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 Area District Libraries' board, and she is running for an at-large city council seat this year.
You can learn more about Julie’s campaign here: https://julievandenboom.com/
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Some episode fact checking:
One public commenter said, “Lansing is the 17th most violent city in America”. Here is where I think they found this figure: https://worldpopulationreview.com/us-city-rankings/most-violent-cities-in-america
This website does list Lansing as #17 - but when I looked into the source, 2018 data from the FBI, I’m seeing data by metropolitan area - and Lansing comes in at 108th for violent crimes per 100,000 people, where violent crimes include murder, rape, robbery, and aggravated assault.
Another public comment sited a study that, “one in eleven jobs promised by developers in Michigan materialize”: https://www.mackinac.org/pressroom/2024/michigans-corporate-welfare-failure-only-1-in-11-jobs-promised-were-created
Council member Hussain mentioned sidewalk maintenance best practice is 25 year replacement: https://nacto.org/wp-content/uploads/nchrp_rpt_713_thompson.pdf
Multiple folks reference Michigan’s open carry laws for licensed concealed firearms, they are prohibited on the following premises: “A tavern where the primary source of income is the sale of alcoholic liquor by the glass consumed on the premises.” https://www.michigan.gov/msp/services/ccw/prohibited-premises