Brown Recommended for N. Main Group
At its May 23, 2012 meeting, the Ann Arbor public art commission (AAPAC) unanimously recommended that Connie Rizzolo Brown be nominated for a position on a task force to study the corridor along North Main Street and the Huron River. That recommendation will be forwarded to mayor John Hieftje.
The task force was established by the city council at its May 7, 2012 meeting, with membership to include the following: one member of the park advisory commission, one member of the planning commission, one resident representing the Water Hill neighborhood, one resident representing the North Central neighborhood, one resident from the Old Fourth Ward, one resident representing the Broadway/Pontiac neighborhood, two business and property owners from the affected area, and one member of the Huron River Watershed Council.
At its May 21 meeting, the two sponsors of the resolution that created the task force – Ward 1 councilmembers Sabra Briere and Sandi Smith – proposed adding three additional representatives: a member of the city council, someone from the boating/fishing community of river users, a representative from the Huron River Citizens Association. Tony Derezinski (Ward 2), who also serves on AAPAC, then proposed an amendment to add an AAPAC member to the task force. The AAPAC addition was passed by council on a 6-5 vote. [See Chronicle coverage: "Positions Added to North Main Task Force"] Appointments are expected to be made at the council’s June 4 meeting.
At AAPAC’s May 23 meeting, Derezinski told commissioners that “basically, we need someone at the table.”
The task force is charged with delivering a report to the city council more than a year from now – by July 31, 2013 – that describes “a vision to create/complete/enhance pedestrian and bike connection from downtown to Bandemer and Huron River Drive, increase public access to the river-side amenities of existing parks in the North Main-Huron River corridor, ease traffic congestion at Main and Depot at certain times of a day and recommend use of MichCon property at Broadway; …”
Earlier than that – by the end of 2012 – the task force is to make recommendations on the use of the city-owned 721 N. Main parcel.
Brown has served on AAPAC since early 2009, and has chaired the commission’s projects committee. She is a principal of Rizzolo Brown Studio, an Ann Arbor architecture firm.
This brief was filed from the basement conference room of city hall at 301 E. Huron, where AAPAC held its meeting. A more detailed report will follow.
Happens in front of my house all the time. The city used to come clear the clogged grate.
Obviously, I can clear the grate as well, but the problem occurred after the new grate was installed.
Re: [1] What do you figure it was about the old grate design that prevented clogging?
A rake does wonders to clean the grate, and leaves can be shoveled with a perfectly ordinary snow shovel.
But I don’t think a system that relies on homeowners, etc. to keep storm drains clean is very reliable. We lost the city’s program to clear street leaves (which consist not only of leaves that people rake onto streets, but those that fall there naturally). I did see some street cleaners go around a week or so ago before much leaf fall occurred.
One of my neighbors solved their leaf problem by blowing all of their leaves onto the city-owned median. Civic consciousness at work.
What is it about the new grate design?
The new grate has wavy bars and the orientation of the bars is rotated 90 degrees from the old ones.
I suspect the old grate allowed more debris – sticks, leaves, etc. go into the storm sewer. But, it isn’t clear that the responsibility for street cleaning should fall to me just because I have a sewer grate at the intersection of my driveway.
This is not the typical grate that is alongside the curb. This is a grate that is flush with the street. You can’t see it right now as it is clogged.
When this replacement grate/flooding occurred, I complained to the city and for a year or so two workers and a city truck (expensive) would come by in a truck and clean it out around 7am. That was a pretty silly solution and that hasn’t happened in many years.