The Eating Ann Arbor blog reviews Dimo’s Deli & Donuts on West Stadium Boulevard: “Don’t go to Dimo’s if you’re looking for a place to curl up on a love seat next to a crackling fire. But if you’d like to sit down somewhere and eat some good food that doesn’t cost a fortune and enjoy some friendly neighborhood banter, then Dimo’s is the place. And the alliteration doesn’t hurt either.” [Source]
The Detroit Free Press profiles Ian Bund, chairman of Plymouth Management Co., an Ann Arbor-based venture capital firm. Bund believes that the state’s economic recovery is tied to the success of companies that employ fewer than 500 people, because those firms create 70% of all new jobs: “The growth of those companies is what’s going to drive this economy. One of my concerns, particularly in Michigan, is these kinds of companies … continue to be severely capital starved.” [Source]
The Retro Renovation site features the remodeling of a 1961 split-level house in Ann Arbor: “The fireplace has a ‘Feastmaster’ on the right side, of course written in fabulous typeface. Do you know what that is? It’s a grill on which to make steaks! So 60’s – love it.” [Source]
Ann Arbor District Library special board meeting (Dec. 1, 2009): During a special board meeting held on Tuesday, the Ann Arbor District Library board discussed the implications of possible changes to the school board’s election date.
Bottom line: If the school board moves its May election to November, the library board will be forced to do the same.
The school board is expected to make that decision at its Dec. 16 meeting. If the school board approves the change, the library board will need to act before the end of the year, too. To prepare for that possibility, the library board voted to hold a meeting on Monday, Dec. 21, with a public hearing scheduled on the topic of the election. If the school board votes not to move its election date, it’s likely that the library board will cancel the Dec. 21 meeting. [Full Story]
Cooper’s hawk atop deceased Marathon station at Carpenter & Packard – watching.
The Muskegon Chronicle reports on a bill in the state House proposed by Rep. Rebekah Warren, D-Ann Arbor, that would make it illegal to ask a woman to stop breastfeeding her infant in public. [Source]
Joel Goldberg
Champagne price wars? Sacre bleu! What blasphemy!
But recessions produce unexpected consequences. The New York Times – while observing that “bargains are a crass notion for the industry, which carefully cultivates its image of luxury and glamour” – nonetheless reported recently that U.S. retailers are starting to discount high-end Champagne labels.
Price decay has already spread downmarket in Britain, where consumers are reaping the benefits from a glut of unsold bottles in Champagne’s massive underground caves. A full-throttle price war rages at the lower end of the market, and brand-name Champagne under $20 is the new normal.
Are we likely to see such dramatic price cuts locally? No bets – but in an early bellwether, Costco recently dropped the price on its Kirkland Champagne by $4, to $22. That nabbed it a spot in the Vinous Posse’s holiday roundup of under-$25 bubblies. [Full Story]
Pedicabs with turn signals and blue ground effects cruising downtown.
Bob Guenzel, Washtenaw County administrator, plans to retire in May of 2010. (Photo courtesy of Washtenaw County.)
Bob Guenzel, Washtenaw County’s top administrator and the leader of a wide range of community initiatives, is retiring after 37 years with the county. He informed the board of commissioners on Thursday – the day after the board passed the 2010/2011 county budget – and told the county’s department heads on Friday morning. His last day will likely be May 14.
“It’s been a great run,” Guenzel told The Chronicle.
Guenzel, who turned 68 last month, has indicated an intention to retire for some time, but said he had wanted to see the organization through its difficult two-year budget cycle before setting a definitive date to step down. With tax revenues falling because of a sharp drop in property values, the county faced a projected $30 million deficit over the next two years. While the budget that was passed on Wednesday is balanced, already it’s likely the county will need to make more cuts in early 2010.
The position of county administrator is appointed by the board of commissioners – Guenzel has served in that role since 1994, and for 22 years before that served as the county’s corporation counsel. Board chair Rolland Sizemore Jr. couldn’t be reached for comment about the upcoming transition and search for a new administrator. Vice chair Mark Ouimet said commissioners hadn’t yet had the chance to discuss it. [Full Story]
Long line waiting in the cold for Kiwanis to open for their big holiday sale.
Map of proposed BIZ area: Main Street from William Street in the south to Huron Street in the north. (Image links to complete .pdf file of the Main Street BIZ plan.)
On Wednesday, a cold and rainy evening, a group of downtown Ann Arbor property owners gathered in the city council chambers for a public meeting gaveled to order by the city clerk, Jackie Beaudry.
They were there not to discuss rain, but rather snow. At least in part.
On their agenda was consideration of a plan for a business improvement zone (BIZ) on Main Street – bounded by William Street to the south and Huron Street to the north – which would assess an extra tax on owners of property in the zone.
That plan for the BIZ includes snow removal as one of three main categories of services to be paid for through the BIZ. The other two categories of service in the plan are sidewalk cleaning and landscape plantings.
The plan was approved on a roll call vote of the property owners in attendance on Wednesday night, but not without some dissent. And the approval of the plan on Wednesday is not the final step before the BIZ can be implemented. Still ahead lies a formal public hearing by the city council, a vote by the city council, followed by another vote by property owners – this one by mail. [Full Story]
John U. Bacon
From the day Tiger Woods was born, his parents groomed him to become the best golfer in the world.
Incredibly, it worked. Woods’s uncommon ability to hit a golf ball landed him on the Mike Douglas show – when he was two. He got his first hole in one at six, and two years later he won his first international tournament. Tiger Woods has been the best golfer in the world for his age every year of his life.
Woods’s unequaled ambition also earned him a few bucks – about a hundred million of them last year alone, almost all of it from endorsements.
Perhaps more surprising, the guy seems normal. He’s got brains – he went to Stanford – he has a sense of humor, friends, a beautiful wife and two kids. If anyone had it all, it was Tiger Woods. [Full Story]
The Detroit News reports that the Fair Food Network, an Ann Arbor-based nonprofit, is receiving $40,000 from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to help provide better access to healthy food for urban populations. Says CEO Oran Hesterman: “It’s about connecting small and midsize farms in southeast Michigan with a growing demand and strong need for healthy, fresh, locally grown food in urban areas.” [Source]
School Board budget reduction planning meeting. Transparency in practice.
3:16 p.m. Traffic light out at Stone School and Eisenhower. Backups growing eastbound from State. [Editor's note: To report traffic light outages to the city of Ann Arbor the phone number is 734.794.6000. This outage has been reported.]
Across from Abbot school, at the intersection of Sequoia Boulevard and Center Avenue, an old upright piano sits in the rain in the street. A sign saying “Free” flaps in the wind.
Dad’s Dog’s hot dog stand now at a second location, near the Nickels Arcade on Maynard. He’s got Beef Red Hots today! Says he’ll be there Tuesdays & Thursdays and on Main the other days.
Ex-Big Boy at Ann Arbor-Saline now Nick’s House of Pancakes.
The Detroit Free Press takes a look at who’s on the board of directors for General Motors, and quotes UM business professor Jerry Davis about the board’s composition: “It is surprising there is not more bench strength in manufacturing. On the positive side, the private equity people bring a knowledge of the turnaround experience.” [Source]
Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority board meeting (Dec. 2, 2009): In a meeting dominated by status reports for ongoing DDA initiatives, a glimmer of a possibility emerged that a discussion about the parking system could begin between the DDA and the city of Ann Arbor.
View from the southwest. The Library Lot (construction crane) is immediately to the north of the Ann Arbor District Library (red brick with blue trim). In the foreground is the awning for the Blake Transit Center (bus turning in). (Photo by the writer links to higher resolution image).
That discussion would be focused on parking fines – a topic the Ann Arbor city council was briefed on at its Nov. 9 work session by city financial services staff. That session did not include the DDA, which manages the Ann Arbor’s parking system under a contract with the city. Republic Parking is the company contracted by the DDA for operation of the system. [See Chronicle coverage: "Parking Fines to Increase in Ann Arbor?"]
In the only board resolution considered at the meeting, executive director Susan Pollay was authorized to negotiate easements with property owners adjoining the construction site for the underground parking garage, which is now starting construction. [Full Story]
Pioneer’s field all dug up with excavation machines ready for some kind of big job. [Editor's note: It's likely this stormwater project: "Drilling for the Drains" It's now a year ago when the test bores were done.]
Ann Arbor Public Market Advisory Commission (Dec. 1, 2009): The absence of market manager Molly Notarianni resulted in a somewhat abbreviated meeting of the Public Market Advisory Commission on Tuesday, with no votes or action items on the agenda.
Wednesday's Ann Arbor Farmers Market was full of holiday greenery for sale. The market also will be open on Friday evening, Dec. 4, from 6-10 p.m. for KindleFest, with live music, food, drink and local vendors. (Photo by the writer.)
Two people – Glenn Thompson and Luis Vazquez – spoke during the time set aside for public comment, criticizing what they view as a lack of enforcement of the market’s rules regarding, respectively, organic products and made-from-scratch baked goods.
Also, Peter Pollack, chair of the commission, reported that Notarianni was ill, but he was sure that if she had been there to make her report, she would have highlighted the Dec. 4 KindleFest at the public market.
Pollack also gave an update about the work of a subcommittee that’s reviewing market policies and procedures. [Full Story]
Folks from Dawn Farm in front of Borders selling baked goods, cool handmade mugs, other seasonal items to raise funds for their vital work.
Between Kilwin’s and Organic Bliss, a special red mailbox for letters to Santa Claus. Who are the elves? Will letters be answered?
The Caroline in the Kitchen blog gives a preview of an interview with chef and restaurant owner Eve Aronoff, who’ll be featured on a cooking show that runs on WOLV-TV, a UM student station. Writes Caroline: “You remember how I mentioned eating local? Well, Eve tries to create seasonal menus with a strong base in local food. Where does she recommend shopping? The Farmer’s Market!” [Source]
Newsday writes about HealthyStuff.org, a project of the Ann Arbor-based Ecology Center that tests toys for lead and other hazardous materials. The article quotes Jeff Gearheart, the center’s research director: “From 2007 to this year, there was a 67 percent decline in the number of products that exceed the current federal lead standards, which is huge. We attribute it to consumer pressure and regulation.” [Source]
Painters airbrushing mural on the side of Ali Baba Restaurant.
Bicyclist transporting a live Christmas tree on the back of her bike. I so wish I’d have gotten a photo.
Overall creekshed indicator for Ann Arbor: fair (yellow) and stable (level arrow).
Editor’s Note: This is the first of what The Chronicle intends to become a series of pieces on the environmental indicators used by the city of Ann Arbor in its State of Our Environment Report. The report is designed as a citizen’s reference tool on environmental issues and as an atlas of the management strategies underway that are intended to conserve and protect our environment. The newest version of the report is organized around 10 Environmental Goals developed by the city’s Environmental Commission and adopted by City Council in 2007.
The first in the series is an introduction to the creeksheds indicator by the city’s environmental coordinator, Matt Naud.
The overall creekshed indicator for the city is yellow (fair) and stable (level arrow). But that overall picture is composed of individual indicators for each of the creeksheds that drain into the Huron River – the central natural feature of Ann Arbor. More than 10 miles of the Huron are located within the city limits.
We assess individual creeksheds, not just the Huron River watershed as whole, because that allows us to focus on exactly the areas that need the most improvement. Seven different creeks within the city of Ann Arbor flow into the Huron: Allen Creek, Fleming Creek, Honey Creek, Malletts Creek, Millers Creek, Swift Run Creek and Traver Creek. [Full Story]
