Browsing Category
Best of The A2Independent
Husband of Ann Arbor City Council Member to Be Sentenced on Domestic Violence Charge
by P.D. Lesko
Public records from Ann Arbor's 15th District Court show that on January 13, 2021 former Michigan State Senator Mitchell Irwin was arraigned before the Honorable Miriam A. Perry on a charge of domestic violence. Irwin is…
An Interview With Phil Christman About His New Nonfiction Essay Collection, “Midwest Futures”
by Martha Stuit
What words come to mind when you think of the Midwest?
You may think about its geography, the middleness, or its position and moniker as the heartland with farming and small towns.
You might look at a map to see…
High School Heroes—In Nepal, Freshman Krijol Shresthan Picks up the Pieces
On May 2 a rare 4.2 earthquake hit Western Michigan and shook Ann Arbor, devastating no one. Eight days earlier, a magnitude 7.8 earthquake hit Nepal, killing as many was 15,000 people, injuring over 12,000 more and leaving 16,000 schools…
Ann Arbor City Attorney Shenanigans?
Asst. City Attorney Says Postema’s Office “Represents” Detroit City Employee
Ann Arbor Public Services Administrator Sue McCormick left in 2011 to head the Detroit Water and Sewerage Dept. In a March 2015 email regarding depositions in…
City Employee Placed on Paid Leave Used Homophobic and Racial Slurs, Threatened to Beat up Co-Worker
Update: The original article stated that John Swantek had been put on leave Dec. 4, 2015. The correct date was Dec. 4, 2014.
by John Ball
Click here to download a copy of the AFSCME Discipline Report and pay records for John Swantek.…
Council Members Kept in Dark About Specifics of Sweetheart Deal for Staffer Who Resigned
by P.D. Lesko
IN JANUARY 2015, City Administrator Steve Powers told Council members that Building Dept. staffer Ralph Welton had resigned. Council members took that to mean that Welton had left the employ of the city and its payroll.…
Sweetheart Deal: Suspended City Employee Collects Pay for Months and Vests for Retirement
by P.D. Lesko
Download a copy of Ralph Welton's Separation Agreement here.
While City Administrator Steve Powers announced Welton’s “resignation” in Jan. 2015, the Separation Agreement signed by Welton and city HR Director Robyn…
High School Heroes: Battling the Stigma of Mental Illness one Day at a Time
By Stavi Tennenbaum
EVA ROSENFELD, JUNIOR, and co-editor in chief of Community High School’s nationally acclaimed CHS Communicator newspaper, is an avid reader, artist, Neutral Zone Board leader and widely published journalist. A Google…
“Reimagining Washtenaw Ave.” With Project Manager Nathan Voght
by P.D. Lesko
NATHAN VOGHT IS the project manager who wants us to Reimagine Washtenaw Ave. as an economic development opportunity. Like the controversial WALLY commuter train project on which over $32 million in local and state funds…
Ypsi Mayor Says Hurdles for Her City Are AAPS, Racism, Biased News Reporting
“I could get in trouble for saying this, but our biggest challenge is Ann Arbor Public Schools. Its a very strong and excellent district, but the AAPS has been actively taking students away from us. They have been opening up…