Welcome back to The State podcast for a new season! I’m your returning host Rachel Fulton.
I’m so thrilled to bring back for The State for a brand new semester! If you’re a returning listener, welcome back, and if you’re a new listener welcome as well! This podcast is a partnership between Michigan State’s Impact 89FM and The State News. I will bring you the top stories of the day each week, Monday through Friday. If you also tune in live at Impact 89FM at 8am you’ll hear me each day.
A little bit about me before we get into it, I’m Impact’s Podcast’s Director and host of this podcast which I’ve had the pleasure of producing since I was a freshman and now I’m a senior! That’s right, it’s my last year here at MSU and it’s going to be a lot of fun and this podcast honestly just makes it even better. I hope you enjoy!
Today’s weather forecast is predicting much warmer weather than what we had this weekend with mostly sunny skies and a high of 78 degrees and a low of 52 degrees.
MSU board approves new sports arena, building renovations
At its first meeting of the school year this past Friday, the Michigan State University Board of Trustees approved a new sports arena in South Neighborhood, the construction of a laboratory building for students in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, and renovations to Anthony Hall.
For the arena, the board authorized MSU administration to proceed with planning a mixed-use development that will feature a 4,000-seat arena to host regional competitions in the Big Ten Conference. The proposed facility would be directly adjacent to the new student wellness and recreation center currently under construction.
That arena is being built to keep pace with most of MSU’s Big Ten peers, which already have venues capable of hosting the regional competitions required as part of the Big Ten’s recent expansion. The university has not yet announced which sports will be played in the arena.
The resolution says funding for the project will come from event revenue and donor contributions, but stipulates that developers will be “provided an opportunity to finance the arena if it improves the project model.”
The board also approved a new laboratory and research building for the Plant and Environmental Sciences program.
Construction on the new building, which will be located at the Northeast corner of Farm Lane and Wilson Road, will be substantially completed in January 2027. It will have four floors plus a basement and penthouse, according to the board proposal.
Finally, the current roof system in Anthony Hall which was installed in 1955, will be replaced with new slate shingled sloped roofing, new gutters and downspouts, and insulation, according to the board proposal.
More information on building renovations can be found on The State News website.
Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg visits East Lansing construction project
Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg traveled to East Lansing last Friday morning to meet with union workers and check in on the progress of a construction project funded by the Biden-Harris administration’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
Buttigieg was joined at the construction site, where workers are rebuilding segments of US-127/I-496, by Rep. Elissa Slotkin and Lansing Mayor Andy Schor. Earlier in the day, Buttigieg and Schor toured an International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers training facility and met with union members at Lansing Community College.
As work continued behind him, Buttigieg commended Democratic party leadership for gathering the necessary support in Washington to pass the infrastructure law in 2021. Without the funding the law provided, he said, this project along with more than 600 other infrastructure projects across the state would never have begun.
Despite the current delays in traffic and general inconvenience of the construction, Slotkin has said, the long-term benefits of the project are more than worth it. Construction is expected to continue until December 2025.
MSU football proves itself in first major test of Jonathan Smith era
In a crucial, early moment of a new era – on the road, against a respectable Big Ten opponent – Spartans found a way to get it done.
Down 24-17 in the fourth quarter and facing another Maryland threat to score, MSU was in a position to fall short Saturday.
But in the last five minutes, after Maryland missed a field goal, the Spartans managed to tie the score with a 77-yard pass from sophomore quarterback Aidan Chiles to freshman wide receiver Nick Marsh.
Just two games in, first-year MSU Head Coach Jonathan Smith and company can hang their hat on a gritty, resilient road win in the Big Ten. They weren’t favored entering College Park, but in their first major test, they proved to be up for it.
Although there was no shortage of mistakes, the Spartans showed a lot of potential and remained relentless throughout the game.
MSU plays Prairie View A&M on Saturday, Sep.14 at Spartan Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. Big Ten Network will air the game.
Based on original reporting by Owen McCarthy, Theo Scheer, Emilio Perez Ibarguen, and Alana Lundgaard.
