City Council Meeting - 2022-10-17

Detailed briefing

City Council Meeting — October 17, 2022 • Council adopted Ordinance 434 amending the Downtown Development Authority’s TIF plan. Staff said the amended plan retains a 2014 tax-capture base and covers a 15-year Downtown Development Plan period, 2023-2038. Council also authorized staff to prepare a future report, plans, specifications, and cost estimates for a possible special-assessment district in the central business district. • Staff said the potential assessment would apply to commercial properties, not residences. The current concept is $1 per day, or $365 annually, per property owner. Its duration has not been determined, and any proposal would return to council later. • The city manager gave a broad presentation responding to questions raised publicly about city operations. It covered employee health coverage, the city’s tree-removal enforcement, local authority over high-school telecommunications equipment, property-tax allocations, lawsuits, grants, board appointments, housing work, and administrative fees. • On public safety funding, staff said police and fire costs have risen faster than other general-fund costs. The presentation described a proposed five-year public-safety millage with one mill guaranteed for police and fire as different from prior Headlee override proposals. No action on the millage was recorded at this meeting. • Residents raised several concerns during public comment. Father James Beers asked that church bells be removed from noise-ordinance discussion. A resident urged more attention to possible safety concerns surrounding upgraded 5G equipment at the high school. Other speakers criticized the timing and content of the city manager’s presentation during the election period, while another called for more public discussion of housing, zoning, parking, and density issues connected to Housing North and redevelopment-readiness work. • Staff reported ongoing discussions with MDOT over erosion and washout damage along M-119. A temporary fix was expected by the end of the month, but staff said the road might not fully reopen until the following year. State Street sidewalk work was reported as substantially complete, and staff is awaiting a second bid before bringing M-119 utility-line tree removal to council. Worth watching: • Staff is to return with the proposed special-assessment district report; assessment length and final terms remain unresolved. • Staff said it will provide a requested breakdown of more than $600,000 in grants and donations reported over the prior two years. • M-119 repair responsibility, timing, and detour signage remain under discussion with MDOT. Upcoming: City Council will meet at noon on Monday, November 7; the election is Tuesday, November 8. Why it matters: Council advanced downtown financing planning while debate continued over public funding, infrastructure, development policy, and city transparency.

No open public follow-ups are linked to this meeting yet.