THIS AUGUST, VOTERS will go to the polls and choose from among candidates running in the City Council Democratic primary elections. In Wards 1, 3, 4 and 5, incumbents’ and challengers’ websites are up and populated with a variety of…

by P.D. Lesko MEMBERS OF THE Ann Arbor Pedestrian Safety and Access Task Force proposed changes to the city’s snow removal ordinance which would drop the one-inch threshold for the removal of snow and ice. The proposed changes would…

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…

THE AATA SPENT about $1.4 million on consultants, marketing and collateral materials to shape and pitch to Washtenaw County  residents a proposed $500 million regional transit plan. The amount spent did not include hundreds of hours of…

The Dec. 1 City Council meeting included members grappling over their own rules, a failed floor motion to put Council’s only CPA on the group’s Budget & Labor Committee and a lengthy debate centered around limiting members’ speaking…

by P.D. Lesko A Washtenaw County employee told City Council in January 2014 that Ann Arbor’s homeless men, women, children and families could use a variety of public buildings during the day to escape temps. that plummeted to -20F. One…

Pease note: Kai Petainen is a member of The Ann Arbor Independent’s Editorial Board. WARD 5 COUNCIL member Chuck Warpehoski is facing persistent questions from the public, his Council colleagues and his opponent in the August 5…

 It appears that not only is Ann Arbor paying employees the total cost of their cell phone plans, but in some instances pays employees almost 2.5 times more than the monthly cost of popular cell phone/texting plans. CELL PHONE COSTS paid…

WARD 2 COUNCIL  member Jane Lumm ran for re-election in 2013 on a a platform that included improving the transparency of city government. She was not only talking about the need for city government to do a better job of sharing information…

WARD 1 CITY Council challenger Jeff Hayner has landed the quiet support of several City Council Democrats. Ward 2 City Council incumbent Jane Lumm has the unabashed support of several City Council Democrats. So why are card-carrying members…