cI1 0Udipan Baij Ann Arbor, Michigan Thursday, March 12,2009 michigandaily.com The Economics of Nickels Arcade Despite drawbacks, new shop owners say corridor offers unique business opportunities By DEVON THOESBY< For the Daily Whether as a quick shortcut between State Street and Maynard Street or as access to more than a dozen businesses, Nickels Arcade has been an unquestioned campus landmark since its com- pletion in 1918. While the Arcade's intimate atmosphere is unique, it is less clear how successful of a business opportunity the shop gallery presents. Nickels Arcade has been home to dozens of shops in Ann Arbor throughout its 90-plus years of exis- tence. But businesses in the gallery have had a high turnover rate in the past few years, with at least three new businesses filling vacant spots in the last year alone. Still, shop owners say the shopping experience provided by the arched corridor cannot be found anywhere else near campus. While the current state of the economy prob- ably has affected the boutiques in the Arcade, Jesse Bernstein, the Ann Arbor Area Chamber of Com- merce president, maintains that the turnover rate of shops filling the spaces is not necessarily some- thing about which to be concerned. Bernstein said the turnover of businesses in the Arcade is simply an example of the inconsistency of business. "I think it's just economic reality," he said. "Everybody assumes businesses last forever and they don't. Things come and go; it's not necessarily - mm a bad thing." N However, Bernstein said he still believes it to be a "great spot" in the city with unquestioned archi- A C- ANNA BAKEMAN/Daily See ARCADE ECONOMICS, Page 3A A wan walks past the State St. entrance to Nickels Arcade, which has recently seen much turnover. MICHIGAN FOOTBALL Stonum receives sentence for Sept. alcohol-related charge ARE YOU IN OR OUT (OF STATE)? Residency procedure criticized C rai hox inf Wh time N Josepi billlas but cri Jos( Michi the U Madis Josepl to atte gan's I one ye ferred in Ant But omplex process first semester tuition bill in Ann Arbor, he discovered the Univer- ses questions on sitywas charginghim out-of-state tuition rates, despite the fact that V 'U' will handle he has lived in Michigan most of his life. luX of tr ansfers "I was in-state (tuition) at Dearborn," Joseph said. "So when By NICOLE ABER I transferred over here, I never Daily StaffReporter thought that I would be consid- ered out-of-state." en LSA junior and long- According to the Office of the dichigan resident Lawrence Registrar's website, as per Uni- h first glanced at his tuition versity Residency Classification t semester, he couldn't help Guidelines, if you are a Michigan inge. residentbut"you have attended or eph was born and raised in graduated from a college outside gan but decided to attend the state of Michigan, you must niversity of Wisconsin at file an Application for Resident on.After his freshman year, Classification and be approved to h returned to his home state qualify for in-state tuition." nd the University of Michi- Before filing residency clas- Dearborn campus, and then sification applications, these stu- arlater, Joseph againtrans- dents are billed for out-of-state to the University's campus tuition. But most students can n Arbor. avoid paying out-of-state tuition after Joseph checked his See RESIDENCY, Page 3A SUMMER IN THE CITY Summer job opportunities to hold steady in A2 Wide receiver pled guilty to charge in February ByTREVOR CALERO Daily News Editor After Michigan freshman wide receiver Darryl Stonum showed up late for his court date today, 15th District Judge Julie Creal sentenced him for a charge of operating a vehi- cle while visibly impaired following his arrest in late September. Director of Student Legal Ser- vices Doug Lewis, who represents Stonum, would not discuss the spe- cifics of the judge's sentence, but Stonum could potentially face up to 93 days in jail, $300 in fines and 360 hours of community services. A clerk at the 15th District Court said the information would be avail- able on the court website either later today or tomorrow morning. When he failed to show up for the court date, Stonum was ini- tially issued a bench warrant for his arrest and $1,000 bond. The warrant was dropped after Stonum appeared, Lewis said. When reached by telephone today, Stonum said that he was at the sentencing but declined to com- ment further. Stonum pleaded guilty to the charge of operating a vehicle while visibly impaired in February. When contacted today, Lewis disagreed with the premise of reporting on the case. "It's no more newsworthy than the whole alcohol problem of all your peers," he said of Stonum's offense. He said that just because Stonum is a well-known University athlete, he shouldn't be held to a different standard. "It bothers me when you make an issue out of one person," he said. "Just because he's a football player doesn't mean he's different than anybody else." Following the incident inSeptem- ber, Michigan head football coach Rich Rodriguez suspended Sto- num from the team's game against Illinois on Oct. 4 for a "violation of team rules" but didn't offer any fur- ther reasoning for the punishment. On Nov. 4, the day of Stonum's arraignment, Rodriguez said dur- ing his weekly Big Ten teleconfer- ence that Stonum would not be disciplined further by the team fol- lowing the one-game suspension. In the team's next game against Toledo the next week, Stonum did play but didn't start. Stonum start- ed at wide receiver in the rest of the Wolverines' 12 games last season. He ended his first season with the team the season with 14 catches for 176 yards and one touchdown. Store owners say economic downturn won't reduce hiring from previous years By ELYANA TWIGGS Dafly StaffReporter As unemployment rates across the country soar, University stu- dents who plan to spend their vacation months in Ann Arbor can rest assured that their sum- mer job options are intact - for the most part. While some local businesses are downsizing their summer staffs, a number of owners said they plan on hiring at rates similar to past years and, as the economy tumbles, don't feel the need to cut back. Sava Lelcaj, who owns and operates Sava's State Street Cafe, said hiring rates at her restaurant have not lowered because of the economy. "It'sthe same hiring rate," Lelcaj said "Wehaven't been really affect- ed by the recession in Ann Arbor, and we hire mostly students." Kerstin Woodside, assistant manager of Orchid Lane, a fair- trade clothing store on East Lib- erty Street, said hiring is actually See SUMMER JOBS, Page 3A THE NEW MEDIA Warner gives unusually optimistic forecast for the future of journalism MIXED BREED Visiting professor: New online options could revamp troubled industry By ANNIE THOMAS For the Daily In a speech before a standing- room-only crowd in the Hussey room of the Michigan League last night, guest professor Fara Warner gave an unusually optimistic diag- nosis for the future of journalism in an increasingly technologically oriented culture. In her talk entitled "The Blogo- sphere: The Future of Journalism?" Warner assured attendees that despite the seemingly dire future of the industry in the Internet age, there is much potential for reshap- ing journalism to tap the full poten- tial of new technology. According to Warner, the How- ard R. Marsh Visiting Professor of Journalism, 13,000 journalists lost their jobs last year, in addition to the number of professional publica- tions that folded. But she said this is not reason to believe the industry is unsalvageable. "I'vebeenlisteningtopeoplertalk about my industry and I am tired of the woe is me, stick our heads in the sand, and that newspapers are going to go extinct," Warner said. "Journalism is not dead. It's vibrant and it isactive and is being pursued around the world." Warner said that today's news media is mainly an entertainment source, not satisfying her thirst for hard-hitting news stories focusing on the economy, politics and the war in Iraq. "To me radio - talk radio in particular - and cable television is not about news," Warner said. "It's about talking heads and par- tisan politics. It is about argument, it is about debate, it is about fight- ing words. It's a cheap way to have entertainment." Warner's lecture focused on new media opportunities for journalism and, more specifically, Internet sites that completely revamp the way people think about journalism. Warner talked about the innova- tive ways that people get their news today, citing examples of twittering See JOURNALISM, Page 3A ANNA BAKEMAN/Daily This mixed media sculpture named "Sparky" was created by Betsy Youngquist for the Gifts of Art program at the University Health System. The program brings the world of art and music to patients to create a more calm and comfortable environment. WEATHER H1: 39 TOMORROW LU023 GOT A NEWS TIP? Call 734-763-2459 or e-mail news ivmichigandaily.com and let us know. NEW ON MICHIGANDAILY.COM Daily Sports's Big Ten Tournament predictions. THEGAME.BLOGS.MICHIGANDAILY.COM INDEX NEWS... . . . 2A SPORTS ..........................I....5A Vol CXIX, No 107 SUDOKU.. . ...3. A CLASSIFIEDS. ..A...........6A 2 9 ThenMichgan Daly OPINION............................4A TH E B-SIDE ................ 1B A I i