General Meeting

This Saturday, May 29th at 9am there will be a Memorial Day Ceremony at Veteran’s Park Memorial Plaza to honor Livonia’s fallen heroes. The Livonia Civic Chorus will perform.

Councilman Donovic (and City Council candidate) proposed the subject of residential blight be discussed in a Committee of the Whole meeting. When the date/time of the committee meeting is announced, I’ll share. 

There were no audience communications.

The Consent Agenda unanimously passed and included the reappointment of multiple commissioners, the purchase of new city vehicles, approval for a new Biggby on Ann Arbor Road, outdoor patio for Thomas’ and a new Dairy Queen at Plymouth + Farmington.

Last week there was a Committee of the Whole meeting to discuss tree removal in the Castle Gardens subdivision. In response to that meeting and resident concerns, the Mayor’s office sent a letter stating that the number of trees to be removed was lowered to 24 but the project would move forward because it was part of a previously approved budget plan and it would cost the City too much money to make changes.

In response to this situation, Councilman McCullough proposed a resolution requesting the Mayor’s office write up an ordinance to address/protect urban forestry and improve communication with residents about these types of neighborhood projects. It was passed unanimously.

An extension to a water main replacement project was approved for Cavell Street between 5 Mile Rd and Oakley Street. The area has had multiple water main breaks in recent months and there is a scheduled road repair project in the books. This will allow the main to be fixed and the new road to not cover up an old problem.

The Study Meeting session previews what you can expect to hear more about in future Regular Meetings. 

Parks and Recreation had multiple agenda items that were put on the consent agenda:

• Lease renewals with Livonia Public Schools for Mies and John Stymelski Veteran’s Park
• Amended contract for the Livonia Civic Arenas (LCA) to have a year to year contract for Devon-Aire Ice Arena. The LCA operates hockey leagues, skating lessons and open skate (currently on hiatus) out of Eddie Edgar and Devon-Aire. There is a concern about the impact a declining interest in ice sports will have on both facilities long-term.
• Clement Circle Park is getting a new pavilion 

City Water was discussed again. This time the topic was proposed water and sewage rate increase. The City Water Department is revenue neutral but rate increases from the Great Lakes Water Authority get passed to customers. As with all recent year increases, it is expected to be about 3%.

Fun Facts: Livonia continues to have one of the lowest water rates in the area. 64% of water customers have remote readers that improve efficiency and accuracy of the meter read. Livonia is exploring the addition of a water tower/reservoir to maintain max rates and avoid peak rates. 

[Author’s note: I was in a meeting last week about water quality and lead pipes in Livonia. Water is life and really important in conversations about sustainability and establishing proactive measures to confront climate change.]

Reminder: In-person City Council meetings will resume on June 14th at City Hall. You will have to be in-person to engage during the meeting but you can always watch them live via the following: AT&T Uverse Channel 99 / Spectrum Channel 203 / WOW Channel 10 / YouTube.com/LivoniaTVMay 24, 20