Page 4 - The Michigan Daily/New Student Edition - Thursday, September 7, 1989
'U'
and
city
Evanston, a nice
place to visit, but..
work together
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By Tarane
Deily Staff V
reap gains
h Shafii
driter
Which came first the University
or the city? Some say Ann Arbor is
a college town and others say the
University is the city. Where the
University ends and the city begins
can be indistinguishable.
"We're dependent on each other
and we will be as long as we're both
around," said Pete Pellerito, director
of community relations at the
University.
Michigan, founded in 1817 spent
its first twenty years as a Catholic
school in Detroit. In 1837, the
University moved to Ann Arbor
when business leaders of the then
Village of Ann Arbor offered the
school 40 acres of land - the pre-
sent Diag area.
AThe University has a terrific im-
pact on the city both economically
and culturally, said Jerry Jernigan,
mayor of Ann Arbor and manager of
the Michigan Endowment Fund at
the University.
By being a leading employer in
Washtenaw County the University
generates a great deal of money for
the city. One out of every five peo-
ple in the county is employed by the
University.
M In the past the University has
"been a good buffer for the city of
Ann Arbor against recessions," said
Pellerito. Because universities are
relatively stable institutions, money
stays within the community during
times of economic hardship.
According to a 1988 University
report, the payroll for University
employees totaled $572 million,
20% of the entire pay roll for
Washtenaw County. Much of this is
reinvested in local businesses.
The University setting inspires
the creation of new companies and
entices others to relocate here. A to-
tal of 92 companies have been
started in Ann Arbor due to
University efforts.
Today, "companies are thinking
ofjlocating in Ann Arbor because of
the relatively intellectual work force
and the University environment,"
said Fred Bohl, urban information
systems manager for the city. The
University offers businesses access
to expert faculty and extensive re-
search facilities in many high tech
areas including robotics, medicine,
biotechnology and computer sci-
ences.
Another commodity of the
University that contributes to the
economic growth of the city is the
students. With the influx 35,000
students every year local businesses
reap the rewards.
"The week before and the week of
Labor Day are absolutely crazy~' said
Diane Brown,acommunity relations
officer at First of America Bank.
When there was only one automatic
teller machine at their South Univ-
ersity branch "it had the most
business in the country," she said.
Another way students contribute
to bank business is that families
stay with the bank over generations
and students "tend to incur a number
of bounced checks," said Brown.
Pizza parlors also get a boost
from students. According to a Univ-
ersity report in 1988 students spent
$6.8 million on pizza.
"When they're not here we don't
get a lot of business," said Mike
Frank, manager of Pizzeria Uno's.
During the school year Uno's may
sell up to 2,500 pizzas in an average
week, whereas in the summer that
figure falls to about 1,000.
While students are "good cus-
tomers" they do not affect business
drastically, said Ted Schwarz, general
manger of Briarwood Mall. Instead it
is the parents of the students that
have a "huge impact" especially dur-
ing graduation, he said.
However, both the University and
the students also affect the city in
negative ways.
"Because the University owns so
much land and it is tax exempt" Ann
Arbor residents' property taxes are
high, said Larry Friedman, planning
coordinator of the community devel-
opment department. The University
owns up to 30 percent of the tax-ex-
empt land in Ann Arbor.
Students affect the housing mar-
ket in terms of supply and price, said
Friedman. Students force rent up be-
cause they are more likely to pay
exorbitant rates.
By Peter Corner
Daily Staff Writer
EVANSTON, Ill. - 7
not a cloud in the sky. The tem-
perature nears 90. From my win-
dow seat in the library, Lake
Michigan glistens like a sheet of
solid glass. The white sandy
beach calls to me, whispering in
my ear : "Go to the beach, forget
your work, go to the beach."
My gaze returns to the stack
of books on my desk. The
Collected Works of William
Faulkner - all of them. African
Literature and Translation - 17
books. The Nuclear Fuels Cycles
text book and lab manual. I was
told it was a blow off class so I
took it pass/fail. Yesterday a TA
told me that I had a 39 percent
going in the class. What are nu-
clear fuel cycles? What is nuclear
fuel? Where does the class meet?
And the beach beckons.
While many students take ju-
nior year abroad in places like
London, Paris, Madrid, and
Malta, I boarded a Southwest Air-
lines jumbo jet and braced myself
for the flight to Chicago's
Midway.
Jeannie, the friendly South-
west flight attendant brought me
a Diet Coke and honey roasted
peanuts. She assured me not to
worry, that the pilot was well-
trained for inner-state travel. In
fourty-five minutes we arrived
safely at Midway Airport. It was
Sept. 20, 1988, and my classes at
*7irthwestern still wouldn't begin
for another week.
Now, I could go on about the
differences that exist between
Ann Arbor and Evanston.
I could go on about sports.
The year I leave Michigan, the
Wolverines win the Rose Bowl,
NCAA Basketball Champion-
ship, and the Men's Ultimate
Frisbee Team had yet another
outstanding season. But at least
when NU almost knocked off the
Fighting Illini, Sheridan Road's
street lamps remained intact. And
besides, throwing marshmallows
in the stands at football games
has its moments.
I could go on about politics.
Michigan has an organization for
anything from the Ayn Rand
Objectivists to the Latin Amer-
ican Solidarity Committee. The
Administration Building has a
reason to be riot-proof. North-
western's just has to look nice
for parents. But then again, now-
adays isn't every-one in college
just passing the time until they
can go out and afford a BMW.
I could go on about aca-
demics. I could tell you how the
quarter system at Northwestern
makes for three semesters instead
of two. Or how in the dead of
winter people seem to disappear
in obscure parts of the NU library
without reemerging until spring.
Thursday and Saturday nights
people study. Hard. And all parts
of the library are quiet
But then again, here I get to
See NU, Page 14
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AMIT BHAN/Daily
Gazing at the First of America Bank through the arch at West
Engineering, one can see how entwined the city and University are.
But without the University, "the
level of education and awareness in
the community would be different,"
said Friedman.
The University and the students.
contribute to the cultural uniqueness
of Ann Arbor. The University is a
mecca for seminars, conferences, lec-
tures, concerts, theater, and sports.
Ann Arbor is "cosmopolitan, but
its small," said Bob Forman, execu-
tive director of the U of M alumni
association. People "tend to forget
how different a place it is."
Dr. Donald Jones, principal of
Pioneer High School stated: "(Ann
Arbor is) a very tolerant community.
(The University is) a tremendous in-
fluence on the whole educational
community."
With all it has to offer Ann
Arbor is now attracting new residen-
tial element. Ann Arbor is "more
and more of an attractive place for
alumni to come back and spend their
retirement years," said Forman.
Forman added that the University
works well on behalf of Ann Arbor
in drawing professional people and
retirees because of its intellectual life
and sports. There are approximately
8,000 alumni currently living in
Ann Arbor.
Is the uniqueness of Ann Arbor
due to the University? Or would the
town be the same without? Since the
city-University liaison is over 150-
years old many cannot imagine one
without the other. A look down the
road offers a glimpse as to what Ann
Arbor might have been without the
University. Twenty minutes north-
west of Ann Arbor lies the sleepy
Village of Dexter.
Dexter, population of about
1600, houses printing companies
and small machine part factories.
Like Ann Arbor, Dexter was founded
in 1824 and like Ann Arbor, in 1837
Dexter also made a bid for the
University of Michigan.
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Quiet Northwestern just can't compare to plethora of things Ann
has to offer. How could anyone sit through an NU football game?
LE PHOTO,t'
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