A2 City Council votes to approve new multi-million dollar City building

The Ann Arbor City Council voted 7-4 to approve an architect going forward with plans to build a new multi-million dollar city building. The vote did not address what is expected to also need to be addressed, that being a new courts (the city currently rents court space form the county who will NOT renew the lease after 2009) building and police HQ. Currently the police HQ and city building are one in the same.

That could present a problem. So could the fact the tax base just too a massive Pfizer-sized hit.

City council members see the project costing between 33$ and 57$ million. The 57$ million number is the 'bells and whistles' proposal even though the architect hasn't begun drawing up plans as the vote was to merely give the go ahead on a design.

Ann Arbor Mayor John Hieftje is opposed to the project saying:

"This is not the time for us to go out on a limb with a new building".

Council Member Leigh Greden, D-4th Ward, disagrees with Hieftje:

"We need a new courthouse. We need a new police station, It's really that simple."

Heftje called the vote to give the architect the go ahead to design the new building:

"We are at a point of no turning back."

The NO voters were Hieftje and Council Members Ron Suarez, D-1st Ward, Bob Johnson, D-1st Ward, and Stephen Kunselman, D-3rd Ward.

You Ann Arbor residents better not miss THIS meeting

The Ann Arbor Municipal Center, the newly designed home for all things Ann Arbor City, will be discussed. What's at stake? PLENTY. If the full on "bells and whistles" version is approved it'll cost Ann Arbor 57 million dollars, well above the "bare bones" version costing 24 million.

"The difference between the plans boils down to the optional add-ons included in the more expensive version, as well as anticipated increases in construction costs, professional and legal fees, and moving and furnishings, officials said."

Uh huh, what do you want to bet cost overruns on this would have NO penalities, we mean REAL penalties, and instead will be passed on to taxpayers.

City Council Member Leigh Greden, D-3rd Ward: "We are early in the planning process, and we will only build what we can afford."

That's why it's UP TO YOU VOTERS, to make sure Leigh Greden's word is gold. You know how this works, things get passed, the old city government mantra of "It'll be MORE expensive to add this later so let's get it now. We can't afford NOT to get bells and whistles now" will become the unspoken guiding light.

MEETING on this 7 to 8:30 p.m. Wednesday. The meeting will take place at the Ann Arbor District Library, 343 S. Fifth Ave.


Imagine what 24-57 million dollars could do for local roads, schools and or civic improvements. Funny how there's always money for the city to spend on the city but on nobody else.