David Fair

In this week's installment of Issues of the Environment, WEMU's David Fair talks with Susan Pollay about development in downtown Ann Arbor and how it fits into a more sustainable future for the city. Susan Pollay is Executive Director of the Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority. 

Among the most debated issues in Ann Arbor and the Southeast Michigan region, is the matter of public transportation. What should we be working towards, what should public transit of the future look like, what elements should it contain….and of course: how do we pay for it all?  These are questions debated on a regular basis at Ann Arbor City Council, and our guest this morning is in the middle of all of it. John Hieftje is the Mayor of Ann Arbor.

There are some great movies  opening up this week! In this week's installment of Cinema Chat, WEMU's David Fair and Michigan Theater Director Russ Collins look into those. The conversation first covers some news out of Hollywood and Ann Arbor. Cinema Chat is a regular feature heard each Thursday during Morning Edition on 89.1 WEMU.

This month on 89.1 WEMU's First Friday Focus on the Environment, we we will explore  a growing threat in the region - Asian Carp. We look into its growing threat of expanding territories to the world's greatest freshwater resource, the Great Lakes.

The Executive Director of the Great Lakes Commission, Tim Eder joins us to talk about the issue and what can be done to establish a long-term solution.

Every Thursday is movie day on WEMU's Morning Edition. David Fair is  joined by The Michigan Theater Executive Director Russ Collins for the weekly feature, Cinema Chat.

Team of Monea and Cole to advance to national championship in January

See the EMU press release below:

This week, the conversation centers on recycling in Washtenaw County. Our guest  is Christine Chessler-Stull, Recycle Ann Arbor’s Outreach & Zero Waste Coordinator. 

We will explore a variety of recycle-centric topics and discuss some new programs Recycle Ann Arbor rolled out this year to benefit all Washtenaw County residents, not just those in Ann Arbor.

Listen to the full report: 

Issues of the Environment  is a regular feature, heard each Wednesday at 8:20am during Morning Edition on 89.1 WEMU. Each week, David Fair invites an expert to join him in conversation about an environmental issue of local importance. 

In a special Wednesday, holiday edition, Cinema Chat covered a lot of ground this week! WEMU's David Fair spoke with Michigan Theater Program Director Amanda Bynum about the Independent Spirit Awards, the movies "Frozen",  "Homefront", "A Christmas Story" and the Sing-a-long version of "White Christmas."

The climate is changing. The evidence is clear. It's no longer a matter of whether we need to prepare, but instead, how we need to prepare. In this week's installment of WEMU's Issues of the Environment, David Fair talks with Matt Naud. Matt is the City of Ann Arbor's Environmental  Coordinator, and has been right in the middle of the city's efforts to adopt a pro-active Climate Action Plan.

Every Thursday is movie day on WEMU's Morning Edition. David Fair is typically joined by Michigan Theater Executive Director Russ Collins for the weekly feature, Cinema Chat. Russ is away this week, so instead, David spoke with Michigan Theater Program Director Amanda Bynum! 

David and Amanda cover a lot of ground, including a movie shooting on the Eastern Michigan University Campus, the political ramifications of screening movies in the White House, and of course, discussion of the movies available to you over the coming weekend.  You can listen to the entire conversation below.

WEMU's Issues of the Environment is a weekly feature and is heard each Wednesday at 8:20am, as part of Morning Edition.

In this week's installment,  WEMU's David Fair is joined by Ypsilanti City Planner Teresa Gillotti. The city has been looking to re-purpose the 38-acre water Street property since 199, and now there is it looks as though there will be development in 2014. 

The land has required some environmental remediation, and any new development will have to meet Ypsilanti's Master Plan goals. And, of course, it must ensure the health of the Huron River. Listen below as David and Teresa look at the environmental issues surrounding Ypsilanti's Water Street property. 

In this week's installment of Issues of the Environment, WEMU's David Fair looks into the global helium shortage. 

To help us better understand helium gas, it's uses and the potential ramifications of running out of this non-renewable resource, David spoke with Eastern Michigan University Chemistry Professor Dr. Gregg Wilmes.

A year from now, the City of Ypsilanti will have a new Mayor. Paul Schreiber announced over the weekend he will not seek re-election in 2014. Schreiber was first elected mayor in 2006, and will have completed eight years in office when next November's election rolls around. In his written announcement Sunday, Schreiber said he has enjoyed his seven years as Mayor, but now it's time to step aside to allow the next Mayor to lead the city.

Today is Veterans Day. We take occasion to remember those who have served to ensure our freedom and liberty. Locally, there are a couple of events scheduled today.

The V-A Ann Arbor Healthcare System on Fuller road will host its annual Veterans Day Event today. It gets underway at 9:30 this morning and is free and open to the public.

It's a busy weekend in Washtenaw County. Among other things, both Eastern Michigan and Michigan have home football games. And, of course, there are new and returning movies available to you. 

In this week's installment of WEMU's "Cinema Chat", David Fair and Russ Collins cover your options. First, the conversation begins with the possibility the State Theater will soon morph into a different kind of business. For details, listen below, and say "good morning" to Russ Collins!
 

In this week's edition of WEMU's "Issues of the Environment", David Fair talks with Washtenaw County Water Resources Commissioner, Evan Pratt. 

This interview is a follow-up to an earlier conversation with Jennifer Lawson, Water Quality Manager for Ann Arbor, that followed the large sewage spill into the Huron River in June or 2013. Evan will address the fact that several spills have occurred since then and talk about projects that Washtenaw County is working on to update the water treatment system.

Overview

• There have been at least four breaches of the water treatment system in Ann Arbor since this summer.
• These spill have prompted concerns that Washtenaw County’s aging water treatment network and sewage system may not be robust enough to handle the demands of today’s residents.

Listen to "Issues of the Environment" with David Fair and Washtenaw County Water Resources Commissioner Evan Pratt below.

In Chelsea:

Mayor Jason Lindauer has won re-election. There will be a couple of new faces on City Council. Jim Myles will join council after winning a four year term, unseating Incumbent Dustin Suntheimer. Myles joins Incumbents Melissa Johnson and Mayor Pro-Tem Cheri Albertson in winning full terms. There were also two partial, two-year terms seats available on Chelsea City Council. Incumbent Frank Hammer and newcomer Jane Pacheco won those seats.

In Milan:

Voters in Ann Arbor's 5th ward tomorrow will have a choice of three candidates, although only one name will appear on the ballot. Incumbent Democrat Mike Anglin is seeking re-election. His name will be the only name voters see. 

But, as WEMU's David Fair reports, there are two Democratic write-in candidates seeking to pull off an upset:

Election Day is tomorrow, and in Ann Arbor's 4th ward, the outcome is just about certain. Democrat John Eaton, or Jack, as he prefers to be called, defeated current councilwoman Marcia Higgins in the August Primary, and appeared to be unopposed for the general election. 

But, as WEMU's David Fair reports, voters do have the option of a registered write-in candidate:

On the first Friday of every month, WEMU Morning Edition Host David Fair partners with Michigan League of Conservation voters Executive Director Lisa Wozniak. Together they invite a guest to spend 20-minutes discuss a topic of environmental importance. 

This month, our guest is Dan Scripps. Dan is a former State Representative and current President of the  Michigan Energy Innovation Business Council. Today's conversation centers on progress that has been made in both energy efficiency and renewable energy usage in the state, where we are going next, and how we'll get there.

Michigan's Energy Future: That's the topic on WEMU's First Friday Focus on the Environment.

Michigan Theater Executive Director Russ Collins paid his weekly visit with David Fair for this week's installment of Cinema Chat:

Ypsilanti continues to push forward with a goal of becoming a solar destination. 

What began as a grassroots effort in 2005, has progressed to the point where the Ypsilanti City Council has passed a resolution establishing a goal of having one-thousand solar roofs in the city by the year 2020. 
Our guest this week is Dave Strenski.

He launched Solar Ypsi back in 2005, and you can see the grassroots efforts successes at a variety of locations around the city.