Plans for the Power Plant Property, TV6 Goes Digital, Winter Games in Marquette, Covid Stats Drop, and Drag Show Comes to Town
The Latest From Marquette, MI by Brian Cabell
SHOULD BE A big year for the Lake Superior shoreline in Marquette. The dismantling of the 55-year-old Shiras Steam Plant is just about complete… “There’s still some site work to be done but we should be finished in the spring,” says Tom Carpenter, the executive director of the Board of Light and Power which owns the property…The substation and the docking area will remain in place but the security fences will be pulled in, opening up much of the facility’s space to the public.
So what’ll it become? An extension of the shoreline’s green space with a longer walking and biking path? Likely. More fishing access, benches, tables? Possibly…Carpenter says BLP, which will probably retain ownership of the property, has been having internal discussions about the future use of it, but nothing’s been decided. They’ll invite public input and likely make a decision on it within the year…How about financing of any improvements? That will have to come from somewhere other than BLP whose mission is to provide electricity, not recreational opportunities, for its customers.
THE TREND IS unmistakable. Electric vehicles accounted for 2.5% of worldwide market in 2019; in 2021, it was nearly 9%--those numbers from the International Energy Agency…And Ford’s brand new Lightning, an electric version of the F-150, is red hot, according to the New York Times. Ford planned to make 75,000 of the trucks this first year, but 200,000 people signed up to buy it…Starting price for Lightning: $40,000.
The problem now is we have too few public charging stations. Only 50,000 across the country…The infrastructure bill calls for building another 500,000, but experts say that will still not be enough. How many do we have in the UP? A handful.
WLUC TV6 IS leaping full-force into the digital age…It’s started a digital desk with a digital anchor, Jesse Wiederhold, who was formerly the Houghton reporter… “It allows us to go live at any time in our streaming platforms, like Facebook,” News Director Andrew Lacombe explains…TV6, by the way, is still looking to hire another anchor to replace Steve Asplund who’s pushed back his well-deserved retirement until mid-March…The full anchor lineup is still to be decided, though it seems likely that Cody Boyer, an NMU grad, will play an increasingly prominent role. He looks and sounds like an anchor. Authoritative and comfortable on camera.
YOU GET THE sense that fewer of us are watching the lower profile Winter Olympics this year. Still, a recent Mining Journal poll (limited and unscientific, of course) on the Olympics seems especially stunning…The results: 14% of us are watching a lot of the Winter Olympics…29% are watching a little…and 57% aren’t watching any…Huh? In the UP where winter sports are part of our lifestyle?
AFTER A SLOW start this winter at Marquette Mountain, business is picking up. The Mountain opened up parttime on December 10th but then couldn’t start making snow fulltime until December 22nd. Now it’s got a solid base and steady customer volume… “We’re doing well with season tickets and days passes,” says new GM Kaet Johnson, “and we’re reinvesting everything back into the Mountain.”
The Meijer State Games of Michigan are coming to Marquette February 25-27…A very big deal. Skiing and snowboarding at the Mountain, then hockey, luge, ice skating, snowshoeing, and other sports at other venues all around the county…All ages, all abilities can take part…Who needs the Winter Games on TV? We’ll have them right here.
A SURPRISING AND encouraging economic sign. According to Axios, store closures across the nation have plummeted—down 65% in January from January of 2021…Lotta bankruptcies back in 2020-21—JC Penney, Neiman Marcus, and Brooks Brothers, among others…Not so much now…And it sure seems there have been far fewer closures locally than we expected considering the severity and duration of the pandemic.
THE COVID PICTURE is also encouraging here…Cases in the county are down a whopping 73% in the last two weeks, hospitalizations down a more modest 7%...Positivity rate is still a shockingly high 34%, but Omicron is not nearly as serious or deadly as the previous variants…How about we just end the damn pandemic this year, and get back to our normal life?
LESS ENCOURAGING—DEATHS are now exceeding births in Michigan. This, according to Bridge Michigan…The statistics from 2020 show 117,000 Michiganders dying, and only 104,000 being born…The median age in Michigan is now an ancient 40 years old…Ahh, to be a mere 40 again.
IT’S TIME TO party. The Cocktails and Kisses Valentine Drag Show is coming up this Saturday at the Masonic Center. It’s the first time ever at the Masonic, and likely not the last… “We love our drag community and we just want to make sure they have a wonderful place for their shows,” says producer Sarah Engle…Performers include Justin Case, Joey Black, Loretta LoveLee, and Mercedes Benzova, among others…VIP tickets have already sold out, but other tickets are still available…Capacity limited to 240 to allow for greater social distancing…Something tells us this will be a raucous, fun-loving crowd on Saturday night.
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