If the public turnout Wednesday night at a council forum is any indicator of voter interest in Dearborn’s city council race, election night could favor incumbents.

The forum, hosted at Bryant Middle School by Dearborn Council of the Parent Teacher Student Association (PTSA), drew about 16 people, counting program moderator Thomas Trimble, the PTSA’s legislative chair, and this writer, who arrived with the program already in progress.

Eleven of the 14 people running for the seven open seats on Dearborn City Council were in attendance. Mr. Trimble said Dearborn Council President Thomas Tafelski was unable to attend because of a work commitment and candidate George Hart left after complaining of not feeling well. Mr. Trimble said candidate Patrick Kiernan did not respond to the PTSA’s forum invite.

The event was not videotaped so there will be no future broadcast. Mr. Trimble said the PTSA will consider taping future forums for broadcast.

In other election news, the Dearborn Democratic Club and the Arab American Political Action Committee (AAPAC) recently released their endorsements for mayor, city council and school board.

The Dearborn Democratic Club endorsed eight candidates (even thought there are just seven seats) for city council; four incumbents and four non-incumbents. Jane Ahern, the club’s president, said eight were chosen to “highlight the fact that equal parts incumbency is as valued as equal parts new candidates.”

The Dearborn Democratic Club endorsed:

Dearborn Mayor

Jack B. O’Reilly Jr.

Dearborn City Clerk

Kathleen Buda (running unopposed)

Dearborn City Council

Bob Abraham

George Darany

Suzanne Sareini

Mark Shooshanian

David Bazzy

Sharon Dulmage

George Hart

Brian O’Donnell

Dearborn School Board

Pam Adams

Hussein Berry

The AAPAC endorsed:

Dearborn Mayor

John O’Reilly

Dearborn City Council

Robert Abraham

David Bazzy

George Darany

Brian O’Donnell

Suzanne Sareini

Ali Sayed

Thomas Tafelski

Dearborn School Board

Hussein Berry

Juat a friendly reminder that today the Dearborn Council of the Parent Teacher Student Association (PTSA) is hosting a city council candidate from 7-8:30 p.m. at Bryant Middle School, 460 N. Vernon.

This is a good opportunity for residents to hear from the 14 people running for Dearborn City Council.

Separately, the Dearborn Democratic Club’s guest speaker this month will be Jocelyn Benson, who officially declared her candidacy to run for Michigan Secretary of State.

The event will take place Wednesday, Oct. 28 at the UAW Local 245, 1226 Monroe Street in Dearborn. Doors open at 6:45 p.m, and the event begins at 7:00 p.m., says Jane Ahern, president of the Dearborn Democratic Club.

For more information about Benson, you can visit: www.votebenson.com

The Dearborn Democratic Club’s guest speaker this month will be Jocelyn Benson, who officially declared her candidacy as of last week to run for Michigan Secretary of State.

The event will take place Wednesday, Oct. 28 at the UAW Local 245, 1226 Monroe Street in Dearborn. Doors open at 6:45 p.m, and the event begins at 7:00 p.m., says Jane Ahern, president of the Dearborn Democratic Club.

For more information about Benson, you can visit: www.votebenson.com

In a letter to parents on the district’s website, Dearborn School Supt. Brian J. Whiston said Monday afternoon that a student at Edsel Ford High School has a confirmed case of the H1N1 flu. It is the first known case in the district.

Below is the letter from Supt. Whiston:

The H1N1 flu has received a lot of attention and therefore the district felt it was important to tell the community about the first confirmed case in the district. However, because health officials are less worried about the severity of this flu and are unable to predict how widespread it will become, the district will not be sending home a letter each time they receive notice of a confirmed case. If further reports indicate that the H1N1 flu would impact the operation of school, then the district will provide relevant information to the community.

 The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) is not recommending school closure in the event of a single case or even mild outbreaks of the H1N1 flu. School closures will only be considered if a large number of students or staff members are absent. District administration will inform parents in the event of a school closure.

If a school or schools need to be closed for any reason, the district reminds parents to please plan ahead and have a family discussion to decide who would care for their child if his/her school were closed. Remember if school is closed, students should not gather at another location, but rather stay home to avoid continued spread of flu outside of school.

Earlier in the year the district sent home a “Frequently Asked Questions” document to help answer questions and provide accurate information about the H1N1 flu. Parents and community members can access that information on the district’s website, www.dearbornschools.org. There are many actions everyone can do to keep schools open and functioning in a normal manner this school year and the District is asking for parents help.

 — Teach your children how to reduce the risk of getting and spreading flu viruses by:

● Washing hands often. Wash with soap and hot water for at least 20 seconds.

● Using hand sanitizer. Gels and rubs with at least 60% alcohol are effective.

● Coughing or sneezing into their sleeve or elbow – not their hands!

 — If you suspect your child is getting or has the flu, it is important s/he does not attend school or go anywhere else. If your child is sick, keep him/her home for at least 24 hours after being free of fever, without fever reducing medication.

 — Please remember that you must notify the school when your child will be absent. If you are keeping your child home due to flu or flu-like symptoms, please share that information with the school when reporting the absence.

Please know that the district will make decisions based on the recommendations of city, county, and state public health organizations as well as the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). The Dearborn Public Schools will provide parents and the community with new information as it becomes available.

If you love hand blown glass and want the opportunity to select a unique pumpkin that will last year after year, glass artists of Furnace Design Studio invite you to attend the “Glass Pumpkin Fest & Sale” from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. on Sat., Oct. 17.

This one-day event will be held at the Glass Academy, located at 25331 Trowbridge, near Gulley Road and Michigan Avenue, in west Dearborn.  Admission is free.

If you’re looking for the chance to learn a bit more about the 14 candidates vying for Dearborn’s seven city council seats and school board candidates, the League of Women Voters Candidate Forums are now being aired on CDTV, the City of Dearborn’s government cable television channel.

The forums were recorded on Sept. 30 and will air through election day (Tuesday, Nov. 3).

The schedule is as follows:

Ballot Proposals and School Board Candidates Forum:

• Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays: 7 a.m., 3 p.m. and 11 p.m.

• Tuesdays and Thursdays: noon and 8 p.m.

• Saturdays and Sundays: 1 a.m., 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.

City Council Candidates Forum:

• Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays: 2:30 a.m., 10:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m.

• Tuesdays and Thursdays: 7:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m.

• Saturdays and Sundays: 4:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m.

The League also is scheduled to hold a forum for the two mayoral candidates, Mayor John B. O’Reilly, Jr. and Michael J. Prus, which will be broadcast on CDTV beginning Monday, Oct. 19.

CDTV can be found on WOW cable channel 10 and Comcast cable channel 12 in the City of Dearborn.

These forums also are available for viewing on the City of Dearborn website at www.cityofdearborn.org

Dearborn's Automotive Hall of Fame, which opened in 1997, is stuggling to keep its doors open

Dearborn’s Automotive Hall of Fame is struggling to keep its doors open because of a massive budget shortfall that severely jeopardizes its future, according to a leading automotive trade publication.

Southfield-based Ward’s Automotive reports that the Dearborn museum, which opened in 1997 next door to the Henry Ford museum, is struggling because of what is happening to  the automotive industry today. The museum gets most of its funding from auto makers and suppliers.

“We’re a microcosm of what’s happened in the industry,” said Jeffrey Leestma, president of the Automotive Hall of Fame, tells Ward’s. “As the industry goes, so we go.”

Here are some excerpts of what the Ward’s article is reporting:

“Budget reductions have become a way of life at the museum, where some staff cuts have been made and positions eliminated. There are only three paid employees, including Leestma, and a half-dozen volunteers to keep the building open seven days a week through summer and five days a week the rest of the year.

Leestma says his organization is seeking new revenue streams, such as affordable family memberships, and making the building available for private events. But the Hall of Fame can count on only a handful of those a year.

Attendance also is down. Some 20,000 people have visited the hall annually since 1997, but this year Leestma expects about 15,000.

Leestma shudders when asked if the Hall of Fame is at risk of closing its doors.

“I’m not ready to raise the white flag yet,” he says. “The Automotive Hall of Fame is worth saving. The industry is down on its luck, and everyone is feeling it. But this is a great repository of great stories and great people, and it’s worth keeping. If it were to go away, it would go away forever.”

For the complete story from Ward’s, click HERE.

The Dearborn Council of the Parent Teacher Student Association (PTSA) is hosting a city council candidate forum on Wednesday, Oct. 14, from 7-8:30 p.m. at Bryant Middle School, 460 N. Vernon.

This is a good opportunity for residents to hear from the 14 people running for Dearborn City Council.

The PTSA held a school board candidate forum on Wednesday, Oct. 7, at DuVall Elementary School.

The Dearborn Chamber of Commerce’s annual Margaritaville Auction is set for Saturday, Oct. 10.

This is a fun event and well worth attending if you have time Saturday. You’ll enjoy great food, music and have the chance to take part in numerous raffles and bid on silent auction items. You’ll also have the chance to win a prize for the “loudest” Hawaiian shirt and craziest flip flops.

This year’s event again will feature steel drum music and the chance to socialize with Dearborn business, education and probably even some of our elected officials or those seeking office.

The event is being held at the Student Center of the Henry Ford Community College. This annual Dearborn Chamber fundraiser will feature great food donated by local restaurants, including Andiamo, Bangkok 96, BD’s Mongolian BBQ, Big Fish, Buddy’s Pizza, Chili’s, Del Taco, The Dearborn Inn, Dearborn Hills Golf Course, Dearborn Sausage, Fuddrucker’s, Oakwood Commons/Morrison Senior Dining and the Park Place.

Henry Ford Community College is the venue sponsor. Gold sponsors include HFCC Federation of Teachers and Dearborn Federal Savings Bank; Silvers sponsors include Fidelity Bank, AAA Michigan; and University of Michigan-Dearborn. Demorest Law Firm, DFCU Financial, Grit Design, Dearborn Public Schools, Fairlane East Apartments, Henry Ford Medical Center – Fairlane, Karcher Insurance, ASG Renaissance, State Farm-Bob Zakar, Dale Bender CPA, Cyberlink Systems, Kearns Brothers, Adam’s Cleaning and A Victory Inn.

Tickets are $35 per person. For more information or to register click HERE.

Councilman Doug Thomas says he's been a Dearborn resident for 77 years.

Less than 24 hours after having the legitimacy of his Dearborn residency called into question at a city council meeting, Dearborn Councilman Doug Thomas tells Deepsaidwhat.com that he removed the homestead tax exemption from his Florida residence and now only maintains the tax exemption on his Dearborn home.

“The property in Florida is no longer homestead,” Thomas said Tuesday. “I had that eliminated today (Tuesday). I am still homestead in Dearborn where I have been a permanent resident for 77 years. I have never missed an election . . . I am here more than six months out of the year.”

At Monday night’s city council meeting, Dearborn resident and former council candidate Nancy Siwik presented the City Council with documents that she says supports her claim that the legal residency of Councilman Thomas is a condominium in the city of Bonita Springs, Florida, and not Dearborn. Siwik said Thomas was in violation of the City Charter for not being a Dearborn resident and asked the council to remove him from office and his name from the November ballot.

Thomas doesn’t deny owning a home in Florida but he says it is the primary residence of his wife, Jane, who is a Florida resident and works there. Thomas said he and his wife were given bad information by Bonita Springs officials who said she could homestead the property because she is a Florida resident and lives there year round. Doug Thomas said his name appears on the property in Florida simply because the deed lists both he and his wife but his homestead and primary residence has always been here in Dearborn.

“As it stands right now, she should have never applied for a homestead down there,” Thomas said. “I didn’t know I was homesteaded down there.”

Thomas, a Dearborn councilman for 21 years, said the allegations raised by Siwik were indeed politically motivated. He said in 2001, Siwik, then with the backing of the late Mayor Michael Guido, attacked him in that election year and he was unseated coming in eight place. However, he regained his seat on the council after then Councilman Gino Polidori won a seat as a state representative.

“If it wasn’t political why wouldn’t she have raised this before the primary?” he said.