Opinion: Tell MDOT you support bus lanes on Washtenaw Avenue!

This piece, by Adam Goodman, was originally published on the Transportation Riders United (TRU) website. TRU advocates for a seamless transit network that connects our communities to empower riders, create vibrant neighborhoods, and help Michigan thrive.

After over 15 years of “studying” Bus Rapid Transit on Washtenaw Ave in Ann Arbor, we finally have an opportunity to make real-world progress. In 2027, MDOT will be resurfacing Washtenaw Ave (aka I-94 BL) from Main St to Stadium in Ann Arbor, and they are considering installing bus lanes as part of this project.

To show your support:

• Attend the in-person open house on April 16, from 4pm-7pm at the Ann Arbor District Library Downtown Branch (Lower Level).
• Fill out the online survey at the bottom of MDOT’s Virtual Open House site. Make sure to mark Segment 2 – Alternative B and Segment 3 – Alternative B2 as your most-preferred designs. Make sure to submit your written comment!
• Send a message to Ann Arbor City Council (citycouncil@a2gov.org), asking them to formally endorse the bus-lane alternatives, by approving item CA-10 at their next meeting on April 20.

How we (finally) got here

Washtenaw Avenue, running between Downtown Ann Arbor and Downtown Ypsilanti, has long been a key opportunity for Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) service. With TheRide (AAATA) Route 4/104 buses arriving every 6-8 minutes at peak times, it is already the most frequently-served public transit corridor in all of Southeast Michigan. However, these buses regularly get stuck in traffic. For over 15 years, planners have been studying options to improve bus speed and reliability, with BRT service called for in the ReImagine Washtenaw Plan, the 2016 RTA Regional Master Transit Plan, and TheRide’s own 2045 long-range plan (among others – TRU’s own Joel Batterman even co-authored a Masters of Urban Planning Student Capstone report on the subject in 2012!). However, these plans haven’t led to opportunities for real-world improvements … until now.

Last year, MDOT started design work for a badly-needed repaving project on Washtenaw Ave and Huron St. (a.k.a. I-94 BL) through Downtown Ann Arbor. For a long time Ann Arbor has wanted to change from 4 travel lanes to 2 travel lanes and one turning lane (aka a 4-to-3 lane reconfiguration) on the narrow diagonal section of Washtenaw, between Stadium and South University; 4-to-3 reconfigurations are a proven safety countermeasure that has been highly successful on other Ann Arbor roads. Repaving the road presents the perfect opportunity to make changes to the lane design.

Overview of the project area. Segments 2 and 3 are under consideration for a bus lane.

MDOT’s even proposing bus lanes!

However, MDOT actually came back with more ideas than just a “standard” 4-to-3 reconfiguration, including designs for bus lanes or bike lanes. In doing this, they’ve divided the project into multiple segments to account for changes in the road width and context. Segment 1 runs through Downtown Ann Arbor and will see no design changes. Segments 2 and 3 divide the diagonal, 4-lane section of Washtenaw into northern and southern halves respectively, and both could get bus lanes.

Per MDOT, on Segment 2 (South University to Tuomy), the roadway is too narrow for bus lanes in both directions, so there could be an outbound bus lane only, heading away from Downtown Ann Arbor:

Potential cross-section for Segment 2 showing a single bus lane, two standard drive lanes, and a center turn lane

On Segment 3 (Tuomy to Stadium), bus lanes could be provided in both directions:

Potential cross-section for Segment 3 showing two bus lanes, and two standard drive lanes

Unfortunately, MDOT has also specified that the narrow roadway means it‘s not feasible to provide both bus lanes and bike lanes – these options are mutually exclusive; and worse, on Segment 2 in particular, the roadway is only wide enough for one bike lane in one direction!

Potential cross-section for Segment 2 showing a single bike lane, two standard drive lanes, and a center turn lane

TRU advocates for sustainable transportation in all its forms, and it is always disappointing when we encounter a situation where a roadway cannot accommodate all users safely, comfortably, and efficiently. However, because of Washtenaw’s critically-important role as a high-frequency transit spine, we believe that public transit must be the top priority for Washtenaw Avenue. (We also hope that there may be future opportunities to extend an existing shared-use path alongside Segment 3 the rest of the way into downtown Ann Arbor).

To show your support for bus lanes on Washtenaw:

• Attend the in-person open house on April 16, from 4pm-7pm at the Ann Arbor District Library Downtown Branch (Lower Level).
• Fill out the online survey at the bottom of MDOT’s Virtual Open House site. Make sure to mark Segment 2 – Alternative B and Segment 3 – Alternative B2 as your most-preferred designs. Make sure to submit your written comment!
• Send a message to Ann Arbor City Council (citycouncil@a2gov.org), asking them to formally endorse the bus-lane alternatives, by approving item CA-10 at their next meeting on April 20.

Ann Arbor City Council Preview: April 6, 2026

Gentle readers, it's #a2Council night in Ann Arbor. Here's the agenda. Let's dive in. 

The evening kicks off with a modest, 13-item consent agenda. We are in Street Closure Season with CAs 1 through 6 all being various street closures. There is also CA-10 for sidewalk construction along South Main. Nice. 

There is one public hearing on the docket tonight. PH-1/DS-1 is for a routine township island annexation of 1.199 acres at 2080 South State. 

There is one ordinance first reading tonight: C-1 is the first reading of an ordinance rezoning 0.28 acres at 359 and 371 S. Wagner from R1D to R2A. Yay, I guess. With the passage of the CLUP, I do hope this is that last time we have to see such a silly rezoning come before council. 

And that's all there is. Make sure you follow the blow-by-blow on BlueSky tonight. 

Ann Arbor City Council Preview: March 16, 2026.

 

Gentle readers, it's #a2Council night in Ann Arbor, and tonight is a big one. Here's the agenda. 

The biggest item on tonight's agenda is the PH-2/DS-3 the public hearing and resolution to adopt the 4th revision of Comprehensive Land Use Plan (CLUP). I've written more about this here, but in short, I think council should pass this tonight to help build a more sustainable and affordable city. 

The evening kicks off with a scant, 8-item consent agenda. Of note, CA-5, a consent cost sharing with the DDA for 4th Ave resurfacing. 

There are two public hearings on the docket tonight. PH-1/DS-1 is for a routine township island annexation of 0.33 acres at 615 Riverview Drive. Then there is the aforementioned PH-2/DS-3: the CLUP.  

On to the resolutions. DS-2 is a resolution authorizing the bonds for the Y Lot affordable housing project. You love to see it. DC-1 is a resolution directing the city administrator to discuss crisis response with the county. This is also good. DC-2 is a resolution authorizing $1.5 m in battery storage equipment for the Sustainable Energy Utility (SEU). DC-3 authorizes purchasing $500k in solar cells for the SEU. DC-4 is a resolution amending the council calendar for 2026. 

Make sure you follow the blow-by-blow on BlueSky. 

Opinion: Tell A2Council to Pass the Comprehensive Land Use Plan tonight

 

The Future Land Use Map from the 4th draft of the Comprehensive Land Use Plan.

If you want Ann Arbor to be more affordable, and more sustainable, tell council tonight to adopt the 4th draft of the Comprehensive Land Use Plan (CLUP). It will be the second public hearing of the evening. You can go in person, call, or write an email. 

Housing affordability and sustainability have been one of my main concerns since starting Damn Arbor, 15.5 years ago. Back then, the connection between allowing for more infill sustainability and affordability was less clear. Since then, a clear picture has emerged. In short, infill, like the new CLUP would allow is the pathway to a more sustainable and more affordable city. 

My original plan was to do a detailed literature review covering this, but the literature is so clear and intuitive, I will just touch on it briefly. 

On affordability the literature is clear: building more housing reduces housing costs. This is true even when this housing is non-subsidized, or market rate. The great thing about building more market rate housing in Ann Arbor is the city's Affordable Housing Millage. This means that a portion of property taxes from all new construction also goes towards the construction of subsidized housing. We are starting to see this housing come on line with Dunbar Tower on 4th at Catherine. By allowing for more housing to be built in Ann Arbor, the CLUP helps make market rate housing more affordable. The CULP also helps get more subsidized housing built by allowing more construction, which adds more to the Affordable Housing Fund through the Affordable Housing Millage. 

The CLUP also allows for Ann Arbor to grow more sustainable. Allowing for more infill means more people can live in relatively smaller houses on land that is already urban, instead of clearing forests and farmland in Livingston County. It means that new residents will be able to drive less, and bike or use transit more. 

The CLUP allows Ann Arbor to grow into a city that is greener, and where more people can live with dignity, please tell City Council to support it tonight. 

Previously: 

Ann Arbor for the Many, Not the Few

Ann Arbor City Council Preview: March 2, 2026

Gentle readers, it's #a2Council Night in Ann Arbor. Here's your preview. 

 The evening kicks off with a substantial, 27 item consent agenda. There are 4 road closures on the consent agenda. CA-1 is for Take Back the Night; CA-2 is for Fool Moon; CA-3 is for FestiFools; and CA-4 is for the Big House 5k. 

Elsewhere, CA-12 is for Packard Road Resurfacing. Nice to see this going forward. 

There is one public hearing on the agenda tonight PH-1/B-1 is for a the second reading of the rezoning of 558 S Fifth from Manufacturing to D1 (Downtown Core). I've stated elsewhere that I think all parcels bordering U of M should be zoned D1 to slow the University's expansion, so I'm happy to see this going forward. 

And that's all there is? Will this be a short meeting? Only one way to find out. 

The Library Green Elegy: Dark Money Group Fined For Ann Arbor Election Interference

Updated 2/7/26 to reflect LGC statement on dissolution of nonprofit.

Ann Arbor voters passed a pair of special election ballot measures in August of 2025 that would hopefully put to rest: what should be done with the "Library Lot," a surface parking lot sited north of the Ann Arbor District Library's (AADL) Downtown main branch? Voters overwhelmingly approved measures to sell the site to the Ann Arbor District Library, and repeal the restrictions on its use, convinced by the vision of a "bigger better downtown library" as part of a larger development of the site.

Perhaps lost in the heat of this hard-fought election, it eventually came to light that one group found themselves on the wrong side of campaign finance laws, eventually settling with the state to the tune of thousands of dollars in fines. That group? The Library Green Conservancy (LGC), a group that, despite the name, held no connections to the AADL.

A short history of the site:

The saga over this surface parking lot has spanned generations now.  The most recent chapter began with a multi-story planned multi-use development by Core Spaces, a deal that was effectively terminated in 2018 after voters narrowly approved a charter amendment to hold the lot "in perpetuity" as a city commons and public park. Supporters made various claims that such a commons would be easy to build, support, and finance, and a number of committees were formed to make these hazy dreams a more workable reality. The Center Of The City Task Force, and later The Council of the Commons were formed, and meetings dragged on for years. But once the Core Spaces development had been blocked, LGC’s energy and enthusiasm to raise the considerable funds needed and create the public space dispersed, like a puff of smoke.  Eventually, in 2023, the Council of the Commons was dissolved, with nothing beyond increasingly confusing org charts to show for years of work, and prompting some exasperated citizens to call for closure.

In this stalled environment, the city and library began a collaborative process, and eventually stepped forward and proposed an ambitious new plan for a larger library with a multi-use development spanning both sites, leading to the approved referendum in 2025 and where we are today. Of course, the election was not without controversy...

Solicited advice goes bad

The Board of Library Green Conservancy, 2025

Prior to the election, the LGC was a nonprofit with a board made up of Rita Mitchell (president) Frank Wilhelme (treasurer), Jeff Crockett (secretary), and directors Lynn Borset, Will Hathaway, and Alice Ralph. The city and Library's plans did not sit well with the LGC, who saw themselves–still, after years of inaction–as the guardians of the site. Despite finding no workable path to accomplishing a public park and commons, the LGC opposed the proposals presented by the Library and city, and set about to try to convince voters to, yet again, block a development on this site.

The nonprofit LGC had a stated goal to "support public and private fundraising efforts to transform the Center of the City into a sustainable central park for the Ann Arbor community," Up to this point the LGC had collected tens of thousands of dollars, money that donors could reasonably expect would be spent in service of this mission. But facing a ballot measure, and sitting on thousands in unspent funds, LGC leadership pivoted, and turned their previously fundraised money for a park into an election slush fund. Instead of planting flowers and trees, the group began to purchase targeted mailers, print full page ads in the Ann Arbor Observer, and flood social media with ads in opposition to the ballot proposals. 

LGC's lawyer Tom Wieder took to social media to defend the nonprofit. He boasted that LGC "had spent $59,000 on the election"--despite campaign finance laws limiting the ways a nonprofit like the LGC could spend donated funds to influence an election. Wieder argued that LGC’s campaigning was permissible because it did not "contai[n] express words of advocacy of election or defeat.” University of Michigan researcher Andrew Robbins promptly filed a complaint with the state, alleging the LGC had broken campaign finance laws. The state investigation found Wieder's claims were false: LGC’s mailers and website urged voters to “vote NO” and to “vote against” Proposals A and B–both well-established phrases of “express advocacy” under Michigan election law. Perhaps to the chagrin of LGC leadership, Wieder’s own social media posts were used in the complaint as evidence of wrongdoing.

A judgement, a resolution

The Michigan Department of State, unsurprisingly, agreed with Mr. Robbins, finding sufficient evidence to support the complaint and to conclude that LGC’s expenditures were probably unlawful.

"The Library Green Conservancy used “vote against” and “vote no” on printed materials opposing the Ann Arbor ballot proposals which constituted express advocacy. The express advocacy by Library Green Conservancy required them to either register a ballot questions committee under Section 24 or file and independent expenditure report under Section 25 with the appropriate filing official." 

 - James Biehl, Regulatory Attorney, Regulatory Division , Bureau of Elections , Michigan Department of State

The eventual resolution that the State of Michigan negotiated with LGC was to post-hoc create a ballot committee called "Respect Ann Arbor Parks," organized in January of 2026, well after the August 2025 election had concluded. The LGC then attributed all their election spending to this newly minted organization, which was then forced to pay a $2,300 late filing fee. Finally, the state issued a formal warning to the organization over their improper handling of funds. 

Obviously none of the election material - mailers, social media, or other - included the phrase "paid for by Respect Ann Arbor Parks" as this organization did not yet exist at the time of election, but in regards to election law the state's preference is to bring organizations into compliance to the extent possible, and after the formal warning and fine, the matter was considered closed. Today, the LGC appears to be a shell of an organization, their website shuttered.

On February 6th after this was posted, the Library Green Conservancy board voted to begin the process of dissolving the LGC as a non-profit corporation. See the bottom of this post for their statement.

February 6th statement from LGC, as posted on social media site Nextdoor:

Ann Arbor City Council Preview: January 5, 2026

 

Gentle readers, tonight is the first #a2Council night of the year. Here's the agenda. 

The evening kicks off with a modest, 10-item consent agenda. Of note, CA-9, a development agreement for 2587 Packard. Personally, I think it's nice to see something happening to this large property near Cobblestone Farm. Somehow, I suspect there will be numerous housing opponents speaking during public commentary time to encourage council to vote against this much needed housing. 

There is one public hearing on the docket this evening. PH-1/B-1 is for the first reading of an amendment to the Solid Waste Ordinance. 

And that's all there is tonight. No ordinance first readings nor resolutions. 

And that's all there is folks. See you all next year for what promises to be an exciting year of #a2Council.

Ann Arbor City Council Preview: December 15, 2025

Gentle readers, tonight is the last #a2Council meeting of the year. Here's the agenda. 

The evening kicks off with a respectable 21-item consent agenda. 

Of note, CA-6, for trunkline improvements. There's also some movement with respect to the subsidized housing development at 350 S. Fifth AKA the Y lot. CA-15 accepts a Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PiLoT) for the project. CA-16 appropriates $4m from the affordable housing fund for the project. 

Finally, CA-21 a resolution of intent to amend the DDA boundaries. We are on record supporting an aggressive expansion of downtown. 

There are no public hearings on the docket this evening, but there is one ordinance first reading. C-1 is an ordinance to amend the city's Solid Waste Management rules. 

On to the resolution. DC-1 is a resolution to approve the council calendar for 2026. DC-2 is a resolution calling on congress to support HUD Continuum of Care services. DC-3 is a resolution to approve council committee appointments. Finally we get to DC-4, a resolution to remove neighborhood watch signs. You love to see it. 

And that's all there is folks. See you all next year for what promises to be an exciting year of #a2Council. 

Damn Book Review: History Lessons by Zoe B. Wallbrook

In Zoe B. Wallbrook’s mystery novel “History Lessons,” released over the summer, Detective Asma Ahmed ponders the unlikelihood of a murder in the college town of Calliope, where she works:

With a population of just about 150,000 when school was in session, its status as an elite research hub stuffed with PhDs suggested a mecca of NPR listeners, bookstore lovers, hipster beer drinkers, and amateur beekeepers. Sometimes the shoe fit: Just last month Asma had leaned against the side of the Calliope Amphitheater, watching a bunch of dads whip out wads of cash from inside their windbreakers to buy bootleg Neil DeGrasse Tyson tickets.

This could be any American college town, notoriously overrun as such places are with Neil DeGrasse Tyson superfans. (“You know Neil DeGrasse Tyson was a competitive ballroom dancer in college”: a real sentence said to me by Damn Arbor when he was trying to get me to care about Neil DeGrasse Tyson. BTA, of course – “Before The Allegations.”) No reason to believe we are anywhere specific.

Later, the novel’s main character Daphne Ouverture, a young Black tenure-track history professor at Harrison University in Calliope, goes out to drinks with her friends:

In a university town like Calliope, there were certain items that poured onto the tree-lined streets in overabundance: artisanal vegan cheese makers, microbiologists who made mead out of their garages, yoga studios offering hot vinyasa classes, bike stores, coffee shops for writing the Next Great American Novel, and, of course, bars. Lots of bars.

Sure, maybe more like ten years ago for some of that stuff, but sounds familiar. But it’s still describing a type of city, and Ann Arbor isn’t the only one.

Daphne walking her dog before coming upon a murder scene:

The bright promises of spring in the air kissed her cheeks as she wandered through neighborhood streets, past countless overpriced historical homes with organic vegetable gardens, white picket fences, and the occasional obligatory “Black Lives Matter” or “Love Is Love” sign next to a bed of daffodils.

OK, “overpriced” might be zooming in closer, but again, could be said about a lot of similar places.

But then, a conversation among Daphne’s students in her French Empire class about the murder, kicked off by an intense electrical engineering student:

“Calliope can be dangerous.”

“Are you kidding?” Tabitha said. [Tabitha is a high-achieving Black student but has no interest in European history; Daphne funnily comments that Tabitha is likely only taking this class because she, Daphne, is one of the few Black professors at the university.] “This town just held a teach-in on how to apply hormonal birth control to its deer population.”

The #deerlivesmatter signs from protesters had caused Daphne’s eyes to become temporarily glued to her brain, they had rolled so far back in her skull.

Ope, she got us. I’d recognize that proprietary blend of misguided environmental activism and tone-deaf racial politics anywhere. Ann Arbor, I believe we have the beginnings of our very own mystery series.

(In fairness to Wallbrook, I will highlight the fact that her protagonist is committed to staying in Ann Arb–er, I mean Calliope, so the gentle ribbing of the locale seems to come from a place of love. As it does around here. Mostly.)

You may pick up “History Lessons” for the sick Ann Arbor burns, but you’ll stay for a delightful, good-humored crime story with a genius, kind of dorky main character. There’s a lot going on here. We’ve got campus intrigue (plagiarism, sexual harassment, interdepartmental politics). We’ve got a mostly unexplained animus toward anthropology (the murdered anthropology professor’s library “...contained volumes on fitness regimens, an innumerable list of works on prison reform, and three paleo cookbooks…” and no novels. And he only had the prison reform books because that was his area of study. This is character assassination far beyond his actual murder). We’ve got quirky professor friends, some relevant family background, references to books that will expand your to-read list, pop-culture nods, a multilingual exploration of the word “butterfly.” Of course, we’ve got Daphne Ouverture deducing her way to an answer, not once but several times over, relying on her knowledge of a specific book and her ability to remember everything she’s ever read. Pretty satisfying stuff.

Somehow, there is also a romance. (I wondered at one point if there is so much going on in this story because novels now have to maintain our Internet-addled attention spans by constantly offering new intrigues, but I settled on the explanation that Ms. Wallbrook herself may be a genius and this is just how her brain works–on all cylinders, at all times. This is also a debut novel, so there is likely some throwing-spaghetti-at-the-wall-to-see-what-sticks.) The love interest is Rowan, a bookish (Daphne swoons when he correctly identifies that the French Revolution happened in the second half of the eighteenth century, which is probably an accurate reflection of her dating experience but was nonetheless a depressing swoon to read about) former detective who had developed reservations about the criminal justice system. Before the events of the novel, Rowan fortunately was able to leave the police force when he was gifted Earthseed Bookstore.

Not Dawn Treader Book Shop.

Earthseed Bookstore.

Daphne notes:

Earthseed had a reputation for being less of a bookstore and more of a maze, its narrow aisles stacked to the ceiling with old paperbacks and musty hardcovers. It had been the kind of bookstore that made it impossible to tell if the book you had fished out of the maw was worth ten thousand dollars or ten cents. At one point that might have been cute, but the threadbare carpets and stuffy air had just felt sad.

Rude.

So Rowan has taken over Not-Dawn-Treader and turned it into essentially Literati, down to the “black-and-white tiles sparkl[ing] on the floor, and rows of bookshelves lin[ing] the exposed brick walls.” Daphne describes this as a huge improvement, a “most intoxicating mix of erudition, comfort, and charm.” On this point I depart from Daphne’s assessment–there is room in this town for both musty hardcovers stacked to the ceiling and neat piles of the latest bestsellers.

Bookshop misjudgments aside, I thoroughly enjoyed my time bouncing around Daphne Ouverture’s expansive brain, walking with her the streets I kind-of recognized, and noodling with her on puzzles only she could solve.

I hope, in the next one, we get her thoughts on the new Comprehensive Plan.

Election 2025: Vote in favor of the WISD millage

 

Gentle readers, it's election day if you are registered to vote in the Washtenaw Intermediate School District (WISD). The one item on the ballot is the Career Technical Education millage. This 1.0 mill, 10-year millage would fund Career Technical Education (CTE) learning experiences from preschool through high school graduation. If approved, the CTE millage would be used by Washtenaw ISD to reimburse all local public school districts for existing CTE expenses and also develop new countywide CTE learning opportunities. 

I think this is good. In general, I think it's important for us to support our public schools, especially in these times of national uncertainty. This article from concentrate has a lot of great information on the proposal. 

WISD Map