Service is Thursday-Saturday nights under 90-day pilot; special promotions tonight at bars, restaurants

After weeks of discussions and planning, Dearborn’s west downtown district will begin to offer free valet beginning Thursday for customers of participating businesses.

We’ve written several stories HERE about this plan and City Council approved it at Monday’s meeting.

The free service will be 5 p.m. to 2 a.m. Thursday through Saturday.

West Dearborn bars and restaurants will also offer special drink or appetizer deals on Dec. 15 (tonight) in conjunction with this new promotion, with proceeds donated to the Dearborn Goodfellows.

Two valet parking drop off points in public parking areas south of Michigan Avenue on West Village Drive between Monroe and Military will give customers easy access to restaurants, bars and shops in the district.

Two more drop off points are planned for north of Michigan Avenue between Monroe and Mason in the future.

With the support of the City of Dearborn and the West Dearborn Downtown Development Authority (WDDDA), the participating business owners have joined together to offer this free service to attract customers to the district, especially in the winter.

Patrons of other businesses in the district will pay $5 to use the valet service.

The complementary valet service is a 90-day pilot program initially lasting until mid-March. Its success will be evaluated at that time.

The participating businesses will pay the City of Dearborn’s parking system $40 a month for each space reserved for valet. That fee is in line with the system’s monthly parking permits.

At least 100 spots will be reserved, and more are possible based on the popularity of the service.

By offering free parking and free valet service, the west Dearborn businesses will encourage customers who may otherwise be reluctant to pay for parking, or who don’t want to trudge through snow during an evening out.

Dearborn Mayor John B. O’Reilly, Jr. said the new service benefits all participants. “The parking system is still collecting fees for the spots used by the valet service, businesses are showing their appreciation for their customers and generating more traffic, and customers have the added convenience and value of free parking and valet service.

“We know there are great restaurants and bars in west Dearborn,” he said, “and we invite anyone who hasn’t been there lately, or who hasn’t wanted to pay for parking, to come back and experience a terrific meal or a memorable night out.”

Other parking is available in the business district for $.50, $.75 or $1 an hour, depending on the spot selected.

For more information, visit West Dearborn Downtown Development Authority on Facebook, visit www.dearbornwestonline.com or follow WestDearbornDDA on Twitter.

PARTICIPATING BUSINESSES VALIDATING FOR FREE VALET PARKING

as of Dec. 14, 2011

• Ciao’s

• Crave

• Don Yeyo Cigar Factory

• Double Olive

• Habuki

• iBurger

• Le Cigar Emporium

• Moose Martini Bar

• The Post Bar

• The Well

Oxford Lanes will close Dec. 31, 2011 and be replaced by a VW car dealership owned by LaFontaine, who owns a dealership across the street.

Finding a place to bowl in Dearborn will become a lot more difficult this summer.

Oxford Lanes — where Dearbornites have bowled for 53 years — will become just another memory, replaced by a car dealership and joining a growing list of alleys in Dearborn and across the country to disappear.

Denny Herwig, assistant manager at Oxford Lanes, says after 25 years at the bowling alley he will take some time off.

“I am going to miss this place,” said Denny Herwig, who has worked at the bowling alley for 25 years, the last 11 as assistant manager. “I spent a lot of time here and have lots of good memories. I guess this is progress. Change is inevitable.”

If all goes as planned, the bowling alley will close Dec. 31 and then be razed to make way for a new Volkswagen dealership that will fly the banner of LaFontaine, who owns a string of dealerships directly across Telegraph on the east side of the street.

Herwig says owner Oxford owner Mark Voight will likely roll the last ball on Dec. 31, New Year’s Eve, before turning off the lights for good that same evening. Voight, however, won’t be out of the bowling business. He will continue to own and operate a string of bowling alleys in the area, including Merri Bowl in Livonia; Skore Lanes in Taylor and Woodhaven Lanes in Woodhaven.

Oxford Lanes on Telegraph, just south of Michigan Avenue, opened in 1958. Voight simply couldn’t pass up the offer LaFontaine made for his Dearborn business, Herwig said.

The only remaining bowling alley in Dearborn is the Mercury on Schaefer. At one time Dearborn had as many as 10 bowling alleys, including Maple, Westborn, Pinetree, Holiday Bowl, Schaefer Lanes and Oakwood Blue Jackets among others.

“Most bowlers will find another center to bowl at,” Herwig said. “As for me, I am going to take some time off.”

If you missed the window to sign up and have a Dearborn calendar mailed to your home, you can now pick one up at Dearborn City Hall.

The calendar, which is a year-round resource of information, including City of Dearborn phone numbers, can be picked up at the Mayor’s Office and the Department of Public Information during business hours of 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Quantities are limited and are restricted to one per household.

Beginning Tuesday, Dec. 13, calendars the calendars also will be available at the three Dearborn branch libraries and at the Ford Community & Performing Arts Center.

In January, the 2102 Calendar will be online at www.cityofdearborn.org for reviewing or printing.

The 2012 theme of the calendar is “Dearborn Milestones” and features black and white photos from the files of the Dearborn Historical Museum dating back to the mid-1800s. The photos highlight Dearborn’s early transportation, agriculture, industrial, recreational and municipal history.

Residents who ordered a calendar for home delivery by the Nov. 7 deadline should receive their copy by Dec. 20.

Cambridge Real Estate and Fakhoury Ventures continue to push for valet parking in downtown West Dearborn but whether it will ever get approval from City Council is another matter.

In a second letter to business owners in West Dearborn, Yasir Kaskorkis, who is leading the effort, says he has received “overwhelming responses from many of you regarding the complimentary valet parking for the Downtown District.”

Kaskorkis explained the valet parking program to merchants in this note below:

“To briefly explain the program, our proposal is to have complimentary valet parking from 5 p.m. – 2 a.m. Thursday – Saturday.

There will be 4 drop off sites located at each end of the district near parking structures/lots that are able to accommodate between 20-40 spaces per site. We are determining the number of parking spaces needed for each drop-off site and hopefully with the approval of City Council, assign a flat rate fee per parking space for a 90 day period.

Currently, it is unclear whether the DDA will assist in the funding of this program. There are many businesses in the district who have formally expressed interest. The businesses are:

Bistro 222;  Crave Lounge; Ciao’s Restaurant; Double Olive; La Cigar; Pizza Papalis; The Post.

If you are interested in participating in this program, please feel free to contact me via email or cell. I will contact Republic and inform them to install the validation system at your site. Again, our goal is to enhance downtown West Dearborn to make it a viable retail destination. We look forward to a constructive working relationship with all of the parties involved.”

Kaskorkis  also provided a four page document to each business owner in downtown West Dearborn about how the valet parking would work. Below are some of those details from the document:

Downtown District Valet Parking Program

The West Dearborn Businesses have plans to introduce a 90 day pilot program for Complimentary Valet Parking in the Downtown District. The complimentary valet will be scheduled three days per week with the hopes of having the program working 7 days per week. The days of the week will be Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, between the hours of 5 p.m.to 2 a.m. There will be 4 drop off sites in the district, all located at each end of the district near parking structures/lots that are able to accommodate the volume and traffic for the program. Our goal is to enhance downtown West Dearborn to make it a viable retail destination.

Cost of the Valet Parking

The cost of the valet will be absorbed by the valet parking company for the first 90 days. The cost for the parking spots will be allocated to all businesses involved. The rate provided for each spot will be multiplied by the number of spaces devoted for valet and divided by the number of participating business owners. The owners will be responsible for paying the fees to republic at the end of the every month. **The businesses are requesting, for the 90 day trial, a cost of $1.00 per day per space designated for complimentary valet parking. The $1.00 rate for the designated spots must be paid regardless, thus guaranteeing income for those specific days over 90 days. It is our hope the DDA could donate funding to mitigate the cost of the business owners.

Traffic Flow

There will be 4 Drop-off sites in the District. At each drop-off site, there will be three signs placed at different parts of the property to reduce the congestion along Michigan Avenue. Placed on the North and South side of Michigan Avenue (2 between Oakwood & Monroe, 2 between Tenny and Military) will be signs directing traffic towards the valet drop-off sites.

The three men who were caught trying to break into a Dearborn home last week were each arraigned Wednesday with one count of first degree home invasion.

See our earlier story HERE.

The three Detroit men, Lamont Williams, 24; Tyrone Beasley, 27 and David Michael McGee, 26 have a preliminary hearing set for Dec. 16, 2011 at the 19th District Court in Dearborn.

First degree home invasion is a felony that is punishable by up to 20 years in prison and/or a fine of not more than $5,000.

Dearborn Police Chief Ronald Haddad said he “would like to thank the Republic Waste employee whose keen observation and immediate call to the police led to the arrest of the suspects.”

Workers in 2005 put finishing touches on the bridge over the Rouge River that is part of the Gateway Trail.

The Dearborn Recreation Commission is seeking public input on a plan to extend the popular Rouge River Gateway Trail with a new elevated walkway behind the Andiamo restaurant on Michigan Avenue, past the Dearborn Historical Museum, to the Brady Street bike lane.

The city of Dearborn has been discussing extending the trail since early 2008, once hoping to use the Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) project work as a way to get matching funds for the project.

Back in 2008, Kurt Giberson, then Dearborn Public Works Director, said the city was trying to get a matching grant from the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund to help cover costs with the project. The grant request back then was to have provided the city $350,000 to cover construction costs for a portion of the extension of the path. Total costs for the project in 2008, which called for the trail to be extended to Ford Field Park, were estimated to cost as much as $1 million. This included costs for new bridgework along the Rouge.

Under this latest grant application to the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT), it appears the trail would only be extended to the Brady Street bike lane. The city did not indicate costs for this new project in a press release issued Monday.  However, the grant application to MDOT apparently would cover construction costs for the path extension. The Dec. 13 meeting is being held so the Recreation Commission can obtain public input on Dearborn’s grant application with MDOT.

The paved trail now begins just east of Andiamo on Michigan Avenue and travels through natural areas along the banks of the Rouge River. The meandering 2.16-mile trail crosses the Rouge River twice and runs through the campuses of the University of Michigan-Dearborn and Henry Ford Community College (HFCC).

From there, it connects with the bike path in Edward Hines Park, north of Ford Road, and goes on to Northville, for a total of 19 miles.

The Dearborn path, which opened in October 2005, was made possible by the city, UM-Dearborn, HFCC, Wayne County, MDOT and the Community Foundation.

Individuals with disabilities wanting to attend the Dec. 13 meeting who require special accommodations, auxiliary aids or services to attend or participate in this public meeting should contact (313) 943-2350 or TTY (313) 943-2199. Advance notice is required.

A sanitation worker, mailman and basset hound all helped Dearborn police with the arrest of two men who broke into a home Friday in the area of Mohawk and Rockford in Dearborn.

We have lost track of the number of recent home robberies in Dearborn (there were five alone in one neighborhood on Thanksgiving) but if anyone needed additional proof as to why cutting the number of police we have in Dearborn as a cost-saving measure is a bad idea this is it.

The quick arrest of three suspects by Dearborn police also shows how important it is for residents to call police any time they see something or someone suspicious in their neighborhoods.

Acting on tips received from an observant Republic Waste employee, who was working Friday and notified police of a suspicious vehicle in the neighborhood, along with a U.S. Postal worker who was on break eating lunch in his vehicle, Dearborn police were able to swarm the area and catch the two suspects and their getaway driver only minutes after they fled the home they tried to rob.

“I would like to thank the Republic Waste employee whose keen observation and immediate call to the police led to the arrest of the suspects,” said Dearborn Police Chief Ronald Haddad in a statement provided to DeepsaidWhat.com.

The break-in occurred at lunch hour when two men kicked open a locked backdoor at the two-story brick home. But what they didn’t know was that the resident was home, along with the family’s basset hound who immediately began barking after the door smashed open.

According to Dearborn police, the resident was upstairs when he heard a loud noise about 12:15 p.m.  He quickly went to investigate and heard voices stating “we gotta go!” The homeowner observed the two suspects fleeing on foot. So, too, did the postal worker, who also called police.

Dearborn police, who were already patrolling in the area, were able to quickly descend on the neighborhood and nab the bad guys.

The homeowner tells Deepsaidwhat.com that police were at his door within minutes after he placed the call to 911. He said the response time was “phenomenal”.

The outcome was a good one and shows the important role a community plays in providing tips to police so they arrest the thugs that have been preying on homeowners across our city.

Well done, Dearborn Police.

Parking restrictions lifted, except in a snow emergency

Dearborn officials are reminding residents that Public Service Days have ended for 2011 and will begin again on April 2, 2012. That means parking restrictions on Public Service Days/trash collection days are lifted for the winter.

When Public Service Days are in effect, drivers are required to keep their parked vehicles off residential streets if it is a trash collection day in that Dearborn neighborhood.

This allows for the smoother delivery of seasonal city services, such as street sweeping, as well as the curbside collection of trash, compost and recycling materials.

Although the parking restrictions are lifted until April 2012, residents are reminded that during a snow emergency, parked vehicles must be off the streets or be ticketed. This is to allow safe and efficient street plowing.

It is also a good idea to remove parked vehicles during any heavy snowfall, whether a snow emergency is declared or not.

Call the Snow Emergency Hotline at 943-2444 for details.

The Dearborn Historical Museum’s book compiling the best Dearborn stories from residents and former residents is now on sale (a book signing is Dec. 10), a perfect gift for the holidays.

The book, the first of its kind ever compiled by the museum, is titled Best Dearborn Stories: Voices From Henry Ford’s Hometown. The book will be sold at the museum’s gift shop at the McFadden-Ross House, 915 Brady.

Profits from sales of the book will go to the museum, which has begun a membership drive to help keep its doors open after city funds run out during the current fiscal year ending June 30, 2012.

We have been featuring excerpts from the new book over the past few weeks. This third installment is written by Joseph F. Bugeia.

Thank you, Dearborn Public Schools

By Joseph F. Bugeia

The first 10 years of my life our family lived in southwest Detroit. When I became school age I attended a parochial school. In addition to strong discipline and the teachers forcing me to write right-handed, (I was naturally left-handed) I started to stutter, and it got progressively worse each year.

Desiring to move to a nicer neighborhood in the suburbs, my parents and I moved to Dearborn the summer before I entered the sixth grade. It was my parents’ intention that I continue at a parochial school. They found out, however, that the parish line ran down the alley behind our home, and as a result I had to attend Maples Junior High School.

On my first day at Maples, the teacher asked all new students to stand up and introduce themselves to their classmates. Because of my stuttering, it was a most traumatic experience. The teacher asked me to see her after class, at which time she indicated she was going to put me in a speech therapy class.

The speech therapy teacher determined that I had difficulty with the “th” sound, and she worked with me for several months during which time my stuttering problem improved a great deal.

In the ninth grade I ran for Student Council President. The campaigning for the position involved speaking to several classes. I won the election and even gave a speech on behalf of our class when we graduated from junior high. My stuttering problem was corrected.

During my three years at Fordson High School I had no stuttering problems. After graduation I started going to night classes at Dearborn Junior College (now HFCC). While there two great things happened: one, I determined I could do college level work, and two, I met my future wife, Mary.

After completing my Associates Degree in Commerce, I transferred to the University of Michigan receiving a Bachelor of Business Administration degree two years later.

In 1956 I was hired by Ford Motor Company. During my Ford career I held many positions requiring speaking to a variety of employee groups up to and including senior management. While working I completed an MBA from the University of Michigan-Dearborn. I had a very rewarding 38 year career with Ford in Human Resources. A major highlight of my career was meeting with Mr. Henry Ford II to handle his retirement.

When I look back at our family move to Dearborn, I wonder, “What if the parish limits had included our home,” and “What if my first teacher at Maples had not enrolled me in the speech therapy class?” AGAIN, THANK YOU-DEARBORN PUBLIC SCHOOLS. 

The paid parking conundrum in downtown West Dearborn could be helped with the introduction of a free valet parking system for the entire downtown district, at least that is a plan being shopped by Cambridge Real Estate and Fakhoury Ventures.

In a letter to Deepsaidwhat.com, Yasir Kaskorkis, the property manager for Cambridge Real Estate, says he and Fakhoury Ventures have been working with the ECD and DDA to help support a free valet parking system. It is an interesting idea.  His letter begins below.

To Whom It May Concern:

My name is Yasir Kaskorkis and I am a property manager for Cambridge Real Estate, who also oversees all Fakhoury Properties in Downtown West Dearborn. As many of you are aware, there has been a decline in patronage to the downtown district since the necessary paid parking increases took effect in July. Besides the economic conditions, a competitive project in Allen Park (with free parking) and a decrease in business population have affected us tremendously. You will all agree the businesses in the district with no paid parking are at a significant competitive advantage to those who require their patrons to pay.

Paid parking has been a controversial topic, and it looks as though it will continue to be for some time. As business people, we must learn to work within our constraints. That is why over the past several months Cambridge Real Estate and Fakhoury Ventures have been working with the ECD and DDA to help support a free valet parking system for the entire downtown district (the first of its kind in the Metro-Detroit area). We will be requesting marketing funds from the DDA to help fund this operation. The funds will serve to alleviate the burden of operating the system from the business owners and to promote the free valet parking system. These are funds we desperately need in order to make this project successful. The amount of funds put forth by the business owners will be dependent on the amount of funds approved by the DDA. As we inch closer to accomplishing our goal, we politely request your support for the district wide valet system. Your patrons will be treated to free valet and will no longer have to be concerned with parking fees. We have plans to promote the free valet system through various media outlets, in attempts to gain back the clientele that once brought prosperity to Downtown West Dearborn.

The more parking rates increase, the more difficult it will be to attract customers and retain current business. The time to act is now; we need your support more than ever. We ask that you spread the word in an attempt to bring people together to make Downtown West Dearborn a destination spot in the Metro-Detroit area. Everyone is affected by lack of business, from your managers to your employees. Our goal is to enhance downtown West Dearborn to make it a viable retail destination, and with your help we can make this happen. We look forward to a constructive working relationship with all of the parties involved. Please call and/or email your Dearborn Councilman and Woman or your DDA Board Member.

Thank you,

Yasir Kaskorkis

22022 Michigan Avenue