Archive for January, 2012

At its Jan. 19, 2012 meeting, the Ann Arbor planning commission unanimously approved a special exception use at 3645 Waldenwood, which will allow an accessory apartment to be added to the single-family house there. It’s located in the Earhart Estates neighborhood, west of Earhart and south of Glazier Way, in the city’s northwest side.

According to planning staff, this is only the second time a special exception use has been requested for an accessory unit since the accessory dwelling ordinance was crafted in the early 1980s. Several commissioners expressed support of this project and for accessory units in general. “Accessory dwelling units can be an asset to our community and I hope we see more in the future,” said commissioner Erica … [Full Story]

Rezoning and a site plan for an addition to the Habe Mills Pine Lodge – owned by the Society of Les Voyageurs – was unanimously recommended for approval by the Ann Arbor planning commission at its Jan. 19, 2012 meeting. The property owned by the society, at 411 Long Shore Drive near Argo Pond, is zoned public land, even though it’s owned by a private entity. The society is asking that the land be rezoned as a planned unit development (PUD), which would allow the group to build a a 220-square-foot, one-story addition to the rear of the existing lodge, on its east side.

The nonprofit society is a University of Michigan student and alumni club, focused on nature and the outdoors. Named … [Full Story]

The University of Michigan board of regents took action on two items related to university athletics at its Jan. 19, 2012 meeting.

A $9 million renovation to the entrance of Schembechler Hall, which will integrate the Margaret Dow Towsley Sports Museum area, was approved by the board. The building at 1200 S. State St. was constructed in 1990 for UM’s football program, and contains locker rooms, meeting rooms, medical treatment rooms, training areas, weight rooms, and administrative offices. The project will add about 7,000 square feet to the building, and renovate an additional 7,000 square feet. Funding will be provided from athletic department resources.

In a separate vote, regents authorized issuing bids and award construction contracts for a $14 million project at Yost Ice Arena. The overall … [Full Story]

A $1.7 million renovation to the auditorium of the University of Michigan’s Edward Henry Kraus building was approved by the board of regents at its Jan. 19, 2012 meeting. The Kraus building is used by biology departments and was constructed in 1915. Its auditorium – one of the largest on central campus – was last updated in 1990.

The current project would renovate about 5,100 square feet and include accessibility improvements, new seating, power for laptops and other devices, and other upgrades. The renovation will be funded by the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts and the provost’s office. The work is expected to be complete by the summer of 2012.

The brief was filed from the colloquium room at UM’s Stephen M. Ross … [Full Story]

A major expansion into western Wayne County by the University of Michigan Hospitals and Health Centers was authorized by UM regents at their Jan. 19, 2012 board meeting. The $39 million project entails opening a new clinic along the I-275 corridor, at a site located at Seven Mile and Haggerty Roads in Northville Township – about a half mile away UM’s existing Livonia Center for Specialty Care. Attracting patients from outside the market of Livingston and Washtenaw counties is part of the UM Health System‘s strategic plan.

The plan calls for signing a 25-year lease on 100,000 square feet, with base rent of $27.25 per rentable square foot per year, increasing 5% every five years. The base lease covers expenses related to the land, … [Full Story]

At its Jan. 19, 2012 meeting, the University of Michigan board of regents authorized a $7.5 million upgrade to the fire alarm and boiler systems at Northwood I, II and III – a 58-building apartment complex on north campus with 686 units of student housing.

The complex had been mentioned at the regents’ Nov. 17, 2011 meeting in the context of other housing changes on north campus and elsewhere throughout UM’s student housing system. At that meeting, regents approved renovations at two dorms – Baits II on north campus, and East Quad on central campus – and discussed the need for a broader strategic plan for student housing. Royster Harper, the university’s vice president for student affairs, had informed regents that … [Full Story]

At its Jan. 19, 2012 meeting, the University of Michigan board of regents authorized five items that required disclosure under the state’s Conflict of Interest statute. The law requires that regents vote on potential conflict-of-interest disclosures related to university staff, faculty or students.

The items often involve technology licensing agreements or leases. This month, companies involved are Edington Associates LLC, ArborMetrix, Valley View Farms, FlexDex LLC and Diapin Therapeutics LLC.

The brief was filed from the colloquium room at UM’s Stephen M. Ross School of Business, where the regents meeting was held this month. A more detailed report will follow.

At a work session held on Jan. 17, 2012, the Ann Arbor city council picked up on a conversation it started back in 2004, when it asked the city’s staff and environmental commission to craft an ordinance regulating the unnecessary idling of vehicles. Last summer, the environmental commission forwarded a draft idling ordinance and a white paper to the council, which was attached to the council’s Aug. 15, 2011 meeting agenda.

"Please do not leave engines idling. Exhaust damages historic properties." A private property owner has placed this sign in a downtown Ann Arbor alley to discourage delivery drivers from leaving their trucks running. It's advisory only. If an ordinance were enacted by Ann Arbor's city council, the city would post signs alerting drivers to the local law. (Photos by the writer.)

The council got a more detailed briefing on Tuesday, when the city’s environmental coordinator, Matt Naud, and two members of the city’s environmental commission addressed the council. The draft ordinance covers all engines, from heavy-duty trucks to passenger vehicles to generators. It would limit idling to 5 minutes in any given one-hour period. The draft ordinance includes a number of exceptions – for public safety vehicles and for cold weather, for example.

The goal of the ordinance is not to improve overall air quality in Ann Arbor, but rather to improve conditions in very specific localized contexts – school drop-off zones, for example. And the idea is not to create legislation that would then be aggressively enforced. Naud drew an analogy to the city’s ordinance regulating phosphorus-based fertilizers – no citations have ever been issued for ordinance violations, yet the city has achieved a measurable reduction in phosphorus loading in the Huron River since enactment of that ordinance.

Reaction from councilmembers was mixed. Jane Lumm (Ward 2) and Marcia Higgins (Ward 4) seemed more interested in exploring the possibility of changing drivers’ behavior through educational outreach than through enacting an ordinance.

Responding to the presentation and summarizing council commentary, mayor John Hieftje ventured that the council was interested in hearing about an educational program. He described that approach as a wiser course than talking about enforcement. Margie Teall (Ward 4), who until recently served as one of two city council representatives to the environmental commission, was more supportive of at least enacting an ordinance, in order to give the educational effort some “backbone.”

Any councilmember could choose to place the ordinance on a future meeting agenda. The council would then need to vote to give it initial approval, and a public hearing would be held, before a final council vote enacting a new ordinance. [Full Story]

Ann Arbor Public Schools board of education member Christine Stead has launched a blog: K12ChristineStead. In describing the reason for launching the blog, she writes: “There is a chasm of information and perspective that I want to help fill as it relates to K12 education. My goals for this site are to enhance information currently available, aspire to improve the current state, and bring people together to participate in this process.” [Source]

The Michigan Truth Squad, a project of the Ann Arbor-based Center for Michigan, analyzed the Jan. 18 state-of-the-state speech delivered by Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder. The report includes commentary from University of Michigan economist Don Grimes regarding Snyder’s assessment of the state’s job growth: “It is empirically hard to give all the credit to Gov. Snyder, but it does appear that the state is now performing like it did in earlier recovery periods, which is a big improvement over the recovery period under his predecessor. Whether he and his policies deserve credit, or (Gov. Jennifer) Granholm and her policies deserve blame is up to you guys [the media] to debate …” [Source]

The Washtenaw County board of commissioners will hold a strategic planning retreat on Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012 from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the county parks and recreation offices, 2230 Platt Road. The meeting notice was posted at the county administration building late Thursday, Jan. 12. County offices were closed on Friday through Monday for the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday.

The retreat was scheduled by board chair Conan Smith. It had not been announced at previous board meetings, nor was it formally announced during any of the opportunities for communications from commissioners at the board’s Jan. 18 meeting. However, commissioner Ronnie Peterson mentioned the retreat during the Jan. 18 meeting, noting that he would be unable to attend. He said … [Full Story]

The Washtenaw County board of commissioners gave approval to move forward with consolidating 911 dispatch operations between the county sheriff’s office and the city of Ann Arbor.

The board authorized the county administration to enter into a contract with the city from Feb. 1, 2012 to Jan. 30, 2017. The city would pay $759,089 annually for dispatch services. In addition, the county expects to receive an increase of $677,893 annually from 911 fees.

The Ann Arbor city council had already approved the agreement at its Dec. 5, 2011 meeting. The city expects eventually to save $500,000 a year with the move, which will entail laying off all of the city’s current dispatchers, not all of whom would be able to obtain employment within the … [Full Story]

At its Jan. 18, 2012 meeting, the Washtenaw county board of commissioners formally approved the acceptance of a three-year, $3 million grant recently awarded by the U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The approval included authorizing $65,000 in matching funds from the county’s housing contingency fund, and the hiring of a full-time management analyst.

HUD’s Community Challenge Planning Grant grant was awarded to support the Washtenaw County Sustainable Community project, which focuses on the Washtenaw Avenue corridor spanning Ann Arbor, Ypsilanti, Pittsfield Township and Ypsilanti Township. County administrator Verna McDaniel had announced news of the grant award at a Nov. 17, 2011 working session of the county board.

According to the grant application, the project focuses on “removing barriers to create a coordinated approach … [Full Story]

At its Jan. 18, 2012 meeting, the Washtenaw County board of commissioners gave final approval to a brownfield plan for Arbor Hills Crossing, a proposed retail and office complex at Platt and Washtenaw in Ann Arbor. The Ann Arbor city council approved the plan at its Nov. 21, 2011 meeting, and the county board had given initial approval on Dec. 7.

The project involves tearing down three vacant commercial structures and putting up four one- and two-story buildings throughout the 7.45-acre site – a total of 90,700-square-feet of space for retail stores and offices. Three of the buildings would face Washtenaw Avenue, across the street from the retail complex where Whole Foods grocery is located. The site would include 310 parking … [Full Story]

One of the last remaining contracts with a union representing Washtenaw County employees was given initial approval by the county board of commissioners at its Jan. 18, 2012 meeting. The tentative two-year collective bargaining agreement with AFSCME Local 3052, representing 52 general supervisors, has been ratified by its membership. A final vote by the board is expected at its Feb. 1 meeting.

AFSCME Local 3052 was one of five bargaining units – out of 17 units representing county employees – that did not reach an agreement with the county by the end of 2011, when its previous contracts expired. Negotiations continue with the other four units – representing the prosecuting attorneys, the prosecuting attorney supervisors, attorneys in the public defenders office, supervisors … [Full Story]

Writing on his SPEAK \aut\ blog, Keith Orr – co-owner of the \aut\ BAR and Common Language Bookstore in Ann Arbor – reports on the Jan. 18 rally in Lansing to protest the recent passage of a ban on domestic partnership benefits for certain public employees, and of “the general atmosphere of intolerance in Lansing.” He argues that to make an impact, more people need to get involved : “I probably personally recognized 75% of the [250-300] people at this rally. I recognized folks from Equality Michigan, Affirmations, Jim Toy Community Center, and the ACLU. I recognized folks from the Prop 2 campaign. And it was warm and fuzzy…like a family reunion. So it felt very real chanting ‘Gay Families Matter’. … [Full Story]

A feature in the online magazine Concentrate looks at efforts to form a Washtenaw County “food hub” that would “coordinate food production, farmer services, food distribution, agricultural training, and community engagement to foster a favorable environment for local farming.” Richard Andres of Tantré Farm recently purchased an Ann Arbor Township farm that he hopes to develop as the hub: “I’m interested in seeing a continued vertical integration of what it is that we grow and partnering with other small farms to add value to our crops and make them more accessible to the Ann Arbor market – whether it’s families, retail customers, wholesale customers, and potentially institutional buyers such as school systems, hospitals, universities.” [Source]

Ann Arbor District Library board meeting (Jan. 16, 2012): A Michigan Radio report last month had indicated that the Ann Arbor library might start loaning out bicycles. AADL director Josie Parker assured the board that “we don’t circulate bicycles!” but said she wanted trustees to learn more about the kinds of realia collections that the library does circulate.

Celeste Choate, AADL associate director of services, collections and access, holds up a replica of a fossilized wooly mammoth tooth and a wooly mammoth model – items that are included in Science to Go kits available from the AADL. Choate was giving a presentation on the library's realia collections. (Photos by the writer.)

Among the most popular is AADL’s art print collection, which includes work by local artists, according to Celeste Choate, AADL associate director of services, collections and access. Meter readers to gauge the energy efficiency of home appliances and electronics are also popular.

Science to Go kits are the newest addition to AADL’s realia collection. Each kit focuses on a theme – prehistoric mammals, for example – and contains materials that include books, DVDs, Fandex educational cards, and objects like a replica of a fossilized wooly mammoth molar. The kits have only been available for about a month, but are all checked out, each with a long wait list. The realia collections are listed in “Unusual Stuff to Borrow” on AADL’s website.

Other agenda items for Monday’s meeting were less show and more tell. The board re-elected its current slate of officers for another year, with president Margaret Leary noting that the board faces several important decisions in the coming year – she indicated that continuity of leadership would help the board in that context. Though she did not mention it explicitly, Leary likely was alluding to plans discussed by the board in November to restart the process for determining the future of the AADL’s downtown location.

In a formal address at the start of Monday’s meeting, Leary reviewed the library’s accomplishments for 2011. Among other things, she mentioned the board’s decision to keep its millage rate down, while still balancing its budget. AADL’s millage rate for the current fiscal year is 1.55 mills – below the 1.92 mills that the district is authorized to levy. However, she cautioned that if the state eliminates the personal property tax and no replacement funding is found, the library would lose about $600,000 annually in revenues out of a $12 million budget.

Later in the meeting, the board was briefed by Eli Neiburger, AADL’s associate director of IT and product development, on a draft terms-of-use policy for the library’s website. The decision to develop the policy was driven in large part because of issues related to the library’s digitization of the former Ann Arbor News archives – AADL will be putting a lot of material online for which it doesn’t hold the copyright. The board is expected to vote on the policy at its Feb. 20 meeting.

Also at Monday’s meeting, the board voted to approve a two-year lease renewal with Westgate Enterprises LLC for the location of AADL’s branch at the Westgate Shopping Center, at Jackson and South Maple roads. The annual lease rate is $82,260, beginning Feb. 1. [Full Story]

The Detroit Free Press reports on allegations that a University of Michigan graduate student research assistant was pushed out of her academic program because she supported unionizing GSRAs. Jennifer Dibbern told the Free Press: “I lost my job because I was openly supportive of the union. They are essentially prohibiting me from a career in my chosen field.” The university administration opposes unionization efforts, but UM officials dispute Dibbern’s claim. [Source]

Editor’s note: This column appears regularly in The Chronicle, roughly around the third Wednesday of the month. 

David Erik Nelson

My first job out of college was teaching humanities at a Hippie School for Troubled Youth here in Ann Arbor. Soon after being hired, I attended a school mixer where the dean cornered me in the kitchen and explained that some trucks hauling radioactive waste were scheduled to cut through downtown Ann Arbor.

She suggested we go down and protest by lying down in Main Street and generally boondoggling things up and teaching those bastards a valuable lesson about hauling nuclear waste down our streets [1].

At the time I was lightly anti-nuke. I had been militantly opposed just a few years earlier – and even protested Fermi II in the early ‘90s, when it was in disrepair and operating with questionable regard for public safety – but had since calmed down and learned a bit more about the costs and benefits of various kinds of power generation [2]. Nonetheless, even in my decidedly less-nukes mindset, I was still struck with how backward this protest plan seemed.

It’s no secret that Ann Arbor is a sorta foot-draggy, NIMBY kind of town [3]. Most of us came here from somewhere else; we loved this quaint little town when we landed here in 1975, or ‘85, or ‘95, and we basically don’t want it to ever change (except for the streets getting cleaner, the stores better stocked, and the parking both cheaper and more plentiful – but for God’s sake don’t tear anything down or build anything tall to do it. Also, could you do something about those football games? So loud, and the crowds – UGH!). [Full Story]

In a Nov. 10, 2011 resignation letter sent to mayor John Hieftje, Ann Arbor Transportation Authority board member Rich Robben wrote that he would be serving on the seven-member board only through January 2012. [.pdf of Nov. 10, 2011 Robben email]

The Jan. 19, 2012 AATA board meeting will be Robben’s last. The news of Robben’s resignation was included in the information packet for the meeting, in the form of AATA CEO Michael Ford’s regular written report to the board. Ford wrote: “The organization has benefited greatly from Rich’s stewardship and tireless service …”

Robben’s re-appointment to a four-year term on the AATA board was confirmed by the Ann Arbor city council on May 2, 2011. But in his resignation … [Full Story]

An uneven reception from the Ann Arbor city council on Jan. 9, 2012 about a proposed four-party countywide transit agreement has prompted a response from the Ann Arbor Transportation Authority. That response was released on Jan. 17, and includes three documents: (1) a “myths and facts” sheet; (2) a set of answers to councilmember questions; and (3) a description of the transit services to be provided in the first five years of implementing the AATA’s transit master plan. [.pdf of myths and facts sheet] [.pdf of answers to Ann Arbor councilmember questions] [.pdf of first 5-year service descriptions]

At its Jan. 9 meeting, the city council postponed action on the four-party agreement until its next meeting on Jan. 23, and … [Full Story]

Local attorney Jim Fink has officially entered the race for the judgeship on the 22nd circuit court of Washtenaw County, a seat currently held by Melinda Morris, who is retiring. A press release issued on Tuesday, Jan. 17 stated that Fink decided to run because he is “exceptionally qualified,” and because his father, the late Robert V. Fink, and his brother, Karl V. Fink, were both judges in Washtenaw County. [.pdf of press release]

Fink is an Ypsilanti resident who practices law in Ann Arbor at Fink & Valvo PLLC. He has a degree from the Detroit College of Law and served for 20 years in the Washtenaw County sheriff’s office, first as a deputy and ultimately as a police services … [Full Story]

Writing in the Jackson Citizen Patriot, Zeke Jennings describes his recent trip to Ann Arbor for lunch at Zingerman’s Deli. He’s not impressed, though his experience seems to be colored in large part by his parking challenges: ”After waiting for a good while to get my food, I finally got out of there after approximately 30 minutes. I quickly paced back to my car, and to my horror, there was the meter man punching up a parking ticket. I pleaded with him: ‘Come on, I’m only about five minutes late.’ ‘Ten,’ he said, ‘and there is no grace period.’ (My official count was eight minutes.) Now disgusted, my attitude became: this had better be the best (bleeping) sandwich I ever eat!” … [Full Story]

Under the heading “THIS is what Democracy looks like!” photographer Anne Savage posts a series of images from the Jan. 16 rally and march on Gov. Rick Snyder’s home in a gated community off of Geddes Road, protesting the state’s emergency manager law. [Source] Separately, a video posted on YouTube captures a section of the march along Geddes. [Source] And Mark Maynard posts two descriptions of the rally and march sent to him by Abby Coykendall and Georgina Susan, who writes: “It was a fine group of folks. Veterans of Benton Harbor protests were there, as were people from the tri-cities. High school kids were there with their teachers. UM students made a good showing as well. All … [Full Story]

At its Jan. 16, 2012 meeting, the Ann Arbor District Library board approved a two-year lease renewal with Westgate Enterprises LLC for the location of AADL’s branch at the Westgate Shopping Center, at Jackson and South Maple roads. The annual lease rate is $82,260, beginning Feb. 1. The new agreement includes two one-year renewal options. Known as the West Branch, the 5,900-square-foot library branch has been open there since 1977. It’s the only branch of AADL that operates in leased space.

This brief was filed from the fourth-floor boardroom of the downtown library at 343 S. Fifth Ave. A more detailed report will follow: [link]

At its Jan. 16, 2012 meeting, the board of the Ann Arbor District Library re-elected its slate of officers for 2012. The board’s president for a second one-year term is Margaret Leary. Other officers re-elected were Prue Rosenthal (vice president), Barbara Murphy (treasurer) and Jan Barney Newman (secretary). There were no competing nominations, and all the votes were unanimous. Board member Rebecca Head was absent.

This brief was filed from the fourth-floor boardroom of the downtown library at 343 S. Fifth Ave. A more detailed report will follow: [link]