Ann
Arbor
city
officials
discussed two ordinances that
would expand the number of
recreational marijuana facilities
in the city in a special City
Council work session Monday
night. Approximately 25 citizens
attended the session.
At
last
week’s
meeting,
councilmembers
gave
initial
approval to the ordinances that
would allow temporary permits
for events with onsite marijuana
sale
and
consumption.
They
are expected to be approved in
October, right before the state will
begin accepting applications for
recreational marijuana licenses
from businesses on Nov. 1.
The
work
session
began
with a presentation on the new
ordinances.
Planning
Manager
Brett Lenart explained recent legal
history regarding the legalization
of marijuana, including the 2008
Michigan Medical Marijuana Act
and the 2018 Michigan Regulation
and Taxation of Marijuana Act.
“The city obviously has a more
unique history with marijuana
than a lot of other communities,
both in the state of Michigan and
throughout the country,” Lenart
said. “A history of involvement in
Hash Bash, activist groups who
were pretty agressive in some eyes
at the time, municipal regulation
for governing marijuana in the
community. And more recently,
that history has evolved from a
series of legal statutes and acts.”
Lenart
explained
the
proposed land use regulations for
recreational marijuana. He said
many of the recommended changes
included removing “medical” from
previously established terms.
Additionally, Lenart addressed
the amendment to implement a
designated marijuana consumption
facility, where adults 21 and older
would be able to both buy and
consume marijuana inside the
place of purchase. These facilities
would be allowed in commercial
districts and have to be located
1,000 feet from schools.
Lenart
also
discussed
the
creation of marijuana retailers and
marijuana microbusinesses.
michigandaily.com
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Tuesday, September 24, 2019
ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-EIGHT YEARS OF EDITORIAL FREEDOM
The Academics Beat at The
Michigan Daily recently sat down
with the new LSA Dean Anne
Curzan for an interview to discuss
her vision for the college and its
many programs.
The Michigan Daily: What
are your goals as dean of LSA?
Anne Curzan: I’d start by
saying LSA is a remarkable place
filled
with
inspiring
people,
and it’s such an honor for me at
this moment in my career to get
the chance to try to ensure that
this can continue to be a place
where everyone can do their best
work. That’s faculty and staff
and students, both graduate and
undergraduate. That everybody
can thrive here. In terms of my
broader goals, I’m committed to
maintaining our excellence — first
in research and teaching, that’s
core to our mission. Also core to
our mission is our commitment
to diversity, equity and inclusion.
That is something that we will
continue to work very hard on.
(I’m) committed to advocating
for the value of the liberal arts
in terms of our teaching and the
education that we provide and our
research mission.
Then,
how
we
contribute
to the public good. It’s a public
institution, and we do really
important work for the public
good. We’ll stay very focused on
that. Another one of my goals,
as I said, is really to ensure
that everyone can thrive here.
That means staying focused on
purposeful inclusion and equity
and access for everyone. It also,
for me, means staying focused on
purpose. I’m a big believer that if
you are focused on the work that
matters, on the work that gives
you purpose, wherever you are,
it leads to fulfilling happy lives …
I also will be staying focused on
well-being, that’s very important
to me for everyone in the
community..
An Ann Arbor-based public
interest law firm, the Thomas
More Law Center, along with
Caledonia-based Bursch Law
PLLC, has been representing
the state of Tennessee’s general
assembly in a case opposing the
federal government’s refugee
resettlement efforts since 2016.
Tennessee, much like other
states around the country, has
received an influx of refugees
in the last decade, averaging
around 1,000 refugees per year,
largely
from
conflict-ridden
areas such as Iraq and Sudan.
In 2017, the state legislature
refused to provide funds for
Medicaid for settled asylum-
seekers and sued the federal
government.
After Tennessee’s attorney
general declined to litigate the
case on behalf of the Republican-
held general assembly, TMLC,
a
self-identified
Christian,
conservative law firm, took up
the case.
In July, the Sixth Circuit
Court denied Tennessee’s case
on the basis of standing. In
other words, the plaintiffs had
not suffered any measurable
damages
from
the
refugee
resettlement program.
GOT A NEWS TIP?
Call 734-418-4115 or e-mail
news@michigandaily.com and let us know.
INDEX
Vol. CXXVIII, No. 139
©2019 The Michigan Daily
N E WS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
O PI N I O N . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
CL A SSIFIEDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6
S U D O K U . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
A R T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
S P O R T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
michigandaily.com
For more stories and coverage, visit
CSG fights
extra costs
of materials
for courses
Student government pursues initatives
to combat campus affordability issues
BARBARA COLLINS
Daily Staff Reporter
Joe’s Pizza, an authentic New
York City establishment, recently
opened its first location outside
of the five boroughs on South
University Avenue. Joining the
slew of pizza places in town, Joe’s
aims to provide a new kind of slice
and experience without usurping
existing pizzerias.
While Ann Arbor may seem
like an odd choice for Joe’s first
out-of-state
site,
partner
and
manager Peter Levin revealed the
motivations behind the big move.
“My business partner Ian and
I both went to U of M, we’ve been
friends ever since,” Levin said. “We
were like, if we’re going to expand
Joe’s lets do it in Ann Arbor. There’s
such a great market here, we have
the obvious ties to Ann Arbor and
we felt it would be a really great fit.”
Situated in a prime location for
maximum foot traffic, just across
from the engineering arch, Levin
said there was extensive planning
behind their new venture.
“We wanted to open an iconic
location, we plan to be here for a
really long time, and we wanted a
location that kids will remember
after school into the years, and
we felt that this was it,” he said.
Joe’s Pizza
joins other
pizzerias
downtown
BUSINESS
New establishment
brings competition
for area businesses
HANNAH MACKAY
Daily Staff Reporter
LSA Dean discusses research,
value of a liberal arts education
Anne Curzan sits down with The Daily to talk vision for the College
Christian
law firm
works on
Tenn case
GOVERNMENT
BEN ROSENFELD
Daily Staff Reporter
Follow The Daily
on Instagram,
@michigandaily
On top of tuition, students at
the University of Michigan pay
hundreds of dollars in mandatory
fees in each of their courses for
textbooks,
online
homework
and other supplies. With all
of these extra fees students
are expected to pay, Central
Student Government is pursuing
initiatives to make attending the
University more affordable for
students. Some of these initiatives
include making homework more
accessible and looking into hiring
specialists who could help reduce
costs of class materials.
Certain schools on campus
require students to spend an
additional amount of money
on supplies and materials for
their
classes.
According
to
the Office of the Registrar, for
instance, materials for 100 and
200-level courses in the School
of Art & Design can cost up to
$250 per course. Courses in
the LSA department of Film,
Television, and Media, as well
as courses in the Taubman
College of Architecture and
Urban Planning, can also require
students pay several hundred
dollars for supplies.
Taubman sophomore Olivia
Howard expressed her concern
regarding the large amounts of
money Taubman students have
to spend on materials for class,
especially considering the lack
of communication from certain
professors about these costs.
“We may not have to get books,
but supplies for model building,
drafting and computer software
are incredibly pricey and a
necessity for the class,” Howard
said. “I guess it’s part of the major,
but it can be a pain to get supplies
at random intervals throughout
the semester, especially when it’s
not mentioned that we need them
upfront. So students have a hard
time budgeting for them.”
LSA junior Shira Baron, who is
also pursuing a dual degree in the
Art & Design School, spoke about
her disappointment with the
financial obligation for students
in these schools.
“It’s disheartening for students
because it adds an additional
financial hurdle and reinforces
just how expensive this school
already is,” Baron said.
ALEC COHEN/Daily
LSA Dean Anne Curzan discusses her long-term goals in an interview The Daily in the LSA Building Friday morning.
Community members gather
to discuss new marijuana bills
City Council hosts special session regarding expansion of recreational drug use
See AFFORDABILITY, Page 3
See TMLC, Page 3
PARNIA MAZHAR
Daily Staff Reporter
RYAN MCLOUGHLIN/Daily
Planning Manager Brett Lenart shares the legalization of marijuanaa at a special City Council work session Monday night.
See MARIJUANA, Page 3
BARBARA COLLINS &
ALEX HARRING
Daily Staff Reporters
See LSA, Page 3
Read more at
MichiganDaily.com
Local lawyers litigate
case involving refugee
Medicaid, states’ rights