Interview: Ward 1 Independent Jeff Hayner Discusses Proactive Policing, Recycling and Lower Town

Editor’s Note: Ward 1 incumbent Sabra Briere was given the opportunity to participate in this interview and provide answers to these questions. She chose not to do so.

A2Indy:  What are the two most pressing issues facing Ward 1 in your opinion?

The deteriorating roads and infrastructure are a big concern to people I speak with in our ward.  It is simply too easy to see how bad our roads have become, and multiple water and sewer breaks in recent months only exacerbate the situation.  Clearly this needs to be addressed now.  Compounding the situation is the increased volume of traffic, especially construction traffic.  The gravel haulers and cement trucks put great stress on the road surfaces; we need to consider the costs to city infrastructure when allowing large-scale development to take place.  There has been no transportation planning for the commuters, who park in the neighborhood streets and walk to work.

A second pressing issue is a combined problem — an increase in blighted areas and an increase in property crime since I moved to the first ward in 1993 . Houses and commercial buildings sit abandoned.  The Lowertown area used to serve the neighborhood as a walkable grocery and now it is a field. Lower property values have allowed U of M to buy up most of the Wall Street area, further eroding the tax base in our ward.  There are a few bright spots, but for the most part we have not experienced favorable development in our ward.  In my neighborhood, of the six houses that border mine, all but one have experienced a break-in or a property theft from the garage or yard.  The police response to my active burglary call was too slow to catch the criminal in the act, and that was well before the most recent round of safety service cutbacks.

A2Indy: What are the three most pressing issues facing the City of Ann Arbor in your opinion?

One issue facing Ann Arbor has been the failure to make the right budget choices to serve the long-term interests of the city. Our aging roads and infrastructure need to be addressed.  Our storm water management has been neglected and is failing in many areas of the city. For too long we have put off making the tough budget choices required to take care of the basics.  I would like to see more spent on roads and critical sewer and water infrastructure repairs and less on window-dressing for downtown.  I think that the financial focus on the downtown area has been at the expense of the neighborhoods and the city at large.  These development issues are adding additional strain on our infrastucture. Also, many of the projects undertaken in the downtown area appear to be at odds with city goals.  If we are trying to make Ann Arbor a more walkable city, why do we continue to build parking structures, inviting downtown traffic congestion?  If we recognize that parks and open space make for a more livable city, why are we discouraging their protection in our planning processes?  Making common sense budget and development decisions is necessary for the well-being of the city.

Environmental concerns are another issue facing Ann Arbor.  The city is near non-compliance with federal clean air and drinking water standards.  We have a toxic plume, the Gelman/Pall Dioxane plume, polluting many northwest aquifers, and headed towards the Huron River, the source of the city’s drinking water.   And we have an aging and neglected sewer and storm water system that is beginning to spring leaks all over town.  We have lost sight of the value of our urban canopy, there are many standing trees that need trimming or removal.  We must address these environmental issues in meaningful ways.

Lastly, let me say that Ann Arbor is a great place to live.  There are pressing issues all over the city, and prioritizing which ones to deal with within our limited city budget is difficult.  However, one that can be dealt with without breaking the bank is this:  We need to restore the people’s trust in our representative government.  For too long the people of Ann Arbor have felt detached, even marginalized by the city’s leadership.  We have seen dramatic changes to our skyline, while citizen input on related matters of planning is discounted or ignored. A relative handful of people are appointed and cross-appointed to the boards, committees and commissions that shape our public policy and our city for years to come.  We need to elect and appoint public servants that can be trusted to serve their constituents, not special interests or political factions.  Only then can we restore trust in city government.

A2Indy: Lower Town is yet another TIF zoning scheme gone bad (like the Georgetown Mall parcel) that resulted in long-term blight. How can Ann Arbor City Council encourage the redevelopment of Lower Town?

The Lowertown fiasco was a long time in the making.  It was the result of the city and state development arms jumping on board a project without doing due diligence.  The developer was working on a ‘fee’ basis, with no risk to his money.  The city, state, and state pension funds stand to lose millions on this deal.  The best thing the city can do to promote responsible development in this or any other area of the city is to make sure that city services and infrastructure are in place. City planning and zoning guidelines need to be complete and clear, and not subject to misinterpretation.  And any public funds that would be leveraged for support of such a project, (which I am not a big fan of doing) need the protection of a through project examination and due diligence.

A2Indy:  Do you support the zoning of our city’s parkland for transit uses?

Absolutely not.  Parkland and Public Land should not be zoned for transit use.  Any future need that would contemplate using parkland for transit use should be put to a vote of all the people of the City of Ann Arbor, to whom the land belongs.

A2Indy: Since 2005 Ann Arbor has added fewer than 70 units, net, of new affordable housing, despite promises from various elected officials. Rent control is one way to make, literally, thousands of homes and apartments more affordable. Would you favor a rent control ordinance as a way to make living in Ann Arbor more affordable?

I do not favor rent control as a mechanism to make housing more affordable in Ann Arbor.  Rent control, as historically practiced, has the long-term effect of reducing the supply of affordable housing.  Ann Arbor is suffering from a shortage of housing at all price levels.  The current supply of expensive per-bed high-rise housing in the downtown core does little to change the demand for affordable housing.  The result of increased supply is simply an increase in the median rents in all parts of the student and near-downtown market.  A better approach to providing affordable housing would include a combination of efforts –  provide modest tax incentives to developers willing to build affordable units; change zoning laws to allow for Accessory Dwelling Units in residential areas; lower the initial fees for connecting to city water and sewer to encourage in-fill building in neighborhood lots; and allow for reasonable zoning variances in cases where a builder would like to replace a single family home with a duplex or slightly larger unit.  There are also opportunities to offer rent subsidies to fill vacancies in large apartment complexes.

A2Indy:  Do you favor term limits for members of city boards and commissions, and specifically the members of the Downtown Development Authority Board?

Yes, reasonable term limits provide the best opportunity for greater community involvement in city affairs.  A city government is best served by active participation, diversity of viewpoints, and a willingness to allow those who choose to serve, the opportunity to do so.  We need to do a better job of publicizing the application process, encouraging public participation in all civic matters, and most importantly, giving the proper weight to public input.

A2Indy: The Mayor of Boston was recently quoted in the New York Times as saying about Detroit, “If it takes 90 minutes for the police to respond, there’s a big problem.” In Ann Arbor, it can take police hours to respond toLower non-emergency calls. Is this a problem in your opinion, and if so, how can City Council help Chief Seto solve it?

Police response time is a problem, one that my neighbors and I have experienced firsthand.  Council can help by continuing the dialog with the leaders of our emergency services and taking steps to insure that their needs are met. Accurate information on crime levels, response times and other statistics need to be shared with the Council and the public.

A2Indy: In Ann Arbor, property crime, burglary, arson and forcible rape are all on the rise, according to FBI Uniform Crime statistics. Chief Seto has told Council he doesn’t have enough officers to police our city proactively. Do you support proactive policing, and if so where will you find the money to fund the officers necessary to do the job?

I do support proactive policing, as long as it can be determined that it provides a corresponding drop in crime.  I know that business owners I talk with in the First Ward’s downtown areas are concerned about the lack of police on the streets. The Maynard Street substation, used for bike police, has been shuttered for quite some time.  Meanwhile, property crimes in that area have gone up. I believe there is a relationship between the amount of police on the street, engaging with the community in a positive way, and a reduction crime.  As for finding the funding for additional officers, I would start by looking in the budget for reductions in discretionary spending, not by raising revenue.  If the downtown area needs more police on the street, we need to look at the areas of the budget that are focused on downtown.

A2Indy: After spending $8 million dollars to switch to single-stream recycling, the city’s overall diversion rate has worsened and more tons of garbage are going to our landfill, according to the recently released 5 Year Solid Waste Plan. The MRF, which processes about 30 percent of its total materials from Ann Arbor, is facing competition from MRFs built in western Washtenaw County and elsewhere that are charging less per ton. Should garbage and recycling be “branded” as a “profit center,” or should Ann Arbor’s facilities process only the garbage and recycling the city produces and a corresponding reduction in the solid waste millage be made?

It is not a profit center if it is not making a profit, or if those profits are subsidized by Ann Arbor residents taxes.  I support focusing services paid for by Ann Arbor taxpayers on serving Ann Arbor residents, first.  Reducing any millage would be welcomed, as we have seen taxes and fees increase, while services decreased, for many years now.

A2Indy: Ann Arbor’s city employee pension and health care liabilities are underfunded. The city of Detroit was recently found to have been making flawed assumptions concerning the annual rate of return their pension portfolio would earn (7 percent per annum). A billion dollar additional pension liability was revealed. The City of Ann Arbor’s pension board recently released a report which shows the assumption of an annual rate of return through 2024 of 7 percent per annum, but an average actual rate of return of between 1.5-3.0 percent per annum. What’s your plan for the city begin to aggressively pay down its growing pension and healthcare liabilities to avoid having to levy additional taxes and/or the sale of assets to meet the obligation?

Pensions are a complex issue and one that requires many layers of the onion to be peeled before one begins to understand.  The annual rate of return is only one of many assumptions that a plan actuary choses.  A recent survey on public pension plan investment returns reported 8 percent as the median rate assumption.  I believe we need to look at all options for reducing our legacy costs, however I do not believe this can be done on a piece-meal basis or with what appears to be quick fixes.  The city needs to undertake a comprehensive review of its post-employment benefits and look for ways to reduce costs.  There are many options available – we must make sure that any solution “fits” Ann Arbor and serves the long-term interests of the city.

A2Indy: Council members have discussed rolling back fees which have been raised over the past decade, obviously, as a way to increase revenues without raising taxes. The $40,000 sewer connection  fee was one recently discussed. What are some other fees you would favor rolling back, i.e. fees to use park facilities, parking fines, etc….?

I recognize that there are two ways to meet our balanced budget obligations — raising fees or reducing expenditures.  I support the reduction of the sewer connection fee as a method to encourage in-fill on empty lots in the neighborhoods.  I would support lowering fees in places where the fee is not commensurate with the service provided.  I would also support a sliding-scale reduction in fees for persons and families who are not able to afford the entire fee.  I know that the city’s swimming pools provide this, and consideration should be given to extending these programs to other city services.  We need to do more to make Ann Arbor affordable for families.

A2Indy: City staff hired at 50 years of age vest in the city’s pension plan after 5 years of employment. Others vest after 10 years. Would you favor raising the vesting period to 20 years for all employees, and ending city provided health care for current and future retirees, relying instead on the Affordable Healthcare Act system, as many cities are doing?

I believe we need to look at all options for reducing our legacy costs.  I do not believe this can be done on a piece-meal basis and any changes to eligibility and plan design should be done in a thoughtful and considerate way.