by P.D. Lesko THE ANN ARBOR OBSERVER, recently published a piece about staffing and standards within Ann Arbor’s fire department. Council members and former Council candidates have alleged that The Observer takes pains to support the…

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…

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…

A2P Notes: This is filed under "Scoops & Scores," because you read it here first! The graph, above, is simple to read. As the number of firefighters in Ann Arbor has declined, the number and regularity of fire fatalities have…

John Hieftje and City Administrator Roger Fraser are both fond of pointing out that the Ann Arbor Fire Department is, practically, obsolete. Fraser, in describing what the AAFD does has said, "They have very few fires. Mostly what they deal…