Free read, March 10-14: New census data shows growth, Metro Detroit mayors to join Trump admin
Here's what you need to know from the week in news.
Hope you had a great 313 Day, subscriber gang!
We’ve got good news, Wayne County: you’re growing, according to U.S. Census Bureau data released this week.
Wayne County added 8,692 people in 2024, data shows. Experts say increases across metropolitan areas are the result of international migrants.
“Increasingly, population growth in metro areas is being shaped by international migration,” Kristie Wilder, a demographer in the Census Bureau’s Population Division, said in a statement. “While births continue to contribute to overall growth, rising net international migration is offsetting the ongoing net domestic outmigration we see in many of these areas.”
Wayne County executive Warren Evans at the Detroit Policy Conference earlier this year talked about the need to help smaller cities in the county retain residents, particularly students and recent graduates. He also pressed the need for regional transit to connect people in shrinking Wayne County communities to Ann Arbor and downtown Detroit.
Evans said he’s had conversations with leaders of cities and towns that were opt outs of the regional SMART bus system before state lawmakers approved legislation to end more than a dozen Wayne County communities’ ability to do so. They will participate in a vote with the rest of the county the next time the millage comes up for a vote.
“I'm amazed that the kids that work for the county, that don't even have a driver's license, they they don't want to drive, and the health, quite frankly, of some of our communities is going to be based on transit, whether they understand it yet or not, because the communities are aging out, the only thing that will attract people to those communities is the housing costs.”
The Wayne County leader also said he wants to see targeted curriculum based on industry already present in the region.
“We have a world class airport wins awards every time I look at the paper. We also don't have in Wayne County or Detroit, curriculum and process to help train our young people for those jobs, nothing. I mean, we don't have flight training. We don't have flight mechanic training. We don't have any kind of curriculum that can help to feed that. And I think that's criminal.”
Craig says he would be direct line to White House for federal funds
Former police chief and mayoral candidate James Craig officially launched his campaign for mayor this week.
I was first to report the former Republican gubernatorial candidate’s interest in the race earlier this month.
Craig’s campaign has suggested to me it won’t be painting his campaign for mayor with a MAGA brush, but he is touting his relationship with President Trump, promising a direct line to the White House.
Asbestos inside Renaissance Center looms over proposed demo
The Renaissance Center was built with a substance that in previous forms has been linked to cancer-causing asbestos fiber, the Detroit News reports.
An advertisement for Monokote fireproofing application, unearthed by Carol Thompson and Chad Livengood, showed a photo of the RenCen under construction touting the fireproofing application as “fast and economical.”
State records show as recently as 2023, GM has disclosed to state environmental regulators asbestos-containing material is inside drywall joint compounds and flooring at the office towers facing the Detroit River primed for demolition, Thompson and Livengood reported.
Birdie’s Bookmobile opening new east side storefront
A mobile bookstore pop-up is planning to open a storefront next month.
Alyce Hartman, founder of Birdie’s Bookmobile, tells BridgeDetroit’s Micah Walker she’s opening a children’s bookstore next month at 8700 Mack Avenue on the city’s east side.
Hartman launched the bookmobile initiative in 2022 to diversify the selection inside classrooms, after-school programs and nonprofit organizations in Detroit. Her new shop, she’s also calling Birdie’s Bookmobile, aims to provide books for low income students.
Organizations or teachers in need of children’s books can complete this form below to request a free box of books to help fill out their classroom library.
Hamtramck mayor tapped as Kuwait ambassador
Amer Ghalib, the mayor of Hamtramck, has been appointed by President Donald Trump to serve as the U.S. ambassador of Kuwait.
“I am pleased to announce that Amer Ghalib will be the next United States Ambassador to Kuwait,” Trump said on Truth Social. “As the Mayor of the City of Hamtramck, Michigan, Amer worked hard to help us secure a historic victory in Michigan.”
It’s an interesting choice given the president has promised to evict all remain Palestinians from Gaza. Ghalib, who was critical of former president Joe Biden’s Israeli policy.
“President Trump and I may not agree on everything, but I know he is a man of principles,” Ghalib said. “I’ll not regret my decision no matter what the outcome would be, and I’m ready to face the consequences.”
Two muslim Metro Detroit mayors have been selected to serve the president’s administration. While Trump won Dearborn, Hamtramck went to vice president Kamala Harris. Barring a majority vote by the U.S. Senate, Dearborn Heights mayor Bill Bazzi is set to become the U.S. ambassador to Tunisia.
Pete Buttigieg decides against running for Michigan governor, Senate
Pete Buttigieg’s path is clear for a 2028 presidential run.
“I care deeply about who Michigan will elect as Governor and send to the U.S. Senate next year, but I have decided against competing in either race,” Buttigieg said on social media Thursday.
The decision opens the window for Attorney General Dana Nessel, U.S. Reps. Haley Stevens and Rep. Kristen McDonald Rivet, Wayne County health director Abdul El Sayed and Washtenaw County prosecutor Eli Savit, who have all expressed interest in running, according to media reports.
Democratic Sen. Gary Peters unexpectedly announced earlier this year he will not run for reelection in 2026.
Carti drops ‘Music’
Music is finally here.
Atlanta rapper Playboi Carti’s long awaited album, Music, released Friday morning.
The sprawling, 30-track album released first to YouTube — a fitting end to what seemed like a never ending promotional rollout that went on for months. The album’s singles, released exclusively on YouTube, were among the most played rap videos on the platform last year.
Kendrick Lamar is unexpectedly featured on three songs, Detroit’s Veeze is not.
While Carti’s last album, the critically acclaimed, Whole Lotta Red, stayed in my playlists for years, my music listening habits have come a long way since that time.
Though my personal interest has lessened, my peers’ infatuation with Carti, now 30, has only grown.
Non-peers might appreciate, or absolutely hate, this sample of Ashanti’s “Only U.”