by P.D. Lesko

THE WINTER CLASSIC hockey game that drew over 109,000 people to Michigan Stadium for a match-up between the Detroit Red Wings and the Toronto Maple Leafs showed off the best of Ann Arbor and the worst of Ann Arbor. Having an additional 100,000 people or so milling about town is nothing new for those of us who live here. The Winter Classic was an opportunity for Ann Arbor to strut its award-winning stuff that local pols are always so eager to talk about as opposed to talking about the state of the roads, sewers and services. However, tens of thousands of people who live in an honest togoodness urban area (Toronto) descended on a small town that has become a legend in its own mind thanks to over a decade of political leadership that has focused on subsidizing downtown development as opposed to improving the infrastructure and focusing on excellence in local transit and services.

We went downtown at 11 p.m. on New Year’s Eve and parked for free about a block from Main Street. Being a resident of Ann Arbor for 32 years means knowing where there is free parking, right? People who used the city’s parking garages posted Tweets about being trapped in the garages for up to an hour when trying to exit. In 2012 DDA officials borrowed $1.6 million dollars from Republic Parking at six percent interest. In return Republic fronted Ann Arbor ticket validation/electronic payment equipment. DDA officials told the local press the machines would validate parking tickets in parking garages and cut down wait times during peak use.

On January 1st, one clever fellow Tweeted a plea from a local parking garage for a pizza, extra-large with mushrooms and pepperoni, to be delivered to his car trapped in a long line of cars trying to exit a local garage. Those poor people had to pay, literally, to be inconvenienced. There were multiple Tweets about newly installed electronic payment machines malfunctioning. That shouldn’t have been a surprise. The company’s electronic machines have elicited multiple complaints to the Better Business Bureaus in several states against Republic Parking.

While city officials knew the snow storm that hit was coming, along with thousands and thousands of Toronto hockey fans, our downtown sidewalks remained snow covered and slippery.

There were long lines at Main Street restaurants; in the case of Conor O’Neill’s, the line stretched down the block. There was a stage set up and live music. The crowd was jovial, and people walked down Main Street swigging beer from cans and liquor from paper bags. The only line longer than the one to get into Conor O’Neill’s was the line to get into the Main Street Party Store.

We walked to Mani Osteria and Bar, went right in and sat down—no waiting. While at Mani for 90 minutes, I saw the same police cruiser with (I imagine) the same lone police officer drive up Liberty toward Main Street. Twice. While in the Main Street area, between 11 p.m. and 11:30 p.m., I saw half a dozen private security guards, but no Ann Arbor Police officers.

The young woman who crumpled to the ground in front of Mani was obviously drunk, and her male companion panicked. He stepped to the curb and looked up and down Liberty for a cab to take them back to their hotel. People in urban centers expect to hail cabs. There is a one vehicle cab stand in front of the Federal Building. It was empty. In September 2013, Ward 3 Council member Kunselman—who is running for mayor— told AnnArbor.com, “One concern that’s surfaced recently is there might not be enough taxi stands — curb side parking spots reserved for cab drivers — in the downtown.”

Kunselman suggested a plan to remedy the cab stand problem, and then didn’t follow through on it.

In Chicago, a ride on CTA buses on New Year’s Eve cost a penny. CTA then donated those fares to charity. As for the bus system for which Ann Arbor taxpayers fork over $8-$10 million dollars each year through a perpetual millage, AAATA officials announced how infrequently the city buses would run during the holidays. No buses after 7 p.m. on New Year’s Eve—with tens of thousands of out-of-town visitors looking to get around the city.

After the hockey game at which alcohol was sold, thousands of people occupied one side of Main Street, tying up traffic. The city’s public services administrator Craig Hupy insisted police coverage was the same as for U of M football games. That was obviously an error in judgement based on the lack of crowd control.

No buses. Interminable waits for cabs. Unplowed streets. Tipsy people with open liquor navigating unsalted sidewalks. Visitors trapped in parking garages because of problems with payment machines, poor crowd control and ineffectual traffic planning. Tweets by those who visited the city for the Winter Classic were funny, irate, ironic and prescient. In response, Ann Arbor officials insist they are not to blame. The Winter Classic, however, showed how under-prepared Ann Arbor is for prime time and how critical it is that elected officials who support new urbanism realize robust services—and not just shiny new buildings—define progress.