International Village, the final chapter

Remember how, back in October, Ypsi City Council voted unanimously to pursue a formal investigation into the circumstances surrounding a trip to China taken by elected officials and City staff? Well, the investigation, which was conducted by Edward Plato of The Plato Law Firm, has now been concluded, and you can read all about the findings in today’s Detroit Metro Times. As I’m already falling asleep, I’m afraid I’m not going to be able to offer much in the way of insight at the moment, but, for those of you who would like to go deeper after having read the Metro Times piece, I do have scans of both Plato’s synopsis and timeline to share…. Here, in case anyone still needs the context, is a brief overview of the scandal that I first shared some months ago, followed by an excerpt from the Plato report.

The Background…

At some point this past fall, Troy-based, Chinese-American developer Amy Xue Foster, after making a formal bid to purchase approximately 37 acres of Ypsilanti’s Water Street property, offered to take a local delegation to China, ostensibly to discuss Chinese architecture, help sell the idea of an Ypsilanti development to Chinese investors, and meet the other members of the development team who would be helping to bring her vision for a 1,600 unit “International Village” to reality. This offer, according to a May 24 email by City Attorney John Barr, as reported by the Detroit Metro Times, would have been both unethical and illegal under City statue. “Members of City Council have traveled overseas in the past, but only at their own cost,” Barr’s email stated. “If a city employee or mayor or council member wanted to go to China, it would be OK if they paid for it themselves, but if the developer paid, it would be unethical and illegal under the City code.” Council Member Dan Vogt, according to the Metro Times, then wrote in response, “I agree it would not be ethical if they or someone on their behalf paid. I also am not clear why it would be useful.”

Fortunately for the developer, and the four individuals who would be taking the trip to China, though, an alternate source of funding emerged. On September 11, Ypsilanti Economic Development Director Beth Ernat sent an email to members of City Council, alerting them to the fact that the Wayne State University Chinese Student and Scholar Association (CSSA) had come forward with the funds necessary to send the entire Ypsilanti delegation to China. This, as you might imagine, raised quite a few questions, as it didn’t seem to make much sense that a student group would have that kind of money, or, more to the point, an interest in the redevelopment of an Ypsilanti brownfield, but the tickets were purchased and Mayor Amanda Edmonds, Mayor Pro Tem Nicole Brown, Police Chief Tony DeGiusti, and Economic Development Director Beth Ernat left for Beijing ten days later. [They left on September 21, and return on October 2.]

Then, while in China, the Metro Times published a story in which a representative of the Wayne State University Chinese Student and Scholar Association, through a WSU press officer, confirmed that the money used to fund the trip wasn’t actually theirs, as had been reported, but had been given to them by a representative of Amy Xue Foster’s development company. In response, members of the Ypsilanti delegation in China, communicating through City Manager Darwin McClary, who had not gone on the trip, said that the funds, while they might have passed through the hands of the developer, in fact originated with the Chinese consulate in Chicago. This, according to Edmonds, was something that she had actually been made aware of prior to having left for the trip, but, for various reasons, hadn’t shared with either the other members of City Council or the John Barr, the city’s attorney.

But that wasn’t the end of the story. In a follow-up article, the Metro Times reported that, according to a representative of the Chinese consulate in Chicago, they were not involved in the funding of the trip, and never sent money, either through Xue Foster’s company, or directly, to the student group at Wayne State. This, as you can imagine, left many of us thinking that the developer, in all likelihood, had sought to fund the trip herself, in violation of the City ethics rules that had been explained to her, first obscuring her role in funding the trip by funneling the money through the student group, and, then, when discovered, claiming that the money had actually been from the consulate. And, this, for what it’s worth, appears, at least based on what has been said since, to be the unanimous opinion of those on Council who did not go on the trip.

From the Plato report…

Where all of this leaves us…

As for the fallout from all of this, it was reported late last week that the employment contract for City Economic Development Director Beth Ernat would not be renewed. Furthermore, Mayor Amanda Edmonds has made it known that she would not be seeking reelection. And, of course, the development plans for International Village, which, in my opinion, was a terrible idea from the start, are dead. There is, no doubt, much more that could be said, but, like I mentioned at the beginning of this post, I require sleep.

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54 Comments

  1. Demetrius
    Posted April 10, 2018 at 6:43 am | Permalink

    Many thanks to Tom Perkins and the Metro Times for this important, and well-done piece of investigative journalism.

    As discussed in the recent story/discussion regarding the continuing bloodletting at MLive … articles like this underscore exactly why real reporting, and real journalism are so important, and so valuable.

  2. wobblie
    Posted April 10, 2018 at 8:42 am | Permalink

    The metro times and Perkins are about the last truly investigative journalism left in the state. The MLive should die and maybe the space left vacant would be filled by a true journalistic web site. The Free Press and the News don’t qualify.

  3. Jcp2
    Posted April 10, 2018 at 10:17 am | Permalink

    Saved by incompetence revealed by good reporting.

    “Though the report exposes the city officials’ and developers’ ineptitude, it’s not hard to see this playing out differently in more competent hands, or in the absence of strong local media.”

  4. Quinn Phillips
    Posted April 10, 2018 at 10:24 am | Permalink

    In your blog post where you raised concerns about IV you repeatedly called the developer “credible”. There were never any actual developers on the project, which DAY had proved months before the Plato Law investigation wrapped up (Amy Xue Foster’s CV is still up on DAY’s site). So now that most of the truth has come out will you take a stand on what city council needs to do to make this right to the citizens? Do you think it’s enough to not renew Ernat’s contract?

  5. Rob Rassa
    Posted April 10, 2018 at 10:48 am | Permalink

    Since John Barr said that accepting money from the developer for the trip would be ILLEGAL, does this mean that charges are going to be filed against BEth Ernat and anyone else that knew where the money really came from? Plato law indicated that it is likely that Mayor Edmonds also knew.

    And I am still confused about exactly who told DArwin McClary that the funds were from the Chinese Consulate. Where are those emails? Did Darwin really not know more about this? He is Beth’s boss.

    I am very disappointed in all of our city council and city officials except Lois Richardson from Ward 1. She is the only one who saw thru the charade of International Village and voted NO on the Purchase Agreement. Our city officials and city council almost sold us out to a really shady developer. If citizens hadn’t spoken up, WHERE WOULD WE BE NOW?

    If Defend Affordable Ypsi and Free Ypsi and The Ypsilanti Tenants Union hadn’t taken such a strong stance on this and gotten the word out, NO ONE WOULD HAVE KNOWN WHAT WAS GOING ON. Yet none of the articles on this even mention these groups or the other hundreds of citizens that spoke up.

    All of our City Council and City officials that were in favor of International Village should resign from office. None of them did the proper research into the developer or the EB-5 program. None of them listened to the citizens. They didn’t even INFORM the citizens of what was going on. We need all new people running this city (except Lois).

    Tom Perkins is spectacular. Someone should give him an honorary key to the city. He also deserves a PUlitzer Prize.

  6. Misha
    Posted April 10, 2018 at 11:00 am | Permalink

    What I still don’t understand, and no one is addressing (that I know of), is why, if the city had already approved a letter of intent, did city officials need to go to China? Why did Foster want to send them, and was it her idea or the city officials’ idea? Cuz it seems like a non-sequitur to me:
    “Hey, I’d like to buy this sh*tty land and build a Chinatown on it”
    “Sounds good, lets start a process to move forward”
    “Let me send you to China so you know what it’ll be like”

  7. Anonymous
    Posted April 10, 2018 at 11:11 am | Permalink

    Quinn, when you say that Mark repeatedly called Amy Xu Foster “credible”, what are you referring to? I don’t remember that at all.

  8. Quinn Phillips
    Posted April 10, 2018 at 12:26 pm | Permalink

    Anonymous, Mark linked to this post http://markmaynard.com/2017/09/international-village/

    “And, lastly, I probably haven’t spoken up until now because I actually like members of our Planning Department and City Council, and I sympathize with them. As Councilman Vogt pointed out last night, it’s not easy to say “no” to a credible developer, especially when the citizens of Ypsilanti, in good faith, just voted to raise taxes on themselves to pay the debt associated with Water Street, with the understanding that our elected officials would do their best to bring in a developer as soon as possible, and terminate said millage.”

    “And I do think, in the case of International Village, we can do better… Maybe, however, that’s with these same developers. It seems to me that they, after all, have assembled a credible team.”

    So yes, Mark expressed reservations after huge public outcry. I commend him for doing so, but it’s disingenuous to say he was opposed to it from the beginning. He was skeptical and concerned about IV which he only started publicly expressing after the council voted to move forward with the purchase agreement.

  9. Kim
    Posted April 10, 2018 at 12:55 pm | Permalink

    The individuals of DAY deserve credit for staying with the story and drawing attention to it. In the end, though, their concerns, which were primarily about gentrification, weren’t what made this a bad project. The moral of this story isn’t that big developments are bad, it’s that bad developers are bad.

  10. NotTodaySatan
    Posted April 10, 2018 at 1:01 pm | Permalink

    “The individuals of DAY deserve credit for staying with the story and drawing attention to it. In the end, though, their concerns, which were primarily about gentrification, weren’t what made this a bad project. The moral of this story isn’t that big developments are bad, it’s that bad developers are bad.”

    Not today, Satan

  11. Quinn Phillips
    Posted April 10, 2018 at 1:08 pm | Permalink

    Kim,

    I think that since some DAY folks are involved with the city Planning Commission’s citizen’s subcommittee on housing affordability (or whatever that’s called) and involved with the process of drafting and revising a Community Benefits Ordinance it’s safe to say not all are opposed to development. I think even “good developers” can create developments with unintended consequences for the community.

  12. wobblie
    Posted April 10, 2018 at 2:28 pm | Permalink

    Water Street will remain undeveloped. No one will ever want to take on the environmental clean up. How about a solar farm with some wind turbines.

  13. teacherpatti
    Posted April 10, 2018 at 4:22 pm | Permalink

    I’m with Misha on this one. I don’t get it either.

    Also but for this whole mess, would the deal have gone through? Maybe no one can answer that but it seems like it was on track for approval.

  14. Quinn Phillips
    Posted April 10, 2018 at 5:52 pm | Permalink

    Patti,

    By deal do you mean International Village? It was on track for approval but fell apart when Spence Brothers construction and Chinese investors started pulling out. They jumped ship when they found out Amy Xue Foster has no experience and the project had no actual developers. Beth Ernat claimed she didn’t know the International Village LLC. team had no developers until she was in China. Ernat stated so at the City Council meeting where she presented the slide show of photos from the trip, I believe.

  15. Quinn Phillips
    Posted April 10, 2018 at 5:52 pm | Permalink

    Patti,

    By deal do you mean International Village? It was on track for approval but fell apart when Spence Brothers construction and Chinese investors started pulling out. They jumped ship when they found out Amy Xue Foster has no experience and the project had no actual developers. Beth Ernat claimed she didn’t know the International Village LLC. team had no developers until she was in China. Ernat stated so at the City Council meeting where she presented the slide show of photos from the trip, I believe.

  16. dignitee
    Posted April 10, 2018 at 7:51 pm | Permalink

    IV was caca through and through

  17. JM
    Posted April 10, 2018 at 7:55 pm | Permalink

    Just re-affirms my position that if a major development ever approaches Ypsilanti about Water Street again, they need to contract the city work (developer, legal, financial review) to a third party who knows what they’re doing, as no one in our city government or administration is remotely capable of handling such major transactions.

  18. dignitee
    Posted April 10, 2018 at 9:12 pm | Permalink

    Kim’s analysis is caca through and through. DAY hated everything about IV, including AXF and Ernat’s corruption. Kim is just a fragile YIMBY.

  19. Iron Lung 2
    Posted April 11, 2018 at 6:21 am | Permalink

    Ypsilanti’s motto should be:

    “Don’t build anything here ever.”

    DBAHE.

  20. Jean Henry
    Posted April 11, 2018 at 7:23 am | Permalink

    Is anybody else tired of hearing people supposedly on the left use the social media rhetoric propagated by the alt right on 4chan and reddit and picked up by Fox Newd used to degrade and dismiss differing perspectives on the left?

    And yet when legitimate critique is brought forward, those same people lose their shit and declare their position inviolable.

    DAY did important work and deserve more credit than the metro times (which just wrote up and followed up on leads fed by DAY) for uncovering the malfeasance around IV, but the whole 7th grade Queen bee snark is tiresome and degraded the other work. It’s also a severe limiting factor on their effectiveness going forward. And it’s not just white liberals who think that.

    Take us seriously or we’ll call you names.
    We insist on being heard so we’re going to speak for the marginalized by yelling louder than you or them. And we’ll call you self-centering if you point it out. Because we’re marginally marginalized but a lot entitled.

    Not going to work. Boring too.

  21. Jean Henry
    Posted April 11, 2018 at 7:41 am | Permalink

    On the other hand, anyone waiting for Mark to take a strong position against or even openly critical of local powers that be in the little hamlet of Ypsilanti is going to be waiting a very very, excruciatingly long time. He’ll do it after there is no other position to take and community consensus has been reached. He’ll sometimes (sometimes…) ask necessary questions, but he’s not going to take a public stance when there is ANY risk of social capital. I’m not judging the calculus Mark is making in his considerable restraint re local critique (especially in contrast to his tendency towards jumping the gun on the GOP etc); he’s a person who gets things done. (I should be so wise.)But it’s a notable tendency.

  22. Demetrius
    Posted April 11, 2018 at 8:50 am | Permalink

    Or … perhaps Mark understands very well that his role as a community leader stems not from taking “strong positions” or “public stances,” on contentious (and often “no-win”) local issues – but from being a reliable source when it comes to important local information, and by providing a mostly neutral forum (MM.com) that fosters robust discussion and debate.

  23. Pete Murdock on Facebook
    Posted April 11, 2018 at 9:16 am | Permalink

    FYI – CHINA TRIP INVESTIGATION COSTS
    $ 12,765.34 74.50 Hours

  24. Jean Henry
    Posted April 11, 2018 at 9:26 am | Permalink

    Demetrius– Agreed. I was responding to Quinn’s question: “So now that most of the truth has come out will you take a stand on what city council needs to do to make this right to the citizens?” I mostly appreciate Mark’s neutrality and wait and see approach. I would prefer more analysis, but analysis of these situations is often seen as divisive, rather than inquiring. And there is a noticeable hesitation to report on these situations until they are already well developed. I don’t believe that serves the community, some big chunk of which relies on this site for in-depth coverage of local issues. That may be too much to ask of an unfunded local blog, but it’s inevitable, given the absence of local news coverage except when, as in the case of IV, it speaks to a larger fraught political dynamic.

  25. EOS
    Posted April 11, 2018 at 10:29 am | Permalink

    So what is the process in the city? Can the Mayor and Mayor Pro Tem be removed from office due to ethics violations? How about the Police Chief? Did the costly investigation include other city funds under the control of these individual? Other non-profits in which they control funds?

  26. Lynne
    Posted April 11, 2018 at 10:41 am | Permalink

    *shrug* I dont know what it was about Kim’s opinion that is drawing such ire. Oh well. I guess I dont care but will point out that the responses of “dignitee” have left me questioning if such a person should be taken seriously or dismissed like those of the likes of our old friend Hyperion Warlord?

  27. Posted April 11, 2018 at 3:21 pm | Permalink

    Y’all see this?

    https://www.metrotimes.com/news-hits/archives/2018/04/11/investigator-turn-chinatown-scandal-investigation-over-to-prosecutors-office

    Shit is getting real…

  28. Posted April 11, 2018 at 3:22 pm | Permalink

    Y’all see this?

    https://www.metrotimes.com/news-hits/archives/2018/04/11/investigator-turn-chinatown-scandal-investigation-over-to-prosecutors-office

    Shit is getting real…

  29. Posted April 11, 2018 at 5:56 pm | Permalink

    Apparently, when I wrote in this post that I thought International Village “was a terrible idea from the start,” I rubbed some people the wrong way. It would seem they interpreted that as a declaration on my part that I had been publicly against the development from the start, which, admittedly, I was not. As I’ve tried to articulate on this site, while I had serious concerns about the project from the beginning, I had tried to keep an open mind, balancing the city’s needs (increasing the tax base in order to avoid receivorship, dealing with the remediation of Water Street, etc) against my own uneasiness, which continued to grow as I discussed the issue at length with Tom Perkins, people in the economic development world, and a developer friend who, as luck would have it, knew Xu Foster. And, when I felt that the time had come to say something, I said it. It wasn’t, as some had suggested, that I waited until the political winds were shifting, and jumped on to ride the wave of righteous indignation. I’m neither that smart, nor that calculating. And, to be honest, I don’t care all that much about being on the winning side. (I’ve been on the losing side of quite a few fights.) What I do care about, though, is Water Street. I’ve spent a good deal of my life on the site, and I take discussions about it very seriously, as I think, to some extent, how we approach it could dictate the very future of Ypsilanti. So I tried to be thoughtful about it, and, when I thought that I had something to say, I said it. And I tried to do so respectfully, acknowledging the complexity of the situation, etc. Others clearly took a different approach, and, judging from comments that have been brought to my attention, they feel as though I should have been more decisive in my condemnation. I get that. A lot of people, over the past 15 years, have expressed their views as to what I should be writing about on this site, the causes I should be championing, the events I should be promoting, etc. And I’m sure, when I eventually retire from the blogging game, I’ll look back and agree with some of them. On the whole, though, I think I do a pretty good job of expressing my views in such a way as to build consensus around things that I believe in. And, for the most part, I think I do so without alienating most people. I’m here for the long term. I’m not looking to burn everything down. I’m more inclined to pick my battles, look for opportunities to make positive change, and do it all in such a way that I can still feel somewhat good about myself and my place in this community. And I’m OK with that.

  30. NotTodaySatan
    Posted April 12, 2018 at 9:49 am | Permalink

    Mark Maynard (June 14, 2017)

    ‘And we’re especially thankful for the efforts of Beth Ernat at the City, and Joe Meyers at the DDA for not only walking us through the various processes, but being available for us night and day as we encountered issues with the redevelopment of 209 Pearl. [I won’t get into it here, but there were a lot of issues that we had to work through.] Beth especially has gone above and beyond to make Landline Creative Labs a reality, and we can’t say enough about how great she’s been to work with.’

    http://markmaynard.com/2017/06/a-big-thank-you-to-everyone-who-had-a-hand-in-launching-landline-creative-labs/

  31. Kim
    Posted April 12, 2018 at 10:13 am | Permalink

    Are you suggesting that Mark held off in his criticism because Ernat had provided help to him in the past as the city’s economic development director?

  32. Taco Farts
    Posted April 12, 2018 at 10:07 pm | Permalink

    A contract not being renewed is much different from a firing.

    I love how quiet Ypsi officials seem to have managed to keep all of this. It could literally have had international implications. The fact that it’s going to disappear down the memory hole is one of two things: how good at burying corruption Ypsi politicians are (well… um… that doesn’t seem to be the case), or how bad at making a stink Ypsi citizens are.

    Are you all going to let them just seal the envelope nice and tidy on this? Because that’s how you attract dirtbag politicians and have even worse things happen to your home.

  33. stinkbug
    Posted April 13, 2018 at 7:58 am | Permalink

    Taco Farts is correct: too much of Ypsi is bad a raising a stink, so bad that they derided and dismissed (and erased from the narrative) the people who organized and mobilized against the development.

  34. Jean Henry
    Posted April 13, 2018 at 9:45 am | Permalink

    Some people need a lot of attention…. Metro Times and MLive are actively covering. It’s ongoing. MM is small potatoes relative to them. The prosecution seems likely. That’s incredibly unusual. Not enough though.
    Where’s the whipping post in Ypsi? Quick! Draw this supposedly beautiful & loving community together to build one.
    Generally speaking, it’s not a reasonable expectation of public officials to thank the people who get them prosecuted and fired. And eventually, if movements don’t stay relevant or figure out how to collaborate, they fade away. That’s on DAY to overcome. It’s not about their oppression. (Christ…)

  35. Demetrius
    Posted April 13, 2018 at 10:01 am | Permalink

    It seems to me some important points are being conflated here.

    Isn’t it possible that there may be legitimate issues that need to be investigated (and possibly prosecuted) based on their own merit – regardless of who was for/against the project initially, and whether we agree/disagree with them and their tactics?

  36. Lynne
    Posted April 13, 2018 at 10:39 am | Permalink

    I think that there are legitimate issues here. I have been vocal in the past about city corruption but have been mostly silent on this one because I feel it is being adequately addressed. It has been investigated and if prosecution is warranted, I trust that will happen. If it does happen though I think the city should explore the possibility of a civil case to recover the thousands of dollars spent on the investigation. I certainly agree that there is little point in bashing those who may have been in favor of this project initially, especially if their position was to get more information before committing to it. That just seems like the responsible thing to do.

  37. stinkbombz
    Posted April 13, 2018 at 1:20 pm | Permalink

    millennials think the world revolves around them, require praise for everything they do, news at eleven

  38. Lynne
    Posted April 13, 2018 at 1:46 pm | Permalink

    stinkbombs, I dont think that is true. They don’t seem to require more praise than anyone in other generations nor do they seem more prone to self-centered thinking. It isn’t like our president, sitting on the cusp of The Silent Generation and the Babyboomers, isn’t himself an example of an older person who displays those qualities.

  39. wobblie
    Posted April 13, 2018 at 2:07 pm | Permalink

    Folks need to remember that what has been violated is a city ordinance. What is the maximum penalty? A $500 dollar fine? My neighbor regularly violated city ordinances and was regularly penalized. Hardly mattered to him, so it seemed. Just another cost of doing business. It is quit likely that if the events had unfolded in another city, it would not be worth the time and effort to cover the matter. We spent $12000 dollars approx. to demonstrate they have broken that ordinance. A civil action to recover those funds is probably appropriate. How much more of the City’s time and money should now be spent? Is the County Prosecutor at all interested? If not, perhaps because their are no major penalties that can be imposed.

  40. Demetrius
    Posted April 13, 2018 at 3:09 pm | Permalink

    MLive: Ypsilanti drops economic director after China-trip investigation

    http://www.mlive.com/business/ann-arbor/index.ssf/2018/04/investigative_report_leaves_yp.html

  41. stinkbombz
    Posted April 13, 2018 at 3:20 pm | Permalink

    i’m woking on an “i’m being erased from the narrative” meme

  42. Jean Henry
    Posted April 13, 2018 at 6:42 pm | Permalink

    It’s not a generational thing. It appears to me to be a lack of experience with civic action that’s being demonstrated. A long time ago a mentor told me “You can get a lot done if you don’t worry about who takes the credit.” And it has proven true. If you are trying to create progressive change for the validation, you will always be behind the curve or disappointed. By the time a community creates consensus about anything, they see it as obvious and the people who worked hard creating the conditions for that acceptance are rarely acknowledged. And yes, the accolades usually go to some entrenched person or institution in power who amplifies the issue (In this case, the Metro Times I guess) I know that sucks, but those people’s advocacy is very necessary to the process. At some point, you have to have the buy-in of those in power. I think DAY got a lot of credit and attention– more so than the many other groups who helped form the coalition in opposition to IV, many of whom have been active and around for a lot longer. That’s just how it works. They are Ypsi’s Parkland students. What’s interesting is that they don’t seem to realize just how much attention they got relative to others. Seasoned activists take their wins and losses and move on. I’m confident that most involved in resisting IV and uncovering the malfeasance around it have done so. Plenty of work to do.

  43. EOS
    Posted April 14, 2018 at 7:14 am | Permalink

    No, the actions of DAY was a distraction. Tom Perkins deserves the credit for exposing the criminal and unethical practices of city employees and elected officials. Darwin McClary deserves our gratitude for not covering up the problem once it became known. Council spent almost $13,000 to “investigate” what was apparent. They should have investigated it themselves and spared the unecessary expense to the taxpayers. And they should ask the Mayor to step down immediately.

  44. EOS
    Posted April 14, 2018 at 7:39 am | Permalink

    Wobblie,

    Foster, Ernat, and Edmonds could be charged under State law for bribery. Foster provided, and Ernat and Edmonds accepted what amounted to a nearly $40K bribe. It is potentially a 10 year felony, and $5K fine, and a prohibition from holding any public office, trust, or appointment in the future. They were told it was illegal and unethical and they did it anyway. Why should they not be charged?

  45. EOS
    Posted April 14, 2018 at 7:40 am | Permalink

    I’m sorry – allegedly. I only know what has been reported in the news.

  46. Jcp2
    Posted April 14, 2018 at 10:33 am | Permalink

    At least this failed attempt at development by city officials cost only tens of thousands of dollars and a few professional reputations. The last attempt cost millions of dollars with no professional repercussions. By any standard, this was a real bargain of a failure. Even doing nothing costs interest on Water Street.

  47. Jean Henry
    Posted April 14, 2018 at 10:55 am | Permalink

    EOS– Who do you think fed Tom Perkins the story and a chunk of the research?

  48. Anonymous
    Posted April 14, 2018 at 5:50 pm | Permalink

    Everyone knows that Brian Robb is Perkins’ source.

  49. Posted April 15, 2018 at 9:11 pm | Permalink

    I think I’ve stated here in the past that I appreciated what the Defend Affordable Ypsi (DAY) crew did to keep the subject of International Village in front of people. Their work was instrumental in all of this. And, again, I think I’ve said as much. I didn’t mention it here, though, in this particular post, and it seems to have upset some people, who, it would appear, feel as though they’re being ‘written out of the narrative,’ or not receiving their due credit. For what it’s worth, I also didn’t mention Tom Perkins by name in this post, even though he’s probably the person I’d most credit with getting us to this point. This was not meant to be an exhaustive post on International Village. And, more importantly, this is not a paper of record. I can see how some people might be tempted to think that, given that we no longer have a local paper, but this is just the work of one very tired person, doing the best that he can to write a bit every night after putting his kids to bed. So, if I didn’t mention you by name, I’m sorry. I’m also sorry for not writing about all of the local events I’m asked to cover every month, and for choosing to write about national politics instead of local issues that matter to Ypsilantians. Again, though, this isn’t a job for me. This is just one person using the scarce free time that he has to process those things that he’s obsessing about at any given time. And, to be honest, if I had to write about the things that people wanted me to write about, I wouldn’t have made it six months, let alone 15 years.

  50. Darwin McClary
    Posted April 15, 2018 at 11:04 pm | Permalink

    RE: Anonymous

    I’m not sure everyone really does know Brian Robb is Tom Perkins source.

    Regardless, we appreciate your comments.

    And for what it’s worth, Brian Robb *IS* Tom Perkins source.

  51. Sad
    Posted April 16, 2018 at 7:52 am | Permalink

    Dear you write about anything you want.

    Just please don’t stop.

    Don’t worry about DAY , they have their own YouTube channel. One of the upcoming events is an arm wrestling contest with one of your more vociferous commentators. I’m betting on the youngish people.

  52. Sad
    Posted April 16, 2018 at 8:08 am | Permalink

    Well we’re on the issue. Does anyone know of any interesting blogs other than this one? This one won’t last for ever, unless he is grooming the children, which coukd be interesting.

    But seriously any suggestion would be appreciated.

    I’ve tried electablog but the graphics alone make me queasy and the content makes me throw up in my mouth. Then there’s that Republican woman in Ann Arbor who pretends to be a Democrat. And Damn Arbor, but I need something more. Help?

  53. EOS
    Posted April 18, 2018 at 10:56 am | Permalink

    Not the last chapter yet. The county prosecutor recommends the city turn over the Plato report to the State Police. Maybe we’ll get some justice after all.

  54. Demetrius
    Posted May 15, 2018 at 3:22 pm | Permalink

    MLive: $50M ‘Asian Village’ to bring residential, retail, dining to Novi

    http://www.mlive.com/news/detroit/index.ssf/2018/05/50m_asian_village_development.html

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