“We would need to have expertise 
from a private developer, but we’d 
like to have some certainty going 
into that process, in advance, where 
we would pre-entitle the basic 
footprint of what the site would 
look like,” Hall said. 
The council discussed a variety 
of topics, ranging from the process 
of building new properties to 
parking difficulties in Ann Arbor. 
The two are closely related, as 
many of the sites that may be 
developed are parking lots. 
Community member Stephen 
Ranzini, 
president 
and 
CEO 
of 
University 
Bank, 
attended 
the event and spoke with The 
Daily about the future and new 
technologies. 
He said he thinks that despite 
the struggles with parking, in the 
future these struggles will become 
obsolete 
as 
self-driving 
cars 
and ridesharing becomes more 
affordable than personal cars. 
“Every futurist I’ve talked to is 
telling me that self-driving electric 
cars will be a reality in 10 years ... 
you know, that sounds ambitious 
right now because there’s still a lot 
of problems to solve,” Ranzini said. 
“But then again, 10 years ago, who 
was carrying a cell phone that had 
an awesome camera? Technology 
moves first slowly and then very 
rapidly.” 
Andy Tucker, Ann Arbor high 
schooler, 
discussed 
how 
the 
conversation on parking affected 
him personally. 
“The community cares a lot 
about 
parking,” 
Tucker 
said. 
“It’s been brought up in a lot of 
the discussions that they’ve had. 
I know that housing is really 
expensive and most can’t afford it. 
The discussion helped me because 
now I know more about it.” 

“It’s a valuable resource. The 
symbolism in the name alone 
is important for our campus 
and our time. It really is a 
place where we can all come 
together and be more united, 
and we can use it as a place to 
understand each other.”
The remarks started with an 
introductory video, followed 
by an acknowledgment of 
the 
University 
occupying 
formally 
Ojibwe, 
Odawa, 
and Bodewadmi tribal land. 
Alphonse 
Pitawanakwat, 
lecturer 
in 
the 
American 
Culture 
department, 
and 
Ethriam Brammer, assistant 
dean 
in 
the 
Rackham 
Graduate School, delivered 
the 
acknowledgment. 
Schlissel then spoke about 
the singularity of the Union 
in higher education and the 
importance of the building. 
“For 
generations, 
the 
Michigan Union has been a 
place where students lead, a 
place of activism and a place 
of 
student-driven 
change 
that has made us a better and 
more important university,” 
Schlissel said. “It’s my hope 
that the Union encourages 
students from all different 
backgrounds and academic 
disciplines to interact and take 
advantage of the outstanding 
breadth and diversity of our 
great university.”
As presenters were invited 
to speak, members of the 
Climate 
Action 
Movement 
lowered banners over the 

second-story 
banister 
delivering 
messages 
condemning the University 
for its alleged lack of attention 
to climate change issues. One 
banner read, “Stop fueling 
the next mass extinction.” 
This action followed a recent 
intervention of the group 
at the December Regents 
meeting. 
CSG President Ben Gerstein 
was invited to comment on 
the Union’s place as a center 
on campus for students. 
“Today’s reopening is a 
remarkable reflection of the 
power of student activism 
and the power of a collective 
student voice for change,” 
Gerstein said. “Since (the 
Union’s opening in 1919), this 
building has hosted some of 
the most significant moments 
in U of M student history, 
the constant reminder of the 
Michigan 
experience 
that 
occurs both inside and outside 
the classroom or lecture hall.”
The 
formal 
remarks 
concluded with the raising 
of the Michigan flag above 
the Union, an event that was 
live-streamed and projected 
inside the courtyard. As the 
flag was raised, the Michigan 
Band lead a chorus of “Hail 
to the Victors” and streamers 
fell from the ceiling. 
In an interview with The 
Daily 
after 
the 
remarks, 
White said throughout its 
renovation, the Union needed 
the student vision.
“As an alum and someone 
who spent a great deal of 
time at the Union, the ability 
to steward students’ visions 

through the renovation has 
been a tremendous honor,” 
White said. “In the weeks and 
months ahead, as we see how 
the building welcomes back 
students to its spaces, it will 
be great to see all that as well. 
That’s an amazing part of the 
Union as well, that students 
make it their own and should 
make it their own.”
The students The Daily 
spoke to said they appreciated 
the excitement surrounding 
student spaces and the free 
food handed out at the event. 
Taubman sophomore Kassem 
Chammout 
said 
he 
was 
excited to see the remodel.
“It’s nice to see that there’s 
money going back into the 
University and it’s not being 
torn down,” Chammout said.
LSA senior Angelina Adam 
also spoke of the differences 
between 
experiencing 
the 
building as a freshman and 
now again as a senior.
“It’s 
really 
nice 
and 
updated but it’s retained the 
original architecture, which 
is really cool, and a lot of the 
history that is in it,” Adam 
said. “It’s just more open and 
modern now. It’s a lot nicer 
and a better experience. I 
also really like the art that 
they have now and how they 
brought in a lot of different 
faces 
that 
really 
show 
Michigan spirit.”
LSA freshman Jessica Lim 
said she was excited about 
the abundance of study areas 
in the renovated Union. 
“It’s really bright, you can 
tell it has that new smell, 
I’m happy about it because 

hopefully with all this new 
lounging and study area, it 
will de-crowd some of the 
areas that have been super 
congested,” Lim said. 
LSA 
freshman 
Pulak 
Taneja also said he heard a 
lot about the Union before 
coming to the University and 
anticipated its opening. 
“There was a real buildup 
for this because ever since 
we got here as freshmen we 
were told that the Union 
used to be open, but it isn’t 
open anymore,” Taneja said. 
“There was a lot of hype 
surrounding it and I got here 
a while back and I think it’s 
really 
stunning 
from 
the 
outside as well as from the 
inside. I’m excited to check 
it out and check all the other 
stories and everything this 
place has to offer.”
Susan Pile, senior director 
of University Unions and 
Auxiliary 
Services, 
was 
excited to see the Union 
reopen 
to 
students 
and 
emphasized in an interview 
with The Daily how grateful 
she felt to have been able to 
work on the project.
“This is the highlight of 
my 
professional 
career,” 
Pile 
said. 
“To 
be 
able 
to do this work at the 
University 
of 
Michigan 
with these students, staff, 
administration 
and 
with 
this building is a once in a 
career opportunity. This is 
a campus community, this is 
a student space. To now have 
it for students and alive with 
students, this is it. This is 
what it’s all about.”

The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
News
Tuesday, January 14, 2020 — 3

UNION
From Page 1

CITY COUNCIL
From Page 1

“It is kind of a bummer 
for the same reason that I’m 
a senior and the restaurants 
aren’t open,” Niforos said. “I 
only have a month or so to use 
that resource. I did have two 
years of it, but at the same 
time it would have been nice to 
have this semester which was 
initially promised.” 
Niforos was able to see 
the Union before its grand 
re-opening. She was under the 
impression the Union would be 
“gutted out,” but was happy to 
see many of the old structures 
still intact. 
“I got to (see) the remodel 

last week,” Niforos said. “I love 
that they kept the integrity of 
it and just added a few modern 
aspects.” 
Business freshman Gretchen 
Ascher, an employee at the 
Union Sweetwaters, worked on 
opening day. She said the first 
day went well despite how busy 
it was. 
“It was super busy, but it 
was really good,” Ascher said. 
“We had a line out the door 
all day today. Everyone that 
was there for the opening 
ceremony was so excited to 
see it open as well.”
When asked if students 
were upset about most of the 
restaurants not being open, 
Ascher said a few students she 
spoke to were unhappy. Even 
so, Ascher said most students 

were excited about the new 
Sweetwaters location. 
“A couple of students were 
upset,” Ascher said. “A lot of 
people were excited to get 
their coffee and get their 
drinks, they were just really 
excited that we were open.” 
As 
a 
freshman, 
this 
is 
Ascher’s 
first 
time 
experiencing 
the 
Union. 
She said she and her friends 
will try to visit the space 
frequently. 
“It’s been hyped up by all 
the upperclassmen,” Ascher 
said. “There are so many great 
study spaces there and when 
the restaurants all open, I’m 
sure those will be popular. I 
live in West Quad, so I plan on 
spending a ton of time at the 
Union and I know my friends 

do too. I hope I see a lot of 
familiar faces.”
Niforos is also excited for 
underclassmen to experience 
something 
she 
felt 
was 
so important early in her 
collegiate career. 
“I think about all of the 
freshmen 
and 
sophomores 
who 
never 
experienced 
it 
and never got that resource 
because it was so integral 
to my first two years here,” 
Niforos said. 
Though many restaurants 
are closed at the moment, 
Union businesses are looking 
for new student hires. Pile 
said Union directors and the 
businesses are looking forward 
to hiring. 
“We would love to have, and 
I know the vendors would love 

to have, student employees and 
for students to work in their 
operations,” Pile said. 
Pile emphasized the Union 
as a social hub and said she 
believes it contributes to the 
student climate. 
“Ultimately, the Union is 
about 
building 
connections 
and creating a strong sense of 
community,” Pile said. “That’s 
my hope for the space, that 
students will use it in a variety 
of ways. Whether that’s student 
org work or through meeting 
friends for social activities 
to planning programs in the 
building, to attending events, to 
just grabbing a bite to eat. That 
happens in lots of different ways 
and we’re excited the Union can 
offer all of those things to meet 
student needs.” 

RESTAURANTS
From Page 1

 ‘You folks should do all 
your messing around with 
the lake in the wintertime 
because that’s when I’m 
in 
Florida,’” 
Och 
said. 
“It gives you an idea of 
the information we are 
learning tonight and the 
general public’s idea of 
what’s going on.”
Guy Meadows, director 
of the Marine Engineering 
Laboratory at Michigan 
Technological University, 
discussed 
recent 
news 
about houses on Michigan 
shorelines being engulfed 
by the Great Lakes and 
the trends in precipitation 
and 
evaporation 
levels 
over the last 30 years. 
“The highs and the lows 
in the Great Lakes water 
levels indicate that we 
are seeing more extremes 
in both the upward and 
downward 
direction,” 
Meadows said. 
James 
Clift, 
deputy 
director at the Michigan 
Department 
of 
Environment, addressed 
the specific solutions the 
program is implementing. 
The 
solutions 
include 
infrastructure planning, 
reviewing 
shoreline 
protection permits and 
planning 
an 
upcoming 
High Water Summit to 
educate the community 
about rising water levels. 
LSA sophomore Janel 

LaPalm said the event 
reminded 
her 
of 
how 
important it is to keep in 
mind the impacts humans 
have on the environment. 
“Environmental 
issues are very complex 
in that we have to find 
ways as humans who 
want to interact with 
nature to adapt to the 
constant 
change 
of 
nature, especially climate 
change,” LaPalm said. 
Engineering 
sophomore Zuly Tahiz 
Pasillas-Riquelme 
said 
she thinks water levels 
in the Great Lakes are 
an 
issue 
of 
concern 
and something people 
should 
be 
educated 
about.
“One 
of 
the 
main 
takeaways 
was 
that 
the 
truth 
of 
climate 
change doesn’t typically 
hit 
the 
Midwest 
but 
the rising water level 
is a real problem for 
people living along the 
shoreline,” 
Pasillas-
Riquelme said.
Och 
concluded 
the 
evening by connecting 
the concerns with the 
Great 
Lakes 
to 
the 
larger, global issue of 
climate change. 
“I come across people 
who 
think 
climate 
change 
is 
going 
to 
happen 
to 
somebody 
else, far in the future and 
that it’s not a Midwest 
problem,” Och said. “And 
this might be a wake-up 
call.” 

LAKES
From Page 1

DESIGN BY CHRISTINE JEGARL

“Now, this is generally okay 
if the case of the situation is 
someone hasn’t been able to 
teach very well, maybe they 
haven’t been able to fulfill 
their teaching duties, but it 
looks particularly bad when 
maybe they are, say, a sexual 
predator.” 
As part of the Senate 
Assembly’s ongoing effort 
to 
better 
connect 
the 
University’s 
disparate 
schools 
and 
programs, 
Greg 
Laurence, 
associate 
professor of management at 
U-M Flint, highlighted U-M 
Flint’s successes in hosting 
Yo-Yo Ma and Dr. Jane 
Goodall. He also touched 
on concerns with falling 
enrollment 
due 
to 
rapid 

population decline in Flint 
and surrounding areas.
“We are experiencing now 
four years of enrollment 
decline,” 
Laurence 
said. 
“Some 
of 
that 
may 
be 
attributed 
to 
the 
water 
crisis, and people around 
the state’s reaction to that. 
Systemically, 
however, 
if 
you look at demographics 
maps of the state, in a state 
of 
declining 
population, 
especially 
in 
the 
five 
counties that touch it, where 
75 percent of our students 
come from, the population 
of those parts of the state 
is decreasing faster than 
elsewhere in the state.” 
Faculty 
Co-Ombuds 
Robert M. Ortega, associate 
professor of social work, 
and 
Michele 
Hannoosh, 
associate 
professor 
of 
French, ended the meeting 

with a presentation on the 
purpose and structure of the 
University Ombuds.
Ortega 
and 
Hannoosh 
led the assembly through 
their website and reminded 
them that the Ombuds can 
be a first step in resolving 
problems related to a conflict 
between faculty or concerns 
about University policy.
 
Other 
grievances 
with the policy included 
inconsistency between the 
timelines for employees and 
students 
when 
reviewing 
the 
preliminary 
report 
of their case, nonspecific 
language within the report 
and 
employees’ 
inability 
to appeal to the Office of 
Institutional 
Equities. 
SACUA chair Joy Beatty 
voiced 
these 
concerns, 
wondering 
aloud 
if 

employees would be allowed 
the opportunity to challenge 
a suspension.
“What is the rationale for 
not providing an employee 
with 
the 
opportunity 
to 
challenge 
a 
suspension 
without pay?” Beatty said. 
“Why 
are 
the 
timelines 
shorter for employees than 
they are for students?”
Cheney-Lippold 
also 
spoke at the meeting to 
discuss 
the 
University’s 
response 
to 
his 
decision 
to rescind a study abroad 
recommendation 
letter in 
2018. Cheney-Lippold said he 
rescinded the letter because 
of his participation in an 
academic boycott of Israel 
organized 
by 
Palastenian 
activists. 
In 
response 
to 
the incident, the University 
moved to take away Cheney-
Lippold’s sabbatical, freeze 

his pay and threatened to 
potentially 
dismiss 
him. 
Cheney-Lippold 
asked 
to 
meet with SACUA to discuss 
faculty political freedom.
“The Dean’s office seemed 
to stop caring about faculty 
wellness at all,” Cheney-
Lippold said. “I believe my 
case raises specific concerns 
regarding faculty academic 
and political freedom.”
Senate Assembly Member, 
Sara 
Ahbel-Rappe, 
a 
professor in the classical 
studies department, pushed 
back 
against 
Cheney-
Lippold’s decision to decline 
to write the recommendation 
letter, 
referencing 
discrimination 
within 
American institutions. She 
said the fact that Cheney-
Lippold isn’t boycotting the 
United States is a double 
standard. 

“Black 
people 
are 
shot 
everyday 
because 
they’re 
Black. I find it surprising 
when you say that you won’t 
write a letter for anybody 
going to Israel, and you would 
write one for someone in 
America,” Ahbel-Rappe said.
The 
SACUA 
committee 
agreed that their original 
statement 
regarding 
the 
case was rushed and didn’t 
represent the true beliefs of 
SACUA members. Multiple 
committee 
members 

mentioned 
that 
Cheney-
Lippold’s case was worrying 
because it showed the relative 
powerlessness of the faculty 
senate. Instead of having 
a say in the proceedings, 
SACUA’s statement was used 
to bolster the position of the 
University administration.

ASSEMBLY
From Page 1

