I don't really see the problem with it taking away service. There are some people who would rather stay on the ground if they have the opportunity. I think the commercial airport in Lansing is good and it has it's purpose. I don't know why a bus service and an airport can't coexist. They are both able to do things that the other can't.
For me, I choose the bus service because it's cheaper, more dependable (this is not a knock against the airport, just against flying in general), offers more choice in times, and at least seems more energy efficient.
However, I don't want to dwell on it too long, because it's here and it's nice that there is now another option for people to use when going to and coming from Lansing.
I don't see it as a problem because it takes away the traffic that would be on flights from Lansing to Detroit - I'd much rather take the bus than fly there as well. The issue is that the Flyer passengers are going to Detroit to use the airport. Detroit's airport. Not ours. The Flyer makes it a lot easier for people to say 'I'm just going to go to the Detroit airport instead of flying from Lansing.' I think that's what we mean when we say it's siphoning off business. The close proximity of Detroit's airport has always been the biggest factor holding back Lansing Airport's growth, and the Flyer just compounds the problem. Obviously it's needed, as Lansing only flies to a few destinations, so until the airport adds more destinations I think the service is great. I just would rather the people going to DTW on the Flyer would stay in Lansing and fly from here.
I can't imagine a lot of people use the Flyer to travel to Detroit as an end destination. As I understand it, the bus goes to the airport and no other destinations (except for stops on the way). So this isn't a Greyhound we're talking about. The whole purpose of the Flyer is to shuttle Lansing customers to the Detroit airport to fly from there as opposed to flying from Lansing. I might be wrong, and there may be a lot of people who take the bus from here to Detroit, get off at the airport and rent a car or take a cab or another bus around the city, but I'd bet that number is pretty small.
Oh ok. I see what you're talking about. Yeah, if I could fly from Lansing to my end destination, then I would choose Lansing over DTW because it's much easier for a number of reasons. It stinks because JetAmerica was going to make it easy for me to fly to New York right from Lansing, but it never materialized.
When I go to Detroit I take the Greyhound as it takes me right to downtown Detroit and the round trip fare is a better deal than taking the Flyer (not to mention that DTW is quite a ways from downtown and the DDOT). For the number of trips that the Greyhound makes, it is usually pretty busy.
The whole purpose of the Flyer is to shuttle Lansing customers to the Detroit airport to fly from there as opposed to flying from Lansing. I might be wrong, and there may be a lot of people who take the bus from here to Detroit, get off at the airport and rent a car or take a cab or another bus around the city, but I'd bet that number is pretty small.
No, you are right. The sole purpose of the Michigan Flyer is to take Lansing flyers directly to Metro. No one takes the Flyer to visit Detroit. The Flyer is essentially a long-distance shuttle bus for Metro.
I guess I don't blame the Flyer so much as I do the Lansing airport not being able to get its act together. I also realize that Lansing is simply too close to Metro to ever be a serious hub for passengers. I guess the Flyer is just a cruel reminder that we're not as independent as we think we are. We're far enough from Detroit to be mostly autonomous, but not far enough to escape its influence as far as the airport is concerned. I mean, Metro is one of the most cosmopolitan and international airports on the globe, so I shouldn't be surprised how far it pulls from.
In fact, this is has always hindered Lansing being squeezed in between Flint, Grand Rapids and Detroit. It really stunts what we can do as a metro in many regards, which is why we are so often caught thinking smaller than we should. It's why I think Lansing has to think about competing against cities outside of the state and country to ever be able to allow itself to think outside its tightly hemmed in metro. If we're trying to compete with Detroit and Flint and Grand Rapids and even Kalamazoo-Battle Creek, things get small and ugly and povincial.
Jared I completely agree about JetAmerica - my parents were elated when it was announced, as I live in NYC now. It would have been incredible to just hop a flight from Lansing to Newark, and especially for so cheap.
MichMatters, I agree with you too - it's not the Flyer's fault. In fact it's great to have it, considering that DTW is really the best way to get around the country. DTW is a world-class airport and there's no way Lansing could compete, but I do think that if it got focused and hits a stroke of good luck (it seems that a lot of the problems lately have stemmed not from the airport but those the airport contracts with - like JetAmerica's failure) it could become a great niche airport.
I'm thinking cheap flights to holiday destinations, weekend getaways and connecting flights. We have customs now. Why not fly to Toronto and Montreal? Why not try to attract boutique airlines (which in fairness it seems we have been trying to do) that would offer a flight down to Florida or South Texas or LA or NYC on Friday evening, and then a return flight on Sunday evening? Advertise the NYC trip as 'go shopping for a weekend,' partner with NYC hotels for special deals, and sell weekend getaway packages. Same for South Padre, Disney, etc.
If Lansing paired with Disney for a package flight, hotel and amusement park entry, people would come FROM Detroit to take advantage of it. A family in the Detroit metro that wants to go to Disney in Orlando could look up the cheapest deals, find that they can get a whole package leaving from Lansing cheaper than booking a trip from DTW and doing everything separately, and then hop on the Flyer. Lansing could even partner with the Flyer to be part of the package. I'm sure they wouldn't mind having increased traffic coming from Detroit. That's the kind of thing I think we need to pursue. We're never going to be the choice for people who need to structure their own trips for business and pleasure, but we CAN be the choice for prepackaged, easy and cheap structured trips, as well as offering connections to major hubs.
Melissa Domsic • mdomsic@lsj.com • December 3, 2009
LANSING -- A local developer is seeking up to $431,000 in state and local tax incentives to renovate the former Michigan Electric Supply Co. building into lofts and retail space.
Developer Tom Arnold started working last year on the nearly 100-year-old building, located at 1118 S. Washington Ave. in the REO Town business district.
Total project cost is $990,000, including $75,000 to purchase the building. He plans to build 23 lofts and 2,000 square feet of retail space in the three-story building with full basement.
The 1910 building most recently housed the Michigan Electric Supply Co., which moved to Jolly Road about 1-1/2 years ago.
Improvements include a new roof, windows, doors, facade work, plumbing, basement lowering, electrical and mechanical work.
Arnold is requesting $123,750 to $198,000 in Michigan Business Tax credits. He’s also seeking $233,000 in local property tax abatements over 12 years under the Obsolete Property Rehabilitation Act.
The Lansing City Council must vote on the project’s Brownfield plan before the state can approve Michigan Business Tax credits. The city also has to hold a public hearing and vote on the local tax breaks. Both issues were sent to the city council’s planning and development committee.
BTW, just watch how quickly these rent off if they are apartments.
There is a lot of of news this week coming out of Capital Gains and the City Pulse, theres a few more articles that I didn't post because they're sorta old news.
Anyone notice that the top of the Cooley Center (it's mechanical penthouse) is lit in red and green for Christmas? This is the first time I've ever seen them change the color for the holidays. I wish the capitol and other prominent buildings with lit parts would do this for holidays.
Yeah, I noticed the colors and they were nice. Other priminent buildings would be cool too.
The former Comp USA store in Frandor had the awning/entrance completely covered up by plywood and I peaked and the interior is gutted down to concrete for as much as I could see. Something going in there?
Hasn't it been like that for some time? I'd not heard of anything, but maybe something is happening. I just suspected this was to properly secure the building from being broken into.
Comments
For me, I choose the bus service because it's cheaper, more dependable (this is not a knock against the airport, just against flying in general), offers more choice in times, and at least seems more energy efficient.
However, I don't want to dwell on it too long, because it's here and it's nice that there is now another option for people to use when going to and coming from Lansing.
I can't imagine a lot of people use the Flyer to travel to Detroit as an end destination. As I understand it, the bus goes to the airport and no other destinations (except for stops on the way). So this isn't a Greyhound we're talking about. The whole purpose of the Flyer is to shuttle Lansing customers to the Detroit airport to fly from there as opposed to flying from Lansing. I might be wrong, and there may be a lot of people who take the bus from here to Detroit, get off at the airport and rent a car or take a cab or another bus around the city, but I'd bet that number is pretty small.
When I go to Detroit I take the Greyhound as it takes me right to downtown Detroit and the round trip fare is a better deal than taking the Flyer (not to mention that DTW is quite a ways from downtown and the DDOT). For the number of trips that the Greyhound makes, it is usually pretty busy.
No, you are right. The sole purpose of the Michigan Flyer is to take Lansing flyers directly to Metro. No one takes the Flyer to visit Detroit. The Flyer is essentially a long-distance shuttle bus for Metro.
I guess I don't blame the Flyer so much as I do the Lansing airport not being able to get its act together. I also realize that Lansing is simply too close to Metro to ever be a serious hub for passengers. I guess the Flyer is just a cruel reminder that we're not as independent as we think we are. We're far enough from Detroit to be mostly autonomous, but not far enough to escape its influence as far as the airport is concerned. I mean, Metro is one of the most cosmopolitan and international airports on the globe, so I shouldn't be surprised how far it pulls from.
In fact, this is has always hindered Lansing being squeezed in between Flint, Grand Rapids and Detroit. It really stunts what we can do as a metro in many regards, which is why we are so often caught thinking smaller than we should. It's why I think Lansing has to think about competing against cities outside of the state and country to ever be able to allow itself to think outside its tightly hemmed in metro. If we're trying to compete with Detroit and Flint and Grand Rapids and even Kalamazoo-Battle Creek, things get small and ugly and povincial.
MichMatters, I agree with you too - it's not the Flyer's fault. In fact it's great to have it, considering that DTW is really the best way to get around the country. DTW is a world-class airport and there's no way Lansing could compete, but I do think that if it got focused and hits a stroke of good luck (it seems that a lot of the problems lately have stemmed not from the airport but those the airport contracts with - like JetAmerica's failure) it could become a great niche airport.
I'm thinking cheap flights to holiday destinations, weekend getaways and connecting flights. We have customs now. Why not fly to Toronto and Montreal? Why not try to attract boutique airlines (which in fairness it seems we have been trying to do) that would offer a flight down to Florida or South Texas or LA or NYC on Friday evening, and then a return flight on Sunday evening? Advertise the NYC trip as 'go shopping for a weekend,' partner with NYC hotels for special deals, and sell weekend getaway packages. Same for South Padre, Disney, etc.
If Lansing paired with Disney for a package flight, hotel and amusement park entry, people would come FROM Detroit to take advantage of it. A family in the Detroit metro that wants to go to Disney in Orlando could look up the cheapest deals, find that they can get a whole package leaving from Lansing cheaper than booking a trip from DTW and doing everything separately, and then hop on the Flyer. Lansing could even partner with the Flyer to be part of the package. I'm sure they wouldn't mind having increased traffic coming from Detroit. That's the kind of thing I think we need to pursue. We're never going to be the choice for people who need to structure their own trips for business and pleasure, but we CAN be the choice for prepackaged, easy and cheap structured trips, as well as offering connections to major hubs.
BTW, the renovation of the Michigan Electric Supply Bldg down in REO Town finally makes itself public, and just in time to ask for incentives. lol
BTW, just watch how quickly these rent off if they are apartments.
Architecture Firm in Lansing Lands $1.5 Million Airport Pod Contract, First in U.S.
GiftZip Grows eRetail Site, Projects $1 Million in Sales Next Year
Architecture Firm in Lansing Lands $1.5 Million Airport Pod Contract, First in U.S.
Biotech Company Invests $10.9 Million to Update Key Lansing Facility
Spartan Internet Breaks Ground on $2 Million Holmes Street School Renovation
The former Comp USA store in Frandor had the awning/entrance completely covered up by plywood and I peaked and the interior is gutted down to concrete for as much as I could see. Something going in there?