>>The key to reducing crime is not to arrest people and lock them up.

It's to change decisions.

>>I'm also trying very hard to find a means by which we can... When I say we, I mean, those of us particularly in television journalism, can regain your trust.

>>There was never a once upon a time in American history, and there's never gonna be a happily ever after >>The American transportation and infrastructure sector now has a level of federal support that we haven't seen in most of our lifetimes.

>>For me it is the single most bipartisan thing that I've worked on in my three and a half years in Congress.

>>Tough times call for tough people and through everything the world has thrown at us, we've gotten a lot done.

(indistinct chattering) >>Decision makers and thought leaders on Mackinac island for the '22 Policy Conference.

Welcome to the parlor of the Grand Hotel.

I'm Christy McDonald, founding managing editor of One Detroit and back for our coverage of the Detroit Regional Chamber's Mackinac Policy Conference.

It's 12th year bringing this event to you.

So coming up on this special one hour of One Detroit, you'll hear from Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan on development, plus governor Gretchen Whitmer on state spending, then the future of infrastructure from U.S.

Secretary of Transportation, Pete Buttigieg.

Also conversations on making Michigan more competitive, diversity in the workplace and getting things done in Washington with our congressional delegation.

It's a good time to take stock of where Michigan stands right now.

We're reemerging from two years of a pandemic with billions of dollars to spend on infrastructure, education and an economic investment plan to attract business to the state.

It's also a contentious election year with midterms in D.C.

and the state's top executive jobs up for grabs.

We start with the economy and jobs.

Michigan has experienced 11 straight months of job growth.

Unemployment is down to 4.5%, but employers are still looking to fill jobs.

The "Great Resignation" has people reassessing how they want to work.

And inflation is straining household budgets.

>>We have a very stable geographic and climate in this region which is only going to get better.

And again, of course, the world's best access to fresh water.

And eventually water is going to supplant oil as the world's most precious resource.

And that is something we need to be thinking about as we attract talent to this region >>Michigan is working to be the place for investment, and state business leaders are stressing the need for a long-term cohesive plan.

>>Site development.

So we don't have shovel-ready sites in the same way that many states around the country and particularly in the south do.

Incentives.

A lot of times we put an incentive in place, and a few years later we change our mind and pull it back.

That lack of consistency, that lack of certainty kills us every time because no one can plan on it.

>>And education is closely tied to economic development success.

Specifically the pipeline of high school graduates to college in the state, and funding to offset the cost of higher education.

A more skilled workforce leads to more corporate investment in Michigan.

>>The governor's "Sixty by 30" goal, to have 60% of Michigan residents with a industry recognized degree or credential really set the bar high.

In Oakland County, County Executive Dave Coulter set the "Oakland80" goal, an ambitious goal to have 80% of Oakland County residents with that certificate or degree.

>>That trickles down to K-12.

Michigan ranks 41st in the nation for high school graduation rates.

Kids are dealing with pandemic learning loss and teachers are considering other professions.

>>It's not a desirable field like it used to be.

There's just too many other options that they can make a lot more money and have a lot less headaches.

>>COVID is far from over, but we're learning how to adjust with the reality of more variants.

Over 5 billion federal dollars in COVID relief, now in the hands of the legislature and the governor.

>>When you have enduring money, money that's coming in through higher tax revenue, economic growth, and from the cuts that were made during the pandemic when we thought revenue would drop off a cliff.

And then there is the one-time money, the billions of dollars in COVID relief money.

It's important to keep those in two separate piles.

>>The big question that remains is whether the legislature, which is of course controlled by Republicans, who don't seem automatically opposed to these things but have their own list of things that they'd like to do.

How do you reconcile those things in an election year and whether you can get that through?

>>In Detroit, Mike Duggan is in his third term as mayor.

Large development projects continue Downtown, and there's focus on small business owners finding the needed investment >>We see through COVID-19, when it came to disbursement of capital into marginalized and underserved environment, it was tough to connect with black-owned businesses.

We see that technical assistance is still a major impediment towards capital getting to black-owned firms.

>>The 2020 census showed population loss in Detroit.

And while the city is challenging that, more work needs to be done to bridge the gap in economic opportunity for the city's residents.

>>The only jobs that have been growing in Detroit are low-wage jobs, for jobs in Detroit.

The jobs in the region are middle-wage jobs.

Now you could say, well, a low-wage job is better than no job, but if those are the only jobs that are growing, then that's gonna be problematic for everyone.

>>We will get to the politics of the election year and agreeing on how Michigan should move forward in just a bit.

But we are starting with Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, and how he uses this policy conference to show business leaders and the rest of the state where Detroit stands with investment, neighborhoods and growth.