Ittner Retirement, Youth Suicide Concerns, Housing Bubble?, Bohnak Return?, and More Concerts and More Liquor
The Latest From Marquette, MI by Brian Cabell
SHE’S STEPPING DOWN…Nheena Ittner, one of the pillars of this community, will be retiring from her post as executive director of the Upper Peninsula Children’s Museum…Date uncertain, sometime before the end of the year…She founded it back in 1997… “I just think it’s time,” she says. “We got through the pandemic. Now there are other things I want to do in my life.”…A search is now starting for her replacement, but it’s no exaggeration to say she’s irreplaceable….She’s a onetime school teacher who had a vision to create a children’s museum, and somehow, against all odds, she turned that vision into reality. What a legacy.
ANOTHER YOUTH SUICIDE reported, this one at NMU last week. Tragically, it’s not an anomaly…Consider this: The rate of suicide for young people, ages 10-24, increased by nearly 60% between 2007 and 2018, according to the CDC, and has likely only gotten worse since then because of the pandemic…The culprits? Social isolation, anxiety, depression, substance abuse, bullying…and social media.
And then there’s this astonishing statistic: 19% of all high school students have considered suicide and 9% have attempted suicide. What has happened to us? Yes, Ukraine is important, and so are climate change and political polarization, but if we can’t keep our young people happy, healthy…and alive, then we have failed as a society.
STRONG HINTS THAT the housing boom may be coming to an end. Thirty year mortgage rates closing in on five percent, the highest in three years…Analysts are projecting that home sales will drop by 25% by the end of summer. Seems overdue…Pity the over-eager homebuyers who will rush to get in at the top of the market because of FOMO (Fear of missing out).
SOMETHING TO PONDER. In 1990, there were 66 billionaires in the US. Today there are more than 700…Yeah, inflation has played a minor part in that, but this next statistic is particularly telling: CEO pay has increased by 900% in the last 40 years; meantime, average worker pay is up by a mere 12%, accounting for inflation, over that same 40 years…That’s not a healthy sign.
SOON, VERY SOON. It’s now looking like The Honorable Distillery (in the former Nordic Theater) will be opening in late June… “We’re working all day just about every day,” says Anne White, the distillery’s co-owner, a local gal who moved away for several years but has just bought a home in Negaunee (“The prices are so high in Marquette!”)…They expect to start making booze next month. The marquee likely won’t be installed until fall.
YOU GOTTA FEEL for Central Michigan University. Enrollment there has declined 44% in the last ten years, and they’ve now had to close three student dormitories…But the decline is what we’re seeing statewide…All of the state universities, with the exception of the University of Michigan, Michigan State, and Michigan Tech (which increased by only a handful of students), have seen drops in their enrollment in the last decade.
NMU actually fared pretty well—down only 2% over the last ten years, and you can assign most of the blame to the pandemic… “The few years before the pandemic, we had nice increases in our freshman class numbers,” says Derek Hall, the chief marketing officer for NMU. “We are working hard to get back to that point”…They recently hired a full-time recruiter in Minnesota.
A bigger problem for universities nationwide? Increasing doubts about the value of an expensive college education, and the increasing popularity of inexpensive community colleges.
PETITION SIGNING, TAKE TWO…Dr. Bob Lorinser and his supporters have been out and about for the last couple of weeks, rounding up a second batch of signatures for his nominating petition for District One Congressman…Turns out, there were some questions whether it was legal to put “Dr. Bob” on the first petitions…They had already gathered 3,400 names when they started the re-do…At last word, they had picked up more than 2,000 on the second go-round. They need 1,000 to get on the ballot.
Lorinser is battling serious headwinds for two reasons: 1) He’s facing an incumbent, Jack Bergman, and Congressional incumbents rarely lose, and 2) Most experts and polls tell us this November’s midterm elections will likely favor Republicans…Still, he’s staging an ambitious campaign, active throughout the district and on social media, as a moderate Democrat with an Everyman appeal.
“I LOVE IT. I’M A BIG FAN.” The words of TV6 and Fox UP GM Rick Rhoades, referring to FOX UP’s new local show, Upper Michigan Today…Of course, you’d expect him to say that but he’s got a point…The two co-anchors, Elizabeth Peterson and Tia Trudgeon have a nice, lively big sister-little sister chemistry going…They’re naturals, the same on-camera as they are off-camera.
This might not be the last of the new local programming coming out of Fox UP and TV6, according to Rhoades. The reason? Stale, tired syndicated shows (Hello Dr Phil, Judge Judy, Ellen, et al) are too expensive. Why not create your own shows with a focus on local interests and local talent?
NO TIMETABLE YET on when WZMQ, the new CBS TV station, will start broadcasting locally. A lot of work to be done transforming a former pub (Kildare) into a workable TV studio and office…Also still looking for an anchor lineup. They’ve hired two NMU journalists as reporters. More to come.
And the Karl Bohnak rumors? “We’ve been talking,” Bohnak says, “but nothing’s definite.” Sounds like he’s open to ending his premature retirement (firing?) from WLUC over the Covid vaccination mandate, but not totally committed to it. He’s been enjoying life with his wife Liz over these last several months…One other consideration: he had a one year non-compete clause in his last contract with WLUC…Could he challenge it? Absolutely. The challenges to such contracts have frequently succeeded in court.
AND YET ANOTHER addition to Dolaskieville (aka Munising). Tom and Ana Dolaskie and their out-of-state partner are opening yet another restaurant in town—Alley Cats. It’ll be located in the former Taco Primo location…Likely in late May. Featured food: Southern, Memphis-style chicken and fish and all the sides…Fast casual, dine-in and take-out.
And this. They’ve gotten a permanent liquor license for Gallery Coffee, a huge space that’s also doubled as a concert venue in the past, prior to the pandemic… “We’re now booking concerts for the summer,” says Tom Dolaskie, “We’re ready to go.”
As are we. Bring on the summer.
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I think the decline of religion in this country is a cause of the increase in young peoples’ suicide rate. They haven’t been raised with anything to believe in. This world is a tough place to be without faith in something besides yourself. It leads to unbearable hopelessness.
What happened to Taco Primo?! 😭