ONE-HUNDRED-TWENTY-FOUR YEARS OF EDITORIAL FREEDOM Tuesday, December 3, 2013
Ann Arbor, Michigan
michigandaily.com
ADMINISTRATION
In wake of outcry, ‘U’ to rethink service plan Planned shared service center will be delayed until at least April 2014
ALLISON FARRAND/Daily
Business Prof. Scott Masten speaks at a meeting of the Senate Advisory Committee on University Affairs at the Fleming Administration Building Monday to discuss the University’s decision to suspend the Administrative Services Transformation.
Delay praised by faculty Shared service decision met with relief as SACUA braces for more talks By STEPHANIE SHENOUDA Daily Staff Reporter
The Senate Advisory Committee for University Affairs is praising the University’s recent decision to postpone the implementation of a Shared Services Center which was expected to save the University $5 million annually by consolidating
human-resources and finance employees, who are currently department specific to a central location. As the representative body for University faculty, SACUA has voiced its concern regarding the shared-services initiative to the administration at the last few Senate Assembly meetings. Many members expressed relief Monday that the administration has decided to delay Administrative Services Transformation. In a letter published in the University Record, University administrators announced that the moving of staff to the cen-
ter will be delayed past April to accommodate further discussion with faculty and staff. The letter noted that interviews for individuals who are expected to move to the center will continue in the meantime. University Provost Martha Pollack, the executive vice president for academic affairs, will also be establishing faculty-led committees to undertake the major issues facing the University, including faculty productivity, diversity and campus climate, and financial challenges with cost containment, according to the letter. In the letter, Pollack, E.
FACILITIES
By JENNIFER CALFAS Daily Staff Reporter
The University has plans to purchase a 16.7-acre property at 2500 South State St. previously owned by the Edwards Brothers Malloy printing for $12.8 million. Edwards Brothers, a 120-year-old company, has used the 185,000-square-foot facility as a manufacturing plant. The company is the fifth-largest book and journal manufacturer in the country and has more than $100 million in annual sales. The company plans to merge the State Street plant with its other Ann Arbor location, an 180,000-squarefoot plant on Jackson Road. Edwards Brothers announced the State Street plant’s closure in July. The property is located one mile from the University’s athletics facilities on South Campus and sits near a University commuter lot. University spokesman Rick Fitzgerald said the property is in a key location for the University, as it is surrounded by the Athletics Campus and other University buildings. “When strategic pieces
WEATHER TOMORROW
of property like this become available, it makes good sense for the University to pursue properties that would be in such strategic locations,” Fitzgerald said. Since the purchase has not yet been finalized, Fitzgerald said it is too early for him to disclose what the University might use the building for. The purchase must be approved by the University’s Board of Regents before it is finalized. Additionally, Edwards Brothers approved a right of first refusal from the Ann Arbor City Council, or the right for the city to be able to purchase the building before any other party. The city could purchase the property within a 60-day period of the agreement between the company and the University. The city would have to match the University’s offer on the property. While the company made this agreement with the city, Fitzgerald said Edwards Brothers also approached the University about purchasing the property. John Edwards, president and CEO of Edward Brothers, said in a statement that he is pleased with the deal. “It helps us protect jobs, stay here in Washtenaw County and be competitive in a very difficult industry,” Edwards said. Edwards’s grandfather built the State Street plant in See BID, Page 3
HI: 50 LO: 34
Daily Staff Reporter
After weeks of faculty outcry, a stack of letters from University departments and a petition signed by more than 1,000 faculty members, University administrators announced Monday they would delay the planned transition to a Shared Services Center. The Shared Services Center, a component of the Administrative Services Transformation initiative, was designed to consolidate some University departmental staff in a central service center, a move estimated to save the University about $5 million annually. In response to concerns regarding the project’s transparency and implications for University departments, the University announced
Royster Harper, vice president for student life, and Timothy Slottow, executive vice president and chief financial officer, wrote that “the passion and concern for the University’s future direction is palpable.” Though the mood of the meeting was light following this decision, most SACUA members were realistic about the fact that discussion will eventually continue. “I wouldn’t say we’re done with the (Administrative Services Transformation),” Business Prof. Scott Masten said. He added that he’s happy with See FACULTY, Page 3
CITY COUNCIL
WAT E R YO U D O I N G ?
Bid planned for 16.7-acre lot on S. State University offers $12.8M, but city can match bid to buy property
By SAM GRINGLAS
that all staff moves would be delayed until after April, the period originally slated for staffing transitions. University Provost Martha Pollack; E. Royster Harper, vice president for student life; and Timothy Slottow, executive vice president and chief financial officer, wrote in the letter the administration plans to immediately involve faculty in reevaluating the structure of the shared services program. By including faculty, the administrators wrote that they hope to create a shared services program that “is structured to meet the needs of our faculty and our students while achieving necessary cost savings.” The letter noted that the decision to delay AST’s implementation was made in consultation with University President Mary Sue Coleman. Under the plan, each school and college would work with their faculty to determine the best steps to proceed with AST. However, the University will go ahead with See SERVICE, Page 3
Crosswalk ordinance will remain unchanged After amendments pass, Hieftje vows to veto updated legislation By WILL GREENBERG Daily Staff Reporter
NICHOLAS WILLIAMS/Daily
University repair crews fix a broken 12-inch water main underneath Murfin Avenue on Monday. The water main broke late Sunday night, causing the street to flood. Crews closed Murfin Avenue all day to work on the main.
BUSINESS
On Main Street, shopping gives way to gourmet scene Area sees increase in restaurants, decrease in shops By WILL GREENBERG Daily Staff Reporter
While State Street has seen an influx of new businesses over the past few years, the changes to Ann Arbor’s Main Street have been more subtle. The street, known for its unique shopping and more upscale restaurants, is becoming increasingly foodcentric. Maura Thomson, execu-
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tive director of the Main Street Area Association, said the street transformed from a shop-heavy area in favor of an abundance of restaurants in the past five years. Dennis Serras, owner of Real Seafood Company since 1975 said he has watched Main Street’s decline in shopping attractions since the opening of Briarwood Mall in the 1973. Since then, the surrounding eateries have become more contemporary, adding fresh faces to older locations, Serras said. Serras is a co-founder of Main Street Ventures, which owns Gratzi, Palio, Chop House
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and La Dolce Vita on Main Street, and Carson’s American Bistro on Plymouth Road. The company also owns restaurants in Maryland, Ohio, West Virginia and Florida. “It’s a testimony to the success of the restaurants that have been here for a long time,” Thomson said. “Other restaurateurs see the success that restaurants are having in downtown Ann Arbor and they see that this community really demands quality food and does spend some of their extra earnSee SHOPPING, Page 3
INDEX
Vol. CXXIV, No. 32 ©2013 The Michigan Daily michigandaily.com
Community members came out in droves Monday night to support the current crosswalk ordinance and prevent its repeal, which was being considered before the Ann Arbor City Council. Thanks to a surprise veto promise by Mayor John Hieftje, they’ll get their wish. The original proposal to repeal the ordinance was altered after Councilmember Stephen Kunselman (D–Ward 3) requested that Ann Arbor instead adopt the wording of ordinance drafted by the Traverse City, Mich., city council. That vote passed 6-4, but immediately after its passing, the mayor promised to veto the proposal. “Changing the ordinance, I just don’t see a way how that can possibly help,” Hieftje said to the council during discussion before the vote. “I think the city is safer for pedestrians now than before; I think a good deal of progress has been made. Drivers are stopping for pedestrians at a higher rate now than they were a few years ago.” Traverse City’s simple ordinance requires drivers to stop and yield the right-of-way to pedestrians who are walking within a marked crosswalk where a traffic signal is not present. A repeal of the ordinance would have meant Ann Arbor would adopt See ORDINANCE, Page 3
NEWS............................ 2 OPINION.......................4 SPORTS......................... 5
ARTS............................7 SUDOKU........................ 2 CL ASSIFIEDS.................6