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INDEX
Vol. CXXIX, No. 72
©2020 The Michigan Daily
NE WS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 A
OPINION.....................4A
CL ASSIFIEDS................6A
S TAT E M E N T. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1 B
A R T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 A
S P O R T S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 A
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The Ann Arbor City Council
voted
to
terminate
City
Administrator Howard Lazarus
without
cause
on
Tuesday
night, effective Feb. 29.
The
resolution
to
fire
Lazarus,
sponsored
by
Councilmembers Jack Eaton,
D-Ward 4, and Jane Lumm,
I-Ward 2, passed with a 7-4
vote. The resolution approves
a
separation
and
release
agreement
guaranteeing
a
severance of one year’s salary,
amounting to $223,600, and an
additional lump sum of $1,000.
The agreement also states that
neither Lazarus nor the city will
disparage or make comments
that reflect negatively upon the
other party.
Lazarus opened the meeting
with a statement reflecting on
his almost four years serving as
Ann Arbor’s city administrator.
He thanked the council and
community members for the
opportunity to serve and spoke
about what he believes to be the
four pillars of public service:
purpose, respect, health and
joy.
“We’ve accomplished many
significant efforts; in addition
to preserving and protecting
the
tremendous
quality
of
life that we have in Ann
Arbor, much of what we do
is unnoticed, and that is the
nature of the job we’ve chosen,”
Lazarus said. “We may also
never know the extent to which
we positively impact the lives of
people in our community.”
During
public
comment,
multiple Ann Arbor residents
addressed the upcoming vote
on
Lazarus’s
termination.
Dan Michniewicz, a candidate
for City Council to represent
Ward 5, said the firing was
motivated by politics rather
than motivated by concern for
the public good.
U.S.
Rep.
Debbie
Dingell,
D-Mich.,
Ann
Arbor
Mayor
Christopher Taylor and multiple
Ann Arbor City Council members
gathered
on
Tuesday
for
a
Representative Roundtable hosted
by the University of Michigan
Central Student Government.
CSG President Ben Gerstein,
Public Policy junior, introduced
the panelists and led the panel
with
a
series
of
questions
regarding
student
involvement
in the November 2020 elections.
Approximately
25
people
participated in the interactive Q&A
session with the politicians in the
Michigan Union.
Dingell
touched
on
the
importance of voting and praised
the Big Ten Voting Competition
from 2018, reiterating the impact
that voting can make.
“I’ve just talked to most of you
about a lot of issues you care about,”
Dingell said. “Your vote makes
a difference. President Trump
won this state by a very narrow
margin of the popular vote. If more
students had voted … it might have
made a difference, and people need
to know your vote matters.”
In anticipation of the November
elections, panelists described what
they are doing to mobilize student
voters. Taylor discussed ways
college students can vote, including
absentee ballots and additional
voting locations to make voting
more convenient for students.
“Our goal is to also have
on-campus locations where we
can have staff members there to
provide in-person, absentee access
for student voters for weeks in
advance of the election,” Taylor
said. “Our goal is to enhance
the student vote this November,
just from the municipal side,
communicate absentee, in-person
absentee
…
make
sure
that
students know that that’s going to
be available on campus and then
increase throughput at precincts.”
Most cooks discard pepper
tops and stems as unusable
food
scraps.
For
campus
chefs
Russ
Palmer,
Tony
Picinotti and Frank Turchan,
however, these scraps had
hidden potential to become
hummus served at a buffet
dinner Tuesday night.
The
WasteLESS
event
featured
dishes
with
recycled
ingredients
and
a panel to inform roughly
40
attendees
on
food
waste
and
preventative
practices.
According
to
Claire
Prenevost,
Planet
Blue
Student
Leader
and
LSA senior, the event was a
joint collaboration between
MDining, Planet Blue Student
Leaders and the University of
Michigan Sustainable Food
Program.
“It’s really just a natural
pairing of people being able
to sit down and then gain
more in-depth information
from people that have more
experience in their career and
personal
lives,”
Prenevost
said. “Then (they will) be able
to take that information and,
as consumers, apply it in their
everyday lives.”
After the City of Ann Arbor
placed Police Chief Michael
Cox on administrative leave
earlier
this
month,
the
Independent
Community
Police Oversight Commission
hosted a community forum
to
discuss
Cox’s
leave.
Approximately 50 community
members and city leaders
attended
the
meeting
on
Tuesday night in Ann Arbor
City Hall.
Commission
Chair
Lisa
Jackson began the meeting
with a statement about the
situation, noting the lack
of public information. She
confirmed
Cox
was
not
placed on leave as a result
of any sexual harassment-
related claim. Jackson said
the
investigation
should
conclude
Thursday
and
the
ICPOC
will
hold
a
special committee meeting
sometime at the end of the
week to update the public
and allow for comments and
questions.
Many community members
commented on the damage
done to Cox’s public image by
being placed on leave.
Suzanne
Anglewicz,
research
attorney
for
the
Institute
for
Legislative
Action division of the National
Rifle Association, began her
seminar
by
acknowledging
opposition to the NRA on
college campuses: “Disagree
with us, but at least disagree
with us on the facts.”
On
Tuesday
night,
the
University’s chapter of College
Republicans hosted a seminar
in partnership with Anglewicz
to discuss the NRA, gun
control debate and the Second
Amendment.
NRA
University,
an
interactive
presentation
on
gun rights, was founded in
2008. Anglewicz said NRA
U’s mission is to educate
college youth on the gun
control debate and Second
Amendment,
as
well
as
clarify misinformation about
the NRA. About 45 students
gathered in the Michigan
League to hear Anglewicz’s
presentation.
The NRA currently has
nearly five million members.
Anglewicz
addressed
the
distinction
between
the
lobbying body of the NRA and
the rest of the NRA’s work
with education and safety
training. Anglewicz said the
NRA annually trains more
than one million civilians
about gun safety and has
more than 125,000 firearm
instructors nationwide.
“We are not the lobby
for gun manufacturers and
dealers,” Anglewicz said. “We
are a non-profit, civil rights
organization
that
serves
people.”
While
Anglewicz
highlighted
the
education
efforts by the NRA, political
lobbying by the NRA has been
at the forefront of national
news.
Students,
chefs talk
no-waste
lifestyle
CAMPUS LIFE
Municipal official forced out of position in 7-4 vote, bids farewell to colleagues
Residents
question
leave of
Chief Cox
ANN ARBOR
ANGELINA LITTLE
Daily Staff Reporter
See CHIEF, Page 3A
AYSE ELDES
Daily Staff Reporter
Panel, dinner brings
focus to environmentally
friendly eating habits
Ind. Community Police
Oversight Commission
fields AAPD concerns
EMMA RUBERG
Daily Staff Reporter
National Riffle Association hosts
seminar on fiream rights at ‘U’
NRA Univ.
looks at role
of guns, 2nd
Amendment
Central Student Government hosts
roundtable with local politicians
Debbie Dingell, Chris Taylor join City Council members for discussion
CALLIE TEITELBAUM
Daily Staff Reporter
See ROUNDTABLE, Page 3A
See ADMINISTRATOR, Page 3A
REMY FARKAS
Daily Staff Reporter
MADDIE FOX/Daily
Congresswoman Debbie Dingell answers questions from students at the Central Student Government Representative Roundtable at the Union Tuesday afternoon.
statement
See NRA, Page 3A
A2 Council fires City Administrator
Howard Lazarus without cause
MICHAEL BAGAZINSKI/Daily
City Administrator Howard Lazarus, right, speaks at the beginning of the City Council meeting Tuesday evening at City Hall.
See FOOD, Page 3A