The Michigan Daily - Thursday, September 8, 1988 - Page 3
STUDENTS AND ANN ARBOR
14
PM
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Spend more than a penny... KARENHANDEMAN/Doily
...At Nickels Arcade. If you're looking for quaint shops, a post office, shelter from the rain, expensive clothing, or a
short cut between Maynard and State Streets, this tunnel of tradition - located at the northwest end of the Diag - is
for you.
'U,'
studen
BY DONNA IADIPAOLO
Housing costs, crime prevention,
and environmental preservation are
Ann Arbor issues that University
students could affect substantially,
but many students still do not voice
their opinions by voting in city elec-
tions.
"Most students who attend col-
lege are more interested in them-
selves than the social issues of Ann
Arbor," said Michigan Student As-
sembly President Mike Phillips, an
LSA senior. "We try to inform stu-
dents about issues that affect them
most to get them to vote."
"We are in the midst of a 'me
generation' in which students do
not believe their individual votes
matter, Phillips said.
MANY STUDENTS either re-
gister to vote at their permanent
addresses or ignore city elections al-
together. "I don't know much about
what's going on in Ann Arbor with
all that local stuff," said engineering
senior Glen Moore. "I live in Ster-
ling Heights; that's where I vote."
But representatives of the Ann
Arbor City Council and other city
services say the most valuable stu-
dent contributions to the city come
from political involvement other
than casting ballots.
"There has never been a lack of
willingness of students to get in-
volved in politics. Students give
more of a commitment than most
people do," said Dave DeVarti, a
former Democratic city council-
member who benefitted from student
support.
STUDENTS play a greater role
in city politics by working with city
organizations - such as the Shelter
Association of Ann Arbor,which
operates a shelter for the homeless,
or the Ecology Center of Ann Arbor,
which takes an active part in recy-
cling - than by casting a ballot,
DeVarti said.
Less than seven percent of regis-
tered voters in the heavily-populated
student precincts voted in last
April's general city election - a
low figure compared to other
precincts, but higher than in past city
elections.
City officials attributed the in-
crease to the proposed rent control
ordinance, which would have
limited rent increases in Ann Arbor
to a base rate of 75 percent of the
rate of inflation, contingent on
factors such as utility and property
tax increases.
Supporters of the ordinance -
t VOt4
voted out of office by about 200
votes in the last election said, "It's
unfortunate that students didn't play
a more active role last April."
Hirshorn said the off-campus
crime commission he organized last
year - comprised of students and
community members - was one of
the most successful groups he has
Elections QiQI
Mayoral and council elections are 1988.89 Election Dates
partisan contests fought, for the most
part, between Democrats and Re- november
publicans. 8
Democrats are more likely to National
look at human services as city re- Presidential
sponsibilities and to view the city as Tue s day Election
a model employer
february
Republicans emphasize thef r y
city's role as a provider ofbasic serv-
ices such as police, roads, and water. Ann Arbor
City Primary
Elections Monday
Registration
Registration must take place 30 days april
prior to an election. Registration, or 3
a list of r6gistration sites, may be ob-
tained from the city clerk's office. No Ann Arbor
identification or declaration of party Monday City General
affiliation is necessary. Mna Elections
low
cratic councilmember who was
ever worked with.
COUNCILMEMBER Terry
Martin (R-2nd Ward), said there
hasn't been much student involve-
ment in her campaigns. Martin said
voting is an important way to con-
tribute to the "general philosophy of
the system," but said all students
should be familiar with the issues
and candidates before casting a bal-
lot.
DeVarti said that not only do city
policies affect students, but student
participation is a "development pro-
cess" that goes hand-in-hand with a
student's education at the Un-
iversity.
Tara Ward, staff coordinator of
the Ecology Center of Ann Arbor
and a School of Natural Resources
graduate, said many of her
volunteers are University graduate
students and seniors. "After
someone has been involved on
campus for a year or two, they tend
to look beyond the campus and try
to aid the entire community."
KATHY ZICK, director of the
Shelter Association of Ann Arbor,
praised those students who have be-
come more deeply committed to city
politics by aiding the homeless. Last
year, students worked with commu-
nity members to organize the
Homeless Action Committee, an ac-
tivist group that helped establish a
See Voting, Page 4
p - mm - - - m om
thbe I
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which failed by a two-to-one margin
- hoped to gain support from stu-
dents living in off-campus housing.
Although the actual number of stu-
dents who voted in the April elec-
tions is not known, the percentage
indicates a majority of students did
not.
LIZ ECHT, an LSA junior from
East Lansing, decided to register
here in order to vote on the rent
ZINN/Daily Graphic
control proposal. "The landlords in
Ann Arbor abuse the money they
receive," she said. "There is no rea-
son that rents should be raised when
they are already outrageous."
Members of the Ann Arbor City
Council said if the entire student
body had voted in the April elec-
tions, the outcome of each race
might have been different.
Seth Hirshorn, a former Demo-
Cornerstone
CHRISTIAN CHURCH
(a non-denominational church)
Sunday Worship Service 10 A.M.
at Angell Elementary School
(1 block east of Washtenaw on South University).
Pastor Mike Caulk 971-9150
People Dedicated to Knowing and Communicating
Jesus Christ!
h fii3EiV ST. V
VIIDO
120 Liberty St.
Ann Arbor, MI
663-3121
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