Soup to Nuts! (Or ALL the MAKINGS for an informal Design Charrette)

Former Ferndale mayor calls for brief protest at 9 and Woodward

By BILL LAITNER FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER

   An Occupy Wall Street-type demonstration is to hit Fern-dale.

   Occupy Ferndale is scheduled 4-7 p.m. Friday. The organizer is Craig Covey, a former mayor, now Oakland County commissioner for Ferndale, Hazel Park and south Royal Oak.

   “We’re not camping out or setting up tents, but a lot of people here wanted to make a statement,” Covey said Wednesday.

   He said he expects as many as 100 people to gather at all four corners of 9 Mile and Woodward — a site that some consider to be Oakland County’s liberal soapbox, known for years of antiwar demonstrations in the 1990s.

   “I’ve got seniors coming, union members, students, and we have peacekeepers” who will monitor the crowd and keep participants from violating any ordinances, such as those against obstructing pedestrians and traffic, Covey said.

   A Facebook page called “Occupy Ferndale” showed Wednesday that 77 people “liked” the page and that many said they will be at Occupy Ferndale. The page links to Covey’s blog, where he lists political demands he believes the protest movement shares, including a need for more government oversight of “Wall Street and Big Banks,” the end to military action in Iraq and Afghanistan, and a halt to “attacks on labor unions (and) Social Security.”

   Ferndale Mayor Dave Coulter said Wednesday he plans to join the crowd, as did Oakland County Commissioner Marcia Gershenson, D-Bloomfield Township.

   Besides the Detroit site at Grand Circus Park, other Michigan sites with Occupy demonstrations include Flint, Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, Lansing, Muskegon and Traverse City. The nationwide protest generally opposes Wall Street greed, unemployment and the nation’s widening wealth gap.

   Headquarters for the three-hour presence on Ferndale’s sidewalks is to be an eatery, AJ’s Music Café at 240 W. Nine Mile, one-half block west of the Occupy site on Woodward. Owner A.J. O’Neil said he would be facilitating the event with at least four kinds of soup.

   “This is right up our alley. We’ve been talking for years about what’s wrong with the economy here,” the 49-year-old Hazel Park resident said Wednesday.

   On Nov. 4-6, the café will host a summit where business, labor and community leaders will discuss the region’s problems — and perhaps have soup, O’Neil said.

Mapping Data - Available sites

Here are some mapping platforms with similar missions:

A Detroit based site:
http://detroit.everyblock.com/ http://livinginthemap.us/

A Chicago based site that includes Detroit:
http://detroit.everyblock.com/

This used to be national and included a lot of data sets. I'm not sure what is going on with the site currently though. I sent in an email to try to get info.
http://www.kplex.org/

On the Infrastructure concerns

In Case You Missed It: The Ferndale Power Outage Time Line

The power of Ferndale Patch was on display during the 2 1/2-day outage last week.

• By Terry Parris Jr.
• Email the author
• July 27, 2011

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On Wednesday, at 5:30 p.m., Ferndale's outage began. Ferndale Patch followed the outage from the beginning.

Here is a recap, in chronological order, of what we wrote:

At about 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, Ferndale's power went out. By that evening, about 5,000 customers were without power. DTE said it was heat-related as the area was experiencing 90+ degree heat.

UPDATE: Half of Ferndale Without Power, July 20.

Several businesses had shut down Wednesday due to the outage.

Businesses Close Due to Power Outage, July 20.

The city, after it became aware the power would not come back on, elected to open up the Gerry Kulick Community Center as an All-Night cooling station Wednesday night.

Kulick to Open as All-Night Cooling Station Due to Power Outage, July 20.

Many of the patrons that utilized the cooling center that first night were from the assisted living Withington West building at the corner of Planavon and West Withington.

Residents from Assisted Living Building Cool Down at the Kulick, July 21.

On Thursday, DTE said most areas of Ferndale would have power.

DTE: Most Areas in Ferndale Should Have Power by Tonight, July 21.

Ferndale Police and Fire were reporting no significant medical or crime issues due to the heat or the outage Wednesday night and early Thursday morning.

So Far, So Good: Ferndale Healthy, Safe During Heat Wave, Power Outage, July, 21.

City officials, unsure of whether the power would come on Thursday night, decided to keep the Kulick Center open for another night.

Kulick Center to Stay Open Again Tonight, 2nd Location May be Library, July 21.

Police Chief Tim Collins said, late Thursday evening, that Ferndale's power would be restored within a couple hours.

City's Power Could be Restored in 'Couple Hours,' Police Chief Says, July 21.

However, shortly after the police chief's report, the substation experience more malfunctions, leaving nearly 6,000 without power.

UPDATE: 2nd Transformer Down, Nearly 6,000 Customers Without Power in Ferndale, July 22.

To deal with the massive outage, DTE brought in portable generators on Friday.

DTE Brings in Portable Generator to Power Ferndale, July 22.

Fire chief reports there were no significant medical runs due to the heat or the outage Thursday night and Friday morning.

Overnight Fire Dept. Runs Deal with Power Outage, No Significant Health Concerns, July 22.

During the afternoon on Friday, there were 2,000 without power. The portable generators were expected to restore just a handful of them.

DTE: 2,000 in Ferndale Still Without Power; Portable Generators to Restore 300-400, July 22.

Many businesses lost during the outage including Treat Dreams, an ice cream shop along Woodward, north of Nine Mile Road. To beat the heat and the outage, owner Scott Moloney decided to hold a sidewalk sale.

Treat Dreams, Ferndale Businesses to Hold 'Beat the Heat' Sidewalk Sale Tonight, July 22.

Another businesses story from the outage.

For Ferndale Businesses, Some Win, Some Lose During Power Outage, July 22.

An update from DTE on Friday about the portable generators that were expected to bring power back to Ferndale.

UPDATE: Portable Generator Restores Power to 300 Customers in Ferndale; 2nd in Progress, July 22.

Later Friday evening, DTE realized that the generators weren't going to do the trick. It was announced by city officials that DTE needed to shut down the West Nine Mile substation where the problems were occurring to fix the city's outages. This was expected, at the time, to affect 7,500 homes and businesses in Ferndale.

DTE to Shut Down Substation at 2:30 a.m., Cutting Off 7,500 Customers, July 22.

Friday at 9 p.m., DTE held a press conference at the West Nine Mile and Dover substation to explain the massive shutdown.

DTE Official Explains Planned Power Shutdown, July 23.

The shutdown occurred on Saturday at 2:30 a.m. to fix a cable that carried electricity to the substation. By 6 a.m., that cable was fixed and Ferndale's power was nearing 100 percent.

DTE: All Power in Ferndale Restored, July 23.

As power began to be restored, Ferndale Fire Chief Kevin Sullivan asked residents to go easy on the system and not use so much electricity.

Fire Chief Implores Ferndale Residents to Conserve Power, July 23.

On Saturday, DTE reported that Ferndale would be fully repaired by Sunday morning. It was also announced that a DTE representative would attend Monday's City Council meeting to present an explanation.

Substation Fully Repaired by Sunday Morning; DTE Rep to Attend Monday Council Meeting, July 23.

Though DTE reported on Sunday that Ferndale's power was restored, a wire had fallen in the backyard of a resident on Alberta and Beaufield. This incident caused about 200 brownouts and blackouts in southwest Ferndale.

Portions of Southwest Ferndale Experience Brownouts, Outages Sunday Night, July 24

On Sunday, Ferndale Patch ran a report on a few businesses that lost a lot during the outage but didn't seem to lose their perspective.

Business Lost During Outage, but Not Perspective, July 24.

Ferndale Police reported that a burglary had taken place sometime before 5 a.m. on Monday and the police were attributing it to the outage.

Ferndale Police Say Power Outage Played Roll in Friday Morning Burglary of Anita's Kitchen, July 25.

A DTE representative was expected to come to Monday's City Council meeting for a full explanation of what took place during the outage.

At Monday's Council Meeting, DTE Rep to Explain Why Power Outage Occurred, July 25.

On Tuesday, Ferndale Patch published a story on the various losses residents accrued during the 2 1/2-day outage.

Residents Rack up Bills, Lose Fish During Power Outage, July 26.

From the council meeting on Monday, Ferndale Patch reported three stories about the outage. One was the explanation from the DTE representative on the outage.

Council Questions DTE on Maintenance, Age of Substation; Answers Fall Short, July 26.

The second was the response from the community toward DTE.

Residents Still in the Dark Despite Council Presentation from DTE Energy, July 26.

And the third was the how the community came together during a time of need.

Outage Frustrates Ferndale and Brings Community Together, July 26.