Ann Arbor Mayor John Hieftje questions Patricia Lesko's statement at mayoral candidate forum

Posted on Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 6 a.m.

Ann Arbor Mayor John Hieftje questions Patricia Lesko's statement at mayoral candidate forum

By Ryan J. Stanton

The accuracy of Ann Arbor mayoral candidate Patricia Lesko's campaign speech was called into question Thursday at a candidate forum hosted by the Main Street Area Association.

During a speech to downtown business professionals, Lesko shared her thoughts on recent city discussions about extending parking meter enforcement hours from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m.

Mayor John Hieftje argued Lesko made it sound as though the Ann Arbor City Council already had taken action on the issue, which it has not.

"If the voters of Ann Arbor on Aug. 3 put their trust in me, you will see some substantial changes in the way our city deals with small and medium-sized existing businesses," Lesko said. "I will work to roll back the extension of the parking meter hours. There are folks on Main Street who feel that was a slap in the face — that was a shake of the glass — and I agree."

Patricia Lesko addresses Main Street Area Association members in the basement of the Chop House on Main Street.

Ryan J. Stanton | AnnArbor.com

Lesko left the meeting held at the Chop House after the next speaker, saying she needed to get back to her children, who were being watched by a sitter. She did not stay for the question and answer session that followed, nor was she present when Hieftje addressed her comment.

"I wanted to just briefly correct something that I thought I heard one of the previous speakers say," Hieftje told the crowd. "The meter extension has not been passed. And, in fact, I don't even expect that to be before council for a while. And when it is, it's going to be a fulsome discussion."

Lesko, who came under fire this week for inaccurate statements she made while door-to-door campaigning, did not return a phone call seeking comment.

In addition to Lesko and Hieftje, who will face off in the Democratic primary, two other mayoral candidates were in attendance Thursday: Steve Bean and William Bostic Jr., who plan to run independently in November.

Several people who attended the forum, which was open only to Main Street Area Association members and guests, said they wished Lesko had stayed for the question and answer session. That portion lasted about 25 minutes.

Tony Lupo, a downtown business manager and Main Street Area Association board member, said he wanted to ask Lesko about her blog, A2Politico.com, and in particular a piece she posted on Jan. 15 about Restaurant Week, an event put on by the association.

In her blog post, Lesko called Restaurant Week a joke on Main Street businesses that pay dues to the association. She suggested everyone should eat dinner at home instead of going downtown because the food wasn't worth the price.

She also wrote she was "painfully aware of exactly how over-priced and badly cooked meals in our local restaurants can actually be."

"I’m sorry if that sounds elitist or snotty, but think of it like sex," she wrote. "There’s satisfactory sex, and there’s phenomenal mind-blowing sex. Which would you rather have? I thought so."

Lupo said he enjoyed the pro-business message he heard during Lesko's speech on Thursday, but it didn't coincide with what he read on her blog.

"I was disappointed to read some of her takes on Restaurant Week and I wanted to ask her in this setting if her opinion had changed on it, because the original thoughts she had were troubling to me," he said. "In my opinion, what was written about Restaurant Week wasn't supportive of a lot of small businesses that actually invest a lot of time and resources and thought into creating a special event that brings a lot of business downtown."

Patricia Lesko

In her speech Thursday, Lesko vowed to work to defund the Local Development Financing Authority, which helps fund economic development group Ann Arbor SPARK. The LDFA captures more than $1 million a year in local taxes, which SPARK uses to assist startup companies. Lesko said she'd rather see that money help existing businesses.

Lesko spoke about her experiences running a home-based publishing company called Part-Time Press.

"The business that I head and have headed for the last 20 years unfortunately doesn't do much of its business in Ann Arbor. It's national," Lesko said. "It's a higher education publishing group, and we publish professional development materials. And one out of every two colleges in the United States uses our products when they train their college faculty."

Lesko said Ann Arbor could do a better job supporting local businesses. She said nurturing a business is a lot like nurturing a child, and right now many downtown merchants are "worried about their children."

"There are merchants who told me that doing business in Ann Arbor is like glass. It's fragile," she said. "And there are merchants in Ann Arbor who feel shaken. And you know what happens when you shake glass: It breaks."

Steve Bean

Steve Bean speaks on Thursday.

Ryan J. Stanton | AnnArbor.com

Bean, head of the city's Environmental Commission, told the crowd he's been a near-downtown resident of Ann Arbor for about 20 years and was married to a Main Street retailer for 17 years, up until a couple of years ago.

"I encourage any of you who know Jill Damon to talk to her to ask her about my candidacy and the type of person I am — the way I think about things," Bean said, noting Damon owns the 16 Hands fine crafts gallery.

Bean said he has a good understanding of the challenges of running a downtown business and appreciated Lesko's view on helping existing businesses versus those trying to relocate to Ann Arbor.

Bean spoke of his work on developing environmental goals for the city. He said he wants to expand those to a broader range of sustainability goals that take into account social equity and economic vitality.

Bean, a board member for Think Local First for the last year, said he also is interested in exploring the possibility of a local currency in Ann Arbor.

"I think having something like that in place can make us a more resilient community economically, can help keep the money in the local economy," he said.

Bean also expressed support for starting a PACE program in Ann Arbor, otherwise known as a Property Assessed Clean Energy program. He said the city has an opportunity to provide low-interest loans to residents and business leaders who want to make energy-efficient investments.

John Hieftje

Hieftje spent a large part of his speech comparing the condition of Ann Arbor's economy to the rest of Michigan.

Mayor John Hieftje speaks on Thursday.

Ryan J. Stanton | AnnArbor.com

"We've just come through a very tough budget year, just like other cities in Michigan. What I would say about that is I wouldn't trade places with any of them," he said. "As we look around the state, things are really doing quite well in Ann Arbor in comparison, and one of the reasons I think is the anchor that we have in the downtown."

Hieftje gave credit to the University of Michigan, which he said — although it does not pay taxes — hires hundreds of people per year. Between the university and the downtown, he said it's no wonder Ann Arbor continues to win awards for being one of the greatest places to live.

"Most recently I think it was Forbes' fourth most livable city," he said. "Recently just this week a well-known author who writes about cities said Ann Arbor was one of the top places for college graduates to come to — so those things are in place and moving along."

Hiefjte, whose professional background is in real estate, predicts a turnaround in Michigan's economy in the next year or so and said Ann Arbor will be at the lead as Michigan bounces back.

He expressed optimism that a surface parking lot bound by Huron, Ashley, Washington and First will be developed in the coming years.

He noted that multiple projects are under way downtown, which he said is an effort to "make Ann Arbor a better place." He cited improvements along Fifth and Division that will enhance the pedestrian experience. A new underground parking structure also is going in.

"The underground parking structure, I think you all understand, is going to bring us something that we've needed for a very long time," he said. "We lost a parking structure that was built in the 1940s that had to be taken down."

Hieftje, who serves on the DDA, said the motivation for pushing to expand parking meter enforcement hours is to see more turnover in on-street parking spaces and get more people using off-street parking. He noted there is a program that allows downtown employees to park anytime after 4 p.m. in the structures for $30 a month.

William Bostic Jr.

William Bostic Jr. speaks on Thursday.

Ryan J. Stanton | AnnArbor.com

Bostic also differentiated himself from Hieftje by telling the crowd he would have supported the Moravian, a 62-unit apartment complex proposed for construction at 201 E. Madison St. Hieftje and enough council members came out in opposition to the project in April that it failed to get the eight votes needed for approval.

"I was in favor of that because that was actually going to bring revenue," Bostic said. "That's something that we need to do. We need to make Ann Arbor a self-sustaining city. We can't continue to run deficits."

Bostic said he would like to find new ways to create revenue to maintain basic city services. He also said he wants to find ways to make Ann Arbor more attractive to startup companies and young entrepreneurs.

Questions and answers

During the question and answer session, a man who said he was hit by a truck while bicycling asked about bike safety and the condition of bike lanes.

Hieftje acknowledged a lack of road funding in Michigan has resulted in more bumpy and pothole-ridden roads than many would like, and bicyclists experience that in a more personal way than the average motorist.

"They are right under you and it tends to be that the shoulder of the road is not kept up," he said. "And I think that the city needs to do a better job of that."

Bean said the Environmental Commission's Transportation Committee, of which he is a member, is looking at bicycle lane design right now.

"We've added bike lanes where possible," he said. "A lot of those are narrow. They're not actually adequate. So we're looking at what's the next step for the city to develop a more robust system of bike lanes."

A downtown shop owner said she was deeply concerned about safety issues. She said in the past eight years, her shop has been burglarized, she was threatened with sexual assault in the 300 block of South Main Street and received a death threat inside her store from a homeless person who receives services from the Delonis Center.

"It's seems like there's a very small community, or a very small population, of people who are committing a significant amount of crime in this town," she said. "And specifically they target Main Street. They target our neighborhood, my neighborhood."

Bean agreed security is a concern downtown. He suggested measures such as installing camera systems could be included as part of a newly created self-assessment district.

"I don't know that those folks are necessarily targeting the area as much as they live in the area and situations arise because of that," he said, adding the city needs to have talks with nonprofit agencies that serve those populations.

Bostic threw out the idea of bringing back beat cops. He also suggested emergency call boxes similar to the ones on the University of Michigan's campus.

Hiefjte said Ann Arbor is still a safe community and reports show crime is going down, though that doesn't mean there aren't pockets where there are problems.

"One of the things that I know from long experience is that there are certain individuals who are often called engines of crime. Those individuals can cause a whole lot of problems," he said. "One of the problems that we have is some of these people have been repeatedly arrested and locked up and they are not held in the jail for very long at all. The jail space is being reserved these days for violent criminals."

One of the audience members asked Hieftje how many registered sex offenders stay at the Delonis Center, which is close to the YMCA where children go. Hieftje said he didn't know, but would look into the issue.

Ryan J. Stanton covers government for AnnArbor.com. Reach him at ryanstanton@annarbor.com or 734-623-2529.

Comments

Jack Smithson

Tue, Jun 22, 2010 : 3:45 p.m.

Given the inaccuracy of Lesko's statements, both public and on her site, why would anyone want to vote for her? Her criticisms of the current administration without any concrete ideas or solutions leave much to be desired. Plus, it is poor foresight not to pay for the babysitter to stay for the extra time it took for her to be at the Q&A.

Bill Wilson

Mon, Jun 7, 2010 : 11:15 p.m.

John

Mon, Jun 7, 2010 : 8:25 p.m.

The critical ethical problem with Stanton's hatchet-job story was that he isolated one or two vague, distorted or possibly mistaken comments by Lesko, shot them down, mixed in some local-color home visits and let that pass as coverage of an important mayoral race. Lesko has brought up and ventilated many critical issues that Ann Arborites usually don't consider because the deals are made in the sausage-making backrooms beyond public view. This notably anti-transparent city administration keep springing al sorts of building, economic and zoning projects on unsuspecting, uninformed residents. But Ann Arbor.com avoids ventilating those sorts of doings. Why, for example, doesn't AnnArbor.com look into the added sources of funding other university towns have obtained from their local institutions so as to make up for some of the losses in taxable property? Lesko has shown how Cambridge, Mass., and a number of other cities have attached reasonable fees on universities rather than let them escape compensation for the key services they receive. Our city council and mayor somehow always sweep such suggestions under the rug. Probably because the local government is seeded with people more beholden to the University of Michigan than to their fellow residents. Take a look at the critical, serious questions raised by Lesko, AnnArbor.com

Autumn Craft

Mon, Jun 7, 2010 : 6:52 p.m.

Lesko's "need to get home for the babysitter" excuse sounds like just that, an excuse. She may be in the middle of a divorce, but I'm sure she doesn't have full-time custody of the kids. I, too, would like to see some more fact-checking of her claims about her business. Also, about her teaching history. She says that she was a "faculty member" at WCC, but teaching a class and not being re-hired to do so again does not a faculty member make.

Mick52

Mon, Jun 7, 2010 : 3:43 p.m.

BornNRaised, For as long as I have been posting, I frequently include that the AAFD and AAPD are outstanding and unappreciated departments. I have also posted that both should dis-associate with Ms. Lesko due to her "stye" of campaigning. As you can see the majority of posters here do not support her. In re to your comment of being spat upon, I recall that the agreement made that lead to the 4% paycut was to ensure no layoffs through June. Here is the article: http://www.annarbor.com/news/ann-arbor-firefighters-union-approves-new-contract-that-includes-voluntary-pay-cuts/ I laud the fire fighters for protecting jobs of co-workers, even on a short term basis, which many unions will not do. So my question is did the city violate this agreement? (Thus the spitting you referred to). It sounds as though jobs were protected through June via the agreement, what then? Didn't the union expect layoffs could occur after June? How did the city betray the FF union? My question at the time was why would the entire union take a 4% pay cut if layoffs would occur after June anyway, other than a show of unity to extend some jobs for 6 months, which is admirable. Anyway, Ms Lesko has made so many strange comments and her behavior (leaving a forum and avoiding questions) seriously impacts her credibility. I think this is the type of candidate who makes promises that cannot be kept, one who says "oh gee," once they assume the office. And supporters are left wondering about broken promises. I see no reliable information from Ms. Lesko that explains how she will adjust the budget to avoid layoffs. She talks about large pots of "hidden" money all over the city. If such funds do exist, they likely are for infrastructure or already designated for important projects. I fundamentally disagree with the city's continuous assault on DDA money to balance the budget. Sure its "city money" but I am sure the DDA deserved to keep it and whatever project it was intended for is now going to wait. I think for the time being the FD/PD unions should be satisfied the city's efforts to avoid as many layoffs as possible by juggling funds around. I am sorry if I am off base here, but I believe the article linked to above points out that the agreement your union made was only protective until June, so if you are going to attack the mayor and council, please explain what happened with a little more detail. What I would prefer to see in a debate to protect your staffing is facts of where city money is being spent, that is, non-essential services and programs so the voters can see what city employees consider wasted tax payer dollars on frivolity. To me public safety is at the top of the list of essential services. I doubt Ms Lesko, even if she is elected, could do much to change the landscape. The unions do not have to support a candidate. Too bad there isn't one deserving of support.

kittybkahn

Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 6:38 p.m.

The poll connected to this story is useless because it lets you vote more than once, even within an hour. I just tried it to see. Try for yourselves. -Peace, Kitty

Xena

Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 3:16 p.m.

I am very grateful that annarbor.com is finally asking hard questions of Lesko's campaign. Thanks to Ryan Stanton and Tony Dearing and others involved in gathering information and fact-checking. You also now know what it feels like to cross Lesko and her team. This candidate relishes a fight and is hard-hitting with both attacks and counter-attacks. It gets ugly. I would like to see more of this type of reporting... of all candidates, of course, but particularly of Lesko. There is much to uncover. It would be a shame to have Ann Arbor voters go to the polls and support a candidate who purports to have fresh ideas, only to learn too late that they have elected someone who is dishonest and doesn't play well with others. It is the job of the press to give voters all the background they need to make informed choices. Having Lesko as mayor would be a true DISASTER for our city. I would sooner vote for George Bush. Thanks again, annarbor.com.

ChuckL

Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 1:06 p.m.

I agree with MargaretS. Hieftje knows fully well that increasing metered parking to 10pm is a done deal in his mind; after 10 years of being Mayor he has learned the art of the backroom deal with scripted, feigned "debate" to grease the skids for the preordained conclusion. The Mayor's comments are highly disingenuous and AnnArbor.com's inability to "fact-check" this reality shows the true bias and non-objective roll this paper is playing. The people who are paying attention are not fooled one bit. I also want to point out that this scheming has significant consequences for this city. Pointing out how well Ann Arbor is doing compared to the rest of the State is a red herring argument that misses the fact that citizen priorities are not being heard but "managed" with this administration. The ugly Police/Courts building and the big hole next to the Library getting priority while our roads and bridges crumble and our safety services are decimated are the two most egregious examples of what will continue to happen if this council and Mayor remain in place. Funding for basic services is being cut to make the bond payments on these mega projects the Mayor works through closed-to-the-public back room deals. This city deserves better!

David Cahill

Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 7:05 a.m.

flyingsquirrel, you are definitely on to something here. The same "surge voting" happened in AnnArbor.com's previous Lesko-Hieftje poll, but that time the surge was for *Hieftje". In that poll, a large number of votes were cast overnight - when normally hardly anyone votes. And 89% of those votes were for Hieftje. Of course, nobody gets that high a percentage of votes if people are voting in an ordinary way. I would expect that "normally" about the same percentage of people would be voting for each candidate throughout the polling period. I have thought of two reasons why this surge voting would be happening: 1. The poll is being electronically hacked - someone is either tampering with the votes already cast, or someone has figured out how to cast hundreds of votes from a single computer and have them count. 2. A campaign has managed to put together a "Get Out the Vote" effort, leading hundreds to vote in a short period. Frankly, I dont have much faith in either hypothesis. I am sure the poll is safe from hacking. And I don't believe either campaign (or, actually, both campaigns) have the ability to organize such a Get Out the Vote drive. I will be sending my detailed figures for both polls to AnnArbor.com's staff on Monday. Maybe they can figure out what has been happening. I do *not* want these polls to stop, though. Maybe some simple safeguards can be put in place. Or maybe AnnArbor.com can make a display tabulating the percentages and votes every few hours so that people can see the surges for themselves. The good news, I guess, is that people in both camps are passionately committed to their respective candidates.

MargaretS

Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 6:48 a.m.

The headline for this article is sensationalist period. "Ann Arbor Mayor John Hieftje questions Patricia Lesko's statement at mayoral candidate forum" It brings prejudice to the reader before they even begin the article. If it had been a more neutral "Candidates Questioned by Downtown Business Leaders" or anything neutral - Hefjtie's quote challenging Lesko's statement would have been taken in context as a small point, instead of blown up into something larger than what it probably was. Anyone who follows Heftjie also knows quite well, that this is how he worms out of criticism for anything. "It may or may not happen" is his response when people express opposition to a proposal. What voters want to know is "what, Mr. Mayor, do YOU want to happen." Are you in favor of the new parking hours or not?

mspuzzler

Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 6:29 a.m.

The real issue for me is whether a candidate can come to the job of Mayor with a spirit of collaboration and compassion. Do you lead with your chin or your outstetched hand? Politicians aren't perfect. But Lesko's articulation of why she wants to be mayor expressing such anger, hostility, and falsehoods -- it just doesn't reflect the remarkable diversity that defines and dignifies our city. Can she really lead, movitate, inspire, bring people together, and ultimately find consensus among opinions different from her own? Her track record of contention in the neighborhood and community organizations deserves to be explored by a2com. Please.

TheColonel

Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 2:20 a.m.

It is interesting that it is really bedrog that is the extremist who wants to impose extremist foreign politics on Ann Arbor's local elections. You would think with Israel committing acts of piracy and kidnap on the high seas, he would not be so brazen as to demand a litmus test of support for Israeli atrocities of politicians running for local office. The World is waking up to the crimes of the Zionist State of Israel! Boycott Israel and all of its products!

TheColonel

Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 2:18 a.m.

TheColonel

Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 2:17 a.m.

Let's see if AnnArbor.com censors my previous post even though it concerns the topic of this thread!

TheColonel

Sun, Jun 6, 2010 : 2:12 a.m.

flyingsquirrel

Sat, Jun 5, 2010 : 8:42 p.m.

OK, I looked at the poll results on this story earlier today. There were somewhere around 600 votes, with Hieftje around 70% and Lekso around 11%. Interestingly, in the last few hours, more than 400 votes have come in for Lesko, putting her ahead of Hiefje 46% to 43%. Looks a little suspicious to me. Ryan--any idea what's going on here?

pbehjatnia

Sat, Jun 5, 2010 : 4:38 p.m.

Oh, I am not uncomfortable with "downtown people." Just that my "downtown people" are not drug dealers. My people are homeowning/renting, taxpaying employers,employees, parents. I guess we don't run with the same crowd.

pbehjatnia

Sat, Jun 5, 2010 : 4:34 p.m.

Basic Bob: I commented on the drugs in the area in the way I did because I was told by A2.com that I was not allowed to pinpoint specific properties or people as being associated with the drug trade/use. I realize full well that no one junkie necessarily wants to share a hit and that people in Dawn are already addicts. However, drugs are being sold, and used there and the Y is a great source of children for future customers, the Dawn facilities are there for recovery and Delonis is to assist those willing in achieving stability. The drugs ARE THERE.

Basic Bob

Sat, Jun 5, 2010 : 12:19 p.m.

@pbehjatnia, I doubt that the heroin-shooting addict you observed was recruiting. If he was so intent on injecting himself in public, there was no other thought in his mind. To recruit another user would be to share, and that is not happening! Face it, many homeless people have *issues* that make them homeless. Addiction keeps many people homeless. The Delonis Center allows twelve-step recovery groups to host meetings at the shelter to show people (not just homeless) that there is an alternative to using drugs. The most the shelter can do is ask people to refrain from using drugs in the shelter, or just before they arrive. Dawn Farm clients do not need to be recruited. Since they admittedly have drug problems, they obviously know how to get some more. The reason they are clients at Dawn Farm is because they have the desire to _stop_ using drugs. If you are uncomfortable with downtown people, you should consider accepting things as they are, because downtown will not change.

Me Next

Sat, Jun 5, 2010 : 11:39 a.m.

If it were my vote, I'd vote "None of the above". There is no excuse for not having one more Police Officer than needed. Protection for life & property is the purpose for any Gov. Camera's are fine if you can afford them but they are not Protectors; they are not long-term reliable. Also "road funding" deficit is failure of Gov to fulfill lawful duty which justifies "Power to Tax" granted. Sex-Offense has been so exaggerated the label really has lost it's meaning. I read 2 sex offenders (here in the posts) that seem to be a danger to any community. If true, a zoning law could protect the children & women of this city. Non-violent offenses could be court ordered (without the cost of court) into "Community Service" [*Roads need fixing - Rule of Law*]. Once petty criminals know they will work off their crimes fully by going to court (they work off that cost) or not going to court (spared that cost). No more entering jail community for a time but actual Justice to encourage law-abiding instead of destroying society financially for a Money Market Judicial System. I didn't really see any candidate here ready to end the political disaster of Ruler instead of Servant.

walker101

Sat, Jun 5, 2010 : 5:19 a.m.

Can you hold that thought, I'll be right back after I go to soccer practice.

pbehjatnia

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 10:05 p.m.

I agree with Mr Ranzini. I live just 4 blocks from the Y and 4 from Kerrytown. I will not walk to either after dark. I dread getting gas downtown at any time because of the agressive panhandling and the wanna-be t(w)een thugs hanging about. I have cut my spending downtown to ca. 25% of what it was because I just got tired of the stress of being panhandled. I will go out of my way to avoid the corner of Starbucks on Main because of the panhandling, both from homeless and 'dirties.' In addition to the sex offenders at Delonis, what about the drug dealing in the area? How about the guy I watched shoot up outside the Delonis center 3 days ago about noon? What a great location, too: the Delonis, 2 Dawn facilities and all the kids at the Y just waiting to be recruited. Summit/N Main is now also the new collecting ground for the 'dirties.' The great folks that had to be removed from the WAR houses on Miller. Right acrosss the street from the Summit Party Store. They are now taking up 3 houses. Trash strewn yards, animals (have already reported one canine abuse incident as well as complaint in re offensive window lettering), broken vehicles/bikes galore. And the smell of feces is just charming. And not a cop in site. Why? Because we dont have enough law enforcement in Ann Arbor. I dont care if we made it onto some list in a magazine, Mayor Hieftje. This is not an answer to how safe Ann Arbor actually is. Reality is that Ann Arbor is not really safe. Is it Ypsi or Detroit? Not yet. But when it goes there I will pull up stakes and take my family and money elsewhere. Tell this to Forbes.

Bill Wilson

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 9:17 p.m.

The veracity of the statements as to the details of Ms. Lesko's publishing business would seem to me to be the most relevant issue. If she cannot be accurate as to her own business, how can she be trusted to run the city?

Bill Wilson

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 7:32 p.m.

These people have already paid their debt to society...which does not include wondering the earth homeless for the rest of their lives. Well, it might mean that. Wandering is a decision on behavior made by an individual, eh? Good first point, anyways.

bedrog

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 7:23 p.m.

so pat...this is a particularly good juncture in this thread to address concerns about your links...if any...to the GREEN PARTY, whose appalling and Big-oted public behavior has been noted above and elswhere. those who know the players at issue will know exactly what i mean

David Cahill

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 7:22 p.m.

The picture in the story itself is indeed of Rebekah Warren. But the picture in the "teaser" link to the story is that of her opponent. I hope you can fix this.

Bill Wilson

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 7:21 p.m.

ChuckL

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 5:52 p.m.

So...the pit vipers have come out in force: "Ann Arbor Mayor John Hieftje questions Patricia Lesko's statement at mayoral candidate forum" So, our Mayor who informed a resident in an email that the city had no plans to develop an underground park deck with private hotel and conference center on top at the same time was meeting to discuss said parking deck & hotel/conference center is taking offense to Pat Lesko's assertion that the increase to 10pm from 6pm of on-street meter enforcement is a done deal! Dutifully noted by the fact-challenged local paper of record, no less. Pat has spent a lot of time watching and learning this Mayor's MO and if anybody is naive enough to believe that this Mayor does not have every intention of ramming this proposal through, you're probably naive enough to also believe the Mayor's hogwash about this change having nothing to do with revenue enhancement. If it is not a done deal, how come the issue will not come up until safely after the Aug. Primary? If the Mayor was honest, he'd deal with it before the Aug. Primary.

Lokalisierung

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 4:13 p.m.

"So let's use that same logic. We took a 4% paycut. No other department in the city did that." All Non Union Employees have had their wages cut in excess of 4% I believe.

Lokalisierung

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 4:10 p.m.

"So not one question about the Stadium Bridges?" What did you want to know? The mayor would say the city is waiting to get grants to try to pay for it. If they can't then it'll come out of the budget. Anyone running against him would say "I'll fix that bridge up right away you betcha!" Classic politicking.

Ryan J. Stanton

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 3:14 p.m.

@The Watchman You're exactly right. Hieftje's gross salary, minus 3 percent, is $41,159, which is what he's getting now.

bedrog

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 3:09 p.m.

@ demystify...sorry i didnt facinate you on my photoshop point..i always try to! but yes indeed...my other question/issue re. possible ( or not) lesko links to local fanatics was far more central and i hope an answer is forthcoming, although as i recall some of the same people figured in a city council campaign she managed and the candidate never addressed the questions raised. he lost.

The Watchman

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 3:08 p.m.

@Ryan..."The mayor makes a salary of $42,432. We reported in January that he took a voluntary 3 percent pay cut and donated $1,273 back to the city as a gesture of good will in light of the hard times facing the city, so his take-home pay is technically $41,159 now." Just for arguments' sake, This is the mayor's gross pay. Take-home pay is after taxes and deductions. The mayor's take-home should be considerably less.

demistify

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 3 p.m.

I am disappointed that so much effort is devoted here to photography critique instead of issues that matter to Ann Arbor. I get the impression some partisans are hypersensitive (or are trying to change the subject?). The pictures were obviously taken under terrible lighting, and no one looks good. But then, is anyone suggesting that Ann Arbor voters will make their choice based on pulchritude? @bedrog -- I am not fascinated by your essay on Photoshop. I would much rather read an answer to your earlier post asking Lesko where she stands on the jihad of her Green Party supporters.

Speechless

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 2:59 p.m.

From cjenkins: "The press should be concentrating on the primary now because for all intensive purposes that is what matters." The Main Street Area Association made its decision to invite all four individuals to the podium at the candidates forum. Once there, they should all be treated as nothing less than equals. It doesn't matter who is running in an August primary and who is not. The MSAA apparently chose not regard the lack of formally filed petitions as a game breaker for any of the invitees. From Robert M.: "If the Mayor thinks the city is safe and crime is down and sex offenders across the street from children visiting the Y, then he should step up and say it's fine.... Public safety SHOULD be in the top ten...." Yes, it should be in the top ten, along with nine other important things. That sounds fine. What I objected to was Alan jockeying to place one limited aspect of public safety management of Delonis in the top one, dominating all other concerns. Had that attempt ultimately succeeded, it would have nicely distracted the discussion thread from the story's overcooked emphasis on a couple particulars in Lesko's attendance at the event. These particulars were certainly peculiar and noteworthy but they were not the whole story, contrary to the headline and introduction. Hence, my previous use of the word dysfunctional in relation to exaggerated slant both in this article as well as at the start of its discussion. From Robert M.: So not one question about the Stadium Bridges? My pet issue of the day is concern for the continued care & watering of the tumbleweeds at the old Georgetown Mall. (Is this too far from downtown?) ------------------------------------------ Note to A2 dot com: by choosing to reload the page in the browser while simultaneously clicking the 'back' button, I managed a short time ago to accidentally re-enter my earlier comment in this thread, which you've since removed. And someone else's comment above that might have disappeared at that same time (coincidence or not?). Interesting.... and sorry about that. (Right now I'm not feeling "slanted" so much as technologically confused.)

Ryan J. Stanton

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 2:58 p.m.

@MjC The mayor makes a salary of $42,432. We reported in January that he took a voluntary 3 percent pay cut and donated $1,273 back to the city as a gesture of good will in light of the hard times facing the city, so his take-home pay is technically $41,159 now. http://www.annarbor.com/news/ann-arbor-mayor-and-most-council-members-take-symbolic-pay-cut/

MjC

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 2:51 p.m.

This important news reporting and I appreciate hearing details about this election. Even more so, reader comments are also helpful (for the most part)! Ryan - can you note what the current annual salary is for position of Mayor in A2? Isn't it around $45,000? I think it's time for a change.

Bob Needham

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 2:45 p.m.

(A comment, and two responses, was removed because it contained unsupported allegations of illegality)

HaeJee

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 2:38 p.m.

Speechless you are not! It sounds like your posts are a little slanted.

millermaple

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 2:21 p.m.

re: Part-time press & Ms. Lesko's statement "...one out of every two colleges in the United States uses our products when they train their college faculty." (1 out of 2 would be around 2,500) For what it's worth- the OCLC Worldcat catalog (which can be accessed through the AADL webpage)shows only 275 libraries have any books published by Part-time Press

AlwaysLate

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 2:07 p.m.

Patricia Lesko is not a serious candidate. She is what we used to call a blowhard. No substancejust lots of hot air. Sarah Palin gets away with these types of misstatements, half-truths and embarrassing behaviorfor obvious reasons. But, Ms. Lesko just comes off as a pathetic soul. And the Ann Arbor firefighters who support her are really doing themselves a disservice.

bedrog

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 1:45 p.m.

ever since the photoshopped picture of O.J. simpson created such national hoo-ha several years ago the photojournalism profession has been very sensitive to perceptions of reality being altered to fit bias, and diligent in avoiding such ( even unto cases of news photographers being fired for modifications in landscape shots.)...and there's no reason ( contra longfellow) to read into the photos here any nerfarious or biased motives.

HaeJee

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 1:44 p.m.

When my husband was robbed at the Washtenaw Rec, the Ann Arbor police did not care or show any sign of interest. There after, I decided when I got a call asking for donations that I would show that same amount of interest. NONE The fact Lesko can get firefighters to support her does not impress me or sway my vote. You will need to show character by your actions and what you say. Not hide behind your blog and be the grand wizard from OZ.

Ypsidweller

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 1:24 p.m.

Intents and Purposes The correct phrase is "to all intents and purposes." This phrase dates back to the 1500s and originated in English law, where it was "to all intents, constructions, and purposes." In modern usage, "for all intents and purposes" is also acceptable. The phrase means "for all practical purposes" and is generally used to compare two nonidentical acts or deeds, i.e., "She went to his room and drank with him, which she viewed to all intents and purposes as consent to sex." (In reality, only a sober 'yes' is consent to sex so to all intents and purposes she is a rapist). A shorter equivalent phrase is "in effect." When used in a strictly legal sense, the wording would be "intent and purposes," as it refers to one's mental attitude/state at the time said action occurred. A common malapropism is "for all intense and purposes", (also, "for all intensive purposes") a result of the original phrase being misheard and repeated. The word "intense" is used here incorrectly; "intense" is used in English to indicate a degree of intensity, i.e., "As the afternoon passed, the fire grew more intense."

cjenkins

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 1:18 p.m.

@speechless I disagree Each candidate has a section dedicated to them. A reporter can only report about what the candidate actually says. I think Ryan did a good job of describing each candidates speech in each candidates section. Ryan has no control over what the candidates say or the questions and answers from the audience. As for the two independent candidates being marginalized by lack of press, you forget that there is a primary three months before the general election; they are not running in the primary. The primary candidates have filed their petitions and are official candidates. Bean and Bostic Jr. have not filed their petitions and are NOT official candidates yet as far as I know of. IMO I dont think they (the independent candidates) should be allowed to attend a CANDIDATES event until they file petitions. The press should be concentrating on the primary now because for all intensive purposes that is what matters.

Atticus F.

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 1:04 p.m.

Anybody who suggest that homeless sex offenders need to be kicked out into the street, should then be volunteering their own homes for these people to live in! These people have already paid their debt to society...which does not include wondering the earth homeless for the rest of their lives.

Lokalisierung

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 1:01 p.m.

"and we have fewer firefighters and police officers on duty now than we did a decade ago." As there are fewer city employees as a whole. Becasue there isn't as much money as there was 10 years ago.

Newzdog

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 1:01 p.m.

In a town such as Ann Arbor, it is amazing that we don't have a better choice of candidates.

Speechless

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 12:57 p.m.

Well, I'll agree that Pat Lesko's convenient disappearance prior to the Q&A segment was a noteworthy feature of this mayoral candidate forum for downtown merchants. Her apparent hyperbole regarding parking meter time extensions is significant, too. Nonetheless, to make these the defining aspects of the four-candidate forum is a bit too much. Such incidents are well worth being highlighted as bullet points in a subhead section or in an adjacent summary box (if these things existed here), then referenced within the intro paragraphs before being discussed in detail later in the article. As a result of the way this article has been constructed, I read it with a conflicted reaction, understanding that Lesko's parking commentary and her later non-interaction carry importance while at the same time feeling they're both being blown up larger than life. Another problem with this story is that both Steve Bean and William Bostic, Jr., have their coverage here arbitrarily marginalized. In this story's narrative, Pat Lesko renders them as bit players simply by walking out early after making an overstatement. (In regard to the heavy emphasis given to Lesko's parking meter hyperbole, might these two candidates have received greater press attention if they'd chosen to complain, let's say, about the recent "passage" of a city income tax proposal or last fall's "removal" of Argo Dam?) Granted, this site provides a worthy service to the public by checking the candidates' campaign talking points and calling them out on wrong or questionable statements. I fully support that. Your slant here, however, is just soooo heavy, and does give the impression of sensationalizing an otherwise perfectly legitmate campaign concern. This is dysfunctional, unfortunately. Not surprisingly, this encourages equally dysfunctional counter-reactions, such as Alan leading off this thread with an over-the-top emphasis on the character of residents at the Delonis Center, playing into the last decade's history of middle class fear mongering in the Old West Side and downtown areas. Of course we should care about how Delonis is managed, but that shouldn't be allowed to trump every other issue discussed at the forum. If the A2 Chronicle soon posts a lengthy entry on the candidate forum, I'll be curious to compare & contrast their chosen angles on the same event.

bunnyabbot

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 12:45 p.m.

dear God, that is some bad lighting for pics, everyone looks odd, bean and hieftje look like twins and pat looks like michael moore or orson welles. I don't like any of them for mayor. don't want hieftje to remain and don't like any of the others, think a local currency is a silly idea.

Joe

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 12:32 p.m.

It seems to me that we need a newspaper to investigate some of Ms. Lesko's claims, instead of merely repeating the claims of Lesko and Hieftje. Would it really be so much trouble for someone at the paper to look at the financial statements themselves? As far as Ms. Lesko's skipping the Q&A, and ignoring the paper's request for comment, I think it is certainly a mistake. Still, after the piece from May 30, "Patricia Lesko's bid for Ann Arbor mayor gaining support, despite false campaign messages" which cannot be described as anything close to objective journalism, I would avoid AA.com as well. I would love to see someone refute the substance of Ms. Lesko's claims, not the details. The city manager got a raise while the firefighters took a pay cut, and we have fewer firefighters and police officers on duty now than we did a decade ago. Who cares what percentage the raise was? Who cares if it was through not filling job openings, or through layoffs? It still makes me unhappy with the current city government.

Top Cat

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 12:26 p.m.

I suggest that you go back and review all 4 photos. How one dresses and presents themselves to the public and the press when seeking such a high profile job is one (not the only one) important indicator of their seriousness and professionalism. If you wanted to relocate a major business to Ann Arbor, met with the Mayor and they were dresses as they were in the above 4 pictures, what would your first impression be?

CountyKate

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 12:02 p.m.

Ah, but @Leezee, how can you tell who has a TRUE concern for the real issues? Lesko talks a good game, but can't even get her facts straight - or stay consistent in her story, evidently. What's to say she has true concerns about ann Arbor? Maybe she only has true concerns about being in a position of power. How do you tell?

bedrog

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 11:52 a.m.

one wishes that pat lesko, or an audience member, would have addressed a question i and others have raised on a concurrent thread: namely it seems that some of her most vocal supporters are affiliated with the HURON VALLEY GREENs group...which in turn has been associated with some egregious behavior, members harassing a local synagogue and other jewish events,and repeatedly attempting to browbeat/hijack local organizations....including city council...to an extremist position on foreign policy matters that have nothing to do with ann arbor. all this is detailed in a series of articles in the WASHTENAW JEWISH NEWS for jan, feb and march ( "the false witnesses" series). lesko should forthrightly address her relationship to such people, if any, just as obama did re. rev jeremiah wright, sometimes 'guilt by association' is unfair...sometimes it is fair. stonewalling is not an option here. nor is simply 'punting' by saying 'im jewish too"...since some of the worst actors in this situation claim to be as well.

leezee

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 11:26 a.m.

At this point, I will vote for anyone who has true concern for the real issues of the city such as economic health and crime. I will not vote for anyone obsessed with making the city more convenient for bicyclists. Nice thing to do, but really, how important is that in the scheme of things?

Stephen Landes

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 11:08 a.m.

@Ryan Stanton -- thank you for your comment re: the primary v November election.

Bill Wilson

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 11:06 a.m.

I see that despite the first name in the headline being John Hieftje, AnnArbor.com has placed the unflattering picture of Lesko on their front index page. @ Stefanie Murray... you were saying about being mean....

Ryan J. Stanton

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 11:01 a.m.

@Stephen Landes It would be a false premise to put Steve Bean or William Bostic Jr. in the poll against Lesko and Hieftje since you cannot vote for them in the primary. As the story states, the independents will run in November against either Heiftje or Lesko, whoever wins the primary.

Ryan J. Stanton

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 10:58 a.m.

@Robert M. I know that Mayor Hieftje was a residential realtor before he became mayor, mostly helping people move from one house to another. I'm not aware that he is involved in any real estate activities now. He also is not listed on the Ann Arbor Area Board of Realtors membership roster. Thanks for asking the questions, though. If I find out anything different, I'll let you know.

Stephen Landes

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 10:58 a.m.

Why doesn't the vote poll include the names of the two people running as independents? These two people were listed in the article, so you know who they are. Does the choice of "write in candidate" mean the same thing as voting for one of the independents? Let's start out being fair to all the candidates so we have a chance of making some progress in Ann Arbor.

a2roots

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 10:53 a.m.

So, FF and PD unions are you still backing Lesko? Her credibility takes hits on a daily basis and she should withdraw from the mayoral race. The unions better wake up and gracefully back off of their support for her before the inevitable happens and she withdraws from the mayoral race. Some people think Ann Arbor has problems now. Whatever problems exist are minor compared to the fiasco she would bring to the table.

HaeJee

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 10:39 a.m.

I was surprised not to see any comments of people that know her from the Northside community until I read the article about her unfactual statements. I do agree that other posters that she is not liked in her own community for being hostile and starting a lot of undue tension. Her blog reminds me of Sarah Palin's facebook claims and I find that to be a cowardice approach to politics. I would like to give some advice to those that are running of a position: I am tired of hearing the petty blames. If you can't provide detailed plans of solutions to problems that you are claiming, then shut it.

Stephen Lange Ranzini

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 10:26 a.m.

Speaking as a downtown resident who lives one block from the Homeless Shelter and who has talked to a lot of downtown residents and business owners, the firing on the downtown walking beat cops was a blow for all of us. The fact that there are 10 registered sex offenders at the homeless shelter and that the shelter is one block from the downtown YMCA and there is no visible police presence is troubling. The fact that you can't walk to get coffee and back in the morning or pump gas into your car without being accosted by a panhandler or bunko artist is troubling. The fact that you can't eat dinner at an outside cafe without being accosted by a panhandler or bunko artist is troubling. The fact that the police have been instructed by city management not to interfere with panhandlers or bunko artists unless they are violent is most troubling. While I'm an athletic 6 foot tall adult male capable of defending myself and used to dealing with these people on a daily basis, many of our visitors (who are so critical to the financial viability of the downtown business community) are not and after one such experience, they won't come back and will tell 20 more people about their bad experience. The underinvestment in law enforcement downtown and the direction to the police not to interfere with the behavior of the street people among us is a grave mistake and needs to be reversed.

Tom Joad

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 10:22 a.m.

Lesko is toast (heavy on the butter and jam)...Do we really need another liar or someone loose with the facts in office?

JoAnn Barrett

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 9:58 a.m.

The website for Ms. Lesko's publishing company, Part-Time Press, http://www.adjunctnation.com/downloads/Catalog.pdf claims that one-in-four American colleges and universities uses their books, not the ambitious one-in-two that she is now claiming. Unless it has not been updated recently, she seems to be inaccurate in quoting facts about her own company. Moreover, the 'partial list' of schools provided does not give one confidence of either claim.

HaeJee

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 9:54 a.m.

It sounds like Lesko avoids defending her contradicting statements or being questioned, not the first time. Perhaps you should talk to some Northside parents of their experiences with her at the PTO about 3-4 years ago and read some of her statements she made there. The school has never been the same unfortunately.

friend12

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 9:36 a.m.

if you go to https://www.part-timepress.com/shop/about_us.php it states "Part-Time Press was born in July of 2004". The article above states " "The business that I head and have headed for the last 20 years unfortunately doesn't do much of its business in Ann Arbor. It's national," Lesko said. " If it was born in 2004 that is 6 years. Am I missing something?

Top Cat

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 9:36 a.m.

There is an old adage in politics that you can't beat somebody with nobody. Ms. Lesko's lack of credibility had removed her from serious consideration as a candidate.

Mick52

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 8:56 a.m.

After reading this story I conclude there are no new candidates who deserve the office of mayor. Since Mayor Heifthe has a record of re-election, he probably will succeed. Surely the AAPD/AAFD has withdrawn their support. Who would want to be associated with Ms. Lesko with her recent recent behavior? In re to the use of the homeless shelter for residence on the sex offender list, it should not be used, or, on the offender site it should be noted as a temporary homeless shelter. Use of its address allows offenders to get around the registration requirement despite where they are.

a2roots

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 8:47 a.m.

@Fran...Way to go I definitely agree with you. However, if you follow this junk at all you will find most of the posters are looking to blast off about what is`wrong and are blind and unwilling to recognize the good things we have going on in Ann Arbor. It is always easy to find faults especially when the political fangs get out.

John of Saline

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 8:45 a.m.

It sounds like one of Lesko's tricks is to treat any proposal mentioned by a city official at some point as an accomplished fact (like the proposed parking extension) and hope no one notices that it was just a proposal.

rusty shackelford

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 8:43 a.m.

Bostic, a recent University of Michigan graduate, took a stance against extending parking meter enforcement hours to 10 p.m., saying it could unfairly burden low-paid downtown workers. He suggested a one-hour extension to 7 p.m. would be a better idea. He's right about that, but unfortunately it will gain him zero political support. The feelings of Ann Arbor voters toward low wage workers range from dismissively indifferent to downright hostile.

Fran

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 8:35 a.m.

I would rather hear positive things about Ann Arbor and how we can capitalize on those rather than what's wrong and needs to be fixed. A lot of things are simply not broken

Tom Teague

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 8:32 a.m.

I doubt any of the candidates are clamoring for these photos so they can use them in their official campaign literature. Given that restaurant lighting is usually low, that Ryan Stanton was both photographer and reporter at the event, and that all the candidates are speaking in their photos which means he was also taking notes, these are probably the best that annarbor.com had to work with.

a2sanity

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 8:25 a.m.

It is not surprising that Ms. Lesko would not stay and answer questions. There have been many questions posed to her and she refuses to answer. She evidently will discuss things only on her blog, and only if posed on her blog in a way she wants -- but as others point out she evidently deletes those posts she doesn't want to answer. Ms. Lesko, is this true? This campaign is evidently all about her and fodder for her blog. But she doesn't understand that most residents don't want to go to her blog. Ann Arbor is much better than this. Public service requires better than this.

Edward R Murrow's Ghost

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 8:07 a.m.

No attempt to fool anyone, Longfellow. I live in one of the townships and have no irons in this fire except that all of us in the area have it in our interest that Ann Arbor be well managed. And my comment was a serious one. The candidates who stayed for the entire forum, almost certainly, had numerous photos taken of them. It is not unlikely that Ms. Lesko's early departure caught the photographer by surprise. And given that the photos that appeared in this weekend's piece were not unflattering gives credence to such a conclusion.

blahblahblah

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 8:02 a.m.

According to the Lesko quotes in this story: She "heads" a "national", "higher education publishing group" doing business with "one out of every two colleges in the United States". If these statements are true(??) how does she find the time to run her blog and run for mayor while running such a successful business.

Bill Wilson

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 7:58 a.m.

@ Ghost, I don't think you'll fool anyone with that comment. You see this type of thing with images of Obama and Hillary Clinton all the time by certain news agencies. I'm no fan of Lesko, but using such a photo adds fuel to the arguement that this site has taken sides.

Edward R Murrow's Ghost

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 7:47 a.m.

@Longfellow: Perhaps had Ms. Lesko stayed at the forum longer there would have been an opportunity for a more flattering photo. Good Night and Good Luck

a2roots

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 7:18 a.m.

@alan...Were there any politicians against the shelter being built? It sure seemed to have a broad base of support. You are digging deep to hang this around the Mayor's neck. I too wish their was an alternative but I will take him over anyone that has come forth. It becomes more apparent every day that Lesko is not a viable candidate and should withdraw.

say it plain

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 6:28 a.m.

Hmm, I know that Lesko's accuracy is a big issue, but gee, the other thing I found disturbing about this session was how she needed to leave early because her kids were with a sitter?! I truly want to support women in their desires to be responsible for their children *and* do whatever else they want in life, but imo if you have hired a sitter, she/he should be able to deal with your being a little late so as to address questions as you run for mayor, yikes! What--was it going to cost overtime lol?! Were you worried the sitter wasn't responsible? I've been late coming home at the appointed hour for far lesser 'distractions' than a forum relevant to my bid to become Ann Arbor's mayor--this would worry me as a precedent from someone wishing to get my vote to sit for hours and hours in meetings and forums and question sessions etc. Unless she doesn't really think question sessions are very important, and can do it all from behind a blogger's desk, uh-oh. I really really would like to see some shake-up in Ann Arbor city government, but wish we had more compelling alternatives than Lesko is seeming to be so far...

GoblueBeatOSU

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 5:57 a.m.

I'm not a Hieftje fan. In fact, I believe he needs to go. To be fair, why would Hieftje know the number of sex offenders at the Delonis Center? I agree they need to be removed from the center. To me this is a law enforcement issue and not Hieftje's issue. Think we need to give him a break on this issue.....or has someone been pounding his door on this subject and he hasn't taken action?

Edward R Murrow's Ghost

Fri, Jun 4, 2010 : 5:54 a.m.

Another example of Ms. Lesko not engaging the the peons in a forum she does not control. Wonder if she'll leave city council meetings due to babysitter problems? Why should anyone thing a Lesko administration will behave any differently? Good Night and Good Luck