Video: DTCDC Director speaks after HRC recommends name change for Ypsitucky event

Erik Dotzauer, Executive Director Depot Town Community Development Corporation, talks with reporters after the Ypsilanti Human Relations Commission meeting. The HRC had earlier passed a resolution suggesting the City Council meet with the DTCDC to change the name of the Ypsitucky Jamboree.

View letter to HRC from DTCDC from May 20, 2009.

Video: Watch complete Ypsilanti Human Relations Committee Ypsitucky meeting

The Human Relations Committee met on Monday to hear both sides of the continuing debate over the use of the word Ypsitucky to promote a Labor Day music festival sponsored by the Depot Town Community Development Corporation.

Officials from the DTCDC told the commission it was too late to change the name, they were already promoting the event.

The commission decided to schedule another meeting as soon as possible to continue the discussion.

Video: Commission meets on Ypsitucky name for music festival, decides on nothing

The Human Relations Committee met this evening to hear both sides of the continuing debate over the use of the word Ypsitucky to promote a Labor Day music festival sponsored by the Depot Town Community Development Corporation. The commission decided to schedule another meeting as soon as possible to continue the discussion.

Officials from the DTCDC told the commission it was too late to change the name, they were already promoting the event.

HRC Chair Cliff Larkins talks after the meeting how the issue came before the commission.

Correction: Mr. Larkins name is misspelled in the title of the video. The error is ours and we apologize to Mr. Larkins for misspelling his name.

Video: Freighthouse receives $500,000 grant

Ypsilanti will restore historic railroad freighthouse for community use

Governor Jennifer M. Granholm today announced during a ceremonial check presentation that a historic railroad freighthouse in Ypsilanti will soon see new life as a community center, farmers market, café and historic education center.

The city of Ypsilanti will restore the historic Ypsilanti Freighthouse, one of 22 transportation enhancement (TE) projects recently announced to benefit Michigan communities, with $500,000 in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (Recovery Act) funds. U.S. Congressman John Dingell also participated in the check presentation.

The 6,500-foot facility is listed on the Michigan State Register of Historic Sites and is located in Depot Town within the city’s local historic district.  The city hopes to reopen the freighthouse as a community facility that would promote cultural tourism and serve as a reminder of the history of railroad activity and early commerce in the area.  Owned by the city, it is operated under the terms of a management contract by the Friends of the Ypsilanti Freighthouse, a 501C (3) organization.  To repurpose the 1878 building, the city will make major structural improvements to the foundation, floor, walls, pilasters, roof and interior mechanical systems (plumbing, electrical, HVAC).  These items, outlined in a conditional assessment report, partially funded by a state historic preservation office grant and completed in July 2006, are required to re-open the facility to public use.  The work will begin this fall.

“This project is going to be a tremendous asset to Ypsilanti residents,” said Governor Granholm.  “All across Michigan, projects funded by the Recovery Act will bolster efforts by groups like Friends of the Freighthouse to make positive improvements to their communities.  We look forward to the transformation of this transportation icon of the past into a much-needed resource for the community.”

“This announcement is a real victory for the city of Ypsilanti, the people of Washtenaw County and the state of Michigan,” said Congressman Dingell.  “With these funds, we will be able to preserve a piece of our history, not as a relic or monument, but as a needed civic facility and a true source of pride for Depot Town.  I am so pleased that our freighthouse will once again serve the people of Ypsilanti and Depot Town, and I applaud the governor and the Michigan Department of Transportation for this wise decision to restore a terrific piece of our past and create a new bright spot for our future.”

Ypsilanti has been mentioned as a proposed stop for the Ann Arbor to Detroit commuter demonstration project led by the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments (SEMCOG). The demonstration line would utilize existing tracks with stops at Metro Airport, Detroit, Ann Arbor, Ypsilanti, and Dearborn.

Under federal law, 10 percent of federal surface transportation funds are set aside for TE projects.  The TE funds cannot be used to build or repair roads.  Administered by the Michigan Department of Transportation, TE grants enable communities to invest in landscapes, streetscapes, bike path development and historic preservation.  These grants provide a maximum of 80 percent of the money required for each project, with the remainder coming from state and local government and the private sector.  Local communities benefit from Recovery Act funding, because it is 100 percent federal, with no local match required.  The Recovery Act requires that every state spend three percent of its allocated funding on enhancement projects.

Source: Office of Jennifer Granholm, Governor

Washtenaw Community College votes to reject offer to buy Country Club

In a unanimous vote by the Board of Trustees of the Washtenaw Community College, the board has decided to reject the offer to purchase the Washtenaw Country Club.

While several of the board members wanted to purchase the property saying that it was a good deal, they said the perception was it was a bailout of the country club.

Vice-president Pamela Horiszny, who in the past was a vocal supporter for the purchase said, “In these tough economic times, this purchase does not fit with the mission of the college.”

The board had been offered the 122 acre property for assuming the $1.9 million existing debt and a pledge to continue to operate the club for a minimum of 5 years.

Trustees said part of the agreement required the College to preserve the green space and it would have been a better offer had the College had the option to build on the property in the future.

Trustees thanked the board of the Country Club for the generous offer.

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