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Farewell, Question Corner

Nov 25, 2025
After twenty years, Question Corner is retiring. Since the segment debuted in July 2005, author Tim Athan answered hundreds of…
Michelle Yang and Ellen Forney

Full Circle

Nov 24, 2025
On a windy evening in late October, I sat in the impressive Michigan Union Rogel Ballroom, with its vaulted ceilings,…

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Illustration by Tabi Walters

HERD Mentality

Nov 25, 2025
“I’m so glad you asked about HERD,” Ann Arbor’s Home Energy Rating Disclosure Ordinance, says Julie Roth, energy manager for…

Thinking Bigger

Nov 25, 2025
The Downtown Development Authority’s new development plan includes up to $21 million for improvements to the Ann Arbor Farmers Market.…

New Millage

Nov 25, 2025
On November 4, Ann Arbor voters approved the Washtenaw Intermediate School District’s (WISD) proposed millage, levying 1 mill annually for…

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Thinking Bigger

Thinking Bigger

Nov 25, 2025

A $21 million concept for the Ann Arbor Farmers Market.

Sports for Sale

Sports for Sale

Oct 24, 2025

This fall marks the start of expanded rules governing the Name, Image and Likeness program (NIL) at Michigan.

The Observer’s Next Owner

The Observer’s Next Owner

Oct 24, 2025

The Ann Arbor District Library has agreed to purchase the assets of the publication, creating a new entity that will continue to operate independently.

Fee Parking

Fee Parking

Oct 24, 2025

Prices for U-M football parking keep going up, up, up.

Marketplace

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HERD Mentality

HERD Mentality

Nov 25, 2025

Home energy efficiency improvements may help with carbon emissions, but don’t necessarily translate to higher sales prices.

A Riad on S. Main

A Riad on S. Main

Oct 25, 2025

Moroccan coffee, tea, and more in luxurious surrounds at Mynt House

The School of Yoga’s Uncertain Future

The School of Yoga’s Uncertain Fut...

Oct 24, 2025

For nearly twenty years, the Ann Arbor School of Yoga has occupied a former church at 420 W. Huron St. But the building will soon be for sale, leaving over a hundred students and their teacher, Laurie Blakeney, wondering what’s next.

Culture

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The Mighty Fitz

The Mighty Fitz

Sep 24, 2025

John U. Bacon researched and wrote each of his four best-selling books on Michigan football in less than a year. Telling the stories of the Edmund Fitzgerald and its twenty-nine crew members took almost four. 

Theatre NOVA

Theatre NOVA

Aug 8, 2025

An innovative company faces an uncertain time.

Featured Artists

Featured Artists

Jun 25, 2025

The art fair has nearly 1,000 exhibitors. Here’s how three were chosen to create each fair’s signature poster.

The Michigan Theater in Sound

The Michigan Theater in Sound

May 24, 2025

A soundtrack-meets-walking tour that invites visitors "to slow down and experience the space differently."

Since 1976

The Ann Arbor Observer has been putting readers in touch with our town. Packed with concise and insightful news of  people, politics, education, shopping, dining, and entertainment, our newsprint magazine has a monthly circulation of 53,000.

Ann Arbor Observer City Guides

Guide to Ann Arbor shopping, dining, senior services, health care, and schools. Mailed free to Ann Arbor residents, with a bonus circulation of 500 for retail, real estate offices, and U-M.