“THE FACE OF ANN ARBOR” — VOLUME 2, NUMBER 37 75¢

Inside
U-M coach Rich
1-X OUR CALENDAR
Rod in the 10 Spot Inside: U of M-based Prison Creative
Page 4-A Arts Project enters 21st year Page 3-A Inside
Yard sale to help
pay medical bills
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Page 7-A

School district MARQUEE On the

RAIL

to improve bid
process to aid
disadvantaged
District hopes to
attract new vendors
for local projects
By Lisa Allmendinger
A2 Journal
The Ann Arbor Public
Schools are looking for ways
to reach out to disadvantaged,
minority and women’s busi-
nesses when it comes to receiv-
ing bids for construction work
in the district.
“We are trying to get people
the opportunity to bid by let-
ting them know,” said Randy
Trent, executive director of
physical properties.
Recently, the district con-
ducted a survey and sent 218
to these “historically under-
utilized” companies that were
on file, but 64 were returned as
“unable to forward,” leaving
154 possible responses, accord-
ing to a compilation of the sur-
vey results.
The companies were asked
six questions and 43 companies
responded to the question, “Has
your company or organization
bid on any AAPS jobs in the
last two years?”
Nine said they had bid and 34
Sports
Gabriel Richard remains
said they had not bid. undefeated after 54-14 rout of
When asked how many Albion.
companies had worked on Ann Page 1-C
Arbor school district jobs in the
last two years as a contractor
or subcontractor, nine said yes,
while 35 said no.
Meanwhile, 37 companies ON THE WEB
responded to a questing asking
what the school district would
do to get a responding company
to submit a proposal. Trent
said he planned to look at the
responses more closely and
report back to the board.
At a cursory glance, he said
the most common response was
companies requested more time
to respond to proposals.
One of the ways the district Become a fan of A2 Journal on
lets businesses know about bid Facebook (419 fans) and follow
us on Twitter (2,134 followers).
requests is through posts on the
district’s website. Respondents Also, check out our blog, includ-
ing Lisa Allmendinger’s
were told they could submit an
e-mail address and they would Everyday Musings. Links pro-
vided on the A2 Journal home
be notified of any bids.
The board is looking for page.
ways to better inform and offer
opportunities to these busi- Weave the Web:
Make sure to click on
nesses.
“Hopefully, with more infor- www.heritage.com around
Photo by Lisa Allmendinger
the clock for the most
mation out there, more people
will bid,” said Irene Patalan, Matt Tucker, president of RecycleBank, Allen Kennedy, curbside manager for Recycle Ann Arbor, in-depth coverage of
and Tom McMurtrie, solid waste coordinator, pose with one of the new recycling cans in front of Washtenaw County. One of
chairwoman of the committee. one of four new recycling trucks in the city of Ann Arbor. See story on page 9-A.
our “Most Viewed” stories is
“U-M football: Can we just
enjoy this victory”

Kids see pollinators up close at park

park. Children were invited to come Check out our video:
Photo by Anna Kangas Program explains to with their families to explore the park ■ Medical marijuana chat
Adam Buny of
Ann Arbor exam-
children role of bees and learn about pollination, why bees
pollinate, and how it impacts humans.
■ Washtenaw has high
census participation
ines an array of
preserved bees
on U.S. crop industry For example, $14.6 billion worth of crops
are affected by pollination yearly in the
■ Fan Day at the Big
House
during “Kids See United States.
Pollinators Up By Anna Kangas “We want to expose (the children) to
Close” Aug. 28 at Special Writer the habitat of pollinators and how to
Buhr Park in Ann A sum as large as $14.6 billion typi- attract them to their own backyards,”
Arbor. Click on the “jobs” tab on
cally doesn’t ring in one’s mind anything said Jeannine Palms, one of the initial the home page of our Web
having to do insects. volunteers with the Wet Meadows Project site or go directly to http://
But the children who were at Buhr and Ann Arbor pre-school teacher by jobs.heritage.com.
Park in Ann Arbor Aug. 28 could tell you trade. “The kids understand the con-
that honeybees are very much involved nections between (relationships in the
in this number, particularly when it
comes to American agriculture.
environment).”
Annie Kirk, a researcher from
INDEX
The Buhr Park Children’s Wet the Berry Crops Entomology Lab at Second Front Page 4-A
Meadow project held its third annual
“Kids See Pollinators Up Close” at the PLEASE SEE POLLINATORS/2-A Editorial Page 6-A
Calendar Page 2-B

Jewish community gets early start on New Year A2Live

By Art Aisner
Special Writer
In Judaism, the beginning
of the New Year is a moving
target, usually never on the
same day because of a schedule
dictated by the lunar calendar.
So it’s not uncommon to
celebrate Rosh Hashanah,
which is Hebrew for Jewish
New Year, anywhere from early
September to late October, from
year to year.
With the High Holiday fall-
ing Sept. 9 this year, members
Like what you see? For subscriptions to the A2 Journal, call 877-837-1118
of Washtenaw County’s Jewish
community had to celebrate
early. And many broke away
from last-minute back-to-school
preparation and braved the
summer heat to participate in
the annual Apples and Honey
event at the Jewish Community
Center of Greater Ann Arbor
last week.
The event is named for the
longstanding Jewish tradition
of combining apples and honey
to mark the sweet beginnings
of a new year, organizers said.
In Ann Arbor, it also signi-
fies the kick-off of the JCC’s
programming year and busy
schedule of family-oriented
events.
“No matter what time of
year the holidays are, it’s
always a good time to open
your heart and start fresh. And
that’s what Rosh Hashanah pro-
vides,” said Elaine Margolis,
a past president of the JCC’s
board of directors.
Organizers said roughly
500 residents from Ann Arbor
and surrounding communi-
ties joined the celebration.
Children played on large, inflat-
able play sets, participated in
arts and crafts, and snacked on
pizza and Sno-cones.
Each was greeted by a long
table full of plates with freshly
sliced apples and honey pro-
vided by Hiller’s Market in Ann
Arbor.
Representatives from
Stoneyfield Farms handed out
free yogurt, and staff from the
Douglas J. Aveda Salon in Ann
Obituaries
Page 13-A
Page 12-A
Arbor provided face painting
for children and free chair mas-
sages for the adults.
Many appreciated the oppor-
tunity to sit down amid the fun
and partake as a respite from
the 90-degree heat.
“We come every year because
it’s a big party with a lot of fun
activities for everyone,” said
Orna Angus of Dexter. “And
just to be among other Jewish
people in a festive environment
PLEASE SEE START/11-A Printed News Tip
on Hotline:
recycled 877-995-NEWS
(6397)
paper

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