We never know in what manner or order people read this newsletter, but I want to make sure you take note of the first item in our Helpers section this week: Jewish Family Services really needs contributions to continue its work resettling and tending to new immigrant families in our area.

The news out of Washington D.C. lately has been confusing, but the president’s executive order blocking federal funds for any immigration-related services – including refugees who were previously welcomed – was not rescinded when another federal funding ban was blocked by the courts. That leaves JFS facing a $550,000 gap to keep up with the needs of the people it is already helping.

Meanwhile, there’s lots of other news for you here. I wrote a long, fun piece for the Observer about Ann Arbor’s newest power couple, Jason Morgan and Jon Mallek. An old favorite, Haab’s, is making a comeback of sorts. There’s a sweet piece about a married couple of firefighters in Milan. And the battle over the new Thurston Elementary continues.

Be safe in the snow.

– Steve Friess, editor

100 dead wild birds reported in Washtenaw, raising bird-flu fears: The fowl were among hundreds across the state that experts believe were infected by the avian influenza virus, Fox 2 reports. State officials say residents shouldn’t touch any dead birds without gloves and other personal protective equipment. You can report dead wild birds to the Department of Natural Resources by calling (517) 336-5030 or clicking here. “The best advice we can give is to treat every wild bird as though it has a disease, says Mitch Marcus, DNR wildlife division chief. The Washtenaw County Health Department posted an explainer on bird flu here.

Ann Arbor Twp. spends $10M to block mobile home park: Southfield-based real estate firm J.A. Bloch and Co. sold nearly 140 acres to the local government, which wanted to stop the construction of a 500-site complex along Warren Rd. and US-23, MLive reports. The project was tied up in court for years after township officials rejected initial plans in 2020. The township says it may sell some of the land to developers looking to build homes on one-acre lots. Cynthia Furlong Reynolds reported on “The Manufactured Housing Puzzle” for the Observer in 2022. 

DTE says city-run utility would cost 40 percent more: The power company’s study asserts a public takeover of its local distribution network would cost billions and necessitate huge rate increases immediately. “This increase is attributed to the substantial upfront investment requirements, higher energy supply costs and a loss of economies of scale,” according to the report by Boston-based Charles River Associates. It also suggests a city-run utility would be more vulnerable to cybersecurity risks as well as challenges securing energy supply. Ann Arbor for Public Power, the citizens group pushing for the city to oust DTE, posted a response asserting the study features a number of misleading or false claims. In January, council voted to delay the start of its own feasibility study, Daily Energy Insider writes.

Ann Arbor approves $12M in bonds for carbon-neutral fire station: The project will replace AAFD’s existing Station 4 located on Huron Parkway which was built in 1966, the Michigan Daily writes. “A very, very terrible feature of that fire station was it did not separate sleeping areas from zones of the firehouse where cancer-causing fumes from cancer-causing materials would be stored after a fire,” councilmember Lisa Disch says. The new station will also include electric trucks and a Sustainable Energy Utility to serve residences and businesses.

City rezones vacant properties for new park: In 2014, as part of a redevelopment of a 4.8-acre site into the West Arbor affordable townhome complex, Ann Arbor demolished a nearby basketball court and replaced it with a play structure, according to city records. “It was immediately apparent that both the parents and children in the West Arbor community greatly missed the basketball court which offered a space for older children to play separately from younger children but still within eyesight and hearing of their homes,” staff report. The city has since purchased three vacant properties totalling 0.6 acres along Dexter Rd. west of Maple Rd., and is now drawing up plans to build new basketball courts there.

Married elected officials could be national first: So far as anyone can tell, state representative Jason Morgan and Ann Arbor councilmember Jon Mallek are the first same-sex couple in which both are elected to public office, Steve Friess writes in a profile of the pair for this month’s Observer. Morgan, a longtime political junkie and local Democratic power player, says it was bittersweet when Mallek was recruited by retiring councilmember Linh Song to run for his seat. “I’ll be honest with you, I didn’t know that I would wish elected office on anyone at that moment in time, especially not my husband that I love very much,” Morgan says. 

Zach Bryan to headline first-ever music concert at Big House: Tickets officially go on sale at 10 a.m. tomorrow for the Sept. 27 show starring the country superstar and also featuring a guest appearance by John Mayer, according to a U-M Athletics press release. Somehow, though, seats are available on several secondary-market sites including StubHub and VividSeats. “We have been studying and evaluating what it takes to host a concert at Michigan Stadium for a couple of years and today marks that next step in the venture with great partners,” says athletics director Warde Manuel, referring to the concert-producing juggernaut AEG Presents. The Big House, with more than 100,000 seats, is the third-largest sporting arena in the world.

Saline man dies after high-rise fall on South University: The twenty-eight-year-old’s death on Tuesday is being investigated as a suicide, police tell the Michigan Daily. The victim was struck by a car after he fell in from a building between Church St. and East University Ave. Anyone struggling with thoughts of self-harm can call or text the Suicide and Crisis Hotline at 988.

Woman loses child care license after infant suffers brain bleed: The seven-month-old’s injury is not life-threatening but could jeopardize his eyesight, according to the order suspending the child care license linked to a press release from the state. Police revived the boy and brought him to Mott Children’s Hospital. Michelle Lovasz, who has run a day care out of her home on Miller Ave. since 2019, called 911 on Jan. 28 to report that the boy was not breathing. A medical exam did not determine the exact cause of the injury but the order against Lovasz asserts it “could not have resulted from typical daily handling.” 

Ypsi to spend $7,500 helping homeless relocate from Water St. site: The money is going toward placing unhoused people in hotels and storing their camping equipment, MLive writes (paywall). Crews will start clearing brush and trees this month in a first step toward a remediation of long-contaminated property. Before being purchased by the city, the roughly thirty-eight-acre site along East Michigan Avenue and the Huron River saw a slew of commercial and industrial uses, including foundries, bulk petroleum storage, dry cleaners, and automotive services.

Locals take to A2 Fix It to vent anonymously: Last night’s snow prompted a fresh wave of messages to the city-run service from residents complaining about unplowed streets or unshoveled sidewalks. As Micheline Maynard writes in this month’s Observer, the app and website have become a destination for folks looking to lodge concerns about a wide variety of peeves, including problems in parks, missed recycling pickups, overgrown yards, and more. Last year, A2 Fix It fielded some 12,300 online reports. Part of the intrigue is seeing what other people are complaining about.

Ann Arbor offers discounts, rebates for electric lawn equipment: From March 1 to May 31, residents and gardening firms can go here to find out how to save as much as 18.8 percent on leafblowers and other items at Weingartz or Grainger Industrial Supply. The program is intended to ease the transition as the city rolls out its new ban on gas-powered leaf blowers.

Milan firefighting couple tell of decades of service: Dan Carpus has been responding to calls for nearly twenty-five years, and his wife Kim Carpus for twenty, the Sun Times News writes. The couple, who married when they were eighteen, moved to Milan from upstate New York where Dan was a firefighter for seventeen years. Kim joined him once their youngest child turned sixteen. The occupation runs deep in their families – both of their fathers were firefighters, their oldest son DJ is Milan’s assistant fire chief, and another of their four sons, Doug, serves in the Ypsilanti Fire Department.

Local Black history museum relocates: The African American Cultural and Historical Museum of Washtenaw County renovated a 180-year-old farmhouse known as the Byrd Center at 3261 Lohr Rd. in Pittsfield Twp., MLive reports. The museum, which opened without a site in 1993 and had been leasing space on Pontiac Trail since 2021, is open noon to 4 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays.

A2-based group wins Grammy: Akropolis Reed Quintet, an ensemble formed by five then-undergrads at U-M in 2009, won Best Instrumental Composition for the track “Strands” earlier this month. Kari Landry on clarinet, Tim Gocklin on oboe, Matt Landry on saxophone, Andrew Koeppe on bass clarinet, and Ryan Reynolds on bassoon are the first reed quintet to win a Grammy. See the group play the winning track here via YouTube. 

Squishable store opens at Briarwood: The offbeat brand of stuffies began as an online shop run out of a one-bedroom apartment, cofounder Zoe Fraade-Blanar tells Dave Algase in this month’s Observer. Now, including Briarwood, there are forty brick-and-mortar stores. She and her now-husband, Aaron Glazer, got the idea while on a volunteer mission in the wake of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. “We found a factory in Asia that made this very ultra-soft plush,” she recalls. “We had never felt anything like that before.” The experience sparked the idea that became their business.

Jet’s Pizza struggles in new Ypsi location: The latest store for the chain founded in Sterling Heights is up and running at 3040 Washtenaw Ave. east of Golfside Rd. On Nextdoor, a local poster writes: “The owner is a really nice humble guy who I met today, but he’s really sad because he’s not getting any business.” Jet’s fans responded with pledges to do their part. 

Haab’s reopens as a craft spirits pub: The historic downtown Ypsi building where the beloved restaurant stood is now Haab’s Barrel House, the brainchild of HVAC mechanic turned Distillery Livonia co-owner Jason Mitchell, the Eastern Echo writes. Mitchell has relocated the distillery to Ypsi and is modeling the interior after the old restaurant, even trying to bring back booths that were auctioned off. Some of Haab’s menu favorites are back, too. “Former owner Mike Kabat helped the new owners get in contact with some of the old suppliers, including the proprietary breading for the fried chicken that had been served for seventy-seven years,” the paper writes. The Barrel House also has a karaoke bar and a tasting room for Mitchell’s Leaky Still brand spirits. 

JFC needs $550K for refugee program: Jewish Family Services of Ann Arbor CEO Anya Abramzon issued an online plea after president Donald Trump halted all federal funding for immigrant resettlement last month. “Refugees who have already arrived … may now be left without critical support — housing, employment, and basic needs are all at risk,” she writes. “The core of our resettlement efforts is in jeopardy—we are prohibited from incurring new costs, and reimbursement for any continued services is not guaranteed. … This is a defining moment for our organization and our community.” Abramzon says they’ll need $550,000 just to continue serving their current clients. To donate, click here. 

Best Buddies launches at Ypsi Community High School: The international nonprofit fosters relationships between mentors and people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, the Eastern Echo writes. At the high school level, Best Buddies chapters organize an event where chapter members get together around once a month and pair off students to spend one-on-one time together. The YCHS entry is the sixth high school chapter in Michigan and second in Washtenaw County along with Lincoln High; EMU and U-M also have chapters.

Rotary Club sets 100K-meal goal: The service organization’s annual spring food and fund drive to benefit Food Gatherers runs through March 14, the Sun Times News writes. A gift of $25 provides 100 meals, according to Food Gatherers, and all donations of that much or more will be matched 1:1 up to $15,000. Last year, Food Gatherers distributed an average of 22,000 meals a day. To donate to the Rotary Fights Hunger Drive, click here or drop off or mail checks with “Rotary” in the memo line payable to “Food Gatherers” to Food Gatherers, 1 Carrot Way, Ann Arbor, MI 48105. You also can bring food donations to the Carrot Way address and ask that they be counted toward the Rotary drive.

By Jennifer Taylor

Friday: Dip into the U-M Museum of Art’s “Feel Good Friday: Queer Night,” which includes drag and burlesque performances (appropriate for age eighteen and up), a screening of the 1999 lesbian cult classic But I’m a Cheerleader, crafts, tarot readings, and a chance to view art. Refreshments. 7 to 10 p.m., UMMA, 525 S. State. Free. 

Saturday: Join U-M Museum of Natural History educators for “Dinosaur Discoveries: Amazing Adaptations,” which includes such hands-on activities as digging for fossils in a simulated excavation site and making a fossil cast to take home. Today from 12:30 to 3:30 p.m., live animals that share ancestors with dinosaurs pay a visit. The first hour of every day is designated for quiet enjoyment of the exhibit. All ages. 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sat. and Sun., U-M MNH, 1105 North University. Free.

Sunday: Play “asses.masses,” a satirical video game designed by conceptual artists to be played collectively over seven hours by a live audience. It’s gaming as a participatory performance. The game’s story involves a herd of unemployed donkeys trying to get their jobs back, and boredom is one of the game’s explicit themes. No previous gaming experience required. University Musical Society. 1 to 8:30 p.m. or so (with four intermissions) Sat. and Sun., U-M Walgreen Drama Center Stamps Auditorium, 1226 Murfin, North Campus. $46 (students, $15 to $20) in advance here.

Monday (President’s Day): Hear retired Texas State University English professor Marilynn Olson and U-M literature professor Elizabeth Goodenough discuss “What the Presidents Read: Childhood Stories and Family Favorites,” their new anthology of excerpts from works read by various presidents. Also, short talks by contributors to the book, live music by U-M music students, and a brunch reception. 10 a.m. to noon, U-M Museum of Art. Preregistration requested. Free. 

See the Observer’s online calendar for many more local events. 

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