gP5Pe-ILxIPCwnyerw_aem___6LD1ZA3nFkG7VRt7Qo_g] UPCOMING LIVE PODCAST SHOW EVENT!!!! https://www.therobintheatre.com/events/what-lansing-council-podcast-live-panel-discussion [https://www.therobintheatre.com/events/what-lansing-council-podcast-live-panel-discussion] Fire Department Dashboard: https://app.powerbigov.us/view?r=eyJrIjoiMmQ4MDdkODktNjY5My00NDAxLWJlOGUtZTBiOWNmY2MyYzJhIiwidCI6Ijg3NTA5ZGVlLTA5NWItNGZmOC1iYTVhLTAwMzVjZGZjNzE1ZCJ9 [https://app.powerbigov.us/view?r=eyJrIjoiMmQ4MDdkODktNjY5My00NDAxLWJlOGUtZTBiOWNmY2MyYzJhIiwidCI6Ijg3NTA5ZGVlLTA5NWItNGZmOC1iYTVhLTAwMzVjZGZjNzE1ZCJ9] Tiny Bit of Wood woodworking and community art studio class schedule: https://www.tinybitofwood.com/book-online [https://www.tinybitofwood.com/book-online] Capital City Film Festival: https://capitalcityfilmfest.com/schedule [https://capitalcityfilmfest.com/schedule]