Dear Fellow Paddlers and Friends of the Huron River,
The Huron River needs your immediate help. The Ann Arbor city council will be considering a sudden, unannounced dam-in resolution TOMORROW, Monday, October 19. This is a blatant effort to jam "dam-in" through council. The resolution, sponsored by council members Marcia Higgins, Stephen Rapundalo, and Sandi Smith, was just added to the council agenda. Resolution DC-4 pertains to Argo Dam and resolves to "maintain the Argo Dam and Argo Pond and directs the City Administrator to develop specific strategies to mitigate any infrastructure deficiencies with the headrace embankment to satisfy the MDEQ's requirements, and to take actions in support of this declared intent, including identifying a timetable and necessary funding sources to support the work."
At least three council members are irate that the resolution was placed on the agenda last minute, that council members weren't consulted, that the Mayor will be absent at the meeting, that council member Marcia Higgins, who sponsored the resolution, will be chairing the meeting, and by the politicized timing of resolution-- right before the election--where Marcia Higgins is being challenged by a dam-in candidate.
Despite all the noise on this issue, council has still failed to undertake a normal public process:
City Council has never held a public hearing on this issue. It canceled the hearing it had scheduled in July when the city asked the DEQ for an extension on the dam's toe drain repair.
City Council has never received a presentation on this issue from its own experts on city staff, nor had time to ask questions about and challenge evidence from either side.
Council has failed to address even the non-controversial elements of the HRIMP report, the two year study that brought the Argo question to the fore.
Council has failed to consider how the City will pay for Argo's upkeep when those costs are moved to the Parks Department budget.
Bottom line: A few members of city council are again failing to undertake a responsible public process to understand the complex issues of Argo Dam, and to force a politically expedient--for them--resolution on the citizens, completely bypassing questions of the environment and budget. Whatever your opinion about Argo Dam, this kind of political bullying needs to be stopped.
The resolution needs 6 votes to pass. It will be VERY close.
HOW PADDLERS AND FRIENDS OF THE HURON RIVER CAN HELP:
E-mail the entire city council about this resolution ASAP.
Copy these addresses into your address bar:
JHieftje@a2gov.org
ssmith@a2gov.org
Sbriere@a2gov.org
SRapundalo@a2gov.org
TDerezinski@a2gov.org
CTaylor@a2gov.org
LGreden@a2gov.org
MHiggins@a2gov.org
MTeall@a2gov.org
CHohnke@a2gov.org
MAnglin@a2gov.org
Let them know:
The city should remove Argo Dam. To help you make your case, the HRWC has produced some brand-new graphics of what the Huron River will look like when Argo Dam is gone
www.hrwc.org/argodam/argo-visions-report1.pdf
Implore the council to conduct a serious, legitimate process to gather public and staff input on the future of the Huron River. Premature votes will not improve paddling opportunities, improve the river's health, or provide an economic boost in the form of new parklands and recreational opportunities in downtown Ann Arbor.
Forward this to your paddling friends and family. We need to get more people speaking up!
For more detailed info, contact :
Jonathan E. Lutz
jonathanelutz@ gmail.com
(517) 290 - 9901
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