Choices
“In Ann Arbor, you have many hotel choices,” says the ad for Kensington Court Ann Arbor. “But how many luxury boutique choices?” Finally, someone’s pointed out the appalling dearth of luxury boutique hotels in A2.
“In Ann Arbor, you have many hotel choices,” says the ad for Kensington Court Ann Arbor. “But how many luxury boutique choices?” Finally, someone’s pointed out the appalling dearth of luxury boutique hotels in A2.
Isn’t the Bell Tower a luxury boutique? Or is it just pretentious?
posted by Michael McC. on May 31st, 2006 at 12:20 pmDear AAIO,
I am an Arbor Native. I attended Michigan, grad and undergrad.
I know that your blog is supposed to be funny, and it is. Really. I’m not kissing your ass before I insult you. I hated that Jefferson Market closed and then reopened as a market that sold nothing I needed. Same thing as when Schlenker’s (sp?) Hardware on Liberty closed. It was the last place to get useful stuff in the whole downtown.
I also hated that I shat money for years on houses and apartments that were somewhere between ratty and “of interest to the board of health.”
I love Ann Arbor too. My ashes will be scattered somewhere inside the city limits (no, honestly — my actual instructions to my wife.)
However I have also lived in Detroit and Springfield, Massachusetts.
I’m not the most sentimental or self-righteous fellow in the world. But a guy was knifed by a hooker in the parking lot of my wife’s office, a block from our house. A cop was shot on my block. In Springfield, packs of kids roam the streets unsupervised all night. I counted no less than three in one group with no shoes. This is in a town with more broken glass on the streets than asphalt. The lady who lived above us left her preteens home alone all day and night and came home with men who were so drunk that you could tell they were drunk when you heard them talking through the floorboards. Then there were the school night crack parties she hosted.
It’s an unfair standard to hold someone to, to say “Oh yeah, well how’d you like to be shot at, Mr. Ph.D student guy? HUH?!?!” Ann Arbor is where you live and hey, come one, it’s just jokes.
Still, I met lots of people who would love to have the composition of the crowds at book signings and the nature of the hotels be their neighborhood problems. Instead of the Latin Kings, La Famiglia and stray gunfire.
Ok, I’m done being a self-righteous dick. I deserve some flaming too. Bring it.
I still like the blog.
posted by Walter on May 31st, 2006 at 1:57 pmWait, this doesn’t sound like such a bad thing for A2. I mean, what if you want to buy an artisinal crack pipe to stab somebody with?
-Nick
posted by ramsey on May 31st, 2006 at 3:38 pmWell, all I can say is that I like to write about what I know (the town where I live) in a style that I’m comfortable with (sarcasm). I like hyper-specificity. Two of my favorite recent blogs have been narrowly focused on making fun of a specific writer (Frank Bruni and Morgan Spurlock, respectively,) but certainly there are worse fates than having to read a florid review of some Brooklyn bistro or an inaccuracy-laden screed about nutrition.
I have a very privileged life in many ways, and even I have worse problems than living in Ann Arbor. But they wouldn’t be any fun to write about.
posted by ann arbor is overrated on May 31st, 2006 at 4:40 pmWhat’s Walter talking about? Ann Arbor had a La Famiglia, on State & William where Jimmy John’s is now. IIRC it closed about three years ago. I never considered it a “neighborhood problem” — indeed, their calzones were tasty.
(/kidding)
posted by Jeff Dean on May 31st, 2006 at 8:28 pmThanks, Jeff, I thought the La Famiglia comment meant we should be glad A2 is not run by the mafia. Honest, I mean, I don’t know fastfood that well, but mainly I couldn’t follow Walter at all–he seemed, like, in kind of an urban paranoid frenzy.
That being said, I do like the Bell Tower and think it is boutique enough, but why shouldn’t the town support another–beats those blah corporate hotels out State Street, doesn’t it.
posted by buzz on May 31st, 2006 at 10:16 pmAbsolutely — Ann Arbor should definitely play upon its strength of being a playground for privileged out-of-towners. There is no better use of this site than a luxury boutique hotel.
posted by Dale on May 31st, 2006 at 10:57 pmWalter apparently thinks I (or we) care about his life and his feelings. How shameless. It’s also interesting that he apparently takes everything at face value — it never occurred to him that this could be a *funny* site. He epitomizes another feature of Ann Arbor: the fact that everyone can only communicate in terms of emotional “confessions”… Here’s to stoicism.
posted by Scipio Africanus on June 1st, 2006 at 12:51 amI bet Walter is one of those guys who gets upset when TV newscasters don’t act sad when reading news of tragedies.
posted by Maurer on June 1st, 2006 at 1:00 amkeep in mind the kensington court used to be a holiday inn of some sort. amazing what a name change’ll do.
posted by Tim on June 1st, 2006 at 3:55 amOn the subject of hotels, I can’t believe AAIO missed this choice quote in the AA News on Tuesday, in an article about the lot at First and Washington:
“But Council Member Jean Carlberg, D-3rd Ward, said local developers could have an advantage over out-of-towners. Washington Commons has local architect Carl Luckenbach and Munzel, a local attorney, involved.
‘I think it is always a challenge with people not from the community,’ Carlberg said. ‘There is always a concern that folks from out of town are used to something that is different from what we might be expecting.’”
http://www.mlive.com/search/index.ssf?/base/news-18/114900015644070.xml?aanews?NEA&coll=2
God knows we wouldn’t want to get something different, or something we’re not expecting. That might result in change, or even progress!
posted by Sam on June 1st, 2006 at 10:18 amI used to live one town over from Springfield MA and my sister lives their today. It’s as depressing as Flint, 4 times a gritty and at least 10 times a dangerous. From that perspective, A2 is almost unthinkably better. So I suspect Walter comments are on contrast — how can you complain about heaven from hell? — no, I don’t equate A2 to heaven. It is worth it to periodically look around and think “hey, this isn’t all that bad”.
That said, I hear one more whine about breastfeeding in a pool, needing a park at first and williams or fairy doors and I’ll plotz. On some of these topics, AAIO is almost too kind.
Gerry
posted by Gerry on June 1st, 2006 at 10:22 amLet’s take care of all of it at once and build a breastfeeding park with fairy doors on all the trees. Everyone wins.
posted by Dave on June 1st, 2006 at 11:38 amdon’t forget to plant lots of tea trees.
posted by OFWinsurgent on June 1st, 2006 at 12:14 pmA breastfeeding/dog park combo. I’ll pass on the fairy doors.
posted by Michael McC. on June 1st, 2006 at 1:04 pmThis site is getting pretty freaky.
posted by buzz on June 2nd, 2006 at 2:47 pmor dogs breastfeeding in public pools. (i’m not sure if i’m for it or agin it.)
make that frisbee dogs. luxury frisbee dogs. and boutique public pools.
posted by peter honeyman on June 5th, 2006 at 8:07 am