Audio tape recording of the Feb. 17, 2009 Ann Arbor city council meeting – even though the Community Television Network video has gone missing, it's still possible to review what was said at the meeting. The Ann Arbor city clerk's office makes audio recordings of council meetings to ensure the accuracy of minutes. (Photo illustration by The Chronicle.)

For its proceedings, the Ann Arbor city council does not have a video replay rule.

But if it did, here’s the kind of play that might be reviewable: Did a city council-appointed board receive advice from the city’s financial quarterback in a way that, under ordinary rules of plain American English discourse, constitutes a recommendation that should be carried forward in a future board policy?

At issue is whether two seasons ago, back in February 2009, city of Ann Arbor CFO Tom Crawford recommended to the Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority that the DDA have a policy to maintain a minimum fund balance as a reserve, and specifically, whether a minimum reserve amount was specified.

The question was important over the last two years in the course of negotiations between the DDA and the city about the contract under which the DDA manages Ann Arbor’s public parking system.

The remarks made by Crawford – which everyone seems to recall (albeit differently) – took place in plain view on the public field of play, at the Feb. 17, 2009 city council meeting.

What made the public conversation remarkable in the waning stages of contract negotiations, was that it was based on what the different players (including Crawford) recalled Crawford saying. Why not just take an approach familiar to the Big Ten college football conference, and review the tape to find out exactly what Crawford said?

That’s the approach The Chronicle took – even though we’d previously reported Crawford’s remarks from the Feb. 17, 2009 council meeting in paraphrase form, and our paraphrase was consistent with the recollection of DDA board members.

In April 2011, we learned that the video recording of the meeting, which originally aired on Community Television Network (CTN), no longer exists. [For a broader look at CTN, see "CTN: What's Our Vision for Local Television?"]

However, we were able eventually to follow up with a request made to the city under the Freedom of Information Act and obtain an audio recording of the meeting made by the city clerk’s office.

If I were asked as a head official to review the play, then in the parlance of the Big Ten, I think there’s indisputable audio evidence that in his remarks, Crawford passed a recommendation along to the DDA to implement at least a 15% minimum fund balance reserve policy.

I am not, of course, a head official.

Nevertheless, it’s worth laying out exactly what Crawford did say at that 2009 meeting just for the historical record. First, a bit of pre-game coverage in the form of some additional context.

Context for Caring About Fund Balances

The most recent context for the DDA’s concerns over its fund balances involved negotiations with the city of Ann Arbor about the contract under which the DDA manages the city’s public parking system. In May 2011, after two years of negotiating, the city and the DDA struck an 11-year deal, with an 11-year renewal option, under which the city would receive a 17% cut of gross revenues from the public parking system.

The DDA’s position during contract negotiations was essentially this: We would love to accommodate the city’s desire to receive as high a percentage of gross public parking revenue as possible; however, we can’t manage it, because our fund balance would fall too far below the level recommended by the city’s own chief financial officer.

DDA board members were relying on their recollection that CFO Tom Crawford had recommended, in February 2009, that the DDA enact a financial policy under which the DDA would maintain at least 15% of operating expenses (or perhaps more) in its fund balance as a reserve amount. The context of Crawford’s remarks on the evening of Feb. 17, 2009 was a city council decision on the issuance of bonds to build the Fifth Avenue underground parking structure.

The original site plan for the project, which the DDA is managing, included extending the deck under Fifth Avenue down to William Street. The idea was that an underground connection to any future development on the former YMCA lot – at the northwest corner of Fifth and William – would be a benefit. But at their Feb. 17, 2009 meeting, city councilmembers followed Crawford’s advice and voted to eliminate the extension of the garage down to Fifth Avenue.

Just as a side note, it’s possible to imagine that the city council might eventually decide, after construction of the underground garage is complete, that it’s still worth creating an underground connection from the garage to the west side of Fifth Avenue. That decision would not need to be based on speculation about future development on the former Y lot, which is now owned by the city. Rather, such a decision could instead be driven by the fact that the Ann Arbor Transportation Authority is planning to move its Blake Transit Center from the Fourth Avenue side to the Fifth Avenue side of the lot. It could make sense to eventually connect a newly situated BTC to the underground parking structure.

If that happens, I hope councilmember Carsten Hohnke – who currently represents Ward 5, where Jerusalem Garden restaurant owner Ali Ramlawi lives – delivers that news to Ramlawi: The business, located near the corner of Liberty and Fifth, would enjoy several more months of disruption as Fifth Avenue is broken up again.

Verbatim Quotation from Feb. 17, 2009

It would be fitting for Hohnke to deliver that news, because it was Hohnke who provided the prompt for Crawford’s remarks that led to the downsizing of the project.

Carsten Hohnke: … Mr. Crawford to speak to us, in particular I’d like to ask, from your extensive review of the 10-year plan for the DDA, if we look at the site plan as currently proposed, extending down to underneath Fifth Ave. to William Street, what is your assessment of the financial impact on the DDA, together with the other projects that are in its pipeline?

Mayor John Hieftje: Everyone may not be aware that Mr. Crawford is the city’s chief financial officer.

Tom Crawford: Thanks. I spent some time with the DDA and reviewed their financial projections and you know one of the things I noticed was that they don’t have a target or minimum reserve policy.  So, as I looked at it, I use a minimum reserve of 15 to 20 percent, and as I looked at this project and everything else on their plate, I don’t, in my view, the project as proposed is not affordable, with the plans that they have. So I think that there are alternatives that are more affordable, but as proposed, I did not find it to be affordable. [.mp3 file of 90-minute chunk of the Feb. 17, 2009 city council meeting. The audio cassette tape was converted to digital format by Russell Video.]

Was That a Completed Forward Pass?

Based on the exact words uttered by Crawford and the context in which they were uttered, I think it’s both reasonable and correct for the members of the DDA staff and the board to have received Crawford’s comments as (1) a recommendation that they should have a minimum reserve fund balance policy, and that (2) the level of that minimum reserve should be 15-20%.

It’s true that Crawford did not say, “Tonight here before you in front of everyone on live TV, I am hereby recommending that the DDA establish a minimum reserve policy at a level of 15% of operating expenses.”

However, when the city’s chief financial officer highlights the absence of a minimum reserve policy at a public meeting, I think it’s impossible for the DDA not to take that as a recommendation to establish such a policy. Further, when the chief financial officer specifically calls out a 15-20% minimum reserve level as the metric used for concluding that a planned expenditure was “unaffordable,” then it’s also difficult for the DDA to establish some minimum reserve level lower than 15%.

Based on the actual text of Crawford’s remarks, I think it’s clear enough that the DDA’s understanding here was correct. In a mathematics textbook, this is the point where the author would write, “The proof is left to the reader.”

But if this were football, not math, then we would need to add the extra point. So consider a different scenario, which I contend is perfectly analogous: A wide-receiver asks the strength and conditioning coach to evaluate his training plan.

Suppose the coach says: “One of the things I noticed in reviewing your training plan was that you don’t have minimum target heart rates for any of these training activities. To get a target heart rate, I take an athlete’s resting heart rate and add 15-20% to it, and based on your current resting heart rate, I don’t think you have the cardiovascular fitness to complete all these training miles. If you reduced the miles you’re running by eliminating this extra loop down Fifth Avenue, your training plan would be more achievable.”

I think it’s difficult for the football player not to understand those remarks as a recommendation to establish a minimum target heart rate for training exercise – by adding 15-20% to his resting heart rate and monitoring his own performance in that way.

Recollections Versus Replay

What was frustrating to me as I watched the conversation between the city and the DDA unfold earlier this year was not so much the fact of the “completed forward pass,” which I already knew to be true based on The Chronicle’s reporting.

What I found frustrating was the lack of willingness on the part of any public official to insist that the conversation be based on fact, and not on someone’s recollection.

I first noticed this reliance on recollection during a meeting between the city council and the DDA’s mutually beneficial committees, when public services area administrator Sue McCormick reported that Crawford’s recollection of his remarks was different from the DDA’s.

At the council’s April 19 meeting, when pressed by councilmember Sandi Smith (Ward 1), who’s also a DDA board member, Crawford himself stated his recollection was different:

Smith also asked Crawford to reconcile his statements made around the time the city council was authorizing bonds for the DDA to build the South Fifth Avenue underground parking garage (now under construction) – statements to the effect that a fund balance of 12-15% or perhaps 15-18% would be appropriate. She asked him point blank what the difference was between then and now: What has changed?

Crawford began by saying that he didn’t recall giving the DDA a minimum fund balance that they needed to have.

Note that Smith’s recollection here is also not perfect. Mayor John Hieftje contributed to the murkiness of the conversation at a special DDA board meeting held on May 20, 2011, which The Chronicle reported this way: “[Hieftje] contended that Crawford remembered his remarks about fund balances a little differently from what [Sandi] Smith had portrayed.”

Then at the council’s June 20 meeting, Crawford – in an exchange with Stephen Kunselman (Ward 3) – said that he did recall a conversation with the DDA in which he suggested that some kind of minimum fund balance policy should be adopted: “Crawford said he did recall suggesting the DDA adopt a fund balance policy around the time when the underground parking garage was being discussed.” In that exchange with Kunselman, Crawford did not address the issue of whether he’d recommended a level to set the minimum fund balance.

It’s fine to have a different or an incomplete recollection. But there’s no need for our elected and appointed leaders to rely on recollection when a replay is available. Certainly the folks who play football in Michigan Stadium understand as much.

In closing, here’s a transcription from a speech given in Michigan Stadium a couple of years ago, not about football [emphasis added]:

But if we choose to actively seek out information that challenges our assumptions and our beliefs, perhaps we can begin to understand where the people who disagree with us are coming from. Now this requires us to agree on a certain set of facts to debate from. That’s why we need a vibrant and thriving news business that is separate from opinion makers and the talking heads. [applause ~5 seconds] That’s why we need an educated citizenry that values hard evidence and not just assertion. [applause ~5 seconds] As Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan famously once said, “Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts.” [audience laughter]

Yes, President Barack Obama got a laugh from the commencement crowd that year. But when we can’t consistently get this right, even on a local level, it’s really not all that funny.

About the writer: Dave Askins is editor and co-founder of The Ann Arbor Chronicle. The Chronicle could not survive without regular voluntary subscriptions to support our coverage of local government and civic affairs. Click this link for details: Subscribe to The Chronicle. And if you’re already supporting us, please encourage your friends, neighbors and colleagues to help support The Chronicle, too!

Rock star Matt Jones and Colette Alexander at Take a Chance Tuesday (April 27, 2010) at The Ark on Main Street. (Photos by the writer.)

What would make him a rock star? Say a University of Michigan graduate lifted their gown to reveal the tattooed text of Obama’s complete inaugural address – that’s the kind of thing fans of actual rock stars do.

And by that standard, Ann Arbor’s Matt Jones is a rock star.

The tattoo story was related second hand at The Ark’s Take a Chance Tuesday this week by Colette Alexander. Alexander accompanied Jones on cello for his performance.

A fan somewhere north of here, Alexander reported, had recently tattooed the lyrics of an entire Jones song across her back. She fell short, however, of complete commitment, by not including every repetition of the refrain.

So the May 1, 2010 history of Ann Arbor will record the performances of rock stars and non-rock stars alike. At 11 a.m. Barack Obama (not a rock star) will deliver the University of Michigan commencement address.

Later that same evening, with the Blind Pig’s doors opening at 9:30 p.m., Jones (rock star) and Alexander will play The Pig, along with the headline act, Frontier Ruckus. Frontier Ruckus is also an alum of The Ark’s Take a Chance Tuesday. Jones told The Chronicle that The Blind Pig performance will be an all-electric set.

At The Blind Pig, they’ll be joined by Alexander Silver, who’s also playing the 2 p.m. slot at Ypsilanti’s 2010 edition of Totally Awesome Fest, before playing his Ann Arbor gig.

April 27, 2010: Take a Chance Tuesday

The Chronicle’s attendance at The Ark’s Take a Chance Tuesday performance of Matt Jones, joined by Colette Alexander on cello, is prima facia evidence that fliers posted on telephone poles work.

It was an unexpected extra Tuesday treat to listen to a set by the California duo Coyote Grace – Ingrid Elizabeth and Joe Stevens, who played before Jones and Alexander. Here’s a few photos from their performances.

Colette Alexander dominates the cello.

Ingrid Elizabeth of Coyote Grace. The duo – including Joe Stevens on guitar and banjo – is fresh off a tour with The Indigo Girls.

Shots from Ypsilanti's Elbow Room are sometimes distributed to special performers at The Ark's Take a Chance Tuesdays.

Matt Jones sets up for his recent show at The Ark.

President Barack Obama at Macomb Community College in Warren, Michigan. (Photo by the writer.)

Everyone I spoke to had a variation of the same story. A call. An email. Sometime within 24 hours of the event, offering a ticket or two to hear President Barack Obama speak at Macomb Community College on July 14.

For me, it was a call Monday afternoon from one of Rep. Dingell’s staff. Mr. Dingell had five tickets – they were offering me one. Did I want it?

Yes – if it was OK with my boss!

For the couple in line in front of me, it was a call Monday night from a lobbyist they knew who had two tickets.

For the student seated next to me, it was an email from Macomb Community College Monday, offering the tickets first-come, first-serve.

The UAW workers were called Tuesday morning. The honor student received a call from the college president Monday night. The 15-year-old photography student brought her father because she only has a learner’s permit and a really amazing camera.

We all dropped our agendas, found a baby sitter, changed our plans, canceled a meeting or two, and made our way to hear the president.

It  wasn’t as bad as it could have been. I only got lost twice on the drive there, and found where to join the line without any problem. I wasn’t really late. I even saw someone from Ann Arbor – one of the developers of a proposed project. At least we had something to talk about while we waited in line.

Security was easier than I anticipated, too. I didn’t have to take off my shoes, and except for having to turn on my phone and camera, there were no other major demands.

Although no one could bring in bottled water, plastic glasses of water were available. (I drank two, right away. Standing in line for 40 minutes will do that.) There were seats for nearly everyone, but of course, I wasn’t first in line.

Who Were We?

Everyone was happy to be there, in the sun, waiting for two hours.

Crowd at Obama speech at Macomb Community College in Warren, Michigan. (Photo by the writer.)

We talked while we waited. The woman next to me revealed that she was a student at Macomb because she wants a better job. She and her husband were both clearly in their 50s, and in other economies would be talking about retiring. Seeking more training and a new job at this point would be difficult.

I asked about her current job, and learned that she works in human resources for an auto supply company. She didn’t need to tell me much for me to understand that her company isn’t doing well, isn’t hiring many people, and human resources is spending more and more time dealing with letting people go and helping them retrain for other jobs.

With a little prompting from her husband, she told me about wanting to be a patient advocate, and then went on to tell me how frustrating it can be to work with medical professionals who are too busy to really understand the needs of patients. She wants to make certain patients and their families are well represented in all aspects of medical care.

Her mother, she told me, has early stage Alzheimer’s. When she had a mastectomy, the hospital explained the needed aftercare to her – but ignored the fact that Alzheimer’s patients lose their short-term memory first. So her mother was sent home with no idea about how to care for herself. No one explained the care to her daughter – because that wasn’t part of hospital’s thought process.

This type of lack of communication with families and lack of understanding of the entire patient had encouraged her to look at becoming a patient advocate.

Others I spoke with had such diverse reasons for going to community college. They’d lost their job and needed retraining in another field. They were taking classes so they could get into another school. I was in Warren, but I could have been talking with students at Washtenaw Community College.

Of course, just like me, there were the usual political folks. I saw the mayor of this and the village president of that. Senator Debbie Stabenow, Governor Jennifer Granholm, Lieutenant Governor John Cherry and others were there. People representing unions and companies were chatting with each other. Just listening to everyone was educational.

Technology Changes Us

When President Obama’s plane landed, people were following the news on their phones. They knew which route he was taking, and spoke about how he’d be traveling over streets imperfectly fixed by the stimulus dollars, and how they hoped he’d do something about that. (The local government received the funds to start the project, but didn’t have the money to complete it, so they took off the surface of the street and then stopped work!)

As his motorcade arrived, a rush of folks moved to a gap in the fence to take photos. And of course, during the 30 minutes he spoke, everyone was attentive and so supportive.

Nearly everyone had a cell phone, a camera, maybe a recorder. There were camcorders of many sizes. Some people even took notes on paper!

I don’t see much reason to report on President Obama’s speech. After all, the media has already reduced it to sound bites. I did hear some good messages, however.

“When you lose your job, even when entire communities are losing jobs, that’s a heavy burden.”

“I welcome the responsibility.” (in reference to the economy)

“Michigan, you know bad weather – you can be on top of the need to weatherize.” (discussing alternative fuel and alternative energy)

As I left, my route took me past where the motorcade was waiting. A row of campus security waited on horseback, while a crowd stood at the barricades shouting “OBAMA! OBAMA!”

As the president left, he waved – and I missed the shot, capturing instead someone’s hand in front of the camera. I got a fine shot of his back, surrounded by security.

And a slight sunburn.

Well worth it.

About the author: Sabra Briere is one of two representatives for Ward 1 on Ann Arbor’s city council .

The crowd she characterized as “definitely intimate” but with everyone bundled up against the cold, not awkwardly so. One woman’s outerwear of choice was a fur coat. And because she was standing on a raised seating area, blocking the view of those behind her, it elicited a repeated plea, “Fur Coat, Sit Down!” Only when someone got her a chair, did she sit. That contrasted with a guy wearing San Francisco Giants apparel, who complied quickly with the directive of his fellow inauguration attendees.

The view in question was from roughly a quarter-mile away. Briere said that if she had it to do over again, she would have brought along her bird-watching binoculars. She speculated that there would not have been an issue bringing them through security, because people were bringing through all manner of items. This, after word had spread that no bags larger than 2 x 4 x 9 inches would be permitted through security – which proved to be incorrect. Though she was prepared psychologically to take off her shoes and coat for the security check, Briere said they just asked people to open their coats. Shoes stayed on.

Briere said there were a wide range of geographies represented amongst the crowd, having chatted with people from Louisiana, Texas, and California. One woman, when asked where she was from, said, “Here.” And when Briere identified herself as hailing from Ann Arbor, Michigan, came the clarification, “Oh, I’m from Northville (Michigan).” The D.C. resident was a manager at the Shakespeare Theater.

As far as the inauguration itself, Briere reported that a low rumble of a boo could be heard when George Bush was introduced, and led to speculation amongst the crowd that it would not be broadcast. But generally, Briere said, it was a happy and friendly crowd. Briere said that when Obama spoke, people were positively rapt with attention.

Before Obama spoke, Briere reported that the invocation was followed by the Lord’s Prayer, and that people in the crowd joined in (the “trespasses version”).

After the ceremonies, people were ready to leave, but the Metro stations where people had arrived had been closed. It wasn’t clear how they were supposed to get out of the area. Briere said they had taken refuge in the Freer Gallery at the Smithsonian Institute, along with several hundred other people. The problem of warmth was solved, but food still needed to be tracked down.

Because they drove, Briere said, they were not in the same situation as many people who wondered how they would be able to catch their flights. But they’d been hoping to get on the road back to Ann Arbor to get part of the drive out of the way yet tonight – Briere has to return to work on Thursday. The longer they had to remain in the area of the Capitol mall, the smaller the chances that plan would be realized.

Brian Mackie, Washtenaw County prosecutor, with his dogs in the Political Pets of Washtenaw County 2009 calendar. The calendar raises funds for the Community Action Network and Humane Society of Huron Valley.

Throughout the month of December, The Chronicle is highlighting Ann Arbor area businesses and nonprofits to help feed your local shopping habit – or to give you reasons to start one. Our lists are meant as a sampling, and we encourage readers and business owners to add their own favorite finds in the comments section.

We know many of you didn’t totally satisfy your fix during the past election season, so here are some ways to keep you or your favorite political junkies happy for the holidays.

Political Pets of Washtenaw County

It’s surprising that we don’t see this kind of thing more often – or at all. Community Action Network has put together a 2009 calendar featuring Washtenaw County elected officials and their pets. You’ll find out which pols are attached to a miniature donkey named Willie, a bunny named Carmel and a poodle named Miles, among others.

The calendar raises money for CAN, a nonprofit that provides support services for local public housing communities. A portion of the funds also go to the Humane Society of Huron Valley. The calendar costs $15 and is available at the Humane Society, 3100 Cherry Hill Road, or by emailing CAN at canetwork@juno.com. The calendar will also be available soon on CAN’s website.

Detail of a T-shirt sold at Dogma Catmantoo

For the Dogs – and Cats

Alice Liberson, owner of Dogma Catmantoo, designed T-shirts for Obama supporters who want to let the world know that their dog or cat would have voted for the dude if they could have. In addition to Ts ($19-$25), there’s a whole range of “petriotic” gear, including buttons ($1.50), bumper stickers $2) and dog treats ($7).

Location: 208 N. Fourth Ave. (between Ann and Catherine)

Hours: Monday-Wednesday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m.; Thursday, 10 a.m.-7 p.m.; Friday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m.; Saturday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Closed Sunday.

Phone: 734.929.0022

Obama Blend coffee from Mighty Good Coffee Co. This bag is on the counter at Jefferson Market, 609 W. Jefferson St.

A Liberal Brew

Local stores that carry Mighty Good Coffee report that the Obama Blend is one of their best-sellers. Here’s how the Ann Arbor company describes it: “Part Hawaiian Kauai, part Kenyan AA with a little bit of Indonesian to balance the budget, this is a coffee of distinction worthy of the Presidential race. And while we aren’t necessarily declaring our support for one candidate or another, there just aren’t any good coffee beans in John McCain’s past, or heritage, worth roasting.”

Mighty Good’s website includes a list of local stores that sell their coffee. You can also order online – a 1 lb. bag of Obama Blend costs $15, and Ann Arbor customers get next-day delivery.

More Political Ts

You don’t need to have a pet to make your body a political billboard. Elmo’s Main Street T-Shirts sells a wide range of Ts, whatever your persuasion (though honestly, Dems will find more of a selection here – come on, it’s Ann Arbor!). If you drop by, there’s a good chance that owner Elmo Morales will be behind the counter.

Location: 220 S. Main St. (between Liberty & Washington)

Hours: Monday-Saturday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Closed Sunday.

Phone: 734.994.9898

Detail of an Obama T-shirt sold at Elmo's Main Street T-Shirts, 220 S. Main St.

Other suggestions? If you’ve found cool gift ideas with a political bent, please share them with Chronicle readers in the comments section below. We’d love to hear from you.