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Government·Housing

Public Housing Commission Conflict-of-Interest Standards

Rhinoceros NewsroomApr 26, 2026

Federal and Michigan rules that govern conflicts of interest on a public housing commission cluster around four authorities: HUD's mixed-finance development standard at 24 CFR §905.604, the federal-award procurement standard at 2 CFR §200.318(c), Michigan's public officer conflict statute at MCL 15.321 et seq., and the Lansing Housing Commission's own bylaws. Each rule names a specific prohibited conduct, a required disclosure or recusal, and a specific body authorized to act when conditions covered by the rule appear in the public record. HUD's Office of Public Housing Investments (working through the HUD Detroit Field Office for Michigan) and the Michigan Attorney General's Public Integrity Unit hold the federal and state authority respectively.

Housing·Government

What Is the Lansing Housing Commission?

Rhinoceros NewsroomApr 26, 2026

The Lansing Housing Commission is the City of Lansing's public housing authority, chartered in 1964 under MCL 125.651 and governed by a five-member volunteer board appointed by the Mayor. As of 2025 LHC operates 66 public-housing units (down from 833 in 2020), administers 2,252 federal Section 8 vouchers and 253 project-based vouchers, and acts as development partner on a Low-Income Housing Tax Credit pipeline of more than $200 million in active project cost. Three of the people sitting in LHC's governance hold paid positions at organizations that earn fees from LHC's deals: Board Chair Emma Henry at Capital Area Housing Partnership ($123,787/year per its FY2025 IRS Form 990), Commissioner Ashlee Barker at Cinnaire (the standing purchaser of LHC's tax credits), and Executive Director Doug Fleming as agent of the General Partner LLCs collecting developer fees on LHC LIHTC partnerships.

Government·Surveillance

Lansing City Operations Committee, April 23

Rhinoceros NewsroomApr 25, 2026

The Lansing Committee on City Operations met for 32 minutes on April 23, 2026 with all three members present. The committee passed a Compost Awareness Week 2026 resolution 3-0, placed a downtown liquor-license transfer notice on file 3-0, and received a verbal-only briefing from Chief Robert Backus on the Lansing Police Department's Flock Safety camera program that produced no motion, no referral, and no follow-up.

Surveillance·Government

Lansing's First Flock Briefing

Rhinoceros NewsroomApr 25, 2026

On April 23, 2026, Lansing Chief Robert Backus gave the city's first sustained public description of LPD's Flock surveillance program, in a 32-minute committee discussion with no written materials. The chief disclosed 52 personnel with platform access, 391 vehicles or vehicle parts recovered with 97 arrests, and six "not concealed" intersections. The minutes record two contradictions: no data-sharing MOUs but MOUs for emergency help, and a 90-day written retention policy versus 30-day practice.

Housing·Government

Lansing's Homeowner Permit Rule for Tagged Structures

Rhinoceros NewsroomApr 22, 2026

On January 9, 2026, the Lansing Building Safety Office issued a two-page administrative policy barring homeowners from pulling repair permits on red-tagged property until a licensed contractor removes the tag. The City Council never voted on it, the policy is not posted on the city's Building Safety or Permits pages, and Code Compliance did not provide a written copy to Council Member Spadafore through at least the April 16, 2026 Public Safety Committee meeting. Detroit allows homeowner repairs.

Government

Lansing City Council Meeting: April 20, 2026

Rhinoceros NewsroomApr 22, 2026

On April 20, the Lansing City Council referred a 182-day data center moratorium to the Committee on Development and Planning, voted 6-1 to place the sale of the Lansing Shuffle building on the August 4 ballot over the Park Board's no-recommend, and unanimously passed a four-ordinance liquor-store zoning package. Six of the seven residents who spoke on the Shuffle item opposed putting it on the ballot.

MoneyMore →

Money·Housing

Federal Housing Dollars in Lansing: The Network Around the LHC

Rhinoceros NewsroomApr 26, 2026

Roughly $200 million in federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credits flow through LHC's Lansing-area development pipeline, plus federal voucher subsidies for 2,252 households. The pipeline moves through a small cluster of nonprofit, private, and law-firm entities and a recurring set of individuals who hold multiple roles across them. LHC Board Chair Emma Henry earns $123,787 a year as Executive Director of Capital Area Housing Partnership, the nonprofit named as partner on LHC LIHTC deals her board approves. Commissioner Ashlee Barker is paid Vice President at Cinnaire, the financial institution the LHC executive director identified as the standing purchaser of LHC's tax credits. The 2024 LHC board minutes record one Henry abstention out of fifteen-plus substantive resolutions, and zero Barker recusals across eight 2024 board meetings.

Money·Housing

LHC Executive Director's Five LLCs

Rhinoceros NewsroomApr 26, 2026

The Lansing Housing Commission's executive director, Doug Fleming, is the registered agent and organizing member of at least five private Michigan business entities, four of them registered at the LHC office at 419 Cherry Street. Two are general-partner LLCs — Oliver Gardens GP, LLC and 220 Kalamazoo GP, LLC — that collect developer fees on Low-Income Housing Tax Credit partnerships in which LHC is the limited partner. On August 22, 2025, in a single LARA filing, Fleming signed the formation documents for Oliver Gardens II LDHA LP twice: once on behalf of Oliver Gardens GP, LLC (which he had organized one day earlier) and once on behalf of LHC. The partnership received $1,479,466 in federal LIHTC in October 2025.

Housing·Money

From Public Housing to Wall Street Mortgages: The Lansing Scattered-Site Sale

Rhinoceros NewsroomApr 25, 2026

In April 2023, the Lansing Housing Commission completed the sale of 202 scattered-site public-housing homes to a Michigan LLC formed thirteen months earlier, for $14.62 million across four closings. The buyer was renamed from SK Investments Group LLC to Red Michigan Holdings LLC eight months before the first closing, breaking name-based searches. Within nine months, $8.73 million in mortgages were assigned through Goldman Sachs to U.S. Bank Trust as trustee of Legacy Mortgage Asset Trust 2024.

Surveillance·Money

Who Owns and Funds the Cameras Watching Lansing

Rhinoceros NewsroomApr 22, 2026

The "Flock Grant system" named on the Lansing Committee on City Operations agenda is not a charitable program. It is a service Flock Safety itself operates, in partnership with Lexipol's GrantFinder platform, that identifies federal and private grants municipalities can spend on Flock subscription fees. Flock Safety is a privately held, venture-capital-backed Atlanta company most recently valued at $7.5 billion, with Andreessen Horowitz leading a $275 million Series F in March 2025.

Money

428 W Lenawee St Is a Hub for Dark Money Activity

Rhinoceros NewsroomMar 31, 2026

At least 17 active 501(c)(4) nonprofits operate from a single Lansing address, 428 W Lenawee St, all incorporated by attorney Reid Felsing, who Governor Whitmer appointed to the Eaton County 56A District Court bench in December 2024. At least $698,000 from unions, regulated utilities, and corporate PACs has flowed into the network. Three of the entities filed IRS 990s; all three reported zero political activity. Most file no public return at all.

Government·Money

Lansing: The Garza Conflict, Spelled Out

Rhinoceros NewsroomMar 26, 2026

Lansing Council Member Jeremy Garza earns $126,742 per year from the Michigan Pipe Trades Association as Political Lead, on top of his $552 Local 333 VP compensation and $28,147 council salary. He has voted yea on every development item across 52 council meetings without a single recusal, including the public hearing for an ordinance adding union-standard qualifications to the city's bidding code. The Charter and Conflicts of Interest Act bar votes where an officer has a financial interest.