The Ann Arbor Independent - A locally owned newspaper in Ann Arbor

ON WEEKENDS, THE public bathrooms and first floor of the Blake Transit Center downtown remain open well after the front desk staff go off duty. Both the women’s and men’s bathrooms have entrances which are open. There is one family restroom…

by Brent McDermott IF I ASKED five people on the street to describe Ann Arbor in five words or less, these are the answers I would hear: academic, charming, friendly, transient and progressive. They are not the first that come to my…

DURING THIS PERIOD, there were no sex crimes reported by the AAPD. This week, there were 8 assaults, down from 9 the previous week. None of the assaults was charged as felony assault and none involved any sort of weapon. There were 12 cases…

by Donna Iadipaolo THE UNIVERSITY OF Michigan has significantly increased its offerings of free, massive open online courses, otherwise widely known as “MOOCs.” At a result, along with other outcomes, U-M receives major advertising, and…

IN 2009, DAWN Gabay, then interim executive director of the Ann Arbor Transportation Authority (AATA) sent a letter to an MDOT official urging MDOT not to lease 23 outdated rail cars from a company owned by Louis Ferris, Jr. Ferris had…

I recently read a column in your February 14, 2015 edition that deeply offended me as a customer, friend and community stakeholder in the article’s mean-spirited and unfair characterization of Rush’s Barbershop, and its beloved proprietor…

by  Debbie Munson Badini ON FEB. 27, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources filed an appeal of a December 2014 federal district court ruling that returned wolves in Michigan and Wisconsin to the federal endangered species list and…

IN 2004, Superior Twp. resident Louis P. Ferris, Jr., purchased dozens of double-decker, stainless-steel passenger rail cars. According to an article published on Feb. 10, 2015 in the Detroit Free Press, “Metra, which operates the Chicago…

by P.D. Lesko At 8 a.m. on a chilly Mar. 5 morning, Ann Arbor City Council member Jack Eaton (D-Ward 4) and Council member Mike Anglin (D-Ward 5) waited in the lobby of Ann Arbor City Hall for the City Clerk's office to open. Both…

by Ryan Hunter ON THE EVENING of Feb. 23, Brown Chapel A.M.E. Church of Ypsilanti hosted “A Community Gathering.” Sponsored by Ann Arbor’s NAACP Chapter President, William V. Hampton, Brown Chapel A.M.E. Church Pastor Ricky Jefferson and…