Ed Pagani of Lumigen Inc. holds aloft a chemiluminescent compound that Russ Collins may or may not have been tempted to drink.

Ed Pagani could have gotten an award for best prop, if such an award were given at Morning Edition. Pagani, a former Pfizer executive who’s now general manager of Lumigen Inc. and chair of the Ann Arbor Area Chamber of Commerce board, was one of five speakers at Wednesday’s breakfast meeting, which drew about 200 people. The Chronicle didn’t hear a single one of them make a “Glow Blue” joke – even though his elixir did evoke the University of Michigan’s decommissioned nuclear reactor.

As is the drill at these monthly meetings, each speaker got five minutes to talk about their project or business. Wednesday’s topics ranged from the auto industry and Zipcars to downtown development and a local reentry program for former prisoners. Russ Collins, executive director of the Michigan Theater, was emcee. Here’s a brief recap:

David Cole, chairman of the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor.

David Cole, chairman of the Center for Automotive Research: Saying that people in Ann Arbor tend to be ignorant of the auto industry, Cole defended the domestic automakers. All auto manufacturers globally are struggling, he said, and the worldwide financial crisis has exacerbated their challenges, causing sales to fall to Depression-era levels.

Cole doubts we’ll see any of the domestics declare bankruptcy, since the cost of such a failure would be higher than the bridge loans provided by the federal government. A bankruptcy could push auto suppliers over a cliff, cascading job losses to a conservative estimate of 2.5 to 3 million, and perhaps as high as 5 million, he said.

The good news is that “times are not going to be bad forever,” Cole said. Labor costs are coming closer to parity between domestic and international automakers, and the problem of overcapacity – creating higher supply than demand – is being addressed. Eventually, pent-up demand will lead to profitability, he said. “The real issue is living to the future.”

Mary King, community coordinator for the Michigan Prisoner ReEntry Initiative of Washtenaw County: King described how this program aims to reduce the 76% recidivism rate for people released from prison who return to Washtenaw County. The ultimate aim, she said, is to reduce crime, but it’s also an economic issue – the state spends about $2 billion annually through the Department of Corrections. Locally, about 300 people are released each year, and the program begins by meeting with them 60 days before they’re released. MPRI does a needs assessment, finding out if they need housing (about 30% do), a job, training, transportation or other support. From that assessment, the program develops a plan for services that are provided for the critical 90 days after their release. (Additional, less intensive support is provided for 90 days after that.)

One of the events held for each person is a welcome home lunch with local law enforcement officials. That statement drew laughs from the audience, which prompted King to say, “You should see their faces when we tell them in prison that’s going to happen.”

King said one of the best ways to help is to offer jobs to MPRI’s clients, or to act as a job coach, and she urged businesses to consider doing that.

Ed Pagani, general manager of Lumigen Inc.: Though Lumigen is based in Southfield and owned by the much larger firm Beckman Coulter, Pagani has strong ties to Ann Arbor. In addition to his work with the chamber, he’s on the executive committee of Ann Arbor Spark and is former chairman of the trade group MichBio, based in Ann Arbor.

But his five minutes on Wednesday focused on giving an overview of Lumigen’s work. The company makes chemiluminescent compounds – “things that light up,” Pagani said, by way of explanation to an audience of mostly (one assumes) non-scientists. These compounds are used in life science research and testing for a wide range of medical issues, including fertility, diabetes, anemia, cardiovascular diseases and more. Lumigen has 40 employees and about $50 million in revenues, he said.

Nancy Shore, getDowntown program director: Following yesterday’s unveiling of four new Zipcars in downtown Ann Arbor, Shore gave an overview of the program and urged people to join. She said the car-share program eliminates some of the excuses she hears from downtown workers, who say they’d like to take a bike or bus to work, but that they sometimes need a car during the day. She highlighted some of the local businesses involved in the project, including the Betty Brigade, which has a contract to do regular cleaning of the fleet. “It is a sweet deal,” Shore said of the Zipcar program, “and it’s very affordable.”

Sandi Smith, Trillium Real Estate president and Ann Arbor City Council member: Smith mentioned that her real estate firm recently relocated to a building in Kerrytown’s Braun Court, but she spent most of her time talking about issues related to her work on city council and as a Downtown Development Association board member. That experience has caused her to see the city through a different lens, she said. Smith said that she stayed in Ann Arbor after graduating from UM, but young people aren’t as likely to do that these days. They’re looking for downtowns that are vibrant, diverse, with a certain critical mass of humanity, mass transit that works, music and the arts, with nearby recreation and natural resources. “We have the opportunity today to create such a place,” she said.

She urged people in the audience to voice their opinions about proposed zoning changes under the A2D2 initiative. Public comment sessions will be held on Monday, March 23 at 7 p.m. in the city council chambers (2nd floor of city hall, 100 N. Fifth Ave.), with others set for April 20 and May 4. She said she’s discovered during her five months on council that the same 20 or so people show up at all the meetings, and “most of them don’t want Ann Arbor to grow.” Call or email your council representative, Smith said. “We really need to hear what’s important for your businesses not just to survive, but thrive.”

Sign at the entrance to the parking lot off of Thompson, between Madison and Packard.

We’ve been talking about getting rid of our car for a long time, and I’ll admit I’m the one who’s been dragging my feet. For me, having a car is a habit – an addiction, really – and unable to go cold turkey, I’ve been edging toward carlessness in nicotine patch-like phases.

Zipcar has driven me into the final phase. We joined in February, and last week I took my first Zipcar excursion to the Ann Arbor Public Schools budget forum at Scarlett Middle School. What a sweet, unremarkable ride it was.

But before we go there, let’s talk a bit about freedom.

Part of my reluctance to go car-free has hinged on my sense that owning a car gives me freedom, and that without a car I’ll be trapped. I don’t think this is a totally irrational belief, rooted as it is in my own Midwestern cultural experience. I grew up in a small suburb of about 10 homes surrounded by miles of farmland – if you didn’t have a car, you were indeed stuck.

But now, we live in a city with public transportation. There are taxis. There are, obviously, Zipcars. A lot of things – places to buy food, be entertained, get your hair cut – are within walking distance. David, my husband and partner at The Chronicle, rides his bike almost exclusively. I got a scooter last year, a red Honda Ruckus that gives me a wide range of mobility. For longer trips, there’s an Enterprise rental office just three blocks from our home.

There are other factors, too. I don’t have to commute to Detroit – I work in the community where I live, and I don’t typically have back-to-back commitments that require me to move quickly between different, far-flung locations. Nor do I have a ton of stuff I have to haul around for work. And we don’t have children, so we don’t have to deal with that complex overlay of transportation demands. (I’d be interested in hearing how families with kids manage without a car.)

Given all of this, then, why own a car? The only real answer for me is the luxury of convenience and spontaneity. That sense of freedom I was talking about earlier. The I-want-to-do-it-now factor. What about those days when, just because the sun is shining, you decide you’d like to drive out to the Dexter A&W? What about when that project you’re working on calls for a load of lumber from Fingerle? Those kinds of things.

My first Zipcar, a Toyota Matrix. The firm's slogan – "Wheels when you want them" – is printed under the license plate.

And that’s the psychological pothole that Zipcar patched for me.

Proximity helped. Zipcars have been in Ann Arbor since 2007, in spots located near the University of Michigan campus. The closest cluster to our home is about a mile away, at the lot off of Thompson Street between Packard and Madison. But later this month, Zipcar is adding four cars at two locations downtown: In Kerrytown at Fourth and Catherine, and at the lot next to Palio’s at the corner of Main and William. For me, that last spot is a 10-minute walk from home.

Zipcar also makes the barrier to joining relatively low. There’s a $25 sign-up fee, plus a $50 annual membership fee. Beyond that, you pay $8 per hour for the use of a car. You have to reserve your car online – a straightforward process that took me less than 5 minutes – but if it turns out you need it longer than you thought, you can call and get more time. Cars can be reserved and used 24/7.

My first Zipcar trip was impressive in that it was totally mundane. The car I’d reserved was in the exact spot that Zipcar had told me, via email, it would be located – though initially I went to the wrong parking lot, and had to ask a passer-by where the Zipcars were parked. Luckily, she knew. The Zipcard I’d received in the mail, which looks like a credit card, did exactly what it was supposed to: I held it over a spot clearly indicated on the upper right corner of the front windshield, and the doors unlocked. The key was in a compartment between the front seats, the car was relatively clean inside and out, it didn’t smell like smoke or wet dogs, and the gas tank was half full.

Zipcar members gain entry by holding their Zipcard over the spot indicated on the front windshield, which unlocks the doors. When you're finished for the day, you leave the key inside and lock the doors using the same procedure.

Did I mention you don’t pay for gas? Or insurance and maintenance?

There are other costs that aren’t incurred by individual “Zipsters,” but that are still worth noting. Zipcar wouldn’t be here, for example, were it not for the university and the Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority guaranteeing a minimum amount of revenue per car. For example, for the four cars that will be located downtown, a contract with the Ann Arbor Area Chamber of Commerce (in partnership with getDowntown) runs for three years, with a minimum guarantee of $1,500 in monthly revenue per car. Annual membership fees don’t factor in to that tally.

It’s a safety net for the company, if the cars don’t get enough usage. But if Zipcar’s revenue from customers surpasses the guaranteed amount, then the local organizations are off the hook. And it seems like there’s a good chance for that. Back in December, when the DDA authorized funding of the fourth car in getDowntown’s Zipcar fleet, The Chronicle reported getDowntown director Nancy Shore’s description of the $1,500  guarantee as corresponding to 40% usage – with the UM Zipcar program already enjoying 60% usage.

And car-sharing isn’t confined to our quirky Ann Arbor corner of the world. In its March 8 issue, the New York Times Magazine published an article about Zipcars in which the company’s CEO projects a 40% growth in revenue this year.

More interesting to me than that, or than the estimate that Zipcar users who ditch their cars save on average $600 per month, is the fact that using a Zipcar or other car-sharing program actually alters behavior in a fairly dramatic way: “Evidence suggests that sharers drive from a quarter to half as much as owners – a staggering reduction in energy consumption. Not only do they drive less frequently, but they also drive differently. They ‘chain’ their trips, making multiple stops along the shortest route in order to drive most efficiently. They save money, do better by the environment and contribute less to congestion.”

As I continued reading, I was even more startled when the issue of freedom emerged in a quote from Zipcar CEO Scott Griffith: “I like to say we’re in the freedom business: you can do your thing without the cost and hassle of ownership. You don’t have to be a tree hugger to get that. I don’t think of myself as the guy waving the Greenpeace flag. I think of myself as a smart consumer.”

His comment highlights the fact that freedom is, in this way at least, a matter of perception. How have I come to equate freedom with being encumbered by a costly, 3,000-pound, environmentally damaging machine that’s used by pretty much just one person?

So I’m finally ready to kick my car-ownership habit. But if you’re not quite ready to do the same, well, I’ve got a ’97 Honda Civic hatchback, for which I have undue affection, that needs a good home. It’s got 80,000 miles on it with a manual transmission. Color: Amethyst Pearl (that’s purple).

Also on the agenda was an amendment to a parking agreement between the city, the DDA, and Village Green, which is developing the City Apartments project on the southeast corner of First and Washington. Even though the resolution was passed, Jon Frank, VP of development for Village Green, didn’t get the language he needed in the resolution, which means that City Apartments project will require some additional back and forth before the final Ts are crossed.

Among other news, in verbal summaries of various committee reports, came word from operations committee chair Roger Hewitt that the pilot valet parking program will begin on Dec. 15 at the Maynard Street structure.

Valet Parking

Hewitt reported that the pilot program for a valet parking option, which was recommended as an option in the Nelson Nygaard study, will begin on Dec. 15 at the Maynard parking structure using the Thompson Street entrance. The charge is $5 for the valet service, which runs from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday-Friday. Pick-up options include a standard valet: the car is retrieved on return to the structure. But visitors also have the option of calling ahead 15 minutes, in which case the car will be waiting ready to go on return to the structure.

Zipcars

The board considered and passed a resolution authorizing funding for a fourth Zipcar in addition to the three for which funding had already been approved in May 2008. The amount of the original authorization was up to $54,000 for $1,500 a month in guaranteed revenue to Zipcar and $10,000 for marketing and promotion. The new resolution added $18,000 to account for a maximum of $1,500 per month for a fourth vehicle. Nancy Shore, director of the getDowntown program, which will work with the DDA and Zipcar on the marketing end, clarified for the board that it’s conceivable that the guaranteed revenue would be covered completely by actual Zipcar usage. This assessment was based on the fact that the $1,500 revenue level corresponded to 40% usage, and the UM Zipcar program currently enjoyed 60% usage. Board member Gary Boren asked if the arrangement was a dollar-for-dollar abatement, and Shore said that she believed it was.

Shore said that with the final contracts to be signed on Dec. 15, the availability of Zipcars downtown would begin in January or February of 2009.

North-South Connector Study

Eli Cooper, transportation manager for the city of Ann Arbor, was on hand to clarify some of the issues surrounding the north-south connector study. The funding of the study is currently proposed at levels of $160,000 each for four partners: the DDA, UM, AATA, and the city of Ann Arbor. Cooper explained that while UM and AATA had formally authorized the funds (which represented increases from a previous round of authorizations), the city of Ann Arbor had made an administrative recommendation that still required approval by the city council.

Cooper then explained some of the nuts and bolts of the need for the study and why it was necessary. Chief among these reasons is to keep the project eligible for federal funding. John Hieftje, mayor of the city of Ann Arbor, asked if the winning bidder for the study contract, URS, had a record of success in obtaining federal funding. Cooper confirmed that they had.

Cooper clarified also the difference between this phase one study and the subsequent phase two, which would result in a “locally preferred alternative.” What the board was currently considering, said Cooper, was a study that would focus on feasibility, anticipated alignments (not a specific route), the establishment of a “purpose and need” and would entail generating ridership forecasts. The result would be a recommendation of two or three alternatives. Phase two would entail a far more technical engineering analysis, and would result in a specific preferred alternative. The order of magnitude for the phase two study would grow from the hundreds of thousands of dollars for phase one to $1.5-2.0 million for phase two. Where, asked board member John Mouat, can money be sourced to pay for phase two? Cooper said that a certain amount of federal dollars could come into play.

The result of phase two, said Cooper, was the first point of variance with respect to timing and cost for the final project. If it were to be a bus rapid transit system, the construction costs would be in the tens of millions, with light rail (street cars) around double that. Timing-wise, the best case scenario, felt Cooper, was 3-5 years to have something rolling.

The board discussion centered around the relative portion of the study cost to be born by the DDA. The shares had evolved from a previous $50,000 contribution for each of UM, city of Ann Arbor, DDA, with AATA contributing $100,000. Board member Rene Greff reiterated a point she’d made at the inaugural meeting of the transportation committee: If the DDA considered the $160,000 it was currently being asked to contribute as an amount they’d be willing to spend to get pertinent information (where do people come from when they visit downtown, where do they go after leaving?), then she thought it was an amount worth considering. But getting pertinent information became that much more important, Greff said, pointing specifically to the bullet points in the resolution:

• What is the estimated number and type of downtown workers and residents who will use this future connector? What is the estimated percentage use by downtown workers, UM faculty/staff/students, and other users?
• Why would a downtown worker use this connector rather than a single occupancy vehicle and/or the existing bus system?
• What is the optimal course though the downtown portion of its route to maximize its attractiveness to downtown users and transit connections?
• What are the various transportation modes the connector could use in addition to a trolley?

Board member Sandi Smith said that she was resistant to using that many city dollars when the main beneficiary would be UM. Hieftje took up Smith’s theme in more specific terms, saying that three-quarters of the money was coming from a single pot: the taxpayers of Ann Arbor, with only a quarter from UM, an institution with a $6-7 billion endowment. Hieftje said he thought UM should pay for half of the study. He thus supported tabling the resolution as the transportation committee had recommended.

With the exception of board chair Jennifer Hall, who was prepared to vote, the board supported the motion to table the resolution, sending it back to the transportation committee.

Village Green Parking Agreement

The resolution before the board concerned an amendment to the parking agreement struck between the DDA, the city of Ann Arbor and Village Green on January 2008 in which the DDA approved a 241-space design at a total cost of $9.035 million. The site plan approved by city council on Monday was for a 244-space design. The amendment sought by Village Green proposed to move the cap to 251 parking spaces at a total cost of $9.435 million.

The board had before it two versions of the resolution: one with language requested in written communications between the DDA and Village Green brought to the board by its partnership committee, and a different one based on verbal communications between Village Green and the DDA in the last couple of days. The latter had been examined by the DDA executive committee, but not necessarily recommended to the board.

In board deliberations, board chair Jennifer Hall said the executive committee was not comfortable with the more recently formulated resolution, but was comfortable with the version that came from the partnerships committee, co-chaired by Sandi Smith and Russ Collins. The deal-breaking clause (from Village Green’s perspective), which was included in the resolution brought forward from the partnerships committee was this:

RESOLVED: The DDA asserts its interest in acquiring full-size car parking spaces only (not compact), and will retain its right to review and approve any additional parking space as well as the new parking structure layout and design.

Collins wondered if that resolution was of any practical benefit to Village Green. Jon Frank, VP of development for Village Green, confirmed in a side conversation with The Chronicle that this clause did not serve their purposes. They needed a commitment from the DDA, Frank said, that was not based on a contingency involving the judgment of the board, but rather one that was based on objective criteria about the size and shape of the parking spaces. Otherwise, Frank said, a bank would not consider the funding secure. And banks, especially in the current economic climate, need an absolute guarantee, even from municipal groups with great credit.

Board member Rene Greff said that there was “no way” they could agree to the additional parking spaces without seeing the plans, so she weighed in for the resolution with the contingency. Board members Sandi Smith and Leah Gunn expressed their support for the contingent resolution as well. Gunn said that the board had “bent over backwards” to cooperate with Village Green and that they wanted to retain the right to see the drawings.

The resolution with the deal-breaking clause was passed.

At the conclusion of the meeting, there is always time alloted for additional audience participation, which Frank used to express his disappointment about what had happened. He said that if they’d asked him two days ago – after the site plan had been approved by council, with the support of councilmembers, neighborhood groups, the planning commission, and neighbors – if they’d done a good job of communicating, he would have said yes. After today’s meeting, he said, he wasn’t sure. He said it was disheartening. From his perspective, Frank said, they had made a deal in January with the criteria about the size and shape of the parking spaces “baked in” and all Village Green was asking for was for the board to extend the same deal, not a different one, to the additional ten spaces. Frank indicated that he was not in a great hurry and that he was willing to sit down and work through whatever needed to be fixed: “I want to tell you that we are going to fix everything,” he said.

When Frank had finished, board chair Hall emphasized to him that he should not interpret that day’s resolution to mean that the DDA was not willing to continue to work with Village Green on the question of the extra 10 spaces. She said they simply wanted to see what the 10 spaces were going to look like. Frank assured the board that he would get them drawings, but expressed some concern that there would be people on the board looking at them for the very first time, and was concerned that the criteria could change. Hall told Frank he would have to bear with the board on the issue.

Greff was upset with Frank’s comments: “I’m upset with your characterization that we’re going back on our deal!” Greff said the DDA was “ready to roll” and that it was Village Green that was changing the deal, by asking for an additional 10 spaces, not the DDA. Frank offered that he would re-educate himself as to the details of the January deal, and asked others to do the same.

Miscellaneous Items from Committee Reports

John Splitt, reporting out from the capital improvements committee, said that this week holes are starting to be dug along Fifth Avenue in connection with the underground parking garage to find out where the utilities are. At their next committee meeting on Wed., Dec. 10 at 11 a.m. they will address how the garage will interface with the library in light of the recent news that the library’s new construction project has been placed on hold.

Out of the partnerships committee came news that Ed Shaffran and Ellie Serras had expressed an interest in creating a business investment district centered on Main Street. They’d inquired about start-up funding, which would entail mostly a consultant and some legal work.

Also out of the partnerships committee came the report that discussions of providing video documentation of DDA board meetings were moving ahead. There would be a proposal at some point either for the DDA to acquire its own equipment or to have CTN provide equipment and personnel for the taping.

Susan Pollay gave an update on the background work she’d done in connection with an idea that John Hieftje had floated at the board’s annual retreat: an advocacy campaign on behalf of downtown merchants appealing to landlords to keep rents reasonable. Pollay said she’d determined that among merchants the sentiment was that this was not the right way to go. It was perceived as somewhat unseemly, she said, for government to impose itself into the private relationship between a renter and a landlord. As an alternative to helping businesses that were in trouble, she suggested making small business agency services available to those merchants who simply “can’t get out from behind the cash register” to pursue assistance.

Affordable Housing at Council Working Session

In the section on the agenda reserved for other DDA business matters, John Hieftje reiterated city administrator Roger Fraser’s announcement at the previous Monday’s council meeting that on Dec. 8 there would be a working session for council starting at 7 p.m. in council chambers. At that working session, a proposal will be made to replace the 100 units of affordable housing lost at the old YMCA site at possibly three different locations. Board member Gary Boren asked, “Are they going to name it the DeVarti Center?” Hieftje made no response discernible to The Chronicle. Part of the context for Boren’s remark is Hieftje’s decision recently not to re-appoint Dave DeVarti to the DDA board when DeVarti had expressed an interest and willingness to do so. DeVarti had consistently supported affordable housing while on the board and had described himself as a “squeaky wheel” on the issue.

Audience Participation

Front-ending the meeting was participation from the audience, which included presentation of Art Fair survey results, an update from the Downtown Area Citizens Advisory Council and a critique of the scheduling information for the LINK bus.

The LINK

The LINK is a free circulator bus system that runs through downtown. At its inaugural meeting, the transportation committee discussed the fact that there were problems with the service and saw their solution as something that needed to be addressed.

During audience participation at Wednesday’s meeting, the board heard from self-described regular bus rider and occasional LINK rider Ed Vielmetti, who expressed concerns about signage, scheduling information, and online information that get in the way of ridership. Vielmetti characterized the schedule for the LINK in the Ride Guide as “unreadable.” The information should fit on a business card, he said, not take up two pages. The signage at the stops, Vielmetti said, attested to neglect, because there were still signs indicating the LINK is “coming back in August” but it was now December. (The LINK does not run during summer months.) The mobile RideTrak system, Vielmetti said, allowed him to roughly estimated when his regular Number 5 bus is coming in real time, so that fewer “boot hours” needed to be spent waiting at a stop. (The RideTrak system gives data in the form of minutes ahead or behind schedule). For the LINK, Vielmetti said, math was required in order convert RideTrak’s data to useful information about when the next bus might arrive. Instead, it could instead be conveyed with two letters – the letter of the stop where it was most recently and the stop it was headed to – plus the time it was at the last stop.

In responding to Vielmetti, board member Russ Collins sought to make it clear that the DDA was not involved in the operations at the level he was discussing. Vielmetti said that was obvious. In that light, Collins asked what Vielmetti was proposing that the DDA do: “What action would we take?” In the course of the conversation, Vielmetti suggested that the $71,000 of funding not be unrestricted, but rather allotted in two categories: (i) operations and (ii) marketing/signage. Board member Rene Greff was supportive of the idea of funding the LINK contingent on meeting the DDA’s requirements. Chair of the board Jennifer Hall said that it would be a great topic for the transportation committee. Board member Leah Gunn recommended that Vielmetti address the AATA board with exactly the same concerns, because they’re accountable to the public, to which Vielmetti replied, “You are not??” Collins smoothed over the moment by suggesting that Gunn was offering good advice and that it was really the AATA board who needed to hear what he was saying.

Downtown Area Citizens Advisory Council

Ray Detter gave an update on the council’s meeting. The DACAC supports the proposal for 415 W. Washington that includes the art center. Detter said that Marsha Chamberlin, president of the Ann Arbor Art Center, had attended the meeting. Margaret Parker, chair of the public art commission, had also attended. The DACAC was still fully in support of the Fifth Avenue underground parking garage going forward, despite the pausing of the Ann Arbor District Library’s plans to build a new structure in place of the existing one. Detter said that the DACAC re-affirmed its commitment to densify the core downtown, which was reflected in its support of the City Apartments project. Detter noted that this support did not extend to PUDs proposed near, but not in, the core of downtown. As such a PUD, Detter cited the example of City Place, proposed for Fifth Avenue south of William Street. City Place would be built where seven houses with ties to the history of Ann Arbor now stand. With respect to the A2D2 process, Detter stressed that the DACAC was interested in seeing zoning revisions, design guidelines, and a revised downtown plan passed together. Currently, the process leaves design guildlines for later consideration. Detter urged that the process be returned to the planning commission, saying, “We’ve been working on it for years, there’s no rush.”

Art Fairs

Debra Power, of Power Marketing, presented results of a survey of art fair attendees this past summer which was undertaken to gather information of interest to the four art fairs, the Convention and Visitors Bureau, the DDA, AATA, Arts Alliance, and the Main Street Area Association. The methodology, which sampled fair goers across all times and locations during the fairs and offered a free art fair T-shirt as an inducement to complete the 8-10 minute survey, netted 834 completed surveys. Highlights from the results were:

• female 66.5% | male 33.5%
• age 50 or older: 41%
• married: 52.7%
• college graduates: 43%
• mean household income: $90,000
• Caucasian: 83% | African American: 6% | Asian: 3% | Hispanic: 2%
• Ann Arbor residents 31% | non-Ann Arbor residents of Michigan 52% | non-Michigan residents 17%
• Arrived by car: 91.3% | by plane: 3.4% | AATA bus: 2.4% | charter bus: 1.5%
• Average dollars spent on art: $292 | on dining: $50 | shopping: $97 | lodging: $279

Reacting to the relative percentages of modes of transportation, in which Amtrak did not register, Ann Arbor mayor John Hieftje said that Amtrak trains into Ann Arbor were fully booked well in advance of the event and that if there had been more trains running, he suspected they, too, would have been booked.

Present: Gary Boren, Russ Collins, Keith Orr, Rene Greff, Leah Gunn, Jennifer Hall, Roger Hewitt, John Hieftje, Joan Lowenstein, John Mouat, Sandi Smith, John Splitt.

Absent: none

Next meeting: noon on Wednesday, Jan. 7 at the DDA offices, 150 S. Fifth Ave., Suite 301.