"If you want to have any kind of spending money for tobacco, coffee, extra food, whatever, then you've got two choices. You can either collect cans, which is really time consuming and doesn't pay off that well … so panhandling is kind of the way I make my money. And I don't really consider myself a panhandler. I'm a professional beggar." - panhandler Gwyddion Storm, who says the generosity of the community has kept him in Ann Arbor even though he doesn't have a job or home here.

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"It'll be nice when we have the final go ahead from the feds. It's almost there, it's right there, and it's pretty darn sure we have it, and yet there's still some work to do to make sure. There's no reason for us to believe that money's in jeopardy, but I'll certainly be more comfortable when it's all allocated." - Ann Arbor Mayor John Hieftje, on federal funding for the Stadium Boulevard bridges project.

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"I'm glad they're finally going to do something after all these years. It seems like it's a much grander project than it might necessarily have to be, but that's the way the city seems to do things. That seems to be the city's goal is these sidewalks and bike lanes everywhere." - Ann Arbor resident Tony Rutz, on the plans for the Stadium Boulevard bridges project.

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“We’ve got to stop thinking that it’s the only thing driving people to a state or out of a state. And we need to raise taxes on people that can pay them.” - Ypsilanti Mayor Paul Schreiber, arguing that businesses come to Michigan for more reasons than just the tax rate, and that residents need to stop thinking of “tax” as a dirty word.