Money Runs Out Less Than Two Weeks After Washtenaw United Way Announces Small Biz Emergency Grants
With $1.29 million in funding, $1 million of which was donated by the Song Foundation, the Washtenaw United Way's Washtenaw Small Business Emergency Relief Fund ran dry just two weeks after the modest grants were announced. The United…
Ann Arbor GoFundMe Campaigns Meet With Varying Success
by P.D. Lesko
On March 23, 2020, Mike and Hilary Gustafson, the owners of the Literati bookstore in downtown Ann Arbor, launched a GoFundMe campaign to raise $100,000 in order to save their seven-year-old bookshop. The campaign raised…
The Foodist: When You Need a Break From Cooking, These Ann Arbor Restaurants Offer Take Away and Delivery
Ann Arbor restaurants offering takeout or delivery:
Afternoon Delight at 251 E Liberty St. is offering carryout and curbside pickup. Call 734-665-7513 to order.Aventura at 216 E Washington St. is offering takeout. Call 734-369-3153 or…
Confusion Over Gov. Whitmer Stay-Home Order
Can you buy seeds or seedlings?
by Riley Beggin
It’s hard for Damon Glei, owner of Glei’s Orchards and Greenhouses in Hillsdale, to determine where his 103-year-old business fits into Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s extended stay-at-home…
Just so We’re Clear About Who’s Who….Kinda: Ann Arbor Front Group Asks For Money
The Koch brothers spent a total of $220 million on the 2014 midterm elections through their right-wing political advocacy front groups, such as Americans for Prosperity. Front groups raise money by spinning false narratives. This post…
These Council Members Handed Howard Lazarus His Golden Parachute in 2016, Then Pretended They Didn’t
by P.D. Lesko
The only reason former City Administrator Howard Lazarus is several hundred thousand dollars richer is thanks to an open-ended, 2016 contract negotiated by someone among the attorneys employed in the City Attorney's…
Michigan Group Works to get Graduated Income Tax on November 2020 Ballot
The plan calls on the Legislature and governor to cut taxes for individuals with incomes up to $175,000 and joint filers who make less than $350,000.
A new group led by Democratic activists wants voters in November to decide whether…
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…
“Lost in America”: Film Review
by Frank Scheck
You'll find it hard to walk past a homeless person again after seeing this disturbing documentary.
105 minutes
The growing crisis of youth homelessness is explored in Rotimi Rainwater's documentary, executive…
America’s Love Affair With the Single-Family House is Cooling, but it Won’t be a Quick Breakup
by Robert Parker and Rebecca Lewis
For decades land use regulation across the U.S. has emphasized single-family houses on large lots. This approach has priced many people out of the quintessential American dream: homeownership. It also…