This was the week I officially became an Ann Arborite! No, we haven’t moved from Superior Twp., and that might be a dealbreaker for many. But I did something even more qualifying: I bought a big, beautiful print at the Art Fair! And not just any old thing, either – we now own this framed version of the artwork that adorns the State Street District Art Fair’s annual poster.

I just really love both the bright, colorful Michigan map embedded with iconic A2 locales as well as the story behind it, which Jan Schlain tells in her Observer piece this month. Artist Brian Delozier of Reading, PA, suffered a catastrophic spinal injury as a teenager that left him with limited mobility in his hands. Amid that trauma, he discovered a pointillist approach to painting. His painstaking process of making dots produces absolutely luminous images.

My daughter, Claire, and I went to the fair on Friday specifically to see Delozier’s booth and to introduce her to someone who really made something amazing out of the awful card that life dealt. I figured that morning we’d get a T-shirt with the poster on it, but when I saw the piece in Delozier’s booth, I knew exactly where it belonged in our home.

And kudos to the art fair folks for giving space on Liberty Plaza to the kids’ gym We Rock The Spectrum, who provided a sensory-break play area for kids overwhelmed by the crowds and noise on Liberty. Next year, promote that; I would’ve brought our autistic son if I’d known.

Your news is here. Domineco Grasso takes himself out of the running to lead U-M beyond his caretaker tenure, Washtenaw County has the state’s most expensive rent, the undersung pioneer Kathy Kozachenko may finally get some public recognition in Ann Arbor, and a tween is raising real college money selling that quintessential starter product, lemonade.

– Steve Friess, editor
…with help from Anna McLean

This week, I’m starting something new – I’m going to end by letting you know what last week’s top link was. This was it. Have a great week!

Council asks planning commission to dial back proposed residential density: In a 6-2 vote, city leaders called for changes to the controversial draft comprehensive plan, including height limits for future construction and limits on lot consolidation in what are now in R1 and R2 districts, according to the approved resolution. The resolution says council “values an incremental, practical, and predictable approach to residential infill that enables small-scale multifamily housing – duplexes and triplexes – in the Residential Category … but that does not entitle small apartment buildings and larger scale development.” Councilmembers Jenn Cornell and Ayesha Ghazi Edwin voted against the resolution, saying they support fewer restrictions, MLive reports.

Big Ten chief wants NCAA to end sign-stealing, recruiting probes: Commissioner Tony Pettiti sent a letter this week asking that both matters be considered resolved with no further penalties, ESPN reports. Pettiti argues U-M has punished itself enough by suspending then-head coach Jim Harbaugh for six games during the 2023 season and its plan to suspend current head coach Sherrone Moore for two games this fall. The NCAA’s Committee on Infractions is expected to announce whether it will impose further punishment before the 2025 football season begins next month. Among possible consequences, the NCAA could vacate past victories, ban the Wolverines from a coming postseason, suspend coaches, or fine the school or specific people.

Feds announce two probes of U-M: The Department of Education announced via press releases that it is looking into the university’s vulnerability to national security threats from China and “national origin discrimination” for offering scholarships specifically for undocumented students who came to the U.S. as children. The first issue stems from a pair of unrelated cases in which Chinese nationals were charged with attempts to import dangerous pathogens into the United States in order to bring them into U-M labs. DoE chief investigative counsel Paul Moore accused U-M of not being forthcoming in its public disclosures around research funding from foreign sources and has demanded a litany of documents. In the second investigation, U-M is among five schools targeted for providing scholarships to so-called Dreamers, foreign-born students who qualified under the Obama-era program that allowed people brought to the U.S. illegally as youngsters or babies to remain.

Washtenaw named Michigan’s most expensive county to rent: The National Low Income Housing Coalition finds the average two-bedroom apartment here costs $1,607, which would require a single wage-earner to make nearly $31 per hour to be affordable, defined as no more than 30 percent of income going towards housing. That’s an anomaly in Michigan which, as a whole, ranked thirty-third in the nation with the required wages for a two-bedroom at $24.46 per hour, according to the report. Kent and Livingston counties were the only other two in Michigan to require more than $27 per hour.

Miller Manor struggles to douse bedbug plague: The 106-unit apartment complex operated by the Ann Arbor Housing Commission spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on eradication over the past decade without success, MLive reports. The website also found the commission in recent years has spent more than $41,000 at Lurie Terrace and almost $10,000 at Siller Terrace, which also house low-income residents. “They’re a vexing little critter,” said Beth Yaroch, the commission’s deputy director, noting they even can hide in someone’s wheelchair.

Council approves Braun Ct. redevelopment: The courtyard’s small houses will be replaced by a seven-story, all-electric condo building with thirty-eight units, underground parking, geothermal heating, and improved streetscaping, according to city records. Braun Ct. was once the epicenter of local LGBTQ+ social and political life; the developer says it will financially support the relocation of the Jim Toy Community Center.

City to place marker acknowledging LGBTQ+ milestones: The plaque will be unveiled on Sept. 4 on the south side of city hall to recognize historic firsts that took place in Ann Arbor – the coming out of sitting councilmembers Jerry DeGrieck and Nancy Wechsler in 1973 and the election of out lesbian Kathy Kozachenko in 1974. The marker also will pay tribute to the short-lived Human Rights Party, to which all three councilmembers belonged, as well as the late LGBTQ+ pioneer Jim Toy. 

Domenico Grasso to retire once U-M finds new president: The interim leader, who turns seventy this year, will not be a candidate for the permanent job, he tells Michigan Today. Previously provost of U-M Dearborn, Grasso was elevated in May after Santa Ono abruptly resigned in a failed attempt to become president of University of Florida. Grasso says his most significant assignments right now are to convince lawmakers and the White House to keep research funding and to improve the tenor of political dialogue on campus. But while it lasts, he’s relishing the role. “It is remarkable that I live there,” he says of the president’s mansion. “I mean, if you go to Michigan, what more magnificent dream would you have other than to be president of the University of Michigan?”

Cardiologist picked to lead U-M Medical School: Thomas J. Wang will become the new dean and a professor of internal medicine on Sept. 15, succeeding longtime dean Marschall Runge, according to the University Record. He previously was chair of internal medicine at University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. Wang, who earned his undergraduate and medical degrees at Harvard, is also president-elect of the Association of Professors of Medicine. Augusta Twp. rezones 522 acres for $1B data center: The land, formerly restricted to farming but now OK’d for general industrial use, is expected to become part of an 810-acre computer server farm owned by Thor Equities, according to public records. Some residents oppose the project just west of Milan and the township planning commission voted 5-1 to reject it, but the township board unanimously approved the rezoning on Tuesday. 

$1M gift expands U-M programs in Italian, Mediterranean, and Polish studies: Alumna sisters Stephanie and Suzette Augustyniak made the donation to the Weiser Center for Europe and Eurasia and the Copernicus Center for Polish Studies to honor their mother and father, the University Record reports. The donation will fund two initiatives named after their parents: the M. Teresa Poggi Italy and Mediterranean Fund and the Stefan Augustyniak Fellowship in Polish Studies. Stefan and Teresa met while attending night school classes in Detroit, and all three of their daughters pursued advanced degrees at U-M.

U-M law prof takes on Supreme Court with humor in new book: Leah Litman, co-host of the Strict Scrutiny podcast, is drawing national attention for her best-selling book, “Lawless” and her critiques of the high court’s conservative majority, Davi Napoleon writes in this month’s Observer. Litman blends legal insight with Taylor Swift lyrics and sharp wit to argue that the court is distorting the law to serve partisan goals. Litman, a former clerk for retired Justice Anthony Kennedy, says she wants to “empower my community” to make a difference. 

Pioneer High grad wins $2,000 for duct-tape tux: Eighteen-year-old Calder Westerman, who heads to Ferris State this fall, received $1,000 as a finalist and $1,000 as a judge favorite in the Duck Brand Stuck at Prom Scholarship Contest, according to a post on the company’s site. His creation, a green tux that reverses into a racecar driver suit, took him eighty-five hours and fifteen rolls of tape to complete. “It was a lot of painstakingly detailed work,” Westerman is quoted as saying, “but also a lot of fun.”

AAPD releases bodycam of rescue, honors man who found senior: Ben Osenbaugh and his dog Dolly located eighty-two-year-old Ralph Yang along a creek in Bird Hills Nature Area after he went missing in June, according to the department’s social media post. Yang, who has dementia, wandered from his home and was lost for more than two days, sparking a massive volunteer hunt for him. The department also unveiled a plaque honoring the officers who oversaw the search. Yang and his wife attended the ceremony, as did mayor Christopher Taylor and police chief Andre Anderson. On Monday, AAPD posted eight minutes of bodycam footage of Yang’s rescue on YouTube.

Man arraigned in fatal 2021 Pittsfield Twp. shooting: Marvin Ramirez Sullivan, a thirty-three-year-old from Ypsi, is charged with open murder in the death of Deryl Timothy Banks, thirty-five, CBS News reports. Police say the men argued before the shooting outside Ichiban Japanese Steakhouse on Washtenaw Ave. Banks drove himself to the hospital before succumbing to his wounds. Anyone with information is asked to contact Pittsfield Twp. police at (734) 822-4958. 

Two charged in connection to drive-by Ypsi homicide: Adonis Quintell Sweatt, twenty-seven, is accused of firing the gun that killed twenty-five-year-old DaJon Ryans on July 11 near Ecorse Rd. and E. Michigan Ave. last week, MLive reports. Devonte Lejaun Owens, thirty, is charged with being an accessory after the fact to a felony and a felon in possession of a firearm. Ryans was “loving, wild child” and his death has “left his immediate family in deep grief,” according to a GoFundMe benefiting his family.

Fake postal worker sentenced in mail theft scheme: Calvin James Riles Jr. was ordered to pay more than $8,000 in restitution after posing as a USPS employee to stealing checks from mailboxes in 2022, MLive reports. Riles allegedly wore a postal uniform and used a fake key to access drop boxes on Airport Blvd., then deposited altered checks into accounts tied to a fraud ring. He pleaded guilty to bank fraud, mail theft, and impersonating a letter carrier. 

State investigates alleged ticket scam involving Hill Auditorium: Pure Tonic Marketing Ltd., a Seychelles-based company, is suspected of misleading customers into buying overpriced tickets to events via a fake website that impersonates the venue, according to a press release. Users were allegedly charged as much as $1,200 for seats that cost just $175 through the University Musical Society’s box office. AG Dana Nessel warns consumers to use caution when purchasing tickets online. 

Washtenaw-based online vigilante leads cops to solicitation arrest: The unnamed thirty-one-year-old woman, posing as an underaged girl, ensnared Michael M. Leppek, a thirty-four-year-old Bay City man, into proposing they meet up in Jackson, MLive reports. Bay City police were informed by the woman of the conversations she was having with Leppek, who now faces single counts of accosting a minor for immoral purposes and using a computer to commit a crime. Following his arrest, Leppek was fired from his job as a patient care associate at McLaren Bay Regional Hospital.

Ypsi High designated career-related IB school: Principal Chelsea Harris-Hugan says the designation from the global nonprofit International Baccalaureate “strengthens our expansion of career and technical education offerings, including exciting new pathways in drone aviation and botany,” MLive reports. Incoming eleventh graders will be able to opt into the program and could graduate high school with as many as thirty-two credits for Michigan colleges and universities.

State may OK Salem Twp. wastewater plant despite concerns: The township in northeast Washtenaw County has been stymied in its attempts to connect to the Ypsilanti Community Utility Authority, first by Superior Twp. and now by Canton Twp., the Detroit Free Press reports (paywall). An official with the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy told the Canton Twp. board last month that if there’s no other option, the agency may allow Salem to build a plant of its own that would discharge 850,000 gallons of treated effluent per day into Fellows Creek. That waterway snakes through Canton Twp. and occasionally floods, so this would increase that risk. Salem wants to greenlight the construction of more than 550 residential units on 1,400 rural acres along M-14 near Gotfredson and Napier roads, but cannot move forward until it knows where the wastewater will go. The latest plan has been to run the line through Canton and Van Buren townships to reach the Ypsi connection, but Canton Twp. demanded that Salem pay for connections to the line for its residents along the path who are now on septic tanks. Salem has rejected that notion.

Young A2 natives return: Remote work and familial support are enabling more people who grew up here to raise their own families in their hometown, Julie Halpert writes in this month’s Observer. While no official numbers have tracked the migration of adults heading back to the city, groups like Ann Arbor SPARK say it’s growing. Even with housing costs steadily on the rise, those who came back say the move is worth it. “Ann Arbor will always be home,” returnee Alisha Carter says.

Golf pro with terminal cancer celebrates hole-in-one: Seventy-year-old Dave Kendall was diagnosed in 2024 with Stage 4 esophageal cancer that has spread to his brain and lungs, but that didn’t stop him from returning to the Washtenaw Golf Club, where he is a co-owner, to play and teach months after chemotherapy, MLive reports. This month, the Michigan Golf Hall of Fame inductee aced the twelfth hole during warmups before league play. Despite physical setbacks, the PGA pro also played in this year’s Michigan Senior Open, a tournament he has won twice. Kendall says that he’s “grateful for the life he has lived and for every day he continues to live doing what he loves surrounded by those closest to him.”

Ypsi girl’s lemonade stand builds college fund: Eleven-year-old Addison Robinson started her business at age six and now she sells out at festivals, MLive reports. She got her start at the Parkridge SummerFest in 2021 and now takes a berth in the adult section of Ann Arbor’s African American Festival. Her crew, which includes her mother and grandmother, spend six hours making and packaging 300 lemonade pouches in a variety of flavors, which sell for $5 each. Robinson says she hopes to attend an HBCU. 

Silky Grooves opens at downtown library: Space in the former Friends of the Library shop is now available for small businesses to rent for $100 to $250 per month for six-month leases, giving startups an affordable space to test storefront operations, CBS Detroit reports. First to open is Silky Grooves, which sells an eclectic mix of vintage clothes, vinyl records, kitchenwares, gifts, and collectibles. Library Director Eli Neiburger says the program drew more than fifty applicants for three berths. If the initiative is successful, it could inform a larger, mixed-use expansion plan headed to voters on Aug. 5, Neiburger says. (The Friends shop moved to Parkland Plaza, where it’s open in-person on Saturdays and online 24/7.)

Just Between Friends consignment sale returns: JBF’s fall sale returns to the Washtenaw Farm Council Grounds from Sept. 17-20. Tickets ranging in price from $6.15 to $27.05 are required for various portions of the two presale days of Sept. 17 and 18. Entry to the sale of previously owned baby, kids and maternity items on Sept. 19 and 20 is free via online registration or $3 at the door. First-time parents and grandparents and “hometown heroes” (including first responders, teachers, the military, and healthcare workers) are free all day on Sept. 18 with advance reservations online.

Penn Station East Coast Subs, Wing Snob open by Scio Twp. Meijer: It’s the sub shop’s debut in Washtenaw County but owners Jeff and Monica Van Overmeer and their son Joe plan to open three more, Dave Algase writes in this month’s Observer. Penn Station shares a new outlot strip mall with Five Guys and a new Wing Snob, one of four “chicken-forward” chains to arrive in the past year.

Americorps cuts threaten local nonprofits: All Americorps employee-volunteers were effectively laid off by an April executive order signed by President Trump, forcing the region’s groups to think about how they use Americorps members, Concentrate reports. Though a June court order restored their jobs and Americorps’ funding, the disruption has organizations like the Community Action Network and Jewish Family Services evaluating how they’ll operate if they lose these valued workers. CAN executive director Derrick Miller says the agency once had fourteen Americorps members but was down to five before the April ban, and lost one of them before funding was restored. He warns that “abruptly ceasing human services funding removes a safety net of last resort for people already on the razor’s edge, and people die in the process, because of policy.’ ”

Tickets available for Garrett’s Space soiree: The annual fundraiser for the local nonprofit that helps young adults struggling with depression and anxiety is 6 to 9 p.m. on Aug. 23 on the campus of WCC. Tickets, sold at the door or here, are $10 for high school students, $25 for adults eighteen to twenty-eight, and $75 for people over twenty-nine, but there’s also a “pay what you can option.” An online silent auction opens on Aug. 15.

Washtenaw Parks & Rec seeking volunteers: The county has a range of upcoming activities scheduled over the coming month to help maintain County Farm and Sharon Mills parks. Click here to learn more about who is eligible and how to sign up. In addition, long-term volunteers are needed to work as docents at Parker Mill, among other tasks. Learn more here.

By Jennifer Taylor

Friday: Catch the last day of the county 4-H Youth Show. Today’s highlights include the Animal Decorator Contest (1:30 p.m.) and the “Ag Olympics” (2:30 p.m.) competitions involving water, mud, and agricultural products. For the complete schedule, click here. 8 a.m. to evening, Washtenaw Farm Council Grounds, 5055 Ann Arbor–Saline Rd. Free. (734) 222–3877. 

Saturday: See “ShakeScenes 2025: Chaos Reigns: Explorations of Power and Revolution,” short scenes from Shakespeare’s plays organized around themes of changing social dynamics. Actors are from the U-M Residential College’s annual Shakespeare in the Arb production. Space is limited. Rain cancels. Thurs. To Sun., 6:30 p.m. Free, but tickets must be picked up at the Arboretum Visitor Center between 6 and 6:15 p.m. on the night of the performance. Peony Garden entrance at 1610 Washington Heights. 

Sunday: Have fun and learn something at “Things with Wings” at Matthaei Botanical Gardens, a family-friendly event to learn about native birds and pollinators, meet a live bird of prey, and examine an active beehive. Hands-on activities include paper wing-making, storytime, and a bug safari. 1 to 4 p.m., 1800 N. Dixboro Rd. Free. (734) 647–7600.

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

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