Ann Arbor

by P.D. Lesko Freedom of Information Act requests are governed by the notion that public government has the obligation to err on the side of transparency. It is also governed by the principle that if public records released would benefit…

by Rob Smith The 1 percent here in Ann Arbor are just different than us. They look at out-of-work folks and hungry children, homeless men and women tossed out of Camp Take Notice, struggling small businesses and cash-strapped school…

by P.D. Lesko Let's start with a quiz: 1.  Has Ann Arbor City Council voted to approve the construction of a train station in Fuller Park? 2.  As the city Charter requires, have the citizens of Ann Arbor voted to give over the 10-acre…

by P.D. Lesko Between 2003 and 2010, while total enrollment in Ann Arbor’s middle and high schools fell, average class sizes increased significantly, and so have actual class sizes, resulting in classrooms stuffed with 10, 12 and sometimes…

by Erika McNamara Detroit organizations that assist the homeless in the city report that the number of homeless individuals is on the increase and the shelters are at over capacity. The number of people requiring assistance this year is…

It's time for readers to help choose the A2Politico.com Whopper of the Year Award winner. A2Politico.com gave the 2010 Whopper of the Year to former City Administrator Roger Fraser. For 24 months, Fraser fibbed to Ann Arbor residents…

by P.D. Lesko I read it, and I laughed. Out loud. I read it again, and laughed even more. I kept reading. Sometimes, I get bored and quit in the middle. Other times, reading this stuff is like taking flax seed oil. It's good for me, so I…

by P.D. Lesko How many direct hits from within can the Hieftje-Hive-Mind-Collective Cube withstand? In summer 2009, the Cube took its first hit from within: Ann Arbor residents woke up to a front page piece in the Ann Arbor News that was…

By Chris Savage In late November of this year, the Michigan Supreme Court issued a tersely worded order (pdf) that said simply this: On order of the Court, the application for leave to appeal the July 19, 2011 judgment of the Court of…

by P.D. Lesko City Council committee appointments are out, and it looks as though newly elected Second Ward Council member Jane Lumm worked some black magic to get herself spots on two of the most powerful Council committees. For…