Stefanie Murray, Community Director at Ann Arbor.com
Saturdays, 10:30 AM on 1290 WLBY                                                   

 

Stefanie Murray, Community Director of AnnArbor.com

Listen to this week’s AnnArbor.com Neighborhood News:     

August 28, 2010:  A professional mountain biker is seriously injured after a hit-and-run accident prompting many to question how bikers, pedestrians, and automobiles can safely co-exist on our roadways. http://www.annarbor.com/news/dexter/hit-and-run-driver-seriously-injures-bike-rider-near-dexter/index.php 

Click the link to listen to our conversation:

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AnnArbor.com       
AnnArbor.com is a digital news publication serving the Ann Arbor, MI.  Its stories are generated by reporters known as digital journalists, as well as through the use of community journalists and bloggers.  Hyperlocal neighborhood coverage is a key part of their strategy to make AnnArbor.com of, by, and for the community.                                                  

Stefanie leads AnnArbor.com’s Community Team.  She oversees community content for sections including Neighborhoods, Food & Drink, Parenting, Books, and The Deuce, as well as AnnArbor.com’s community outreach and social media efforts.  Contact Stefanie at StefanieMurray@annarbor.com.                                                  

AnnArbor.com
301 E. Liberty St.
Ann Arbor, MI  48104
734.623.2500    734.623.2500     734.623.2500     734.623.2500
www.AnnArbor.com                                                  

Previous Neighborhood News segments:    

August 21, 2010:  Punk Week is invaded by a strange gang of out-of-towners who Bandemer Park neighbors say exhibited displays of public nakedness and sex in the northwest side Ann Arbor park.  Stefanie explains who these people are and what’s behind this annual event.   Read the story here and then click the audio link below to listen to our conversation:  http://www.annarbor.com/news/eight-charged-with-resisting-officers-at-bandemere-park-remain-jailed/   

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August 14, 2010:  Flooding in Ann Arbor; Downtown Jewelry Heist http://www.annarbor.com/news/ann-arbor-police-turn-to-public-for-help-in-robbery-investigation/; The Tale of Two Bridges (From Lansdowne to Stadium) http://www.annarbor.com/neighborhoods/ann-arbor-west/residents-launch-campaign-to-save-lansdowne-bridge/; and Federal Money to Pay for Bike Lanes, http://www.annarbor.com/news/ann-arbor-to-add-bicycle-lanes-with-federal-stimulus-funds/.     

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August 7, 2010:  The City of Ann Arbor has shut down South Fifth Avenue between William and Liberty due to work on the new Underground Parking Garage, and it’s not expected to reopen until Fall of 2011.  Several businesses, the Ann Arbor District Library, and the U.S. Post Office will feel the impact.    

July 31, 2010:  Ann Arbor’s getting ready for the students to make their annual return, so we have some timely advice for all collegebound students, http://www.annarbor.com/news/parents-of-collegebound-kids-lets-talk/  

July 24, 2010:  Ann Arbor’s New Pedestrian Safety Ordinance - It’s now the law to yield to pedestrians at all Ann Arbor crosswalks, but what is the best way to get motorists to obey?  Read more from AnnArbor.com’s Ryan Stanton here:  http://www.annarbor.com/news/ann-arbors-new-pedestrian-safety-ordinance-seeks-to-prevent-playing-frogger-to-cross-the-street/
 

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July 17, 2010:  Stefanie Murray, Community Director of AnnArbor.com -    The Ann Arbor Art Fairs return this upcoming week, and with them brings a huge economic boost to the region.  It’s estimated that the Art Fairs (four in all) generate $70 million in economic activity, including $6 million generated just from the Michigan sales tax from artists’ sales.  AnnArbor.com has everything you need to navigate the fairs this year, including a couple of great new additions to the fairs that will help you easily navigate them:   http://www.annarbor.com/entertainment/ann-arbor-art-fairs-2010-preview/    

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July 10, 2010:  Stefanie Murray, Community Director of AnnArbor.com -  Are daylilies dangerous? Some Ann Arbor homeowners who lovingly tend to their lawn extensions are finding out that their best intentions are actually illegal.  The City of Ann Arbor has been ticketing people whose landscaping violates a city ordinance that prohibits vegetation that is 36″ above the roadway.   Read more here: http://www.annarbor.com/neighborhoods/central-ann-arbor/vegetation-ordinance-on-lawn-extensions-periodically-enforced/.  Also, here’s Tom Petiet’s post on AnnArbor.com’s Community Wall:        http://www.annarbor.com/community/news/government/woodsman_spare_that_bush/                 

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July 3, 2010:  Stefanie Murray, Community Director of AnnArbor.com -   America’s Independence & Ann Arbor’s Primary Election, http://www.annarbor.com/news/ann-arbor-mayoral-candidates-trade-blows-in-first-public-debate-appearance/; 4th of July Mega-Guide, http://www.annarbor.com/entertainment/fourth-of-july-guide/.      

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June 26, 2010:  Stefanie Murray, Community Director of AnnArbor.com -   AnnArbor.com’s Community Space: From its inception nearly a year ago, AnnArbor.com’s mission has been to engage the community to participate and contribute in the news process.  This is evident in the active commentary on the site, as well as the large number of community journalists and bloggers who contribute.  That sense of community isn’t just found online, but also inside its downtown Ann Arbor headquarters.  Stefanie explains how her company’s first floor “Community Space” is available to you for free.                  

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June 19, 2010:  Stefanie Murray, Community Director of AnnArbor.com - Ann Arbor & Saline Schools Among Tops in the Nation  The quest to be perfect is often elusive, but not for eleven students from the Ann Arbor Public Schools who actually aced their ACT.  http://www.annarbor.com/news/six-more-students-act/  Newsweek rankings are out for the top high schools in the nation. http://www.annarbor.com/news/saline-huron-pioneer-high-schools-listed-among-tops-in-nation/  5th & 6th graders at Ann Arbor Open School are now published poets.  http://www.annarbor.com/entertainment/books/fifth-sixth-graders-from-ann-arbor-open-school-present-poems-and-celebrate-release-of-book-millions/
  

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June 12, 2010:  Stefanie Murray, Community Director of AnnArbor.com - Should the City of Ann Arbor Enact a Ban on Porch Couches? A grieving mother pleaded with Ann Arbor City Council this past week to pass an ordinance banning indoor upholstered furniture from outdoor porches, citing a safety hazard.  Kimberly LeMasters’ son was fatally injured in a fire that was started on a front porch back in April.  She believes that if the couch on that porch hadn’t been there, her son would have had a better chance to get out alive.  Read more from AnnArbor.com here:  http://www.annarbor.com/news/mother-of-22-year-old-fire-victim-urges-ann-arbor-officials-to-support-couch-ban/                  

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June 5, 2010:  Stefanie Murray, Community Director of AnnArbor.com -   Do you feel safe in downtown Ann Arbor?  The Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority is surveying the town to determine how people view public safety.  The issue is part of the broader Public Parking & Transportation Demand Management Strategie Plan, which the DDA recently presented to Ann Arbor City Council.  Click the link and read more.  (There’s also a link within AnnArbor.com for you to take the survey yourself.)  http://www.annarbor.com/news/dda-wants-to-know-do-you-feel-safe-in-downtown-ann-arbor/.
Ann Arbor News Building Finds A Buyer.  When it was announced last year that the Ann Arbor News was folding, there were worries that the building it was housed in in downtown Ann Arbor would have a hard time finding a new owner.  The announcement that the University of Michigan Credit Union is buying it marks the final transition from the old print model to the new AnnArbor.com.   http://www.annarbor.com/business-review/university-of-michigan-credit-union-buys-ex-ann-arbor-news-building/      

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May 29, 2010:  Stefanie Murray, Community Director of AnnArbor.com -   Local developers buy a vast plot of land that has been mired in foreclosure on Ann Arbor’s Washtenaw Avenue.  http://www.annarbor.com/business-review/ann-arbor-developers-buy-ex-shops-at-arlington-retail-site-on-washtenaw/;   Find out how you can share your neighborhood with the entire community, and check out these sweet summertime scenes as seen through the camera lens of local residents.  http://www.annarbor.com/neighborhoods/ann-arbor-south/waiting-for-a-turn-during-a-t-ball-game-in-the-sunshine-takes-patience/
 

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May 22, 2010:  Stefanie Murray, Community Director of AnnArbor.com -   Barking Dogs Are A Neighborhood Nuisance:  Your home is supposed to be your sanctuary, a place where you can escape and relax.  Even when you live in a typical suburban neighborhood, most of us can count on our neighbors to be respectful, and perhaps even helpful.  But what do you do when a neighbor ignores pleas to control her noisy animals? That’s the dilemma in one west side neighborhood, where residents say they’ve had to endure three years of intermittent daily barking from six dogs at one neighbor’s home.   AnnArbor.com freelance reporter Tom Perkins writes about this on-going battle here: http://www.annarbor.com/news/dogs-destroy-a-neighborhoods-collective-sanity-attack-children/   Also, check out AnnArbor.com contributor Lorrie Shaw’s post, “No, Not Everyone Loves My Dogs As I Do”:  http://www.annarbor.com/pets/no-not-everyone-loves-my-pets-like-i-do/                              

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May 15, 2010:  Stefanie Murray, Community Director of AnnArbor.com -   Bullying in the Schools:  Saline Police are now seeking charges against seven elementary students following an assault of another student on a playground at Heritage Elementary School.  Two community forums have been organized to discuss safety concerns in the schools, as all of us look for answers as to how we can stop school bullying.  
http://www.annarbor.com/news/saline-police-seek-charges-against-7-elementary-students-in-playground-assault/                               

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May 8, 2010:  Did the Ann Arbor Public Schools violate the State Constitution by forming an African American club at Dicken Elementary School?  Principal Mike Madison is under fire for arranging a field trip for the African American Lunch Bunch to visit a black Rocket Scientist at the University of Michigan.  The controversy generated nationwide interest, and even crashed AnnArbor.com servers as people tried to link in to the stories surrounding this issue.  Listen to our conversation below, and check out the articles here:  
 http://www.annarbor.com/news/black-student-only-field-trip-sparks-controversy-at-ann-arbor-elementary-school/                                 

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May 1, 2010:      Stefanie Murray, Community Director of AnnArbor.com - The AnnArbor.com staff, reporters, editors, & photographers, are blanketing Michigan Stadium with coverage of today’s historic graduation featuring President Obama.  We talk with Stefanie about what it takes to cover a mega event like this, http://www.annarbor.com/news/mega-guide-president-barack-obama-at-university-of-michigan-commencement/.  Also, the controversy over the Dexter H.S. newspaper, The Squall, has some in the community questioning what leeway student reporters should be given to cover stories, http://www.annarbor.com/news/dexter-high-school-newspaper-the-squall-causes-storm-over-stories/.    The ACLU is raising concerns about plans to evict members of a homeless tent community, which is camped out on State-owned land off I-94 & Ann Arbor-Saline Road.  Known as “Camp Take Notice”, members manage a website and blog explaining their position.  http://www.annarbor.com/news/aclu-concerned-about-plans-to-evict-members-of-homeless-tent-community/.   Why are King Elementary School children crossing a crosswalk that doesn’t have a stop sign or any other traffic controls? Parents are pushing for a change and now Ann Arbor officials are trying to determine what to do.
http://www.annarbor.com/news/ann-arbor-officials-looking-into-parents-concerns-about-safety-of-king-elementary-crosswalk/
 

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