[0:03] [music]

[0:15] Okay. Uh, roll call. Sure. >> Mike Green

[0:19] » here. >> Mayor Kelly

[0:21] » here. >> Pam Sheremire

[0:23] » here. >> Alex Green

[0:24] » here. >> Fred Prime

[0:26] » here. >> Dr. Patricia Felton.

[0:30] Charlotte Jones >> here.

[0:31] » Dan Sugg. >> All right. We have quum.

[0:34] » Then I'll make a motion to excuse those not here because they did give us a

[0:38] heads up. Second in support. All those in favor?

[0:44] » I. >> All right. Motion carries. Uh approval

[0:48] of the agenda. >> Move to approve.

[0:52] » Second. >> A second. No questions. All those in

[0:55] favor? >> I I

[0:58] » Motion carries. All right. Approval of the minutes.

[1:01] » I'll make the motion to approve the minutes.

[1:03] » I would like to second that and add that they were the most thorough minutes I've

[1:07] ever read. >> [laughter]

[1:09] » Took me 20 minutes or so, but my welcome to uh Tom is

[1:13] » Tom was the one. >> Good job.

[1:17] » All right, it's been made and supported. All those in favor?

[1:22] » I I motion carries. Uh the consent agenda.

[1:27] » I'll make the motion for the consent agenda.

[1:30] » Support. The

[1:32] » questions. All those in favor? I I >> All right. Motion carries.

[1:39] Uh public comment.

[1:43] Look like we have any speakers. We'll move on uh to old business.

[1:52] » There's none. >> Nothing on the agenda for old business.

[1:55] Move to new business winter festival updates.

[1:58] » Yes. So on um Friday, December 5th, in the community room here at city hall,

[2:04] we'll be having our second annual winter festival. Last year, we held the um

[2:10] family oriented event for crafts and activities to come together and it was a

[2:15] big success. And following residents uh inquiry if we were going to do it again

[2:20] this year, we decided that we will. So, um, the first Friday of December from

[2:26] 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. we will be doing, uh, the winter festival again. So, we ask

[2:31] all of you to attend. If any of you would like to volunteer, uh, the DDA

[2:35] will be hosting a cookie decorating table. It was a big hit last year. We

[2:41] went through 12 dozen uh, cookies. So, we're going to shoot for a little more.

[2:46] Uh this year we have the Southfield Fire Department who's going to come by and

[2:50] bring fire truck for the kids to to take a look at. They're going to have a table

[2:55] as well giving out uh little plastic fire hats and talking with kids. We'll

[3:01] have parks and wreck is going to have Santa Claus. Santa's humming one of the

[3:07] uh members uh father or not father their husband and their daughter are she's

[3:13] going to be the elf. We're going to have them there to do photos. The uh nature

[3:17] group in coordination with the police department are going to be doing

[3:21] ornament making. Lauren will be there um teaching um kids how to play drreidle.

[3:27] And we'll have the uh library will be there doing library cards and and giving

[3:33] out um coloring books. And who else am I? Chase Bank will be there giving out

[3:39] piggy banks to kids. >> And um It's going to be a fun fun night.

[3:45] So, >> Chamber of Commerce, too.

[3:46] » Chamber of Commerce is also going to be there. They're going to have their food

[3:49] truck with fries and cocoa. And then, uh, to cap off the night, we're going to

[3:54] have Kelly get lighten up the Christmas tree. So, it's going to be a fun night.

[4:00] So, please come on out. >> Uh, and if anybody would like to do a

[4:03] craft or activity and host a table, we can get you set up. So, please let me

[4:07] know and spread the word. >> I have a question. You said uh if you

[4:11] have a you can host a table of bringing whatever you want to bring or

[4:15] » Yeah. Yeah. So, if there's an activity or craft you'd like to do with the

[4:18] families and kids, please let me know. We can get you set up.

[4:22] » Yeah. It's going to be a fun night. >> No blackjack or anything like that.

[4:25] » No, [laughter] no, no. >> Shoot crafts. So, you don't want that.

[4:29] [laughter] >> Yeah.

[4:31] » Very specific. >> Prefer Christmas oriented holiday.

[4:37] » Yeah. There you go. um that yeah, please come on out. It'll

[4:40] be a fun night. We did it last year. So, we plan to decorate the community room

[4:43] and have a good night.

[4:48] » And we also will be at the light up laser village on Monday night to help

[4:53] [clears throat] first bring in the festive season.

[4:56] » And if I could ask that um the DDA and anyone that's watching to please um go

[5:03] because we also have a council meeting that night. So the council is

[5:07] technically only going to be there for maybe 20 minutes and so we don't want to

[5:10] look like all of Lake just bitched. >> Yeah. Yeah. No, we'll definitely be

[5:15] there. We're going to have a table. Tom and I will be there for um most of the

[5:18] night and then we'll be making our way back for the council meeting.

[5:22] » Excellent. >> Very good. Uh there's nothing there

[5:28] approval wise. This is >> just information.

[5:31] » Okay. Okay. >> Any other questions?

[5:35] Uh, next item, the snow removal contract.

[5:39] » Thank you. Yeah, so there is a memo with three bids we received for this year's

[5:45] snow removal contract. This is for all the sidewalks along Leather Mile for

[5:51] stretching from Evergreen to Laser Boulevard as well as sidewalks on the

[5:55] overpasses. So, um, the meal summarizes the seasonal

[5:58] cost estimate. We did it for an average of 12 snow events for the snow removal

[6:04] of um the corridor along 11 mile. Uh the methodology is broken down in the memo.

[6:10] It standardized and compares the three proposals submitted by Express Snow

[6:14] Removal, Royal Maintenance Group, and Paradise Gardens. Each of the vendors

[6:18] submitted a different format uh for budgeting and and costs. One was a

[6:24] seasonal flat rate, one was a per um push snow event pricing and another was

[6:30] hourly building uh billing. So as you can see the breakdown was tiered for

[6:37] paradise. The initial cost would be $618 for any snow event between 1 to 4 in.

[6:44] Express snow removal gave a flat rate per event and it would come out to 1,800

[6:49] in event uh snow event. Royal Maintenance gave an all-inclusive

[6:53] package of $36,000 for all snow services as well as salt.

[6:59] Because the three submitted proposals use different pricing structures, a

[7:02] standardized methodology was applied to generate an equivalent cost for a

[7:06] typical winter. This approach allows for all proposals to be compared uniformly

[7:09] based on projected labor needs in the estimated number of snow events. To

[7:14] calculate labor assumptions uniformly across proposals, we relied on field

[7:19] data provided by the current contractor who reports that clearing two inches of

[7:22] snow typically requires approximately 3 to four hours for one worker to complete

[7:27] all sidewalks along the corridor. Using this operational benchmark, all

[7:31] proposals were normalized to reflect an average of three and a half labor hours

[7:36] uh per event with one primary worker and standard uh sidewalk cleaning equipment.

[7:41] As you can see uh in the second chart the per event breakdown for the costs

[7:48] lowest bidder would be Paradise Gardens parts on the normalized cost comparison

[7:54] their service responsiveness and overall value that they've provided um we

[7:58] recommend should be awarded the contract in addition to offering the most

[8:03] competitive pricing for a typical winter. Padise Gardens has a strong

[8:06] performance record with the city having consistently delivered high quality lawn

[8:11] care snow removal services under prior contracts. Their familiarity with the

[8:15] corridor pro proven reliability and clear per event pricing structure

[8:20] together make them the most dependable and costefficient choice for their

[8:23] upcoming season. So, we recommend that the contract uh um quote provided by

[8:30] Paradise be the one accepted and we're here for any questions that you may

[8:34] have.

[8:37] » Uh one question I had, how did how did we work out last year? I know we did

[8:41] something. >> It was a very light winner.

[8:43] » Yeah. La last year, I think the total bill was like $4,000 just the winner.

[8:47] Um, we went [snorts] with Paradise last year, but it was originally we had Excel

[8:52] Landscaping, who was the city's longtime contractor for this. Uh, at the last

[8:56] minute last year, Excel notified us that they no longer wanted it.

[8:59] » So, since we do have the current landscaping contract with Paradise, we

[9:03] brought it before the DDA board just to see if we'd expend extend their services

[9:06] just for the one year. It was also directed that this year we solicited

[9:10] some quotes. So, that's what the DDA folks did. That's why they're back in

[9:13] front of you guys asking question. Hey, we we met with um other contractors and

[9:17] they said that they're scaling back their snow services that they're having

[9:21] difficulty finding reliable labor as well as the cost to keep the assets

[9:26] needed on their books was just becoming too costly. So, it's actually

[9:30] consolidating the number of vendors available to do this type of work.

[9:34] » We spoke to about six or seven and we only got three back. So

[9:38] » yeah. >> And what do you know what um the

[9:40] all-inclusive package means for royal maintenance?

[9:45] » Yes. So in their bid um it shows that a uh gold premium package unlimited events

[9:53] 1 to 8 in um as well as a response time to 1 to two hours uh and also salting

[10:00] before and after storms. So that would be uh their package and we like Mike

[10:07] said we only expended 4,000 last year. So

[10:10] » no I was just curious what is Paradise's time in response response time.

[10:15] » They're usually here um before 8 a.m. They're on top of it and we have a

[10:20] direct communication with the owner who is uh also the lawn care um contractor

[10:28] and they're very responsive. >> Okay.

[10:31] What would happen uh or what would Paradise charge if if we had a 5 inch

[10:36] snow? >> Yes. So, as you can see, the their

[10:38] pricing is tiered per inches. So, let me pull up their bid because it does go up

[10:46] um based on the snow um

[10:51] » so if it's

[10:54] okay. And then 824 for any event between six and eight inches and 927 for eight

[11:00] to 10 inches. And also they do salting based on our request. So it's not

[11:07] something that they just do and then we get build. They will actually

[11:11] communicate with me and ask would you like salt? So that can help um at least

[11:16] keep the cost down and not doing it uh an exorbitant amount.

[11:22] » Got it. Um I'm just curious if Lady has or um

[11:28] has ever had its own snow removal or either partnered with Southfield or even

[11:33] the county for this service. >> We do have our DPW does the uh city hall

[11:38] grounds as well and um but that is a good uh interesting idea to work in

[11:44] coordination with Southfield to see if we could have the corridor be a part of

[11:48] their overall snow removal program. And that's communication or appro uh an

[11:53] approach we can start talking with them about next winter.

[11:56] » So yeah, that's an interesting idea.

[12:01] » Yeah. >> Any other questions?

[12:07] » So I'm sorry to follow up. You're saying that basically this is too much for DPW.

[12:11] Then >> I can touch on that. So for just so you

[12:15] know, Ly actually contracts out our DPW services. Oh, th this this portion of

[12:20] it's outside their scope plus the just the number of contractors we have. We

[12:24] three or four a day. >> We would have no time to do this on top

[12:28] of taking care of all the roads. And part of the cost share agreement the

[12:31] city has with the DDA requires us to be responsible for the corridor.

[12:36] » I get it. Okay. >> Yeah. So that's why it's kind of

[12:40] interesting that this one aspect of the city is the DDA's responsibility.

[12:47] Okay. Any additional comments, questions?

[12:52] All right. We'll take a motion to um approve the contract.

[12:59] » I will make the I lost it. I'll make the a motion to authorize the DDA director

[13:05] to enter into a contract for snow removal services with Paradise Gardens

[13:09] for the 20 202526 winter season.

[13:14] Second. >> All right. Made in support questions.

[13:17] All those in favor? >> I I need a roll call. Right.

[13:21] » I got everyone. >> All right. Uh, next item. 27907

[13:28] California Drive. Proposed purchase agreements.

[13:31] » Yes. So, we did um give an offer to the uh the bidder who bid on the lot located

[13:40] on California that's owned by the DDA. they um said the cost was outside their

[13:46] their structure. So um currently with their budget so uh they stepped back and

[13:53] did not provide a counter offer. So we were um interested in hearing your guys'

[14:00] input on the lot. was is this a lot that we would like to move and and sell uh

[14:06] just to get off the DDA's books or is this something where we're looking to

[14:11] get based on a fair market value? So, um when Mike and I put the RFP out, it was

[14:17] more about the proposal itself, not the cost. Um we were looking to get a fair

[14:23] market value as well as have more more ability to look over what was

[14:29] actually going to be built. so that it conformed with the city's master plan as

[14:33] well as that district in the city. So, um the contractor or the potential

[14:40] purchaser was going to put a urban nursery there and and grow uh fruit,

[14:47] vegetable, and herbs and also have it be a educational

[14:52] um center in the city. And it was also going to be a low impact use right now

[14:58] with that area. the city having the former school property being

[15:03] redeveloped. It has um the residents there are looking to have something be

[15:10] lower impact because of the increased traffic that's already going to be

[15:14] created due to that project. And this was a a p um a proposal that would

[15:23] really only have the owner there on a daily basis and then have small groups

[15:27] um on a semi-regular basis and it was not going to increase the traffic

[15:31] overall. It was also going to require minimal site development uh when it

[15:37] comes to actually covering the parcel. One of the biggest concerns for re from

[15:42] residents in that area of the city is the actual um

[15:47] storm water management issues because we have a drain and ditch system here in

[15:51] the city. Any type of covering of currently pvious uh soil will result in

[15:59] changes in how storm water is managed. And with this use, it was going to allow

[16:04] for storm water to be managed on site and actually probably have a a net

[16:10] benefit for that area of the city because wa storm water was going to

[16:14] actually be used to help water the plants. So, uh, when a year ago when

[16:20] Mike and I worked with Gifles Webster in potential uses of that lot, we saw it to

[16:26] be condos, which would pretty much cover most of the lot itself, resulting in

[16:32] storm water to have to be managed in another manner and also would increase

[16:36] traffic. And the one of the roads, it's a triangular parcel. Monterey is

[16:41] unpaved. So it would require a developer to actually put infrastructure costs

[16:47] into it and the purchaser of the lot was not going to do that. She was not

[16:54] worried about it being a dirt road and was going to keep it as is. So we're

[16:58] we're here to talk with you. We talked about going in close session, but I

[17:01] think we can just discuss here. What is your guys's appetite with this parcel?

[17:07] How would you like to see it either developed or not developed? at what are

[17:12] we looking to get when it comes to revenue from the sale of it

[17:21] » have to be sold? >> Not at this time.

[17:24] » Oh, okay. I just >> Yeah, I thought we talked about did was

[17:28] there a reason they couldn't lease it or >> That is something we can look back into.

[17:32] We >> touched on that last. Yeah, we thought

[17:34] that we didn't want to be uh >> be have a renter and be uh leasers of

[17:40] the lot and have to manage the lease, but if it's going to be that the this

[17:45] use is >> she's very um she has an investor. She's

[17:49] very motivated. She's going to look for a different parcel somewhere else in the

[17:52] area. She lives in Southfield. She's not far.

[17:55] » Um so we'll lose out on this business and this is she also wanted

[18:00] » it's a cost issue, right? I mean they're they're saying that we're the price that

[18:04] we're asking is too high. >> Yes.

[18:07] » And currently it's I mean it's sitting there. I mean we're not doing anything

[18:11] with it, right? >> Nope. And we're required to maintain it

[18:14] and um also it's on uh we're not getting any tax value from it.

[18:18] » Right. I know we had positive feedback from the community. The um the lease

[18:24] option for them. Um was she open to that?

[18:29] » She was open to it. She really wants this lot. She likes the location. She

[18:33] likes how it is located in the village center. She also um used to work uh in

[18:41] for the city of Ferndale as their zero waste coordinator. So, she understands

[18:46] what communities are trying to do with a master plan and develop certain aspects

[18:52] of their city. We have an overall village center design uh goal that we

[18:58] have here and she understands that and wants to be a part of it. She wants to

[19:02] be a part of the community. She even said in her response uh following me

[19:06] giving her our initial offer said that she would still want to work together

[19:10] with us on different projects. She's really interested in starting a farmers

[19:14] market. >> Um she was going to talk with John

[19:16] Roberts who owns the church to the west about doing it in the parking lot there.

[19:22] » Right. So I think the lease option um should at least be explored with her.

[19:26] » Yeah, I I definitely at least you know my opinion. I mean we should um you know

[19:30] revisit that. >> Um you know I mean the way I look at it

[19:34] it's more than you know just the price you know it's the value you know they

[19:39] want to provide the district. So >> and also placemaking wise it it was a

[19:43] good use. I think residents would like it and also many of their concerns

[19:48] concerns. Mike, Tom and I kept brainstorming potential um pitfalls with

[19:53] this proposed use and we thought that there was always a solid response to um

[20:00] any issues that could arise, especially storm water management. That was the

[20:04] biggest concern because people don't want to see storm water building up in

[20:07] their backyards or on their front yards. And this was actually going to be

[20:11] absorbing more water than it was going to be offputting into the roads and onto

[20:16] neighboring lots. >> Yeah. No, I that's what would be my uh

[20:21] suggestion. >> How was the price determined? Was it

[20:23] appraised or something? I mean, how did we come up with the price?

[20:25] » It wasn't a formal appraisal. Uh naturally, we know how much the DDA

[20:30] acquired it for back in 2013. Did a basic adjustment for inflation for

[20:36] » asking price to start it. And we also looked at what other lots um unbuilt but

[20:41] are being sold in [snorts] the city. >> How big is the lot?

[20:45] » It is just slightly under a half an acre.

[20:50] » And what was supposed to go there? You said condos. I'm sorry.

[20:52] » No, no, no. This was going to be a nursery.

[20:55] » Oh, just a nursery. Okay. >> There was a um proposal for condos to be

[20:59] there at one point. >> Yeah, we looked into it that there was a

[21:02] » on half an acre. >> It wasn't like it wasn't going to be

[21:05] like massive obviously. I think it was like only two.

[21:09] » Yeah. Max it would have been like four to five like threetory.

[21:13] » First level would be Yeah. And that was just exploratory. That was nothing or

[21:17] anything like that. >> There was no Yeah. There was no

[21:19] developer who we were engaging with about potentially developing that. We

[21:23] just envisioned it as potentially being a use that could fit well in that part

[21:28] of the district >> because it is in our village center

[21:32] district although it is outside the DVA. I think it's kind of hard to put your

[21:38] finger on fair market value when it comes to that lot, which is an oddshaped

[21:43] lot. It has a lot of weed trees on it that are going to have to be leveled.

[21:48] Um, and you you already had how many rounds of solicitations for two.

[21:54] » So, >> this this bidder seems to be the only

[21:58] one who's really interested in it. Um, so I would be in favor of lowering our

[22:04] offer or asking a uh uh exploring the lease option if if that's at all

[22:10] possible from our perspective. Then it's going to mean more

[22:14] » too much work on our end to be a landlord. Well, that's a consideration.

[22:18] » That was actually when we presented the concept to our planning consultant,

[22:22] their f first response back was look into it being a lease.

[22:26] » Yeah. because other um urban nurseries that's how they acquire their property

[22:31] is >> so I do have a I'm sorry for to

[22:33] interrupt me I do have a question um I make you forget what the question was

[22:39] you >> no [laughter] I was saying no but I was

[22:41] like trying to jump in there >> and because it's such the cost um

[22:45] structure for in the revenue for this type of business is the margins are so

[22:50] tight that is another reason many of these urban industries go with a lease

[22:55] because it is more affordable for him in the long run.

[22:58] » No, I know what I was going to say. >> Okay.

[22:59] » Um, what was the like the difference in what we asked? You don't have to give

[23:05] like a dollar figure, but what was it a major gap? And what

[23:08] » it was such a major gap she didn't counter.

[23:12] » Okay. >> And then also just thinking about what's

[23:16] going on with the city. I I'm not in favor of being a landlord because um

[23:23] [snorts] if they do decide to move, then we're back at square one after their

[23:27] lease is over. And so also with it being lease and that means that the city, not

[23:32] the DDA, right, has to take care of that property.

[23:35] » Yes. >> Yeah.

[23:38] » Okay. Oh, and then my last question. And if we sell it, that means we have just

[23:42] sell it as is. That means that we have no control over what is built there

[23:46] besides what the ordinances. >> Yep. Planning commission through the

[23:50] site plan review process would be the only um regulatory aspect of it.

[23:55] » Well, one aspect of that, that's where the purchase agreement comes into play

[23:58] where if we do sell it, we can put semistructured terms in the purchase

[24:02] agreement of what can and cannot go there. And then um also have we uh

[24:07] solicited a realtor that can maybe also help with giving more of an accurate

[24:12] price? >> Um not at this time, but that is

[24:15] something we can uh look into. It was a market value based off of what recent

[24:21] lots have sold in the city. That was where the offer came from.

[24:26] » So what are what would you say is our current yearly cost to maintain that

[24:32] property? I I'd have to do a little homework dwing

[24:37] the biggest thing it's landscaping every year. So mowing it weekly

[24:41] » and there's ways to structure we can look into this um to structure the lease

[24:45] so such that the maintenance and things that we may be assuming

[24:50] » we have to be responsible for as a landlord is are mitigated to a great

[24:56] extent. So, I mean, we can I I hear what what um what what Kellyy's saying about

[25:01] the being the landlord and if you know if they leave, we're back where we are

[25:04] right now. >> So, we're I mean, so that but I think we

[25:09] should look at um um how the lease could be structured to, you know, kind of

[25:16] mitigate the landlord issues that we may be assuming we're undertaking.

[25:20] » And I would rather throw another monkey wrench in this one. I would rather them

[25:25] take over the community garden curtain, at least that part, seeing that that's

[25:28] going to be another thing that we're about to run into.

[25:31] » Yes. Um Yeah. And these are all great ideas that we can look into. I I'm

[25:37] actually in favor of a lease because the lot would be it wouldn't be developed

[25:43] that much. There would be a small structure for an office, a bathroom, and

[25:47] a uh processing area. And also that processing area will be used for

[25:51] community groups to come in and do educational workshops. And most of the

[25:56] lot is going to be a greenhouse or continue. It'll be cleared out with the

[26:01] trees. So if a developer wanted to come in, it wouldn't take much to do site

[26:05] prep to begin what they would like to do.

[26:07] » I swear this is my last question. >> Okay.

[26:10] » I'm no Bruce Caner. I'm still [laughter] >> um who's going to be doing the clearing

[26:16] out of the trees? Would it be on the Okay.

[26:19] Okay. Thank you. >> Okay. I have a few questions. Go ahead.

[26:22] » So, what is there something that says we had

[26:25] to do the adjustment for today's pricing? Like what if we sold it for

[26:29] what we paid for it? Was that going to be still too high? We were

[26:33] [clears throat] um uh we were looking to make a small profit to help with our

[26:38] budget, but um at this time um we we're open to any concepts or ideas of how we

[26:46] can help improve that part of the city. Yeah, and that's one of the reasons why

[26:49] we kept this on the agenda was to have this conversation to see if the DDA

[26:54] wanted to go back and essentially recoup the cost that they paid for it back in

[26:58] the day or take less and just get it developed and get off the books. That's

[27:02] that's why we're having this. >> There's a small parcel that's oddly

[27:04] shaped. It's behind a building. I mean, >> um, storm water drainage issues or

[27:10] considerations at least. >> Um, cannot say that.

[27:13] » And god forbid that the the city doesn't want to be a landlord. Now you see how

[27:16] landlords feel, right? [clears throat]

[27:23] » And and they are they are interested in leasing or

[27:26] they're they're not >> they would be open to leasing. Yes.

[27:29] » I just find it hard to believe that somebody who wants to lease is going to

[27:31] build a building knowing that they're going to get no equity out of it.

[27:36] » She is more missiondriven than profit driven.

[27:39] » Yeah, I get that. Yeah. >> Still, it's it's an investment and you

[27:42] know it's money it's from their perspective, it's money down the drain.

[27:45] » Yeah. that wouldn't be recouped. >> Well,

[27:48] I But again, if you structure it a certain way though, where they feel as

[27:51] though they're getting at least enough, you know what I'm saying? Things are

[27:54] » they have expectations are bad. So, they don't feel like they've got a lot of

[27:58] expenses that they >> surely cannot pay for. Y

[28:01] » um that might be something, you know, I'm not sure how you do that if you like

[28:05] all the maintenance on them, but >> and I'm sorry.

[28:08] » Yeah, maintenance. Yeah, you can put that in the lease. I said though, I'm

[28:11] not sure how you keep the cost low for this for the lei if all the maintenance

[28:15] is on them as well. >> Gotcha.

[28:16] » Yeah. >> Okay.

[28:18] » But she was ready to go because she said that the best time to clear that type of

[28:22] a lot is the winter. >> So,

[28:24] » yeah. Everything's down. >> They said I was done.

[28:28] » It's okay. >> Can you ask? [laughter]

[28:31] » I've already given I've done it quite a few too.

[28:33] » Is there an option of God? What is it called? [snorts] Don't bite out. Um

[28:38] » Lee stone. lay stone. >> Yeah, I was gonna say lay contract.

[28:42] » Laying contract. Yeah. >> I mean, we can we're open to any

[28:45] concept. And I to be honest as a planner I I thought the proposed use was a

[28:53] fantastic addition to the city, the village center and also it was not going

[28:58] to um disrupt the neighbors uh the neighboring residents as much because

[29:03] this is a an area where the commercial corridor at buffers along residential.

[29:09] So, it it's um an area where it could increase the traffic or do you or it's

[29:17] going to increase anyways because of what's going on at the school.

[29:21] » Uh, one last question. >> Yeah, go for it.

[29:23] » Does the city have any means to develop it itself?

[29:26] » No. >> No.

[29:27] » Yeah. [laughter] >> That was quick.

[29:30] » Okay. >> Okay.

[29:33] » Very gently. >> We've had those discussions internally

[29:36] for a little over a year now. And uh No. >> Okay. with respect.

[29:40] » Okay. Was it respect? >> Okay, I understand.

[29:43] » Just out of curious, was it more of an idea thing or a finance thing or both

[29:47] » for the city? >> Yes.

[29:48] » Cost. Okay.

[29:53] » So, what are the next steps for this? >> I I personally would like to go back and

[29:58] explore the lease option with her. I think um or if this is more about

[30:04] selling the property, we could lower the cost. So, I would like direction from

[30:10] the board how you'd like me to proceed. Um, personally, I think there is a way

[30:15] to structure the lease in a way where it is favorable to her in the city.

[30:22] » Yeah. I say we um and we obviously we can talk to you but uh whatever the

[30:27] concerns are >> and I would like to talk to Alex more

[30:30] about being a property owner, >> right?

[30:32] » Yeah.

[30:36] » Okay. I will I will engage with the um the uh proposal the individual who's

[30:42] looking to uh acquire the property about a lease if they'd be interested in that

[30:47] or if she really is that driven about coming back with a a new offer

[30:53] because I love the concept. I think it's a great addition.

[30:58] » Yeah, that sounds good. >> Thank you.

[31:04] » Director's report. All right.

[31:09] So, we have a few events coming up in the uh the month.

[31:16] First one will be a small business social um event hosted by Oakland Thrive

[31:22] at the event house here in Lake Village across the street. It's about strategic

[31:26] planning and networking. It is on Saturday, November 29th from 11:00 a.m.

[31:31] to 1 pm. The Southfield Chamber Area Commerce in Oakland Thrive with a small

[31:35] business social um designed to help business owners create strategic plan

[31:41] for 2026. Connect with peers, share ideas, and walk away with tools,

[31:45] inspiration to grow their business. Registration can be uh completed at

[31:50] southfieldchamber.com. Uh, as we mentioned before, on December

[31:54] 5th, the first Friday of the month, the Village Winter Festival will be from

[31:59] 6:00 to 8 here in the community room at city hall. Join the DDA and many of our

[32:04] community partners for a cheerful evening of holiday fun for all ages.

[32:08] Activities include cook decorating, holiday crafts, ornament making, and

[32:12] photos with Santa. Also, there's an ongoing toy drive in coordination with

[32:17] boys to use mentoring. We ask anyone who's interested in helping children

[32:23] enjoy a wonderful Christmas to either drop off uh donated toys here at city

[32:31] hall in the lobby or at Boys and Men's office located at 28050 Southfield Road

[32:38] at sweet 170 until December 12th. um what's going on currently with some

[32:44] of our businesses at 2700 Southfield Road. Discount Tire, they are

[32:50] continuing their interior buildout uh and updating of the showroom. Their new

[32:54] signs, both the monument and the two principal wall signs because they are a

[32:58] corner lot. They do have the option to put two signs up that have been uh

[33:04] installed this past month. We have a new business lo coming coming in at 26780

[33:10] Southfield Road where 44 Burrito was located. It's called Holyberger. They

[33:14] have um a couple other locations in the area. They've gotten rave reviews. Their

[33:20] business license application has been received. It's under review. Their wall

[33:24] sign has been put up. There's very little interior alterations being done.

[33:29] They were actually there earlier this week painting the interior and they

[33:32] should be opening relatively soon once their business applications received.

[33:36] Hopefully we can work with the local chambers to do a grand opening which all

[33:40] of you will be invited to to come on out and welcome our uh new business here in

[33:44] Lther Village. uh across the street at 27651 Southfield Road, Middle East. They

[33:51] received site plan approval on Tuesday during our November planning commission

[33:55] meeting to expand their dining room by 1900 square feet into the adjacent

[34:00] adjacent tenant space which was a former retail location for um eyeglasses and

[34:07] the use was switched to restaurant. So they will be expanding their business

[34:13] has uh done very well. We're happy to have them in the district and we're

[34:17] happy they chose Laam Village as their home. The ongoing installation of two EV

[34:22] chargers here in the city hall parking lot is ongoing and as well as the

[34:27] installation of two Hawk signals on Southfield Road between Calbr and

[34:32] Margaret um along Southfield are being completed. Both are looking to be uh

[34:38] actually somebody was using the EV charger earlier today, but the

[34:42] electrification of the Hawk signals are still to be done soon.

[34:47] Staff, we are currently in the process of drafting a grant for proposed traffic

[34:52] calming along 11 mile at the intersections of Lesser Boulevard and

[34:56] Southfield. General Motors in coordination with NA the National Main

[35:00] Street Organization host a grant each year for

[35:05] uh communities that have a General Motors facility nearby Oakland County.

[35:10] We qualify as one. So we are doing um a proposal for traffic markings on the

[35:17] road. This is a very congested area at Leather Boulevard. There is a merging of

[35:24] traffic coming off 696 as well as continuing traffic of 11 mile which is

[35:30] intersected by Laser Boulevard. It's a very um I used to drive it. Um Tom

[35:36] currently drives it. It is difficult coming off 696 or if you're on 11 mile

[35:41] trying to get to Southfield, it's difficult with traffic coming off at

[35:45] highway speed uh on 696 ramp as well as the cross traffic laser boulevard and

[35:51] then down Yes.

City of Lathrup Village. Downtown Development Authority Director Meeting. November 21, 2025.

Transcript