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Safety
“Scary to think of the effect if the public knew there was heroin dealing in the building.”—January 2011 Trustee Email To AADL Director
ON MARCH 17 Ms. Josie Parker, Director of the Ann Arbor District Library, spoke before Ann Arbor City Council and confessed that “over the past 36 months” there have been “five heroin overdoses” at the main branch of the public library. In…
A2POLITICO: Trustees & Director Keep Mum On Library’s Drug Crime Problem
by P.D. Lesko
THE DIRECTOR OF the Ann Arbor District Library (AADL) has a heroin problem. It’s not only her heroin problem, exactly, except that it is. On March 17, AADL Executive Director Josie Parker went before City Council to tell…
Survey: Colleges Want More Guidance On How To Best Handle Cases Of Student Sexual Misconduct
COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES across the nation would welcome additional support and assistance in creating appropriate sanctions or interventions with students who are found responsible for sexual misconduct.
That was one of the main…
Q & A: Washtenaw Watch Dogs Founder Dr. Douglas Smith
DR. DOUG SMITH, a pathologist, isn’t a guy who rolls over and plays dead in the face of injustice. Prior to July 2011, the University of Michigan’s campus trespass policy permitted lifetime bans. Between 2001 and 2011, 2,050 individuals…
EDITORIAL: More Money For Traffic Enforcement
AT THE DECEMBER 16th Ann Arbor City Council meeting, Council members Eaton, Lumm and Kunselman introduced a resolution to allocate $125,000 to Police Chief John Seto’s department. The money will fund enhanced traffic enforcement in order to…
Could Assistant Chief Ellen Taylor Bring Needed Stability To The AAFD As Ann Arbor’s First Female Fire Chief?
IN JANUARY 2014, Ann Arbor Fire Department Chief Chuck Hubbard will retire. His departure opens the door for the promotion of Assistant Fire Chief Ellen Taylor to the top spot in the AAFD. Should she be moved into that job, Taylor will…
The Number Of Rapes and Forcible Fondling Complaints At The University of Michigan Rose Sharply In 2012
THE NUMBER OF forcible rapes committed on the University of Michigan’s campus and/or reported to the University’s police dropped from a high of 75 in 2005 to a low of 8 in 2010.
Between 2011 and 2012, however, the number of forcible…
Crosswalk Ordinance Groups Take To Change.org To Try To Exert Influence
Editor’s Note: Kathy Griswold is the Chair of The Ann Arbor Independent’s Editorial Board.
THE WASHTENAW BIKING and Walking Coalition, a small local alternative transportation advocacy group, recently launched an online petition drive to…
Police, Fire, Parks, Millage Funds & Pools Dinged By City’s IT Fund For Millions In Assessments While IT Projects Remained Uncompleted
MAYOR HIEFTJE HAS repeatedly told the public that the cost of police and fire service is a strain on the city’s budget. In a 2012 interview he said this about the city’s safety services budget, “...All the water has been wrung out of the…
City Administrator Memo To Council: “At this time, I am not proceeding with reducing the number of fire stations”
John Hieftje and his political pals have a reputation of ignoring public opinion. Perhaps the most egregious example was a 2008 Council meeting at which petitions with 6,000 signatures were presented to Council to urge them to put the…