HomeMy WebLinkAboutSTUDY - 2017-03-13
CITY OF LIVONIA – CITY COUNCIL
MINUTES OF STUDY MEETING HELD MARCH 13, 2017
Meeting was called to order at 8:12 p.m. by Vice-President Kritzman. Present:
Brian Meakin, Maureen Miller Brosnan, Jim Jolly, Scott Bahr, and Brandon Kritzman.
Absent: Cathy White and Kathleen McIntyre.
Elected and appointed officials present: Mark Taormina, Director of
Economic Development and Planning; Todd Zilincik, City Engineer; Ed Davis,
Superintendent, Parks and Recreation; Doug Moore, Superintendent, Public Service;
Curtis Caid, Police Chief; Shadd Whitehead, Fire Chief; Brian Kahn, Director of
Emergency Preparedness; and Don Knapp, City Attorney.
Vice-President Kritzman announced there is new data on Items #1 and #15.
Councilmember Meakin announced the original City Hall Plaque was installed just
outside the auditorium.
AUDIENCE COMMUNICATION: None
1. REQUEST TO ADOPT A RESOLUTION PROCLAIMING FRIDAY, APRIL 28,
2017 AS ARBOR DAY IN THE CITY OF LIVONIA: Bill Craig, Tree City
Committee Chairman and Douglas L. Moore, Superintendent of Public Service –
Operations, re: to be celebrated at 1:30 p.m. at Hoover Elementary.
Doug Moore, Superintendent, Public Service, presented the request to Council.
The Tree City Committee is planning on celebrating Arbor Day on April 28, 2017
at 1:30 p.m. at Hoover Elementary, 15900 Levan Road. It is therefore requested
that City Council consider and approve the proclamation (copies provided to
Council) in commemoration of Arbor Day.
Meakin offered the approving resolution for the Consent Agenda.
DIRECTION: APPROVING CONSENT
2. REQUEST TO APPROVE SALARY AND BENEFIT ADJUSTMENTS FOR
APPOINTED DEPARTMENT HEADS FOR THE PERIOD DECEMBER 1, 2016
THROUGH NOVEMBER 30, 2019: Office of the Mayor, re: same
Denise Maier, Director of Human Resources, presented the request to Council.
The summary of salary and benefit adjustments recommended for City
Department Heads has been provided to Council for its review. These changes
are consistent with those recently approved for non-represented City employees.
This proposal is made for the years beginning December 1, 2016 through
November 30, 2019.
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Bahr offered the approving resolution for the Consent Agenda.
DIRECTION: APPROVING CONSENT
3. COLLECTION OF LIVONIA PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT TAXES FOR THE
YEAR 2017: Office of the City Clerk, re: forwarding a communication from
Tammy Bonifield, Secretary of the Board of Education, requesting the City to
continue to collect one-half of the district’s taxes with the summer tax collection
and the remaining one-half with the winter tax collection, commencing July 1,
2017.
Don Knapp, City Attorney, stated this is a receive and file request usually brought
forth by the City Clerk who is absent this evening. It is for a communication from
Tammy Bonifield, Livonia Board of Education Secretary, dated December 20,
2016, requesting that the City collect one-half of their district's taxes with the
summer tax collection and the remaining one-half with the winter tax collection
commencing July 1, 2017 that was received in the Office of the City Clerk
At the direction of the Chair this item will be received and filed for the information
of the Council.
DIRECTION: RECEIVE & FILE CONSENT
4. REQUESTING TO ADOPT A RESOLUTION FOR THE MICHIGAN
DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES TRUST FUND GRANT (MNRTF)
FOR THE ROTARY PARK UNIVERSAL PLAYGROUND PROJECT:
Department of Parks and Recreation, re: to develop a playground area that will
provide an opportunity for all people, regardless of ability, to enjoy, with a 33.33%
match which will be made from donations of $150,000.00 from the Livonia Rotary
Club.
Ted Davis, Superintendent, Parks and Recreation, presented the request to
Council. The Department of Parks and Recreation respectfully requests that the
Council (1) approve a resolution supporting the Michigan Department of Natural
Resources Trust Fund Grant Application for the Rotary Park Universal
Playground Project; and (2) receive and file this report as recommended by the
Department of Parks and Recreation. The Livonia Rotary Clubs have initiated a
project to build a Universal Playground at Rotary Park. The efforts began in 2014
and they have been fundraising for this project. Universal design goes beyond
the ADA requirements. The 7 Principles of Universal design are: Equitable Use,
Flexibility in Use, Simple and Intuitive Use, Perceptible Information, Tolerance for
Error, Low physical effort and Size and Space for Approach and Use. This
project would be the first of its kind in Livonia. It would be constructed at Rotary
Park (Six Mile and Hubbard) and provide an opportunity for all people, regardless
of ability, to enjoy this playground.
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They have asked for public input through their Department Facebook page,
weekly e-news, and an open meeting, which was held Feb. 16, 2017, at the Civic
Center Library. The project is well received and supported by the community.
With the submission of their 2017-2022 Master Park and Recreation Plan, they
are now eligible for MDNR grant programs. The Michigan Department of Natural
Resources Trust Fund accepts applications for development projects that support
outdoor recreation and projects that provide universal accessibility to recreation
opportunities are encouraged. For this reason, they intend to apply for a DNR
Trust Fund Grant with the Rotary Park Universal Playground Project.
The proposed project total is $450,000. The maximum grant amount awarded is
$300,000, which will be reimbursed to the City after City funds are expended.
This grant requires a minimum 25% match of the total project cost. The match
may include restricted funds or cash donations. Their match will be 33.33% of the
total project and shall be made of donations of $150,000.
Marty Talty, Livonia Rotary Club, addressed Council. He noted that they have
been working on the project since 2012. He said one of the things that was
important to them was to have a play scape that was universally accessible not
simply handicap accessible so that kids of all abilities can play. He said they are
excited about this project.
Bahr asked Talty what was the source of this idea. Talty said a group of them at
a district convention were brainstorming future projects and how they could
enhance the community in some fashion.
Bahr asked Davis about the structure that is being replaced. The condition of the
existing structure. Davis said it is on a list with needed repairs. It is one of three
of the oldest play structures in the city.
Bahr offered the approving resolution for the Consent Agenda.
Brosnan asked Davis if it is currently handicap accessible. Davis replied there
are currently paths to where the structure will be placed. He said they would also
have to do additional paths He noted that people with strollers and wheelchairs
would have full access to the playground. Brosnan asked if they would have full
access to the rest of the park. She said Rotary Park is more than just this
structure. She asked about the restrooms and picnic areas. He said right now,
from where they are planning on placing the structure, yes those would be
accessible. He said there are things that could be improved and they will
continue to work on making those improvements. Brosnan asked if the restrooms
were up to code. Davis said that is a great question and said truthfully, he did not
know the answer. He said ADA compliance has changed multiple times, and as
recent as 2014. Brosnan asked Davis to check to see if in fact the restrooms are
or are not ADA compliant and report his findings to Council prior to the voting
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meeting. Brosnan asked Davis is there are plans to renovate all the city parks to
universal parks. Davis said in a perfect world, they would absolutely love to be
universally accessible at all the parks. They can certainly strive for that goal but
realistically, financially, they simply can’t make that their design standard. The
more partnerships they get from clubs like the Rotary and businesses like St.
Mary Mercy Hospital, the more they can achieve. As far as playground
replacement, in their Capital Improvement plan they’ve identified Stymelski Park
and Castle Gardens Park as the next ones in line. He said they are adding Dover
Park to that list with the loss of the Washington School site. They will be going
out for bid for Dover Park. He said they felt it was the right time to add something
at that site. They had money set aside for replacement, they will be adding to the
site. He said they will continue to look for additional resources to replace
playgrounds. Brosnan asked Davis if when looking at the drawing provided to
Council she doesn’t understand why it costs more than any other park play scape
the city has purchased. He said the number one reason is universal accessibility
so there are different features put in than those on a standard playground. He
also noted that the pour and play surfaces are very expensive. Brosnan said she
understands about the pour and play surfaces being an additional cost, however,
the structure itself is still coated metal. Davis did note that they are waiting on an
updated plan. He said the plan Councilmember Brosnan is referring to is when
the project funds were budgeted at about $150,000. He said the end product will
be different. Brosnan said she would like to request they take a closer look at the
overall park replacement program and get back with Council on how they can
accommodate more varieties of abilities of children. It doesn’t have to be at every
park, maybe it’s just a matter of making sure that they have ample structures
placed in the best locations throughout the city. This project before us certainly
gives us an excellent pilot project. She said she would appreciate them reporting
back to Council with their findings on accessibility at the other parks.
Bahr asked Davis if the actual play structure will be larger than what is shown on
the plan. Davis said it would be somewhat larger. Bahr asked Davis if any
thought had been given to perhaps doing multiple locations universally
accessible versus one larger scale play scape at this location. Davis said that
much of the additional cost of the project is for the pour and play surface.
DIRECTION: 1) APPROVING CONSENT
2) REPORT & RECOMMENDATION
RE: ACCESSIBILITY AT OTHER PARKS
5. REQUESTING TO ADOPT A RESOLUTION FOR THE MICHIGAN DNR
RECREATION PASSPORT GRANT FOR THE BOTSFORD POOL ACTIVITY
FEATURE PROJECT: Department of Parks and Recreation, re: to provide new
activity features that will significantly improve and update the Botsford pool for
the neighborhood pool users, with a 41.66% match which will be funded in
contributions of $50,000.00 from Wayne County Park Mileage for District 9.
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Ted Davis, Superintendent, Parks and Recreation, presented the request to
Council. The Department of Parks and Recreation respectfully requests that the
Council (1) approve a resolution supporting the application for the Michigan DNR
Recreation Passport Grant for the Botsford Pool Activity Feature Project; and (2)
receive and file this report as recommended by the Department of Parks and
Recreation. The Michigan DNR, Recreation Passport Grant was created to
provide wider accessibility to recreational resources at the local level, with a
specific emphasis on funding the renovation and development of public
recreation facilities and outdoor parks. The grant schedule for this round of
funding has a deadline of April 1, 2017. The proposed project outlined below was
selected based on the need and suitability to the grant. The grant requires a
resolution from City Council that supports the application and "commits to the
amount of the local match in terms of dollar amount or percentage of total project
cost and all sources of match." The scope of the Botsford Pool project falls within
both our Capital Plan and the Parks and Recreation Master Plan for 2017-2022.
Proposed Activity Features include interactive water sprays in the shallow end of
the pool, a zip line into the pool and a large climbing wall in the deep end. These
new activity features will significantly improve and update the Botsford Pool for
the neighborhood pool users in northeast Livonia. The proposed project total is
$120,000. The maximum grant amount awarded is $75,000 which will be
reimbursed to the City after City funds are expended. This grant requires a
minimum 25% match of the total project cost. The match may include restricted
funds or cash donations. Our match will be 41.66% of the total project and shall
be funded with $50,000 in contributions from the Wayne County Parks Millage for
District 9.
Brosnan said this is an exciting project. She said she is especially happy to hear
that they will be retrofitting the pool. She commented on the zip line into the pool
and asked the age range. Davis said its more about ability to swim, the person
must be a good swimmer. He said Clements Circle was more geared toward the
younger pool patrons where this is more toward to bigger kids. He did note that
there will still be areas for the younger kids too, recognizing it is a community
pool.
Brosnan took an opportunity to thank Wayne County Commissioner Terry
Marecki for securing the funds through the Michigan DNR Passport Grant.
Brosnan offered the approving resolution for the Consent Agenda.
DIRECTION: APPROVING CONSENT
6. AWARD OF BID: Public Service Division, re: for Aggregates (road gravel, slag
and stone) for the City's 2017 calendar year requirements, from budgeted funds.
Doug Moore, Superintendent, Public Service, presented the request to Council.
The Public Service Division has taken bids for aggregates - road gravel, slag and
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stone in accordance with the requirements of the Finance Ordinance and the
2016-2017 approved budget for the Road Maintenance Section. Specifications
were prepared by the Division, and an advertisement for bids was placed in the
January 29, 2017 edition of the Livonia Observer. Bid invitations were placed on
the Michigan Inter-Governmental Trade Network (MITN). Eight (8) companies
submitted Proposals which were opened at 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, February 14,
2017.
The "Tabulation of Bids for Aggregates - Road Gravel, Slag and Stone" has been
provided to Council. The Department, as in the past, is recommending award for
each individual aggregate to the lowest bidder, with the second lowest bidder
becoming the alternate supplier. Prices of the material are shipped Direct-to-Yard
(DTY) - the City's Glendale bulk storage facility.
It is the recommendation of the Public Service Division that the following low
bids, which meet specifications, be accepted to supply the Public Service
Division (Road Maintenance Section) with the materials specified at the unit
prices bid per ton for the City's 2017 calendar year requirements:
1. Winning bids for Primary supplier and Alternate Supplier are:
Primary Alternate
Item
Supplier $/Ton Supplier $/Ton
M.D.O.T. - 21AA- Limestone - D.T.Y. E. Levy $12.20 Ellsworth $12.65
M.D.O.T. - 22A - D.T.Y. Ellsworth $13.40 E. Levy $13.43
W.C.D.P.S. - 30A (Blast Furnace Freeport $12.90 E. Levy $15.20
Slag)- D.T.Y.
M.D.O.T. - Class I - D.T.Y. Farmer $14.78 Freeport $16.00
M.D.O.T. - Class II - D.T.Y. Farmer $ 6.97 Ellsworth $ 7.15
M.D.O.T. - 2NS - Natural Sand - Freeport $12.62 Ellsworth $12.95
D.T.Y.
M.D.O.T. - 2MS - Mortar Sand - Farmer $10.82 Jackie’s $11.49
D.T.Y.
M.D.O.T.60-40 Washed-Cone. Farmer $14.18 Freeport $16.00
Aggregates-D.T.Y.
1" to 3" Crushed Concrete - D.T.Y. Freeport $10.25 Jackie’s $10.88
M.D.O.T. - 6A Natural Stone - D.T.Y. Farmer $14.63 Freeport $15.00
Ag-Lime - "Parks" - D.T.Y. Farmer $17.13 Ellsworth $17.45
2. Allow the Director of Public Works to approve minor changes in the material as
it becomes necessary.
Brosnan offered the approving resolution for the Consent Agenda.
DIRECTION: APPROVING CONSENT
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7. AWARD OF BID: Public Service Division, re: for the purchase of two (2) Single
Axle Dump Trucks w/Plows and Salt Spreaders through the Rochester Hills Co-
op Award Agreement, from budgeted funds.
Doug Moore, Superintendent, Public Service, presented the request to Council.
The Public Service Division has joined the Rochester Hills Co-op Award
Agreement (RFP-RH-13-30) for bids on a Single Axle Dump Truck. The winning
bid for the cab and chassis was received by Wolverine Freightliner. The cost per
unit for 2018 cab and chassis is $90,678.00, for a total of $181,356.00. The
department also recommends use of Truck and Trailer Specialties as the outfitter
to build this truck. Truck and Trailer was awarded the bid for the outfitting of the
truck with plows, salt spreaders and lighting package through the Rochester Hills
Co-op Agreement (RFP-RH-13-030). The cost for outfitting each truck is
$81,526.00, for a total of $163,052.00
Bidder Amount
Wolverine Freightliner $90,678,00
Truck and Trailer Specialties $81,526.00
cost per truck $172,204.00
TOTAL COST FOR TWO TRUCKS $344.408.00
The total cost for two (2) trucks will be $344,408.00; the funds for which were
approved in the capital outlay budget for the Roads Maintenance Section. In
addition, attached is a recommendation letter done by the Fleet Manager as well
as the backup documentation. The trucks will be a replacement vehicles and will
not increase our fleet. The replaced vehicles will be disposed of thru the auction
process (MITN or commercial auction). These trucks have an average life
expectancy of 8-9 years and they have exceeded their life expectancy.
It is the recommendation of the Public Service Division that Council proceed as
follows:
1. Approve the purchase of two (2) 2018 Freightliner Single Axle Dump Trucks,
Model 108SD through the Rochester Hills Co-op Award Agreement meeting
specifications, submitted by Wolverine Freightliner, 107 S. Groesbeck, Mt.
Clemens, Ml 48043 be accepted to supply the Public Service Division with a
Single Axle cab and chassis Dump truck for the price of $90,678.00 each.
2. Approve the outfitting of the two (2) trucks through the Rochester Hills Co-op
Award Agreement meeting specifications, submitted by Truck and Trailer
Specialties, 1200 Victory Drive, Howell, Ml 48843 be accepted to supply the
Public Service Division with the outfitting of the Single Axle Dump trucks for
the price of $81,526.00 each.
Meakin asked Moore to explain the Rochester Hills Co-op Award Agreement.
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Moore said it’s a little bit like MITN, where a bid is awarded and they are able to
take advantage of the bid pricing.
Meakin offered the approving resolution for the Consent Agenda.
DIRECTION: APPROVING CONSENT
8. REQUEST FOR AUTHORIZATION TO PURCHASE ONE (1) 2017 FORD
TRANSIT CARGO VAN THROUGH THE STATE OF MICHIGAN BID
PROCESS: Public Service Division, re: to replace a vehicle used by the Fleet
Maintenance Section, from budgeted funds.
Doug Moore, Superintendent, Public Service, presented the request to Council.
The 2016-2017 approved capital outlay budget includes the purchase of one (1)
2017 Ford Transit Cargo Van for the Fleet Maintenance Section of the
Department of Public Works. Arrangements were made to incorporate the new
vehicle purchase through the State bid process (Contract No. 071 B1300009), an
extended purchasing program made available to local governments through the
Slate of Michigan. The Stale bid this year was awarded to Signature Ford, 1960
E. Main St., Owosso, Ml 48867. Outfitting for this van will be performed by
Cannon Truck Equipment through Ml-Deal contract number 071 B2200263.
1. One (1) 2017 Ford Transit Cargo Van. This vehicle will be assigned to the
Fleet Maintenance Section of the Department of Public Works. Outfitting to
include spray in bed liner, rubber cargo mat and mounted small parts tray.
Bid price $24,955.00
Outfitting 1,829.00
Total Cost $26,784.00
The recommendation from the Fleet Manager as well as the backup
documentation has been provided to Council for its review. The van will not
increase our fleet; it is a replacement vehicle. The replaced vehicle will be
disposed of thru the auction process (MITN or commercial auction).
It is the recommendation of the Public Service Division that Council proceed as
follows:
1. Authorize the purchase of one (1) 2017 Ford Transit Cargo Van from
Signature Ford, 1960 E. Main Street, Owosso, Michigan 48867, totaling
$24,955.00.
2. Authorize the outfitting of the van by Cannon Truck Equipment, 51761
Danview Technology Ct., Shelby Twp., Michigan 48315 in the amount of
$1,829.00.
3. A Lastly, allow the Director of Public Works to approve minor adjustments as
it becomes necessary.
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Jolly offered the approving resolution for the Consent Agenda.
DIRECTION: APPROVING CONSENT
9. REQUEST TO DESIGNATE CONSULTANT THROUGH THE QUALIFICATION-
BASED SELECTION (QBS) PROCESS, TO PROVIDE DESIGN ENGINEERING
SERVICES: Engineering Division, re: for the Stark Road Rehabilitation and
Partial Reconstruction Project (Schoolcraft Road to Lyndon Road), in an amount
not to exceed $32,625.00. (CR 365-16)
Todd Zilincik, City Engineer, presented the request to Council. Pursuant to
Council Resolution No. 365-16, adopted September 19, 2016, the City Council
approved Spalding DeDecker Associates (SDA) as one of the Qualification
Based-Selection (QBS) firms to perform all professional engineering services on
various federal, state and locally funded projects through fiscal year 2021. Under
this procedure, they are recommending that SDA provide the design engineering
services for the above-mentioned project.
SDA has also provided design engineering services for various road projects for
the City, such as the Levan Road Reconstruction from Schoolcraft Road to Five
Mile Road and the Newburgh Road Reconstruction at the CSX Bridge Project.
SDA is familiar with the MDOT LAP requirements and has the ability to
coordinate with the utility companies to complete the project in a timely fashion
for construction beginning in July of 2018 to facilitate the start of the of school in
the fall.
The City of Livonia was approved in the amount of $402,702 by the Federal Aid
Committee (FAC) on December 8, 2016 to rehabilitate and partially reconstruct
Stark Road from Schoolcraft Road to Lyndon Road. The design shall follow the
Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) Local Agency Program (LAP)
requirements.
The approved funding in the amount of $402,702 allows for 81.85% of the
construction costs to be provided by Federal Funds. The City of Livonia will be
responsible for the remaining 18.15% of the construction costs, along with the
design costs. The Construction Engineering costs to be determined once the
project has been bid, will be reimbursable at 81.85% and will cover a consultant
to oversee the testing and inspection of the project.
Stark Road is an 8" non-reinforced concrete pavement with integral curb,
generally 37 feet wide from back of curb to back of curb. existing concrete road
and was constructed in 1969.
This proposed project involves the rehabilitation and partial reconstruction of
2,610 lineal feet of roadway. The segment from the north spring points of
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Schoolcraft Road (POB) to approximately 300 feet north is proposed to be
reconstructed to the current City concrete pavement standard, as is the
intersection with Lyndon Road (POE). The remaining roadway will receive
selective concrete stab replacement, joint conditioning, and will be overlaid with
3.5" of Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA). Prior to the HMA overlay, the 6 feet of existing
concrete pavement in front of the curb line will be variable-depth cold milled from
O to 1.5 inches to maintain at least 3.5 inches of curb reveal.
The estimated cost for this project is $435,000 at this time. Under the MDOT LAP
funding, the City is responsible for design costs, which are estimated at $32,625
for this project.
In order to proceed with this project, they recommend that the Council take the
following actions:
Authorize the Mayor and the City Clerk to execute an amendment to the
Engineering contract with Spalding DeDecker Associates, Inc., 805 South
Boulevard East, Rochester Hills, Michigan 48307 as the designated
consultant to provide design services for the Stark Road Rehabilitation
and Partial Reconstruction Project from Schoolcraft Road to Lyndon Road
for 2,610 feet. The amount of the design services not-to-exceed $32,625.
Authorize an expenditure not-to-exceed $32,625 for Design Engineering to
Spalding DeDecker Associates, Inc., 905 South Boulevard East,
Rochester Hills, Michigan 48307 from funds.
Authorize the City Engineering to make minor adjustment to the work, as
needed.
Meakin offered the approving resolution for the Consent Agenda.
Brosnan said she is happy that federal funding is helping fund this project. She
had some questions for Zilincik regarding the construction engineering costs and
design engineering costs, whether or not they were covered and what the City’s
cost would be. Zilincik said the construction and construction engineering costs
would be reimbursed but not the design engineering. Brosnan asked Zilincik if
these would tie in to the bike paths. He said that they would be connectivity.
DIRECTION: APPROVING CONSENT
10. REQUEST TO APPROVE PROPOSED 2017 SIDEWALK REPAIR PROGRAM
BY EXTENDING CONTRACT 16-G UNIT PRICES WITH JOE ROTONDO
CONSTRUCTION CORPORATION AND REQUEST TO AUTHORIZE
APPROPRIATION AND EXPENDITURE TO PRECISION CONCRETE, INC.:
Engineering Division, re: for Contract 17-G which includes a target area located
in Section 31 along with scattered locations throughout the City. (CR 147-16)
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Todd Zilincik, City Engineer, presented the request to Council. The Engineering
Division has finalized the inspections for the 2017 Sidewalk Repair Program. The
proposed 2017 Sidewalk Repair Program consists of a target area in Section 31
along with scattered locations throughout the City that were generated through
resident complaints and requests. This years' program consists of approximately
536 locations.
In order to control costs and to continue to offer our residents quality
workmanship, the Engineering Division approached our contractor from the 2016
Sidewalk Program, Joe Rotondo Construction Corporation for consideration to
extend Contract 16-G unit prices as our contractor for Contract 17-G. His bid last
year for the 2016 Sidewalk Repair Program was more than $27,000 less than
that second low bidder (utilizing the bidder's preference). Furthermore, they are a
local contractor and have completed concrete repairs for the City of Livonia over
the past several years, including the Sidewalk Programs from 2006 through 2011
and 2013 through 2016.
They are willing to honor their unit prices from the 2016 Sidewalk Repair
Program (Contract 16-G) with the exception of concrete unit prices for various
thickness of sidewalk and for ADA Sidewalk Ramps. It should be noted that
material costs for concrete per cubic yard have increased significantly this year to
over 10% depending on if the project is a municipality or a Michigan Department
of Transportation project. Please see attached letter dated March 1, 2017 from
Joe Rotondo Construction Corporation.
They are recommending extending the Contract 16-G unit prices for Contract 17-
G, except for the bid items 1, 2, 3, 4, 8 and 9 (concrete sidewalk of various
thickness of 4, 6 or 8-inches, 7-inch road pavement, and placement of 6-inch
ADA ramps with 4 foot by 2 foot inserts or 5 foot by 2 foot inserts) and agreed
upon number of inspection days of 50 which was based on quantities.
Joe Rotondo Construction Corporation has agreed the unit prices provided will
remain the same for both scattered and target locations. Normally scattered
locations are slightly higher due to the amount of travel time throughout the City
to perform the repairs where the target areas are more concentrated in one area
allowing significant productivity to occur.
Therefore, they are recommending extending contract 16-G unit prices to
Rotondo Construction Corp. with a budget of $608,772.58 to complete the
sidewalk repairs for the 2017 Sidewalk Repair Program, Contract 17-G. In
addition, they are continuing to utilize Precision Concrete, Inc. to provide a cost-
effective measure of eliminating vertical displacements by saw cutting them at
various locations throughout the City of Livonia.
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The total project cost is in the amount of $608,772.58 which includes a 10%
administrative fee ($55,342.97) and the contract amount of $553,429.61.
In order to proceed with this project, they recommend that the Council take the
following actions:
Waive the formal bidding process under Section 3.04.140.D.3 of the
Livonia Code of Ordinances, as amended, since no advantage to the City
would result from competitive bidding.
Extend contract 16-G unit prices for Contract 17-G, 2017 Sidewalk Repair
Program in the amount of $548,429.61 to Joe Rotondo Construction
Corp., 38807 Ann Arbor Road, Suite 2, Livonia, Ml 48150. The award
should be on the basis of the bid unit prices from 2016, Contract 16-G with
the exception of revised unit prices for bid items 1, 2, 3, 4, 8 and 9
(concrete sidewalk of various thickness of 4, 6 or 8-inches, 7-inch road
pavement, and placement of 6-inch ADA ramps with 4 foot by 2 foot
inserts or 5 foot by 2 foot inserts) and agreed upon inspector days of 50
based on quantities, said amount to be adjusted based upon the quantities
of work actually completed.
Authorize a payment not-to-exceed $5,000.00 to Precision Concrete Inc.,
1896 Goldeneye Drive, Holland, Ml 49424 for the saw cutting portion of
the contract.
Authorize an advance of $134,706.96 (single lot assessments portion of
the program) from the Road, Sidewalk and Tree Fund with the provision
that this fund be reimbursed from that portion of the project which is to be
financed by special assessment at such time as funds are subsequently
received for the payment of bills as assessments by affected property
owners
Authorize an advance of $2,062.50 (utility damaged sidewalk) from the
Road, Sidewalk and Tree Fund Account with the provision that this fund
be reimbursed at such time as funds are subsequently received for the
payment of the bills from the affected utilities.
Authorize an expenditure from budgeted funds of $5,300.00 from Major
Road- Dist. Sidewalk Cost Account and $61,400.00 from Local Road -
Dist. Sidewalk Cost Account to cover the costs related to the construction
or reconstruction of handicap ramps at major and local roads.
Authorize an expenditure of $25,303.12 from the Unexpended Fund
Balance of the Water and Sewer Fund for sidewalk work adjacent to and
including water, storm and sanitary structure repairs.
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Authorize an expenditure of $450,000.00 to repair sidewalks heaved by
tree roots from budgeted funds in the Road, Sidewalk and Tree Fund
Distributed Sidewalk Cost Account for the 2017 Sidewalk Repairs of which
$382,062.50 is programmed at this time. The remaining balance of
$67,937.50 to be utilized for any repairs for sidewalk heaved by tree roots
more that are 2-inches or more.
Authorize the City Engineer to approve minor adjustments in the work, as
required.
He said it should be noted that property owners are required to arrange for the
installation, repair, or the removal and replacement of certain unsafe sections of
sidewalk by June 30, 2017, if they choose to have the work completed
themselves, otherwise the City's contractor will repair them.
Meakin said Mr. Rotondo has been doing business with the City for a number of
years and all the paperwork appears to be in order.
Meakin offered the approving resolution for the Consent Agenda.
DIRECTION: APPROVING CONSENT
11. REQUEST TO APPROVE 2017 CONCRETE ROAD SELECTIVE SLAB
REPLACEMENT PROGRAM BY EXTENDING CONTRACT 16-J UNIT PRICES
WITH JOE ROTONDO CONSTRUCITON CORPORATION: Engineering
Division, re: for Contract 17-J, with the exception of concrete unit prices for
various thickness of pavement, which includes approximately 35 locations
scattered throughout the City. (CR 246-16)
Todd Zilincik, City Engineer, presented the request to Council. The Engineering
Division in coordination with the Department of Public Works has established a
program to replace isolated sections of damaged concrete roadway. This year
the program consists of approximately 35 locations scattered throughout the City.
This program was instituted last year to supplement our road program in an effort
to address resident concerns received by the DPW and Engineering
Departments more expeditiously. They were able to complete 31 locations in
2016.
In order to control costs and to continue to offer our residents quality
workmanship, the Engineering Division approached our contractor from the 2016
Concrete Road Selective Slab Replacement Program, Joe Rotondo Construction
Corporation for consideration to extend Contract 16-J unit prices as our
contractor for Contract 17-J. His bid last year for the 2016 Concrete Road
Selective Slab Replacement Program was more than $48,000 less than that
second low bidder (utilizing the bidder's preference). Furthermore, they are a
local contractor and have completed concrete repairs for the City of Livonia over
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the past several years, including the Sidewalk Programs from 2006 through 2011
and 2013 through 2016 and the Concrete Road Selective Slab Replacement
Program in 2016.
They are willing to honor their unit prices from the 2016 Concrete Road Selective
Slab Replacement Program (Contract 16-J) with the exception of concrete unit
prices for various thickness of pavement. It should be noted that material costs
for concrete per cubic yard have increased significantly this year to over 10%.
Please see attached letter dated March 1, 2017 from Joe Rotondo Construction
Corporation.
They are recommending extending the Contract 16-J unit prices for Contract 17-
J, except for the bid items 1, 2, 3 and 4 (concrete pavement of various thickness
of 4-inch and 6-inch concrete approaches, 7-inch concrete roadway and 8-inch
concrete curb and gutter).
Therefore, they are recommending extending contract 16-G unit prices to
Rotondo Construction Corp. with a budget of $130,000.00 to complete the
concrete road selective slab replacement for the 2017 Concrete Road Selective
Slab Replacement Program, Contract 17-J.
In order to proceed with this project, they respectfully recommend that the
Council take the following actions:
Waive the formal bidding process under Section 3.04.140.D.3 of the
Livonia Code of Ordinances, as amended, since no advantage to the City
would result from competitive bidding.
Extend contract 16-J unit prices for Contract 17-J, 2017 Concrete Road
Selective Slab Replacement Program in the amount of $130,000.00 to Joe
Rotondo Construction Corp., 38807 Ann Arbor Road, Suite 2, Livonia, Ml
48150. The award should be on the basis of the bid unit prices from 2016,
Contract 16-J with the exception of revised unit prices for bid items 1, 2, 3,
and 4 (+concrete pavement of various thickness of 4-inch and 6-inch
concrete approaches, 7-inch concrete roadway and 8-inch concrete curb
and gutter), said amount to be adjusted based upon the quantities of work
actually completed.
Authorize an expenditure from budgeted funds of $130,000.00 from Contr.
Services - Pavement & Catch Basin Repair Account.
Authorize a budget transfer of $30,000 from Forestry – Contractual
Services - Tree Replacement Account to Contr. Services – Pavement &
Catch Basin Repair Account.
15
Authorize the City Engineer to approve minor adjustments in the work, as
required.
Bahr offered the approving resolution for the Consent Agenda.
DIRECTION: APPROVING CONSENT
12. REQUEST TO ADVISE THE WAYNE COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC
SERVICES (PERMIT SECTION) THAT THE CITY HAS APPROVED THE
STORM SEWER PLANS AND WILL ACCEPT JURISDICTION AND
MAINTENANCE OF THE STORM SEWER WITHIN THE PROPERTY LOCATED
ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF FIVE MILE ROAD, WEST OF LEVAN ROAD, AND
REQUEST TO AUTHORIZE THE CITY ENGINEER TO EXECUTE A WAYNE
COUNTY PERMIT ON BEHALF OF THE CITY: Engineering Division, re: for the
St. Mary Hospital Improvements – Phase 3 at 36475 Five Mile Road located in
the Northwest 1/4 of Section 20 and for Trinity Health-Michigan, dba Saint
Joseph Mercy Health System (“Hospital”) to reimburse the City for any such
maintenance that may become necessary.
Todd Zilincik, City Engineer, presented the request to Council. In connection with
the development of the property located on the south side of Five Mile Road,
west of Levan Road, the Wayne County Department of Public Services has
requested that the City take jurisdiction and control of the entire on-site storm
sewer collection system to be constructed by the owner of the property at their
expense. A representative of the City must also be designated to execute the
County permit in connection with this storm sewer construction.
The Engineering Division has reviewed this matter and recommends that the
following actions be taken:
1) Advise the Wayne County Department of Public Services (Permit Section)
that the City of Livonia has approved the storm sewer plans and further, that
the City will accept jurisdiction and maintenance (at no expense to the
County) of the storm sewer within the property located on the south side Five
Mile Road, west of Levan Road in the N.W. 1/4 of Section 20. In reference to
this storm sewer system, this office has received the attached maintenance
agreement from the owner, Trinity Health - Michigan, dba Saint Joseph Mercy
Health System ("Hospital") requiring them to reimburse the City for any such
maintenance that may become necessary.
2) Authorize the City Engineer to execute a Wayne County permit, on behalf of
the City of Livonia, in connection with the above storm sewer construction.
3) Authorize the Mayor to execute the maintenance agreement on behalf of the
City.
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Brosnan described her relationship as a Board Member at St. Mary Mercy
Hospital and St. Joseph Hospital both of who are petitioners this evening. She
stated she receives no monetary compensation for that position and therefore
there is no conflict of interest and that she intends to vote on this item and the
subsequent items. She said this particular item is a housekeeping item; it is not
one that Council sees often.
Brosnan offered the approving resolution for the Consent Agenda.
DIRECTION: APPROVING CONSENT
13. REQUEST TO ADVISE THE WAYNE COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC
SERVICES (PERMIT SECTION) THAT THE CITY HAS APPROVED THE
STORM SEWER PLANS AND WILL ACCEPT JURISDICTION AND
MAINTENANCE OF THE STORM SEWER WITHIN THE PROPERTY LOCATED
ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF FIVE MILE ROAD, WEST OF LEVAN ROAD, AND
REQUEST TO AUTHORIZE THE CITY ENGINEER TO EXECUTE A WAYNE
COUNTY PERMIT ON BEHALF OF THE CITY: Engineering Division, re: for the
St. Mary Hospital Improvements – Phase 4 at 36475 Five Mile Road located in
the Northwest 1/4 of Section 20 and for Trinity Health-Michigan, dba Saint
Joseph Mercy Health System (“Hospital”) to reimburse the City for any such
maintenance that may become necessary.
Todd Zilincik, City Engineer, presented the request to Council. In connection with
the development of the property located on the south side of Five Mile Road,
west of Levan Road, the Wayne County Department of Public Services has
requested that the City take jurisdiction and control of the entire on-site storm
sewer collection system to be constructed by the owner of the property at their
expense. A representative of the City must also be designated to execute the
County permit in connection with this storm sewer construction.
The Engineering Division has reviewed this matter and recommends that the
following actions be taken:
1) Advise the Wayne County Department of Public Services (Permit Section)
that the City of Livonia has approved the storm sewer plans and further, that
the City will accept jurisdiction and maintenance (at no expense to the
County) of the storm sewer within the property located on the south side Five
Mile Road, west of Levan Road in the N.W.1/4 of Section 20. In reference to
this storm sewer system, this office has received the attached maintenance
agreement from the owner, Trinity Health - Michigan, dba Saint Joseph Mercy
Health System ("Hospital") requiring them to reimburse the City for any such
maintenance that may become necessary.
2) Authorize the City Engineer to execute a Wayne County permit on behalf of
the City of Livonia in connection with the above storm sewer construction.
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3) Authorize the Mayor to execute the maintenance agreement on behalf of the
City.
Meakin said this like the last item is a housekeeping item that occurs at the end
of a project. All the paperwork appears to be in order.
Meakin offered the approving resolution for the Consent Agenda.
DIRECTION: APPROVING CONSENT
14. REQUEST TO ADVISE THE WAYNE COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC
SERVICES (PERMIT SECTION) THAT THE CITY HAS APPROVED THE
STORM SEWER PLANS AND WILL ACCEPT JURISDICTION AND
MAINTENANCE OF THE STORM SEWER WITHIN THE PROPERTY LOCATED
ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF FIVE MILE ROAD, WEST OF LEVAN ROAD, AND
REQUEST TO AUTHORIZE THE CITY ENGINEER TO EXECUTE A WAYNE
COUNTY PERMIT ON BEHALF OF THE CITY: Engineering Division, re: for the
St. Mary Hospital Improvements – Phase 5 at 36475 Five Mile Road located in
the Northwest 1/4 of Section 20 and for Trinity Health-Michigan, dba Saint
Joseph Mercy Health System (“Hospital”) to reimburse the City for any such
maintenance that may become necessary.
Todd Zilincik, City Engineer, presented the request to Council. In connection with
the development of the property located on the south side of Five Mile Road,
west of Levan Road, the Wayne County Department of Public Services has
requested that the City take jurisdiction and control of the entire on-site storm
sewer collection system to be constructed by the owner of the property at their
expense. A representative of the City must also be designated to execute the
County permit in connection with this storm sewer construction.
The Engineering Division has reviewed this matter and recommends that the
following actions be taken:
1) Advise the Wayne County Department of Public Services (Permit Section)
that the City of Livonia has approved the storm sewer plans and further, that
the City will accept jurisdiction and maintenance (at no expense to the
County) of the storm sewer within the property located on the south side Five
Mile Road, west of Levan Road in the N.W. ¼ of Section 20. In reference to
this storm sewer system, this office has received the attached maintenance
agreement from the owner, Trinity Health - Michigan, dba Saint Joseph Mercy
Health System ("Hospital") requiring them to reimburse the City for any such
maintenance that may become necessary.
2) Authorize the City Engineer to execute a Wayne County permit on behalf of
the City of Livonia in connection with the above storm sewer construction.
18
3) Authorize the Mayor to execute the maintenance agreement on behalf of the
City.
Meakin said this item, like the last two items, is a housekeeping item.
Meakin offered the approving resolution for the Consent Agenda.
DIRECTION: APPROVING CONSENT
15. WAIVER PETITION: Planning Commission, re: Petition 2016-06-02-14
submitted by Livonia Market II, L.L.C., in connection with a proposal to
redevelop, including demolishing the existing building and parking areas,
constructing a new 37,000 square foot square foot fitness center (LA Fitness)
and 8,060 square foot freestanding multi-tenant retail building on the property
located on the south side of Seven Mile Road between Middlebelt Road and
Melvin Avenue (29659 Seven Mile Road), in the Northeast 1/4 of Section 11.
Mark Taormina, Director of Planning and Economic Development, presented the
request to Council. The subject property is the former location of a Farmer Jack
grocery store. It’s on the south side of Seven Mile Road just west of Middlebelt
Road. The zoning of the property is C-2, General Business. Prior to this being a
Farmer Jack, the site was constructed originally in the mid-1990’s as a Builders
Square home improvement store. The building has been vacant for the past
several years. There is a single building on the property that measures roughly
110,000 square feet in total size. That building, as well as most of the existing
site improvements, will be demolished and removed as part of this proposal.
Buildings that are in excess of 30,000 square feet require waiver use approval
subject to the conditions set forth in Section 11.03(p) of the Zoning Ordinance.
Anchoring the new development would be a 37,000 square foot LA Fitness. The
building would be generally located in the southwest corner of the site. The new
building would be set back approximately the same distance, 65 feet, from the
property’s rear lot line as the existing building that will be demolished. The
minimum required rear yard setback is 60 feet. Located directly behind the site is
multiple-family residential. The zoning is R-7, Multi-Family Residential.
Commercial zoning exists both to the east, west and north of this property. Only
the south property line would require the additional setback of 60 feet. Parking for
the fitness center would be available on all four sides of the building. The
proposed LA Fitness building would contain varied heights. The majority of the
building is 24 feet, but at its highest point hear the main entrance, the building
would reach a maximum of 35 feet. The building would be constructed mainly out
of precast concrete wall panels that would be painted using three different neutral
colors. Other materials include E.I.F.S. shown along the building’s cornice as well
as portions of the façade that are above the main entrance. There are aluminum
storefront windows, and the central tower area would consist of a prefabricated
metal panel material. Going back to the site plan and looking at what is referred
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to as Outlot B, this is an 8,060-square foot multi-tenant building that would be
located in the northwest corner of the site. The setback of that building would be
roughly 96 feet from Seven Mile Road and 59 feet from the west lot line. The
required setback from Seven Mile in this case would be 60 feet, so the building
fully conforms to that requirement. The building is shown containing three tenants
at the present time, although that could vary. Once again, parking would be
available on all four sides of the building. The primary building material in this
case would be a masonry product called C-brick. That would be located on most
the building’s four sides. The upper part of the façade contains some E.I.F.S.
There are some other block materials that are used as accent bands, as well as
some overhead canopies and awnings. This is a very similar design to what’s
directly across the street at Livonia Marketplace. Again, this is the same
developer so they’re going to be carrying over some of the same themes that
were used in the construction of that project; namely, some of the building
materials used for the outparcel buildings as well as some of the streetscape
improvements. In terms of “Future Outlot A,” this is a building pad that is shown
in the northeast corner of the property. At this time, they don’t know who the
tenant would be. Construction of this building would have to come back for site
plan approval at a later date, but generally they’re showing the future
development in this part of the site with a 10,000-square foot building. Based on
the parking information that is provided, it is presumed to be a possible
restaurant tenant. It’s been designed primarily for a potential restaurant user. The
parking and circulation pattern would be completely reconfigured, although it
would be very similar with mostly 90-degree parking to Seven Mile Road. There
are two existing curb-cuts, one near the northeast corner of the site and the other
near the middle of the site that would remain generally as they are today. There
is a third existing driveway near the northwest corner of the property that would
be removed as part of this development. So really, this new site would rely on
two primary points of ingress and egress. The center of the main drive aisle leads
directly towards the middle of the LA Fitness building, and that is a signalized
intersection. There is rather large area in the southeast corner of the property
that is devoted to storm water management. This would be an open detention
area. It would include two main parts to the system, which is referred to as a fore
bay which is where the water initially enters into the basin. It then flows into the
main detention basin, which is the southerly part of this pond, and then it exits
the basin via a restricted outlet pipe into the main storm sewer where it
eventually discharges into the Rouge River. This is a required site element and
has been designed to meet the Wayne County Storm Water Management
guidelines. The plan shows a total of 523 proposed parking spaces. When
looking at just the fitness center, that parks at a ratio of one space for every 160
square feet of usable floor area. That is what the ordinance requires, which
would be a minimum of 185 parking spaces. The multitenant retail building would
require another 43 spaces. If they assume Outlot A is developed as a restaurant,
that would require an additional 117 parking spaces. Altogether, the ordinance
requires roughly 345 spaces. Since the plan shows 523 spaces, there is more
than ample parking to meet the ordinance. In fact, that surplus as they calculate it
20
is approximately 178 spaces. Landscaping overall constitutes roughly 20 percent
of the total site area, which does conform to the ordinance which requires a
minimum 15 percent. The landscape plan provides for a variety of plant materials
shown around the perimeter of the site as well as within the parking lot islands
and aisle ways. The detention basin would be seeded but they will ask that the
perimeter of that basin, the shelf areas or the flat areas along the top edge of the
basin, be sodded and irrigated just like the other landscaped areas on the site.
Dumpster enclosures are shown along the rear of the proposed commercial
buildings and restaurant. The screening material would be eight feet in height
and that would be constructed out of C-brick to match the building materials. The
swing gates would be constructed out of prefinished metal panels. All of that
conforms to our minimum requirements, as does the lighting. Site lighting is
shown at 20 feet in height which is consistent with the City’s guidelines for
outdoor lighting. Lastly, with respect to signage, there is no information at this
time regarding signage other than they would reface the existing monument sign
along Seven Mile Road. That sign is conforming as it exists so there will not be a
problem in refacing it. Back to some of the elements along Seven Mile Road, one
of the features that is shown on this site plan and some details provided in your
packet are the introduction of some masonry brick piers and fencing, similar to
the treatments that were provided across the street at Livonia Marketplace but to
a lesser extent on this site. The hardscape elements would be used to augment
the main entryways. The sections of piers and fencing are shown on both sides
of the main entrance drive leading to the development as well as the east
entrance drive.
Meakin commented on how he has not seen a project of this size where they
have more parking than what is required. Taormina said it is not unique to this
site. He said they have seen it before. Meakin asked what Phase III of the site
will look like until it is developed. Taormina said it would be curbed with a
concrete pad awaiting development. Taormina said he did forget to mention that
3 buildings will have their own separate 8-foot-high masonry enclosed dumpster.
Karl Zarbo, Director of Construction, Lormax Stern Development Company,
38500 Woodward Avenue, Suite 200, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan 48304. He said
they’re here tonight to start the process to redevelop the approximately 10 acres
at 29659 Seven Mile Road. As Mark mentioned, most of you are probably more
familiar with it as the former Farmer Jacks. Ultimately in this process they are
looking to attempt to achieve six different goals in the redevelopment. Number
one, as Mark pointed out, they will fully demolish the existing 110,000 square foot
building, along with the existing site amenities that are there as you see it.
Second would be to achieve the waiver use. Again, as Mark indicated, because
the LA Fitness building is greater than the 30,000-square foot, it requires the
waiver use. Again, they are anticipating the LA Fitness being on 4.47 acres. The
game plan is to create three parcels there, one of which would be the 4.47 acres
in the center of the project for LA Fitness. The east and the west, while it would
be two different parcels, would be one ownership and that would be through
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Livonia Market II. They were at the Assessor’s Office and started that process
with that paperwork. The site plan approval, as Mark indicated, is essentially for
the outbuilding closest to Seven Mile and furthest to the west. That’s a building
that is a little over 8,000 square feet. It is a freestanding building. The intention is
to be multi-tenant and it is to be a retail building. They have paper out working on
that building but the lease isn’t far enough long that they can tell you tonight who
it is, but it clearly is retail. Essentially, that is all they do. It is clearly intended to
be multitenant, and that’s the game plan. The second building, which is really
Outlot A, which is the more easterly building, shown as the larger of the two,
approximately 10,000. In our terminology in our industry today, they would call
that a spec building as they speak. They have not tried to market that yet.
Essentially, our feeling is that building may have more value and may allow us to
kind of hone in on what they would like, certainly with input from the City, once
they know where they’re at with the rest of the project. In other words, the LA
Fitness and the outbuilding will help to market and sell that and allow them to
certainly make A choices instead of a B or a C choice. They plan, as they’ve
indicated, to reconstruct all the site elements across the entire site. That would
include certainly the storm water management system. They’ll talk a little bit more
about that. It certainly is not the low point of the site. So, to get the inverts that
are required for storm water, all the utilities will be redeveloped on this site.
Again, as was indicated, they’re required to do 15 percent landscaping. The
current plan shows 20. In conversation with Mark Taormina, Mark suggested
some additional landscaping along the west property line and that’s along that Art
Van border. Those are 20-foot-deep spots. They would go to 18 foot and they
would add 2 feet of additional landscaping. They can work out with staff if you’d
like or certainly come back and return with another landscape plan, whatever the
Commission’s wishes are, but they think it’s a good idea and it’s something that
they certainly would agree to do. Along those same lines with the landscaping,
They have the brick piers and they are at both entrances. If you look at the site
plan, you don’t see it on both but it’s on the landscape plan. So, they’ll correct
that to make sure it’s shown on all the documents, but you will get those, the
brick piers that kind of pull in and resemble across the street in all the final plans.
As they indicated when they started the process with the City of Livonia, this has
been a very, very difficult site to get redeveloped. Essentially, it’s because of
what has happened with changes in the storm water management. They looked
at some way of trying to save the east and the south wall and see if somehow
they could get around all of this with the County of Wayne with storm water
management. Not only did it not work, it wasn’t what they wanted to present to
Council. So, they have really come to the conclusion that what they’re going to
do is take an acre and a half of land. They’re going to build a storm water
retention pond that will serve a 100-year event, and as Mark indicated, it is not
fully engineered yet, but because of the expense involved with this, until they
know they’re comfortable with the City of Livonia, they’re not going to spend
those engineering dollars, but obviously, that would have to be fully engineered
and the compliance factor would be the 100-year criteria. Again, because of the
kind of unusual expenses involved with that property, they wanted to state to you
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that they will submit to the City of Livonia for consideration for a Brownfield
Reimbursement Agreement. They have a draft of that document. The language is
fairly well set. It has a lot of similarity to what they did across the street. The
items that need negotiation are the value of the existing property at the date you
lock down, the value of the reimbursable expenses, the eligible activities that are
pretty much stated by ordinance but it’s what the parties agree to for the dollar
value of those eligible activities, and then the length of time for that Brownfield
Agreement payback period. Those are essentially the changed items that are in
negotiation, and they’ll formally submit that probably in the next 30 days. They’re
very, very conscious, by example, when they knocked down the mall across the
street, they milled all the asphalt, reused it. They took all the cementitious
products. They ground them. They reused them. So, they’re not in the business
of just knocking things down to knock things down. For a point of reference,
these bad boys are about three bucks a foot to knock down. So, if it could have
been reused, it certainly and clearly would have been our first choice, but they’re
of the contention at this point that this building is functionally obsolete and what
they are proposing is a complete site redevelopment. Again, that would include
the underground utilities, which some go back to when they had this property
with Ramco Gershenson when there was Builders Square and some of the other
uses. So, they are not going to take the chances and their potential client does
not want them to take the chances that for their grand opening the pipes would
fail. They’ll pull out the old existing utilities and completely re-engineer them.
They’d like the outbuildings to look like across the street. They’ve tried to pick out
similar materials. It’s the same architect. They would give them those finished
materials 360 degrees around. As they did across the street, they won’t have a
cinder block back of the building. They like the awnings. This property would
represent very similar to what you see across the street. Again, as they
mentioned, they’ll come into compliance and exceed their current landscaping
requirements and, of course, that includes irrigation. The nice thing with that is,
by going from what’s out there to about 20 percent, it dramatically changes the
pervious and impervious ratio and certainly then the quality of the storm water
before it ever gets into the pond system. Now they’ll have a complete fore bay
storm water pond system. It is a complete 10-acre site that sheet drains. So, the
enhancements in the landscaping and the storm water at a crazy, crazy cost is a
very environmentally friendly item. Parking lot lighting – all new parking light
lighting, underground cable, bases, poles and state of the art LED fixtures. Again,
they are meeting the criteria across the entire site that LA Fitness has set and
we’re finding that LA Fitness specification is all the top 30 or 40 national retailers
are requiring it. They obviously will stay involved with staff as it relates to the
perimeter property and make sure that there is, you know, no splash. No light
leaves the property per the City’s ordinance. But again, there’ll be a brand-new
parking lot lighting system. Those brand-new parking lot lights will be in a newly
paved, newly striped parking lot and they will have handicap parking. The other
thing that they believe important to the city is that this project now has sat for
years and your tax income based on a taxable value is not something that is real
attractive. They think when this is a finished component that tax revenue certainly
23
will be in an enhanced position. There are two components of job creation here.
Certainly, those jobs that are created with construction, and let me be the first to
say they are short term jobs. They are going to build it and leave. But again,
you’ll have some 55 or 56,000 square feet of retail that will stay here and remain.
And those jobs are intended to be permanent. Their neighbor immediately to the
east of this project is in the final throes of his facelift. They feel good about
something that they would be continuing to contribute to that strategy that was
started several years ago.
Brosnan commented to Zarbo about the design that was so successful across
the street and incorporated into this plan. She said she thinks that goes a long
way to creating a sense of community for the area. She said she is wondering
since it was mentioned about the safety feature into the entrance to LA Fitness.
She asked Zarbo if they had considered putting the LA Fitness building closer to
Seven Mile Road keeping the long drive into the site with parking in the rear. He
responded indicating they tried to incorporate the best of both worlds. He noted
that LA Fitness likes to have the parking in front of their building and said the rear
of their buildings are truly a rear of the building. Brosnan said she’d like to hear
LA Fitness’s comments on this.
Patrick Etterton, 3161 Michaelson Drive, Irvine, California, Senior Vice-President,
LA Fitness, responded by stating the design of their facilities has the parking
located in front of the building and has an entrance element to the design.
Brosnan asked if they have any intention of adding an outlot parcel in front of the
building in the future. Etterton answered no, it is not their intention. He said they
expect to utilize the parking lot for their patrons.
Brosnan asked Zarbo if there is ample space for safe foot travel on the site.
Zarbo said there is a sidewalk that traverses’ patrons to the LA Fitness building.
Brosnan said a healthy food option outparcel could possibly work there. Zarbo
said they don’t have any plans for a restaurant there. Brosnan asked what kind of
tenants would they be. Zarbo said national mercantile businesses, not
restaurants. Zarbo said there is a lease in escrow so he doesn’t want to go into
details on the tenant. Brosnan asked if there were bike racks on the property, she
said there is a lot of residential property nearby where residents may want to ride
their bikes up to shop there or workout. Zarbo replied yes. Brosnan asked
regarding the building materials, if they would be using painted concrete panels.
He said they are not, he deferred that question to the representative present for
the LA Fitness building. He said for their buildings, it will be nearly identical to the
ones across the street at Livonia Marketplace Shopping Center.
Gary Collins, 100 Illinois Street, St. Charles, Illinois, Director of Development for
LA Fitness, said that is correct the primary building material is precast painted
concrete panel. He said the base of that wall has stamped concrete. He did note
that they did complete a similar building in Plymouth, Michigan. He noted that
they are exploring the possibility of an E.I.F.S. wall in lieu of the concrete if staff
24
and Council have no objections. Brosnan responded stating E.I.F.S. is not
something they would normally cheer about but said they would let him discuss
that further with Mr. Taormina. Brosnan said she does like the fact that the
parapet wall will be concealing the rooftop mechanics.
Bahr said he did recently look at the LA Fitness in Plymouth and said he thought
it was mostly solid brick. Collins said this is a little bit different design. The entry
at the Plymouth location is round and that area is brick but the remainder of the
building is precast concrete. Bahr asked if all 523 parking spaces is needed.
Collins said that is for all 3 buildings. He said for their building approximately 250-
270 spaces would be required. He said it does appear to have more than ample
parking. He appreciates Councilmember Brosnan’s comments regarding the
parking and the possibility of moving the building closer to Seven Mile Road. He
said he knows they have put more than the required landscaping but wondered
about the possibility of going even further and adding more landscaping features
as opposed to a parking lot. Collins said he appreciates Bahr’s comments but
said that parking needs are unique to their business. Bahr said he can certainly
appreciate that.
Bahr asked Taormina about the signage for the site, whether it is excessive.
Taormina said signage still must be reviewed and said there are some signage
locations indicated with asterisks that are not allowed per the code and would
require approval from the Zoning Board of Appeals. He said that would be done
separately and is not part of this request. Taormina added that this is consistent
with the sign package for the development across the street which did require
approval from the Zoning Board of Appeals. He said it was carefully reviewed. He
said this will be modeled after the development and signage across the street.
Nonetheless it is going to require variances regarding the number of signs and
size of signage.
Meakin said lately they have been looking at new buildings from a 360-degree
viewpoint. He asked if there is anything that can be done to improve the rear of
the outlot buildings. He said there are just 3 awnings on the rear of the building.
He said the rear of the buildings are utilized for service. He said they tried to
utilize the landscaping to buffer. Meakin said it is a 360-degree building and even
though it may be an area for service for that building it is another buildings front
yard view. Meakin said he would encourage that they landbank some of the
parking spaces. He suggested they hydroseed it so it is a green area until it is
utilized for parking in the future, if ever it need be utilized for parking.
Brosnan said going back to the LA Fitness building. She said she pulled up the
LA Fitness building in Plymouth and said it looks substantially better regarding
the building materials in comparison to what is proposed for this site. She asked
if there was any way they could get closer to the look of the Plymouth building.
Etterton responded stating that prototype is not being used anymore. He said it
was a substantially larger facility also. Brosnan said she thinks residents will
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compare the two and comment on how the Plymouth location building looks
much better.
Vice-President Kritzman said he would drive by the Plymouth location. He said
he appreciates the comments from his colleagues. He indicated he is not fond of
painted concrete and said he would like to see some improvements to what is
proposed. He did add that he likes the idea of land banked parking. He said the
overall landscape plan is very responsive to concerns that were brought up in
previous discussions over the past couple of years. He said he hopes their
design team takes all the comments tonight into consideration. He said the
proposed plan has a bit of an industrial corridor feel to it and is hopeful with a
little bit of exploration that they can bring back some improvements to the plan
that leaves them not feeling that way.
Etterton made a comment and corrected an earlier statement he said the
Plymouth club reflected their exterior prototype exterior element which they’re
proposing here and it does not. He said what they were talking about was the
finish on the precast panel being embossed. Vice-President Kritzman thanked
him for that clarification.
Brosnan offered both the approving resolution and a resolution referring the
matter to the Committee of the Whole for its report and recommendation for the
Regular Agenda.
DIRECTION: 1) APPROVING REGULAR
2) REFER TO COMMITTEE OF
THE WHOLE FOR ITS REPORT
& RECOMMENDATION
AUDIENCE COMMUNICATION: None.
As there were no further questions or comments, President McIntyre adjourned the
Study Session at 10:05 p.m. on Monday, March 13, 2017.
DATED: March 22, 2017 SUSAN M. NASH
CITY CLERK