National Book Foundation likes WMU grad
Western Michigan University graduate Melinda Moustakis is a notable young fiction writer says the National Book Foundation. The Kalamazoo Gazette reports she has been named one of the foundation’s 2011 […]
Kalamazoo
Kalamazoo’s name is so distinctive strangers around the world have been known to break into song at hearing the name. With such a recognizable moniker you’d think Kalamazoo wouldn’t need nicknames, but through the years changing names have reflected the city’s refusal to stand still. The Zoo, Celery City and the Mall City are a few. The innovative thinking that brought downtown K’zoo the nation’s first pedestrian mall in 1959 continues to work today. Innovators have developed thriving life sciences, biotechnology and pharmaceutical firms. They build on the expertise of Kalamazoo’s universities. Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo College, Kalamazoo Valley Community College and Davenport College all are centers of research, development and technology. They surround a downtown vibrating with condos, apartments and homegrown, top-notch restaurants. The universities are woven into the city’s social fabric and contribute to a cultural scene that Kalamazooans love to boast about. The Kalamazoo Symphony, Kalamazoo Institute of Art and a vibrant local theater community are a few of the offerings. Locals also love their festivals that fill the air with music and the scents of ethnic foods wafting over the Arcadia Festival grounds and the Kalamazoo River. Outdoor activities from biking on the Kal-Haven trail to disc golf and standard golf on a nationally-acclaimed course in Milham Park are the start of the city’s leisure side. Sports fans have competitive college teams, minor league baseball and hockey to follow. And it all comes with a Promise. All high school graduates who live in Kalamazoo qualify for a scholarship that pays 100 percent of their tuition at any public university or community college.
Business grows as customers become educated about solar
Solar power is something Mike Linsea has believed in for 30 years. He decided to make it his business three years ago. Kathy Jennings catches up with the owner of Solar Winds Power Systems at one of the largest the solar arrays his company has installed in Kalamazoo.
A redevelopment possibility for East Campus emerges
WMU officials are not ready to call it a plan, but movement is afoot for the redevelopment of East Campus. It's a big, expensive idea and to see it happen will continue to tap the university's creativity. WMU's Robert Miller talks about how it got this far and what are the possibilities.
Visiting musicians find a place to rest in Stuart neighborhood
It's not uncommon for traveling musicians to grab a place to sleep on somebody's floor. Tony Roth and his wife Joyce Walker have created a welcoming space in the Stuart neighborhood where a group of musicians can rest, relax and even stretch out on a bed with real sheets and pillows. Jane C. Parikh talks to the couple about why they open their home to people they've never met.
