June 26, 2023
City of Dexter City Council
Public Hearing and Meeting
Monday, June 26, 2023 at 7 p.m.
3515 Broad Street, Dexter, MI 48130 and via Zoom
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/88141381694
Dial In 877 853 5247 OR 888 788 0099 US Toll-free
Meeting ID: 881 4138 1694#
Meeting Agenda: https://files.dextermi.gov/City_Council/2023/Agendas/2023-06-26-CC-A.pdf
Meeting Packet: https://files.dextermi.gov/City_Council/2023/Packets/2023-06-26-CC-P.pdf
Public Hearing Notice: https://files.dextermi.gov/Public_Notices/2023/2023_8050MainLease.pdf
NON-ARRANGED PARTICIPATION
As always, there are two opportunities for non-arranged public participation: one near the beginning of the meeting and one near the end of the meeting. See the agenda for details. Just state your name and address and then share your thoughts–it’s that easy!
PUBLIC HEARING: Ordinance to Lease 8050 Main St. to Melissa McClure, Agent for Chuckwagon BBQ LLC (“Hotel Hickman”)
The lease dates will be April 10, 2023 through March 31, 2025. Furthermore, based on the action taken by Council during its April 10, 2023 meeting, the draft ordinance maintains a monthly rental rate of $700.00, from April 10, 2023 through the end of December 2023, for a total amount of $6,300.00. Beginning January 1, 2024 and continuing through and until the lease expires on March 31, 2025, the rental rate shall increase to $725.00, for a total amount of $10,875.00.
(my words): The City began leasing this property to Hotel Hickman in November 2012 at the rate of $625/month. In today’s dollars, per the Consumer Price Index inflation calculator, that equates to $840/month. Per a market assessment conducted for the City in September 2022, typical rents for commercial space are roughly $16 to $22 per sq. ft. per year. The building occupied by Hotel Hickman is approximately 576 sq. ft. At that rate, the market value for rent would fall between $768 to $1056 a month. I have twice motioned to increase the rent to $912/month (the midpoint of the market assessment); however, Council does not support leasing this property for fair-market value.
Council will review (1) minutes of its most recent meeting(s) and (2) the upcoming meeting list. We will also hear various updates from staff, including the City Manager and the Mayor (note that corresponding written reports are included in the meeting packet).
STAFF UPDATES
Staff updates that might be of interest:
Public Safety Facilities. The Public Safety Facilities User Group met on June 21, 2023. During the meeting, the group:
Discussed temporary facility options for fire operations.
Reviewed updated building layout sketches provided by David Gassen.
Reviewed RFP/RFQ responses to help select prospective construction managers for interviews.
Bicentennial Celebration. Staff has submitted a CTAP grant application to Destination Ann Arbor for $10,000 in funding to support the Dexter Bicentennial. With staff anticipating the full reward, the next step is to begin finalizing events that will be put on by the Arts, Culture & Heritage Committee and Bicentennial Subcommittee. The two larger events currently being targeted is a development reading of the Katherine Dexter McCormick play currently in being produced and a carnival that will take place during the weekend of the celebration. A bicentennial passport is also being planned, with ACH and the BSC discussing whether to do a digital or physical passport. Staff is also looking to apply to the Dexter Community Fund to gather additional resources to put toward the Bicentennial Celebration.
2023-24 Dexter Art Gardens Temporary Sculpture Displays. The five new temporary sculptures have been installed as a part of the annual rotating sculpture display. The new sculptures can be found at the Circular Seating Area by Mill Creek Park South, the Clocktower Plaza, in the greenspace between the Library and Farmers Market, in front of 3Bird, and on the corner of Dexter Ann Arbor Rd and Ryan Dr in front of LaFontaine. Images of the pieces have been attached to this memo.
Huron Farms Curb and Gutter Work and Lexington Concrete Work. Curb and work in Huron Farms and other limited areas throughout the City has been completed. The curb and sidewalk work on Lexington has also been completed. The contractor is planning replace the asphalt at York & Oliver the week of June 26th. Work on Dan Hoey is currently scheduled for the first week of August.
Petition via Friends of Mill Creek Park. On Tuesday, May 2nd, staff received a citizen- initiated charter amendment from the group “Friends of Mill Creek Park.” Per State law, the City Clerk has 45-days to review the petitions to determine whether there are a sufficient number of signatures for the petition to move on to the next step. As required, staff has reviewed the petitions and certified that there are a sufficient number of signatures (minimum of 5% or 180 signatures). The next step in the process is for staff to work with the City Attorney to develop and propose ballot language for review and approval by City Council. Once ballot language is adopted, staff will forward the petition package to the Attorney General’s Office at Governor’s Office for review. The petition seeks to add a section to the City’s Charter to read:
“SECTION 1.04 MILL CREEK PARK NORTH
THE CITY-OWNED PUBLIC LAND BOUNDED BY ALPINE STREET, MAIN STREET, MILL CREEK, AND THE RAILROAD SHALL BE RETAINED IN PUBLIC OWNERSHIP, IN PERPETUITY, AND BE SET ASIDE FOR AND DEVOTED TO ACTIVE RECREATION, PASSIVE RECREATION, OR BOTH.”
CONSENT AGENDA
Following the presentation and any discussion of these reports, Council will consider (i.e., take formal action on) the following items as part of the Consent Agenda. Unless Council votes to do otherwise, these items are voted on as a single bundle without Council discussion.
Bills & Payroll in the amount of: $175,939.00
Appointments to Boards and Commissions
Mayor Keough is recommending the following re-appointments to the various boards and commissions:
Catch Basin Repair Award to Bostwick Company, Inc. for an Amount not to Exceed $13,725
The Department of Public Works has solicited quotes for catch basin repair at six locations in the City. Staff is recommending approving the proposal(s) from Bostwick Company Inc. for this work. This work is included in the FY 2023-24 Local Roads budget.
Two at intersection of Parkridge and Westridge: Cost:$3,800
Three on Wellington: Cost:$7,650
One on South Downs: Cost:$2,275
Resolution of Support to MEDC RAP Grant Program for Dexter- Chelsea Connector Trail Segment of the Border-to-Border Trail
In September 2022, City Council heard a presentation from Peter Sanderson and Roy Townsend with Washtenaw County Parks related to the Dexter-Chelsea segment of the Washtenaw County Border- to-Border Trail. Following that presentation, City Council re-affirmed the desire to use the Bell Road Bridge to span Mill Creek to connect Mill Creek Park to Dexter-Chelsea Rd. near Forest Lawn Cemetery.
The City has been assisting the Huron-Waterloo Pathways Initiative and Washtenaw County as they search for, and apply for, grants to assist with project construction.
On June 13th, staff received an e-mail from Kiff Hamp, Executive Director of the Huron-Waterloo Pathways Initiative, requesting a resolution of support for their application to the MEDC RAP Grant program for $1,000,000 for construction of this trail segment. In the e-mail, Mr. Hamp also indicated that HWPI and the County are looking to move forward with construction on the segment next year. Staff will be working with HWPI and the County on the logistics and planning of the construction.
A requirement of the MEDC RAP Grant application is local government financial support of the project. While City Council has not yet been presented with a formal request for funding, nor specifically identified an amount that Council would be comfortable with contributing to this trail segment, staff included a placeholder of $100,000. The latest estimated cost of construction that staff has been privy to was $1,882,000 from September 2022. The latest edition of the City’s Capital Improvements Plan shows a City contribution of $200,000.
During the June 20, 2023 Parks and Recreation Commission meeting, the Commission unanimously voted to recommend support of the application to City Council.
FY 2023-24 Fee Schedule Resolution
Changes to the Fee Schedule include:
Updated 2023-2024 water and sewer ordinance charges
Shared refuse container service costs have been increased by 4% to account for the increase in costs associated with the new Waste Management contract. Residential refuse increased to $28.50 per month in accordance with the adopted ordinance.
FY 2022-23 Budget Amendments
Various proposed amendments including:
To reflect actual revenue received for Local Community Stabilization and interest/investments.
Reallocate unused maintenance/capital improvement budgets to the 3515 Broad barn maintenance project.
Reallocate contingencies for possible remaining overtime invoice.
Reallocate contingencies, engineering and attorney budgets for street light costs.
Reallocate attorney budget to park capital improvements.
To reflect bond proceeds and accompanying bond issuance costs.
FY 2022-23 DDA Budget Amendments
Our auditor has recommended that the City Council approve any Downtown Development Authority (DDA) budget amendments that are made throughout the year. The reasoning is that since the Council adopts the DDA’s budget, then they should also adopt their amendments. Following are the budget amendments that were approved by the DDA Board for Fiscal Year 2022-2023.
The proposed amendment records funds ($25,000) for 3045 Broad project/Norfolk earnest money (my words: “Norfolk” should read “Common Sail”)
Letter of Support to MEDC RAP Grant Program for Common Sail Development of 3045 Broad St.
The Letter is an essential component of Common Sail’s RAP Grant application because it demonstrates the City’s commitment to the redevelopment of 3045 Broad St, the public private cooperative relationship the City and DDA have with Common Sail, and our efforts to assist Common Sail in exploring public financing options to support the project. The Letter also demonstrates that the Pre-development Agreement we have with Common Sail vests the company with a degree of property control because it provides Common Sail with the exclusive right to pursue the project. Additionally, the Letter identifies that the project meets City goals for housing development options, and downtown revitalization and placemaking in the downtown.
DISCUSSION AND/OR CONSIDERATION ITEMS
In addition to any items described under Consent Agenda (above), Council will consider (i.e., take formal action on; “C”) or discuss (i.e., take no formal action on; “D”) the following business:
Selection of Cunningham-Limp as Public Safety Facilities Construction Manager as Constructor and Approval of Phase One Service Fee for an Amount not to Exceed $4,700 (C)
During the May 22, 2023 meeting, City Council reviewed an RFP/RFQ for Public Safety Facilities Construction Manager and approved the document for release. The Construction Manager as Constructor (CMC) is designed to be the City’s partner in the project, assisting with: Verifying/validating construction program vs. budget, Providing expertise on construction/code requirements, Value engineering, and Managing construction with guaranteed maximum price
A pre-bid conference was held on-site at 8140 Main St. on Tuesday, June 6th, for which 15 prospective firms were in attendance.
At the RFP/RFQ response deadline on Tuesday, June 20, 2023, the City received responses from nine prospective construction management firms. The response documents were forwarded to David Gassen with Partners in Architecture, who then worked to compile information from the proposals for evaluation by the User Group. Mr. Gassen also contacted all respondents to solicit clarifying or additional information.
As part of the RFP/RFQ review process, the call for responses indicated that a limited number of respondents would be invited to participate in interviews with the architect and the User Group. The Public Safety Facilities User Group met with Mr. Gassen to review the responses on Wednesday, June 21st. During that meeting, the User Group indicated a desire to meet with three of the responding firms: Cunningham-Limp, Frank Rewold and Sons, and Auch. The three interviews were held the morning of Thursday, June 22, 2023.
Following the interviews, the User Group held a discussion on the firms and their proposals, and unanimously indicated a comfort and desire to move forward with Cunningham-Limp. The User Group expressed an appreciation for Cunningham-Limp’s public safety recent facilities experience, commitment to staying within budget, and communications approach. The User Group did ask that David Gassen reach back out to the three interviewed firms to have a final confirmation on numbers and calculations for the phase two fee and insurance/bond costs.
FY 2023-24 General Appropriations Act (C)
Provided for Council’s consideration is the General Appropriations Act to adopt the FY 2023-2024 Budget. Council held a public hearing on the draft budget and the millage rate used to support the budget on June 12, 2023.
The City of Dexter creates budgets for the following funds: 101 General Fund, 202 Major Streets, 203 Local Streets, 204 Municipal Streets, 275 Tree Replacement Fund, 301 General Debt Service Fund, 372 Public Safety Facilities Debt Fund, 401 Capital Projects, 590 Sewer Enterprise Fund, and 591 Water Enterprise Fund, 596 Rubbish Collection Fund, 661 Motor Pool Fund, 736 Retiree Health Care Fund.
Note that the Dexter Downtown Development Authority (DDA), a group of appointed (not elected) representatives, is a component unit of the City of Dexter. As such, it is subject to the requirements of this Act, with the exception that claims (bills) against the DDA shall be approved by that Board prior to payment. Importantly, the DDA manages its own budget.
See the packet beginning page 117 for extensive details.
