Interview: The Very Popular, Gregarious, Fiscally Responsible Thorn in the Mayor’s Side—Mike Anglin

Council member Mike Anglin (pictured left) has represented Ann Arbor’s Fifth Ward for the past four years. He shocked many when, in 2007, as a newbie to local politics, he knocked off three-term incumbent Fifth Ward Council member Wendy Woods with 59.6 percent of the vote. In 2009, thanks to FOIAs of Council emails by the Ann Arbor News, as well as by individuals, it was revealed that current Fifth Ward Council member Carsten Hohnke, John Hieftje and former Third Ward Council member Leigh Greden had exchanged emails during a Council meeting in which they discussed their desire to “get rid” of Anglin. During his 2009 re-election campaign against challenger Scott Rosencrans, who enjoyed the support of several sitting Council members, including Fourth Ward Council member Margie Teall, Rosencrans circulated an email to a large group of Ward Five voters in which he claimed Anglin had missed a year’s worth of meetings of the Parks Advisory Commission. Anglin serves on PAC as one of two City Council representatives. The allegation, reported on in the local press, and disproven by meeting records kept by city officials, prompted a tense moment at a public debate when one angry Fifth Ward resident asked Rosencrans if he was sorry for his attempt to mislead voters. Anglin went on to win in 2009 with 65 percent of the vote.

Mike Anglin has been a political irritant to John Hieftje, who has expressed exasperation in Council meetings with Anglin’s votes against recent large capital projects, such as the Police-Court building, as well as the new underground parking garage. In his current campaign, Anglin is stressing his long-time commitment to fiscal responsibility, particularly in light of recent cuts to services, police and fire as a result of the construction costs and cost overruns associated with the Police Court building, as well as the cost of the underground parking garage.  Anglin has repeatedly said the city does not need and cannot afford the Fifth Avenue underground parking garage. As a result of their differences, Hieftje has never endorsed Anglin. However, Ann Arbor’s former Congresswoman Lynn Rivers is throwing her considerable influence and political weight behind Anglin’s campaign. In her endorsement of him she writes, “Mike has all the attributes I like to see in an elected official: honesty, persistence and common sense. Join me once again in voting for Mike.” He also has the endorsement of the Michigan Sierra Club and the Huron Valley Chapter of the Sierra Club.

Anglin is a gregarious and outgoing man who clearly enjoys his job representing the Fifth Ward. In this interview with A2Politico, he talks about transportation, conflicts of interest on Council, city finances, and, yes, why he thinks the city’s Stadium Bridge is still a mouldering heap after his Fifth Ward colleague Carsten Hohnke, Margie Teall, First Ward Council member Sandi Smith and John Hieftje told voters last summer that construction “was scheduled” to begin “no later” than March of 2011.

A2P: Can you describe a couple of your political accomplishments of which you’re the proudest?

Mike Anglin: In 2007 when I first ran for office I was determined as an elected official to reflect the desires and wishes of my constituents. Since I spend a good deal of time going door-to-door and talking with many Ward 5 residents, I have developed a sense of the many needs that the voters express.

One need that came through clearly is the desire for continued support of the parks and recreation.  Under the threat of privatization of Huron Hills Golf Course I worked with community groups and other City Council members to make sure that the golf course remained under the direct supervision of the Parks Department. I believe a healthy community through recreation is vital to a liveable community—recreation for all age groups and abilities.  As a member of the Parks Advisory Commission, I feel it is an honor to work towards saving the parks since they make Ann Arbor a destination place to live.  It has taken our forebears 150 years to assemble the parks system I feel my stewardship now is a legacy.

Another concern was the need for the City to become more fiscally responsible. Ann Arbor, like most towns, has limited resources and although we may want to make and build more and more buildings financed by the City, such as the Municipal Center and the underground parking garage next to the library of Fifth Avenue, I felt we could not afford these expenses without serious service cuts. I did not vote for either project since I was not convinced that paying for these large and expensive projects  for the next 30 years would benefit the taxpayers. Even though my oppssition did not prevent these projects from being built, it raised public awareness.  I think this heightened awareness helped mobilize public pressure to defeat the proposed downtown conference center.

A2P: You touch obliquely on the subject of the city’s finances and the Council Majority’s spending decisions on your website. Can you speak in more detail about what you see as the most pressing financial challenges facing Ann Arbor?

Mike Anglin: Providing for the public health, safety and welfare of the community is the most important task of government. By setting goals and providing funds to  address these priorities,  elected officials can provide direction for outcomes. Areas which have had reductions in staff, such as police and fire, should not be asked to make any more cuts. Areas that have seen growth should be examined to see if the need continues to exist. Bureaucracy  can  expand without bettering services. Legal, planning and development, IT and utilities need to be carefully monitored for effectiveness.  The new City Administrator needs to be given a clear set of priorities that reflect the Council’s  direction for the coming years.  Personally, I believe we have seen a drop in services to the community at large in such services as tree maintenance, road maintenance and snow removal, while  fees of all kinds have risen, such as water, inspections, permits, licenses, fines and services fees. In addition, privatization of services is, in effect, a loss of the services previously provided by the tax dollar.

The city has borrowed and spent for the last decade. Now we must make the bond payments on that debt.  Some of the projects, such as the water treatment plant may have been truly necessary. Others, like the underground parking structure that I voted against, were not.

A2P: On your website you write, “My neighbors are concerned about the reduction in police and fire services….Sadly, I do not believe that the city spending reflects the concerns of the citizens…This difference between the priorities of the citizens and that of the is the fundamental issue in Ann Arbor today.” So, how do you plan to address this difference in priorities if re-elected?

Mike Anglin: The many citizens I have met and talked with place a high priority on basic services like police and fire protection. Yet, we are required to cut these services primarily because we have the large long term debt obligations.  I think this illustrates a difference between the priority of the citizens and the city management.

I will continue support basic services for the citizens over projects for city managers.  I will continue to oppose non-essential projects that add to the long term debt, like I did the underground parking structure.

I believe we need to very carefully evaluate all non-essential spending.  I will work with citizens, as I have in the past,  to provide information and to make your opinions known at Council.  But I also need your help.  The citizens of this city have a great  deal of knowledge and expertise. They need to make that available to Council.

A2P: A2Politico has revealed in its Weekly Whopper feature that city staff routinely mislead Council in order to push through projects, spending, cuts, increases in fees, etc….Do city managers have your confidence?

Mike Anglin: It would be unfair to make a single statement about all city managers. We have many good, hard working ones. But I am disappointed  with the way some issues have been handled.

I would cite the single stream recycling program as an example.  The city spent over $6 million for this program. Council was told that this would double the tonnage of materials recycled, and would be a great savings to the city. Yet, just last month, Council was asked to approve an additional $100,000 for the program.

The reason given by a city manager for requesting the additional payment was that the tonnage collected by the contractor had only increased by 20 percent.  There was a shortfall of 80 percent of the projected benefits of the program.  My Council Colleagues joined me in rejecting this contract amendment.  After all, why should the city pay a contractor an additional $100,000 to do 60 percent of the work promised under the original contract?

When the program was first proposed, many of the citizens of Ann Arbor objected that the projected goals were not realistic.

A2P: A2Politico recently revealed that while Council voted to cut police and fire services to close a $2.9 million budget gap, city staff were rewarded with over $1 million per year for cell phones. Do you think perks for city managers have gotten out of hand?

Mike Anglin: I would like to look at each section of spending that can be cut without effecting service…eliminating the frills in all departments will lead to savings…these savings can be used to hire needed personnel for service delivery..I am thinking here of the forestry dept since we continue to call ourselves tree town and are limited  in spending for more work on trees which have many positive points for the City.

Yes.  In some instances cell phone charges, texting packages, and cell phone allowances may be necessary for the employees job.  But in most instances I do not they they are essential. The dollar amount may not be large, but this is a time when everyone must make some sacrifices.

While eliminating car and cell phone allowances is not enough to restore all police and fire positions, it does send the message to union members that the city is eliminating management perks before asking them to make concessions.

A2P: Several of your colleagues on Council work for the University of Michigan in either full-time or part-time jobs. They routinely vote on projects such as the Fuller Road parking garage being built for the University of Michigan. Do you think their employment with the University presents a conflict of interest? Should Hieftje, Higgins, Derezinski and Kunselman recuse themselves from such votes?

Mike Anglin: This is a hard question.  The vote is probably not a direct conflict of interest in the sense that it directly and immediately effects the income of the Council member.   It does have the appearance of a potential conflict of interest since the public may believe Council members  will vote for the interests of the University over those of the citizens of the city.

Recusing themselves would probably be best.  How would a citizen ever know if a Council member thought his vote at Council had an effect on his performance rating at the University? It would probably be inappropriate for the University to explicitly include this in a performance rating, but how would even the Council member know if his vote was a hidden influence in the rating?

A2P: Where do you stand on the issues of regional transportation and high-speed rail for Ann Arbor?

Mike Anglin: I am in favor of a continued increase in bus service in the City of Ann Arbor. As the need for mass transit increases, we can build accordingly…a certain point is reached at which the population of the area will demand more public transportation, but at this time the population numbers do not warrant a regional system. The dialogue should continue with the townships,  since their voices are needed for expansion.

High speed rail is a wish only.  Limited money due to population of the region will keep this area of the country at a lower funding status for some time to come.

High-speed rail is practical only to the extent that it is funded by the federal government.

From my service on SEMCOG, I do not see local communities, other than possibly Ann Arbor, wishing to fund rail systems.  Ann Arbor simply cannot afford to fund and then subsidize a large regional transportation system.

A2P: Last summer, several of your colleagues on City Council up for re-election told the public that repairs to the Stadium Bridges “were scheduled” to begin in March 2011. March 2011 came and went. Ann Arbor doesn’t have its federal TIGER II grant money for the Stadium Bridge (a city staffer was quoted in AnnArbor.com as saying the money would come in May). Our Road Repair Fund is currently $28 million, yet Ann Arbor has a crumbling Bridge, and the third worst roads in the state. Whom should voters hold responsible for the road/bridge repair fiasco? What are you prepared to do to address the road repair issue?

Mike Anglin: The information provided in the June 2011 public meetings state that there is $16.7 million in total federal and state grants, with $13.9 million coming from the TIGER II grant.  The construction contract has not gone out for bids, since the contract with the engineering firm to do the drawings was just approved by council on June 20, 2011.  The information presented at the March 2011 bridge meeting was that the construction bids would go out in July and construction would start in  November 2011 .

I’m disappointed that the Mayor and Council majority have not made fixing the bridge a higher priority. The bids for engineering work to replace the bridge closed in February 2011 but staff did not get the resolution to Council to approve the contractor until June 20, 2011, approximately 1 ½ months after the timeline listed in the RFP.  That means bridge construction will be behind schedule and probably will not start by November 2011, which is the start date estimated by staff in March 2011.

The streets millage is up for renewal in November.  This is an excellent time for the public to exert pressure to make sure their priorities are funded.

A2P: What else distinguishes you, issue-wise, from Neil Elyakin?

Mike Anglin: The obvious difference is experience and knowledge of the city operation.  I have served on Council for 4 years.  In addition I have served on the following :

• Parks Advisory Commission
• Land Acquisition Committee
• Liquor Committee
• Taxi Board
• Brownfields Committee
• Environmental Committee
• Semcog -South East Michigan Coalition of Governments
• Washtenhaw County/City of Ann Arbor  Community Corrections Board

Also I work for  civic service organizations and their programs:

• Kiwanis
• Meals on Wheels

I spend a great deal of time listening to the constituents of Ward 5.  I work to make their opinions heard at Council.  If a citizens has a specific need,I take their concerns to the appropriate city staff.

A2P: Last time you ran, your opponent, Scott Rosencrans, got caught lying about your meeting attendance record. This time around, Former Second Ward Council member Joan Lowenstein’s endorsement of Elyakin takes some nasty swipes at you. Lowenstein writes: “I can guarantee that if you call Neal, he’ll call you back!  Ann Arbor needs a council member who will not only listen, he’ll accomplish something.” She’s implying you don’t return constituent phone calls, and that you haven’t accomplished anything. What’s Lowenstein (who doesn’t live in your Ward) got against you that she’s the one inventing allegations this time around?

Mike Anglin: I believe we need to focus on issues not personalities…since disagreements are always present. Yet after the issues are long forgotten, the daily living in the community continues, and we become neighbors once again.

A2P: Elyakin, who’s running as a Democrat, has several endorsers listed on his website who are long-time donors to the Michigan Republican Party and/or donors to Republican Rick Snyder’s campaign, according to campaign finance records. Do you think you need the support of Ann Arbor Republicans and Demublicans to run a winning campaign as a Democrat in the Fifth Ward?

Mike Anglin: I welcome the support of all that believe that the basic services to the citizens, such as police and fire protection, are more important than new buildings.   In the present economic climate, we must exercise fiscal responsibility to retain these basic services.  I believe that appeals to members of both parties.

Personally, I am a long term member of the Democratic party.  I believe that party best represents the goals of social justice for all.  I believe that is the best basis of a true democracy.