The plain brick wall on the Michigan Theater Building on East Liberty in downtown Ann Arbor – rising up behind the storefronts – will be the site of a solar panel installation funded by XSeed Energy, a program of the Clean Energy Coalition and the city of Ann Arbor. (Photos by Mary Morgan.)

As a project manager for the Ypsilanti-based Clean Energy Coalition, Bona specializes in this art of saving energy. She is quick to add, however, that “my goal isn’t to make people sacrifice and suffer. It’s to make them see opportunities where life can be better and, oh, by the way, it uses a lot less energy.”

But it’s not just about using less energy. Bona and others in the Ann Arbor area are involved with projects that focus on generating alternative energy, too – in particular, solar power. Prompted in part by the lure of tax credits and available state and federal funding, an increasing number of efforts are underway to install solar panels on individual residences, businesses, nonprofits and schools – including, as one recent example, the Rudolf Steiner School of Ann Arbor.

And in mid-August, the Ann Arbor Historic District Commission unanimously approved two solar installation projects in historic districts, one for a private home on South Seventh Street, and another at the Michigan Theater. With some citing concern over aesthetics, commissioners acknowledged that they’ll likely see more of these requests in the future, and discussed the need to develop guidelines for solar installations within the city’s historic districts.

City Solar Initiatives: XSeed Energy

The Michigan Theater solar project is being funded by an especially ambitious program that Bona is leading, called XSeed Energy. The program, part of the Clean Energy Coalition (CEC), aims at installing solar projects and encouraging “community-supported local energy,” Bona says, “which means that whether it’s solar or wind or geothermal, it’s locally-sourced energy versus having coal shipped from West Virginia.”

XSeed evolved from a partnership between CEC and the city of Ann Arbor, through the U.S. Dept. of Energy’s Solar America Cities program. In 2007, the U.S. Dept. of Energy declared Ann Arbor one of 25 Solar America Cities. As a result, the city received $632,000 in funds dedicated to advancing solar energy. Since then, the city has published a comprehensive report titled “Solar Ann Arbor: A Plan for Action” – a 114-page document that Bona strongly recommends reading. XSeed was launched to help implement the plan. [.pdf of the plan's executive summary – the full document is available on the city's website.]

Andrew Brix, the city’s energy programs manager, worked closely with the consultant who created the plan, and says of its purpose: “It helps to remove or reduce the barriers associated with solar energy, such as cost, and tries to allow [solar energy] to become a mainstream production of energy.” Bona adds that the plan details the “potential for Ann Arbor, as a city, to be entirely powered by locally-generated power.”

Solar panels are installed on the shelter roof of the Ann Arbor Farmers Market.

One of the city’s already-installed solar projects is a 10-kilowatt solar array at the Ann Arbor Farmer’s Market, put in place in 2008 with money from the Dept. of Energy along with matching funds from the Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority. Not only does the system advance the goal of using solar energy, it also tackles another facet of the city’s solar plan: awareness. The strategically placed array is easily within view, and – given the popularity of the farmer’s market – is guaranteed many viewers.

Public awareness is key, says Bona, who is also a member of the city’s planning commission: “The goal of XSeed is two-fold: one is to implement the installation of solar panels in lots of different locations – starting with nonprofits. The second piece is to make the general public aware of the installation, aware of how it works, have read-outs where people can see how much power it’s generating.”

The city is already providing information for property owners to raise awareness about the potential of solar energy. Wayne Appleyard, chairman of the city’s energy commission, explains that city staff, with the help of some University of Michigan interns, developed a system that estimates how much energy each residential home could generate via solar power in Ann Arbor.

Residents can use that system by visiting the city’s website and entering their address. They’ll then see a list of tabs, including one that’s labeled “Solar Potential.” Clicking on that tab generates a listing that looks like this:

Address: 101 Your Street
Full Zip Code: 48103-4357
Solar Potential: Excellent
Solar Hot Water Candidate: Yes
Roof Size:  756 sq. ft.
Estimated solar PV potential: 0.55 - 1.09 KW
Estimated electricity produced: 717.3 - 1434.61 KWh/yr
Estimated electricity savings: 304.9 - 383.81 per year
Estimated greenhouse gas savings: 1.65 - 2.36 tonnes CO2/yr

-

Appleyard, who has been a member of the energy commission for over 10 years and chair for the past year, cautions that the information is “an approximation.” But it’s useful as a guide for homeowners who are interested in the solar-energy option. Encouraging the use of residential solar energy is an explicit city goal, as outlined in its effort to put solar installations on 5,000 roofs by 2015, primarily for solar hot water systems.

Working Within a Historic District

While the city has a history of advocating for solar energy, it’s not common for solar projects to be located within the city’s historic districts. But during the Historic District Commission’s Aug. 12 meeting, the group unanimously approved two proposed solar initiatives: one for a Seventh Street residential home, and one for the Michigan Theater that’s funded by XSeed Energy. When completed, it will be the most high-profile solar project in the city.

In early 2010, XSeed began an application process for a solar panel project. The nonprofit Michigan Theater had the most potential of the applicants for two reasons, Bona explained. First, the project at the Michigan Theater offers an additional aspect of awareness because of the theater’s downtown location and because the system, once installed, would be easily visible from the street – the solar array will be installed on the south-facing wall of the theater, rather than on the out-of-sight roof.

As another factor in choosing Michigan Theater, Bona also cites the willingness of the theater’s staff – including executive director Russ Collins – to work with XSeed and fundraise, bringing in money to fund future projects.

Along with installing the solar system, XSeed required the Michigan Theater to reduce its energy use by 5%. Including the 5% that the solar array will offset from the theater’s electrical use, the entire project will reduce the theater’s need for fuel-based electricity by 10%.

“The goal with solar is not to replace the electricity we’re using today, but to step back and reduce the wasted energy,” says Bona, in explaining XSeed’s requirement for separate conservation measures. “Then we won’t need as much solar to make up the difference.” It’s an approach akin to avoiding the food processor while making pesto.

While the Michigan Theater was the first of the applicants selected by XSeed, Bona says they intend to do more projects.

Deliberations at the HDC: Questions, Concerns – and Approval

At their Aug. 12 meeting, historic district commissioners spent about 90 minutes discussing the two solar proposals. The first was for a home at 553 S. Seventh St., just north of West Madison in the Old West Side historic district. Homeowner Chris Hewett was asking for a “certificate of appropriateness,” which would allow him to proceed on installing solar panels on the roof of his 19th-century house.

The house at 553 S. Seventh St., with an indication of one option for installing solar panels on the roof. This image was included in the Aug. 12 meeting packet for the Ann Arbor Historic District Commission.

At the request of the city’s planning staff, he presented three configurations for installing the panels – commissioners were asked to weigh in on which of the three options would be most preferable, from their perspective.

Hewett told commissioners that he and his wife bought the house about a year ago, and were planning to make it more sustainable and energy efficient, while at the same time restoring its historical features. He said they were trying to take advantage of the credits available through DTE and federal programs, which would make the project financially feasible.

He said they use about 3 kilowatts of energy each month, and that the solar panels would likely generate about 1 kilowatt. In the future, they might return to the HDC to seek permission to install additional panels, he said.

Some commissioners posed questions about structural issues related to placing the array of 3-feet-by-5-feet panels on the roof. Kristina Glusac stated repeatedly that she felt there was insufficient information provided about the structure of the house and how the panels would be installed. Lesa Rozmarek was concerned about the possibility of ice damming.

Some of the commissioners were concerned about aesthetics, and initially wanted to choose an option that would minimize the visual impact of the panels. That issue was reflected in the staff report, presented by historic preservation coordinator Jill Thacher:

Staff’s initial thoughts on solar panels are that they are an acceptable, reversible addition to residential structures in historic districts if the panels a) match the color of the roof, b) match the angle of the roof and do not project more than eight inches above it, and c) do not cover more than 30% of the roof surface on which they are installed if any part of the panel is visible from a street or sidewalk, and most importantly, d) do not detract from the historic character of the house or destroy, obscure, or damage character-defining features.

During the time available for public comment, several people spoke – including many who were attending the meeting in connection with the Michigan Theater project, and who responded to some of the concerns raised by commissioners.

Saying he was a huge advocate of historic preservation, Matt Grocoff – founder of Greenovation TV – noted that he lived down the street from Hewett, and that he intends to make his home the oldest in America to achieve net-zero energy. While he was excited by the discussion, he said the commissioners were asking the wrong questions about the aesthetics. “The real question is what point is there in preserving our history if we don’t protect our future?” He urged commissioners to set a precedent by unanimously approving the installation of solar panels.

Clean Energy Coalition project managers Dave Strenski and Christina Snyder both spoke to the commission, addressing some of the technical concerns. Both have worked on other solar panel installations, and said they didn’t have problems with drainage or ice damming. Strenski, who volunteers with Solar Ypsi and did the installation of panels at the Ypsilanti city hall, said it was dumb to install the panels in a way that wouldn’t yield the highest efficiency. Shading was another factor to consider, he said – if any part of the array is in shade, it affects the performance of the entire system.

When asked by commissioner Tom Stulberg for his thoughts on the question of aesthetics, Strenski said aesthetics is in the eye of the beholder. Most people who install solar panels are proud of them and want them to be visible, he said, but energy efficiency – not aesthetics – should be the main factor.

Later in the meeting, HDC chair Ellen Ramsburgh said it was important for the commission to weigh in on placement. Part of their job was to make sure the additions didn’t detract from the historic character of the house, she said, and a roof is a very visible part of that. In general, she said, she preferred a less-distracting placement of the panels.

The fact that the solar panels could be removed was compelling for several commissioners, and some mentioned that they had a steep learning curve on this issue. But despite some concerns, the project received unanimous support from commissioners, giving the homeowner the option of choosing which solar array would work best for the site.

Next up was the Michigan Theater project on East Liberty, an installation on the south-facing wall of the main theater building, which is located in the State Street historic district. Though the wall is set back 58 feet from the front of the shops along East Liberty, the panels will be visible from the street.

The staff report recommended approval of the project, but again brought up aesthetic issues. Of particular concern to the XSeed project team was a possible restriction on color. From the staff report:

Staff supports the proposal if the panels and their supporting armature are a neutral, and preferably matte, brown, gray, or black color when feasible. Very conspicuous panels, such as bright blue ones, and bare metal frame finishes should be avoided if they detract from character-defining features of the structure and neighboring ones.

In addressing the commission, Bonnie Bona noted that the color of the panels is determined by the technology that’s used to create them, and that she would not want to restrict their ability to select the appropriate technology for the project. They plan to put the project out to bid, and would be open to new technologies, she said.

Mark Ritz, a volunteer with the Clean Energy Coalition who’s working with the XSeed program, elaborated on that topic, saying he’d researched the different types of solar panels available and that almost without exception, the panels are dark blue, mounted on silver anodized aluminum frames. The panel absorbs light and creates electricity from the light it absorbs, he explained. The most efficient wavelengths of light are the longer ones, he added, so what’s reflected are the shorter wavelengths – the dark blue and violet, which are not as efficient in being converted to electricity. By imposing a color restriction, he said, it would restrict their choices immensely in selecting the best technology for this site.

Both Snyder and Strenski spoke again in support of the project. Snyder noted that the panels that commissioners might find the most “distracting” from an aesthetic view – made of polycrystalline silicon, with the crystals showing – are those she finds most beautiful. “I could stand and look at them for hours,” she said. “It’s almost like looking at fire or moving water.”

Strenski encouraged commissioners to check out seminars offered by the Great Lakes Renewable Energy Association, based near Lansing. In addition to solar energy, the group provides training for wind energy too. “Wind energy’s going to be next on your list here,” Strenski said.

Andrew Brix, who’s a member of the XSeed advisory board, also addressed the commission. He mentioned that the city council approved a “green energy challenge” in 2006, with the goal of achieving 20% renewable energy use by 2015. He said he hoped the HDC would support the project and that they could continue this conversation about solar installations in historic districts, finding ways to address both the needs of historic preservation and the energy goals of the city.

During the commission’s deliberations, Lesa Rozmarek pointed out that the panels are being deliberately placed in a location that’s very visible. She said she didn’t have a problem with it in this case, but it’s something the commission should be aware of.

Diane Giannola said that a major point with this project is that the panels will be placed on a plain brick wall, and won’t interfere with the building’s historic front. She said she liked the educational aspect of the project, too.

The commissioners voted unanimously to issue a certificate of appropriateness for the Michigan Theater solar installation.

Coda to HDC Approval

In a follow-up email, Bona told The Chronicle that XSeed has budgeted about $30,000 for the Michigan Theater installation – $10,000 per kilowatt for a 3 kilowatt array. Bids are expected back from solar installers by the end of September. For other recent projects, prices have been in the range of $7,000 to $9,000 per kilowatt.

They expect to get about $15,000 from the DTE SolarCurrents program. The program allows the energy utility to buy renewable energy credits (RECs) from the state – credits that would otherwise go to homeowners or businesses. This helps the utility meet Michigan’s renewable energy standard, which was established by Public Act 295. The standard is a state mandate for Michigan electric utilities to generate 10% of their power from renewable resources by 2015.

In addition, XSeed is using the Michigan Theater installation to raise funds from corporate sponsorships, private donations and grants for public awareness efforts and future projects. That funding, in turn, will allow XSeed to provide incentives for private projects at residences, businesses and organizations. XSeed will also be pursuing public installations to provide power to residents, businesses, and organizations that don’t have adequate solar access on their own sites.

The focus on solar power, Bona wrote, is because of attractive incentives that are currently available to offset the cost of installation. In the future, XSeed will be looking at other renewable energy sources, too.

DTE, State Incentives Help Rudolf Steiner School

Yet another solar installation is coming in October – this one at the Rudolf Steiner School, on the campus of its high school on Pontiac Trail. The school received funding through two grants in June of this year: one from the Michigan Renewable Schools Program, which is funded by the Michigan Public Service Commission and administered by Energy Works Michigan; and one from DTE through its SolarCurrents program.

Rudolf Steiner School will receive $1,000 annually, says Sandra Greenstone, the school’s administrator, and is expected to save another $1,000 in electricity costs – about 12,000 kilowatt hours’ worth. In addition to a solar installation, the school will be making energy-saving changes based on results of an energy audit funded by the Michigan Renewable Schools Program, such as replacing windows and using energy-efficient light bulbs and fixtures.

Appleyard, of the city’s energy commission, considers the importance of the DTE program to be paramount in the accessibility of solar-powered systems. “It makes pretty good sense,” he says. “Certainly with DTE’s [SolarCurrents] program, photovoltaic arrays are a relatively secure investment in these times of uncertainty … since you’re signing a 20-year contract with DTE that basically guarantees that they’re going to pay you upfront money and then pay you every month for whatever you generate.”

Though DTE’s SolarCurrents program is viewed as progressive, hopes are set still higher for the possibility of incentives by the city, if pending state legislation is passed.

Andrew Brix, the city’s energy programs manager, believes the single most helpful piece of legislation is PACE (Property Assessed Clean Energy). Through the program, the city would use municipal bonds  to fund the upfront installation of a solar system to a resident’s home. The resident would then pay the city through property taxes in the coming years – probably over 15 to 20 years.

Wayne Appleyard and Bonnie Bona at a joint working session of the Ann Arbor planning commission, energy commission and environmental commission in April 2010. Appleyard chairs the energy commission. At the time, Bona was chair of the planning commission. (Chronicle file photo)

“This is incredibly helpful,” says Brix, “because most people don’t have the money for solar initiatives. It’s been passed in the House and is waiting to be reviewed in the Senate.” If legislation is approved, Brix says the city is “poised and ready” to run a PACE program.

The issue of PACE legislation came up during an April 13, 2010 joint working session of the Ann Arbor planning commission, energy commission and environmental commission, focused on the topic of sustainability and organized in part by Bona, who served as planning commission chair at the time. Matt Naud, the city’s environmental coordinator, explained some of the issues related to implementing a PACE program. From Chronicle coverage:

The program would be voluntary. Homeowners would first get an energy audit to find out if they’ve already taken initial steps on their own – for example, Naud said, you wouldn’t want to install solar power if you haven’t sufficiently caulked around your windows. You’d sign a contract with the city, which Naud said would microfinance the improvements. To repay the loan, homeowners would get an additional assessment on their property tax bills.

The risk is low, Naud said, as long as they structure the program in the right way – for example, not lending to people who are upside down on their mortgages, owing more than the home is worth. There’s already a system in place to make payments – the tax bills – and the improvements would add value to the property. The city has set aside $400,000 from a federal Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant it received, to use as a loan loss reserve fund. If the enabling legislation is passed, the city would be able to put together a package that would work, Naud said.

[Link to a September 2009 article about the PACE program, written by Eric Jamison, a law student at Wayne State University Law School who's working with the Great Lakes Environmental Law Center to develop the program in Michigan. More information is also available on the PACE Now website. Previous Chronicle coverage related to PACE: "Special District Might Fund Energy Program"]

Local banks will likely be involved in the effort as well – the Bank of Ann Arbor, for example, has been talking with the city for several months about how a “green lending” program might be structured.

Appleyard says that the DTE program certainly changed the economics of solar installation, but he hopes a feed-in tariff law will be enacted, too. He contends that it’s a case of politicians saying they want to do it and then having the political will to back it up. “It’s just a question of how long we wait and how many more droughts we have and sea level rises and all those other things that are happening – climate change – before we go ahead and decide that we have to do something.”

Hayley Byrnes is an intern with The Ann Arbor Chronicle. Chronicle Publisher Mary Morgan contributed to this report.

Coming soon to the Michigan Theater marquee: "The Ann Arbor Chronicle."

Giddy doesn’t begin to describe the first time I saw my byline in a newspaper – slobberingly gaga comes closer – and I’m anticipating a similar can’t-help-grinning-stupidly jolt when The Chronicle’s name goes up on the Michigan Theater marquee on Sunday.

As our publication grows, we’re looking for ways to let people know what we do. And we’re looking to do that in ways that make sense for us. For example, you probably won’t see us putting flyers on car windshields in the Walmart parking lot – unless, perhaps, we’re doing it as performance art. What’s more our speed? An ad in the program for Burns Park Players’ “Annie Get Your Gun” in February. I was pretty gaga over that, too.

But when I met with the Michigan Theater’s Lee Berry a few weeks ago over breakfast at the Broken Egg and he told me about the possibility of sponsoring the 1939 classic “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington” – well, the fit seemed just about perfect.

Why is “Mr. Smith” a good fit? It’s a movie where the workings of government take center stage – regular Chronicle readers will recognize that watching government is one of our things. Then there’s the whole sleep-deprived angle. If you’ve never seen the film and have no idea what I’m talking about, now’s your chance. We’re thrilled to be sponsoring three showings of the Jimmy Stewart film, as part of Michigan Theater’s Summer Classic Film Series: On Sunday, June 28 at 1:30 p.m., and on Tuesday, June 30, at 4:30 and 7 p.m. The film’s 1939 premiere was sponsored by the National Press Club, and we don’t mind the parallel.

As part of the sponsorship, we’ll be giving away some free passes to each show. If you come to the ticket office and see us lurking outside, mention that you’re a Chronicle reader and we’ll give you a pass to the movie, until we run out. We hope to see you there.

We’ll have more giveaways later this summer at another event that we’re geeked about – the Ann Arbor Street Art Fair’s Townie Street Party. This is the fifth year the party has been held, on the Monday evening before the town is mobbed by art fair-goers. This year, it falls on July 13. The event is free, and runs from 5-9:30 p.m. on North University between Thayer and Fletcher. There’ll be live music, food vendors, fun stuff for kids – and the opportunity for you to ride a teeter totter.

The Chronicle’s table in the street party’s Townie Hall will include a raffle of gift baskets packed with swag that’s been generously donated by some of our Chronicle advertisers. (I just picked up some very cool camo caps from Fingerle Lumber yesterday.) Drop by to enter the free raffle, sign up for our weekly email list or just to say hi – we love meeting Chronicle readers in person.

Here’s a few more things we’ll be doing in the coming weeks:

Dave Askins, my partner at The Chronicle, will be speaking at the inaugural Ignite Ann Arbor event on June 30, where he’ll present an “origin story” for this publication. Two guys in Seattle started the first Ignite event in 2006, and it’s a concept that has spread (yeah, we get it – like fire). Each speaker gets five minutes and 20 slides, with each slide advancing automatically every 15 seconds. The idea is to keep things lively, and to pack each event with a broad range of speakers and topics – Tuesday’s Ignite definitely fits that description. I met the organizer, Ryan Burns, at a recent Friday Mornings @ Selma – Amy Milligan, development director for the Neutral Zone, introduced us, and it turns out NZ is hosting the event. It begins at 7 p.m. at 310 E. Washington St.

I’ll be part of a panel discussion with other journalists at the Michigan Leaders Breakfast on Thursday, July 9. Hosted by the Ann Arbor Business Review and the Washtenaw Economic Club, it’s being billed as a look at the “evolution of local media.” Evolution, devolution, revolution – I’ve heard what’s happening in the field of journalism described in all these ways, and generally not in a laudatory tone. Even though The Chronicle is in the thick of doing it – whatever it is – I waver between being intensely interested and just downright sick of navel-gazing. But if journalistic navels are to be gazed at, this is a good group to do it: Other panelists include John Hilton of the Ann Arbor Observer, Lucy Ann Lance of the Lucy Ann Lance Business Insider on WLBY-AM, Tony Dearing of AnnArbor.com and Paula Gardner of the Ann Arbor Business Review. The event runs from 7-9 a.m. at Kensington Court, 610 Hilton Blvd. and costs $30.

Also on July 9, I’ll be the speaker at the NetWorks! lunch series put on by the Ann Arbor Area Chamber of Commerce. The topic will also be local news – specifically, how The Chronicle fits into the media landscape. I’ll be describing how I think The Chronicle’s approach to local journalism makes us different from everyone else. The lunch is held at the Ann Arbor Country Club, 4699 East Loch Alpine Drive, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. It costs $25 for chamber members, $35 for non-members.

About the writer: Mary Morgan is publisher of The Ann Arbor Chronicle.

Brian Woolridge, performing in the alley next to the Michigan Theater.

Since 1995, Brian Woolridge has been dancing in downtown Ann Arbor. But soon, he might pack up his boom box and bags of Michael Jackson CDs and leave the town and the state after 14 years of regularly performing his King-of-Pop moves here.

Ann Arbor residents might know Woolridge as “the Michael Jackson guy.” He’s the one moonwalking in the alley on Liberty Street near the Michigan Theater on weekends. People strolling by wave to him as he spins and slides, Jackson’s vocals echoing against the alley’s graffiti-splashed walls and out onto the street.

But his life isn’t all dance. Woolridge lost his job in September, and he says he hasn’t had much luck looking for work. He’s not sure about his plans for the future, but they may involve leaving Michigan.

A soft-spoken man, he furrows his brow as he recalls his struggle to gain unemployment benefits. He said he had to go to a couple court hearings. “I had to fight for it,” Woolridge said.

He’s been doing a little cleaning work, but he’s not searching for anything more right now. “I’m going to wait for my unemployment time to run out,” he said. “It’s kind of hard to say what the next step is going to be.”

That probably means he’ll wait until the end of the summer to make his next move, he said.

Brian Woolridge with his boom box and Michael Jackson CDs in the alley next to the Michigan Theater.

He makes some money from his dancing. When The Chronicle stopped by earlier this month, the cardboard box he’d set up at the mouth of the alley was filled with a thin layer of dollar bills and coins. Woolridge said he makes about $50 per weekend. When he started, it was $100 or more. Now, he says he guesses he’s just getting old.

Woolridge, who grew up in the Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti area, started his downtown performances after noticing that the alley he currently occupies wasn’t being used for anything. He’s had no formal dance training and says he learned just by watching Jackson. Although he didn’t want to be a professional dancer when he was younger, he recalls that he did want to be an entertainer.

“I liked entertaining people, and Michael did it,” Woolridge said. “I grew up with Michael Jackson. He was always my favorite.”

Woolridge took a shot at greater fame this past March when he traveled to Chicago to audition for NBC’s “America’s Got Talent.” “I guess I did ok,” Woolridge said. “But they didn’t call me back.”

For now, Woolridge is still stationed in his alley, equipped with his boom box, CD collection and a worn-looking black fedora. “A lot of people say, ‘Keep dancing,’” Woolridge said. “I really don’t know how much longer I’ll keep doing this.”

Brian Woolridge performing to Michael Jackson tunes in the alley next to the Michigan Theater.

About the author: Helen Nevius, a student at Eastern Michigan University, is an intern with The Ann Arbor Chronicle.

Marquee at the Michigan Theater on Sunday, April 5

Marty Stano, director of the film “Taffy, Cigarettes,” called The Chronicle a couple of weeks ago – he wanted to know if we’d be interested seeing a screener DVD of the 12.5-minute effort in advance of its premiere on Sunday, April 5 at the Michigan Theater.

The name “Stano” sounded familiar. I’d seen it somewhere. Ah yes, I’d edited a piece for The Chronicle on the 2009 Millers Creek Film Festival – Stano won an award for his “Runoff Lemonade.”

So, sure, I’ll look at a screener DVD from an award-winning director.

Whereas the Millers Creek submission seemed to be more of an independent effort, “Taffy, Cigarettes” – written and directed by Stano – was produced as part of the EFEX project: Encourage the Film-making Experience.

At Sunday’s premiere,  the founders of EFEX – University of Michigan grad Sultan Sharrief and senior lecturer in screen arts and culture at UM Terri Sarris – were on hand to talk about the program’s goals: To provide through filmmaking “a comprehensive approach to teach young people how to live prosperous, socially valuable lives and to provide pathways to diversity in higher education.” EFEX is a collaboration between Sharrief’s production company, Beyond Blue, and the University of Michigan.

Actors from "Taffy, Cigarettes" left-to-right at the premiere: Adam Alpert, Lauren Jane Bryden, Zach Goldasich, Jack Meluch.

As he created the film”Taffy, Cigarettes” from the script he’d written,  Stano – a UM grad himself – worked with students from Sarris’ film class and partnered with metro Detroit high school students. The script evolved in part through “workshopping” it at Belleville and Van Buren high schools.  That entailed dividing up roles and just reading through the parts – a “table read” – then discussing whether it rang true. Auditions resulted in casting of Atif and Omar Hashwi, two brothers from Dearborn, in the roles of two bullies, Jake and Jimmy.

In the film, Jake and Jimmy antagonize two friends, Kevin and Travis, played by Jack Meluch and Adam Alpert, who are spending a summer playing baseball, playing pogs, and collecting empty pop bottles, before starting middle school in the fall. Stano describes the film as a coming-of-age story, which is also reflected in the tagline on the poster: “Childhood has to end sometime.”

And the film certainly works at that level. Kevin goes from getting shoved to the ground by Jake out on the train tracks and getting the cigarettes he’s bought for his mom stolen, to wielding a pop bottle with startling effectiveness in the final scene. This theme is supported with attention to detail throughout. The graffiti on the railroad bridge was added by the film crew and includes “Jake” in the design, marking the tracks as a place controlled by Jake and his brother. At the Q & A session after the premiere, Sarris stressed that she’d insisted on water-soluble paint – consistent with the general principle of not leaving a mess at places where they’d filmed.

Atif and Omar Hashwi, who play the bullies in "Taffy, Cigarettes."

It’s this notion of place explored by the film that’s more interesting to me than the coming-of-age theme. Who controls what place?

The hangout in their tree with the stash of money from pop bottles is Kevin and Travis’ place. The convenience store is Sid, the owner’s, place – where he closely monitors  Kevin’s cigarette purchases. The railroad tracks and the playground – or really any place they happen to be – are places controlled by Jake and Jimmy. Kevin’s house is his mom’s place. The trampoline is Sarah’s place.

As I pre-screened the film, it’s the idea of place that lept first to mind, because I recognized so many of the places in the film – it was shot in Ann Arbor.

Even on the small-screen of my MacBook, when Wurster Park appeared in the background as Travis gave Kevin a ride on his bicycle pegs, it gave me a little thrill, because I recognized it as a place only three blocks away from where I live.

The thrill was repeated at the premiere and was amplified by the size of the image projected on Michigan Theater’s screening room.

What kind of place is my neighborhood? In “Taffy, Cigarettes,” it’s a place where kids get duct-taped to playground poles.

The mic is returned to director of "Taffy, Cigarettes," Marty Stano.

The duct-taping scene is presented in an understated, matter-of-fact way. Kevin and Travis look on with interest as the hapless victim gets strapped to the pole, but there’s no discernible inclination to intervene on his behalf. It’s apparently par-for-the-course.  Par-for-the-course that the bullies duct-tape kids to poles. And par-for-the-course that Kevin and Travis look on passively. Later, we see the evidence of duct-taped kid’s eventual freedom in the form of duct-tape remnants still stuck to the pole, but how he escaped is left to our imagination.

In this, the film succeeds in Stano’s stated goal not to present its themes in a way that hits you over the head. Literal hitting-over-the-head, however, appears in the final scene.

Though the actor who endured the duct-taping said at the premiere he’d happily work with director Stano again, about the duct-tape he allowed, “It burns!”

I felt a delightful disconnect between the peaceable place I imagine my neighborhood to be and the idea that it’s a place where kids can get duct-taped to a pole.

The film also drove home to me something I already knew about Ann Arbor as a place. It’s small. I noticed in the credits that special thanks was given to Laura Fisher. Like Stano’s, that’s another name I recognized as having a previous Chronicle connection – but of a different kind. Fisher minds the code and the styles for The Ann Arbor Chronicle website. I wondered why the filmmakers wanted to thank her. It turns out her thirteen-year-old son, Jack Meluch, plays Kevin in the movie.

Mike Lafond (right), shoots some footage at the premiere as an unforgiving historian for the film "Taffy, Cigarettes." Lafond is a senior at UM in the screen arts and culture program.

Sultan Sharrief and Terri Sarris, founders of the EFEX project, at the premiere of "Taffy, Cigarettes."

A photo op for students and teachers from Northside Elementary at the Michigan Theater. These fourth and fifth grade students had entries in the Millers Creek Film Festival.

It’s not an image you see on the big screen every day: Close-up shots of dogs pooping, and then of their turds being plopped into an otherwise clear glass of water.

Funny, memorable and making a point – this is what happens (albeit less graphically) when you don’t pick up your dog’s excrement and it finds its way into the Huron River watershed. And by making the point this way, Nani Wolf, a fifth grader at Emerson School, won an award at the 2009 Millers Creek Film Festival.

About 350 people gathered on Friday afternoon, March 13, to see the festival entries at the Michigan Theater. (If you missed it, the winners will eventually be posted on YouTube. Here’s a link to last year’s winners.)

The event, now in its fourth year, is a way for the nonprofit Huron River Watershed Council to promote the importance of stewardship to the river and its tributaries, including Millers Creek. The festival’s three categories are short films (less than five minutes) from adult filmmakers, short films from school-age filmmakers, and 30-second public service announcements.

During introductory remarks, HRWC board member Paul Cousins noted that Hollywood had recently been to his town of Dexter to shoot scenes for a movie (the Hilary Swank film “Betty Anne Waters” filmed at several locations in this area). More movies are being shot in the state because of tax credits that took effect last year, he told the audience, but “we’re way ahead of Michigan in films.”

In addition to Wolf, whose film was titled “You Love Your Dog,” two others were awarded “Millies” – in the form of a glass trophy – and a $500 cash prize. Winners included:

• “Runoff Lemonade,” by independent filmmaker Marty Stano, which won in the category of 30-second public service announcement.
• “60 Second PSA” by John Inwood, a film student at Washtenaw Community College. His short film, which won in the adult category, was about the importance of not dumping oil into the storm drain.

An honorable mention in the student category was awarded to “Mystery of the Dirty Storm Drain,” a claymation film about sewer drains made by fifth graders in Ralph Carnegie’s class at Northside Elementary. They received ice cream coupons from Washtenaw Dairy. Also awarded an honorable mention was Blair Neighbors for “Life is Hectic” in the 30-second PSA category. He received a gift donated by Grizzly Peak.

Judges for the awards were state Sen. Liz Brater of Ann Arbor; Chris Cook, a film writer and producer with Metrocom International; and Steve Francoeur of Eastern Michigan University’s Center for Aquatic Microbial Ecology.

A reception after the film viewing and awards included a table full of plates of homemade cookies baked by HRWC volunteers, which proved especially popular with those in the student-entry category.

Marty Stano won a "Millie" award at the Millers Creek Film Festival on March 13, for his film "Runoff Lemonade." Presenting the award were Joan Martin, festival director, and Laura Rubin, director of the Huron River Watershed Council.

Graffiti in the alley next to Michigan Theater.

The alley next to Michigan Theater transformed pretty quickly over the summer from a colorful, artistically-coherent mural to a colorful collage of random graffiti – prompting Mr. Limpet to ask, “Where’s the Art?”

In early July, someone painted a swath of white over part of the mural called “Infinite Possibilities,” which had been created there in 1999. The Ann Arbor News ran an article about the incident, interviewing the artist, Katherine Tombeau Cost, who now lives in New Orleans. She said it had taken her five months to complete, but she wasn’t ticked off by the graffiti: “The thing about public art it is an exercise in letting go. You put it out there and you know it is not forever. I have to remind myself this isn’t my family room. That is the element of public art. It will be great and it will be gone.”

And now it’s really gone.

White paint covers most of the brick walls toward the front of the alley’s entrance, and those in turn are plastered with pictures, tags, scrawlings, the occasional expletive and what might pass for deep thoughts if you’re eight years old.

View of the alley next to Michigan Theater.

The Chronicle wondered what was in store for this space – were plans in the works to commission a new mural? As we were waiting to hear back from Russ Collins, executive director of the Michigan Theater, we came across a recent post on Jafabrit’s Art blog, which describes this very alley: “Spent a few days in Ann Arbor Michigan and found this wonderful graffiti alley off E. Liberty Street. I saw this pole in the side alley with the same colours as my knit tag and camo doll ( I named her ‘alley cat’) and it was just meant to be.” Photos ensue.

There’s much talk these days about public art – earlier this year, for example, the Ann Arbor city council approved permanent funding for the Commission on Art in Public Places. And you can certainly find officially sanctioned murals throughout the area – an underwater seascape on the alley next to the Huron Avenue Tios, a student-designed homage to the arts on the back of the Ann Arbor Art Center building, and the recently unveiled mural at the Corner Health Center in Ypsilanti. Michigan Peaceworks wants a public mural, too, and is looking for a good spot to put it.

But you can’t get more public (or collaborative, in an intentional/unintentional way) than the organic, visual cacaphony in that Michigan Theater alley. It isn’t so much each individual tag or image, but the cumulative layers of color and words and shapes that create this urban landscape.

Is it art? The Chronicle doesn’t have the critical chops to say. Is it provocative? Absolutely.

And, like other public art, it too will someday be gone. Take your photos while you can.

More alley graffiti next to Michigan Theater.