Traverse City commissioners will vote tonight (Monday) to approve a mill-and-pave project on Fourteenth Street intended to keep the deteriorating corridor in drivable condition until a potential full future reconstruct. Commissioners will also discuss a proposed ordinance on public alcohol consumption, the awarding of Community Development Block Grant funds to local nonprofits, and a property transfer request from the owner of Copy Shop.

Fourteenth Street
One of the city’s most-complained about corridors could receive an upgrade this fall – albeit a temporary one.

City commissioners tonight will vote to approve spending up to $100,000 on asphalt for an in-house project to repair Fourteenth Street. The partial mill-and-fill overlay project is estimated to cost $250,000 total. Work will include milling two inches of asphalt, overlaying two inches of new asphalt, and applying asphalt tack to promote adhesion between layers, according to a memo from Streets Division Superintendent Chris Weber.

The work – covering approximately 6,574 linear feet – will include both the eastbound and westbound lanes of Fourteenth between Cass and Maple streets. The Veterans Drive intersection will be skipped, as it “is still in relatively good condition and skipping it will help minimize traffic disruption,” Weber wrote. Interim City Manager Benjamin Marentette said that staff performed a “proof-of-concept test” of the mill-and-fill approach on an eastbound lane last week between Cass and Union (pictured), which “went very well. The team is satisfied with the performance and outcome,” he said.

The street work is described as an “interim solution” while the city plans for a future full reconstruct of Fourteenth Street.  As previously reported in The Ticker, the city is slated to receive $1.138 million in 2028 from the region’s recently formed Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) toward Fourteenth Street repairs. That funding will likely be a stepping stone to – or a portion of – a full reconstruct of the corridor, a project estimated to cost over $10 million.

However, given that a full reconstruct is likely still several years away, the city needs to do something now. “The roadway’s condition is deteriorating rapidly, and it is unlikely to last until then without significant interim maintenance,” wrote Weber. “In recent months, the street has seen increased maintenance costs, frequent pothole patching – especially during freeze-thaw and rain events – (and) a notable rise in tire damage claims from the public.” Weber said the work is “intended as a temporary but effective solution, improving drivability and reducing emergency maintenance needs” until a full reconstruct occurs. “Similar interim repairs in other parts of the city have proven successful,” Weber noted.

A full reconstruct will require the city to line up grants and other funding sources, gather public input on reconstruction design, and plan for underground utility work. City Engineer Anne Pagano previously told The Ticker there’s a six-inch water main under Fourteenth Street that will eventually need to be upsized and replaced for the full corridor length. Other projects – like the potential realignment of Pine Street and the extension of a non-motorized trail from the Boardman Lake Loop Trail to The Village at Grand Traverse Commons – could also be part of that project.

Also on tonight’s city commission agenda…
> Commissioners will revisit a proposed ordinance update on public alcohol consumption. The board first considered the proposal in December as part of a package of updates included in a “safety plan” proposed by the Traverse City Police Department to minimize incidents while Safe Harbor is operating year-round. The ordinance would prohibit consuming alcohol “on the public right of way, on public sidewalks, in a public parking lot, or in a public parking structure.” Violating the ordinance would be a civil infraction.

Commissioners opted not to approve the update in December because of concerns over how it could affect public events, including Men’s Night and Ladies’ Night downtown. City Attorney Lauren Trible-Laucht said she made edits to address those concerns. The draft language now states: “A business or organization having permission from the Liquor Control Commission for outdoor sales may, with the approval of the city commission, sell or deliver alcoholic liquor for consumption on a designated area of public right of way, on public sidewalks, parking structures or parking lots, subject to such restrictions as to time, dates, and location as may be imposed by the city commission. It shall not be a violation of this section for a person to consume alcoholic liquor obtained from such a business or organization if such consumption is made in the designated area.” If commissioners are supportive of the new version, they will schedule a formal enactment vote tonight for September 2.

> Commissioners tonight will consider awarding $294,289 in Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds to three local nonprofits. The funds are intended to go to organizations and programs addressing community housing needs and providing support for unhoused populations, according to a five-year city plan. This round of funding includes $143,110 to HomeStretch toward construction of affordable housing, $96,000 to Goodwill Northern Michigan for rental vouchers, and $55,179 to Jubilee House for staffing. The funding requests went through a city request-for-proposals (RFP) process this summer.

> Finally, commissioners tonight will consider approving a tax increment financing (TIF) implementation policy – covered in a previous Ticker story – and a request from Copy Shop owner Dan Rickard to transfer a small sliver of city property just west of the business at the Eighth/Woodmere intersection to the property owner. Rickard wrote that he’s been maintaining the small parcel since 2007 even though it’s city property, and was even chastised by city staff once when he was unable to mow it because they didn’t realize it was city-owned.

“If the property becomes part of The Copy Shop, I feel like there is a better chance that the green space the TART Trail runs through will remain a green space, making Eighth Street a better place,” he wrote. “I also hope the city would designate the remaining green space a ‘pocket park’ to ensure the corner of Eighth Street and Railroad Avenue will remain a green space, parkland. There is no downside to the city. The property is not parkland, it is miscellaneous property which no one will miss. The upside is the sliver of property will become taxable and generate income.”

Marentette said in a memo that if commissioners are interested in exploring the proposal, he will have staff vet the request and come back with a recommendation to the board.

Photo credit: City of TC