Spring commencement is one of the
busiest times of the year in Ann Arbor
as large crowds visit town to celebrate
with the year’s graduating class. For
the past two years, commencement
has looked a little different: the
commencement was canceled in 2020
and was closed to guests in 2021.
This year, however, there will be two
commencement ceremonies, one for
the class of 2022 on April 30 and a
special “Comeback Ceremony” for the
class of 2020 on May 7.
Ann Arbor businesses typically rely
on spring commencement as a way
to drive in large amounts of traffic
before students leave and foot traffic
slows down. The cancellation of the
2020 commencement ceremony and
the pared-down 2021 commencement
ceremony to graduates has put a strain
on Ann Arbor businesses already
trying to stay afloat.
For businesses like Ashley’s Bar &
Grill on State Street, graduation leads
to an increase in turnout. Ashley’s
owner Jeff More said he expects a
steady increase as individual schools
and colleges within the University
of
Michigan
have
their
own
commencement ceremonies.
“It’s
not
just
the
Saturday
commencement,” More said. “There’s
different colleges. So they’re utilizing
Hill Auditorium for an awful lot for
different college commencements as
well. (Ashley’s Bar & Grill) being right
across from (Hill Auditorium) we see
so much (business) throughout the
week.”
Lauren Bloom, owner of Bløm
Meadworks, a local mead and cider
company located on Fourth Ave,
said her business does not typically
surge after commencement. Rather,
restaurants and other food or drink
related businesses in the city become
the main attraction as families celebrate
with a meal.
“We see kind of an overall general
increase in business, but it doesn’t end
up being this huge surge,” Bloom said.
“What we’ve found in the past is that the
real spike in business tends to mostly hit
restaurants in Ann Arbor because most
people are looking to go out with their
family, get a meal and sit down for a
while.”
Lisa Bee, co-founder of Sweetwaters
Coffee & Tea, which has seven
locations
throughout
Ann
Arbor,
said quick service businesses are
expecting demand to increase around
commencement for a quick bite to eat
or drink.
“It’s a mix of both (taking out and
dining) in and then if it’s a nice day, they
usually want to walk around … but if (it is
not a nice day), then they’ll come in and
sit down,” Bee said. “So we definitely see
a lot more of the seats filled. Especially if
it’s a nice day, then they’re sitting outside
and this year, we’re going to have the
street area closed off so the patio seating
will be a lot bigger.
During the COVID-19 pandemic,
the city of Ann Arbor expanded
permits for patio seating, the city closed
specific streets on the weekends during
the pandemic to allow for increased
outdoor seating. The city is continuing
the program this summer after citizens
spoke out in support of al fresco dining.
More said he plans to reopen Ashley’s
patio once the weather improves.
“During (the winter of 2021), we kept
our little bit of outdoor seating, like six
tables, open all last winter,” More said.
“And we had a lot of 50 degree days on
a Saturday and, you’d turn the heaters
on and every table would be full all day
long, even though we’re otherwise shut
down.”
While Bløm does not usually
receive large surges of business at
commencement,
Bloom
said
she
is overstaffing her restaurant for
the weekend to prepare for more
customers.
“We usually ask one or two extra
staff members to come on for the
weekend,” Bloom said. “That usually
tends to be a good balance of being
prepared and making sure that we can
see people quickly and serve people
quickly.”
LSA freshman Daniel Silva works at
Bert’s Cafe inside the Shapiro Library.
Silva said he has been asked to pick
up more shifts during the graduation
season.
This additional demand for shifts
is not solely a result of graduation.
Throughout the pandemic, businesses
have reported having a harder time
finding workers.
For businesses with fewer workers,
there is additional strain on workers.
Silva said this extra demand is even
more stressful for full-time students.
“I have the pressure of, ‘Oh, we
need a shift covered,’” Silva said. “It’s
just worse because you want to catch
up, do your work, study for that exam,
but also, you don’t want to let down
your coworkers that you get so close
with, and you become actual friends
with.”
Preparation for graduation goes
beyond simply adding more staff,
however. Bee said Sweetwaters is also
adding additional merchandise and
menu items to prepare for the influx
of customers.
“We’ll bring in more desserts, more
treat items, celebratory items,” Bee
said. “Students who are graduating
usually want to take something with
them. And because we’ve been in Ann
Arbor for such a long time, and there’s
multiple locations in Ann Arbor, they
usually want to take a little piece with
them whether it’s like a Sweetwaters
t-shirt, or something like that.”
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
News
2 — Wednesday, April 20, 2022
Local businesses prepare for first fully in-
person UMich commencement since 2019
PHOTO
MATTHEW SHANBOM
Daily Staff Reporter
SELENA SUN/Daily
A Michigan student organization performs in That Brown Show, a collection of Indian classical music and dance, at the Michigan Theater April 16.
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Restaurants, companies say they expect higher demands, will increase staffing in coming weeks
Downtown Ann Arbor District Library
installs free Narcan vending machine
RILEY HODDER
Daily Staff Reporter
Home of New Vision leads effort to support individuals with substance abuse disorders
A new vending machine now
stands outside the Ann Arbor
District Library that dispenses
free
Narcan,
the
brand-name
version of the overdose-reversing
drug naloxone, according to an
April 1 tweet from AADL Director
Eli
Neiburger.
The
vending
machine was installed by Home
of New Vision, an organization
devoted to supporting those with
substance abuse issues.
According to Rackham student
Derek Frasure, policy director
for Students for Sensible Drug
Policy (SSDP) at the University of
Michigan, the vending machine
supplies resources that could be
vital in saving someone’s life.
“(The
vending
machine)
is
something
that
can
mitigate
that tide of deaths, which has
currently outpaced car accidents
for common fatalities,” Frasure
said.
Lieutenant Mike Scherba of
the Ann Arbor Police Department
(AAPD) said that in 2021, the
AAPD received a total of 68 calls
recorded in their system as drug
overdoses in Ann Arbor, which
averages out to about one call per
week. While all AAPD officers
and supervisors are required to
carry naloxone, Scherba said the
vending machine has the potential
to create faster distribution of
the drug to those experiencing an
overdose.
“Provided
that
the
person
has the ability to administer
(naloxone) properly, I think the
potential, at least, is there for
faster administration,” Scherba
said.
Public Policy graduate student
Alyshia Dyer is a former law
enforcement
officer
for
the
Washtenaw
County
Sheriff’s
Office and a member of SSDP.
Dyer said she has responded to
many previous 911 calls involving
an overdose and expressed how
critical naloxone is in overdose
situations.
“The times that I’ve used
naloxone, it really felt like you were
saving someone’s life, because it
wasn’t looking good before that,”
Dyer said. “It showed me how
important it was to make naloxone
readily available.”
Dyer
also
said
quick
administration of naloxone was
integral to ensuring the recovery of
the person overdosing, and that by
making naloxone readily available,
the community was saving lives.
“I
have
done
research
on
opioid response in Michigan, and
basically, making naloxone widely
available is one of the best public
health initiatives that you can do
to save people’s lives,” Dyer said.
Though the vending machine
can
provide
quicker
access
to
naloxone,
Scherba
said
the primary concern with its
installment is that it could create
a false sense of security among
those
experiencing
substance
abuse.
“(People who are witnessing
an overdose) may not call for help
as soon as they could or would
have
otherwise,
which
could
potentially put the user at risk,”
Scherba said.
However,
Brianna
Dobbs,
Recovery
Opioid
Overdose
Team coordinator for Home of
New Vision and coordinator for
the vending machine project,
expressed
that
the
vending
machine will help beyond just
saving lives.
“Having (the vending machine)
in such a public place will raise
awareness, reduce barriers and
increase access to a life-saving
medication,” Dobbs said.
Dobbs added that Home of
New Vision is trying to decrease
the stigma around naloxone, as
it is not just to be given to those
experiencing
substance
abuse.
Dobbs
emphasized
naloxone
can also be used in cases when
prescribed
medication
is
inadvertently
misadministered.
She said every household should
have naloxone in their first aid kit.
“People can have an opioid
overdose because they took too
much of a prescription medication,
they read the bottle wrong or a
small child gets into someone’s
medication,” Dobbs said.
As for the future, Home of
New Vision hopes to expand
the vending machines to other
libraries in Washtenaw County.
Dobbs said they are trying to
expand these vending machines
to
the
areas
in
Washtenaw
County that experience the most
overdoses. The organization told
The Daily that their priority is
challenging the stigma around
drug overdoses, and there is still
more to do.
“I think there’s so much that
can be done,” Dobbs said. “I think
the starting point is to provide
empathy and passion and support
for people.”
Daily Staff Reporter Riley Hodder
can be reached at rehodder@umich.
edu.
ANN ARBOR
BUSINESS