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This weekend, our autistic five-year-old played catch with his grandfather, made a silly joke and laughed at it, and used “me” and “my” instead of his name to refer to himself – all for the first time! It’s been a long road and there’s plenty more ahead, but he’s having a sudden but hard-earned developmental growth spurt! Next up: getting him to sit through a haircut.
I write this because I’m proud of him – and these days good news is hard to come by. We have toiled away month after month wondering if all this early intervention stuff matters and then we get some evidence that it really does. I need to remember how this feels for the next long stretch when things feel stagnant.
Your news is here. Santa Ono throws U-M to the gators, a long-gestating mosque gets the OK, the roadways were quite dangerous last weekend, and a very unusual AirBnB is rising on Bydding Rd.
–Steve Friess, editor…
…with help from Anna McLean.
P.S. For a piece for the Observer on bookstore owner Fred Ulrich’s house on E. Huron St., I’m looking for folks with cool stories to tell. If you have a good Ulrich tale of pretty much any sort, please email me.
Correction: In the May 15 edition of a2view, we wrote that Recycle Ann Arbor uses “advanced technology that sorts polyvinyl chloride plastics.” RAA does not sort PVC; they sort polyethylene terephthalate, high-density polyethylene, and polypropylene. We regret the error.
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The fifteenth – and briefest – president of U-M is one step closer to becoming the fourteenth president of University of Florida after the regents there unanimously approved his hire in part thanks to his renunciation of past support for diversity, equity, and inclusion programs. Courtesy: UF News.
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Santa Ono explains DEI about-face as he nears UF presidency: The former U-M president, who abruptly departed after serving the shortest tenure in the school’s history, sported an orange-and-blue-striped tie Tuesday as he told the University of Florida regents he is “eager to join the wonderful students, faculty and staff of the Gator Nation,” according to UF News. The regents unanimously picked him, but he still needs the approval of the Florida Board of Governors. “He stood head and shoulders above an outstanding candidate pool,” regent Rahul Patel says. “He was, without question, the perfect choice.” At that meeting, he renounced past statements he had made supporting diversity, equity, and inclusion, saying he had changed his mind after seeing how it divided the U-M community and stifled debate, the Detroit News reports (paywall). He would be better at UF because he had seen “dysfunction from the inside,” he told the trustees.
Districts weigh countywide tax for trade programs: The school boards of Ann Arbor and Chelsea are tentative about a proposed 1 mill property tax dedicated to vocational education that could go to voters next year, MLive reports (paywall). Supporters say the tax, which would supply revenue to nine districts around the county, would create a stable funding source for hands-on learning in fields like aviation and construction. Some school leaders worry about overburdening taxpayers, and both boards are due to discuss the matter again in June. AAPS board treasurer Don Wilkerson says “at least a majority of districts need to support a millage like this” before it moves forward.
Charges dropped against three more pro-Palestine protesters: The AG’s office this week dismissed felony charges of restricting or obstructing a police officer against Samantha Rose Lewis and Alice Lesemann Elliot, MLive reports (paywall). A misdemeanor charge against an unnamed twenty-five-year-old man was also dropped. The charges stemmed from a pro-Palestine “die-in” that disrupted a new-student welcome event at U-M in August. Earlier this month, the state also dropped charges against seven protesters arrested amid the police-led removal of a protest encampment on the Diag.
225 six-figure earners on city payroll: City administrator Milton Dohoney topped the salary list for 2024 at $280,734 in wages and bonuses, MLive reports. The number of employees receiving more than $100,000 rose significantly from 170 in 2020, and the city paid out about $74 million to more than 2,300 full-time, part-time, temporary, and seasonal employees last year. That’s $10 million more than in 2020. More than half of the six-figure salaries went to employees of the police or fire departments.
North side of Bandemer Park closed Tuesday to Thursday: Construction on the Barton-Bandemer Pedestrian Tunnel requires critical work scheduled for three days next week, the city says in a press release. During that period, access to the park from Barton Dr. will be closed. The timing could change depending on the weather. Once complete, the pedestrian tunnel will connect a new segment of the B2B Trail in Barton Nature Area with the existing B2B Trail network in Bandemer Park and more than 20 miles to the east.
State grants $2.5M for two dam removals: The sum is the largest chunk of $15 million in spending by the Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy for the removal of nineteen dams across Michigan, according to a press release. The Tyler and Beyer dams on Willow Run Creek were built in the 1940s by Henry Ford to provide fire protection water for the Willow Run Bomber Plant during World War II; over the past decade, both have been decommissioned and drained.
County opposes I-94 smart vehicle corridor, toll roads: The Connected and Automated Vehicle corridor project would involve thirty-nine miles of express lanes between Ann Arbor and Detroit dedicated to self-driving cars, according to the resolution. A three-mile pilot lane is already operational and an environmental study of the entire route found it would have no significant impact. But because the lanes could charge user fees, commissioners worry about “creating barriers to mobility and access to essential services,” citing “concerns regarding equitable access, potential environmental impacts, and the prioritization of infrastructure investments that may not align with the immediate needs of residents of Washtenaw County.”
Questions about airport’s future follow expansion rejection: Now that city council has ended a longtime effort to extend the main runway, some lawmakers are wondering if it’s time to redevelop the facility altogether, Julie Halpert writes in this month’s Observer. Primarily used these days for training and flight clubs, the Ann Arbor Municipal Airport is one of the oldest in the nation, built in 1928. “This is a piece of land that could be prime for housing or energy production,” Ward 3 councilmember Travis Radina says. To do anything, though, the FAA would have to agree.
Downtown library to rent out suites to small businesses: The three spaces, dubbed “Lobby Shops,” will take over the area previously occupied by the Friends of AADL bookshop, according to Concentrate. They are intended to give small businesses and startups an affordable and visible place to operate in Ann Arbor. Rents will range from $100 to $250 per month. Interested tenants can learn more here.
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The house rising on Bydding Rd. caught the neighbors’ eyes, so Anita LeBlanc writes for the Observer about its unusual construction. Owner Peter Woolf intends to live in one of its units and rent the other three on Airbnb. Credit: Steve Friess.
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Two die, two injured in rash of holiday-weekend road crashes: A forty-seven-year-old Dexter woman died early Saturday after her SUV left I-94 and rolled over in the woods near Jackson Rd., according to an MSP press release. MSP says alcohol was believed to be a factor. The following morning, MSP says a naked man was fatally struck around 2:30 a.m. by a black sedan while wandering on I-94 near US-12. The man was a fifty-two-year-old from Warren; it remains unclear why he was there. Also early Sunday, a Nissan Rogue crossed the median and rolled over while traveling southbound on US-23 near Geddes Rd., MSP says. Alcohol or drugs are believed to have been a factor. The driver, a seventeen-year-old male, was hospitalized in critical condition; his passenger, a sixteen-year-old female, was in stable condition. Anyone with information on any of these crashes can call MSP at (810) 227-1051.
Angry Chelsea Hospital patient calls in false active shooter report: The seventy-four-year-old Tecumseh man says he did it because he was upset with his care and wanted police to come, MLive reports. He remains hospitalized and was not arrested after the May 21 incident, but the county prosecutor’s office is weighing charges.
Woman ignored court order to return dog tied to fatal stabbing: The dispute over Isabelle, a golden retriever injured in the attack that killed her owner, now moves to federal court, MLive reports (paywall). Elena James, the daughter of the late eighty-one-year-old Susan Hammerton, has not complied with a Washtenaw County judge’s order to return the dog to Ed Berger, Hammerton’s longtime partner, instead filing a request to move the dispute to federal court Hammerton was killed in a 2023 home invasion that also injured Berger and Isabelle. Berger, who lived with Hammerton, believes the nine-year-old dog belongs to him but James took Isabelle to Texas, where she lives.
U-M Health adds intensive adolescent mental health day program: The Child and Adolescent Partial Hospitalization Program will offer intensive therapeutic and educational services for young people aged twelve to seventeen with depression and anxiety when it opens this summer, Michigan Medicine reports. The program is being funded by a $6.2 million state grant and aims to “bridge the gap for young people who don’t require round-the-clock inpatient care but still need the structure and intensity of daily therapeutic services to thrive.” It will operate from the new U-M Ypsilanti Health Center, which opens Monday.
EMU cuts ties with Chinese universities: Under political pressure, the school announced Wednesday it will end engineering teaching partnerships with Beibu Gulf University and Guangxi University. In February, Michigan congressmen John Moolenaar and Tim Walberg, both Republicans, urged the move, arguing that the partnerships presented a national security risk. In January, U-M ended its academic partnership with Shanghai Jiao Tong University after similar pressure.
Pittsfield Twp. mosque approved after fifteen-year battle: Plans for the 58,000 square-foot Hidaya Muslim Community Center were approved by the township’s planning board, MLive reports. The facility at Golfside and Ellsworth roads will include prayer halls and a gymnasium. Longtime local businessman Mohamad Issa, the treasurer for the center’s nonprofit association, said that it will be “open to people of all faiths, with the goal of building cultural understanding.” The township also approved plans for eleven duplex residences nearby that may house elderly community members. Pittsfield rejected the initial plans for the center in 2011 amid resident opposition; litigation ensued that resulted in the township agreeing to pay a $1.7 million settlement and to approve the development.
Saline’s rainbow flag raises Facebook drama: A city post inviting the public to a Sunday flag raising to mark the start of Pride Month went viral this week with more than 2,700 reactions and 1,800 comments debating whether the flag is appropriate. Several local municipalities, including Ann Arbor and Washtenaw County, also routinely fly the rainbow flag in June to celebrate the LGBTQ communities.
Old Dexter post office may become welcome center: The quaint, 650-square-foot building on Main St., built in 1834 by town founder Samuel Dexter, has been vacant since Hotel Hickman Chuckwagon BBQ closed in 2023, MLive reports. The Dexter City Council discussed the possibility of renovating it into a welcome center with public restrooms this week; the Dexter Downtown Development Authority, which might foot the bill or contribute to costs, is expected to also take up the matter next month.
One very unusual Airbnb rises on Bydding Rd.: Owner Peter Woolf’s contractor, Meadowlark Builders, is using insulated concrete forms – hollow recycled Styrofoam blocks stacked and interlocked to create walls, then filled with concrete – to create the haven he’s calling Winter Garden, Anita LeBlanc writes in this month’s Observer. The goal is net-zero energy consumption. Among other elements, there’s a greenhouse and pond on the roof to feed rainwater to a 60,000-gallon cistern that serves as an enormous thermal battery with an energy storage capacity equal to 120 Tesla Powerwalls. A wood-burning stove will heat a sauna on the side of the house, with the collected heat returned to the cistern. Electricity will come from an eighteen-kilowatt grid-connected solar array on the roof with a backup battery. Woolf, a retired U-M professor of chemical and biomedical engineering, plans to live in a lower-level apartment and rent out three ensuite bedrooms.
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Taste of Ann Arbor returns Sunday: After a two-year layoff, the festival at the corner is back featuring more than twenty area vendors offering food and drinks. A production of the Main Street Ann Arbor Association, the event runs 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and will feature live music. Main St. between Washington and William streets will close starting at 6 a.m. Sunday.
Four South University businesses displaced by high-rise: The construction of Chapter Ann Arbor, a nineteen-story apartment building at the corner of Church St. expected to cater to U-M students, has prompted the closures of Oasis Mediterranean Grill, bubble tea shop Sweeting, and Jimmy John’s as well as the relocation of the street-wear and footwear boutique Motivation, Dave Algase writes in this month’s Observer. The apparel store is moving into bigger digs one block east in the Landmark Apartments and expects to reopen in June.
Ypsi’s first distillery opens: Water Tower Distilling Co. is the brainchild of husband-and-wife owners Skott Schoonover and Charleen Maune, the Eastern Echo reports. As a distillery, Water Tower produces their own alcohol for their bar and bottles. While they don’t serve food, guests are welcome to bring in their own or order from neighboring restaurants.
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A2 nonprofit, U.P. tribe partner to redistribute unused cancer drugs: YesRx and the Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians are working together to direct medication to patients who need it more than 300 miles away, Concentrate reports. The nonprofit formed in 2023 to manage the state’s disorganized cancer drug repositories, which collect and redistribute unused cancer medications. It received a $150,000 Michigan Health Endowment Fund Community Health Impact grant to work with the Sault Ste. Marie-based tribe over a two-year period, adding the tribe to its list of more than 100 partners across Michigan. The National Institutes of Health report that Native Americans have the lowest five-year cancer survival rate of any ethnic or minority group in the U.S., in part because cancer medication can be prohibitively expensive.
FedUp Ministries hosts Backyard BBQ fundraiser on June 7: The nonprofit hosts the annual event to support its work serving free meals to those in need across the region. Tickets start at $35 per person and can be bought in advance here. The event at 2|42 Community Church, 648 S. Wagner Rd. promises a buffet of chicken sliders, sweet potato fries, and mocktails, and a live jazz ensemble.
Hyundai donating $39,500 to Dixboro schoolhouse renovation: The Korean car company with a sprawling research and development facility in Superior Twp. is announcing the gift tomorrow during the village’s weekly farmers market, according to a press release. The historic red-brick one-room schoolhouse, built in 1888, was bought from the Dixboro United Methodist Church by the township last year with the intent to add bathrooms and make it part of a public park.
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By Jennifer Taylor
Friday: Try your hand at scientific illustration while having a drink at the Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum’s Discovery After Dark “Scientific Sip & Sketch.” The event also includes a workshop and a chance to make letterpress bookmarks. Twenty-one and up only. 6:30 to 9 p.m., AAHOM, 220 E. Ann. $30 ($20, members) includes one drink. Preregistration requested online or (734) 995–9439.
Saturday: See Brevity Shakespeare’s ninety-minute gender-reversed production of “The Taming of the Shrew,” Shakespeare’s sharp-witted comedy about the battle of the sexes. Through June 8, 7:30 p.m. (Fri. and Sat.) and 2 p.m. (Sun.), Ypsilanti Performance Space, 218 N. Adams, Ypsi. Tickets $15 (students and seniors, $10). Reservations recommended.
Sunday: Take the Peony Express, a free shuttle to parking-challenged Nichols Arboretum to see the stunning peony display at the height of its bloom. Peak bloom typically runs from Memorial Day to Summer Solstice (June 20). Free Shuttle runs every 15 minutes 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sat. and Sun. from Mitchell Field, 1900 Fuller Rd. to the Peony Garden in Nichols Arboretum.
See the Observer’s online calendar for many more local events.
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