Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Linh Song @lsong.bsky.social · 2d

Wild times in Marquette, where this otherworldly portal leads to the Michigan Land Bank Association’s summit, with Godfather @dan-kildee.bsky.social as the keynote.

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Reposted by Linh Song

Council for Canadian Urbanism @canurbanism.bsky.social · 5d

“Some still insist ‘downtowns will never attract kids and shouldn’t try.’ Then they design downtown to virtually repel kids, and it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. Vancouver proves the opposite can be true...”

Canadians @johnlorinc.bsky.social & @brenttoderian.bsky.social in this Cali article!

People want to have kids and live downtown. Can they? - Western City Magazine

For decades, planners focused on attracting young singles to dense urban cores. That dynamic has shifted, in part because ...

www.westerncity.com

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Linh Song @lsong.bsky.social · 9d

AKA partly why 9,000 college graduates leave the state of Michigan on an annual basis.

M. Nolan Gray 🥑 @mnolangray.bsky.social · 9d

When the supply of available homes goes down relative to demand, prices increase. This is one of the best established findings in housing policy, and policymakers who don't center this aren't going to fix the housing crisis.

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Linh Song @lsong.bsky.social · 9d

Truly the best place ever to have cut my teeth as a local elected. Libraries serve the public in so many ways because of course institutions of learning are institutions of DOING. Thank you, @aadl.org!

eli neiburger @eli.aadl.org · 9d

We are thrilled to announce that @aadl.org plans to acquire the Ann Arbor Observer!

Public ownership of local news media is more important than ever, and this acquisition builds on years of partnership and archival work to ensure the future of this priceless community asset.

aadl.org/node/647334

The Ann Arbor District Library Plans to Acquire the Ann Arbor Observer | Ann Arbor District Library

aadl.org

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Linh Song @lsong.bsky.social · 12d

www.washtenawisd.org/ctemillage
Schedule for info sessions also listed on the site. I get reluctance to fund additional needs in a high tax city and county. But these programs meet real needs in the face of limited and disappearing state and federal funding.

CTE Millage

Website for Washtenaw ISD

www.washtenawisd.org

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Linh Song @lsong.bsky.social · 12d

Ballot info here including the stat on Career Technical Education enrollment increasing by 69% in the last 4 years. docs.google.com/document/u/0...

CTE Millage - Business/Organization Communications Toolkit

Career Technical Education Millage Proposal: Business & Community Partners Communication Toolkit On November 4, 2025, voters in the Washtenaw ISD service area will be asked to consider a 1 mill tax t...

docs.google.com

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Linh Song @lsong.bsky.social · 12d

Sowing distrust against local institutions trying to meet real needs under Prop A and Headlee limitations, AFTER serving as a local elected, is a choice.

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Linh Song @lsong.bsky.social · 12d

Oh, yes, our former #a2council rep who has a history of organizing against more money for schools and LIBARIES.

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Linh Song @lsong.bsky.social · 12d

The Song Foundation convenes grantees every other year for what we call, “The Joy Report.” Instead of requiring elaborate reports, we invite grantees to a day of rest, reflection, and sharing with nonprofit leaders. This is what philanthropic partnership can look like with respect and care.

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Linh Song @lsong.bsky.social · 14d

So proud of my friend Paul Fleming’s book! Added it to our office library, a fraction of the thousands of books we have at home. pjfleming.com/imaginebetter

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Linh Song @lsong.bsky.social · 17d

It’s why when I was elected to City Council, I featured my friend’s artwork in our Zoom meetings. It shows the 14 year life expectancy difference between Ann Arbor and Ypsi+Ypsi Twp.

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Linh Song @lsong.bsky.social · 17d

We are the economic seat of the county, the 5th largest and most expensive city in MI, & 80K daily commuters in a city of 122K residents. About 2/3 of renters pay more than 30% of their income on housing. We have room for more neighbors who already work and study here. www.mlive.com/news/ann-arb...

‘Some of the highest rent.’ Ann Arbor’s lack of affordability under scrutiny

As housing prices rise in Ann Arbor, city officials hope major growth can be a solution.

www.mlive.com

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Linh Song @lsong.bsky.social · 18d

I still have never met @joespaulding.bsky.social, which makes lies that I paid him for political work even funnier. Looking good, Joe!

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Linh Song @lsong.bsky.social · 18d

Did a thing here in my low-density city of Ann Arbor. Thanks for coming out and hearing me speak to how being neighborly can be anti-racist work, and how when we oppose density we oppose people we should know and care about.

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Linh Song @lsong.bsky.social · 21d

Ann Arbor Area Community Foundation’s annual meeting with attendees telling it like it is, then my first State Land Bank Authority meeting in Lansing with a stop for Hmong sausages and Nepalese momo to bring back to Ann Arbor. Housing, housing, housing.

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Linh Song @lsong.bsky.social · 27d

It was a good day in Detroit with solid policy nerds. So proud to have Abundant Housing Michigan featured as a Changemaker. And Kudos to Anika Goss for speaking to housing challenges tribal nations face in this state. She’s why I’m a Detroit Future City fangirl. And these slides from Up For Growth!🔥

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Reposted by Linh Song

Alessandro Rigolon @alerigolon.bsky.social · 29d

Important new research on the impact of zoning on the housing market. Minimum lot size requirements have two main effects: they increase housing costs and contribute to racial segregation. This was somewhat known to housing folks, but this paper matters because it uses advanced methods and data

The effects of residential zoning in U.S. housing markets

I construct a new nationwide dataset to measure the stringency of residential zoning in the United States and examine its effects on housing productio…

www.sciencedirect.com

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Linh Song @lsong.bsky.social · Sep 9

The data is available. That hasn’t stop misinformation & lying about homes built & owned by corporate overlords. Yet companies also built our homes in the ‘70s so somehow, SFH homeowners are exceptions. Exceptional experts. My foundation co-funded this to counter chaos. www.aaacf.org/news/housing...

Washtenaw County Housing Affordability and Stability Study

The world is changing, sometimes faster than we ever imagined. And yet, amidst that rapid change, some truths remain constant. The need for housing is one…

www.aaacf.org

Reposted by Linh Song

Mott Smith @mottsmith.bsky.social · Sep 8

The coalition behind Measure ULA just released a report attacking UCLA research on the tax. They’re claiming it “debunks” the research. It doesn’t even come close.

🧵

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Linh Song @lsong.bsky.social · Sep 8

This lie is rampant in Ann Arbor as well, in the most educated city in America. We are the Spider-Man Pointing Meme. #a2council

Max Dubler 🏳️‍🌈 @maxdubler.com · Sep 8

This is not true. Blackstone owns 0.06% of the single family homes in America. There is no market where they own more than 1% of the homes.

Nobody has a monopoly on housing. 2/3 of American households own their homes and rental housing is a VERY diversified and competitive industry.

Pie chart showing that all institutional investors combined own less than 1% of the single family housing stock.

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Reposted by Linh Song

Politico @politico.com · Sep 3

The Smithsonian, according to former senior historian and curator David C. Ward, is “the greatest museum in the world.”

That’s why he sees the massive changes sought by the Trump administration as “demoralizing” and “farcical.”

Trump’s Smithsonian overhaul ‘a bit like censorship,’ former staff warn

The White House announced it would institute a review of Smithsonian museums to ensure they display “historically accurate” information.

www.politico.com

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Linh Song @lsong.bsky.social · Sep 6

My crush on Durham continues. www.dukechronicle.com/article/duke...

Durham declares itself a ‘Fourth Amendment Workplace’ amid immigrant fears

In an unanimous vote Tuesday, Durham City Council passed a resolution increasing protections for city workers against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids and arrests.

www.dukechronicle.com

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Linh Song @lsong.bsky.social · Sep 6

I stuck with transit and planning nerds and didn’t know this was happening. I would have said something & I would hope the few other immigrant, BIPOC attendees would have, too. A father was just detained by ICE after dropping his son at school in my city. I was organizing help while at Abundance.

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Linh Song @lsong.bsky.social · Sep 5

The Abundance Conference’s cast of characters was similar to my 30th high school reunion. Nerds were alright, jocks less so, but we showed up because we have ideas about who we were, who we’ve become, & what the future can be like if we live to our next reunion. Off to NMAAHC to reset and remember.

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Linh Song @lsong.bsky.social · Sep 3

Sharing how proud I am of #a2council on housing and the heavy lift ahead. Policy nerds unite! Abundance is the way!

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