Dearborn Homecoming kicks off today and we thought it would be worth running a quick list of “to dos” if you are making plans to attend.

One big change will be the new “blankets on the hill” rule”, which will generate a bit of controversy, for sure.

People cannot put their blankets on the hill until after 8 a.m. on Saturday and after 8 a.m. on Sunday. All blankets must be removed by midnight both nights. The size of the of a blanket is limited to no more than 8 feet by 8 feet to accommodate as many families as possible.

This is a good rule change but I do feel sorry for the Homecoming staff working on blanket patrol over the weekend. Some long-time Homecoming hill campers will be upset, for sure.

Other things to do at the 30th annual Homecoming include:

Rick Springfield-8:30 p.m. Saturday, Main Stage
Pop singer Rick Springfield, best known for the song “Jessie’s Girl” from his early career and as a star on the daytime drama “General Hospital,” is the headline act on Saturday night.
He brings high-energy and enthusiastic audience contact to every show, and Homecoming will be a rare chance for his devoted fans to see him for free.

Fireworks, Saturday and Sunday
Homecoming wouldn’t be Homecoming without spectacular fireworks on Saturday and Sunday nights. They are sponsored by BP/Armada Oil and Gas on Saturday and by B&K Collision on Sunday.

Car Show and Drive-In Movie
The Cruisin’ Dearborn car cruise organized by the Dearborn Chamber of Commerce will begin at the 19th District Court at 7 p.m. on Friday and travel down Michigan Avenue to Outer Drive to Cherry Hill and into Ford Field Park. The classic car show will last until about 10 p.m.
Accompanying the car show this year is a drive-in movie, with the screen set up near the cars at the bottom of the hill. Showing will be Three Stooges shorts and the movie American Graffiti. The fun begins at 9:15 p.m. and is sponsored by Mayor John B. O’Reilly.

Other stage entertainment
Local favorite Fifty Amp Fuse will be the final act on Sunday night, playing at 8:30 p.m.
On Friday, Larry Lee and the Back in the Day will be on the Main Stage 7-9 p.m. The popular Detroit band, led by former NFL player and executive Larry Lee, can play funk, blues, jazz, classic rock, gospel, and even some contemporary tunes.

Other favorites
The Dearborn Community Arts Council’s Craft Show will take place on Friday from 5-8 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
And back again is the Living History Hill with historical re-enactors, musical entertainment, crafts, antique firearms, a high tea and more.
The Turbo Turtle Race returns for its second year on Sunday at 4 p.m. to raise money for the Kiwanis Club of Outer Drive’s children’s projects.
Back in 2009 is the Nickelodeon channel’s live stage show on Sunday afternoon.
And service clubs and charitable organizations will be serving food, beverages and beer from Labatt Blue once again.

New to 2009-Guitar Hero
It is the sensation that can’t be stopped. New to Homecoming in 2009 is a “Guitar Hero” tournament on Saturday and Sunday. $5 fee applies. Registration is at noon both days, and the tournament begins at 1 p.m.

Welcome back-pancake breakfast
A pancake breakfast by the First Presbyterian Church of Dearborn from 9-noon on Sunday, inside the Polish Tent, on the east side of the carnival.

For more info:
Visit  www.cityofdearborn.org for the complete schedule.

The Dearborn Recreation Commission is inviting the public to an Aug. 4 meeting to discuss whether dogs on a leash should be allowed in Dearborn Parks.

The meeting will take place at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 4, in Studio A of the Ford Community & Performing Arts Center,  15801 Michigan Ave.

The meeting will cover two parts:  whether dogs on a leash should be allowed in City parks, and if so, the rules governing the allowance of dogs in City Parks.

Dearborn is looking at building a park for dogs just off of Gulley behind the Dearborn Racquet and Health Club. Setting up some rules in advance will be a good first step. For that earlier story, click HERE.

Telecom Giant Wants $200,000 to Relocate Video Box 

Over the years, Tarick Seifeddine and his father Adel have patiently waited to get approvals from the city of Dearborn to transform a long-vacant service station at the corner of Military and Cherry Hill into something more than the current eyesore that it is.

An artist rendering of the proposed new building at Military and Cherry Hill.

It has been a sometimes arduous process but the family now has the needed approvals from the city (and residents) to construct a very tasteful looking office building.

But their dream building could be delayed, due in no small part to telecom giant and bully AT&T.

With no regard for residents or business owners, AT&T is installing ugly, refrigerator-sized new video boxes (known as U-verse boxes) throughout Dearborn on lawns, easements and curbs as it races to upgrade its services to offer video for the first time.

In the case of Seifeddine, the boxes were simply plopped right smack in the middle of his planned parking lot driveway entrance of the family’s new building, a design already approved by the city.

AT&T plopped its large boxes along the sidewalk of Cherry Hill, right in the middle of planned driveway. AT&T says it will cost as much as $200,000 to move them less than 10 feet.

Seifeddine has asked AT&T to move one of the boxes just less than 10 feet so he can construct his driveway. AT&T said unless Seifeddine is willing to pay between $150,000 and $200,000 for the move, the box isn’t budging.

Cleverly, AT&T installed its tan-colored monster boxes less than four inches off of Seifeddine’s property line, so technically the boxes are on a city easement. But had AT&T contacted Seifeddine prior to installing their boxes, the two could have worked out a better location. AT&T also could have installed the boxes underground but chose above ground as a cost save and because no one from AT&T has to live near these noisy eyesores.

“We were never contacted about the installation,” Seifeddine said. “We could have tucked the boxes on another part of the property and then hidden them with some nice landscaping.”

Seifeddine said demolition of the current vacant building could begin in less than a month. But what happens after that really hinges on what AT&T decides to do. The family has contacted Dearborn Mayor John B. O’Reilly, Jr., who told Seifeddine he will contact AT&T to see if this is something that can be resolved.

This isn’t the first time AT&T has pulled such a stunt. All across America, AT&T is installing these unsightly boxes and angering, residents, city officials and businesses along the way. A few years ago in Geneva, Ill., city officials passed a 180-day moratorium that effectively stopped installations of AT&T’s boxy cabinets. AT&T sued Geneva and six other Illinois municipalities for restricting its plans, claiming it had the right to use public rights of way for its telecom network.

In Tulsa, an AT&T employee is even leading protests against the above-ground boxes, rightly arguing that these large, ugly boxes lower the aesthetic appeal of a neighborhood.

The boxes can be dangerous, too, as some have caught fire and even exploded, according to some news accounts. AT&T has said it has fixed those earlier problems.

If you’re a homeowner and wondering whether a box will appear in front of your home or in your yard, Dearborn city officials should be able to provide a map of all box locations. It’s worth looking into because if you don’t have one now that doesn’t mean you are in the clear.

Morris Goodman, a Dearborn attorney, resident and a regular reader of Deepsaidwhat.com, sent this letter over to us the other day, a piece he mailed to the New York Times in hopes it might run in their Letters to the Editor section.

We thought it was fitting to post here because the issues raised by Mr. Goodman apply to what is happening here in Dearborn. You can substitute the New York Times with the Dearborn Press & Guide, the Dearborn Times Herald and The Detroit News. It applies to them, as well.  As a former newspaper writer and a voracious reader of newspapers, this is a topic that is near and dear to my heart.

We can all complain about what news isn’t getting covered or what business might be closing but we all really have a role in their preservation. 
The letter begins below.

In a box at the very top of every issue of the New York Times is the historically famous slogan: “All the News That’s Fit to Print.” Perhaps in order to keep printing the Times should also run the slogan: “Patronize our advertisers. They think it’s fitting that we print.” Perhaps the American Newspaper Association should counsel all of its members to print each day the equally famous 1787 quotation from Thomas Jefferson:

“The basis of our governments being the opinion of the people, the very first object should be to keep that right; and were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.”

Instead of continually lamenting the seemingly unending decline of American newspapers and magazines, perhaps the beleaguered print media should be pro-active. It should tell its readers and advertisers how important they are to the preservation of democracy in America by their buying and advertising in newspapers and magazines. They need to be encouraged to get more readers and advertisers for America’s print media.

The reasons for the steep decline in print media readership and advertising have been chronicled for years.

Major advertisers such as the auto industry, home builders, and retailers of all kinds with falling sales have drastically reduced or altered their advertising budgets.

Clearly, there are more and more ways – the Internet and TV’s expanded cable offerings – people get the information they want about news, sports, sales, jobs, apartment rentals, etc. that they used to get from newspapers and magazines.

So people and advertisers are gravitating to these new outlets which are accessible, constantly updated, and cheaper for both the reader and advertiser to use.

But many consumers and advertisers do not consider who will do the investigative reporting that keeps our government and businesses honest if the print media either continues to cut back or even ceases to exist. However, I believe there are enough readers and advertisers who do understand the importance of a healthy, independent press that can be effectively harnessed to insure the “beacon of freedom” – a free press – is preserved, and even enhanced.

The July 8 Detroit News had an article about an effort by Birmingham, Michigan community activists to preserve the 131 year old Birmingham Eccentric weekly newspaper which was slated to close along with 4 other Oakland County, Michigan, Eccentric weeklies published by the Gannett Corporation. These activists grasp the reality that there can only be a constitutionally guaranteed freedom of the press if there is a press to begin with. So do millions of others, but they need to be constantly reminded of this concept.

Union tell their members to only buy union made products. Ethnic and religious publications encourage their readers to buy from their affinity groups. Americans are exhorted to buy American made products. Accordingly, newspaper and magazine readers should be encouraged to patronize the advertisers whose payments make the continued publishing of the printed word possible. Probably of more impact would be if readers told retailers of all kinds – restaurants, merchandisers, auto dealers and manufacturers, banks, etc. – that they will only buy from those who use the print media, if not exclusively, at least significantly in their advertising budgets.

Newspaper and magazine publishers have shown great ingenuity over the years to get people to buy their offerings. Hearst is purported to have contributed to starting the Spanish- American War to sell his papers. Now these publishers need to show the same ingenuity in getting new readers and new advertisers. Emphasizing the preservation of our democratic American way of life is not a bad place to start.

Dearborn made world news Thursday, this time related to a 56-year-old man who kept some 103 dogs — mostly Chihuahuas — in a home that from the outside looked generally well kept but inside was filled with feces and trash, Dearborn officials said. The story has been picked up by media outlets as far away as New Zealand.

Crews remove some of the nearly 100 dogs Thursday in this AP picture.

Dearborn city workers, along with Friends for the Dearborn Animal Shelter, removed 42 ailing and feces-covered dogs from the home on the 7800 block of Orchard Wednesday. They then returned Thursday and found about 60 more dogs.

The Detroit News reported that the home  belonged to Kenneth Lang Sr., who currently resides in Florida. Officials say a 56-year-old man, Kenneth Lang Jr. lives alone in the home. Neighbors told The News he was known to mow lawns meticulously and was protective of his home, trying to keep children off his property.

Lang was taken to a local hospital for observation. His family was involved in his care and cooperating with officials.

According to the Associated Press, the man’s sister told officials that she believed he initially had two dogs in the home and that they may have reproduced, said Nick Siroskey, director of residential services for Dearborn. Misdemeanor animal cruelty charges were possible, but Siroskey said the man appears to have mental health issues that could be a factor in the case.

Neighbors and investigators said the smell of urine, noticeable from the street Thursday, may have been contained previously because windows were closed and covered.

“There was a little bit of a smell, but it was just like a … person that doesn’t keep their house up,” Abe Baydoun told an AP writer. “He didn’t take care of himself, personally, but he took care of the outside of his house.”

Baydoun, 25, lives across the street and said he only had seen two of the man’s dogs outside.

The dogs, which were being examined at the animal shelter, appear to have been unattended and were in various stages of health.

Crews pulled bags full of trash from the home to clear pathways inside. The house was deemed unfit for human habitation and the city likely will seek to tear it down, Siroskey said.

On Friday, Siroskey said police were called to the home by a neighbor who spotted some kittens in a hole in the backyard, and the officer who responded reported that it seemed like there were many dogs inside. Animal control authorities got the case and, after obtaining a warrant, investigators went inside Wednesday.

With such a sudden influx of dogs, the Dearborn Animal Shelter will be needing our assistance. Those wanting to donate funds can contact the shelter by clicking HERE. or sending checks to the shelter at 2661 Greenfield Road, Dearborn, MI 48120.

Families and those young at heart should plan to make their way to the Players Guild of Dearborn’s presentation of “Seussical the Musical”, which begins Friday, July 17.

Produced in cooperation with Music Theatre International, Seussical the Musical runs from July 17-19 and July 24-26. All performances begin at 7:30 p.m. and tickets are just $5.

This is a great event and it helps support our talented youth as they tell the tale of some of Dr. Seuss’ greatest stories. The Guild describes the show as being for audiences young and old, making this a good event for the family.

Tickets can be purchased in advance by calling the theatre box office at 313-561-TKTS, at the door or by ordering online by clicking HERE.

By Morris Goodman

There are 25 candidates in the August 4 primary for the seven Dearborn City Council seats with the top 14 to appear on the ballot in the November general election. There is no primary for Mayor (only two candidates, Jack O’Reilly and Michael Prus) and City Clerk (incumbent Kathleen Buda is unopposed).

All seven Council incumbents are running for reelection although I am baffled why Floridian Doug Thomas wants to continue to commute. Of course, I am generally baffled by Doug Thomas, but I digress.

So why are the 18 challengers running when Dearborn history tells us that the odds are overwhelming, practically a certainty, that they are running in vain. Incumbents simply get re-elected here (and usually everywhere else). Presumably they collectively think there is hopefully going to be at least one vacancy when Dearborn’s voters realize that Mr. Thomas has essentially moved to Florida. As a result, he has missed a large number of City Council and important committee meetings since the 2005 election.

Also buoying the 18 challengers is the palpable feeling among voters everywhere — here, throughout Michigan, and nationwide — that governments of all kinds are not solving the problems that really plague us, and we should “throw the rascals out.” Incumbents lost in 2008 because voters were tired of them. Who would have believed in July 2008 that African American Barack Obama would be decisively elected President, and that so many incumbent Republicans would be defeated making both Houses of Congress solidly Democratic?

Each of the 18 Dearborn challengers must believe in July 2009 that Dearborn voters are tired of incumbents too. They each hear an inner voice telling them to go forward regardless of their chances. They know if they can just get their message out to enough voters, they will be chosen to replace one or more of those “tossed out.”

However, the most important reason that so many challengers are running for Dearborn City Council is probably the same reason that has propelled candidates throughout the history of democracy to place themselves before voters — from the Roman Forum to New England town meetings. Each candidate knows that he or she can do the job, do it well, and certainly better than those who have had four (or eight, or 12, or more) years to solve Dearborn’s problems, and, in their minds, failed to do so.

It benefits all Dearbornites that so many people are willing to run for Council, if only to keep the incumbents on their toes. While I don’t know most of the first time candidates, in my Dearborn Hills neighborhood I have seen signs for Patrick D’Ambrosio, Rabih Hammoud, Ali Sayed, Brian O’Donnell, and David Bazzy. My neighbors must think highly of them. And I think highly of my neighbors (at least most of them, regardless of what they think of me.)

I do know Adrenne Wygonik, a faithful member of the Dearborn Democratic Club, have given her money (not enough), and intend to vote for her. I do know Sharon Dulmage who has served ably on the school Board for many years, and I intend to vote for her. I also know Nancy Siwik from the Dearborn Rotary, who was an energetic and effective President, and intend to vote for her. I guess that means I can only vote for four incumbents. I will keep them guessing too.

Regardless of whom you intend to vote for (or against) please, please, please vote on August 4 for Dearborn City Council. Democracy requires so little to make it work; voting is one of those essential things that do make it work.

Morris Goodman is a Dearborn attorney and resident, past president of the Dearborn Democratic Club and a longtime political activist and observer.

Dearborn’s Public Service Days could soon become a lot less confusing for residents if City Council next week approves a request by the mayor to make the street cleaning, tree trimming and general neighborhood maintenance a weekly occurrence.

We think the move is a good way to eliminate the confusion caused by the current system, which has many residents guessing which weeks to remove their parked vehicles from the street. Yes, the Dearborn city calendar lists that Public Service Days occur twice a month but it isn’t always accurate.

Under the proposed plan by Mayor John B. O’Reilly Jr., public service days would become weekly and begin an hour later, starting at 8 a.m. rather than the current 7 a.m., which may more naturally remove cars from the streets as many residents depart for work around this time. Public Service Days would still occur on the same day as a neighborhood’s regular scheduled trash pickup.

Public Service Days would cease between the months of December and March.

A series of free outdoor mini concerts sponsored by the West Dearborn Downtown Development Authority (WDDDA) kicks off this Friday, July 10, in Michigan Avenue’s “Pocket Park,” located between Mason and Monroe in west Dearborn.

The first free concert features Carl Cafanga & Friends. Carl Cafanga is one of metro Detroit’s most in-demand saxophonists.  His quartet plays soulful, smooth jazz and will feature Ashaki, a female vocalist, jazz artist and native Detroiter who has performed nationally and in Japan.

Four additional concerts will be held in the Muirhead Plaza adjacent to the Bryant Library on Michigan Avenue. Those dates are:

1. July 24, from 6 to 9 p.m. features versatile cover band Radio Active
2. Aug. 14 from 6 to 9 p.m features Motor City music veterans Merge, performing musical hits from the 1950s to contemporary
3. Aug. 21 from 7 to 9:30 p.m. features the Cleary Quartet
4. Aug. 28 from 6 to 9 p.m. features Thornetta Davis, recognized for her exceptional blues vocal performances

If you are planning to attend the free shows, concert-goers might want to consider bringing chairs and blankets for more comfortable outdoor seating. Maps and other information can also be found at the WDDDA’s web site by clicking HERE.

Dearborn’s annual Homecoming festival could draw all-time record crowds this August, thanks to the city’s decision to hire pop star recording artist/actor Rick Springfield as the headline act.

Rick Springfield will take the stage at Dearborn Homecoming on Aug. 8 at 8:30 p.m.

While none of the Grammy-award winner’s songs are in my iPod, Springfield’s appearance on Aug. 8 at 8:30 p.m. at Ford Field Park will greatly benefit the many nonprofit groups that operate fundraising booths at the festival. These organizations rely on strong attendance, which generates booth traffic and sales. Many of those proceeds then go back to fund their respective community causes. Over the three-day weekend, some groups will gross as much as $14,000 and gain valuable name recognition for their organizations.

There are some residents balking at the city’s approval to pay Springfield $40,000 for his performance at this year’s Homecoming, but when you step back and examine the bigger picture the check written to the Australian-born singer has a more positive impact than it may appear.

Drawing people to the Dearborn Homecoming is only accomplished by providing the right attractions. The standard festival with a few beer tents and five minutes worth of fireworks won’t get anywhere close to the average 150,000 people who attend the Dearborn Homecoming over its three day period.

Take a look at Novi. That city this year cancelled its equivalent of the Dearborn Homecoming due to poor attendance.

Dearborn is fortunate in that it has many generous sponsors that have contributed some $90,000 this year to help offset the city’s operational costs of producing the festival – an event that is considered by many neighboring communities to be the benchmark festival in Metro Detroit. The sponsorship program allows Dearborn to keep the costs to families down, offering some of the lowest prices of any Metro Detroit festival.

Keep in mind, Dearborn is able to leverage these sponsorships due to its historical attendance figures and the market to which it appeals. The basis of any corporate sponsorship is to get your name in front of as many of the right eyeballs as possible. Homecoming is the perfect setting for this and continues to be a valuable investment for businesses. In addition to sponsorship contributions, Dearborn also receives approximately $35,000 via carnival revenues. (An added bonus this year is that families can now purchase online discounted ride tickets in advance of the festival.)

Sponsorships and other revenues, however, don’t cover all the associated costs of Homecoming.  We taxpayers have to do some of that lifting, too. Even so, what Dearborn can’t afford to do is scale back Homecoming to the point where it becomes just another festival or, worse yet, is cancelled. Scaling back during these tough economic times when some people can’t afford to go and pay for a concert or even take their children to an amusement park is the wrong time for cost-cutting. From where we sit, Dearborn Homecoming is the best event our city puts on each year. People can and will complain about the city spending money but the reality is that it costs money (yes, our tax dollars) to produce a quality event.  And people today, probably more than ever, need a nice event to go to these days. Plain and simple.

Homecoming fireworks cost money, too. To the tune of $22,000 per night, $12,500 of which is covered by sponsors each night. A Dearborn Homecoming without fireworks? Unthinkable. The same should be said of a headline music act. Dearborn has had K.C. and the Sunshine Band, Eddie Money and the Commodores perform in recent years. All of which came with a pretty big price tag (the Commodores were more than Springfield, for instance) and drew major crowds.

Springfield may not be my kind of music but he is followed by thousands of other people who will travel from across the state for the free blanket-space and concert in Dearborn. And while these fans are waiting, they will be spending their money at one of the 28 nonprofit, Dearborn-based organizations who operate booths at the festival.

So here’s to a successful Dearborn Homecoming. If you’d like a copy of all Dearborn Homecoming events, you can pick one up at various locations throughout Dearborn or by clicking HERE.