The Urban Organic Festival this weekend in Detroit featuring soul, hip-hop & hybrid blends looks really cool. So do the Grand Rapids Fiesta Mexicana and Albion's Festival of the Forks.

Satellite, MP3s Challenge Terrestrial Radio
Crain's Detroit Business has a feature on how Detroit radio stations are embracing digital technology and even cutting commercial time as more listeners tune in to satellite radio, create MP3 playlists and download podcasts. The article also looks at HD multicasting which allows traditional stations to experiment and try interesting formats and engage new listeners.
Also see Local radio stations shuffle DJs, music styles in the Lansing Pulse

Michigan Fall Color Guide
Travel Michigan has a fall color guide that is updated weekly and showcases a variety of tours in almost every area of the state. Fall colors usually begin to appear in mid September and run through late October.

Leland's Historic Fishtown Now For Sale
The Leelanau Enterprise reports that Fishtown, one of Michigan's most recognizeable tourist destinations, is now for sale for $3.5 million. The Carlson family of Leland had been working with the Fishtown Preservation Society who was seeking to purchase and preserve the property through grants and donations.

Poll Finds Michigan Executives Pessimistic
The Detroit Free Press reports that a poll released at a Michigan Chamber Foundation-sponsored Future Forum conference in Traverse City found that (among other things) 69% of executives surveyed think Michigan's business climate is going in the wrong direction, and 67% think things in Michigan overall are on the wrong track.

Michigan Telecommunications Bill Moves Forward
MITECHNEWS.com reports that a work group and committee testimony produced a tentative decision Wednesday in a Senate committee on a bill to serve as the basis of rewriting Michigan's telecommunications law, set to expire December 31. The current proposal adds a new definition for essential local exchange service and applies the rate limits only to a single voice line to a residential customer's first 50 calls per month. Small business representatives expressed concern of the impact the substitute would have on their rates, which would be completely deregulated.

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