Traverse City commissioners Monday approved the city's 2026-27 budget, a tax break for workforce housing within the Commongrounds Cooperative building on Eighth Street, and a partnership between the Traverse City Fire Department and West Shore Community College for paramedic training. Commissioners also agreed to ask Grand Traverse and Leelanau counties to collectively designate two of their nine seats on the Northwest Regional Airport Authority - which governs operations at Cherry Capital Airport - to city representatives.

Commissioners unanimously approved the city's new budget, including the Traverse City Light & Power and TC Downtown Development Authority budgets. The city’s fiscal year runs from July 1 to June 30. The 2026-27 city budget reflects $126 million in expenditures across all funds, with the largest expense being personnel at over $30 million. One percent of the city’s general fund will be allocated to complete street projects, while another one percent will go toward homelessness and housing initiatives. Traverse City Light & Power’s budget includes a five percent rate increase, with slight water and sewer rate increases also planned. Commissioners approved a contract Monday for just under $100,000 with Raftelis Financial Consultants for a comprehensive water and sewer rate study to help determine future rates.

Commissioners unanimously approved a payment-in-lieu-of-taxes (PILOT) agreement with Nest Community Partners for 16 workforce apartments in the Commongrounds Cooperative building on Eighth Street. Instead of normal property taxes, a developer under a PILOT agreement pays a defined percentage of net shelter rents to the local municipality. The PILOT agreement remains in place for a certain number of years. In this case, the four percent agreement for the Eighth Street apartments is proposed to be in place for 35 years. 

The 16 units under the PILOT would include eight studios, four one-bedrooms, three two-bedrooms, and one four-bedroom. Twelve of the units would be reserved for residents earning between 60 and 80 percent of the area median income (AMI). The remaining four would be for residents earning 100 percent AMI. The approved PILOT will equal a tax revenue loss of about $26,000 annually for the city or $910,000 over the lifespan of the agreement, according to staff. Commissioners said the investment was worth it to support attainable housing in the urban core, which is a strategic priority.

Commissioners also unanimously supported a new partnership between the Traverse City Fire Department and West Shore Community College for paramedic training. West Shore will be responsible for administering the program, while TCFD will provide the program space. The 11-month program would first start this August and end next July, offering a combination of online learning and in-person instruction once a week, plus clinicals in different settings. From there, a new program could start each fall and take up to 12 students, with grant opportunities available for tuition and enrollment open to all agencies.

Finally, commissioners unanimously approved a resolution to ask Grand Traverse and Leelanau counties to designate two of their collective seats on the Northwest Regional Airport Authority (NRAA) for city representatives. The resolution seeks to have one seat held by a city commissioner and the other seat held by a city resident. Grand Traverse County currently appoints six of the nine board seats, while Leelanau County appoints the other three. The City of Traverse City has geographic representation in both counties, but the city has held no formal governance role for the airport since 1988 - despite TVC occupying over 1,000 acres entirely within city limits, commissioners noted. State law caps the NRAA board at nine members, so the city seats would need to come from the existing pool of county seats rather than expanding the board to add new city seats.