Happy Summer Olympics everyone! If you couldn’t tell from how often I’ve included items and photos about U-M or A2-adjacent athletes heading to Paris in a2view, I love the Olympics. I know like every other idealistic and honorable idea in the world it has been sullied by corporate greed and all, but I’ve always found the pageantry and drama riveting.

Also, the timing is always perfect for the United States, landing smack-dab in the middle of presidential campaigns as we’re all tearing one another apart limb to limb. Our athletes and their accomplishments are a reminder, if we pay attention, that we’re all on #TeamUSA.

Your news is here, regardless of your team!

– Steve Friess, editor
with help from Miles Anderson.

P.S. If you are thirsting for presidential campaign chatter, I’ll be breaking down developments and what they mean for southeast Michigan with Jer Staes on his Daily Detroit podcast every Monday from now until the election. It’s available for free wherever you get podcasts (I like the Overcast app).

Men flash ape photo at doorbell cam of Black family: Police chief Andre Anderson appealed on social media for help identifying the duo who “persistently” knocked and rang the bell, called out the homeowner’s name, and then pointed the phone photo to the camera. Photos of the men, who are White, and the silver minivan they drove, can be found here. The family was at home in the northside Foxfire subdivision when the incident occurred on July 16. Anyone with information can call (734) 794-6939 or email tips@a2gov.org.

56,953 Michigan Medicine patients notified of potential data breach: Three employee email accounts were compromised in cyberattacks on May 23 and May 29 but were disabled as soon as possible, the hospital system writes. There’s no evidence the attackers intended to steal patient health information, but potential victims of the breach received alerts anyway.

County clerk says Biden dropout won’t be ballot problem: The Democratic Party’s near-certain decision to elevate vice president Kamala Harris to 2024 standard-bearer came early enough, Lawrence Kesterbaum tells MLive. Parties can wait until Aug. 26 to certify whose names appear on their lines without impeding the orderly printing and distribution of ballots. 

Three Democrats vie for sheriff: With Jerry Clayton opting not to run for a fifth term, Alyshia Dyer, Derrick Jackson, and Ken Magee told the Observer’s James Leonard about their agendas for the department in this month’s issue. Dyer, a former deputy, views herself as “the only progressive” in the race and plans to force senior leadership to reapply for their jobs. Jackson, Clayton’s community relations director, promises to continue investing in “alternatives to incarceration, diversion, deflection, [and] reentry” after imprisonment. Magee, a former Drug Enforcement Administration special agent who ran against Clayton in 2016 as a Republican and in 2020 as a Democrat wants to cut the payroll and aggressively enforce gun laws, among other plans. They face off in the Aug. 6 primary; winning the Democratic nomination is tantamount to a general election win given the heavily Democratic makeup of the county electorate. 

Sign-stealing ex-staffer speaks in upcoming Netflix show: Connor Stalions, who was fired by Michigan football last fall amid a scandal over an elaborate scheme to improperly decode opposing teams’ sideline signals, tells his story for the streaming service’s “Untold” series, ClickonDetroit reports. The Big Ten suspended then-coach Jim Harbaugh for three games last November, and an NCAA investigation is ongoing. Stalions’ episode is expected to drop Aug. 27.

Ann Arbor hiring “safe street” consultants: The city is spending more than $1 million to hire Sam Schwartz Consulting to guide implementation of a $3.8 million grant, MLive writes (paywall). While council voted 10-0 to approve the contract, some members expressed concern that installing flexible posts for bike lanes and other changes aren’t happening fast enough.

Business improvement zone seeks to upgrade Briarwood area: Council unanimously supported the establishment of the zone, which would allow for special assessments to pay for landscaping, median beautification, gateway signage, and a new marketing push, city records show. Known as the State Street BIZ, the zone centers on the intersection of S. State St. and E. Eisenhower Pkwy. Business owners within the proposed district still must vote on whether to create it. 

Planning commission approves S. Main St. apartment building: The four-story, forty-five unit UHG Flats Ann Arbor is expected to rise on a vacant parcel just north of Briarwood, according to city records. It will have thirty 1-bedroom apartments, twelve 2-bedrooms, and three studios.

Two new key road closures: Hogback Rd. between Washtenaw Ave. and Clark Rd. in Pittsfield Twp. shut down today for resurfacing that is expected to take two weeks, according to a post from the Washtenaw County Road Commission. Also, the M-14 ramp at Maple Rd. will close tomorrow at 6 p.m. and reopen Saturday at 3 p.m. for high-friction surface treatment, MDOT says.

Pedestrian bridge installed over Huron River: The new span, finished last week, connects Argo Cascades and the new Broadway Park West that is under construction, according to a social media post from the city’s parks and recreation unit. The bridge and park are expected to open to the public this fall.

Land swap wins township OK for Toll Bros. sub: The Ann Arbor Twp. board gave final approval to the construction of Maple Ridge, a site condo of fifty-seven homes served by individual wells and a shared sewage-treatment plant on Whitmore Lake Rd. south of Warren Rd., MLive writes. Developer Red Equities LLC agreed to donate ninety-eight acres just north of the site to be permanently protected by a conservation easement. 

Mixed support for $1.15M renovation of historic Lima Twp. Hall: Folks who have worked at the repurposed 150-year-old Methodist church say it’s bat- and rat-infested and that the rural township between Chelsea and Dexter should relocate its operations elsewhere, MLive reports (paywall). Trustees instead voted to spend leftover Covid relief money and capital improvement funds to upgrade technology, HVAC systems, toilets, and offices. 

Meet the Gnawsons: Riding a wave of support from a2view and our brilliant readers, the beaver family living at Matthaei Botanical Gardens and Nichols Arboretum has a perfect name. The MBGNA folks announced that a whopping 40 percent of the vote went to the Gnawsons, with the Beaverines, Wolverstreams, and Chompers also drawing double-digit support. 

County warns of water risks after another rescue: Ann Arbor firefighters pulled two men and a child who were tubing out of the Huron River last week, the third such rescue this month, according an AAFD Facebook post. The trio were not wearing life jackets. The Washtenaw County Sheriff’s Office urged caution on the river, which was swollen and quickened by last week’s heavy rain. The warning said in part: “Use extreme caution in the areas between Dexter-Huron Metropark/Delhi Metropark and between Argo Park/Gallup Park. Take special care when floating under the Zeeb Rd bridge as several Tubing/Kayaking groups have gotten entangled in the bridge pier at this location due to the tubes being tied together.”

Former U-M football player, Belleville native dies: Twenty-two-year-old Andre Seldon Jr. was cliff-diving Saturday in Utah but did not resurface after landing in a reservoir, ESPN writes. Seldon’s body was recovered seven hours later. The Belleville High graduate was a Wolverine from 2018 to 2020 before transferring to New Mexico State and then to Utah State. In a tribute posted on X, U-M head coach Sherrone Moore wrote that Seldon was “a great young man on and off the field!”

E.coli shuts down Independence Lake Beach again: The Washtenaw County Health Department says bacterial levels have spiked so swimming is not allowed for the time being. Recreation that does not involve body contact with water is still permitted on the lake near Whitmore Lake High. Swimming was also shut down in June for the same reason.

A2 coach charged with sexual misconduct: Steven Pottenger, thirty-eight, is accused of fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct involving a teenage victim he worked with through the Ann Arbor Figure Skating Club, WXYZ reports. The allegations date back to July 2020; the club suspended Pottenger on July 12.

Nursing prof accused of sexual harassment fired: An investigation found Robert Stephenson, the former director of U-M’s Center for Sexuality and Health Disparities, had made inappropriate remarks to two students and tried to destroy evidence and forge documents, the Michigan Daily reports. Stephenson had sued the university claiming he was a victim of homophobia, but the suit was dismissed last month.

Teen driver arrested after passenger dies in crash: The suspect, who is eighteen, is accused of speeding through the county in a Dodge Charger before slamming into a fire hydrant outside Fischer Honda in Ypsi, MLive reports. A seventeen-year-old Saline boy and fifteen-year-old girl were ejected; the boy was pronounced dead at the scene and the girl is hospitalized with severe injuries. Washtenaw County sheriff’s deputies arrested the driver as he tried to flee on foot.

Ypsi couple found dead inside apartment: The discovery followed a wellness check at the Huron Heights apartment complex near EMU, Fox2Detroit writes. The couple had a young child who was not home when the bodies were found. Police are investigating a cause of death but say there was no immediate evidence of foul play.

Diagnostics firm closing, laying off 175: NeuMoDx Molecular Inc., is vacating its facility in Ann Arbor and will lay off its workers in stages beginning at the end of September, MedTechDive writes. At the height of the pandemic, the company’s automated testing machines were evaluating nearly 1 million Covid tests a month, but demand has plunged, and parent company Qiagen said in June it would stop making two machines that are manufactured here. 

Preseason football rankings underwhelming for U-M: A poll found that sportswriters view the defending national champions as merely the fourth-best team in the Big Ten, Sports Illustrated writes. The top pick to win the division was Ohio State, followed by Oregon and Penn State. Still, more than half the voters believe all four top teams will make it to the twelve-team College Football Playoff.

TreeTown Murals oversees two new public artworks: The two-artist couple behind the company, featured in the Observer last year, partnered with the Delonis Center to recruit unhoused guests and shelter staff to paint flowers on the walls of the railroad bridge over E. Huron St., MLive reports. Separately, TreeTown also collaborated with neighbors to jazz up a five-way roundabout in the Eberwhite neighborhood. Click here to see that work.

Art Fair gives sculpture to city for bicentennial: “Tree of Life” is eleven feet tall and made of repurposed metal, according to a press release. Ohio-based sculptor Richard Alan Morgan’s work now stands at the corner of State St. and N. University Ave.

Eli Lilly was everywhere at Art Fair: The pharmaceutical giant was the first-ever presenting sponsor of all three fairs, appearing with large trucks in four locations where visitors could qualify for paid opportunities as research participants, Kati Shanks writes in this month’s Observer. 

Forty-two athletes with U-M ties to compete in Olympics: Current, former, and incoming players will represent twenty-two countries. A2view has covered many of these athletes as they qualified, but ClickOnDetroit provides a handy digest of who will be going for gold in Paris across thirteen sports. Eleven U-M coaches will also be there, and three U-M athletes with disabilities are expected at the Paralympic Games in Paris later in the summer.

Korean gastropub replaces Japanese restaurant: HanJan Pocha House is the brainchild of Jamie Lee and her husband, James, who was the head sushi chef of Miki. The Lees bought Miki from James’ retiring uncle and then switched over to the Korean concept, she tells Dave Algase in this month’s Observer. Miki’s booths are about all that remain of the remade interior, which includes low-set pocha tables made from oil drums to promote an atmosphere of casual sociability.

Grilled bread chain coming to downtown: Toastique, a gourmet toast and juice cafe, is set to open its first Michigan franchise on Aug. 10 at 200 E. Washington. The fast-growing chain has twenty-eight locations and this is one of thirteen opening this year or next, according to the company’s website. 

Ice cream shop opens in Ypsi: Candy Coated Creamery had a soft opening in late May after taking over space vacated by the Sticky marijuana shop, which in turn took over a vacant McDonald’s across the Eastern Plaza parking lot. The menu boasts $12 loaded milkshakes, $4 gourmet cupcakes, and $11 cheesecakes among other treats. 

Huron High grad gives suits to job applicants: Cameron Baldwin hosted a Dress for Opportunity Drive at the Ann Arbor Community Center over the weekend to provide free formal wear to “those in African American communities in Michigan that have fallen on hard times or face negative perceptions,” MLive writes (paywall). Baldwin started a similar charity at Central State University in Ohio where he is a rising junior. The suits in Ann Arbor came from the local chapter of the Omega Psi Phi fraternity as well as the owner of a Detroit-based men’s clothes store. Baldwin hopes to make the drive a yearly event.

Tickets available for Garrett’s Space soiree: The annual fundraiser to support the Superior Twp. center for young adults facing depression and anxiety is scheduled for 6 to 9 p.m. on Aug. 24 at WCC’s Morris Lawrence Building. Click here for tickets, which range from $10 to $75 with a “pay what you can” option.

Ukrainian ensemble’s show to benefit war-torn nation: Kommuna Lux, a septet that plays a fusion of klezmer and “outlaw folk” music, appears at 8 p.m. Saturday at Saline’s Stony Lake Brewing. Tickets are $25 each and proceeds benefit humanitarian causes in Ukraine. Hear a sample of their music here.

By Jennifer Taylor

Friday: Attend Washtenaw Bird & Nature Alliance’s “Moth Night,” where local experts lead an exercise in attracting and identifying specimens. Wear black, and bring a headlamp or flashlight if you have one and a camp chair if you want one. 9 and 11 p.m., meet at Island Park, Shelter B, 1420 Island Dr. Free.

Saturday: Behold more than 200 quilts at Greater Ann Arbor Quilt Guild’s “Celebrate the Quilt 2024,” and buy quilts and quilting supplies. Attendees vote for their favorite quilts. 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (Sat.) and 11 am. to 5 p.m. (Sun.), WCC, 4800 E. Huron River Dr. $10 admission. quiltshow@gaaqg.com.

Sunday: See “Mystery at Gorgophone-Zeta,” an original sci-fi murder mystery puppet musical, set on the Starship Enterprise, by the Dreamland Puppet Troupe. 3 p.m. (doors open at 2:30 p.m.), Dreamland Theater, 26 N. Washington, Ypsi. $10 cash or Venmo at the door.

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

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