Michigan Matters: Transit Talk Splits Big Four

Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson sounded off about the new regional transit plan announced Thursday by Wayne County Executive Warren Evans and added he was not certain there would be a plan put forth for voters on it this November. Patterson made the comments during taping of "Michigan Matters" where he appeared with Denise Ilitch, CEO of Ilitch Enterprises, Robert Ficano, a law professor at WCCC, and Carol Cain, Senior Producer/Host of the show which airs 11:30 am Sunday on CBS 62. Evans announced a new 1.5-mill, 20-year Metro Detroit regional transit plan that had a few more bells and whistles than the plan narrowly rejected by voters in 2016. Patterson talked about "opt out" communities and his stance on it. Patterson surprised many when he announced during his state of the county speech a few weeks ago that there was no agreement on an RTA plan that he, Evans, Mayor Mike Duggan and Macomb County Executive Mark Hackel (who together make up the region's Big Four) had been working on. Duggan and Evans thought there was.

The panel discussed Trump and the rotating front door of the White House as Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was fired by President Donald Trump. And the roundtable talked about students walking out of schools in Michigan and nation this week in support of gun laws needing to be changed on the heels of the school shooting in Parkland Fla.on Valentine's Day where 17 died.

Then, Jennifer Kluge, of Impact 100 Macomb County and president/CEO of f MichBusiness, and Mary Pat Rosen, president of Impact 100 Oakland County and lawyer at Charfoos and Christensen, P.C., appeared with Cain to talk about the women's organization. Impact 100 is a women's organization dedicated to helping local communities. There are four Impact 100 chapters in Michigan. The organization is looking for more women to join them in their mission of helping nonprofits which makes communities stronger.

Watch Michigan Matters, This Sunday at 11:30 on CBS 62.