A2Council Meeting Summaries

Tag: Affordable Housing Millage

Ann Arbor City Council: June 7, 2021

This was the twenty ninth regular Ann Arbor City Council meeting since Governor Whitmer declared a state of emergency and stay-at-home order due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This meeting was held online via the Zoom application. Michigan Open Meetings Act changes effective April 1, 2021 require all Council Members to state their location.

At 11:45pm CM Griswold left the meeting due to illness

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Ann Arbor City Council Meeting Summary

$1.5 million of the Affordable Housing Millage funds approved in Nov 2020 were designated.

APPROVED: $633,765 will be allocated in FY22 to non-profit entities that provide human services (recipients of Coordinated Funding) (Legistar)

APPROVED: $420,825 to be spent planting trees on City right-of-ways. (Legistar)

APPROVED: An antique fire engine owned by the Ann Arbor Fire Department will be sold to the Michigan Firehouse Museum for $1. (Legistar)

APPROVED: Church Street will be closed (24/7) between S. University and Willard, to facilitate restaurant and retail use through August 30, 2021. (Legistar)

APPROVED: $25,000 will be spent on the recruitment process to replace head city attorney, Stephen Postema, who is retiring. (Legistar)

APPROVED: Amendments to the City’s Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) ordinance will permit the construction of additional dwelling units on any residential lot in the City, without requirements for owner occupancy.  Lot size requirements (minimum 5,000 sq. Ft.) would be removed.  Requirements that the property owner reside in either the primary home or ADU would also be removed.  The required rear and side setback for ADUs would be three feet. (Legistar)

APPROVED: Rezoning and site plan for “Valhalla” development. A cluster of fifteen parcels (a total of 9.8 acres) at South Main is rezoned to R4E (Multiple-Family Dwelling District) with Conditions.  The site plan includes 454 Dwelling units (studio, one- and two-bedroom) in four stacked apartment buildings and five townhouse buildings, as well as two additional buildings. (Legistar) (Legistar)

APPROVED: A Comprehensive Transportation Plan with strategies meant to support Vision Zero, A2Zero climate goals, safety and accessibility (both regionally and across the city).   The plan includes targets for lower speed limits, specific road treatments, sidewalk infrastructure, zoning for mixed use in residential areas, and enhanced transit options. (Legistar)

APPROVED: In anticipation of an expected $24 million in federal money through the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, the City Administrator will recommend and prioritize use of these funds and report to Council by October 1, 2021. (Legistar)

POSTPONED: Amendments to our early leasing ordinance will change a standard from 70 days to 240 days. A landlord would not be permitted to enter a leased premises for the purpose of showing it to prospective tenants or enter into a contract for a subsequent lease sooner than 240 days into a current lease. This was postponed to the second meeting in July to craft more meaningful protections for tenants. (Legistar)

APPROVED: Resolution asking that Council Member Hayner resign as soon as possible. (Legistar)

A2ELNEL Voting Chart

Ann Arbor City Council Voting Chart for June 7, 2021 Part 1
Ann Arbor City Council Voting Chart for June 7, 2021 Part 2
Ann Arbor City Council Voting Chart for June 7, 2021 Part 3
Ann Arbor City Council Voting Chart for June 7, 2021 Part 4

Ann Arbor City Council: November 16, 2020

This was the sixteenth regular Ann Arbor City Council meeting since Governor Whitmer declared a state of emergency and stay-at-home order due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This meeting was held online via the Zoom application.

This was the first Council meeting for CM Briggs, CM Disch, CM Eyer, CM Radina, CM Song

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Ann Arbor City Council Meeting Summary

APPROVED: CM Grand was elected Mayor Pro Tem (Legistar)

APPROVED: Removal of street parking on the north side of Scio Church (between South Maple and Greenview) to create bike lanes. (Legistar)

APPROVED: $30,000 contract with Julie Roth for administration, implementation, and evaluation of the Ann Arbor Solarize Program through the Sustainability Office. (Legistar)

APPROVED: Resolution accepting the results of the November 2020 elections and recognizing President-elect Joe Biden and Vice-president-elect Kamala Harris. (Legistar)

Two resolutions related to directing Planning Commission to consider transit supported zoning districts

  • APPROVED: Resolution directing Planning Commission to consider designation of transit- supported zoning districts to increase housing density and options along major corridors. The commission would be asked to consider increasing allowable Floor Area Ratio (FAR) density, decreasing and/or eliminating parking requirements for new development along transit corridors and bring a recommendation to Council by June 15, 2021. (Legistar)
  • DEFEATED: Resolution directing Planning Commission to review and update the South State Street Corridor plan, consider designation of a transit- supported zoning district to increase housing density and options. The commission would be asked to consider increasing allowable Floor Area Ratio (FAR) density, decreasing and/or eliminating parking requirements for new development along the South State Street Corridor. (This was offered as a more narrowly framed alternative to the previous resolution.) (Legistar)

APPROVED: Purchase of the Botsford Property. The City will contribute up to $202,500 toward the purchase of 20 acres at 3015 Miller Road in Scio Township as part of the Greenbelt District. (Legistar)

A2ELNEL Voting Chart

Ann Arbor City Council Voting Chart for November 16, 2020 Part 1
Ann Arbor City Council Voting Chart for November 16, 2020 Part 2

Ann Arbor City Council: November 5, 2020

This was the fifteenth regular Ann Arbor City Council meeting since Governor Whitmer declared a state of emergency and stay-at-home order due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This meeting was held online via the Zoom application.

This was the final Council meeting for CM Ackerman, CM Bannister, CM Eaton, CM Lumm, CM Smith

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In the Nov 3, 2020 election, there were three city millages on the ballot, all of which passed:

Ann Arbor City Council Meeting Summary

APPROVED: The resolution supporting EPA involvement in the Gelman plume contamination site (“Superfund” designation) was previously considered and postponed (10/7/2019, 1/6/2020, 1/21/2020, 2/3/2020, 3/2/2020, 4/20/2020), considered and tabled (7/6/20), then un-tabled and voted down on 10/17/20. It was brought back for reconsideration by CM Ramlawi and approved with one amendment: a WHEREAS clause that refers to continuing negotiation on the 4th Consent Judgement. (Legistar)

APPROVED: January and February late penalties (interest charges) would be waived for winter property taxes. Waiver of these late penalties will not apply to payments collected in escrow by financial institutions. (Legistar)

APPROVED: $94,942.05 in a cost-sharing agreement with the Michigan Department of Transportation to cover the cost of two Rapid Rectangular Flashing Beacons on Huron Parkway at Glazier Way and Baxter Road. The project is partially paid for by a Federal Safety Grant of $84,557.95. Local funding comes from from the Street Bridge, & Sidewalk Millage. (Legistar)

APPROVED: Four representatives are appointed to the Council of the Commons, a leadership body established to facilitate activities on the Center of the City public property, consistent with recommendations from a task force report. (The Center of the City was established by voter referendum in 2018.) (Legistar)

APPROVED: Amendments to the Bylaws for the Art Commission will permit members of the Commission to bid on contracts for public art. Commissioners must notify the Commission and staff liaisons (in writing) about any reasonable possibility of their own bid on a contract and the Commissioner must abstain from any discussion or voting related to the contract or associated project. (Legistar)

DEFEATED: Resolution to waive attorney client privilege regarding specific privileged and confidential advice from the City Attorney, with any prejudicial information redacted. Fourteen memos of advice cover topics related to litigation, FOIA, civilian police review, non-discrimination, conflicts of interest and ethics, zoning and site-plans (memos dating from 2008 through 2018). (Legistar)

A2ELNEL Voting Chart

Ann Arbor City Council Voting Chart for November 5, 2020 Part 1
Ann Arbor City Council Voting Chart for November 5, 2020 Part 2

Ann Arbor City Council Special Session: July 27, 2020

This was a Special Session of Ann Arbor City Council to discuss the Affordable Housing Millage ballot language. This item was postponed from the previous Council Meeting (7/20/20) because it was added to the agenda too late for Council Members to ask questions of staff. This meeting was held online via the Zoom application.

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APPROVED: An Affordable Housing Millage (1.0 mills) will be added to the ballot in November 2020 to support the construction, maintenance, and acquisition of new, permanent affordable housing units for low-income individuals and families making less than 60% Ann Arbor Area Median Income, and for providing social services for the residents of such housing for 2021 through 2041. (Legistar)

A2ELNEL Voting Chart

Ann Arbor City Council Voting Chart for July 27, 2020

Ann Arbor City Council: July 20, 2020

This was the eighth regular Ann Arbor City Council meeting since Governor Whitmer declared a state of emergency and stay-at-home order due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This meeting was held online via the Zoom application.

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Ann Arbor City Council Meeting Summary

POSTPONED TO SPECIAL SESSION: An Affordable Housing Millage (1.0 mills) would be added to the ballot in November 2020 to support the construction, maintenance, and acquisition of new affordable housing units for low-income individuals and families making less than 60% Ann Arbor Area Median Income, and for providing social services for the residents of such housing for 2021 through 2041. (Legistar)

APPROVED: Renewal of 2016 millage (1.0 mills) will be put on the November ballot in support of Street, Bridge, and Sidewalk repair. It may be used for resurfacing or reconstruction of existing paved City streets and bridges, pedestrian crosswalks, street crossings and corner ramps, and repair and/or replacement of sidewalks. The Downtown Development Authority will continue to fund sidewalk repairs in the DDA district. (Legistar) (Legistar)

APPROVED: A new millage (0.2 mills) will be put on the November 2020 ballot to cover the cost of constructing new sidewalks starting in 2021. Sidewalk assessments for individual property owners will be eliminated. This millage will not displace requirements for new developments to construct and pay for new sidewalks. (Legistar) (Legistar)

APPROVED: The City of Ann Arbor commits to a 10-year services agreement (with two potential 3-year extensions) with Recycle Ann Arbor to rebuild our Material Recovery Facility and process recyclable materials locally (Legistar)

APPROVED (BACK TO FIRST READING): The hotel property at 3611-3621 Plymouth Road will be re-zoned to permit rebuilding of a hotel and the addition of a drive-through restaurant. This agenda item would have been approved at this meeting (“Second Reading”) but the zoning plan was changed to include a $75,000 contribution to the City’s Affordable Housing Fund, which moved it back to “First Reading.” The new “Second Reading” will be Aug 17th (Legistar)

APPROVED: The City’s definition of “responsible bidder” on construction projects will include new requirements for reporting and documentation. Bids on projects in excess of $25,000 must now verify appropriate licensing for all contractors and sub-contractors, include information about what percentage of their workforce is local (Ann Arbor/Washtenaw), and documentation of pay rates/benefits, insurance coverage, references from the last five years as well as completed projects from the last five years. Additional requirements attach to bids on contracts in excess of $100,000 and $250,000. (Legistar)

A2ELNEL Voting Chart

Ann Arbor City Council Voting Chart for July 20, 2020 Part 1
Ann Arbor City Council Voting Chart for July 20, 2020 Part 2
Ann Arbor City Council Voting Chart for July 20, 2020 Part 3

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My name is Elizabeth Nelson, and I believe that your local government should be accessible and transparent. Since 2018 , I have sent out a newsletter before every Council meeting with my summary of agenda items coming before City Council, plus news and events of interest to Ann Arbor residents.

After each Council meeting, I create and post voting charts so that you can easily see how Council voted, and update this website with meeting summaries that include links to the City’s Legistar website, CTN’s YouTube video, and articles published on MLive.

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