This week as part of What Roth's Watching, we take a look at three major debates taking place throughout the week. WKAR will kick off the series by hosting U.S. House candidates, Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Barrett and Democrat William Lawrence, in our studio on Tuesday. The U.S. Senate and gubernatorial debates will round out the week in the evenings Tuesday and Thursday.
Also this week, the State Boundary Commission begins its review of the annexation of land near Mason that could pave the way for a future data center. Plus, the Owosso City Council will hold a public hearing on a proposal to ban camping in public spaces.
These are some of the biggest stories WKAR lead politics reporter Andrew Roth is following as part of his weekly column, What Roth's Watching. You can find the write-up in The Signal. Andrew joined WKAR Morning Edition host Melorie Begay for a look at the week ahead. Click on the audio player above to listen.
From Andrew:
1. Debate week in Michigan
Three major debates will capture Michigan’s attention this week. Debate week kicks off Monday, before Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Barrett faces off Tuesday morning with his Democratic challenger, climate organizer William Lawrence, at WKAR’s studios. The debate will be streamed live. Tuesday evening, Democratic nominee for governor Jocelyn Benson will face Republican nominee John James in Detroit. Then, on Thursday, U.S. Senate candidates Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic nominee, and Mike Rogers, the Republican nominee, will go head-to-head for the first time in Grand Rapids.
2. Annexation for Mason data center to be reviewed
The State Boundary Commission will discuss a request Wednesday to annex about 400 acres of land at the corner of College and West Columbia roads that is currently part of Vevay Township into the city of Mason. Doing so would clear the way for a possible hyperscale data center development to be officially proposed. The annexation process requires three meetings of the State Boundary Commission over the course of 12 to 24 months. The commission’s next meeting is in February.
3. Owosso to hold hearing on camping ban
The Owosso City Council will hold a public hearing Monday on a proposed ordinance to prohibit camping on city property, including parks, sidewalks, parking lots, alleys and trails. The city cleared an encampment of unhoused individuals at Rosevear Park earlier this year, MLive reported, joining a growing list of mid-Michigan cities that have recently taken similar steps, including Lansing and Jackson.
4. Mason city manager to speak on mental health of officials
Mason City Manager Deborah Stuart will speak Friday during the Michigan Municipal League Convention in Traverse City about the impact community conflict has on the mental health of officials and their families. “This session creates a candid, skills-focused conversation about stress, anxiety, burnout, and the ‘always on’ nature of public leadership, including how public conflict can spill into family life,” the convention’s agenda reads. “Using a recent reflection from a city manager, we will explore how to care for ourselves while also modeling healthy coping for children and partners.”
Interview Transcript:
Melorie Begay: It's a busy week in Michigan with several major debates scheduled over the next few days. Nominees for U.S. Senate, House and governor will all make appearances this week. WKAR will kick off the series of debates by hosting Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Barrett and his Democratic challenger William Lawrence in our studios. Also this week, the State Boundary Commission takes its first step in evaluating the annexation of a township near Mason, and Owosso leaders consider a camping ban. Here to break it all down is WKAR lead politics reporter Andrew Roth. Thanks for being here, Andrew.
Andrew Roth: Thank you for having me.
Begay: Like I said, it's a busy week for candidates, but it's also going to be a busy week here at WKAR because we're hosting U.S. House candidates Tom Barrett and William Lawrence. They're set to square off live in our studios on Tuesday. Andrew, as our lead politics reporter, can you give us a behind-the-scenes look at this debate?
Roth: Yes. It's going to be an all-hands-on-deck week here at WKAR. Of course, down in the studio, as you mentioned, on Tuesday, we're going to have the candidates in one of the most closely watched U.S. House races in the country. Everybody is going to be involved with this from the news team. Sophia is going to be on the media panel, as is our Capitol Correspondent Colin Jackson, you, Melorie, will be helping with some social media clips upstairs. I'll be covering the debate and taking some photos. It’s also going to touch all of the other parts of WKAR too. We have the production staff, and there's a lot going into this.
Begay: It’s definitely been a lot busier in this building. So on to the candidates. What’s at stake for them heading into this debate.
Roth: Like I mentioned, this is one of the closest House races in the country, and so this is really an opportunity for these two candidates to make their case to voters. This is a district that includes some really blue areas like MSU's campus, it also includes some really red areas like Howell and the rest of Livingston County. This is an opportunity for both candidates to come face to face and highlight both their agreements and their differences. Something that's interesting is that they've both been campaigning on data centers. That's something that certainly affects Mason, which is part of Ingham County, which is pretty blue, but also Howell Township, which is in Livingston County, which is pretty red, and so this is really an interesting debate to watch.
Begay: We should say that this debate is being done in partnership with News 10. You can stream the event live on our website at 11 a.m. Tuesday or catch a recording on WKAR-TV Wednesday night at 7 p.m. Now, I want to talk about the two other debates as well. I'm curious, what are your thoughts on all three of these debates happening in the same week?
Roth: I think I'm going to need a nap once the week is done. But, you know, we saw something similar during the primary too, where there were a few debates in the same week in July. There was a Democratic U.S. Senate primary debate, and then the Republican gubernatorial candidates met. So, this is sort of a repeat of that, where we have these three really hotly contested races all having debates in the same week. This is definitely a huge week in Michigan politics that I think everybody is going to be tuned into.
Begay: Now on to Mason, a city that you just mentioned that's been the center of conversations about data centers. This week, the State Boundary Commission begins the process for reviewing the annexation of Vevay Township, and it's a decision that could decide whether a proposal for a hyperscale data center takes shape in the area. What is this first meeting, and how does this affect possible plans for a future data center?
Roth: The way the annexation process works, the State Boundary Commission has to meet to consider the request at least three times. So, this entire process is going to take over a year, probably. Their next meeting isn't until February. This first meeting is really just a legal review of the request to make sure all of the papers are in order, that type of thing. But it's not necessarily going to be the final approval of the annexation. There is still a long road ahead, and the important thing to note is that there's no official proposal for a data center in Mason yet. That’s because first the land has to be annexed, which would allow it to be connected to Mason's utilities. At that point, the land would have to be rezoned by the city of Mason, and then once that's done, then you would have a site plan review of an actual data center proposal. So, there is still a very long road ahead of us here.
Begay: And lastly, Owasso City Council members will hold a public hearing on a proposal that would ban camping on city property. This is something that's gained traction in other mid-Michigan cities. What would this ban do?
Roth: This ordinance would prohibit camping on any city property including parks, sidewalks, anything of that nature. It comes after the city cleared an encampment earlier this year. Like you mentioned, other cities like Lansing and Jackson have taken somewhat similar steps to sort of deal with a rising population of unhoused individuals in their cities.
Begay: All right, Andrew Roth is WKAR's lead politics reporter. Thanks for being here, Andrew.
Roth: Always happy to join you, Melorie.
This interview has been edited for clarity and conciseness.
