Archive for June, 2010

Longtime Ann Arbor residents Jan and Dan Longone have donated over 20,000 documents in culinary history to the University of Michigan.

Jan Longone, giving remarks at a June 8 reception: "Culinary history is a subject worth studying and fighting for." (Photos by the writer.)

At a June 8 reception at the Hatcher Graduate Library in front of more than 200 guests, UM provost Teresa Sullivan accepted the donation on behalf of the university, saying that the Longone collection turned UM into a “national leader” in this “emerging field of scholarship.”

Sullivan noted that the archive extends far beyond collections of recipes, and provides valuable insights in such areas as the study of gender roles, regionalism, health, diet and cultural identity.

The Clements Library will house the Janice Bluestein Longone Culinary Archive, as the collection is formally known. Kevin Graffagnino, the library’s director, said that the “groundbreaking donation … vaulted the Clements into the forefront of culinary history.”

In remarks during the June 8 reception, Jan Longone said she had long believed the new field “was a subject worth studying and fighting for.” She is also curator of American Culinary History at the Clements. [Full Story]

Noah Hall, an Ann Arbor resident and Wayne State law professor, is featured in a PBS Newshour segment asking environmental lawyers to weigh in on BP’s liability related to the Gulf oil spill: “[T]here’s going to be a lot of disputes, a lot of litigation, and for many of these claims, the victims really won’t see justice for many years to come. It’s not always immediately apparent who has been hurt, whose business has suffered because of the oil spill, which fishermen have lost their catches for the season. And even health damages often don’t appear right away. There’s a lot of latent effects of pollution that we don’t see for many years to come.” [Source]

Borders has posted a video interview of the chef Anthony Bourdain, shot at Kerrytown to promote his new book, “Medium Raw.” It also includes footage with Bob Sparrow of Sparrow Market, who reveals the next trend in meat: Tongues. [Source]

Michigan attorney general Mike Cox has decided that Washtenaw County prosecutor Brian Mackie’s office will investigate an emailed death threat against Wayne County prosecutor Kym Worthy, which was sent after the sentencing of former Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, according to a Detroit News report. The article quotes assistant Washtenaw County prosecutor Steve Hiller: “We are going to have to wait and see what the investigation shows and decide where we go from there.” [Source]

Ann Arbor Park Advisory Commission working session (June 1, 2010): Members of the Ann Arbor Park Advisory Commission took another crack at drafting a resolution regarding the proposed Fuller Road Station, softening some of the language that had previously called for city council to abandon the project. The station includes a large parking structure, bus depot and possible train station for commuter rail, to be built in partnership with the University of Michigan near the UM medical complex.

The changes are in response to a plea for unity by mayor John Hieftje, who had attended PAC’s May 18 meeting where he spoke with commissioners for an hour about their concerns. He told commissioners that the city has a better chance of getting federal funding for the project if they show a united front.

PAC members have been concerned that if the project moves forward, the city would receive less revenue from UM for parking than it currently gets from the surface lots it leases to the university on Fuller Road. Those revenues support the city’s park operations. Among other issues, some commissioners are also troubled that the structure is to be built on land that’s designated as parkland, and that there’s been limited opportunity for public input.

Immediately following a June 1 meeting of PAC’s land acquisition committee, which includes all members of the commission, PAC members stayed for a working session on the Fuller Road Station. Chair Julie Grand brought a revised resolution to consider, and the group thrashed through issues and language to come up with a draft that will be discussed at PAC’s June 15 regular meeting.

In addition, commissioner Tim Berla plans to propose an alternative resolution, which he emailed to other PAC members on Monday. His resolution focuses on process – asking that the city council and staff be fully transparent in providing details about the agreement to the public. [Full Story]

Davy Rothbart, the Ann Arbor creator of FOUND magazine, is quoted in a New York Times’ City Room column titled “Ghosts of Dorm Rooms Past.” Rothbart reports that the room he lived in at UM’s East Quad had once been home to Ted Kaczynski, the Unabomber: “It’s just a weird feeling to know that someone like him went through his daily routines in the same space that I went through my daily routines … reading, sleeping, studying, listening to the radio, trying to holler at girls.” [Source]

Mary Gallagher, director of UM’s Center for Chinese Studies, is quoted in a New York Times article about rising labor costs in China: “China isn’t going to lose its manufacturing base because it’s got a huge domestic market. But it will move them toward higher-end goods. And that matches the Chinese government’s ambition. They don’t just want to be the workshop of the world. They want to produce high-tech goods.” [Source]

Jeffrey Jablansky of Automobile magazine writes about the rain-out of this year’s Ypsilanti Orphan Car Show at Riverside Park: “For over a decade, owners of classic cars with storied, discontinued marques, have gathered in Ypsilanti to share their sentiments of orphanhood. The event, which resembles a concours, showcases the best examples of brands that are no longer produced. … This year, however, the night before the show was scheduled to take place, rain fell on Ypsi in epic proportions, drowning the field and canceling the event. But a determined group of collectors decided to camp out at the parking lot adjacent to the Ypsilanti Automotive Heritage Museum, and the show, albeit a smaller one, went on.” [Source]

Ann Arbor City Council Sunday night caucus (June 6, 2010): The council’s Sunday night caucus continued to draw little interest from the council itself, with only Mike Anglin (Ward 5) and Sabra Briere (Ward 1) attending.

The meeting, which is scheduled for the Sunday evening before Monday council meetings, is described on the city’s website as an opportunity “to discuss and gather information on issues that are or will be coming before them for consideration.”

Developer Alex de Parry hams it up with councilmembers Mike Anglin (Ward 5) and Sabra Briere (Ward 1) before the Sunday caucus got started. (Photo by the writer.)

Yesterday evening, what was on the minds of residents Ethel Potts, Tom Whitaker, Scott Munzel and Alex de Parry was an issue coming to the council for consideration today, Monday, June 7 – the Heritage Row project proposed for South Fifth Avenue, south of William Street. De Parry is the developer for that project and Munzel is legal counsel.

Kathy Griswold gave a report out from a recent meeting on the city’s urban forestry plan, which she had attended from the perspective of sight lines for traffic at intersections – vegetation can interfere with visibility.

During the discussion about vegetation on lawn extensions, John Floyd, who’s running for the Ward 5 seat currently occupied by Carsten Hohnke, arrived at the meeting. And Floyd was able to settle a point of good-natured disagreement on the status of corn as a grass. [Full Story]

The New York Times reports on a trove of American silent films found in the New Zealand Film Archive, which are being restored and returned to the U.S. Richard Abel, a UM professor of film studies, helped evaluate the inventory and establish priorities for films to be returned, according to the report. Says Abel: “’Upstream’ was an obvious choice, and I suggested strongly that they do ‘Dolly of the Dailies’ with Mary Fuller, because there’s very little that survives of her films. But we were also looking to fill in gaps, which is why many of the early westerns were chosen.” [Source]

On the World Socialist Web Site, Naomi Spencer writes about the proposed consolidation of transportation among school districts in Washtenaw County, and what that means for bus drivers and other transportation workers. She also discusses the funding implications of the decision: “The unions – like the school boards, the Obama administration and the Democratic and Republican Parties – accept as a fact the claim that there is ‘no money’ for public education, and that the working class must pay for the bankruptcy of the school districts. In reality, there is ample money for education, but it is a question of what class controls it.” [Source]

Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners meeting (June 2, 2010): In the first meeting on a scaled-back summer schedule, county commissioners passed a resolution to settle a police services lawsuit with one of three townships that sued the county in 2006.

At right: David Trent, Salem Township clerk, attended Wednesday's meeting and thanked commissioners for approving a settlement over the police services lawsuit between the county and township. (Photos by the writer.)

Under terms of the settlement, Salem Township will pay the county nearly $48,000 to cover the costs of sheriff deputy patrols provided by the county in 2006. The townships of Salem, Augusta and Ypsilanti sued the county that year, disputing the amount that was charged for police services. The county and the other two townships are awaiting a judgment to resolve the issue – the county is asking for $2.1 million from Ypsilanti Township and nearly $96,000 from Augusta Township.

David Trent, Salem Township clerk, attended Wednesday’s board meeting and spoke during public commentary, thanking the board for the settlement and saying he was coming forward on behalf of the township board in hopes of starting the healing process between the township and the county. Several commissioners thanked township officials for ending the dispute.

In other agenda items, only one person spoke at a public hearing on the county millage rate, which was set later in the meeting. Commissioners also approved $1.35 million in additional funding to complete the expanded jail and new 14A-1 District Court, with some discussion about issues related to parking and a new Washtenaw Avenue entrance.

And although last month commissioner Ronnie Peterson had vowed to bring a resolution to the June 2 meeting that would reestablish a county land bank, on Wednesday he told commissioners he’d been asked by board chair Rolland Sizemore Jr. to defer that action until their July 7 meeting. Saying he was respectful of that request, Peterson added, “On July 7th, I’ll be aggressive.”

The upcoming elections were mentioned, too. Commissioner Barbara Bergman chastised the Washtenaw County Road Commission for charging Scio Township $2,000 to locate a polling station for the August primary and November general election in the road commission’s Zeeb Road facility. Scio officials say they’ll find another venue, calling the road commission’s decision “disappointing at best.” [Full Story]

Ann Arbor Public Schools Board of Education meeting (June 4, 2010): At an extra, regular meeting on Friday evening, the school board heard an updated presentation on the details of a proposed consolidation of school transportation services with the Washtenaw Intermediate School District (WISD). The board’s second briefing on the consolidation and its vote, will come Wednesday, June 9.

AAPS trustee Susan Baskett and deputy superintendent for operations Robert Allen listen to the transportation consolidation proposal. (Photos by the writer.)

Brian Marcel, assistant superintendent of business services for WISD, walked board members through the proposal, and went through an extensive list of questions and answers about the plan. A few bus drivers from AAPS, as well as some from Lincoln Consolidated Schools, attended the meeting – one of them, Richard Miller, spoke during public commentary.

The only other business conducted at the meeting was to approve a set of minutes, and to schedule an executive session before the next regular meeting on Wednesday, June 9. [Full Story]

On FORMZine, Winnie Jeng posts more than three dozen photos taken at Sunday’s Taste of Ann Arbor on Main Street: “The Taste of Ann Arbor is an awesome yearly community event that features the local food that we all love. It’s a great chance to relax and head out, try out some restaurants at a low price, and listen to some great music. And that’s just what we did!” [Source]

The Detroit Free Press reports on weight discrimination lawsuits filed against the Hooters restaurant chain, and notes that Michigan is the only state to ban discrimination based on weight. The article quotes J.J. Prescott, a UM law professor, commenting on the fact that few weight discrimination cases have ended up in court: “While plaintiffs have been alleging discrimination on the basis of weight for some time, there is very little case law interpreting that specific provision.” [Source]

Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority board meeting (June 2, 2010): At its regular monthly meeting, the DDA board voted to approve three years worth of funding for the getDowntown program and the go!pass bus passes, which getDowntown administers for downtown employees.

Before the meeting of the DDA board: Russ Collins and Keith Orr. Collins is not demonstrating to Orr how to snag a foul ball at a baseball game. (Photo by the writer.)

The program is currently in a transition year as the four-way partnership that supports it was reduced to three partners when the Ann Arbor Area Chamber of Commerce dropped out last year, citing financial pressures. That leaves the city of Ann Arbor, the Ann Arbor Transportation Authority, and the Ann Arbor DDA as getDowntown funding partners.

In other business, the board approved the application of LEED certification for its underground parking garage on South Fifth Avenue, currently under construction.

The board began a discussion on a payment-in-lieu program for required onsite parking (PILOP) for downtown developments.

The board also heard a pitch from Tamara Real for additional support for a web portal currently under development by the Arts Alliance. [Full Story]

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