 NORTHERN STAR SELLS BACK TO REYNOLDS NSB exits radio at a loss Within the next few weeks, Traverse City-based Northern Star Broadcasting will be no more. The company, which owns northern Michigan radio stations Real Rock 105/95-5, The Bear 98.1/107.1/94.5/93.9, Big Country 102.9 and tiny WCBY 1240 Cheboygan has agreed to pull out of the unprofitable world of radio altogether by selling those stations to the man they bought them from in 1998, Del Reynolds. Yep! Del Reynolds is back to being a player in northern Michigan radio again after years of playing engineer and even starting up a Christian station in Mackinaw City that eventually ended up 1) kicking him out due to insider politics and 2) getting sold to Interlochen. Already, Del and his wife Mary are employed at NSB as VP of Operations/Programming and GM/VP of Sales/Marketing/Promotions, respectively. Reynolds has been called one of northern Michigan's most-beloved broadcasters, starting at WIDG St. Ignace in the late 60's as a teenager to eventually owning that station, plus the stations he sold in 1998. However, he sold those stations to what was Calibre Communications, which was based in Chicago and run by a man named David Gariano. The deal fell through, but a new company was formed to take over the Reynolds stations: Northern Star Broadcasting. When NSB finally purchased the stations in 1998, they paid $7 million. However, it's been a rocky ride for NSB. They also purchased a boatload of stations in the UP, ran them into the ground, and sold them to Sovereign Communications for way less then what they paid for them. In the case for their northern Michigan sticks, it's been the same. For an example: in 2000, The Bear was beating the crap out of KLT in the mornings with Bob and Tom, The Zone (pretty much what's now Real Rock) was finally finding its voice by eliminating chick pop for real Modern Rock and Big Country was holding its own. A decade later, The Bear is now an average classic rocker with B&T getting pummeled by KLT's Omelette and Finster in the ratings, Real Rock has music stability issues and Big Country is, well, Big Country. Plus, they only recently finally got the embarrassment known as WIHC 97.9 Newberry off their hands, selling it to a ministry for $150,000. In the end, NSB sold their stations back to Reynolds for a whopping $1.8 million. But then again, I don't blame NSB for selling back to Reynolds. After all, the economy - especially in northern Michigan - sucks and if I owned a radio station up north, I'd have headaches, too. God only knows what Del and Mary have in store, but for starters, he already owns a new station in Cheboygan, WQEZ 97.7, which is stunting with Christmas music. What will happen to the rest of his stations will be exciting to watch after the holidays, especially since when he sold out to Calibre/NSB, they made many changes here and there (ie their infamous "K-Garth" stunt when they flipped KC Country to Big Country, or when they flipped Smooth Jazz "Coast FM" to The Zone). One thing I do remember is when Calibre flipped Coast FM to The Zone, Del was pissed since it was run off a satellite and it made money with upscale advertisers. Will this mean the end for Real Rock? Heck, The Bear's seen better days. Who knows? But one thing's for certain: a radio station owner's like a magician: they never tell. |
Friday, November 11, 2011
THE BACK PAGE: Northern Star Sells Back to Reynolds
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
11.9.11 Bee-otch of the Day: Don Julio's Mexican Restaurant
DON'T FORGET TO "LIKE" BEE-OTCH OF THE DAY ON FACEBOOK!
Name: Don Julio's Mexican Restaurant
Age: 2
Occupation: Mexican eating establishment
Last Seen: Cascade TWP, MI
Bee-otched For: dissing a veteran
---
In these tough economic times, if you own a business, you better keep your ass clean.
If you type in "Don Julio's Grand Rapids" in Google, reading the reviews for the Grand Rapids Mexican restaurant are like night and day. When it opened two years ago, the place was getting four and five-star reviews. Now, in the past few days, it's become the most-hated dining spot in town.
The reason? It rejected a guest they thought should never be allowed in the building, a former Bennigan's.
Frank Eckl, a 46-year-old father of four took his family out to eat Saturday night at Don Julio's, when a manager came and told him that one of his guests wasn't allowed in the restaurant, and had to stay in the lobby. Upset, he took his family - unwanted guest included - to the IHOP next door where everybody was treated much better.
The rejected member of Mr. Eckl's party? It was his dog, a black lab named Spruce.
It's perfectly legal for Eckl to take Spruce everywhere he goes. A Gulf War vet, he suffers seizures brought on by Gulf War Syndrome. Spruce is his service dog; when he suffers his seizures, it's Spruce's job to help rescue Eckl if he's collapsed to the ground. Under the Americans With Disabilities Act, all public buildings must allow service animals, including restaurants. Spruce even wears a special jacket that specifies that he's a service dog.
The restaurant's manager told local NBC affiliate WOOD-TV that she defends her actions, stating that she didn't want dog hair spread throughout her restaurant. She knew that Spruce was a service dog, but felt that it wasn't her job to keep everybody happy.
Eckl isn't looking for monetary damages, but rather an apology and re-training of its staff.
I remember watching WOOD-TV interviewing the Don Julio's manager, and she came off as a total, cold, uncaring bitch. She acted like she could care less about the disabled, let alone somebody who fought for her freedom. Didn't I hear her say that she would do it again if another dog came into her site? I apologize to Mr. Eckl if he ever reads this because he's a born again Christian, but Goddamn her!
Oh, and here's the funny part: I found out the the owner of Don Julio's is an attorney from Mount Pleasant! Doesn't HE know the laws as well?
Don Julio's seems to be forgetting that there's a TON of restaurants up and down 28th Street, and many of them are indeed Mexican. Hell, there's Moe's Southwest Grill across the street, and I go there a great deal. True, Moe's is a hellhole for little bastards who yell and scream, plus the fact that their TVs are almost always affixed to the Fox News Channel, I would much rather eat there over paying more at a place that disses the disabled. I hope Don Julio's goes out of business over this piss-poor example of treating customers. I've never eaten there, and I never will.
One more thing: check out the Facebook page Boycott Don Julio's. Plenty of discussion there.
Together, we'll send Don Julio's south of the border.
---
Age: 2
Occupation: Mexican eating establishment
Last Seen: Cascade TWP, MI
Bee-otched For: dissing a veteran
---
In these tough economic times, if you own a business, you better keep your ass clean.
If you type in "Don Julio's Grand Rapids" in Google, reading the reviews for the Grand Rapids Mexican restaurant are like night and day. When it opened two years ago, the place was getting four and five-star reviews. Now, in the past few days, it's become the most-hated dining spot in town.
The reason? It rejected a guest they thought should never be allowed in the building, a former Bennigan's.
Frank Eckl, a 46-year-old father of four took his family out to eat Saturday night at Don Julio's, when a manager came and told him that one of his guests wasn't allowed in the restaurant, and had to stay in the lobby. Upset, he took his family - unwanted guest included - to the IHOP next door where everybody was treated much better.
The rejected member of Mr. Eckl's party? It was his dog, a black lab named Spruce.
It's perfectly legal for Eckl to take Spruce everywhere he goes. A Gulf War vet, he suffers seizures brought on by Gulf War Syndrome. Spruce is his service dog; when he suffers his seizures, it's Spruce's job to help rescue Eckl if he's collapsed to the ground. Under the Americans With Disabilities Act, all public buildings must allow service animals, including restaurants. Spruce even wears a special jacket that specifies that he's a service dog.
The restaurant's manager told local NBC affiliate WOOD-TV that she defends her actions, stating that she didn't want dog hair spread throughout her restaurant. She knew that Spruce was a service dog, but felt that it wasn't her job to keep everybody happy.
Eckl isn't looking for monetary damages, but rather an apology and re-training of its staff.
I remember watching WOOD-TV interviewing the Don Julio's manager, and she came off as a total, cold, uncaring bitch. She acted like she could care less about the disabled, let alone somebody who fought for her freedom. Didn't I hear her say that she would do it again if another dog came into her site? I apologize to Mr. Eckl if he ever reads this because he's a born again Christian, but Goddamn her!
Oh, and here's the funny part: I found out the the owner of Don Julio's is an attorney from Mount Pleasant! Doesn't HE know the laws as well?
Don Julio's seems to be forgetting that there's a TON of restaurants up and down 28th Street, and many of them are indeed Mexican. Hell, there's Moe's Southwest Grill across the street, and I go there a great deal. True, Moe's is a hellhole for little bastards who yell and scream, plus the fact that their TVs are almost always affixed to the Fox News Channel, I would much rather eat there over paying more at a place that disses the disabled. I hope Don Julio's goes out of business over this piss-poor example of treating customers. I've never eaten there, and I never will.
One more thing: check out the Facebook page Boycott Don Julio's. Plenty of discussion there.
Together, we'll send Don Julio's south of the border.
---
Got a Bee-otch to nominate? E-mail us @ chuck69dotcom@gmail.com. All suggestions (except for me) are welcome!
Bee-otch of the Day Archives can be seen on http://beeotchoftheday.blogspot.com !
Bee-otch of the Day is a production of Chuck69.com, Grand Rapids' site for Stern, politics and more!
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
11.8.11 Bee-otch of the Day: Detroit Lions
DON'T FORGET TO "LIKE" BEE-OTCH OF THE DAY ON FACEBOOK! Name: The Detroit Lions Age: 82 Occupation: Detroit's NFL affiliate Last Seen: Detroit, MI Bee-otched For: giving the mute button a workout --- On Thanksgiving Day, the Canadians will invade Detroit. One man, however, is trying to stop it from happening. 22-year-old University of Michigan student Dennis Guttman created a petition last week that's trying to convince Detroit Lion brass not to use Nickelback as their halftime act for their annual Thanksgiving Day game in a few weeks. According to Guttman, "This game is nationally televised, do we really want the rest of the US to associate Detroit with Nickelback? Detroit is home to so many great musicians and they chose Nickelback?!?!?! Does anyone even like Nickelback? Is this some sort of ploy to get people to leave their seats during halftime to spend money on alcoholic beverages and concessions? This is completely unfair to those of us who purchased tickets to the game. At least the people watching at home can mute their TVs. The Lions ought to think about their fans before choosing such an awful band to play at halftime." The band currently has a hit single on the rock charts called "Bottoms Up", which sounds somewhat like one of their previous hits, "Burn It To The Ground", currently the theme song to Monday Night Raw. At 4 a.m. Tuesday morning, the petition had almost 44,700 signatures. They need 50,000. Many of the comments regarding Nickelback at the Turkey Day game aren't very pleasant. Some of the comments include "Nickelback tore my family apart", "I'm a 30+ year ticket holder and I vow never to be seen at a Nickelback show", one person claimed to be from Alberta and felt that Nickelback was giving them a bad name, but the most-liked comment came from a music producer who agreed that Nickelback was a poor choice to represent Detroit, especially when the town is culturally diverse when it comes to music. Well, count me in as one of the nearly 45,000 voices. I liked them in the beginning, and yes, they actually have a few good songs that actually are thought-provoking (ie "Never Again" and "Side of a Bullet"), overall, Nickelback is probably the most-overrated rock band out there. True, there could be a much-worse act than Nickelback at the Turkey Day Halftime Show, like anything Country, let's hope that whatever decision the Lions make is one that the fans want. For one thing, at least the Lions are having a good year for once. --- Got a Bee-otch to nominate? E-mail us @ chuck69dotcom@gmail.com. All suggestions (except for me) are welcome! Bee-otch of the Day Archives can be seen on http://beeotchoftheday.blogspot.com ! Bee-otch of the Day is a production of Chuck69.com, Grand Rapids' site for Stern, politics and more! |
Monday, November 7, 2011
11.7.11 Bee-otch of the Day: terrestrial radio
DON'T FORGET TO "LIKE" BEE-OTCH OF THE DAY ON FACEBOOK!  Name: terrestrial radio Age: 91 Occupation: purveyors of broadcast media Last Seen: everywhere Bee-otched For: making the Detroit radio dial even dumber --- Sometimes, I have to thank the good lord that I never worked in radio. Especially in Detroit. In recent weeks, the Detroit radio dial has seen lots of activity, with everything from long-time morning man Jim Harper retiring from Magic 105.1 to WGPR flipping from Adult R&B to ghetto music. But things are getting worse. Last week, good 'ol Clear Channel decided to flip 106.7 once again from Rhythmic AC "The Beat" to Classic Rock as "106.7 The D", named after Detroit's nickname of the moment. The station's playlist mostly consistsof tunes from the mid-70's to the early 90's, and it's aimed at those who grew up listening to rock radio in the 80's. Core artists include Pink Floyd, AC/DC, Journey, REO Speedwagon and Boston. This is the fifth format flip for 106.7 in a decade, and its third rock-based format after the failures of Alice 106.7 (Rock AC) and 106.7 The Drive (Classic Rock with a few recurrents). Previously, it was the legendary WWWW "W4" Country station, which was a success for over 20 years. But stupid Clear Channel thought that it wasn't making enough money, and flipped it to Alice. Stupid, stupid, stupid, indeed. Yes, and let's not forget that 106.7 tried Country once more as "The Fox", which had no real jocks and was basically tighter than a Jewish banker budgetwise. Sadly, The Beat did show promise and was probably its most-acclaimed format since W4 died its untimely death in 2000. But Clear Channel felt that with CHR Channel 9-5-5 and Hot AC Fresh 100.3 under its belt, that their female audience was overserved. So, The Beat went bye-bye and The D was born. Since The D's birth last Friday, WRIF has apparently responded by cutting way back on its current product and is in many cases mimicking some of The D's playlist. Right now, Detroit has several stations that play a good deal of classic rock, including WCSX and Doug 93.1. And yes, there's a rumor that The D - which currently is jockless - might be getting a very well-known name to jump on board: Arthur Penhallow. Yep! The Grand Poobah hasn't been heard in the Motor City in quite some time after a contract dispute at WRIF knocked him off the air. Problem is, sadly, is that Arthur P. is in his 60's! Shouldn't he STAY retired? I mean, personally, when he parted ways with WRIF, he should have called it good. His best days are behind him. But, I would imagine that Clear Channel WOULD be wanting to pay him some good $$$ if he were to jump on board at The D. Pathetic, since already-cash-strapped CC just recently canned hundreds of jocks in cost-cutting measures. IMO, I wouldn't doubt it if Arthur would be the ONLY live jock on The D, especially if they use voicetracked jocks and their Premium Choice systems to program the station for their other dayparts. Even worse, Clear Channel's not the only radio company cutting corners. With Cumulus' recent purchase of Citadel Media - including Detroit stations WJR, Doug FM and WDVD - the heads are rolling there, sadly and truthfully. Some folks at WJR have been let go, and WDVD's night and overnight jocks - Scott Vertical and Jeanmarie Pavol - have been pinkslipped. Vertical had been with WDVD since their alternative "Planet 96.3" days in the 1990's. The sole remaining jock from The Planet's heyday still with WDVD is Allison Martinek, who co-hosts the station's morning show. Now, rumor has it that WDVD - like many other Cumulus stations - might be carrying Billy Bush's nighttime show. The show is cheap to carry - probably on a barter basis - and hey! Since the Dickey family's in bed with the Bushes, it's a perfect fit. Sadly, with big companies taking over radio these days, the rules are simple: pander to an audience that's eligible to be students of the Rachelle Consiglio-Wilkos School of Idioticism and you'll go far. Detroit's got a lot of thugs of all colors running up and down 8 Mile, so it's a win-win. I feel sorry for ANY good jock that had to work for either Clear Channel or Cumulus and has been shown the door, especially in these hard times. It's in the end that we've realized that we're all in the same boat, and even with people like me abandoning terrestrial radio a long time ago, they're making even worse mistakes than they were when I joined the satellite radio revolution seven years ago. Thanks, but Sal and Richard Swap Shop calls are way more funnier than Billy Bush trying to pander to anybody with an IQ perfect for the short bus. "BARRRRT! I've got a Tom Seaver, and it smells like fish, 'cause it was stuck in my wife's beaver...." --- Got a Bee-otch to nominate? E-mail us @ chuck69dotcom@gmail.com. All suggestions (except for me) are welcome! Bee-otch of the Day is a production of Chuck69.com, Grand Rapids' site for Stern, politics and more! |
Thursday, November 3, 2011
11.3.11 Bee-otch of the Day: Sinclair Broadcast Group
---
DON'T FORGET TO "LIKE" BEE-OTCH OF THE DAY ON FACEBOOK!
Name: Sinclair Broadcast Group
Age: 40
Occupation: broadcast giant
Last Seen: Hunt Valley, MD
Bee-otched For: making Grand Rapids' CBS affiliate unwatchable
---
Age: 40
Occupation: broadcast giant
Last Seen: Hunt Valley, MD
Bee-otched For: making Grand Rapids' CBS affiliate unwatchable
---
As I mentioned not too long ago, I recently dumped cable.
Thankfully, I can get almost all the local channels and their subchannels. I can get my local NBC, Fox, ABC and a few other channels.
However, I can't get my local CBS station, WWMT channel 3. Their signal sucks. But, that doesn't matter, because I'm boycotting them.
It was announced yesterday that the cash-strapped owner of WWMT, Freedom Communications, is selling out to Sinclair Broadcast Group for $385 million. The deal will include eight stations including another Michigan station, Lansing ABC station WLAJ.
Sinclair already owns one other Michigan station, Flint Fox affiliate WSMH. As usual, the buyout awaits FCC and shareholder approval.
Sadly, this is the same Sinclair that ordered all of their stations in 2004 to air a slanderous documentary about then-presidential candidate John Kerry and even ordered all of their ABC stations to pull an episode of Nightline because it showcased those killed in the Iraq war. Not too long ago, Sinclair even had their stations air a horrifically untrue infomercial that tried to tie President Obama to extremist groups.
Without a doubt, Sinclair is a far-right-winged company that will do anything to defame and slander anybody who's on the left. Even more tragically, they own stations in 35 markets, and when the deal with Freedom, alongside Four Points Media is done, they will have 46, covering a sizable chunk of the country..
Oh, and as of 2009, Sinclair had over a billion bucks in debt.
I guess the point is that thanks to the internet, if there's a show on CBS that I want to watch, I can watch it online. Plus, I usually get my news from WOOD-TV 8, especially since WWMT is cockeyed on Kalamazoo. I will not allow myself to support a company that will do anything to screw over people who will bring back the middle class and actually bring stability back to America. I understand that Freedom needed the money, but there's other broadcast companies out there that would have wanted their stations and would have been better owners.
But now, it's one less station to watch.
--- Thankfully, I can get almost all the local channels and their subchannels. I can get my local NBC, Fox, ABC and a few other channels.
However, I can't get my local CBS station, WWMT channel 3. Their signal sucks. But, that doesn't matter, because I'm boycotting them.
It was announced yesterday that the cash-strapped owner of WWMT, Freedom Communications, is selling out to Sinclair Broadcast Group for $385 million. The deal will include eight stations including another Michigan station, Lansing ABC station WLAJ.
Sinclair already owns one other Michigan station, Flint Fox affiliate WSMH. As usual, the buyout awaits FCC and shareholder approval.
Sadly, this is the same Sinclair that ordered all of their stations in 2004 to air a slanderous documentary about then-presidential candidate John Kerry and even ordered all of their ABC stations to pull an episode of Nightline because it showcased those killed in the Iraq war. Not too long ago, Sinclair even had their stations air a horrifically untrue infomercial that tried to tie President Obama to extremist groups.
Without a doubt, Sinclair is a far-right-winged company that will do anything to defame and slander anybody who's on the left. Even more tragically, they own stations in 35 markets, and when the deal with Freedom, alongside Four Points Media is done, they will have 46, covering a sizable chunk of the country..
Oh, and as of 2009, Sinclair had over a billion bucks in debt.
I guess the point is that thanks to the internet, if there's a show on CBS that I want to watch, I can watch it online. Plus, I usually get my news from WOOD-TV 8, especially since WWMT is cockeyed on Kalamazoo. I will not allow myself to support a company that will do anything to screw over people who will bring back the middle class and actually bring stability back to America. I understand that Freedom needed the money, but there's other broadcast companies out there that would have wanted their stations and would have been better owners.
But now, it's one less station to watch.
Got a Bee-otch to nominate? E-mail us @ chuck69dotcom@gmail.com. All suggestions (except for me) are welcome!
Bee-otch of the Day is a production of Chuck69.com, Grand Rapids' site for Stern, politics and more!
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
11.2.11 Bee-otch of the Day: Centerpointe Mall
|
DON'T FORGET TO "LIKE" BEE-OTCH OF THE DAY ON FACEBOOK!
Name: Centerpointe Mall
Age: 44
Occupation: dying shopping mall
Last Seen: Grand Rapids, MI
Bee-otched For: screwing over skaters
---
Age: 44
Occupation: dying shopping mall
Last Seen: Grand Rapids, MI
Bee-otched For: screwing over skaters
---
Grand Rapids sure is losing options of what one can do.
Ten years ago, you can go to a strip club and watch a beautiful woman get naked. But, not anymore thanks to the stupid city ordinance.
But now, you can add "skate indoors" to the list. And, it's not because of some city law. It's because the city's only indoor skate park shut its doors.
The Modern Skate Park at Centerpointe Mall has closed its doors, leaving thousands of skaters without a place to skate. The park had several half pipes and dips to please skaters young and old alike. To some, it was the only reason to go to Centerpointe.
According to Modern's owner, he claims that despite good business, the park's lease was going up, and he had no choice but to shut down. The park and store had been in business since 2001, occupying what had been Witmark.
Many are angry at the mall itself for not keeping their rent low. Centerpointe is one of Grand Rapids' most-unpopular malls, and the picture above proves it. Yes, that's Centerpointe Mall, complete with bare walls where tenants should be and few customers. Is it me, or does Centerpointe look like an elementary school classroom? I know, some have actually told me that when it was Eastbrook Mall some 20 years ago, it was much worse. But still, you can't polish a turd.
Sadly, Centerpointe doesn't know how to compete like the mall across the street, Woodland (and yes, there's two malls across the street from one another in Grand Rapids). For years, Woodland was THE mall in Grand Rapids, but when Rivertown Crossings was built in 1997, Woodland knew that in order to make money, they had to spend it. So, they added a new food court, did some remodeling here and there, added new stores, a movie theatre, some new restaurants, some new outparcels and even a new, two-story Barnes and Noble.
Centerpointe? Well, they do have an Old Navy, Nordstrom Rack, Lane Bryant, Menard's and a few other places here and there. Oh, there's Chuck E. Cheese! Otherwise, it's worthless. No, wait! The Secretary of State's there, too! OK, so it has a purpose, after all.
However, the mall's lost more than gained over the years. In just a few years alone, it's lost Steve and Barry's (bankruptcy), Linens 'N Things (all Michigan stores closed) and Klingman's (moved to the old Rogers Plaza building only to go bankrupt). But, there's some hope on the way.
It has been announced that the mall is finalizing plans to renovate itself into a power center, or in other words, outdoor mall. About half of the mall would be demolished to make way for it to be an outdoor mall. Several former indoor malls in Michigan, such as Rochester's Winchester Mall, Warren's Universal Mall and Traverse City's Cherryland Center are prime examples. Many have been successful, although in the case of Cherryland Center, it has been thrown into foreclosure due to budget problems with some of their long-time tenants, such as Tom's Food Market and Ravissaint, a store that sells lingerie and adult novelties bailing ship.
According to Centerpointe's management, the mall's finalization into being an outdoor mall should be finalized in 2013.
Meanwhile, Modern's owner says that he's looking into options in the Grand Rapids area. He still had two stores in Lansing and Royal Oak.
In the end, yes, it'll be nice if Centerpointe's owners - Lormax Stern - *actually* did something to the mall. If making it an outdoor mall helps, so let it be. However, in an age where kids spend more time in front of a TV screen than outdoors, I think it would be cool if somebody did open another skate park in town. Skateboarders need an outlet, and slacking off in front of an XBox shouldn't be the option.
Once again, Chris Rock is right: every town has two malls: the mall the white people go to, and the one the white people USED to go to. In Centerpointe's case, I think people of all races have abandoned that sinking ship.
---Ten years ago, you can go to a strip club and watch a beautiful woman get naked. But, not anymore thanks to the stupid city ordinance.
But now, you can add "skate indoors" to the list. And, it's not because of some city law. It's because the city's only indoor skate park shut its doors.
The Modern Skate Park at Centerpointe Mall has closed its doors, leaving thousands of skaters without a place to skate. The park had several half pipes and dips to please skaters young and old alike. To some, it was the only reason to go to Centerpointe.
According to Modern's owner, he claims that despite good business, the park's lease was going up, and he had no choice but to shut down. The park and store had been in business since 2001, occupying what had been Witmark.
Many are angry at the mall itself for not keeping their rent low. Centerpointe is one of Grand Rapids' most-unpopular malls, and the picture above proves it. Yes, that's Centerpointe Mall, complete with bare walls where tenants should be and few customers. Is it me, or does Centerpointe look like an elementary school classroom? I know, some have actually told me that when it was Eastbrook Mall some 20 years ago, it was much worse. But still, you can't polish a turd.
Sadly, Centerpointe doesn't know how to compete like the mall across the street, Woodland (and yes, there's two malls across the street from one another in Grand Rapids). For years, Woodland was THE mall in Grand Rapids, but when Rivertown Crossings was built in 1997, Woodland knew that in order to make money, they had to spend it. So, they added a new food court, did some remodeling here and there, added new stores, a movie theatre, some new restaurants, some new outparcels and even a new, two-story Barnes and Noble.
Centerpointe? Well, they do have an Old Navy, Nordstrom Rack, Lane Bryant, Menard's and a few other places here and there. Oh, there's Chuck E. Cheese! Otherwise, it's worthless. No, wait! The Secretary of State's there, too! OK, so it has a purpose, after all.
However, the mall's lost more than gained over the years. In just a few years alone, it's lost Steve and Barry's (bankruptcy), Linens 'N Things (all Michigan stores closed) and Klingman's (moved to the old Rogers Plaza building only to go bankrupt). But, there's some hope on the way.
It has been announced that the mall is finalizing plans to renovate itself into a power center, or in other words, outdoor mall. About half of the mall would be demolished to make way for it to be an outdoor mall. Several former indoor malls in Michigan, such as Rochester's Winchester Mall, Warren's Universal Mall and Traverse City's Cherryland Center are prime examples. Many have been successful, although in the case of Cherryland Center, it has been thrown into foreclosure due to budget problems with some of their long-time tenants, such as Tom's Food Market and Ravissaint, a store that sells lingerie and adult novelties bailing ship.
According to Centerpointe's management, the mall's finalization into being an outdoor mall should be finalized in 2013.
Meanwhile, Modern's owner says that he's looking into options in the Grand Rapids area. He still had two stores in Lansing and Royal Oak.
In the end, yes, it'll be nice if Centerpointe's owners - Lormax Stern - *actually* did something to the mall. If making it an outdoor mall helps, so let it be. However, in an age where kids spend more time in front of a TV screen than outdoors, I think it would be cool if somebody did open another skate park in town. Skateboarders need an outlet, and slacking off in front of an XBox shouldn't be the option.
Once again, Chris Rock is right: every town has two malls: the mall the white people go to, and the one the white people USED to go to. In Centerpointe's case, I think people of all races have abandoned that sinking ship.
Got a Bee-otch to nominate? E-mail us @ chuck69dotcom@gmail.com. All suggestions (except for me) are welcome!
Bee-otch of the Day is a production of Chuck69.com, Grand Rapids' site for Stern, politics and more!
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
11.1.11 Bee-otch of the Day: terrestrial radio
DON'T FORGET TO "LIKE" BEE-OTCH OF THE DAY ON FACEBOOK!
Name: terrestrial radio
Age: 91
Occupation: entertainers and informers using radio waves
Last Seen: everywhere
Bee-otched For: still making bad decisions
---
Age: 91
Occupation: entertainers and informers using radio waves
Last Seen: everywhere
Bee-otched For: still making bad decisions
---
As some of you know, when I was a boy, I wanted to be in radio.
As a teen, I would be out in my Dad's garage, trying to catch e-skips in his old Buick. It was always cool being able to listen to big city stations with playlists that put the butt rock of WKLT to shame.
But, reality hit hard, and Telecom 96 was passed. Even now at 30 years old, I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up.
The same goes to the hundreds of DJs Clear Channel let go last week.
In an attempt to save some bucks, the nation's largest radio station owner announced that they were eliminating a crapload of DJs - many of whom worked in their mid-sized stations - and replacing them with jocks from their Premium Choice network. Basically put, Premium Choice is a service where a jock from one market will pre-record some liners and syndicate them to other markets. For instance, here in Grand Rapids, CC's popular top 40 outlet, WSNX is live and local most of their dayparts. However, overnights come from a woman named "Nessa", who is based out of San Francisco Churban station KYLD. I'll betcha that many other CC outlets air Nessa's show, since it's all generic liners and calls.
In all, it's believed that Clear Channel will save some $40-60 million by canning their jocks. After all, they could use the money since it's rumored that they're in nearly $20 billion in debt. OK, so it's OK to can a bunch of jocks that probably made less than $30,000 per year and yet Rush Limbaugh gets paid $400 million and Ryan Seacrest gets $60 million. Yep, that's understandable.
But, it serves Clear Channel right, especially since they still owe Howard Stern millions for yanking him off their stations after the Janet Jackson nip slip incident after the 2004 Super Bowl. It shows that the company only cares about listeners who probably barely graduated high school, especially with the current "talent" that they have at the moment.
The good news is, is that there is a radio station in northern Michigan that's hiring. Problem is, you must be supposedly living under a bridge, unemployed, and most importantly of all, Madonna's brother.
Legendary top 40 station 106 KHQ's morning man, Josh Garber recently ran a contest where he would pay anybody $200 if they could spot Anthony Ciccone, the brother of the pop diva. A few weeks ago, it was reported that Ciccone was living under a bridge in Traverse City because he lost his home from being unemployed. He previously worked at the family winery in nearby Suttons Bay. However, it's also rumored that Ciccone had been dealing with severe personal issues, mainly with drugs.
While a (albeit heavily-edited) podcast revealed that KHQ's listeners were very supportive of both sides of the Ciccone family and the growing homeless population of Traverse City - a town famous for tourism and where middle class is only somewhat existent - a former employee of KHQ's owner took it on himself to attack the station for such a stunt. He created a Facebook page called "Shame On Trish MacDonald-Garber" and claimed that the station was exploiting the homeless for ratings. After all, it's Fall, which is an important time for radio ratings. KHQ is already the top CHR in northern Michigan.
Oh, and for the record, Josh and Trish are not related.
In this case, sadly, neither KHQ or the asshole who created the Facebook page are in the right. KHQ tried to use a supposed druggie-slash-Madonna's brother for fame and ratings and the Facebook page creator, an unpaid DJ at college station WNMC who humiliated me on a popular message board years ago, only heightened it. It's situations like these that make me happier that I have a smartphone with my handy-dandy Sirius XM app. Thanks, but as much as people hate Howard Stern, he's not low enough to pull stunts like this.
There you have it, folks. That's radio. Do you own a station and want me to work for you? Ya gotta be competitive. If you replace me with some voicetracked schlub from San Francisco, it's your loss.
But, in the words of REM, "if wishes were trees, the tress would be falling".
--- As a teen, I would be out in my Dad's garage, trying to catch e-skips in his old Buick. It was always cool being able to listen to big city stations with playlists that put the butt rock of WKLT to shame.
But, reality hit hard, and Telecom 96 was passed. Even now at 30 years old, I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up.
The same goes to the hundreds of DJs Clear Channel let go last week.
In an attempt to save some bucks, the nation's largest radio station owner announced that they were eliminating a crapload of DJs - many of whom worked in their mid-sized stations - and replacing them with jocks from their Premium Choice network. Basically put, Premium Choice is a service where a jock from one market will pre-record some liners and syndicate them to other markets. For instance, here in Grand Rapids, CC's popular top 40 outlet, WSNX is live and local most of their dayparts. However, overnights come from a woman named "Nessa", who is based out of San Francisco Churban station KYLD. I'll betcha that many other CC outlets air Nessa's show, since it's all generic liners and calls.
In all, it's believed that Clear Channel will save some $40-60 million by canning their jocks. After all, they could use the money since it's rumored that they're in nearly $20 billion in debt. OK, so it's OK to can a bunch of jocks that probably made less than $30,000 per year and yet Rush Limbaugh gets paid $400 million and Ryan Seacrest gets $60 million. Yep, that's understandable.
But, it serves Clear Channel right, especially since they still owe Howard Stern millions for yanking him off their stations after the Janet Jackson nip slip incident after the 2004 Super Bowl. It shows that the company only cares about listeners who probably barely graduated high school, especially with the current "talent" that they have at the moment.
The good news is, is that there is a radio station in northern Michigan that's hiring. Problem is, you must be supposedly living under a bridge, unemployed, and most importantly of all, Madonna's brother.
Legendary top 40 station 106 KHQ's morning man, Josh Garber recently ran a contest where he would pay anybody $200 if they could spot Anthony Ciccone, the brother of the pop diva. A few weeks ago, it was reported that Ciccone was living under a bridge in Traverse City because he lost his home from being unemployed. He previously worked at the family winery in nearby Suttons Bay. However, it's also rumored that Ciccone had been dealing with severe personal issues, mainly with drugs.
While a (albeit heavily-edited) podcast revealed that KHQ's listeners were very supportive of both sides of the Ciccone family and the growing homeless population of Traverse City - a town famous for tourism and where middle class is only somewhat existent - a former employee of KHQ's owner took it on himself to attack the station for such a stunt. He created a Facebook page called "Shame On Trish MacDonald-Garber" and claimed that the station was exploiting the homeless for ratings. After all, it's Fall, which is an important time for radio ratings. KHQ is already the top CHR in northern Michigan.
Oh, and for the record, Josh and Trish are not related.
In this case, sadly, neither KHQ or the asshole who created the Facebook page are in the right. KHQ tried to use a supposed druggie-slash-Madonna's brother for fame and ratings and the Facebook page creator, an unpaid DJ at college station WNMC who humiliated me on a popular message board years ago, only heightened it. It's situations like these that make me happier that I have a smartphone with my handy-dandy Sirius XM app. Thanks, but as much as people hate Howard Stern, he's not low enough to pull stunts like this.
There you have it, folks. That's radio. Do you own a station and want me to work for you? Ya gotta be competitive. If you replace me with some voicetracked schlub from San Francisco, it's your loss.
But, in the words of REM, "if wishes were trees, the tress would be falling".
Got a Bee-otch to nominate? E-mail us @ chuck69dotcom@gmail.com. All suggestions (except for me) are welcome!
Bee-otch of the Day is a production of Chuck69.com, Grand Rapids' site for Stern, politics and more!
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