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Econ
After Safehouse Scandal and Ouster of Former Executive Director, All 18 Board Members Involved Have Quietly Left
by P.D. Lesko
Since the July 31, 2021 publication of the first in a series of investigative articles about the mismanagement of SafeHouse Center, the County's domestic violence shelter, all 18 members of the Board of Directors on whose…
Ann Arbor’s Guaranteed Income Program Starts Giving Out $528 Monthly Payments
by Ken Coleman
A two-year project aimed at providing monthly payments to 100 current and future Ann Arbor entrepreneurs with low and very low incomes kicked off this month. Over 1,000 people applied in Oct. 2023.
Powered by Poverty…
Boosting Michigan’s Population is All About Facing Reality: Too Many Young People Are Leaving the State
by Rick Haglund
Foundation and other philanthropy executives aren’t generally known as firebrands. But veteran foundation leader David Egner recently served up a scorching assessment of Michigan’s protracted economic decline and why it…
One Ann Arbor Landlord’s “Blatant” Attempt to Thwart the Early Leasing Ordinance
by P.D. Lesko
Katie Waddle is a Ph.D. student in mathematics at the University of Michigan. She holds a B.S. in Mathematics from the University of Chicago, an M.Ed in Secondary Math Education from Stanford, and an M.A. in Mathematics…
U-M Continues to Stiff Ann Arbor While Colleges Across the Country Make Voluntary Payments in Lieu of Taxes
11/1/23: Updated with comments from former City Council member Jeff Hayner.
by P.D. Lesko
Nonprofits in at least 28 states contribute what are often known as payments in lieu of taxes, or PILOTs, to the localities in which they are…
Is Ypsi Twp. Targeting a “Black-Owned Business,” or Protecting the Township From a Dangerous Public Nuisance?
by P.D. Lesko
At the Aug. 24 hearing on the matter of Ypsilanti Twp. vs. Ardis Lewis, Jr., Men Like Us and Lily Investments, Inc. before the Honorable Timothy P. Connors in the Washtenaw County Trial Court, the podium was crowded. The…
Supreme Felons, Inc. Loses Non-Profit Status, Group no Longer Eligible to Receive Money From County $1.2M Grant
Due to the revocation of its non-profit status, Supreme Felons, Inc. is in direct violation of its contract with Washtenaw County. By violating terms of its Jan. 2023 contract, the non-profit became ineligible to receive any portion of the…
Residents Refused Mental Health Services While CMH Spends Millage Money on Consultants, PR and Paid “News” Coverage
Despite the 2017 passage of the Public Safety and Community Mental Health Preservation Millage, Washtenaw County Community Mental Health turns away Washtenaw County residents who need mental health treatment. Meanwhile, CMH Exec. Dir.…
Grant Boosts Programming at YDL’s Superior Branch
by Sam Killian
Since Superior Township first joined the library district in 2007, the Library Board has been committedto expanding service in the area by building a third full-service library. The new 7,800 square-footfacility was built…
Former Ann Arbor Administrator Tom Crawford Joins Ann Arbor SPARK as CFO
Ann Arbor SPARK announced that Tom Crawford has been contracted to serve as chief financial officer. Crawford brings to the organization a deep knowledge of financial strategy, human resources, and IT services in both the municipal and…