On Monday, May 12th City Council held an Economic Development and Strategic Planning Committee meeting to discuss commercial vacancy and blight along Plymouth Road.

A similar topic was previously discussed in the Law & Education committee in 2023, read the summary here: https://voterunservelivonia.com/…/law-education…/

Inspection Director Jerome Hanna discussed the city’s vacancy ordinance and shared that there are 6 registered (paying a monthly fee) and 6 unregistered vacant buildings along the Plymouth Road corridor. He explained how his department oversees and enforces blight/vacancy. They are moving more cases to court following the 2023 City Council meeting and putting an emphasis on enforcement for tall grass and weeds. A couple cases are currently in court, including Dobby’s Tuxedo.

It was noted that a challenge is that if property owners maintain the property and/or keep up with taxes/fines they cannot be compelled to sell.

A motion was put forth to have the administration offer a report and recommendation to update the fee schedule to be more aggressive and provide for a compounded annual rate. Within the Home Rule Cities Act, an ordinance can be passed that would allow the city to prevent a property owner from moving forward in a development project at one site if another is considered vacant/blighted. This will also be explored.

The role of the Plymouth Road Development Authority was discussed. The special assessment is for businesses along Plymouth Road and in the Industrial area. Currently it brings in revenue of approximately $700k-800k each year. The funds are used for irrigation, streetlights electricity, hardscape maintenance and proposed improvements at Shelden Park (see more about that here: https://voterunservelivonia.com/…/parks-recreation…/). There was also discussion about improved marketing resources for the PRDA.

Tax abatement programs including Brownsfield Redvelopment Authority and Commercial Rehabilitation Exemptions are other incentives available to investors and when they contact the city, the Planning Department walks through their project proposals to review for opportunities.

Bike/Walkability is a complicated issue due to the fact Plymouth Road is a state highway and Wayne County oversees drainage, and the State of Michigan controls the right of way. The city continues to pursue areas for improvement and the new Wendy’s has a bike rack.

This topic remains in committee and Council will review again when the administration provides its report.