Rewind: News from the last 7 days

Lansing Mayor Andy Schor said Tuesday that the city will immediately begin enforcing its curfew for minors after Monday’s mass shooting. Minors 12 and younger are required to be off the street 10 p.m. to 6 a.m., while the curfew for teens 13 to 16 is midnight. Exceptions include minors accompanied by parents or guardians, when they are on the sidewalk adjoining their residence, or returning home from a school, religious, work or volunteer activity. Minors who are residents of other cities may travel through Lansing in a vehicle. Potential penalties include a fine of up to $100, which can escalate for subsequent infractions up to $500.

Brandon Labrie, 42, of Lansing, was arraigned Friday in 54A District Court on an open murder charge in the stabbing death of Cynthia Marek, 65. Marek and an unnamed victim were found in critical condition Thursday on the 2100 block of Bruce Avenue. Marek was pronounced dead at Sparrow Hospital. A judge denied bond for Labrie, who will appear May 31 for a probable cause conference and June 7 for a preliminary hearing.

Lansing City Charter Commission members picked former City Council President Brian Jeffries as chair at its first meeting since they were elected on May 7. The nine commissioners picked Lori Adams Simon as vice chair. They will meet twice a month at 6:30 p.m. Tuesdays starting June 4. They will have about two and a half years to submit charter changes to the Governor’s Office. If approved, the revisions will be placed on the ballot. If voters reject them, commissioners can try again twice more, or choose to disband permanently.

Mayor Andy Schor announced Thursday the creation of the Lansing Racial Equity Fund. The Lansing Human Relations & Community Services Department will administer the fund, which will prioritize supporting organizations led by Black, Indigenous or other people of color or organizations serving BIPOC communities on projects and initiatives that address racial disparities and promote equity. Grant applications can be accessed at lansingmi.gov/hrcs and can be submitted until noon June 24. The fund is one of nine recommendations from the Mayor’s Racial Justice and Equity Alliance comprehensive report. It will make awards in six categories: access to health and wellness; economic stability; inclusion of people with diverse abilities; inspiring arts and culture; sustainable environment; and thriving youth and families.

The Schor administration has selected an architect and builder for the Ovation Center, the city-owned planned performance venue on South Washington Square. Albert Kahn Associates of Detroit will design it, while Freund & Associates of Royal Oak will manage construction. They were chosen through a request-for-proposals process. Albert Kahn Associates is known for industrial architecture, clubs, hotels, offices and many buildings for University of Michigan. It beat out Studio Intrigue of Lansing and Neumann-Smith of Detroit. Freund & Associates is a commercial construction company founded by Lansing-area native and MSU grad Nick Freund. It was chosen over three local construction firms: Clark, Christman, and Wieland. 

Ingham County Animal Control officers removed 58 cats from a home in the 4300 block of Aztec Way in Okemos Thursday. The shelter was seeking donations of cat food and non-clumping litter, which can be dropped off at the shelter at 600 Buhl Street in Mason. Another county agency had gone to the home for a welfare check. The cats’ owner gave them up to the county and was cooperating with animal control. 

The family of Vernita Payne of Lansing, killed last August when a neighbor’s tree fell on her house during severe storms, has filed a lawsuit against the neighbor for not maintaining the tree, the Lansing State Journal reported. The lawsuit claims the tree had been tagged by the city “as a potential danger and known risk, due to the tree’s poor health and condition” and that the property owner, Tasha Canty, “failed to take any precautions to mitigate the risks.” City spokesperson Scott Bean said that the city does not inspect or tag trees and has no record of city involvement with it, the Journal said.