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Local"Smart Growth Ann Arbor" calls for strong design guidelinesI received the following this afternoon from “smartgrowthannarbor@gmail.com”. SGA2 urges attendance at tonight’s community open house for the A2D2 design guidelines draft, 7-9pm at the Kerrytown Concert House (415 N. Fourth), as well as the Sept. 14 joint working session of Council, Planning Commission, and the DDA. The design guidelines draft is available from the City’s A2D2 webpages. SGA2 pitches its take into this site’s ever popular discussion topic of downtown development and design – the message appears to be very open to new development, including large/tall development, “but again, only if there is at least some basic level of protection against future buildings that will hurt the downtown experience further,” and expresses alarm that the current draft would make design review voluntary for developers. The complete message after the cut… Comment [12] • Read More » LocalLet's Talk Conference CenterOver the last few years, there has been a lot of talk about a conference center in downtown Ann Arbor. Although there are several places to have a meeting, there really isn’t much that really fits the conference center description, especially downtown. In addition to published reports, rumors have swirled over the years that Bill Martin wants to build a conference center on the Brown Block, but nothing has come of that so far. More recently, there was a lot of interest over plans released for a local conference center. As so often happens in Ann Arbor, reception to the idea of a conference center has been mixed, with people vehemently in the pro and con camps. I have heard people say they think it is the worst possible thing that could happen to downtown, while others say it is the best possible way to keep downtown viable. Reaction is so mixed that one wonders if some people are thinking of a large industrial convention center like Cobo Hall or DeVos Place while others are thinking of a smaller hotel and conference center like the Fort Shelby in Detroit or the beautiful St. Julien in Boulder (built over a 650-space public underground parking structure). Of course, left out of much of the discussion is the plans of the University. Currently, the University has some conference space, but only 21 rooms . The other Big 10 schools have at least one hotel and conference center or several hotels within walking distance of campus. The University has lots of land and infrastructure on North Campus and married student housing is not doing well. Even if the U doesn’t want to build their own hotel, there are several hotel chains that might be willing to fund much of the building costs for an on-campus conference center. Needless to say, if they do build their own conference center, the City will not benefit anywhere nearly as much as if a conference center was built on city-owned land. So what do you think? Does Ann Arbor need a conference center? Should it be downtown? Should the University build their own? If there is a conference center, what would you like to see be part of it? If you are opposed to it, why? If you are for it, why? Comment [39] LocalElectricians Juice Up Ann Arbor . . . and Close Down Main StreetThe Ann Arbor Chronicle recently reported on the 2,000 people that will be heading to Ann Arbor for the National Training Institute (NTI), put on by the National Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee (NJATC). According to the Chronicle, this event regularly brings in an estimated $5 million dollars to Ann Arbor. As part of the NTI training this year, the Convention and Visitors Bureau will be closing down Main Street from William to Liberty/Washington for two block parties, one on August 5th and one on August 10th. No time is given for these parties. Here’s some info on the Aug 5 block party from the Main Street Area Association’s Website:
In light of the recent conversation about making Main Street an occasional pedestrian mall, it will be interesting to see how this pans out. (Urban) PlanningDevelopment in Ann Arbor: Finding Common GroundRecent discussions of proposed developments, such as New North, City Place and the Moravian highlight a real division in our town. On the one had there are those who say they are supportive of development and density, but argue that all of the proposed developments are “bad”. These folks seem to suggest that if the right type of development came along, they would certainly support it. But that hasn’t happened yet. On the other hand are those who want density and development no matter the scale in order to attract the people who will keep Ann Arbor vital. These folks argue that all density is good density, regardless of some of the consequences. So where’s the middle ground? If Ann Arbor is going to grow (which some would argue is inevitable while others would argue isn’t going to happen) how should it grow? What does good development look like? Comment [50] LocalShaman Drum to Close June 30Karl Pohrt announced today that Shaman Drum Bookshop will be closing June 30. The Great Lakes Literary Arts Center will continue. The text of Pohrt’s message is below: On the advice of my accountant and my business manager, I am closing Shaman Drum Bookshop June 30. Despite a first rate staff, a fiercely loyal core of customers, a very decent landlord and my own commitment to the community of arts and letters in Ann Arbor, it is clear to me that the bookshop is not a sustainable business. Comment [5] LocalMake Main Street a temporary pedestrian mall?From the Ann Arbor News:
Comment [46] Local2009 School Board ElectionsCan we have a new item to discuss yesterday’s election? Larry’s wish is our command. Comment [17] LocalCity Seeks Input on Plastic Shopping BagsTo ban or not to ban, that is the question. The City of Ann Arbor is seeking community input on a potential policy that would discourage the use of plastic shopping bags and encourage the use of reusable bags. There are a couple of ways you can give feedback about this issue: Ann Arbor Residents and Consumers: Take this 3 min online survey Ann Arbor Businesses: Attend a focus group and/or take a survey There will be focus groups for businesspeople at
The survey for business owners, managers and employees can be found here. The City also encourages citizens and businesspeople (and citizens who are businesspeople) to send general comments on implementing possible shopping bag restrictions and promoting reusable bags to Katie at 734.794.6000 extension 4-3728 and via recycle@a2gov.org PoliticsDDA Blocks Parking Information via Phone ServiceBack in January, a group of local hackers built a service that allowed people to call in and check on parking structure spot availability in realtime (MLive article). It as powered by freely available data from the Downtown Development Authority website. However, several days ago, the DDA shut off the application’s access to the site, because:
The developers of the system have responded in this open letter. The realtime parking data site is still available online for individuals — but the DDA has emphatically said, “no reuse.” Comment [24] LocalIf I could change one thing about the City of Ann Arbor it would be . . .Two years ago around this time, Arbor Update reported on a City Council Meeting that presented information from the Citizen Survey. This Citizen Survey got information from 3,000 City residents in January 2007. Apparently the results of the 2008 survey are going to be presented soon. One of the most interesting parts of the survey is the open ended question component, which asked the question “If I could change one thing about the City of Ann Arbor it would be . . .” Among the thousands of responses If I could change one thing about the City of Ann Arbor it would be . . .
This is just the tip of the iceburg. Read all about it here Comment [24] Keep reading: next |
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