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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2019-08-26 CITY OF LIVONIA – CITY COUNCIL MINUTES OF STUDY MEETING HELD AUGUST 26, 2019 Meeting was called to order at 8:06 p.m. by President Laura Toy. Present: Kathleen McIntyre, Brian Meakin, Jim Jolly, Brandon Kritzman, Scott Bahr, Cathy White, and Laura Toy. Absent: None. Elected and appointed officials present: Mark Taormina, Director of Planning and Economic Development; Todd Zilincik, City Engineer; Paul Bernier, City Attorney; Susan M. Nash, City Clerk; Brandie Isaacson, Director of Housing; and Mayor Dennis Wright. Councilmember Kathleen McIntyre led the meeting in the Invocation citing the recent passing of Reserve Officer Tom Gibson. President Toy stated there is New Data on Item 1. Vice President Jolly requested that the matter of the scheduling of Council Regular and Study Sessions and the posted time that they start, specifically that the Study Session commence within ten minutes after the conclusion of the Regular Meeting, and its compliance with the Open Meetings Act, be referred to the Administration and the Department of Law for their report and recommendation. AUDIENCE COMMUNICATION: None NEW BUSINESS: 1. REQUEST TO WAIVE THE CITY’S NOISE ORDINANCE: Ernie Pacsai, Owner, SuperNatural Brewing & Spirits, re: to host an Oktoberfest event with live music in their parking lot located at 36685 Plymouth Road on Friday, September 20, 2019 and Saturday, September 21, 2019 from 5:00 p.m. to 12:00 a.m. and Sunday, September 22, 2019 from 12:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Ernie Pacsai, 36855 Plymouth Road, presented this request to Council. He stated on the Friday night of this event they will have “Oom Pah Pah” music for Oktoberfest, and on Saturday night there will be live music and also during the day on Sunday, there will be local bands playing in the tent. Vice President Jolly asked Pacsai how business is doing at the SuperNatural Brewing & Spirits and Pacsai replied pretty good, that the people of Livonia have been very kind. He went on to state that the building is in a tough location, the little corner where the “Y” of Ann Arbor Road and Plymouth Road come together, it’s a difficult spot to get in and out of so it makes it a challenge for them on their slower days. Jolly then asked if the customers have commented on the beer and Pacsai 2 stated they love the beer and the food at the establishment, serving fresh burgers and fries. Vice President Jolly stated that anything Council can do to help out a local business, and this makes sense, that the City doesn’t really have an Oktoberfest, and he then offered an approving resolution for the Consent Agenda. Councilmember Meakin asked if the issue of the past due water bill had been taken care of and Pacsai replied that he went in and paid the amount due and produced th the receipt. He stated there is a balance of $1,600 due on the 10 of September and that will be taken care of as well. DIRECTION: APPROVING CONSENT 2. REQUEST TO APPROVE AND RECOGNIZE THE CLARENCEVILLE HIGH SCHOOL HOMECOMING PARADE TO BE HELD ON FRIDAY, OCTOBER 4, 2019; REQUEST TO APPROVE THE PARADE ROUTE AND THE CLOSING OF CERTAIN CITY STREETS; AND REQUEST TO DESIGNATE AND AUTHORIZE SENIOR POLICE OFFICER MICHAEL ARAKELIAN TO SIGN THE WAYNE COUNTY ROAD COMMISSION PERMIT ON BEHALF OF THE CITY TO CLOSE A PORTION OF MIDDLEBELT ROAD, WITH THE CITY TO ASSUME LIABILITY FOR ANY DAMAGE CLAIMS WHICH MAY ARISE AS A RESULT OF THE ROAD CLOSURE: Kevin Murphy, Athletic Director, re: same. Terry Warman, Clarenceville School District, 20210 Middlebelt Road, Livonia, presented this request to Council. Councilmember Meakin stated this is a longstanding tradition for Clarenceville and he then offered an approving resolution for the Consent Agenda. Warman then indicated that Kevin Murphy, Athletic Director, requested a time change from 5:30 p.m. to 6:15 p.m. due to the football game time schedule and Councilmember Meakin accepted the amendment to his resolution. DIRECTION: APPROVING CONSENT 3. REQUEST FOR AUTHORIZATION TO SELL CITY-OWNED PROPERTY ACQUIRED THROUGH THE WAYNE COUNTY TAX FORECLOSURE PROGRAM USING FUNDS FROM THE FEDERAL COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT (CDBG) PROGRAM: Livonia Housing Commission, re: for the home located at 9823 Merriman Road to Terry Cureton for a sale price of $167,000.00. Brandie Isaacson, Director of Housing, presented this request to Council. She stated she is before Council asking for approval to sell the property on Merriman, 9823 Merriman. The property was actually purchased back in 2017 and utilized 3 by the Livonia Trade School Program for education. So over the past couple years, the students at Churchill learned electrical, plumbing, heating, finished carpentry, they constructed a garage, and now the property is finished and ready to sell. She said there is one correction on the Agenda, the sale price is actually $173,600.00, the $167,000.00 is the appraised value. She said she is asking Council to approve the offer as a VA mortgage. Councilmember McIntyre stated that this program is a great program for a number of reasons and she then offered an approving resolution for the Consent Agenda. DIRECTION: APPROVING CONSENT 4. REQUEST TO WAIVE THE CITY’S NOISE ORDINANCE: Matt R. Hickman, PE, Traffic Operations Engineer-Taylor TSC, State of Michigan, Department of Transportation, re: in conjunction with the I-275 Rehabilitation Project, from Ford Road (M-153) to Six Mile Road. Todd Zilincik, City Engineer, presented this request to Council. He stated from the Engineering Department’s perspective, they received a confirmation from MDOT that they’re going to be doing improvements along I-275 from Ford Road to Six Mile next year in 2020, of which one of those will be a bridge enhancement at Five Mile crossing, part of the City’s Bike/Walk Plan, so they’re looking forward to that improvement. Adam Penzenstadler, from MDOT, is here to answer any questions, but they’re looking to put this information into their bid documents again to ask for a Noise Ordinance waiver, again, that helps expedite the project and then obviously they want to make sure that they can complete it to ensure that motorists can hopefully enjoy a project that’s completed in a more expeditious manner with the Noise Ordinance waiver, and with that I’ll turn it over to Adam for any further questions, he is the Project and the Contract Administration Engineer for MDOT-Taylor TSC. Adam Penzenstadler, came to the podium, and stated he is also the Design Project Manager for this project and that he is present to answer any questions of Council. Vice President Jolly asked for a brief overview of what work they will be doing from Ford Road to Six Mile; is it going to be something like they saw further north on 275 a few years ago? Penzenstadler replied no, it is not quite the same. This is going to be a rehabilitation project from Ford Road to Six Mile, it’s actually Ford Road to Five Mile is the roadwork, and then up to Six Mile is the next bridge where we end so that’s why it goes through that limits. It’s a composite pavement which is asphalt on top of concrete. They are going to strip off that asphalt layer, just mill off that asphalt, and then pave new asphalt on top of it as well as rehabbing about twenty structures that are through that area, just trying while we’re in the area, try to get through and make sure they are lasting as long as possible and replace a couple 4 of culvert crossings across the freeway, too, there. So this is mainly going to be rehabilitation work, mainly an HMA. What we did to the north, we came, we broke up all that concrete pavement, we ripped it all out, we had concrete batch plants on site and we repaved all that. We’re not doing that. There’s not going to be the pavement breaking, like the concrete that there was last time, there’s not going to be any concrete batch plants. This is going to be an asphalt project which is simply just going to grind off that three inches of asphalt that’s out there, and put another three and a half inches back. Jolly stated it’s going to be a less intense project, is it something that you would anticipate a lot of work at night or is this just to kind of cross the T’s and dot the I’s? Penzenstadler replied more to cross the T’s and dot the I’s. There are some operations that do have to happen at night, some of the bridge work is temperature sensitive and does have to happen at evening or night. It’s not necessarily super loud, it is a construction project, I’m not going to stand in front of you and tell you it’s quiet, it is construction, but it’s going to be like the project we had to the north. So we are looking for a waiver of the noise so that we can do some of those operations at night as well as there will be some occasional Sunday work. I’m not looking at every Sunday, but there will be some occasional work on Sundays as well. Vice President Jolly then offered an approving resolution for the Consent Agenda. Councilmember Meakin stated that the biggest complaints that he heard about the I-96 project from many neighbors is the landscaping looks horrible and is there anything we can do about that. I tell them it’s a State project, so we have to get in contact with MDOT, and asked that Penzenstadler to pass that along that there are many people that are unhappy, it looks like grown weeds, and he knows the tractors can’t get along those sides because they’re so steep, so either it was designed poorly or can he find out why it looks so bad. Penzenstadler replied that he will absolutely take that message back and relay that. He would like to let Council know that they are looking at the area, not only the landscaping that you see out there, but also they’re looking at solving the problem with the seepage of the water through the walls. So this is an area we’re looking at studying. We’re not walking away and washing our hands of it, we realize there is an issue and is something that they are looking to address hopefully sometime in the future, we just don’t have an answer right now as to what exactly went wrong and how to go about fixing that. Councilmember Meakin indicated they are getting phone calls and emails regarding how high it’s been. He knows it’s been a tough grow year for the State of Michigan, but we still need to do a better job of making sure it looks good. 5 Councilmember White stated back to the I-275 project, I don’t know when it’s supposed to begin, but can you state that for the public? Penzenstadler said absolutely, it will be next year’s construction season, we don’t have our contractor on board yet because we’re still in the design phase, but he anticipates this to be April through November. President Toy thanked Penzenstadler for being present at the meeting. DIRECTION: APPROVING CONSENT 5. REQUEST TO AUTHORIZE PAYMENT TO DETROIT EDISON: Engineering Division, re: for the re-installation of six (6) UG streetlights as part of the Five Mile Road Water Main Replacement Project (Phase II) Merriman Road to Middlebelt Road. (CR 303-16) Todd Zilincik, City Engineer, presented this request to Council. He stated as you can see contractors working between Merriman and Middlebelt on the north side of Five Mile, to replace a 12-inch water main through pipes bursting methods, keep existing location of that water main. As you know streetlights had to be taken out in order to accommodate the locations of future gate wells and for the boring locations. So, upon completion they’re looking to get the lights reinstalled and put them back so it’s bright and make it safe for our residents to traverse that area. Just for your information, we are shutting down that westbound lane, curb lane, to allow the contractor, he’s working from Henry Ruff to Merriman, to access that through his equipment and materials. Then he’ll continue on working eastward from Henry Ruff to Middlebelt. He’s looking for approval for the amount of $43,189.61 to come back and bore the conduit and then reinstall the lights that they had taken out previously. Councilmember White offered an approving resolution for the Consent Agenda. DIRECTION: APPROVING CONSENT 6. REQUEST TO APPROVE THE ESTABLISHMENT OF IMPROVEMENT BONDS: Engineering Division, re: to assure the installation of public improvements at Capri Street Site Condominium, located on the west side of Farmington Road between Norfolk Avenue and Eight Mile Road (20209, 20219, 20225, 20235 and 20307 Farmington Road) in the Northeast ¼ of Section 4. (CR 205-19) Todd Zilincik, City Engineer, presented this request to Council. He stated this is a little bit of good news again, development is taking place over there on Farmington Road, just south of Eight Mile, west of Farmington, it’s called Capri Street Condominiums, approximately sixteen homesites with the out lot along Farmington. Again, looking for the improvement bonds that we’ve established based on the Ordinance and looking for your approval to again have those bonds 6 taken in case there is any issues, if something should happen out there, and again, the developer having the contribution in aid for streetlights and trees and street name signs and traffic control devices, along with soil erosion control. So he is looking for approval to establish the bonds, and then come back to City Council upon acceptance and completion, to then release those back to the developer once it’s been accepted. Councilmember McIntyre offered an approving resolution for the Consent Agenda. DIRECTION: APPROVING CONSENT AUDIENCE COMMUNICATION None As there were no further questions or comments President Toy adjourned the Study Session at 8:26 p.m. on Monday, August 26, 2019. th For the 1,880 Regular Meeting of September 9, 2019 DATED: August 28, 2019 SUSAN M. NASH, CITY CLERK In accordance with Title II of the American with Disabilities Act as it pertains to access to Public Meetings, the City Clerk’s Office of the City of Livonia, upon adequate notice, will make reasonable accommodations for persons with special needs. Please call (734) 466-2236 or email clerk@ci.livonia.mi.us if you need assistance. Council agendas are available on the City’s website – www.ci.livonia.mi.us - under Government, City Council, Agendas.