CITY ADMINISTRATOR STEVE Powers was hired in 2011. His job performance during the past 3 years has not yet been evaluated by City Council. The Charter requires Council to evaluate both the City Administrator and the City Attorney annually.…

by P.D. Lesko ANN ARBOR City Attorney Stephen Postema was dressed down in a 17-page opinion penned by U.S. District Court Judge Lawrence Zatkoff in May. The judge concluded city officials had no legal justification to keep Bob Dascola…

While spending increases on meals out, travel, luxury lodging and cell phones, monthly car allowance costs drop significantly from a high in 2010. UNDER FORMER CITY administrator Roger Fraser in 2009 and 2010, according to information…

WARD 2 COUNCIL member Sally Hart Petersen has shown promise as a leader who is scrupulous in conducting the people’s business openly and honestly. While we don’t always agree with Petersen’s positions on the issues, one issue Council member…

UNDER FORMER CITY administrator Roger Fraser, the amounts paid out in tax dollars for cell phone allowances increased almost 95 percent between 2009 and 2012. By 2012, 196 of the city's 693 full-time employees had been given cell phone…

by P.D. Lesko Usually, employees get fired for filching money or abusing an employer-issued credit card. Except in Ann Arbor. Auditors past and present, in fact, have sent the city's Audit Committee letters of warning about sloppy…

In Ann Arbor, despite repeated cuts to services, cuts to police and fire, and hikes in fees for parking, parking fines, water, sewer, solid waste and city programs, cell phone allowances for city staffers, many of whom have desk jobs,…

Detroit Water and Sewerage Department Director Sue McCormick said Friday she "remains confident" in former Ann Arbor Police Chief Barnett Jones. Her department also sent  out a press release January 11th affirming confidence in Jones and…

By P.D. Lesko In 2007, Ann Arbor City Council passed the Public Art Ordinance that sets aside one percent of funds from all public construction budgets for art projects — to a maximum of $250,000 per project. On the City of Ann Arbor web…

The New York Times recently published a feature about the 1 Percent. Reporters Shaila Dewan and Robert Gebeloff write: "Now, the colossal gap between the very rich and everyone else — the 1 percent versus the 99 percent — has become a…