End of the Party?

continued

Sturgis also supports the mayor's current favorite initiatives: "We should want a [train] transit station and the four-way transportation agreement [for a countywide transit system], and cutting the DDA [Downtown Development Authority] is wrong."

Hieftje hasn't endorsed Sturgis, but incumbent Sandi Smith and three other previous Ward 1 council members have. Kailasapathy is backed by Second Ward council member Jane Lumm, as well as former Fifth Ward candidate Lou Glorie and current Fourth Ward candidate Jack Eaton--all council party critics.

Ward 2: Derezinski vs. Petersen

Two-term Ward 2 incumbent Tony Derezinski calls the current budget "a good compromise among competing interests. We were able to come to consensus though there was pressure on every dollar in the $80 million general fund budget." Consensus but not unanimity: Mike Anglin and Jane Lumm voted against the budget, Lumm after council defeated her amendment to add ten more cops.

Derezinski also likes the mayor. "Look at how Ann Arbor has done in the last ten years," says the former state senator. "We're one of the best places to retire in the nation, with one of the best downtowns. This does not happen by accident, and John Hieftje bears some of the responsibility and praise for that."