The Ann Arbor City Council met in Larcom City Hall Thursday evening to approve a resolution calling for a bilateral cease-fire in Gaza, discuss the recent cancellation of the request for proposal of an unarmed crisis response team and consider the sale of 404 N. Ashley St. to the Ann Arbor Housing Development Commission.
The meeting had a public commentary period during which almost 90 community members spoke in favor of Resolution 23-2109 supporting a cease-fire in Gaza. The resolution, sponsored by Councilmembers Ayesha Ghazi Edwin, D-Ward 3, Erica Briggs, D-Ward 5, Linh Song, D-Ward 2 and Dharma Akmon, D-Ward 4, denounces “rising hate and discrimination in Ann Arbor” and calls for a cease-fire.
Ann Arbor resident Omar Abdala attended the meeting and said the issue of a cease-fire is a local one despite the geographical distance.
“It’s a local issue because (as) long as the war continues, we can’t address key issues in our community that require groups to work together,” Abdala said. “We can’t do that while our people are being carpet bombed, driven from their homes, starved and murdered.”
Erin Ospina, University of Michigan clinical research technician, said U-M students would continue to fight for a cease-fire resolution if the Council did not pass it Thursday.
“If this board does not pass this resolution, we will bring all power and pressure from the student body to this council, just as we’ve done to our University administration,” Ospina said. “We have students at the University of Michigan who will … mobilize consistently and unapologetically against this board if (it does) not pass a ceasefire resolution.”
Councilmembers voted to approve the resolution following the public comment period. Ghazi Edwin said the passing of this resolution reflects the priorities of Ann Arbor community members.
“The purpose of this resolution is to call for a cease-fire and for peace,” Ghazi Edwin said. “This is not a partisan resolution. It is not anti-anyone. It’s about humanity. We have heard from people for weeks that this is a local issue and how it is different from other conflicts. The fact that this room is full says very clearly that people do experience this as a local issue.”
The announcement of the resolution’s approval prompted cheers and cries of “Free Palestine” from attendees.
The City Council then approved the sale of 404 N. Ashley St. to the Ann Arbor Housing Development Commission. The commission plans to develop the property as affordable housing, which Briggs said will take at least a year to complete.
The council also heard from Liz Kennedy, co-director of the unarmed response and community safety initiative Care-Based Safety, on the cancellation of the request for an unarmed response program. Kennedy described her frustration with the lack of transparency in the decision-making process and deviation from the city’s proposed timeline for the program, and called on the city to reopen CBS’s request.
“The decision to reject our application was made in closed session without any opportunity for us to address questions or concerns raised by city staff despite assurances from (City Administrator Milton) Dohoney that we would have a full opportunity to respond,” Kennedy said. “Our proposal was rejected without the proper dialogue.”
Councilmember Cynthia Harrison, D-Ward 1, said the city did not attempt to hide information from the public regarding the request for proposal cancellation process. While some misunderstood the cancellation to have taken place during a closed vote by City Council, the decision was instead made at the city administration level, without any vote by councilmembers. Harrison assured community members that the city will continue to move forward with plans to implement an unarmed crisis response program.
“The unarmed crisis response program is moving forward,” Harrison said. “The resolution I am offering tonight ensures that it will move forward quickly and effectively. Our community deserves nothing less.”
Rackham student Ember McCoy expressed frustration at the cancellation of the request for proposal and subsequent resolution.
“I think this resolution ignores the reality of how slow, anti-democratic and closed the processes to get a program has been,” McCoy said. “Proposals went out in August 2023 and the city took until late December to tell the one applicant that they didn’t meet the expectation without an interview, without communication and without feedback.”
After the general public commentary period, the council approved the consent agenda with a single motion, which included founding the Washtenaw Area Mutual Aid Council, a potential new public body for first responder specialty rescue teams. The new council would keep these first responders accountable to public scrutiny, but must first be approved by the governing bodies of 23 cities, townships and fire authorities.
Councilmembers then discussed Ordinance 23-2034, which would prohibit city contractors’ inquiry into job applicants’ criminal history until after a conditional offer of employment. Harrison, an ordinance co-sponsor, spoke about its importance in minimizing recidivism — or the tendency of convicted criminals to reoffend.
“When we discuss recidivism rehabilitation we often express a desire for success in those reentering society post conviction,” Harrison said. “But these good intentions are not enough. And as a city that enforces laws, we also shoulder the responsibility of aiding in that rehabilitation.”
Correction: A previous version of this article stated that over a dozen community members spoke during the public commentary period. This was in correct, as at a later portion of the meeting, around 90 community members spoke on the resolution. This article has been updated to reflect this change.
Daily Staff Reporter Amanda Pirani can be reached at amandavp@umich.edu.