Mayor: Artspace to Buy City Hall Building for $1.65 Million

O'Reilly said during State of City address that both sides agreed to honor appraiser's price; sale to be finalized in coming months.

Dearborn Mayor Jack O'Reilly made a surprising announcement during his State of the City address Wednesday night: the proposed sale price of the current Dearborn City Hall. It's expected that arts development nonprofit Artspace—which has committed to turning the city hall building at 13615 Michigan Ave. into live-work space for artists—will pay $1.65 million for the facility. "That's the price established by an independent appraiser," O'Reilly said in prepared remarks before local officials and community members Wednesday. Though the sale of the building to Artspace has been discussed for nearly a year, the city had not previously released an estimated sale price. "We both agreed on the appraiser and what the appraiser said is what the …

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Dearborn State of the City Address Set for Feb. 27

Mayor Jack O'Reilly will update residents on city finances, plans and accomplishments.

The 2013 Dearborn State of the City address will take place Feb. 27, the City of Dearborn confirmed Tuesday. Members of the public are welcome to attend the address by Mayor Jack O'Reilly, which will start at 7 p.m. in the City Council Chambers at Dearborn City Hall. However, seating is limited and is not guaranteed. Mayor O'Reilly is expected to recount accomplishments of the city over the past year, as well as give an update on city finances and upcoming initiatives. During last year's State of the City address, O'Reilly stressed government transparency, specifically highlighting the city's Performance Dashboard, which he explained is "a meaningful tool to measure our efforts and assess how we are doing as an organization." For those who…

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Dearborn Mayor Remembers Sen. George Hart

The former Dearborn City Council member, Wayne County commissioner and state senator passed away Jan. 31.

George Z. Hart—who represented Dearborn as a city councilman, a Wayne County commissioner and a state senator—passed away Jan. 31 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, according to family members. He was 88. Mayor Jack O’Reilly was Hart’s Chief of Staff in Lansing in 1980 through 1982 and again briefly in 1987 after chairing his 1986 campaign. He said he remembers the gregarious Hart as a people-oriented politician, who loved shaking hands and working the crowd, and who was usually in tune with his constituency. Literally. He was known as the “Singing Senator.” And while Hart’s approach to elected office made him a memorable character in the political landscape, he also believed public figures had the power to make a difference. But first he knew …

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Dearborn Schools Opposing Move Into New City Hall—For Now

The city had hoped to apply for a competitive assistance grant through the state if the district and city offices were to merge their space.

As the City of Dearborn moves forward with plans to transition to a new city hall building by 2014, efforts to incorporate Dearborn Public Schools into that plan have stalled. More: City Discusses Design Elements of New City Hall Mayor Jack O'Reilly said in meetings last week that he had hoped to apply for a grant through the state's Competitive Grant Assistance Program, which rewards municipalities for mergers and partnerships with other cities and entities aimed at saving all parties considered significant funds. The grant would have provided up to $800,000 for the project. The deadline O'Reilly had hoped to reach for applying for the grant in regard to the city-schools location merger was Dec. 3. "If the grant comes, we have to decide …

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Dearborn Union Negotiations Moving Forward, But Not Complete, Says Mayor

Three union contracts—including the Dearborn Firefighters union—are still pending.

Dearborn City Council on Tuesday approved three salary plans for city employees—including two union contracts. The plans—which oversee the salaries for administrative staff, as well as the Municipal Workers of Dearborn and Supervisory, Technical and Professional Employees Union—are in effect retroactively to July 1, 2010, when the contracts ended. The contracts will open up again in July 2014. Administrative staff are not part of a union, but the city still negotiates their pay and benefits. With those approvals, Mayor Jack O'Reilly said, the city has settled three of its six ongoing union negotiations. The first and easiest to reach agreement upon, he said, was the Dearborn Police union. "They were wonderful to work with," O'Reilly said. …

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Jessica Carreras

5:53 pm on Wednesday, November 14, 2012

I hope to have more details soon, Bob, but had to file a request to obtain the union contracts. However, the administrative unit is not actually a union. The council still approves their contract, but it's known as a "meet and confer" contract, according to Mayor O'Reilly.   more ›

Dearborn Mayor Among Opponents of Private Gun Sales Bill

The pending legislation would end the requirement of background checks in private party gun sales.

Dearborn Mayor Jack O'Reilly is joining a coalition of other Michigan mayors in voicing opposition to a bill that would eliminate the requirement of background checks in handgun sales by private parties. Currently, background checks are required for any person looking to purchase a handgun in Michigan, be it from a dealer or a private owner. House Bill 5225, which was passed by the state House of Representatives in June and currently sits before the state Senate, would change that. According to the Mayors Aggainst Illegal Guns Coalition, that comprises half of all gun sales in Michigan and would make it easier for convicted felons, domestic abusers and others who are banned from gun ownership easier to obtain a handgun, no questions asked…

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REPLAY: Dearborn State of the City

Check out our chat from Mayor Jack O'Reilly's State of the City, held Monday night at Dearborn City Hall.

Dearborn Mayor Jack O'Reilly held his State of the City address Monday night in the Dearborn City Hall City Council chambers. In his speech, O'Reilly addressed both the issues facing Dearborn, as well as upcoming developments and successes–and new ways for residents to measure city progress. O'Reilly unveiled the city's Performance Dashboard, which he explained is "a meaningful tool to measure our efforts and assess how we are doing as an organization. "Essentially, it's our report card." O'Reilly focused heavily on the city government's transparency on issues, as well as their commitment to giving residents results for their tax dollars. "We cannot worry first about satisfying this group vs. that group," he said. "We worry first about our…

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edward binkley

3:29 pm on Thursday, March 21, 2013

Im terribly sorry I meant Rita   more ›

Dearborn State of the City Announced for March 5

The public is welcome to attend Mayor Jack O'Reilly's address, to be held at Dearborn City Hall.

The 2012 State of the City address will take place March 5, the city of Dearborn confirmed Friday. The public is invited to attend the address by Mayor Jack O'Reilly, which will start at 7 p.m. in the City Council Chambers at Dearborn City Hall. According to the City of Dearborn newsletter, "Mayor O’Reilly will review the economic challenges facing Dearborn, the city’s recent accomplishments and initiatives to keep the community moving forward." Last year's city-wide address by O'Reilly focused on growth initiatives–such as the Intermodal Train Station and University of Michigan-Dearborn student housing–as well as the $20 million budget deficit facing the city, and how to fix it. For those who cannot attend, the address will be shown at a …

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Letters to the Editor

Mayor: Ignore Terry Jones–Don't Fight Him

In a letter to Dearborn residents and visitors, Mayor Jack O'Reilly shares his hope that attendees of the Arab International Festival will not let hateful messages provoke them.

Dear residents and friends of Dearborn, This weekend we will again be visited by persons who want to use our community for their own ends. This time their target will be the Arab International Festival, which has been part of our community for almost two decades. These visitors are not interested in the festival or learning about and celebrating Arab culture. They are coming here to promote the concept that Islam is a false faith and that Muslims by teaching and nature are violent. We know that there is no substance to their message–their goal is to promote fear and hatred in others. More than a month ago in Dearborn, faith leaders of all religions from all over Metropolitan Detroit rejected their message by standing together, arm in arm, …

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Viewfinder: Oakwood Common Hosts Walk-A-Thon

The Wednesday morning event held in honor of National Senior Health and Fitness Day was moved indoors due to the weather.

A little–or a lot–of rain couldn't stop the Oakwood Common senior living facility from celebrating healthy living for America's older adults. So as buckets of rain poured down on southeast Michigan Wednesday morning, the facility moved its Community Walk-A-Thon  indoors. The event aimed to spread awareness of the importance of National Senior Health and Fitness Day, and was originally supposed to include a two-mile walk around the grounds of Oakwood Common, as well as health assessments and presentations. Everything took place as planned–only indoors–including presentations on dietary guidelines and physical therapy for seniors, plus a speech by Dearborn Mayor Jack O'Reilly. To learn more about Oakwood Common, visit their website.

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