Traverse City commissioners voted Monday to table a request to lift a pedestrian path restriction on a property parcel at 1430 Wayne Street.

Property owners Fern and Doug Spence hope to lift the deed restriction in order to sell the property to a public entity to establish a permanent public path through the lot. The parcel has a contentious history, with neighbors having threatened in the past to file lawsuits if a public path was built near their property. Commissioners went into closed session Monday to hear legal counsel from City Attorney Lauren Trible-Laucht about the site. When they emerged, they unanimously voted to take no action on the request, effectively tabling the item.

Several commissioners, however, indicated they were willing to revisit lifting the deed restriction if a specific purchase offer came forward from a public entity. Fern Spence had earlier told commissioners that the Garfield Township Parks & Recreation Commission was willing to buy the property. "I'm inclined to move this conversation forward if Garfield Township is truly interested in making the purchase," said Commissioner Tim Werner. He noted he'd want to ensure Garfield Township assumed the maintenance and liability for the property. "I'd be much more comfortable with that as a potential path forward than just unilaterally removing the deed restriction for any possible future sale," he said.

Commissioner Amy Shamroe agreed, noting that the Garfield Township Parks and Recreation Commission was only an advisory board and thus not authorized to execute contracts. "It's a great first step, and we're really encouraged to see that, but it's not a binding (agreement)," she said. An offer from Garfield Township itself is "what we're looking to see going forward," Shamroe said.

Traverse City commissioners Monday also voted to support a decision by the planning commission to wait until March to review any possible changes to the city's accessory dwelling unit (ADU) program, passed a resolution of support for bringing high-speed fiber optic infrastructure to Traverse City, and approved filling a new staffing position in the city fire department. The addition of a staff member to the department will allow a certified fire inspector now working in fire suppression to move back into inspections, with the department hiring a new fire suppression team member. "I'm really glad we're moving forward with this," said Commissioner Ross Richardson. "I think it was extremely unfortunate that the fire inspection bureau was gutted a few years ago. This (position) is really important. It's not just inspection and prevention, but it's also a lot of education and outreach."