In today's newsletter, bill would put 20% cap on solar in power grid, Michigan wins appeal in legal challenge and a newly renovated remote state park cabin. |
Meet the Detroit Red Wings’ 2025 draft class |
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What does a $3B battery factory look like? Ford’s Michigan mega-project is taking shape |
The nearly mile-long building that spans 2 million square feet has taken shape in Southwest Michigan. Ford Motor Co.’s behemoth $3 billion factory — BlueOval Battery Park Michigan — is structurally complete and construction is approximately 60% finished. Battery production at the facility is set to begin in 2026 and is estimated to employ 1,700 people when complete. Construction has also brought an estimated 1,500 workers to the area. MLive got access to drone aerials showing the completion of the structure as well as photos showing progress inside the facility. Shifting focus: After three years of development, LG Energy Solution’s new $1.4 billion expansion is now online, but it’s not making electric vehicle batteries. The sprawling addition to LG Energy Solution’s battery production facility became the first North American producer of lithium iron phosphate (LFP) cells used for energy storage in May. |
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Republican ‘MAGA’ bill would put 20% cap on solar in Michigan’s power grid |
To know: As sprawling solar farms and smaller-scale arrays are built out across Michigan, state Republican politicians propose placing a cap on the total amount connected to the state’s power grid. The newly introduced MAGA Solar Act — short for Maximining American Grid Affordability — would require the state to limit solar power to not more than 20% of the electricity feeding the grid. The GOP bill also would also create a framework for community solar arrays, allowing subscribers to get bill credits from their utility for participating. NOAA's pre-bloom forecast: The annual harmful algae bloom in Lake Erie should be milder this summer than last, say forecasters who highlighted decreases in a type of key nutrient driving the icky phenomenon as an indicator of limited progress. Motion filed: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency wants the Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to take a fresh look at whether it’s immune from negligence claims tied to the Flint water crisis. |
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Michigan voters will decide on ranked choice voting if campaign can get 446K signatures |
One step closer: The Michigan Board of Canvassers approved language and 100-word summary for a proposed constitutional amendment that would bring ranked choice voting to the state. Rank MI Vote must collect 446,198 valid signatures over the next six months to get the amendment on the November 2026 ballot, per a press release. No update: A year ago, Lansing police arrested a state lawmaker on allegations of sexual assault and gun crimes. While now-former state Rep. Neil Friske was soon released from custody, the incident may have contributed to him losing reelection last year and the investigation remains ongoing without any charges filed. In transportation: There will be plenty of orange barrels across Michigan this week ahead of the Fourth of July festivities. Here is a summary of 10 closures to watch out for. |
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Michigan wins appeal in legal challenge over newborns’ blood samples |
A yearslong effort to challenge Michigan’s practice of storing millions of dried blood samples from newborn babies has been turned upside down by a federal appeals court, which threw out key decisions in favor of parents who said the policy violated their rights. In a 3-0 opinion, the court found nothing unconstitutional about how the state Department of Health and Human Services handles leftover samples, which are called blood spots. In Detroit: Two people have been charged after a 9-year-old boy died from alleged abuse. Prosecutors say the pair were the legal guardians of the child, who died from Pneumonia. An update: A court ordered the owner of a Lansing-area mobile home park to provide water to tenants who faced shutoffs after being given only days to move out of their houses. |
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This remote state park cabin is newly renovated, but still rustic. Take a 2-mile hike to solitude |
If the summer calendar has your head spinning then consider a little respite in a nature. Michigan’s most remote state park just reopened its newly renovated − but still rustic − cabin deep in the woods. In the forested depths of the Upper Peninsula sits the 9,700 acres of Craig Lake State Park. A different approach: After stopping the use of conventional sprays in 2021, Modales Wines became Michigan’s first fully-organic winery, and is one of just a few east of the Rockies. Some new things to try: Buddy's Pizza is adding a burger pizza and a Faygo Rock and Rye Float to its menu in 2025. |
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Thank you for joining me on today's edition of the Morning Briefing. As always, you can catch the latest Michigan news at MLive.com. If you value the work of our journalists, consider becoming a subscriber. See you tomorrow! - Jamie Rewerts |
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