City of Ypsilanti resident Jen Whaley is in the process of buying a home and moving her family to Ypsilanti Township.

But there’s one issue - her family includes backyard chickens.

As of now, township residents aren’t allowed to have chickens or other livestock on parcels less than 5 acres.

At a public input session for the revision of Ypsilanti Township’s master plan Whaley attended on May 20, she said she was seeking a change to those rules.

Whaley said people in the city love her chickens and, contrary to the argument against them, they don’t attract rodents or make a lot of noise.

“It’s just like any other animal - if you take care of them, then you’re going to be fine,” she said.

Twice in the past 18 months, township ordinance officials have had to respond to complaints over poultry in dense residential areas. The issue drew a large number of supporters to a Board of Trustees meeting.

Township Planner Joe Lawson says he is carefully reviewing the ordinance and researching the issue.

New guidelines built into the master plan would give Lawson a way to develop a land use ordinance that would allow for chickens on smaller plots.

“Am I in favor of allowing them on less than 5 acres? Absolutely. Am I in favor of allowing them on a 50 by 100 (foot) lot? I need to do more research on it before I am comfortable with that,” he said.

Ypsilanti Township will market property it owns on Huron Street adjacent to the post office.

Tom Perkins | For AnnArbor.com

West Willow resident Linda Mealing also attended the public input session. She liked the ideas planning officials presented for spurring commercial growth along Washtenaw Avenue, East Michigan Avenue, Whittaker Road and Ecorse Road.

The township has lost 30 percent of its taxable commercial value over the past six years.

Along Washtenaw Avenue, the principles of the Reimagine Washtenaw project are being wrapped into the township’s master plan.

The project is attempting to transition the corridor from auto-orientated development to development that encourages people to walk or ride their bicycles. Planners are envisioning dense, mixed-use development on smaller lots.

Some of those ideas are being built into re-zoning along the township’s other three main commercial corridors.

“These are gateway corridors to the community and you want them to be attractive and viable,” Lawson said. “If you enter the township via one of those corridors and it’s run down, people don’t want to stop or avoid the area all together.”

Mealing said she appreciated that planners were considering more than just motorists in their plans.

“I like the idea they have for the corridors and I like that they are considering different types of transportation, she said. “It’s friendly and inviting.”

Greg Crist had similar thoughts to Mealing.

“Those areas definitely need to change and need some new growth, so it’s good that they are seriously thinking about how to do it and also thinking about how to make it more accessible to people who might be taking the bus or riding their bike or walking,” he said.

But Lawson said the area’s infrastructure is the biggest challenge to making it more accommodating to pedestrians. The public right-of-ways are so narrow that it’s difficult to install bike lanes and sidewalks in some areas.

"When those corridors were built 50 to 60 years ago, they weren’t taking into consideration multi-modal transportation,” Lawson said.

The township is particularly focused on generating dense development along the Whittaker Road - Huron Street corridor. Lawson said the township isn’t trying to build a downtown, but the hope is to attract similar development.

He said there are relatively few restaurants or entertainment venues in the area to serve more than 30,000 residents on the township’s southside, so planners are hopeful to attract more such businesses.

Part of the master plan revision discussion has also included development of a commercial area or restaurant on Ford Lake. Right now, most of the lake is designated for residential use or developed, but one parcel that won’t allow for dense residential due to its proximity to Willow Run Airport could be rezoned commercial to allow for a lakeside restaurant.

Lawson also said marinas are a possibility, but Ford Lake is generally surrounded by bluffs, and parts of it are too shallow.

The township will next draft a revised master plan which the planning commission can recommend the township Board of Trustees approve. The Board of Trustees will then have a final vote on whether to approve it.

Lawson said the planning department is working on posting its plans on the township’s website. There will be an interactive feature that will allow residents to discuss what they like and don’t like in the township, and updates will be posted the township’s Twitter and Facebook pages.

Tom Perkins is a freelance reporter. Contact the AnnArbor.com news desk at news@annarbor.com.

Plans for a new Burger King on East Michigan Avenue have been delayed by at least several months.

The Ypsilanti Township Planning Commission removed approval of the site plans from the agenda of its May 20 meeting.

Township Planning coordinator Joe Lawson said the new building was to be built by franchisee Bravokilo on a lot adjacent to a new Taco Bell at 1085 E. Michigan Ave. Bravokilo purchased the lot from Sundance, the company that owns the Taco Bell.

Because Michigan Avenue is a trunk line, the Michigan Department of Transportation must approve business’s curb cuts. When the lot was vacant, MDOT asked Sundance to fill in a curb cut with the verbal agreement that the cut could be reopened when the property was purchased, Lawson said.

But Bravokilo learned from MDOT on Monday that the curb cut - or entrance drive - for their drive thru was too close to the Taco Bell’s driveway, and the plans would have to be revisited. Lawson said curb cuts along a busy road like Michigan Avenue usually have to be at least 300 feet apart.

Plans to build a new Burger King on a vacant lot on East Michigan Avenue have been temporarily delayed.

Tom Perkins | For AnnArbor.com

He said he doubted the site plans would be back on the Planning Commission's agenda for its June meeting.

Bravokilo will invest $1 million to build the 3,446-square foot building. The Indiana-based company owns around 120 Burger Kings nationwide, as well as a variety of casual dining restaurants like Chili’s and Papa Vino’s.

It owns a Burger King at 823 E. Michigan Ave. less than a half mile from the new site. Lawson said Bravokilo leases that building from the Burger King corporation, though it will own its new building.

Burger King typically tries to lease its vacated properties for up to a year and demolishes the buildings if they remain unoccupied, Lawson said, though he added that he hasn’t heard any definite plans from the corporation.

Staff was recommending that the planning commission approve the project. Ypsilanti Township has made the East Michigan Avenue corridor a focus for redevelopment, and Lawson said the new building is another sign of success.

“Even though it’s a new restaurant but just on a different parcel along Michigan Avenue, they’re staying within the corridor and township, and it’s my hope they’re seeing the benefit of what we’re doing there,” he said.

Township planning officials asked that the number of parking spaces be reduced by 10 to reduce the amount of impervious surface. A memo written by a planning official said the recently built Taco Bell next door has a larger parking lot that has proved unnecessary and created extra stormwater.

Bravokilo proposed building a new Burger King on the city of Ypsilanti’s Water Street property in 2010, but city council members rejected the proposal on the grounds that it wasn’t consistent with their development vision for the property adjacent to downtown.

Tom Perkins is a freelance reporter for AnnArbor.com Contact the news desk at news@annarbor.com.

As Ann Arbor resident Tim Lang lay in a veteran’s hospital bed in Maryland, all he could think about was how much he could no longer do.

Retired Marines Lance Corporal Tim Lang, above, began golfing shortly after losing his right leg in Iraq.

Photo by Montana Pritchard | The PGA of America

All he could think about was what he could no longer could do. Lang let his handicap define him.

Now, it’s 2013 and you’ll sooner find Lang on a golf course walking on his own two feet - be it, one of them prosthetic - displaying what he can do on the green instead of lying on his back thinking about what he can’t do.

Lang still lets his handicap define him, but if you ask him what it is, he won’t tell you he’s an amputee.

He’s a plus-5.
Golf is a 'sissy sport’

Lang lay on his back in Bethesda, Maryland for nearly 10 months after returning home from Iraq. Surgery after surgery, his feelings of despair mounted. In less than a year, he’d gone from a fit, strong 232-pound 21-year-old in the best shape of his life, fighting for his country, to a 109-pound amputee, unable to even go to the bathroom without assistance.

“You’re talking about a person who all they can think about is wanting to be back bigger, better, stronger, faster than ever,” Lang recalls. “I was just dying to get back to that physical type of lifestyle I had just a few months earlier.”

Lang, 27, comes from a large family where he said every child had his own way of standing out. His was sports. He loved playing basketball and football, and was haunted by the thought that he could never enjoy them like he once had.

“I was coming to that slow realization that I won’t be able run anymore. I wasn’t going to be able to play football anymore, I wasn’t going to be able to play basketball,” Lang said. “That was a rather depressing time in my life.”

Former professional golfer Jim Estes lives near the hospital Lang was staying at in Bethesda. Lang had seen Estes before in the hospital as Estes made regular visits for a charity for which he is the co-founder, the Salute Military Golf Association. SMGA offers post-9/11 war veterans the opportunity to use golf as a tool for both physical and mental therapy.

Tim Lang, right, swings a club while former PGA golf professional Jim Estes looks on.

Photo courtesy of Salute Military Golf Association

“I told him if you know a football coach tell him to come out my way,” Lang said. “Golf was always kind of a sissy sport to me. It wasn’t aggressive enough…I had no interest in playing.”

Estes left Lang alone, but came back a few months later with a different approach.

“I said ‘if you’re such a great athlete, and golf isn’t a sport, why don’t you show me something. Show me how easy it is.’” Estes said. “I said look around, you can’t play football and you can’t play basketball, but you definitely can play golf with one leg.”

That’s not all Estes said, according to Lang.

“ I can’t really repeat what he said," Lang recalls with a laugh.

Estes had Lang figured out: challenge his competitive spirit, his manhood even.

“That kind of lit a fire,” Lang said. “I was like ‘alright, as soon as I can get up off my IV and blood pump I’ll be out there.”

Estes, of course, destroyed Lang competitively once they finally made it to the course, but Lang found something out that day.

Deep down, he’s a golfer.

“I quickly recanted everything that I had said about it,” Lang said. “I started to love the game.”

Golf as therapy

Golf isn’t considered the most strenuous of sports, but walking 18 holes while you’re at the same time re-teaching yourself how to walk altogether is no easy task. But even moreso than the physical benefits of being outside and moving around, as Lang got more into the game he began using it as a mental therapy. A therapy he wasn’t willing to admit he even needed before he started golfing.

Tim Lang, right, receives a putting lesson from retired PGA golfer Jim Estes.

Photo courtesy of Salute Military Golf Association

Lang said he’s been a competitive and ambitious person his whole life, but was not motivated to do anything after his injury. That is until he began competing against others in golf and being driven to improve.

“Depression is a weird animal. Most of the people that are depressed don’t even know they’re depressed and they won’t admit it, and I wouldn’t have admitted it,” Lang said. “(Golf) helped me realize how messed up I was earlier. How dark of a hole I was in.”

“But after getting up and getting on my feet again, being up in nature on a Saturday or a Friday…I was excited to get up every day, I was excited to go out and knew that golf was now a new sport where I could depend on myself,” Lang said.

Lang didn’t just start being good for an amputee or a beginner, but flat out good, period. Good enough to where he’s competing in amateur events. Estes thinks he has a shot at the National Amputee Golf Association championship.

Lang - who is also a student at Easter Michigan University, studying criminal psychology - now delivers his message across the country as an ambassador for the Salute Military Golf Association. He speaks to veterans in circumstances like he once was, motivating fellow veterans like Estes did for him.

“It’s a very inclusive game and I love to be able to share my message of how disabled people or people with challenges can benefit from the game,” said Lang.

Lang’s message isn’t just motivational to his fellow veterans. Before the beginning of the high school golf season, Lang spoke with the Saline High School boys golf team. His speech just happened to coincide with a conditioning session in which the team was “dogging it,” according to coach Debbie Williams-Hoak.

“The guys were whining and saying ‘oh it’s too hard’ and then they listen to Tim and one of the first questions I asked the guys was ‘if we went back and did our conditioning workout now, would your effort be a little different?’” Williams Hoak said. “And everyone of them were like, ‘yeah.’”

“Listening to him talk about it was really inspiring because he had to battle through almost losing all of his physical abilities to get back to playing some great golf,” said Saline senior Ryan Peruski. “I think it’s really inspirational for anybody who thinks that ‘I can’t do this, I can’t do that, I’m too overweight, it’s too late in my career, I’m too old, I’m too young’ or whatever.”

“It shows anything can be done if you want to put a lot of hard work into it.”

Professional aspirations

Lang was a quick study on the course. He credits Estes’ teaching style - to the point, no sugarcoating - and Estes credits Lang’s athleticism.

“He always was an exceptional athlete. From my perspective those are easy guys to teach golf,” Estes said. “He’s got a huge upside potential, I told him he can win the amputee championship.”

In a relatively short time, Lang has gone from a skeptic to true believer in the benefits of the game and from casual golfer to competitive. When he and Estes play, Lang refuses to take any strokes. Estes still wins, but Lang is getting there.

“He’s the exception, one of about 10 out of 1,500 in our program that have used golf in more than just a recreational capacity,” Estes said.

Lang is working to get his single-digit handicap even lower and plans to play in several competitive amateur events. Golf will be a Paralympic sport in 2016, which he has listed among his many goals in the sport.

“I’m so young I don’t know what I can do. What I’ve done in four years is excelled at a really fast pace, so I think the sky is the limit for me,” Lang said. “As far as I can go is what I want to do. I really want to have a big part in the Paralympics, want to win some amateur events and who knows after that. “I’m trying to get down to a three, four or five, be able to win amateur events consistently and I would love to take it to the next level, but I’m not trying to get ahead of myself,” Lang said. “I’m just going one step at a time and doing as much as I possibly can with it.”

So yeah, Lang has a handicap: it’s a plus 5.

But if all goes according to plan it won’t be for long.

Pete Cunningham covers sports for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at petercunningham@annarbor.com. Follow him on Twitter @petcunningham.

I prepared my first garden bed and hope to have vegetables and flowers this summer.

Lizzy Alfs | AnnArbor.com

My apartment building’s lawn isn’t exactly the picture of gardening perfection with its overgrown weeds and scattered cigarette butts.

But as I started to savor warm weather days, I wondered: How could I spend more time outside this spring and summer?

It occurred to me on a walk around my Old West Side neighborhood that gardening is a wildly popular hobby in Ann Arbor. The residents in the houses surrounding my apartment building spend hours perfecting their yards each week.

And it’s not just Ann Arbor: According to the National Gardening Association, about $2.5 billion is spent annually on U.S. home gardening. The Garden Writers Association reports that the number of U.S. households growing edible plants is expected to increase by 11.3 percent in 2013.

Growing up in Metro Detroit, I always questioned how my dad could possibly spend so much time working in our yard. I would get home from school and he’d take me on “tours” through his vegetable garden. I usually just rolled my eyes.

But I decided this spring that starting a small vegetable garden would mesh with some of my other new hobbies; I recently fell in love with the Ann Arbor Farmers Market and I started cooking in response to a money savings plan I started last year. So why not garden, too?

First, I had to conquer my severely neglected “garden” area outside my apartment’s porch. But let's be real, picking up a gardening habit with no background knowledge isn’t easy.

I got the OK by my landlord to move forward with my gardening plans, and then I did some online research. (Oh, and called my dad about 20 times for advice). Mother Nature Network has an online guide for first-time gardeners where I learned a key piece of gardening advice: You'll learn as you go.

I started by purchasing the least expensive gardening supplies I could find, only to have my trowel break on my first day in the garden.

The first sprouts in my vegetable garden.

Lizzy Alfs | AnnArbor.com

While I was weeding and preparing the soil, I discovered some frustratingly deep — and dead — plant roots that I could not unearth.

Slightly desperate-looking but still determined, I knocked on neighbors’ doors and borrowed a spade (if you’re like me, you have no idea what that is), and put some serious elbow grease into removing those tangled roots. Someone said they might be hostas, but I still have no idea. (You can sort of see the uprooted plants on the left-hand side of the picture at the top)

I quickly had to get over my fear of worms and slugs, and I dealt with the fact that it was freezing and rainy. My hands and knees hurt and I got weird stares from my apartment building neighbors.

Still, after three hours of work, I had prepared the perfect little garden area.

Since that first weekend, I’ve put cute flowers around the edge of the garden, and I planted green onions and lettuce. Like a proud mama, I’ve been showing everyone a picture of my sprouting lettuce. (I’m fairly certain I planted it wrong and it won’t grow to fruition, but I’m still happy)

I prepared pots with herbs, including basil, cilantro, mint, lavender and rosemary. I planted tomatoes, cucumbers and a few peppers.

Spending time taking care of my garden is definitely work, but I always feel accomplished and I love knowing that I’ll eventually be able to eat what I’m growing.

As it turns out, my dad was right to be proud of his vegetable garden. And I just discovered an incredibly rewarding hobby.

Lizzy Alfs is a business reporter for AnnArbor.com. Reach her at 734-623-2584 or email her at lizzyalfs@annarbor.com. Follow her on Twitter at http://twitter.com/lizzyalfs.

A fire early Monday at a condominium development displaced residents of two attached units and caused extensive damage, the Ann Arbor Fire Department said. One firefighter was injured at the scene but was treated and released from the hospital.

Fire investigators were focusing on a fire pit on the rear deck of one of the two attached condominium units that caught fire early Monday.

Photo courtesy Ann Arbor Fire Department

The first crew to arrive found heavy flames in one condo spreading to the other attached unit. All inhabitants had evacuated the building.

Battalion Chief Steven Lowe in a news release said firefighters were able to quickly control heavy fire and stop the threat of it spreading. Two other units on either side of the burned unit reported smoke damage, he said.

Fire investigators were focusing on a fire pit on the back deck of one of the units.

The Washtenaw-Lenawee County Chapter of the American Red Cross said it provided a family of four with food and lodging, as well as beverages and snacks for about 30 first responders.

The injured firefighter was checked at the University of Michigan Hospital and released.

Firefighters from several other municipalities assisted at the scene.

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• Previous story: Technology bond: Ann Arbor schools central office to see $420K in server room upgrades

The Ann Arbor Board of Education approved spending about $412,000 in technology bond money on renovations to the district's primary server room and on video distribution equipment.

The Balas Administration Building at 2555 S. State St.

AnnArbor.com file photo

Ann Arbor Public Schools residents passed a millage proposal for the $45.8 million technology bond in May 2012.

The renovations will include addressing heating and cooling issues and mechanical problems in these rooms that causes the equipment to overheat.

The three rooms will be better engineered to create one distinct server room, one fiber closet and, if space allows, one small room for an office or conference room, according to documents from AAPS.

The original cost of the server room renovations was $8,500 more. However, the district reposted the electrical work involved in the project to receive a more competitive rate.

Bids were awarded to Rochester Hills' Diversified Construction Specialists, Inc. in the amount of $39,150 for the architectural work, Ann Arbor's Huron Valley Electric in the amount of $31,500 for electrical work, and another local company, Fuller Heating Company, in the amount of $88,650 for mechanical work.

The equipment and infrastructure housed in the server room at Balas controls most of the technology operations district wide. Another piece of equipment to control video distribution software across all schools will be added to the server room.

The cost of this equipment is $252,633 and its purpose will be to support the district's instructional technology initiatives.

Danielle Arndt covers K-12 education for AnnArbor.com. Follow her on Twitter @DanielleArndt or email her at daniellearndt@annarbor.com.

Monday morning started with the loud sound of marching bands and plenty of flag waving for the Ypsilanti Memorial Day Parade. A large crowd watched as a number of local veteran organizations, Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts troops, government officials and others marched through the center of Ypsilanti. Two ceremonies took place; one on the Cross Street bridge, and another in the Highland Cemetery.

The route started on Huron street near Catherine and continued north until it turned on to Cross. After the first flag presentation, speeches and gun salute, the parade resumed on North River Street where the second ceremony began in the cemetery.

When you’ve spent three-plus decades traveling the world, what happens when you retire?

That’s a question Will and Joan Weber get a lot as they prepare to hand over the reins of their eco-travel business Journeys International to their daughter, Robin Weber Pollak, after 35 years in business in Ann Arbor. They’ll greet the end of an era with a weekend-long celebration in September.

The Webers believe their company was among the original — if not the first — to embrace an ethical movement now loosely called ecotourism. In the broadest sense, it means responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment and improves the welfare of local people.

Journey International’s trips — which range from $2,500 to $4,500 — offer a comfortable and authentic experience.

Journeys International grew out of a deep love for culture and travel. In the mid-1970s, Will was living in a small village in Nepal as a volunteer and trainer. Joan came to visit and stayed on as an English teacher.

Will and Joan Weber are retiring after 35 years and will leave their ecotourism business, Journeys International, to their daughter, Robin Weber Pollack, shown at center.

So the Webers took it upon themselves to organize a 25-day Himalayan trek, drawing on their contacts and their knowledge of Nepal. A business was born for the couple and for the late Pemba Sherpa, their mountain guide.

Until his death a few years ago, Pemba led many of JI’s trips in the tiny country. Now, his son Nawang Sherpa has taken over, just as the Webers’ daughter Robin will.

"The business model we established had everything to do with putting interested, curious people with people who live in countries they’re visiting, who can show how they live, what environmental issues there are," said Joan. "We looked for amazing people to take care of the people we send."

The company runs about 400 trips each year for individuals, couples, groups and families.

Helping local economies, a cornerstone of the ecotourism ethic, led the Webers to establish the Earth Preservation Fund, which has provided more than 100 grants to community-based programs all over the world, among them building a community library in Ladakh, India, teaching traditional weaving skills in Peru and protecting turtles in Kenya.

The company has been recognized for the richness of its trips, more recently by National Geographic Traveler, which last year selected Journeys International's ’s trip, Burma: Trek to the Last Village, as a 2012 Tour of a Lifetime. In 2008 and 2009, National Geographic Adventure ranked Journeys International as one of the world’s best adventure travel companies.

Ecotourism, part of the sustainable tourism market, is a key agent in reducing poverty and attracting development financing in underdeveloped countries, says the Center for Responsible Travel. And it is gaining momentum.

In 2007, the last year for which there is hard data, ecotourism captured $77 billion of the global travel market and was expected to grow with rising concern about global warming.

Robin Weber Pollak, 30, returned to Ann Arbor about a year ago after earning an MBA from George Washington University in Washington, D.C. She doesn't plan to move away from the company's core mission, but she’ll focus on communicating with a new generation of travelers, helping them to learn more about the world, creating libraries and developing JI’s staff.

"What I really love is helping participants gain new insights about themselves and the world," Robin said. "Even we gain new clarity with every trip. It helps us broaden our views in such powerful ways. The transformative possibilities keep me going."

Since they formed Journeys International in 1978, the Webers have crossed many oceans and many bridges — the literal and metaphorical kinds. Business suffered following the events of 9/11, which grounded flights and had travelers asking for their deposits back.

For a long time, people made travel arrangements on short notice; today, they book a year in advance, says Joan.

"It took a couple years before people regained their confidence in traveling," said Will.

Still, there’s the challenge of convincing people that some places are not as bad as what they see on the news.

"Bad experiences can happen anywhere, but when you’re in a destination where there’s bad news generated, it’s much worse if you’re at home watching on CNN," Will said. If they warn travelers about anything, he says, it's security-related delays at airports.

The business employs eight full-time staff members in Ann Arbor and many more abroad. Some of them will make the trip for the 35th anniversary Jamboree from Sept. 27 to 29.

"We’re approaching this Jamboree as an opportunity to show people our hometown, our wonderful autumn, the Huron River," said Joan. "We’re excited to look at Ann Arbor through a different lens."

The Webers are expecting about 40 of their guides — including Nawang Sherpa — from places including Uganda, Brazil and Turkey and another 100 or so people who’ve traveled with the company for three days of celebration.

The weekend will include storytelling at the Michigan Theatre, travel presentations at the Michigan Union, a bird walk, a photography workshop and more.

"It's a handoff, in a way," Joan said. "It's kind of a retirement celebration, but it'll be very much a cross-cultural blessing for the next generation and the future."

Adds Will: "We have a chance to return the favor of hospitality bestowed on us hundreds of times."

Then, they'll retire.

The Webers will no longer lead formal trips, but that hardly means they'll stop moving.

Will Weber, 65, is intrigued by Greenland, a place he's never been but plans to visit at some point. Joan Weber, 62, loves Central America and plans to spend time there.

But for now, Will plans to cultivate a new interest in raising native plants and an older interest in birding. He says he'll work on local and international environmental causes.

In the near future, Joan plans to unpack her memories, working with some 50,000 photos and her writings throughout the years. She'll hang out with the people who've traveled with her throughout the years, continue studying Spanish, and of course take the occasional trip, mostly in the Americas, she says.

"I'm saving most of Western Europe for when I'm very old."

Julie Edgar is a freelance writer for AnnArbor.com.

Veterans and active duty military led the way at the Glacier Area Homeowners Association Memorial Day Parade Monday morning.

Ben Freed | AnnArbor.com

The veterans were joined in the parade by two fire trucks, a police escort, the Huron High School Drum Line, local Boy and Girl Scout troops, antique cars and several city council members and candidates.

Event chair Kirk Westphal said the crowd of approximately 400 people was the largest he has seen at the march, which ended with a ceremony honoring the American flag, veterans and fallen soldiers.

“There’s documentation that the neighborhood march goes back to 1968,” he said.

“Continuously, it’s probably been running closer to 38 years. You miss a year every now and then for various reasons, but it’s a great part of being in this community.”

Ya Shiou lives on the parade route and says she hasn’t missed a parade since she moved into the area in 1973. A native of China, Shiou said her favorite part of the march is watching the neighborhood children enjoy themselves and participate in the event.

Children watched the parade pass as the prepared to join in on an array of decorated bicycles.

Ben Freed | AnnArbor.com

As the age of attendees who were polled increased, the focus turned more to the historical meaning of the holiday. Cadet Girl Scout Morgan Gallimore from Troop 41443 has attended the parade with the scouts for the last four years. She enjoys the sights and sounds, but paid special attention to the ceremony at the end of the march, which included a marching of the flag and reading of names of soldiers killed in the line of duty.

“I like marching and seeing the veterans,” she said. “We’re here because we like to respect them and honor the flag. The ceremony where we salute the flag as it goes past is an important part.”

Other attendees, like World War II veteran Staff Sgt. George Bigelow, had personal connections to those who died while serving in the American Armed Forces. Bigelow was on a ship that was torpedoed in the English Channel while bound for the Battle of the Bulge on Christmas Eve in 1944.

Bigelow said that 800 men were lost when the ship sank that night, and he had a near-death experience before he made it out alive.

Staff Sgt. George Bigalow holding a picture of himself in France nearly 70 years ago.

Ben Freed | AnnArbor.com

“That calmed me down and I was able to float peacefully up and come out of the water before I drowned.”

Once he reached the surface, Bigelow grabbed hold of the nearest piece of wood he could find and held on for dear life. Drifting in and out of consciousness, he was eventually rescued by a tugboat that had come to find survivors.

“When I woke up the next day, the Red Cross came to give me basic supplies like toothbrush and toothpaste,” he said. “That was probably the best Christmas ever.”

Bigelow said parades and marches are important for the community because remembering will become more difficult as time passes.

“It’s great for people to remember and pay tribute,” he said. “I’m the only one left of my squad and it’s important not to forget the sacrifices that were made.”

Once the ceremony concluded, many participants and observers stayed to write cards to soldiers, mingle and enjoy popsicles provided by the Ann Arbor Breakfast Optimists Club. There was also a station at the park for children to write letters that will be sent to active duty soldiers.

Ben Freed covers business for AnnArbor.com. You can sign up here to receive Business Review updates every week. Reach out to Ben at 734-623-2528 or email him at benfreed@annarbor.com. Follow him on twitter @BFreedinA2.

• Related Story: Veterans and neighbors gather to honor Memorial Day in Ann Arbor

The Glacier Area neighborhood came out in full force Monday to honor Memorial Day. More than 400 people lined the streets of the neighborhood to watch a parade and then gathered in Glacier Highlands Park for a ceremony honoring the American Flag and American soldiers killed in the line of duty.

Click on the speaker in the upper left corner for a quick listen to the bagpipes and drum line in the parade:

From babies all the way to World War II veterans, onlookers were treated to a display that included bagpipes, a drum line and antique cars.

• See images from Ypsilanti's Memorial Day Parade here.

Whether you live, work, shop, dine or travel along Washtenaw Avenue, local officials working on the ReImagine Washtenaw project say they need your input.

The first in a series of public workshops aimed at getting community feedback on options for improving the corridor between Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti is tonight from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Washtenaw County Service Center, 4135 Washtenaw Ave.

Download the poster for the workshops.

The idea is to create a safer and more inviting environment for pedestrians and bicyclists, meeting transit needs, addressing traffic congestion and land use, and creating a sense of place. Master plans, zoning ordinances and design guidelines are being updated to reflect those considerations.

Officials from the city of Ann Arbor, Pittsfield Township, Ypsilanti Township and the city of Ypsilanti are working with urban design and transportation consultants.

Additional partners include the Ann Arbor Transportation Authority, Michigan Department of Transportation, Washtenaw County, Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti Regional Chamber of Commerce and the Washtenaw Area Transportation Study.

More information can be found on the project website at http://www.washtenawavenue.org, on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ReImagineWashtenaw or by contacting project manager Nathan Voght at voghtn@ewashtenaw.org or 734-222-3860.

After tonight's first public workshop, a second one will be held from 8-10 a.m. Wednesday at the Washtenaw County Service Center, 4135 Washtenaw Ave.

The third workshop takes place from 7-9 p.m. Thursday at Carpenter Elementary School, 4250 Central Boulevard. The fourth takes place from 2-4 p.m. Friday at Eastern Michigan University inside Room 330 of the McKenny Union located where Washtenaw Avenue meets Cross Street.

Ryan J. Stanton covers government and politics for AnnArbor.com. Reach him at ryanstanton@annarbor.com or 734-623-2529. You also can follow him on Twitter or subscribe to AnnArbor.com's email newsletters.

Electric scooters made by Pittsfield Township-based Current Motor Co. are gaining popularity in South America, where the company has focused on expanding its sales base, according to a report in Concentrate Media.

Terry Richards, Current Motor's director of electric vehicle technology, takes Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority Director Susan Pollay for a spin at the unveiling of the electric vehicle charging stations in the Forest Avenue parking structure.

Ryan J. Stanton | AnnArbor.com

According to the report in Concentrate, the company is attempting to hit a “break-even point” by selling 500 scooters in the next year in South America and the United States. The company has a team of 12 people and is looking to raise a Series B round between $5 million and $10 million in early 2014.

Read the story from Concentrate.

Ben Freed covers business for AnnArbor.com. You can sign up here to receive Business Review updates every week. Reach out to Ben at 734-623-2528 or email him at benfreed@annarbor.com. Follow him on twitter @BFreedinA2.

The former Borders headquarters will be known as Wickfield Center according to managing director Brad Hayosh.

Photo by Lon Horwedel | AnnArbor.com file photo

According to the Washtenaw County Register of Deeds, Ann Arbor-based Wickfield Phoenix LLC now owns the property. Managing director Brad Hayosh said he purchased the property February 6 for approximately $6 million, slightly less than the listed price.

Official figures on the sale have not been processed by the City of Ann Arbor, but the most recent assessment on the property was for $3.34 million, making the approximate market value $6.68 million.

Hayosh said the property is still being redeveloped, with a new central lobby set for completion within the next couple of weeks.

“We’re going to call it the Wickfield Center,” Hayosh said.

“I went to school at the University of Michigan and the first house I lived on was on Wickfield Court, so that’s where the name comes from.”

The first business to move into the re-done space will be Gold Star Mortgage. The Ann Arbor-based company is leasing 68,000 square feet with an option on an additional 32,000.

“We’re announcing about 250 new jobs in 2013,” Gold Star CEO Dan Milstein, who already employs approximately 250 people in the Ann Arbor area, said in a previous interview with AnnArbor.com. “The new office space gives us room to grow and we plan on using that.”

Through other Wickfield entities, Hayosh also manages residential properties in Lansing and the Arbor Village apartment complex in Ann Arbor.

His newly acquired space consists of two buildings, one that’s approximately 87,000 square feet and one that’s about 243,000 square feet. They were built in 1970 and renovated in 1998, and the property has more than 1,200 parking spaces.

“We’re very excited about this property,” he said. “We think it’s a great building, tremendous location, with terrific parking and we look forward to using it to bring new business into town.”

Hayosh said that in addition to Gold Star, he is in negotiation with two or three other large tenants who are interested in moving into the property. The remaining available space is listed through Colliers International.

“There’s a lot of interest from companies that are already in the area and some from further out of town,” he said. “Hopefully within the next couple of weeks we’ll have more of the leases closed and ready to go.”

Wickman Phoenix LLC purchased the property from the Modern Woodmen of America. The Woodmen, a fraternal financial services organization founded in 1883, acquired the building from Waldenbooks Properties Inc. in December 2011 for approximately $5.25 million.

According to records from the Washtenaw County Register of Deeds, a mortgage on the property worth $6.49 million is held by Colorado-based Superior Investments XIX Inc.

Ben Freed covers business for AnnArbor.com. You can sign up here to receive Business Review updates every week. Reach out to Ben at 734-623-2528 or email him at benfreed@annarbor.com. Follow him on twitter @BFreedinA2

One of two buildings left on the former Ypsi Mobile Village site that Ypsilanti Township would clear if it purchases the property.

Tom Perkins | For AnnArbor.com

“That property is second only to Liberty Square for the problems that it faced from a law enforcement standpoint,” said township attorney Doug Winters. “I think just about every prostitution sting we ran involved that park.”

Now, the township is taking a new approach to purchasing and controlling development of the commercially zoned land in an effort to spur development down the East Michigan Avenue corridor and rebuild its commercial tax base.

At its May 13 meeting, the Ypsilanti Township Board of Trustees voted unanimously to approve purchasing the 6.5-acre site at 935 E. Michigan Ave. for $47,000. It will be purchased from the Washtenaw County Treasurer’s Office in a first-of-its-kind move in the area that allows the township to acquire tax-foreclosed property for public use.

The township is claiming stabilizing its commercial tax base is the public use.

“It’s the type of property that could become a cornerstone … or is part of the gateway heading east. It could be a continuation of the rebirth of East Michigan that we are seeing in isolated pockets,” Winters told the board during a legal report at the meeting.

A Washtenaw County Circuit Court judge declared the property a public nuisance for its high levels of crime and deteriorating conditions in 2010. It took the township further litigation for a judge to order the former owner to clear most of the property - two buildings remain.

The properties’ former owner, Cormello, LLC, filed for bankruptcy after clearing it of all but two remaining buildings in 2011. Paramount Bank took the property over, but it also filed for bankruptcy, and its assets were taken over by Level One Bank.

Level One requested the FDIC allow them to abandoned the property, and it is scheduled for the next tax foreclosure auction with a minimum bid of $47,000.

The township plans to acquire the property under the “first right of approval” stipulation that allows municipalities have first shot at a tax foreclosed property if it can prove that it is being acquired for public use.

The township is contending that it claim the property because rebuilding the commercial tax base is a public purpose.

Winters said the township’s commercial taxable value has dropped by 21.2 percent or $52,552,647 since 2007.

“We have lost so much of our commercial tax base in the last five years,” Winters said. “Between the decline in our commercial and industrial tax base, we have taken some big blows. And while we are seeing signs of rebirth, the commercial tax base needs to be stabilized.”

“First right of refusal” was previously used when the township claimed two residential homes for the purpose of neighborhood stabilization, but it has never been tried on a commercial property. But Winters said there is clear legal precedence.

“I think there are some questions about whether we can do this with commercial properties, but it’s all about re-establishing our commercial tax base,” Clerk Karen Roe said. “We could get those buildings down and we will be able to work with certain developers, and we can say ‘Yes, we like that development’ or “No, we don’t like that development’, and that’s absolutely crucial to the redevelopment of that corridor.”

In the corridor, the township has completed numerous blight abatement projects, demolished around a dozen deteriorating buildings, seen the renovation of several businesses and heralded the arrival of a new Taco Bell. Several new developments are in the works.

Township Planning coordinator Joe Lawson said the area is targeted for improvements that will make it more pedestrian friendly as part of the upcoming master plan revision.

Township Supervisor Brenda Stumbo highlighted the resources the township and Washtenaw County Sheriff’s Department spent on cleaning up Ypsi Mobile Village.

“We invested a lot of dollars there,” she said. “And there’s a first time for everything.

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Tom Perkins is a freelance reporter. Contact the AnnArbor.com news desk at news@annarbor.com.

The intersection at West Michigan Avenue and Carpenter Road in Pittsfield Township has been ranked Washtenaw County's most dangerous intersection.

Courtney Sacco I AnnArbor.com

An intersection’s rank is determined by two factors - crash rate and total crashes.

The ranks are based on statistics from 2009 to 2011, which is the most recent accident data the Michigan State Police has released.

Washtenaw County Road Commission director Roy Townsend said the data helps the agency determine which intersections might need safety improvements and deserve closer attention from road officials.

The Road Commission also examines the type of accidents at each intersection. That provides insight as to what issue might be causing crashes.

Officials say Carpenter is especially busy because there are few north-south roads that run the span of the county’s populated areas.

Courtney Sacco | AnnArbor.com

Road Commission officials noticed that there were a significant number of accidents caused by cars turning left out of driveways near the busy intersection. The agency applied for federal safety grants and received funding to install narrow safety medians in the center of the road that will prevent left turns out of driveways near the intersection.

“Turning right in and right out is the safest thing, so when people turn left in and out and cross three to five lanes of traffic, that’s where you don’t see a car coming,” Townsend said, adding that today’s safety standards wouldn’t allow that many driveways built so close to the intersection.

Each year, the Road Commission applies for up to five safety grants, but competes with other road commissions and governments statewide. Some years it won’t receive any extra funds, and in other years it receives funding for up to three projects.

Five of the top 10 intersections on the list are in Pittsfield Township and five are in the Washtenaw and Carpenter corridors. Townsend said that Carpenter is especially busy because there are few north-south roads that run the span of the county’s populated areas.

Whittaker Road turns into Huron Street and eventually Huron River Drive before curving west in Ypsilanti. Hewitt and Golfside Roads both end.

“That pushes a lot of traffic onto Carpenter,” Townsend said.

Likewise, Washtenaw and Packard are the two main direct thoroughfares between Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti, the county’s two population centers. That means intersections in those areas also see the highest traffic counts in the county and those statistics nearly correlate to the dangerous intersections list.

High traffic volumes lead to delays and that leads motorists to take more chances, Townsend said.

“There is a high volume of traffic at some intersections period. So there is more delay and people have a tendency to take more chances,” he said. “You just have to keep looking at the intersections and hopefully find a way to reduce delay, and try to figure out what things you can do to improve to safety.”

For example, last year, the Road Commission added an additional right turn lane on westbound Washtenaw just before the Hogback-Carpenter intersection, which helped reduce delays.

Other safety projects scheduled over the next several years include the addition of a center left turn lane on Rawsonville at Martz Roads. Turn lanes will be added at the intersection of Curtis and Plymouth roads.

The shoulder will be paved and widened at Carpenter and Bemis where the road curves on Carpenter and a high number of cars are driving off the road. And there is a realignment project scheduled for the intersection of East Austin and Eisman roads.

“We continue to monitor the roads (countywide) and apply for safety funds,” Townsend said.

• Download the entire list of intersection crash totals:
• 2011WashtenawCounty_IntersectionCrashes.pdf

Aventura will open at 212-216 E. Washington St. in downtown Ann Arbor. The Spanish tapas restaurant and bar is opening in the former Mahek Indian eatery as well as the neighboring building.

Melanie Maxwell | AnnArbor.com

Using food ingredients like padron peppers, Marcona almonds, olives, dates, boquerones, saffron, octopus, Manchego cheese and honey, Lelcaj hopes aventura’s small plates-style menu will bring something new and unique to Ann Arbor.

Ann Arbor restaurateur Sava Lelcaj's latest venture is aventura, which is a short ways from her businesses babo market and Sava's Restaurant.

Melanie Maxwell | AnnArbor.com

Lelcaj is opening aventura at 212-216 E. Washington St., just down the street from her existing babo market and Sava’s Restaurant. She signed a lease in February to take over the former Mahek Indian restaurant space, and purchased the neighboring building to create a multi-level restaurant with an outdoor deck.

The space, which is roughly 6,500 square feet on the first floor, has been gutted and Lelcaj hopes to start construction in the coming weeks and open aventura in September.

Plans include: a 36-seat bar that wraps around the middle of the buildings, a high-top seating area, a dining room with booths, a mosaic tile wall, a kitchen for cold foods upstairs and an open kitchen downstairs, an “intimate” cocktaileria lounge in the basement, a wine cellar, and a raised outdoor deck behind the buildings.

“This is such an adventure to us,” Lelcaj said. “We’re building these rooms that are so connected but so different. It’s just really fun because there are so many things happening in one building.”

Lelcaj hired a chef, who is experimenting with ingredients to create a menu. Lelcaj said it will be mostly Spanish tapas — some with an American twist — but the menu might also include some larger dishes that are meant to be shared. There will be a variety of pinchos, which are popular appetizers in Spain served on bread.

“Our chef, for us to sample, made one with herbed goat cheese, a pickled red pepper and a little drizzle of honey,” Lelcaj said. “It’s really simple, but you can really be creative. They make for fun spreads that people can share.”

Added Chene Peña, aventura’s creative director: “We’re really inspired by the flavor of foods. Boquerones on things add a little saltiness, and padron peppers, once paired with certain things, completely change the flavor.”

The restaurant will also offer a variety of homemade Spanish cocktails and a Spanish wine list.

Peña, who spent time living in Spain, said friendly service and a community-focused atmosphere will be important at aventura.

“We did love how friendly everyone was in Spain, especially in restaurants where it feels like they know you,” he said.

Lelcaj entered the Ann Arbor dining scene in 2007, when she opened Sava’s State Street Cafe in a small second floor space on South State Street. After expanding Sava's and then opening babo market, Lelcaj said she was ready for her next challenge.

“As a company, we were ready to do something else. …I think (aventura) fits in because this is just a little more mature. I feel like (each business) has its own personality, but they’re all so connected.”

Lelcaj and Peña have started hiring and training an aventura management team, and they will hire additional wait staff this summer.

Lizzy Alfs is a business reporter for AnnArbor.com. Reach her at 734-623-2584 or email her at lizzyalfs@annarbor.com. Follow her on Twitter at http://twitter.com/lizzyalfs.

Satori Shakoor

A press release has all the details.

The event will feature the talents of storytellers La’Ron Williams, Yvonne Healy, Judy Sima, and sisters Maya and Brooke Solomon. Jessica “Decky” Alexander and Martez Gibbs will share the stories of past SAC clients.

The event will be held at the Performance Network in downtown Ann Arbor (120 E. Huron St.) on Sunday, June 2 from 6-8 p.m. Tickets are $25 ($15 for those with a student ID) and $50 to also attend the “Milk and Cookies Storyteller Reception,” featuring Zingerman’s goodies.

Student Advocacy Center is the only independent organization providing free, non-legal advocacy for students in both general and special education. SAC has been advocating for students since 1975 through individual case advoacy, technical assistance and educational support. SAC works to ensure Michigan’s most vulnerable students stay in school and realize their right to a quality public education.

“SAC is deeply committed to helping the students who need it the most - students in foster care, students with mental illness or a learning disability, students struggling with disciplinary issues and those thinking about dropping out,” said SAC Executive Director Peri Stone-Palmquist. “Education is key for these students and we are thrilled to share some of their stories.”

To purchase tickets or learn more about the event (including sponsors and storyteller bios), please visit http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/372215 or call 1-800-838-3006.

Jenn McKee is an entertainment reporter for AnnArbor.com. Reach her at jennmckee@annarbor.com or 734-623-2546, and follow her on Twitter @jennmckee.

The Ann Arbor area could be in for a stormy week, the National Weather Service says, with a chance of showers and thunderstorms every day but Thursday. There’s a slight chance some of those storms could be severe Tuesday, with the greatest risk between 2 and 10 p.m.

A National Weather Service radar image shows thunderstorms moving across the state.

At 7:42 a.m., National Weather Service radar showed a long line of thunderstorms moving through the state, including Washtenaw County.

Multiple rounds of thunderstorms are also possible in the area Wednesday through Sunday as a warm and humid air mass settles over the region, the weather service said.

Forecasters said the chance for rain Tuesday and Tuesday night was 70 percent, with a high of 77 expected.

Wednesday, scattered showers and thunderstorms are possible. It will be cloudy with gradual clearing until skies become mostly sunny. It will be warm with a high near 85. The chance for rain is 30 percent.

Thursday will be mostly sunny with a high near 87.

The chance for showers and thunderstorms returns after 9 a.m. Friday. It will be partly sunny with a high near 83.

Showers and thunderstorms are likely over the weekend with highs in the 70s. Sunshine returns Monday with a high near 72 expected.

For updated forecasts and conditions anytime, check AnnArbor.com's weather page.

Ypsilanti police are investigating a home invasion reported Monday morning in which electronics were stolen.

Investigators responded at 5:30 a.m. Monday to the 10 block of Wallace Boulevard after being notified of the break-in. Police said an unknown suspect entered the home through a window.

Once inside, the thief swiped multiple electronics items from the home. Police did not release a detailed list of stolen items.

There was no suspect description available in the case Tuesday morning.

Anyone with information on this incident is encouraged to call the Ypsilanti Police Department at 734-483-9510 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-SPEAK UP (773-2587).

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Kyle Feldscher covers cops and courts for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at kylefeldscher@annarbor.com or you can follow him on Twitter.

Ann Arbor resident Maurice Archerbreak dances in front of a crowd at last year's African American Downtown Festival in Ann Arbor.

Jeffrey Smith | AnnArbor.com fie photo

And that’s what takes place when rain happens to fall during the annual, all-day African American Downtown Festival. This year's event takes place on Saturday, June 1, from 8 a.m.-9 p.m. in the area around North Fourth Avenue and Ann Street in Ann Arbor.

“(Attendees) do not leave,” said AADF event coordinator Teesha Montague. “They do not leave. They may duck under one of the nearby stores’ awnings, or go into the stores for a while, but they do not leave. It’s amazing.”

The festival’s location lies at the heart of what was, at the middle of the 20th century, Ann Arbor’s African American business district, and the late Lucille Porter—who founded the festival in 1996—wanted to commemorate and celebrate this aspect of the city’s cultural heritage with a splashy, fun annual event that would remind locals of the neighborhood’s history.

And while the festival might celebrate African Americans’ life, history and culture in Ann Arbor, AADF intends to—and always does—draw a broad range of people.

“You see people of all religions, all colors, all ages,” said Montague. “And I love to see that—all these different people coming together and just having a good time.”

Jenn McKee is an entertainment reporter for AnnArbor.com. Reach her at jennmckee@annarbor.com or 734-623-2546, and follow her on Twitter @jennmckee.