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Cameron Macko Managing editor cmacko@statenews.com
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Fatal crash on I-96 near Hagadorn
Column: Loss to Penn State hard on MSU
Pizza restaurant comes to E.L.
Icy road conditions caused a fatality during the weekend
Men’s basketball fails to make progress during loss to Penn State
LOTSA Stone Fired Pizza to open location near campus
BY T H E N U M B E R S
40 Number of reported crimes at MSU during winter break See page 8
“I thought we had really good chances in the first period, and I thought we had some good opportunities in the second period.”
Tom Anastos, Head MSU hockey coach after MSU swept by the Wisconsin Badgers PAGE 10
Main Conrad’s closes amid leasing issues BY RILEY MURDOCK RMURDOCK@STATENEWS.COM
The main location of Conrad’s Grill on the corner of Grand River Avenue and Abbot Road, a longtime oasis of late-night culinary salvation for many an MSU student, has closed indefinitely. Conrad’s owner Joe Conrad said the restaurant is closing because of a leasing conflict with the company’s landlord, Ballein Management. “We’ve been in a dispute with the landlords for about four months,” Conrad said. “We were under the impression we were operating under a five-year lease extension, and they said that we were on a 30 day month-to-month lease.” Conrad said the company fought Ballein in court over the dispute, but abruptly lost a ruling a few days before Christmas. “Their original offer to us was to move into one of their new spaces, somewhere in the time frame of 12 to 18 months,” Conrad said. “However, they have no plans with the city yet, and they basically offered us a space to move into that doesn’t exist at all … that’s why it was very
hard for us to accept that offer.” The location has been in operation since 2009 and its closing took many by surprise because of the restaurant’s popularity. Chemistry senior Kurt Hamel posted a picture of a statement taped to Conrad’s’ door on Facebook, which stated that for events beyond their control they are “being forced to vacate the premises.” “It’s just kind of sad, it was where you’d always go at the end of your night because it’d still be open almost at 2 a.m., when you’re a freshman going out to parties or after a bar night here in East Lansing,” Hamel said. Conrad said while the other two Conrad’s locations on Grand River Avenue and in Frandor Shopping Center are still going strong, not all Conrad’s employees will be able to keep their jobs. “Nobody has been terminated as of yet, we’re going to work as much as we can to keep everybody happy, but unfortunately going from three stores to two, there’s going to have to be some cuts,” Conrad said.
East Lansing residents Ashlynn Zwickle, 5, and sister Maeve, 2, make each other laugh while winding down after creating craft projects during Family Day on Jan. 7 at the Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum. Their mother, Sarah, said she values creative development of her daughters through engaging their imaginations beyond mundane daily activities. “Give them a chance to do whatever they want – be creative, no rules,” she said. Family Day is a free event held at the museum the first Saturday of every month from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. PHOTO: CHLOE GRIGBSY
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