Cascades are open every night this summer 8-11pm. Tickets are $4 per person.
Credit User: michchick98 / Flickr
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We recently asked people on our Facebook page for their ideas about hidden gems in Michigan. One of the answers was the Cascade Falls in Jackson. The landmark was created in the 1930s by a local businessman. But these days the Cascades need some help. The county parks department is trying to raise almost $10 million for renovations to the mechanical, plumbing, and electrical parts of the falls. Michigan Radio’s Kyle Norris and Lucy Perkins decided to visit the Cascades and describe what happens at this manmade attraction. * Listen to the full story above.
Twenty thousand people are expected to attend the city of Jackson’s annual Fourth of July fireworks show at the Cascades Falls tonight.
The man-made Cascades Falls fountains have been a tourist attraction for 80 years. But a recent report says the fountains are in serious need of repair.
This Saturday, a unique museum experience will open in Michigan.
“Cell Block 7” at the state prison in Jackson will officially open to the public. The museum is located in the old Southern Michigan Correctional Facility. The cell block was closed in 2007.
A piece of Jackson’s art history, which narrowly avoided the wrecking ball, may soon have new life.
The 28' x 9' glass mural depicting the history of electric power hung in Consumers Energy’s old Jackson headquarters for more than four decades.
Preservationists were able to save it from the wrecking ball that brought the building down last year. The mural was disassembled and has been in storage ever since.
The plan now is to reconstruct the glass mural, replace its internal lighting system, and build a new outdoor display to house the mural.
The mural would be placed on the grounds of a new city park being built on the site of the old Consumers Energy headquarters.
“We hope to be able to have the new mural in place by….this time next year,” says Grant Bauman, whose part of the team working on the project.
He says the glass mural will add to the mix of public art in downtown Jackson.
This month, the project received a $50,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. Organizers still need to raise about $200,000 for the glass mural project.
A Consumers Energy spokesman says the company has contributed to the preservation of the mural in the past, but has not committed to donating to the current project.
There’s a new effort underway to make smaller Michigan cities more attractive to young professionals.
After college, many up and coming young professionals are drawn to the big cities where the nightlife is livelier and there's more diversity. But several smaller Michigan cities are trying to change that perspective.
Jackson recently launched the Anchor Initiative. More than a dozen of the city’s largest employers are joining forces to make Jackson’s downtown more attractive to young professionals looking for a place to live and work.
