The Ann Arbor Independent Editorial Team 2257 posts 224 comments

A COMMITTEE CALLING itself Partners For Transit (PFT) filed papers to register with Washtenaw County’s Elections Division in 2010; the date the committee was formed is listed on the Statement of Organization as November 18, 2009. The…

 It appears that not only is Ann Arbor paying employees the total cost of their cell phone plans, but in some instances pays employees almost 2.5 times more than the monthly cost of popular cell phone/texting plans. CELL PHONE COSTS paid…

by P.D. Lesko IMAGINE MY SURPRISE  when I opened the February 2014 issue of The Ann Arbor Observer and discovered my photo. The title of the piece? “A $250,000 Election: This Year’s City Council Race Is Shaping Up As The Most Expensive…

THE ANN ARBOR Independent used a Freedom of Information  Act (FOIA) request to get copies of the employment contracts between the AAPS Board of Education and the school district’s top-level administrators, including Superintendent Dr.…

A LOCAL ANONYMOUS donor has offered to match, dollar for dollar, financial gifts made to Food Gatherers up to $50,000 through Monday, March 31. With the match in place, donations to Food Gatherers of one dollar will provide enough food for…

IN HER 2013 City Council race, almost half of Ward 1 Council member Sabra Briere’s 2013 campaign funds came from money donated by the owners of medical marijuana dispensaries. The owner of a local dispensary held a fundraiser for Briere…

YELLOWSTONE DRIVE is approximately 1/3 of a mile long, a quiet side street located between Green Road and Bluett, on the city’s northeast side. It takes about 10 minutes to stroll from one end of Yellowstone to the other. According to…

DR. MARK SCHLISSEL, a former Provost from Brown University and a long-time Dean of Biological Sciences from UC-Berkleley, will take over from Dr. Mary Sue Coleman. Whether Dr. Schlissel will prove to be the Board of Regents’ own RichRod…

by Ken Wishnia Sometimes the only place where bankers go to jail for their criminal activities is in the pages of crime fiction. LET’S FACE IT: some of the most ideologically committed people rarely read fiction, even socially…

While spending increases on meals out, travel, luxury lodging and cell phones, monthly car allowance costs drop significantly from a high in 2010. UNDER FORMER CITY administrator Roger Fraser in 2009 and 2010, according to information…