Barbara Murphy, a trustee of the Ann Arbor District Library, reviews a brochure for AADL’s upcoming “America’s Music” series. The materials were shared at the board’s Feb. 18, 2013 meeting. (Photos by the writer.)

The meeting’s main presentation focused on AADL’s partnerships with the University of Michigan, primarily with the Proyecto Avance: Latino Mentoring Association (PALMA), a UM student group. The program, which meets on Tuesday and Thursday evenings in AADL’s downtown building, includes 100 participants of all ages who work with about 75 tutors to improve their English language communication skills.

Terry Soave, AADL’s manager of outreach and neighborhood services, encouraged board members to drop by the library when the tutoring is in session, saying, “it’s a pretty spectacular thing to see.”

The Feb. 18 meeting also included a report from the board’s new communications committee, chaired by Nancy Kaplan, which recommended adding a second opportunity for public commentary at the end of each monthly meeting. There was no formal vote on this recommendation, but board members indicated agreement. In fact, a second slot for public commentary had already been included on the agenda when it was posted the previous week.

Speaking at the first opportunity for public commentary on Monday, Kathy Griswold – an organizer of the Protect Our Libraries group – urged the board to allow its committee meetings to be open to the public. She noted that committee meetings are open for most other local governing entities – including the Ann Arbor city council, Ann Arbor Public Schools board, the Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority board, and the Ann Arbor Transportation Authority board. There was no subsequent discussion of this suggestion among board members during the meeting.

Committee Reports

The board has six committees: communications, budget & finance, facilities, policy, director’s evaluation and executive. Two of those – communications and facilities – had been created as special committees at the board’s Jan. 21, 2013 meeting. Board president Prue Rosenthal noted that some of the committees haven’t met since the previous board meeting, so there would not be reports from all committees.

Nancy Kaplan, chair of the communications committee, told the board that the committee – she, Ed Surovell and Margaret Leary – had met. They were recommending that a second public commentary slot be added at the end of each monthly board meeting, in addition to the one at the start of the meeting.

She said it’s a modification that fits with the board’s previous decision to hold three meetings this year at library branches, rather than at the downtown location, to make it easier for the public to attend. [Those branch meetings will be held at: (1) the Traverwood branch at 3333 Traverwood Drive, at the intersection with Huron Parkway (June 17); (2) the Pittsfield branch at 2359 Oak Valley Drive (July 15); and the Malletts Creek branch at 3090 E. Eisenhower Parkway, east of Stone School Road (Sept. 16).]

No formal vote was taken on this recommendation and there was no discussion, although other board members indicated agreement. A second slot for public commentary has already been included on the agenda when it was posted the previous week.

No other committees had met during the past month. Meetings are scheduled in the coming week for the facilities committee (Ed Surovell, Rebecca Head and Margaret Leary) and the budget & finance committee (Nancy Kaplan, Barbara Murphy, Jan Barney Newman).

Rosenthal also noted that Newman is now chair of the director’s evaluation committee.

Public Commentary

During the first slot for public commentary, Kathy Griswold, an organizer of the Protect Our Libraries group, told trustees that for many years the community has taken the library’s services for granted, and that there had been only “minimal interest” in the library board until the recent new downtown library bond. [The board had put a proposal on the Nov. 6, 2012 ballot for a $65 million bond to fund construction of a new downtown library, but it was rejected by about 55% of voters.]

Now the public is interested, Griswold said, and people are requesting that the board be more transparent by holding open committee meetings. She cited four reasons to support holding committee meetings that would comply with the state’s Open Meetings Act. [Although the meetings of the board are required to comply with OMA, there is no requirement that committee meetings – attended by less than a quorum of the board – be open to the public.]

Kathy Griswold of Protect Our Libraries spoke during public commentary.

Most other public entities in the Ann Arbor area hold committee meetings that are in compliance with OMA, Griswold said, including the Ann Arbor city council, the Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority board, the Washtenaw County board of commissioners, the Ann Arbor Public Schools board, and the Ann Arbor Transportation Authority board. Most public libraries that her group has contacted having open committee meetings, she added, including Grand Rapids and East Lansing. Kalamazoo’s public library is currently researching the possibility of holding open committee meetings, and West Bloomfield does not have committees.

Another reason cited by Griswold is that having open committee meetings ensures compliance with OMA “when there is limited deliberation at the board meeting.” Finally, and most importantly, she said, the AADL is a public entity, “thus the public has the right to transparency.”

At the end of the meeting, Lyn Davidge spoke briefly, thanking the board for adding a second public commentary time so that citizens could address issues at the end of the meeting. “I look forward to more conversation,” she said. [By way of background, Davidge has previously advocated for the board to add a second opportunity for public commentary, most recently at the board's Nov. 19, 2012 meeting.]

Jim Osborn stressed the importance of having public commentary at both the beginning and end of the meeting. Board president Prue Rosenthal clarified that this would be the case – as it had been at that meeting.  Osborn told the board it had been difficult to hear the board’s discussion: “Some of you speak softly.”

UM Partnerships, PALMA

Terry Soave, AADL’s manager of outreach and neighborhood services, gave a presentation describing several partnerships between AADL and various units of the University of Michigan, including the C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital. Highlights of those efforts include:

• Monthly evening storytelling sessions with Laura Pershin Raynor, who goes to Mott and provides family-centric storytelling to patients and their families.
• Distribution of DVDs to the UM health system. Mott acts as the “front door” to distributing AADL DVDs throughout the entire health system, Soave said. To date, about 3,800 DVDs have been distributed through this program.
• Valentine’s Day cards – each year, AADL hosts a card-making program, with the cards distributed throughout Mott as well as to the Veterans Administration Hospital. Last year, over 400 Valentines were delivered.
• Temporary AADL cards are offered at no charge to hospital patients to take advantage of library services throughout their hospital stay.
• A “Read to Me” CD, produced in-house by AADL staff and some outside musicians, is distributed through UM’s Women’s Health Resource Center as well as by Mott. Over 400 CDs have been distributed.

Soave also talked about a partnership with UM’s human resources department. The university initially just directed job applicants to AADL’s computer courses, but over the years AADL has worked with UM to develop courses that better meet the needs of people seeking employment at the university. In turn, she said, UM’s HR staff has been offering quarterly classes at AADL about how to apply for jobs at the university, via UMjobs.org.

Terry Soave, AADL’s manager of outreach and neighborhood services, briefed the board about the library’s partnership with Proyecto Avance Latino Mentoring Association (PALMA), a University of Michigan student group.

The final partnership in Soave’s presentation was with Proyecto Avance: Latino Mentoring Association (PALMA), a UM student group. Soave noted that this is a special partnership for her, because it’s the first one secured after she became manager of outreach.

PALMA operates through the UM Residential College’s Spanish language program, supervised by faculty member Cristhian Espinoza-Pino. Each semester, PALMA enrolls 100 Latino community members as learners, and recruits 75 tutors. This is PALMA’s 10th year as a student organization, and their sixth year at AADL.

Each semester, PALMA offers free bi-lingual, weekly one-on-one English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) tutoring and mentoring. The program is offered to all ages starting at age 3, although some people also bring their infants, she said.

PALMA has looked at barriers that typically prevent people from accessing this kind of tutoring: Time, cost, and childcare. PALMA addresses these issues by providing consistent, bi-weekly sessions that include the whole family, Soave said. So a family with two working parents, three kids and a grandparent who lives with them can all come to the sessions, and each person is given their own tutor to work with while they’re there. “There’s no other program that equals that,” Soave said. “Not even close.”

Most tutors work with the same person for the entire semester, so there’s a lot of consistency. The nearly 200 people who participate come to the downtown library, pair up and then disperse throughout the building for their session, Soave explained. “So if you’ve never been here on a Tuesday or Thursday evening, I’d encourage you to come check it out – it’s a pretty spectacular thing to see.”

Beth Manuel, a library technician at the Ann Arbor District Library who works closely with PALMA.

Preschool kids are taken to a room where educational activities are provided, with several adults there to supervise.

AADL staff also works with PALMA by meeting with tutors at the start of each semester during an orientation session to describe the library resources that are available to help their tutoring. And staff meets with participants at an orientation offered in Spanish and English, providing library card applications and a tour. “We try to make them feel as welcome as possible right from the very beginning,” Soave said.

She noted that Beth Manuel, the AADL staff member who works most closely with PALMA, was attending the board meeting that evening. Manuel facilitates the orientations and works at the youth desk on Tuesday evenings, “so PALMA participants are able to see a regular, familiar face every week when they come in,” Soave said.

Soave also reported that one session each semester is dedicated to presentations by local community service agencies. The library helps connect PALMA with these groups, looking for services that might be a benefit to participants – for example, Washtenaw Literacy and translation services.

Soave’s presentation concluded with a video of PALMA, created by one of the group’s tutors, Katherine Cook. [.pdf of PALMA video]

UM Partnerships – PALMA: Board Discussion

Prue Rosenthal clarified with Soave that PALMA brings in its own tutoring staff. All tutors are UM students, Soave explained. The tutors come from all different UM departments, not just Spanish language students, she said. Now there’s also a PALMA course for students who want to combine a classroom setting with their tutoring experience.

Nancy Kaplan wanted to know who promotes the program. That’s handled by PALMA, Soave said.

Rosenthal noted that student organizations are often “fluid.” She wondered if the tutors are consistent and committed – so that the library doesn’t face a situation where a tutor doesn’t show up. Soave said that rarely happens. The faculty advisor, Cristhian Espinoza-Pino, is “extremely passionate and dedicated,” she said. The current PALMA board of students works with the incoming board, to ensure continuity. Soave noted that at one point in 2009, 120 Latino community members were part of the program, with 100 tutors. But PALMA organizers decided that the size didn’t work as well, so they pulled back on the number of participants. There’s doesn’t seem to be a shortage of volunteers, she said.

Prue Rosenthal, president of the Ann Arbor District Library board.

Families also participate for many years, Soave said. The video included some comments by a Washtenaw Community College student who first started attending PALMA sessions when he was in elementary school.

Margaret Leary congratulated the work of staff, for their enthusiasm in helping the program continue. Another benefit is offering a consistent place for people to come, Leary said. It’s much easier for the general public to come to the downtown library, right next to the AATA transit center. It would be harder to find a regular, easily accessible place on campus.

Soave noted that although they can’t track this information formally, the AADL staff has seen over time that people who participate in the program are coming back to the library and using it, because of the trust and relationship they’ve built through PALMA. They’re coming on days when they aren’t being tutored, and they’re coming to all library locations, she said.

Rebecca Head noted that the library is often characterized as the “epitome of a democratic institution – and this proves it.”

UM Partnerships: Board Discussion

Ed Surovell asked about the budget for some of the distribution programs that Soave had mentioned. Soave explained that the materials distributed to UM’s health system come from AADL’s collection. Some staff costs are involved, Soave said. They select items they believe would be most useful. But there’s very little cost, she said.

Josie Parker added that the library bore the full cost of developing the “Read to Me” CD, which is distributed to first-time mothers.

Surovell wondered if there was capacity to expand any of these efforts. Parker replied that there are probably endless opportunities to expand outreach. Funding to do that comes from the library’s general operating budget, she said. Surovell asked what the budget was for this program. Soave said her department has a staff budget, but there’s no separate budget for these individual projects.

Sherlonya Turner, AADL manager of youth & adult services and collections, came to the podium and explained that the distribution of materials is very streamlined with other departments, and incorporated into work they already do.

Director’s Report

During the Feb. 18 meeting, AADL director Josie Parker elaborated on several items that were included in her written director’s report. [.pdf of February 2013 director's report]

AADL director Josie Parker.

She noted that Eli Neiburger, AADL’s associate director of IT and product development, is touring Germany as a guest of the U.S. State Department and Zukunftswerkstatt (“Future Workshop”), visiting libraries in several cities. Neiburger is helping organize a U.S.-German library video game tournament, using software developed by AADL staff, with winners of the online competition getting the chance to come to Ann Arbor to compete. Parker noted that this is an outgrowth of a partnership that began in 2005 when she had been invited by the State Department to travel to Europe and talk about AADL’s lending model.

Parker noted that the Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti Reads event on Feb. 7 – featuring Connie Rice, co-director for the Advancement Project – had been a big success. She praised the Washtenaw Community College for hosting the event, along with other AADL partners: the Ypsilanti District Library and University of Michigan. It was a great crowd, she said, “for what are often hard conversations” about race. [The 2013 Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti Reads selection is "The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration In The Age Of Colorblindness" by Michelle Alexander.]

Parker also highlighted the fourth annual Preschool Expo, held on Jan. 27 at UM’s Palmer Commons. The library has partnered with UM and other institutions to bring together information about preschool options, so parents can go to one place in a “vendor-type environment” to find what they need, she said. The expo is in its fourth year, though AADL has been providing this kind of information for a lot longer than four years, Parker noted. With national and state attention now focused on the importance of preschool education, Parker said she wanted the board to know that AADL has recognized this for a long time.

Board members also received a brochure that’s part of the national “America’s Music” project, a partnership of the Tribeca Film Institute in collaboration with the American Library Association, Tribeca Flashpoint, and the Society for American Music. The brochure lists events to be held at AADL, including the opening concert on March 13 with Mr. B.

Finally, Parker highlighted a partnership between AADL and the American Association of University Women (AAUW) on a program called “Let’s Read Math.” It began as a remedial math program for young girls with math phobia, she said, but is now offered to any student with math phobia. This year, there were three sessions on Saturdays in late January and early February. The turnout was good, she noted, despite the fact that it took place on Saturday for elementary students talking about math at the library. “Those are all negatives,” Parker said, but these are motivated students – or motivated parents, she joked. On one Saturday, 38 students attended. Other Saturdays drew 50 and 21 students, she said. Parker praised Ryan Case, a teacher who also works at AADL as an information desk clerk, for his efforts on this program.

Financial Report

During the Feb. 18 meeting, Ken Nieman – AADL associate director of finance, HR and operations – updated the board on AADL’s financial statements for January 2013. [.pdf of January 2013 financial report]

By Jan. 31, 2013 the library had received just over 97% of its budgeted tax revenues for the year, or $10.9 million. The library’s unrestricted cash balance was $12.35 million as of Jan. 31, with a fund balance of $8.126 million and an operating surplus of $139,000. Two line items are currently over budget: communications and software. Both are expected to come back in line with budgeted amounts by the end of the fiscal year, Nieman said. The AADL’s current fiscal year runs through June 30, 2013.

Board members had no questions about the financial report.

Present: Rebecca Head, Nancy Kaplan, Margaret Leary, Barbara Murphy, Jan Barney Newman, Prue Rosenthal, Ed Surovell. Also AADL director Josie Parker.

Next meeting: Monday, March 18, 2013 at 7 p.m. in the fourth-floor conference room of the downtown library, 343 S. Fifth Ave. [Check Chronicle event listing to confirm date]

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Bob Guenzel chaired his first meeting of the Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority board on Wednesday. (Photos by the writer.)

Those included the monthly parking report, which showed use of the city’s public parking trending upward compared to last year, as well as an annual report on the structure-by-structure breakdown of the parking system.

The reports presented to the DDA board at their meeting – together with a recent report delivered to the city’s environmental commission about parking trends dating back to the mid-2000s – provide reason for some cautious optimism. The number of people getting access to downtown Ann Arbor by driving there and parking suggests an overall slight upward trend, despite a reduced number of number of hourly patrons earlier this year.

Also related to parking, the board received a presentation on a communications plan that the DDA is developing, targeted at downtown evening employees. That communications plan is meant to make sure those employees are aware of low cost alternatives to using on-street parking spaces. The communications strategy would be part of a possible plan to extend enforcement hours for on-street parking meetings past 6 p.m. The DDA will present its tentative proposal for revisions to parking policies to the city council at a joint working session of the board and the council to be held on Nov. 14.

In response to some of the individual success stories that were presented in connection with parking alternatives, DDA board member Russ Collins said, “I wonder how this positive message will play in the media.”

Collins’ remark could have applied to much of the rest of the meeting as well. The board took the report on the basic current financial health of the parking system as an occasion to talk about the overall economic strength of the downtown. Despite the recent closing of some smaller stores, board members gave reports of strong performances by other businesses.

That positive report contrasted with public commentary about ongoing problems with aggressive panhandling and drug dealing and other fringe behavior exhibited downtown. Mayor John Hieftje, who sits on the DDA board, described how some response is being developed by the Ann Arbor police department.

The construction updates on the Fifth and Division streetscape improvement project and the underground parking garage on Fifth Avenue converged on the Ann Arbor District Library. The projects will result in modifying the downtown library building’s front porch, to facilitate access from the new east-west mid-block street – Library Lane – into the library.

As the underground parking garage nears expected completion in the spring of 2012, brief discussion unfolded among DDA board members on the near-term use of the top of that garage. Also related to potential development in the “midtown area” was a report from the partnerships committee. A steering committee comprising DDA board members and community members will be leading the effort to explore alternative uses of specific city-owned parcels downtown, including the top of the underground parking structure (aka the Library Lot).

It was the first board meeting chaired by Bob Guenzel, who was elected to that position at the DDA’s last meeting, which he was unable to attend.

Parking

Roger Hewitt gave the regular report on the parking system. [.pdf of monthly parking report and annual structure-by-structure analysis] He highlighted the annual profit-and-loss statements for each structure for the past year.

Hewitt noted that those parking structures that have paid off their debt service are profitable, and those that still have outstanding debt are less profitable. For example, he said, Liberty Square has no debt service as well as less labor expense, because it’s unattended. Liberty Square has an annual net income of $1,852/space.

From the report, the structures with bond payments still associated with them have the lowest net annual income: Fourth & Washington (-$610/space), Fourth & William ($53/space) and Maynard ($517/space). Last year, the public parking system as a whole showed a net annual income of $3,452,389, which worked out to $508/per space.

Hewitt note that the new underground parking structure is planned to be unattended – but that doesn’t mean there will be no staff on site. There’ll be maintenance people on site, for example, he said. For a parking structure to be “unattended” means that there won’t be cashiers, he explained.

Hewitt said the DDA is also looking at converting other specific parking structures to operation without cashiers. The DDA is looking at various ways to decrease operating expenses. Hewitt noted that on-street meters are profitable because there is no labor attached to them. Overall, Hewitt said, the revenue is quite good.

Although revenues in the public parking system have continued to show increases since the national economic downturn in 2008, Hewitt has often noted on the occasion of his regular updates to the board over the last couple of years, and in a presentation to the city council, that the increase in revenue is either steady or only sightly more than what would be expected, given the rate increases that have been implemented with city council approval over the last three years.

In August 2011, revenues were up by 11.93% and the number of hourly patrons (as contrasted with those who have monthly permits) were up 4.86% as compared to August 2010. That was a bright point for board members at the Oct. 5 meeting.

In August 2010, the basic rates for structures, surface lots and meters were: $0.90, $1.10 and $1.20 respectively. In August 2011, the rates were $1.00, $1.20, and $1.20, respectively. So the August increase of nearly 12% in revenues outpaced the rate increase.

By way of background on the rate increases, the DDA sent the proposed rate increase to the city council in February 2009, which the city council did not choose to veto. That schedule has been implemented starting in September of each year, after the start of the fiscal year, which begins in July.

             STRUC                  LOT
YEAR          HRLY    PERMIT       HRLY      METER
FY 2009      $0.80      $125      $1.00      $1.00
FY 2010      $0.90      $130      $1.10      $1.20
FY 2011      $1.00      $135      $1.20      $1.20
FY 2012      $1.10      $140      $1.30      $1.40

-

To provide additional perspective on demand for access to downtown Ann Arbor, as measured by use of the parking system, a compilation of monthly year-over-year comparisons from last year’s DDA board meeting information packets yields the following charts:

DDA parking revenue. The red revenue line for the most recent year shows an overall pattern of slight increases compared to the blue bars of the previous year. (Image links to higher resolution file. Any errors are the responsibility of The Chronicle.)

DDA hourly parking patrons. The red parking patrons line for the most recent year shows an early pattern of slight decreases with slight increases more recently, compared to the blue bars of the previous year. (Image links to higher resolution file. Any errors are the responsibility of The Chronicle.)

In addition to the last two years’ worth of DDA revenue and hourly patron data, it’s useful to look at a report that city environmental coordinator Matt Naud recently completed and presented to the city’s environmental commission. The report was conducted as a condition of the settlement of an environmental lawsuit filed against the city in connection with the underground parking garage on Fifth Avenue, which is currently under construction. ["City Settles Lawsuit, Must Conduct Study"]

It’s important to note that the report compiled by Naud focuses on “garage parking events,” which are not the same as the statistic the DDA tracks called “hourly patrons.” Naud’s study was confined to parking structures, and counted the entry into a garage by a permit holder as a “parking event.” Use of a surface lot was not counted in Naud’s study as a “parking event.” The focus of that study was on the question of how the construction of additional parking structures impact the number of parking events.

The result of the study on its central question could fairly be described as indeterminate. However, the report shows a steady increase from 2005 to 2009 of parking events in downtown Ann Arbor, despite any number of mitigating factors, such as increased bus ridership:

Parking events in downtown Ann Arbor. (Image links to higher resolution .pdf file)

The demand for access to downtown Ann Arbor as measured by the use of the public parking system is likely to be a point of discussion in connection with two current development projects in and near downtown: The Varsity Ann Arbor and Heritage Row.

Heritage Row is a planned unit development (PUD) located one block south of the underground parking garage on Fifth Avenue and outside the DDA district. In connection with Heritage Row, one possibility the city council may be asked to contemplate – at its Oct. 17 meeting – is approval of that project without any on-site parking requirement.

At the Oct. 5 meeting of the DDA board, Roger Hewitt noted that bond costs for the new underground garage will change the revenue and expenditure picture. The underground parking garage on Fifth Avenue between Liberty and William is one of two major construction projects currently managed by the DDA.

Construction Convergence: Library Lane

John Splitt reported on the two major construction projects currently being managed by the DDA: Fifth and Division streetscape improvements; and the underground parking garage. Light poles have been installed on the 200 block of South Fifth, Splitt said. That finishes everything connected to the streetscape improvements except for the block of Fifth Avenue between William and Liberty. That will need to wait until the underground parking garage is complete, he said.

For the parking garage, the east leg is now waterproofed and back-filled with pea gravel. For that east leg section, form work is starting for the surface concrete pouring. [The deck is being constructed from east to west.] For the middle of the garage, more concrete will be poured next week. Splitt said that for the phase under Fifth Avenue, it was hoped to be done as soon as possible. The DDA is pushing Christman Company, the construction manager for the parking garage, to complete that phase by Dec. 31 to get the street opened back up, but Splitt said it could be into January.

John Mouat said he felt that the new Library Lane (a newly constructed east-west mid-block connector between Division Street and Fifth Avenue) always gets forgotten in all of the discussion about the parking garage. He noted that the DDA is now involved in a discussion with the Ann Arbor District Library about the connection from the library to Library Lane. Russ Collins quipped that it should be called “Parker Place,” alluding to AADL director Josie Parker, who was in the audience.

Josie Parker, director of the Ann Arbor District Library, and DDA board chair Bob Guenzel before the Oct. 5 meeting of the Downtown Development Authority.

Parker was asked to come to the podium to update the board on the Library Lane and library building connection. For the moment, she said, because there’s not a new library being built, they’re simply working on redesigning the existing front of the building – which has its public entrance on Fifth Avenue – to get patrons easily from Library Lane to the existing entrance of the building as it is currently located. Part of the plan includes tearing off some elements at the front of the building and redoing them, Parker said. The idea is to reconfigure some of the existing porch area, she said.

When people talk about the Fifth and Division streetscape improvements and finishing up the 300 block of South Fifth Avenue, the library frontage is included in that, Parker said. [The DDA's streetscape project will be paying for this work.] She expressed that the library appreciated very much the library’s inclusion in the planning. The library was grateful for the attention that’s been given, and the effort to accomodate the libary has been tremendous, she said.

The construction work has had a great impact on library workers and patrons, Parker said, but she added that use of the library has not declined during construction on the underground parking garage. Alluding to the downturn in business suffered by nearby businesses like Earthen Jar and Jerusalem Garden – about which their owners have been vocal – Parker allowed that other neighbors have had a different impact.

John Splitt noted that it might not be possible to finish the sidewalk on both sides of Fifth Avenue before spring, but completion of the east side first – the library side – is the goal.

During the discussion of the underground parking structure, Sandi Smith asked what the plan was currently for the surface of the deck. Would it be surface parking? Splitt clarified that surface parking on top of the underground garage would be located primarily in the center section of the deck [viewed from east to west, not top to bottom] and that section would not be finished until the spring.

The top of the underground parking garage is one of five city-owned parcels that the DDA is currently considering for alternative uses – under the direction of the city council given in April 2011. The others are the former YMCA lot, the Palio lot, the Kline lot, and the bottom floor of the parking structure at Fourth and William.

Future Use of Midtown City-Owned Parcels

Joan Lowenstein reported on the the planning process to frame the redevelopment of five city-owned parcels in the downtown that the DDA will be considering.

The partnerships committee had worked on a goals statement for the midtown planning project, she said. [Midtown is the name of one of downtown's zoning overlay character districts, which includes Fifth Avenue as a civic corridor.] Committee members had discussed the idea of forming a leadership steering committee to shepherd the project. That committee would work directly with DDA staff.

Members of the committee who’d agreed to serve in that capacity include: Brittany Affolter-Caine (Ann Arbor SPARK director of talent enhancement); Ron Dankert (former DDA board member and broker with Swisher Commercial); Bob Galardi (retired Ann Arbor Public Schools administrator); Stas’ Kazmierski (managing parter at ZingTrain); Kirk Westphal (film producer, founder of Westphal Associates and member of the Ann Arbor planning commission); Tony Lupo (formerly director of sales and marketing at Salon Vox, now brand manager at New York-based Oribe Hair Care); Nancy Shore (director of Ann Arbor’s getDowntown program); Hillary Murt (member of Michigan Theater board, and former owner of Pen in Hand); and Bonnie Valentine (director of sales and marketing with the Whole Brain Group).

The first meeting of the steering committee will take place on Tuesday, Oct. 11 at 3 p.m. at the DDA’s offices, 150 S. Fifth Ave. Lowenstein said the meeting will be open to the public. Serving on the committee for the DDA will be Lowenstein, Sandi Smith and John Mouat.

Lowenstein described how the partnerships committee had discussed what the deliverables will be for the planning project, which included a defined role for the area, a framework plan and a set of future goals, and a decision-making matrix, all in one document. The idea is also to look at alternative scenarios for achieving development, Lowenstein said – RFPs (requests for proposals) in addition to other options.

Lowenstein also reported that a communications subcommittee of the partnerships committee had been created, consisting of Russ Collins and Newcombe Clark. The goal of the communications subcommittee is to develop a toolbox of resources to communicate with the public and with each other.

Clark reported out that the communications subcommittee will aim to increase DDA visibility and public awareness of what the DDA does and how it adds value. The approach will be both reactive and proactive, he said. The plan is to involve professionals who know how to do public relations and communications. The initial work plan will be to bring in professionals and see what they think the DDA should do. The subcommittee will report out every month. Once the subcommittee has created a toolbox, staff will use it, he said. Collins said he felt that the subcommittee could make good progress for the benefit of the board and the downtown.

Commenting on the midtown development plan, Sandi Smith allowed that it seemed like it was taking a long time, but she saw no reason to rush. [Previous Chronicle coverage: "Downtown Planning Poised to Pause"]

Downtown Behavioral Issues

During public commentary John Teeter, manager at First Martin Corp., introduced himself by saying that First Martin managed 10 different properties in the DDA district. He wanted to share with the board some of issues the real estate company has been suffering thorough with respect to crime and panhandling. He stressed the importance of separating perceptions from the reality – perception is actually a separate issue from the actual problem, he said. The problem, he said, is not homelessness. It’s things like urinating and defecating in elevators. He said that compared to the past 13 years, the problem is worse now than it’s ever been.

The problem is not the local homeless population, Teeter said. Rather, the problem is aggressive panhandling and drug dealing. He described the Ann Arbor community as having been generous with its resources for this part of the population. But just because the community offers more robust support services, he cautioned, doesn’t mean this behavior should be tolerated downtown. He said that one solution would be to apply pressure with police, but he recognized the challenge of doing that in the current fiscal climate. The police force needed to be given sufficient tools and manpower. He ventured that maybe some stronger ordinance language would help.

Teeter told the board that he was not there just to complain. First Martin is trying to help things, he said. First Martin takes care of picking up trash at Liberty Plaza six days a week. [The park is immediately adjacent to a First Martin property]. He said that First Martin also takes care of some upkeep at Wheeler Park and the corner at Depot and Main. Because much of the problem is drug- and alcohol-related, Teeter said, First Martin will be donating $1,000 to the Dawn Farm outreach program.

Diana Neering, chief development officer at the Shelter Association of Washtenaw County, addressed the board to present the DDA with the annual Robert J. Delonis Community Service award. Neering thanked the DDA for its recent support in the form of a grant. [At the DDA board's Oct. 6, 2010 meeting, a year earlier, a $218,050 grant from the DDA's housing fund was awarded for improvements at the association's Delonis Center on Huron Street. The money was to pay for new washers and dryers, lockers and chairs, an emergency generator, energy conservation measures, medical equipment and software.]

Neering then shared a shelter success story about a man who had come to the Delonis Center shelter and how the shelter staff had helped him.

Also realated to the shelter, in his report out from the Downtown Citizens Advisory Council, Ray Detter began by saying that the construction of the Delonis Center would not have happened without Bob Guenzel (then Washtenaw County administrator and now chair of the DDA board) and the strong support of Leah Gunn (currently a Washtenaw County commissioner and DDA board member).

As newly elected chair, Guenzel was prepared to proceed with the agenda after public commentary. But mayor John Hieftje interjected that he’d previously suggested adding an agenda item to allow board members to respond to public commentary, and he felt that this was very good time to do that. With Guenzel’s indulgence, Hieftje then reviewed a meeting the day before held by the downtown marketing task force, when Teeter had expressed many of the same sentiments he’d expressed during public commentary.

Chief of police Barnett Jones had been there, Hieftje said, as well as representatives of the downtown merchant associations. He had then met later with the chief and deputy chief of police, and he felt that they’d come up with some good ideas. He indicated that some new things will be announced in the next few weeks.

One strategy will be that community standards officers will be issuing tickets in alleys for dumpster violations. They’ve sent out notice to merchants saying that they’ll be looking for violations starting in November. Also being considered is stepped up enforcement of the city’s graffiti ordinance. Hieftje said he figured that businesses will push back, but that the merchant associations have said they’ll support the city’s efforts at enforcement. Hieftje said he wanted to make sure everybody gets adequate warning of the stepped up enforcement.

Hieftje said the perception is worse than the problem itself, but is equally meaningful. He went on to describe Ann Arbor’s issues as relatively minor compared with other cities. Other than the unsolved sexual assaults, it’s been a good year with respect to crime stats, Hieftje contended.

Guenzel asked Hieftje if the downtown marketing task force was again meeting monthly. Hieftje indicated it was and that they had a schedule of nine times a year with no meetings in the months of July, August, and December. He said it was nice to have city council members (Sandi Smith and Sabra Briere) and DDA members present for the most recent meeting.

Business Climate Downtown

Russ Collins offered a comment on the relative downtown vitality in Liberty-State area. [Collins is executive director of the Michigan Theater, located near the intersection of Liberty and State.] In August, Collins noted, systemwide parking use was up significantly over a year ago – revenue was up 12% and the number of hourly patrons was up 5%. Collins added that the Michigan Theater had had an unusually strong August. Roger Hewitt, who owns the Red Hawk Bar & Grill and Revive + Replenish downtown, said his two businesses had also had a strong September. He allowed that five University of Michigan home football games can affect things – positively.

Adding to the positive message, Hieftje reported that during the downtown marketing task force meeting the previous day, South State Area Association president Tom Heywood had said that despite the challenges faced by some smaller establishments, business is booming. Hieftje said Heywood had contended at the meeting that the new CVS pharmacy on South State had generated the highest amount of sales per square foot in that chain.

Collins continued with the theme that the right business can succeed in downtown Ann Arbor, by noting that when the John Leidy Shop closed, the Michigan Theater had looked to put a penny candy store in the space – as an extension of something the theater already did, which is to sell concessions. But his organization’s business and market analysis found that such an enterprise was not supportable. He was therefore not surprised when the candy store that set up shop there found it difficult – the Michigan Theater’s business planning would have forecast that outcome, concluded Collins.

Sidewalk, Street Repair Millage

Guenzel asked DDA executive director Susan Pollay if there was an update on the situation with the sidewalk millage. Pollay reviewed how there’d been a general discussion at the operations committee meeting about the two millages on the November ballot: 2 mills for street, and 0.125 mills for sidewalk repair. The DDA’s understanding is that the city will take over repairs previously assigned to property owners, except inside the DDA district, where there will be restrictions. Millage money would be spent on sidewalks inside the DDA district, only if they are adjacent to single-family houses or duplexes. Guenzel confirmed with Pollay that the city’s expectations of the DDA are still being checked out.

Hieftje then commented that he did not feel city councilmembers are out in the community saying that the city absolutely needs the millage or that it’s essential. The sidewalk millage merely offers residents a choice, he contended, of having the city take over the responsibility for sidewalk repair. Everybody who was given notice under the last five-year cycle of the sidewalk repair program will have to pay, Hieftje contended – no one gets a free ride. He reported that the city council’s resolution of intent on the use of the sidewalk and street repair millage funds was still pending before the council.

Public Art, Design

The previous night’s meeting of the Downtown Citizens Advisory Council, said Detter, had begun with the group’s attendance at the dedication of the new fountain designed by German artist Herbert Dreiseitl. Detter described how more than 200 people attended to celebrate the water sculpture, where mayor John Hieftje gave a speech. Former chair of the city’s public art commission, Margaret Parker, as well as the current chair, Marsha Chamberlin, had also made remarks, he said. He said the CAC had for years supported the city’s Percent for Art program.

Detter recounted how in the 1990s, three CAC members had worked with Jan Onder and Parker on the downtown public art committee. With guidance from local architect Dick Mitchell, they had injected art into the Fourth and Washington parking structure, he said. Detter described how one of the meetings took place in Espresso Royale, and how a man who’d overheard their conversation about what they wanted to do had come over to say he wanted to give the group $25,000. Detter identified the man as the owner of the Amadeus building. When former DDA chair Reuben Bergman had passed away, Detter said, another $13,000 had been donated. Within a matter of a few month, Detter said, Onder had raised another $85,000.

After the dedication ceremony for the fountain on the municipal center plaza, Detter said, the CAC discussed The Varsity at Ann Arbor project. [The same evening as the dedication, the city planning commission voted to recommend approval of The Varsity; it will now be forwarded to the city council. Detter spoke during public commentary at that meeting.] Detter noted that it was the first project to be reviewed by the newly-established design guidelines board. The board had identified design elements that were present and lacking in the project. The board did a good job, he said. He noted that the review by the design guidelines board is mandatory, but compliance is voluntary. He said the developer did a good job in making improvements to the design.

Detter concluded by saying that the city’s commitment to good building design and public art will make the pedestrian experience better.

New Chair

Bob Guenzel, former Washtenaw County administrator, opened the meeting by saying, “I went away and got elected chair of this group!” He was absent from the board’s Sept. 7, 2011 meeting. Roger Hewitt responded to Guenzel by saying, “That’s how it works, Bob!”

The board had been without a chair because board member Gary Boren, who had been elected to that post by his board colleagues at their July 6, 2011 meeting, was not nominated by mayor John Hieftje for reappointment to the board after his term expired on July 31. Boren was replaced on the board by local attorney Nader Nassif.

Adopting a more serious tone, Guenzel said it’s a great honor to chair the DDA board and said he felt it would be a good year.

On the Horizon

The board’s Oct. 5 meeting included a presentation from DDA planning and research specialist Amber Miller and getDowntown director Nancy Shore on low cost alternatives for evening employees to use on-street parking spaces. At a Nov. 14 joint working session with the Ann Arbor city council, the DDA board will be presenting a proposal to the council for changes to parking rates and policies, which could include extension of enforcement hours past 6 p.m.

The board also received an update on the status of the getDowntown program and the go!pass, which had been presented to the DDA’s transportation, operations and communications committe the previous week. [See Chronicle coverage: "Also Discussed by DDA: getDowntown, Parking"]

Present: Nader Nassif, Newcombe Clark, Bob Guenzel, Roger Hewitt, John Hieftje, John Splitt, Sandi Smith, Leah Gunn, Russ Collins, Keith Orr, Joan Lowenstein, John Mouat.

Next board meeting: Noon on Wednesday, Nov. 2, at the DDA offices, 150 S. Fifth Ave., Suite 301. [confirm date]

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Jo Mathis using Skype, a video chat application.

In any case, Tori installed a webcam and Skype on my computer so that we can have regular video chats.

This wouldn’t have occurred to me. Though Skype has been around for seven years, my experience with it was mostly spotty audio conference calls that were more irritating than anything.

“Trust me,” Tori said as she clipped the webcam to my monitor. “You’ll love this.”

When we dropped her off at her dorm on Monday, I was once again reminded of one of the best years of my life. (Freedom! Boys! All-you-can eat ice cream!) I hated to leave – not just because we’re very close and I enjoy her company, but because nothing makes a mother happier than seeing her child happy. And I knew she was about to have the time of her life.

That’s why Skype pretty much rocks my world.

No, it’s not quite the same as being in the same room. We won’t be able to push each other around laughing, “I keel you!” or hang out on the couch watching Kathy Griffin.

But it’s close.

Texts and calls and pictures are great. Actually seeing my daughter as we talk is much better. We video chatted once while she was at the student center, where her friends were on either side of the table, and guys were shooting pool behind her. Usually she’s sitting at her desk below her Lil Wayne poster, applying or removing her makeup.

I am unabashedly in love with this application, and encourage anyone else with distant loved ones to try it.

For no charge, Skype offers the ability to make voice or video calls and send instant messages to other Skype users. You can also pay for services such as making calls from a PC to a landline or cell phone, which is why some users are giving up their more costly landlines for Skype accounts.

Thanks to Skype and all the other video chat programs, including gmail voice and video chat, children and spouses of U.S. soldiers stationed overseas can actually see each other when they talk once or twice a week. Grandparents hundreds of miles away can video chat between visits.

Fewer people need to fly across the country to get to a meeting. Teachers use it in the classrooms to interview guest speakers, and connect to other students around the world.

Kan Shao, a grad student at Eastern Michigan University, uses QQ to video chat with his family in China two or three times a week.

“Video chat lets me confirm that my father is in good condition,” he said. “Seeing his face makes me feel safe.”

I read about a family who keeps an eye on their elderly father by keeping the man’s computer turned on to Skype. If he’s in trouble, they’ll know about it. Meanwhile, he feels less isolated.

Oprah Winfrey is a huge Skype supporter who likes to spread money around. Wouldn’t it be great if she made video chats available to nursing homes and assisted living centers, and encouraged volunteers to check in on them via Skype? It’s certainly a more important use of it than featuring yet another guest via Skype – especially when there are so many real live guests in the audience eager to talk.

After all, just because something can be done doesn’t mean there’s a good reason to do it.

Most people now prefer texting over calling, and several people I talked to said they don’t want anyone seeing them in the privacy of their home. (“The horror!”) I can’t imagine video chatting with someone I don’t know fairly well, and feel no need to use it to talk to people I see regularly.

But I would like to get my three out-of-state brothers on Skype so we can stay more closely in touch. Facebook helps, but can’t compare to the immediacy of a video chat.

Here are 25 other ways to use Skype, some of which I intend to try as soon as I finish clearing a corner of Tori’s room for my yoga studio.

An empty nest has its perks.

For the pits, there is Skype.

About the author: Jo Mathis is an Ann Arbor-based writer. Her columns appear monthly in The Chronicle.