urban planning
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Michigan’s poverty rate did not “soar 17%” from 2009 to 2014. (In fact, it was exactly the same.)
Edit 2, 12:30pm 12/5/15: lots of traffic to this post–welcome! You should also check out the comment thread on MarkMaynard.com’s discussion of this post; his readers offer a lot of good thoughts on what good reporting of these data *could* look like, and questions that could be asked. And, to be clear, my point in this post is not… Continue reading
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Letter to Ypsi Planning Commission re: Riverside neighborhood zoning
For context, Ypsilanti is in the process of a broad overhaul of its zoning ordinance, based on the new Shape Ypsi master plan. It’s long overdue–parts of the ordinance date back (as best as I can tell) to the late 1960s and early 1970s, with 40 years of cruft built on those aged foundations, making it… Continue reading
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A line in the stats: gerrymandered crime reporting
This weekend, the Ann Arbor News offered a look “behind the numbers” at crime stats in the Ypsilanti area. Their findings: crime is higher than state and national averages in the City of Ypsilanti, near or below averages in Superior Township and Ypsilanti Township. Unfortunately, the story spends a lot of ink on the numbers… Continue reading
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Ypsi as the value stock of Michigan?
It was recently suggested to me that my beloved Ypsilanti was “the most under-performing city in the state.” Hyperbole aside, they had a fair assessment: You’ve got everything you’re supposed to have: two great little downtowns, historic neighborhoods, the river and the parks along it and the festivals, you’re a college town, and you’re right… Continue reading
About Me
Michigander, parent of twins, urban planner, role-playing game nerd.
Common Monkeyflower 