The Relay For Life of Dearborn Kick-off Celebration kicks off Wednesday, Feb. 4., at the Ford Community and Performing Arts Center, Studio A.

Registration begins at 6:00 p.m. and the program will run from 6:30-7:30 p.m. 

Whether you want to learn more about enrolling in Cancer Prevention or are a returning team or are thinking about starting a team, organizers say you will want to be a part of this award-winning event.

Dinner will be provided by Salsarita’s.

Please RSVP by contacting Staff Partner, Anna Agustin, at 248.663.3411 or annalisa.agustin@cancer.org

In addition, the American Cancer Society is bringing the opportunity for Dearborn to be part of an historic research effort, Cancer Prevention Study-3, to the Relay for Life of Dearborn.

Enrollment will take place on May 2, 2009 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Relay For Life event.

To learn more about CPS-3, Debbie Malyn, Cancer Prevention Study-3 Chair, Relay For Life of Dearborn at 313.683.2573 or visit www.relayforlife.org/dearbornmi or www.cancer.org/cps3

The driver of a gasoline tanker that overturned near Telegraph and Wilson in Dearborn appears to have been trying to avoid another motorist who lost control after hitting a patch of ice in the right lane of northbound traffic, Dearborn police said Saturday.

Police tell DeepSaidWhat.com that they are trying to piece together the exact cause of the crash and are asking for anyone that may have witnessed the crash to call the department’s Accident Investigation Bureau at 313-943-2245.  No one was seriously injured in the crash.

The gasoline tanker was hauling about 10,000 gallons of fuel when it overturned about 9:30 p.m. Friday. Police said between 2,500 and 3,000 gallons spilled out of the hauler and into the road.  Hazmat crews were able to get the spill cleaned up, including vacuuming fuel that spilled into nearby sewers.  The northbound lanes were reopened about 2 p.m., police said.

The driver of the car that apparently trigged the chain of events spun out of control after hitting a patch of ice in the roadway that police believe was caused from a recent water main break near Wilson and Telegraph and not the water main break near Einstein Brothers Bagels.

Dearborn police Friday night shut down northbound Telegraph Road at Cherry Hill after a gasoline tanker rolled over about 9:00 p.m. Roads were not expected to reopen until early Saturday so crews could clean up spilled fuel.

A resident quoted on (click wxyz for video) WXYZ TV said it appeared the tanker lost control after hitting a patch of ice on Telegraph where a broken water main still needs to be repaired. Those of us who frequent Einstein Brothers Bagels know that the right lane of northbound Telegraph has been filled with ice buildup for several weeks now, making driving a bit dicey in that area during peak travel times.

It wasn’t yet clear if there were any injuries or what caused the rollover but Dearborn police did evacuate nearby shops because the tanker was leaking fuel onto Telegraph. Police also closed southbound Telegraph at Ford Road. Fumes from the gasoline tanker filled the night air on the patch of Telegraph between Cherry Hill and Ford Road even late Friday night.

The City of Dearborn is suspending the parking rules for Public Service Days until the week of April 6-10.

That means residents will not be required to remove their parked vehicles from the street on their designated Public Service Days until the week of April 6-10.

The parking rules are being suspended because of the season’s heavy snowfall, which has made it difficult for residents to find alternative places to park on their Public Service Days.  For instance, residents who usually park in nearby alleys may not be able to do so because snow has piled up in those alleys.

The parking rules are suspended for Public Service Days that occur the week of Feb. 2-6, the week of Feb. 16-20, the week of March 2-6 and the week of March 16-20. 

Parking enforcement will begin again the week of April 6-10.

Residents are still encouraged to remove their parked vehicles from the street if possible on those weeks. Removing parked vehicles allows city crews to perform services, such as supplemental snow plowing, more efficiently, because crews can reach curb to curb.

We’ve received quite a few notes from readers that live in the Dearborn Hills area who, like us, are upset about the possible removal of the traffic signal at the intersection of Fordson and Telegraph. Those same people have contacted the Taylor office of the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT), the office that is conducting the actual study on whether to keep the traffic signal or remove it. So we thought we might provide an update on the study now underway.

The study on whether to keep the signal was triggered by the state office of the Federal Highway Administration, whose ultimate role is to keep our roads safe. MDOT is working with the federal agency to deliver on that objective by studying traffic flow at this intersection.

Dearborn Hills residents want the traffic signal at Fordson and Telegraph to remain.

As MDOT describes it, any time a traffic signal (or stop sign) is installed it actually increases traffic accidents. Eliminate the signal and that section of roadway would see fewer rear end and side swipe accidents, according to MDOT.

While it sounds counterintuitive, MDOT says data shows that any time a motorist has to stop there is a high risk of vehicle “conflict.”

The city of Livonia, working with the Traffic Improvement Association (TIA), recently removed some 100 stop signs and traffic signals in its city as a way to reduce traffic accident and improve vehicle flow. The TIA has approached Dearborn, too, hoping to sell its services here.

The signal at Fordson was switched to a flashing signal on Dec. 5 and will continue through March 5, totaling 90 days in all. After that MDOT will finalize its study, working with Dearborn Police, and submit its findings to the Federal Highway Administration who will then make the determination on whether to remove the signal.

“It is not a foregone conclusion it will be removed,” said MDOT’s Michael Budai who is conducting the study. “We are working with the City of Dearborn, Dearborn Police and a very active neighborhood association. We are carefully studying the impact the flashing signal is having on traffic flow for that stretch of road.”

Dearborn Police have expressed concern to MDOT that the flashing signal has now caused vehicles to congest in the turnaround lane trying to head north on Telegraph from Rockford Street each morning and evening during peak business times. That isn’t safe.

Even so, the highway administration has a set of eight “signal rules” in its Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) handbook that it uses to determine whether to install or keep an existing traffic signal. Of course, the rules aren’t ironclad as city government, local police departments and neighborhood associations can have huge influences on placement of a signal should an intersection fail to meet the any of the eight signal rules.

One requirement in the MUTCD is that a traffic signal needs to have a vehicle flow of 400 vehicles per hour. Clearly, the number of vehicles exiting Fordson to the northbound lanes of Telegraph has never in its more than two decades in existence approached that level.

While people do cross at this interaction, it is not and was not designed as a crossing area, MDOT officials say. According to the MUTCD, to have a proper traffic walk signal installed for pedestrians there would require 150 crossings per hour. 

As much as we would want to have the traffic signal remain in operation, when you step back and look at the facts from MDOT, it appears the only way the light might stay is through a request or resolution by Dearborn city leaders. This is likely how the light was installed at this intersection more than 20 years ago – through city intervention on behalf of residents – as the intersection has likely never met the minimum traffic requirements set by the Federal Highway Administration in the first place.

“Everyone assumes it is going out but we are going to continue to evaluate it for the next 60 days,” Budai said. “It is by no means a foregone conclusion.”

Concerned residents can contact Mike Budai at MDOT at 313-375-2400 to make clear why the traffic signal should remain. Callers should be prepared to explain why the signal should remain in operation.

The Dearborn Public Schools System is overstaffed, has more administrator positions than it needs and pays more per mile to bus students than similarly sized schools in Michigan, according to the results of a four-month benchmarking study released Tuesday by the school district. 

The study, however, also points out that across most cost categories, Dearborn’s costs as a percentage of expenditures are less than the overall average for other similarly sized districts used in the study. 

(For full copy of study click here:  dearborn-benchmarking-study)

 

Dearborn Schools Benchmarking Study

While the findings in the report may be uncomfortable for some to read, Whiston deserves credit for requesting it as a way to cut costs and improve efficiencies in our school district, which is facing a $10.5 million deficit for the 2009-10 school year. 

The idea of having a third party come into the district for four months and study key areas of the Dearborn School District will help our school administrators more quickly identify the district’s successes along with the areas that need work and determine ways to improve them. School officials tell DeepSaidWhat.com that the next step for the district will be to examine what can be done to improve the areas identified in the report or determine if the reported costs are due to other factors not captured in the study. There were some anomalies in the raw data and the district says that could be attributed to how the numbers were reported

“This is only phase one in the process,” Whiston said. “The next phase will be to find out why the numbers look the way they do and, if needed, how can the district make improvements. The report has provided us with good information that will allow the district to make the types of changes needed to cut costs, improve efficiencies and implement a better reporting system.”

The study cost the district about $40,000, an amount some may question. However, when you consider the potential hundreds of thousands the district can save by implementing some of the recommendations, then long term it would be money well spent.

The benchmarking study, which covered the 2005/06 and 2006/07 school years, identified four areas for the district to consider to reduce costs and increase efficiencies. The areas included District Cost Metrics, Staffing Levels, Administrator and Professional Staffing Levels and Operational Metrics — Facilities & Transportation.

Plante Moran gathered information from eight districts, including: Farmingtion, Wayne-Westland, Rochester, Chippewa Valley, Walled Lake Consolidated Schools, Flint City School District, Ann Arbor Public Schools and Plymouth Canton Community Schools. It should be noted that of the districts mentioned above, Dearborn has the most students, more than 18,000. The only other districts that were close are Rochester (14,700 students) and Walled Lake (15,700).

The overall observations from the study show that for staffing levels, Dearborn is “higher than the average of the eight districts that participated in the survey.” The same was true for the Administrator and Professional Staffing Levels.

On the Transportation, the study revealed that Dearborn cost per mile for regular education was higher than similarly sized Oakland County districts. Dearborn paid $6.13 per mile in the 2006/07 year compared to $5.41 for comparable districts and its cost per rider was $1,033 compared to $675 for other districts.  

Those high figures are likely a direct result of Dearborn’s low bus ridership levels, which shouldn’t come as a surprise as the Dearborn district was set up in the beginning as a walk-to-school district. There were few, if any buses, in the district in the 1980s.  Today, just 17 percent of Dearborn’s regular education students are bused, which is low compared to Oakland County, which ranged from a minimum of 46 percent up to 80 percent in 2006/07, according to the report. But, again, Dearborn has always prided itself on having neighborhood schools, something this report doesn’t capture.

Dearborn’s Facilities costs (including custodial and maintenance) also were higher than average. While Dearborn’s electricity costs were comparable to other participating districts, Dearborn’s natural gas costs were much higher on both a per student basis (about $140 for Dearborn vs. $65 for other districts) and a square footage basis ($0.80 cents for Dearborn vs. $0.39 cents for other districts). 

The report also indicated that Dearborn’s number of full-time custodial and maintenance positions is higher than the overall median number reported by other districts. 

Supt. Whiston made it clear from the beginning that the study is by no means a way for the district to begin privatizing services. Instead, he said the study will be used to further investigate how the district can save money and resources.

The recommendations for the District to consider to reduce costs and increase efficiencies include: 

District Cost Metrics: The study recommended the district investigate ways to reduce its natural gas costs, which were higher than similarly sized Oakland County districts.

Staffing Levels (compared to similarly sized Michigan districts):  The study recommended the district perform a detailed organizational assessment of staffing requirements in areas with potential for improvement, including non-classroom teachers, secretarial/clerical staff at the buildings.

Administrator and Professional Staffing Levels (compared to national benchmarks): The study recommended the district perform a detailed organizational assessment of staffing requirements in areas with potential for improvement, such as Central Office, Special Education and Technology.

Operational Metrics — Facilities & Transportation:On the facility side, the study recommended the district consider conducting an operational/organizational study to find ways to increase efficiencies and reduce costs. While on the transportation side, the study recommended an operational analysis of transportation to determine cost-savings that might be achieved using either smaller, more fuel-efficient buses or eliminating some routes altogether.

Generating this report was a good first step for Dearborn. But now comes the hard part, trying to implement the recommendations outlined in it.

After nearly six years of serving fresh Japanese food at their O’Sushi restaurant in Canton, Sophia Kang and her husband, Shawn, thought it was time to branch out and open a second restaurant. They chose Dearborn.

“We love Dearborn and we love Ford Motor Company,” said Shawn Kang. “We have been looking at coming here for a long time.”

Dearborn's new O'Sushi restaurant serves fresh food at attractive prices.

The couple’s Dearborn restaurant, 22431 Michigan Ave., opened Jan. 5 in the building owned by Norm Newman near Michigan and Military, just across the street from Sacred Heart Church.

With an American flag and colorful triangle banners flying outside the building along with two large window banners that proudly tell passersby that O’Sushi “Loves Dearborn” and “We love Ford Motor”, the restaurant stands out.  Those looking to drink saki with their food will have to wait a bit longer as the family works to obtain a liquor license.

Inside, the decor is authentic Japanese and nicely decorated. The Dearborn location is much more modern and fresh inside than the Korean couple’s Canton restaurant. But both locations serve excellent fresh food at an attractive price with all the hot green tea you can drink for free.

The most popular entrees — which include miso soup, house salad and rice — are the Bibimbab (beef and vegetables over rice) for $9.99, Shrimp Tempura (deep fried battered shrimp and vegetables) $15.99 and Salmon Teriyaki (grilled salmon with teriyaki sauce) $16.99.  

Of course, as the name on the building states, there are plenty of fresh sushi offerings and daily lunch specials, too. Regular sushi rolls are made fresh while you wait and are the least expensive on Michigan Avenue compared to the recently-opened Kabuki at Michigan and Howard and even Westborn Market. A six piece Spicy California roll costs $4.45 while a Spicy Tuna Roll Avocado costs just $4.75.  The restaurant also serves an assortment of fresh Nigiri sushi and sashimi pieces over rice.

The host/servers (Irene, Tiffany, Aaron and Rocky) are a friendly group who know the menu and overall do a nice job making guests feel welcome.

O’Sushi is open seven days a week. Hours are Mon.-Thursday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Friday 11 a.m. – 10:30 p.m.; Saturday noon – 10:30 p.m. and Sunday 1 p.m. – 9 p.m.  For more information call the restaurant at 313-562-4166.

By now, many of us have either read in the Dearborn Press & Guide, Dearborn Times Herald or the Detroit News about the City of Dearborn’s lawsuit against developer Burton-Katzman.

Dearborn filed the suit last Friday in Wayne County against the Bingham Farms, Michigan, company for failing to live up to a contract it signed with the city in 2003 to build a new hotel, complete a 48-unit residential condo project and for failing to inform city officials that the very company the city had a signed contract with for the actual development was being dissolved.

Click below for a copy of the lawsuit:

city-of-dearborn-vs-burton-katzman-development-company-inc

In all, Dearborn city leaders are asking a Wayne County Circuit judge to order developer Burton-Katzman to complete its projects and pay the city some $349,000 in unpaid taxes and water bills, along with penalties, as well as damages of $16.4 million to cover the city’s costs for two parking decks.

“The lawsuit was filed only after more than 18 months of pro-active discussions with Burton-Katzman to find suitable alternatives that were reasonable given the changing economic climate,” said Dearborn Mayor John B. O’Reilly, Jr. “But it became apparent a lawsuit was our only avenue. That has become even more clear after we discovered that the parties weren’t honest with us.”

The lawsuit really shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone considering how long this project has taken to get to where it is today. As a general rule, cities don’t typically like to be in court, but Dearborn officials really didn’t have any remaining options. The 20-page lawsuit, along with a packet of exhibits, including letters exchanged between the two parties, provides some interesting details.

The actual contract signed between Dearborn and Burton-Katzman clearly states that construction on the property between the two parking decks for the hotel was to occur not later than 60 days after “substantial completion” of the retail components, according to the lawsuit. The grand opening of the West Village Commons retail section occurred in June 2006. So Burton-Katzman, the city states, was in default.

Dearborn also is suing Burton-Katzman for failing to inform city leaders that the company the city had entered into a contract agreement for the development was being dissolved even while it tried to renegotiate elements of the contract with Dearborn.

“This misleading information constitutes silent fraud,” the city of Dearborn states in the lawsuit.

In fact, on March 28, 2008, the same date Burton-Katzman filed papers with the state to dissolve its operations, both Peter Burton, president of Burton-Katzman, and Charles DiMaggio, vice president of project management for Burton-Katzman, attended a breakfast meeting with city officials at the Dearborn Inn and neither mentioned what was going to take place, the suit alleges. In as many as five subsequent meetings between Burton-Katzman officials and city leaders, the “dissolution of Burton-Katzman remained concealed,” the suit states.

Whether any circuit judge will order Burton-Katzman to construct a hotel during these tough economic times or finish building the remaining 12 condo units of a promised 48 condo project is anyone’s guess. However, the contract between the city and Burton-Katzman also states that “economic conditions are not recognized as a “Permitted Delay” or an “Unavoidable Delay” that would allow construction to be postponed.”

A judge might order the developer to reimburse the city for lost taxes on the estimated value of the buildings that were never constructed and maybe even the $16.4 million the city paid to build the two parking decks.

In letters to Dearborn city officials, Burton-Katzman did cite economic conditions as among the reasons it could not live up to its contact obligations. Burton-Katzman even tried to sell the parcel of land “without the city’s consent” for a hotel that “would not have met projections and obligations under the Development Agreement,” the lawsuit states.

In one letter, Charles DiMaggio, senior vice president of project management for Burton-Katzman, blames the city for his company’s failure to finish the project.

“ . . . the West Village Commons project experienced nearly 2 years of delay as the City initially chose to work with another development company,” DiMaggio writes in a letter to City Attorney Debra Walling dated July 31, 2007. “Had the City initially selected Burton-Katzman, the time for construction on Parcel C (the land between the two parking decks) would have occurred two years earlier,  that is March 2004 in lieu of March 2006. Since economic conditions in March 2004 were far superior to those encountered today (July 2007), it is reasonable to anticipate the project may have now been completed.

“Second, it will be recalled Burton-Katzman added second floor office space to the West Village Commons project at the urging of the City. Today (July 2007) not a single square foot (37,000 feet in all) has been leased, and as a result the project’s financial drain on Burton-Katzman can be said to rival that of the parking decks on the City.”

In that same July 31, 2007 letter, DiMaggio lists the work Burton-Katzman was doing to get the vacant land between the parking decks developed, none of which materialized. The list of ideas from Burton-Katzman in the letter include:

• “Numerous meetings and discussions have been held with the Fourmidable Group and Hakim Fakhoury. It was understood from the City the group may have a development proposal it wished to pursue on Parcel C (the land between the two parking decks).  Despite our meetings and discussions no proposal has been made to Burton-Katzman or to our knowledge the City, and it would appear any interest this group may have had, has waned . . .” 
• “Options for senior housing have been and continue to be explored. We have presented the site to Sunrise Development . . . Sunrise has indicated independent senior living would not be considered for this site, but assisted living is possible . . . We have also partnered with a development entity from St. Louis, HPD Cambridge, Inc., the purpose of which is to develop moderate sized, 50-60 unit, urban senior projects (www.urbansenior.com) . . .”
• “A third area of residential exploration may be student housing related to University of Michigan-Dearborn . . .” 
• “The property is being presented to a national hotel chain looking for an opportunity to enter the Dearborn market. . .” 

Dearborn Council President Pro-Tem Nancy Hubbard had this to say about the situation the city is faced with: “I’m surprised that they would show bad faith after the City had tried so hard to be patient and find a solution that was best for everyone.”

The Dearborn Public School district has produced a 15 minute video that provides general information about the district budget and outlines the projected $10.5 million budget deficit for the 2009-10 school year.

The video, featuring Supt. Brian Whiston and Business Services Director Bob Cipriano, can be viewed directly by visiting the district website: www.dearbornschools.org and clicking on the “D-Tube” screen located on the front page. The program will also run on the district’s cable channel on the following dates and times:

Wednesday      January 21                    8:30 am

Thursday          January 22                    1:00 pm

Saturday           January 24                    1:00 pm

Sunday             January 25                    1:00 pm

Throughout the months of January and February Whiston, Cipriano and other district administrators will be visiting with staff members at each school to deliver the budget presentation in person, answer any questions, and listening to cost saving suggestions.

Parent groups or community organizations interested in scheduling a live presentation or wishing to provide input can contact the Superintendent’s Office at 827-3020.

This is the eighth straight year that the district is looking to make budget reductions. District administrators have been discussing a budget plan for the 2009-10 school year since late November and are scheduled to bring a balance budget plan to the Board of Education by the end of February.

The Board will have time to review and discuss the plan before making any final decisions. State law requires the Board of Education to have a balanced budget for the 2009-10 school year in place by June 30, 2009.