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<DIV><FONT size=2 face=Arial>State officials were reluctant to comment on
reports regarding Tim Horton products<BR>going into the state capitol.<BR>The
Director of Services to the Blind was unavailable for comment on<BR>this
story<BR>, as a cone of silence descended. An<BR>employee of the Michigan House
and a state licensing department official declined<BR>to talk, too, as they
walked into a 2:30 strategy meeting on this issue Thursday.<BR>There was one
state official who did talk, but not on camera. He points out, Tim<BR>Horton
products would go into a room on the ground floor of the capitol, but the<BR>Tim
Horton sign would not. Tim Horton employees would not be running the
operation,<BR>but they would provide training to the visually impaired who
would.<BR>However, the Tim Horton sign and products could end up in the House
office building,<BR>right across the street from coffee shop competitor
Biggby.<BR>Bob Fish runs the Biggby franchises in the area and was not asked to
bid on the project.<BR>He is worried that franchisees may have their tax dollars
subsidizing Tim Horton.<BR>"I don't think its a matter of signage or not
signage," said Fish. "All of our Biggby coffees are taxpayers. It would feel a
little awkward to us that<BR>we are paying our taxes and maybe that project is
being subsidized somehow with our<BR>dollars. That sounds weird to me."<BR>As
the licensing department director, Steve Arwood, came to the meeting, he was
not<BR>very forthcoming on what exactly was unfolding as he walked past our
camera.<BR>(Reporter) Mr. Director, would you help clarify what you are trying
to do.<BR>"Discussions are underway and no decision has been made," said
Arwood.<BR>(Reporter) Do you want to put a franchise in there?<BR>"Discussions
are underway," replied Arwood.<BR>(Reporter) Is the state going to pay a
franchise fee?<BR>"No decisions have been made, Tim," said Arwood.<BR>Fish
contends that if the state does not pay a franchise fee, he has "a problem
with that...<BR>it's unfair." We don't know if its unfair, because nobody was
talking about it.</FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>