Media Watch Section

Darcy’s Cart is featured on the Ann Arbor farmers market blog, which highlights local vendors. It includes chef Paul Kessenich’s recipe for potato & kale hash. [Source]

Selma Cafe has posted information about parking for the weekly breakfast gathering, urging people to consider walking, biking, or taking the bus as a way to help manage traffic and parking. The post includes a map showing a “red zone” on certain streets in the neighborhood near Eberwhite Elementary, where parking for the cafe is prohibited. [Source]

An editorial in the Detroit News advocates for the University of Michigan to allow undocumented students who graduate from Michigan high schools to pay in-state tuition. “Michigan’s cause would be greatly assisted by legislation in Lansing. But because the state does not have the power to set tuition rates, universities also have autonomy to make the decision themselves. For a reinvented Michigan, it’s a no brainer.” [Source]

Detroit Free Press columnist Tom Walsh interviews venture capitalist Scott Chou about comparing Ann Arbor and Silicon Valley. Walsh reports that Chou, co-founder of Michigan eLab, spoke to University of Michigan business students about the attraction of this area: “Everything is cheaper here. It’s a source of disruptive innovations. It’s a core center for research innovations – one of the top-funded universities in the country. There’s a lot of groundbreaking ideas and few venture capitalists here.” [Source]

In connection with the publication of her new book – “Red Doc >” – the New York Times profiles the poet and author Anne Carson through a series of email exchanges and personal interviews. “She moved to Ann Arbor, years ago, to teach at the university. Although she no longer teaches there, she has remained, because she’s in love with her house: a 1957 Frank Lloyd Wright-ish building with, she says, windows that make her feel as if she’s simultaneously inside and outside. [Her husband Robert] Currie, who grew up in Michigan, doesn’t love living there — he wants to be in New York — but Carson can’t bring herself to leave.” [Source]

The Washtenaw Voice reports on reactions to the firing of Stuart Blacklaw, former vice president of instruction at Washtenaw Community College who was dismissed by WCC president Rose Bellanca. The article states that “members of the Washtenaw Community College Education Association were angered by what they called a ‘cowardly move.’” [Source] A separate article reports on concerns raised by the faculty union at a recent WCC board of trustees meeting over “communication breakdowns” with Bellanca. [Source]

One year after a devastating tornado hit the Dexter area, Sharon Silke Carty writes a column – published by the Dexter Patch – about how things have changed for residents: “There are moments in everyone’s life when you can say things changed inside you forever. The first big moment for me like that was when my father died. My memories are categorized as before, and after. I suspect the tornado did that for many people in Dexter, even if we’re grateful for new friends, new support networks, and new perspective. But that dinnertime storm on March 15, 2012 will always be a before and after moment.” [Source]

A report on MyFoxDetroit highlights the ReUse Center in Ann Arbor, including its Urbanwood collection. The operation is run by Recycle Ann Arbor, which is holding its annual Earth Day Reuse Competition – the deadline is April 12 for entries of discarded materials reused in “artistic and functional ways.” [Source]

A  20-question survey by the Washtenaw County office of community and economic development (OCED) is part of an effort to help identify ”creative opportunities for growing our local economy and utilizing community capital.” Questions include “Have you ever contributed to a crowdfunding campaign?” and “What would you need to know or have in order to be comfortable investing locally?” [Source]

A2Ethics.org has posted a 16-minute video of highlights from the nonprofit’s A2Ethics Big Ethical Question Slam, held on Feb. 7. As described on the A2Ethics website, the annual event is a “one-of-a-kind ethical dilemma competition [that] challenges teams of community organizations to respond to major ethical questions and have their answers evaluated by a panel of invited judges and the audience.” [Source]

A post on Ann Arbor Schools Musings highlights a March 11 panel of the state Board of Education, focusing on funding reforms for K-12 education. The post includes a note from Jack Panitch, former Angell PTO president, urging people to attend: “This is an opportunity to show Lansing that large numbers of informed voters are watching their actions and that we care about our kids’ futures. It is also an opportunity to fall flat on our face if attendance is thin.” The event, which is open to the public, runs from 6-8 p.m at Pioneer High’s Little Theater, 601 W. Stadium Blvd. [Source]

Reuters reports on how federal spending cuts under sequestration are affecting university research. The report quotes Steve Forrest, vice president of research at the University of Michigan: “There (are) going to be a lot of research jobs at risk. That will hit young researchers disproportionately hard.” [Source]

Helen Zell, a University of Michigan graduate and wife of real estate magnate Sam Zell, is donating $50 million to UM’s graduate creative writing program. The gift comes via the Zell Family Foundation, which Helen Zell leads as executive director. The two-year program is being renamed the Helen Zell Writers’ Program. [Associated Press report] [UM press release]

An article on RH Reality Check explores the efforts by Ann Arbor-based Zingerman’s to develop a “thriveable wage” for its employees. Excerpts from a vision statement: “Higher wages lead to higher morale and is the engine that keeps everything spiraling upward. In many cases, productivity increases due to lowered stress levels in the lives of the people in our organization because of assurance that their financial needs are covered.” [Source]

A post on Hyperallergic describes the background for “State of Exception,” an art exhibit at the University of Michigan Institute for the Humanities Gallery. The work, on display through March 12, includes artifacts collected as part of the Undocumented Migration Project, and explores issues related to illegal immigration. [Source]

The city of Ann Arbor has mailed out its 2013 property assessment and taxable value notification letters, and has posted a fact sheet explaining how those calculations are made. The website includes two examples, and an explanation of the appeals process. [Source]

The Detroit Free Press reports on local participants in the National Day of Unplugging, which begins at sundown on Friday, March 1. The article quotes Davy Rothbart of Ann Arbor: “For me, unplugging for the day is a way to remember how I interacted with the world before I had my smartphone stapled to my jawbone.” [Source]

Realtor Rob Ewing has posted a 10-minute promotional video – “Discover Ann Arbor” – featuring scenes of local parks, the University of Michigan campus, downtown restaurants, and arts & cultural venues, as the backdrop to interviews about Ann Arbor with local community leaders, including David Canter, Ken Fischer, Susan Pollay, and several others. [Source]

First Martin Corp. is expanding its collection of locally-themed artwork by commissioning 25 new pieces depicting scenes of Ann Arbor and Washtenaw County. Marsha Chamberlin – chair of the Ann Arbor public art commission and recently retired president of the Ann Arbor Art Center – is managing the project. The deadline for submission is March 15. Artwork will be installed at local First Martin properties. [Source]

A post on CraftBeer.com highlights the opening of Arbor Brewing Company (ABC) India in Bangalore, a partnership between University of Michigan graduate Gaurav Sikka and Matt & Rene Greff, who own Arbor Brewing in Ann Arbor and Corner Brewery in Ypsilanti. ABC India features variations on familiar beers – Bollywood Blonde and Bangalore Bliss – as well as new recipes for the Indian market, like Chai PA and Garam Masala Pale Ale. [Source]

Michigan Today has posted photos of snowy scenes around the University of Michigan campus, coupled with quotes from folks like Carl Reiner: “A lot of people like snow. I find it to be an unnecessary freezing of water.” [Source]

The Detroit Free Press profiles a University of Michigan public policy course, taught by David Harding, that uses HBO’s “The Wire” to look issues like housing, local government, employment, public safety, mental health and substance abuse. Says Harding: “The main thing that makes this course different from other courses is our emphasis on understanding the connections between areas of policy that are not usually studied together.” [Source]

On his blog Michigan Exposures, Mikoyan has uploaded a set of photos taken in the Broadway bridges area of Ann Arbor, including shots of the St. Vincent de Paul building and the Gandy Dancer. [Click on a photo and arrow through the set to view the larger-sized images] [Source]

On his blog “Musings of a Curious Mind,” Dane Jackson posts a five-question Q&A with owners of the soon-to-open Literati bookstore at Fourth and Washington. “This isn’t just a bookstore for us. Like any small business owner, this is now our livelihood and lifestyle.” [Source]

A2Awesome has announced its latest round of $1,000 grants: To support the Small & Mighty entrepreneur network, and to help Citizens for Prison Reform distribute a prison resource guide in Washtenaw County. [Source]

The University of Michigan Erb Institute 2013 Follies music video “Kerrytown Parking Lot” mixes it up to promote the Ann Arbor farmers market. A sampling of lyrics: “It’s gettin’ real in the Kerrytown parking lot. You know the deal with the grass-fed beef we got. Check out what I say. It happens every day. It’s how we move in the west side of AA.” [Source]

Writing on his blog Vacuum, Ed Vielmetti posts news that Eastern Accents, a downtown Ann Arbor restaurant at 214 Fourth Fourth Ave., will be closing its business on Saturday, March 16, at 7 p.m. A press release from the owners states: “A long-simmering dispute with our landlord has finally come to a head, and we’ve decided that it is time for change. … A wise person once said that life is a tapestry – that every person we meet, every event that we experience, and every interaction makes the tapestry more colorful, more vivid, and gives it greater depth. With that in mind, our family thanks everyone for making our tapestry more beautiful, and hope that in some … [Full Story]

An ESPN report profiles Latipha Cross, a student at Eastern Michigan University who struggled with family and health issues in middle school and high school while becoming a track-and-field standout. The video includes an interview with Zach Glavash, EMU’s assistant coach for women’s track and field. [Source]

In a video posted on YouTube, Wendy Woods – an Ann Arbor planning commissioner who’s also associate director of the Michigan Community Scholars Program at the University of Michigan – leads the MCSP in a Harlem Shake. [Source]

The Detroit Free Press reports on how major state income tax changes enacted nearly two years ago by a Republican-controlled legislature and Gov. Rick Snyder are now taking effect. The article quotes state Sen. Rebekah Warren (D-District 18) of Ann Arbor: “It’s devastating to our most low-income folks. This is the one time per year they often had a significant enough pot of resources to play with to be able to do a big investment. Those at the very bottom of the socioeconomic ladder are really struggling more than ever right now.” [Source]