The change establishes certain parameters to mitigate possible negative consequences to the setting of a very high maximum allowable taxicab rate, under which taxicab companies might eventually compete. Those parameters include a requirement that a taxicab company commit to a single rate annually and that the rate be advertised in a vehicle with signage in letters one-inch tall. New, higher rates have not yet been approved by the council.

The vote by the taxicab board to recommend the ordinance change came at its July 24, 2014 meeting.

These issues were also discussed at three monthly meetings of the taxicab board prior to that, on April 23, 2014, May 22, 2014 and June 26, 2014. Representatives of the taxicab industry at those meetings advocated for the establishment of a very high maximum – not tied to gas and insurance prices. They feel it’s one mechanism that would allow them to compete with ride-sharing services like Uber and Lyft.

The proposal to regulate all drivers for hire, which the council rejected, was also intended in part to allow taxicab companies to compete with Uber and Lyft on an even playing field. Taxicab drivers are already regulated by the city.

Regarding fare regulation, the city’s current structure already allows for the establishing of a maximum rate to be adopted by the city council. Currently the maximum rate in Ann Arbor is $3 to get in, $2.50 per mile, and 40 cents per minute waiting time. Those maximum rates were last adjusted upwards three years ago, on May 16, 2011, in response to gas prices that had nudged past $4 per gallon. At that time, the taxicab board indicated it did not anticipate considering another rate change until the gas prices were over $5 for at least two consecutive months.

So the taxicab board’s thinking is not being driven by gas prices, which are currently between $3.75 and $4 in the Ann Arbor area. Instead, a possible increase in allowable fares is based on concern that the taxicab industry in Ann Arbor might not be able to survive unless taxis are allowed to charge more.

At its Aug. 28, 2014 meeting, taxicab board members recommended the following maximum rate schedule for eventual consideration by the council, which could appear on the council’s agenda as soon as Sept. 15: $10 to get in, $5 per mile and 40 cents per minute waiting time. In addition, a $1 surcharge could be applied for each passenger over three passengers.

At the council’s Aug. 18 meeting, Stephen Kunselman (Ward 3) – who also serves as the city council’s representative to the taxicab board – asked rhetorically if the taxicab board should be disbanded. At its Aug. 28 meeting, taxicab board chair Michael Benson announced that he’d received an email from board member Eric Sturgis, who indicated that he would be resigning from the board – because he’s moving to Jackson, Mich. It has historically been difficult to find residents willing to serve on the taxicab board.

On Sept. 2, eight people – including Benson and LuAnne Bullington, another taxicab board member – spoke during a public hearing on the ordinance change.

Other Sept. 2 action related to the topic of hired rides was a vote by city council that directed the city administrator to negotiate operating agreements with transportation network companies like Uber and Lyft. The discussion on that item lasted about 45 minutes, resulting in approval on an 8-3 vote, over dissent from Kunselman, Sumi Kailasapathy (Ward 1) and Mike Anglin (Ward 5).

This brief was filed from the city council’s chambers on the second floor of city hall, located at 301 E. Huron.

The council’s first regular meeting in September was shifted from Monday to Tuesday in order to accommodate the Labor Day holiday.

The sign on the door to the Ann Arbor city council chamber includes Braille.

The Sept. 2 agenda is relatively light and is dominated by land use and development issues, several of them related to the Ann Arbor housing commission’s (AAHC) extensive plan to renovate many of its existing properties.

In other significant business, the council will consider giving direction to the city administrator to negotiate operating agreements with transportation networking companies like Uber and Lyft.

And the council will consider authorizing up to a 15-year extension of the local development finance authority (LDFA), based on collaborating with a satellite arrangement in Adrian and Tecumseh.

Separate from site plan and zoning issues associated with the AAHC’s renovations, the council will also consider transferring $729,879 from the affordable housing trust fund to the Ann Arbor housing commission. The fund transfer would support the “West Arbor” portion of the renovation plan. That would leave a $850,920 balance in the trust fund. The trust fund’s current balance stems largely from the council’s decision late last year – on Dec. 16, 2013 – to deposit into the trust fund the net proceeds of the sale of the former Y lot.

Two projects associated with the West Arbor part of the AAHC plan appear on the council’s Sept. 2 agenda. First, the council will consider initial approval of rezoning for the 3451 Platt Road property – from R1C (single-family dwelling district) and R2A (two-family dwelling district) to R4B (multi-family dwelling district). That was forwarded to the council with a recommendation of approval from the planning commission. However, commissioners postponed consideration of the site plan for the five-building, 32-unit project, amid concerns about the site’s location in the floodplain and stormwater management. The site plan may be able to “catch up” to the zoning approval – because the council will need to give the rezoning a second and final approval at a meeting following the Sept. 2 session.

Second, the North Maple Estates site plan, which requires just one council vote, will be considered on Sept. 2. The rezoning required for the AAHC project – a 4.8-acre site at 701 N. Maple Road – has already been given final approval by the city council, at its Aug. 18, 2014 meeting. The zoning was changed from R1C (single-family dwelling district) to R4B (multi-family dwelling district). The site plan, which was shifted to the Sept. 2 agenda, calls for demolishing 20 existing single-family homes – the public housing complex known as North Maple Estates – and constructing an eight-building, 42-unit apartment complex with a total of 138 bedrooms.

A non-AAHC land development item on the council’s Sept. 2 agenda is final approval of the rezoning of property necessary for an expansion of the Gift of Life Michigan facility on Research Park Drive. The rezoning would change 6.55 acres from O (office district) and RE (research district) to ORL (office/research/limited industrial district). The site plan, which also appears on the Sept. 2 agenda, calls for building a three-story, 40,786-square-foot addition to connect two existing buildings at 3161 and 3169 Research Park Drive, which are owned and occupied by the nonprofit.

Even though the council rejected one proposed change to its taxicab ordinance at its Aug. 18 meeting – which would have regulated all drivers for hire in the city – initial approval was given to another change in the part of the ordinance that regulates rates. So the council will be giving final consideration to that change on Sept 2. The change would establish certain parameters to mitigate possible negative consequences to the setting of a very high maximum allowable taxicab rate, under which taxicab companies might eventually compete. Those parameters include a requirement that a taxicab company commit to a single rate annually and that the rate be advertised in a vehicle with signage in letters one-inch tall.

As an alternative to requiring all drivers for hire to be registered with the city and to affix commercial plates to their vehicles, the council will consider whether to establish operating agreements with companies like Uber and Lyft. The council’s Sept. 2 agenda includes a resolution that would direct the city administrator to negotiate operating agreements with transportation network companies (TNCs) in lieu of developing a local law. The resolution does not define in specific terms what a TNC is.

In other business on Sept. 2, the council will consider a large contract with Ultimate Software Group, worth $250,000 for payroll software to cover the period as the city transitions to NuView, a different software system. Another large contract to be considered by the council on Sept. 2 is with Northwest Consultants Inc. for $930,822 – to do design work for the Stadium Boulevard reconstruction project from Kipke Drive to Hutchins.

A smaller contract to be considered by the council, as part of the consent agenda, is with Hinshon Environmental Consulting Inc. for additional facilitation services for the technical oversight and advisory group (TOAG). That group is overseeing and coordinating multiple wet weather-related projects in the city. The $10,000 contract amendment would bring the total contract value to $35,000.

The council will also consider the confirmation of several nominations to boards and commissions, including a reappointment of John Splitt to the board of the Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority. It would be Splitt’s third four-year term on the board.

This article includes more detailed information about many of these agenda items. More details on other agenda items are available on the city’s online Legistar system. The meeting proceedings can be followed Tuesday evening live on Channel 16, streamed online by Community Television Network starting at 7 p.m.

The Chronicle will be filing live updates from city council chambers during the meeting, published in this article below the preview material. Click here to skip the preview section and go directly to the live updates. The meeting is scheduled to start at 7 p.m.

Affordable Housing Fund Transfer

The council will be considering a $729,879 transfer from the affordable housing trust fund to the Ann Arbor housing commission to support the “West Arbor” portion of the AAHC’s renovation plan. That would leave a $850,920 balance in the trust fund. The trust fund’s current balance stems largely from the council’s decision late last year – on Dec. 16, 2013 – to deposit the net proceeds of the sale of the former Y lot into the trust fund.

By way of background, in 2012 the city was accepted into a new rental assistance demonstration program, known as RAD, offered by the U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The program allows residents in selected housing units to receive rental assistance through long-term Section 8 subsidy vouchers that are tied to the buildings, rather than individuals. The RAD program also enables entities like the AAHC to partner with private-sector developers on housing projects – something the AAHC couldn’t previously do. The Ann Arbor city council gave necessary approvals in connection with the RAD program at its June 3, 2013 meeting. Financing for the RAD program is primarily through low-income housing tax credits (LIHTC).

According to the memo accompanying this item, out of the $16,564,370 project budget for West Arbor, low-income housing tax credits and permanent debt are expected to cover $14,091,491. That leaves a gap of $1,472,879. The AAHC has secured $50,000 from Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA) and $293,000 from a Community Challenge Planning Grant. So the AAHC has requested up to $729,879 in capital funding support from the Ann Arbor housing trust fund for the West Arbor portion of the RAD conversion.

A project included in West Arbor is the Lower Platt Road project, which will entail demolishing four 5-bedroom units – because of their current placement in the floodplain – and constructing 32 townhomes and a community center. A second project included in West Arbor is North Maple Estates, which currently offers 19 units. All those units would be demolished and replaced with 42 townhomes.

The final component of West Arbor is the renovation of the four 3-bedroom units known as the North Maple Duplexes.

AAHC: 3451 Platt Road Rezoning

The council will give initial consideration to the rezoning that’s necessary for the Lower Platt portion of West Arbor: from R1C (single-family dwelling district) and R2A (two-family dwelling district) to R4B (multi-family dwelling district).

The planning commission sent the rezoning request for the 3451 Platt Road property to the city council with a recommendation of approval – in a vote taken at its Aug. 6, 2014 meeting. However, commissioners postponed consideration of the site plan for the five-building, 32-unit project, amid concerns about the site’s location in the floodplain and stormwater management. The postponement is supposed to allow time to address staff concerns regarding the impact on natural features.

Zoning and site plan approval must ultimately be given by the city council. However, the zoning approval will require two votes by the council at two separate meetings – because changes to the zoning code are actually changes to a city ordinance. So the site plan’s delay would not necessarily delay the project, as long as the site plan is put in front of the council for consideration by the time the council takes a second vote on the rezoning.

The site includes a property currently owned by AAHC, as well as an adjacent parcel that’s being purchased by the city on behalf of AAHC.

The project calls for demolishing four single-family homes and one two-family building, and constructing a 32-unit apartment complex with five buildings, 61 parking spaces, a playground, and a community building. The new apartments will include: 8 one-bedroom units; 12 two-bedroom units; 6 three-bedroom units; 2 four-bedroom units; and 4 five-bedroom units.

Two of the proposed buildings would be in the floodplain, which raised concerns from city staff. The AAHC is working to address those concerns – possibly by eliminating or reducing the number of buildings in the floodplain. It had been expected that the AAHC could address the issues raised by city staff so that the site plan could return to the planning commission at its Aug. 19 meeting – but that didn’t happen. Nor is it on the planning commission’s Sept. 3 agenda. [.pdf of planning staff report] [.pdf of June 28, 2014 citizen participation meeting report]

This project is part of major renovations and improvements the AAHC is making to its low-income housing inventory. For background on the AAHC process of renovating its properties, see Chronicle coverage: “Public Housing Conversion Takes Next Step.”

The AAHC Platt Road project is different from a Washtenaw County-owned property at 2260 and 2270 Platt Road, the former location of the county’s juvenile center. That site is also being considered for affordable housing.

North Maple Estates

The council will consider the site plan for North Maple Estates on Sept. 2. This Ann Arbor housing commission project calls for demolishing 20 existing single-family homes – the public housing complex known as North Maple Estates – and constructing an eight-building, 42-unit apartment complex with a total of 138 bedrooms.

Aerial view of North Maple Estates site, outlined in green.

The rezoning of the 4.8-acre site at 701 N. Maple Road already has been given final approval by the city council at its Aug. 18, 2014 meeting. The zoning was changed from R1C (single-family dwelling district) to R4B (multi-family dwelling district).

The Ann Arbor planning commission had recommended the zoning and site plan for approval at its meeting on June 17, 2014. The council gave initial approval of the rezoning at its July 7, 2014 meeting.

The project is another part of the major renovation effort being undertaken by AAHC on several of its properties. The site is on the west side of North Maple, between Dexter Avenue and Hollywood Drive. [.pdf of staff report]

The units in the eight-building, 42-unit apartment complex are proposed to have a total of 138 bedrooms. The units range in size from one bedroom to five bedrooms.

The project will include a playground, community building and 73 parking spaces. According to a staff memo, the buildings will be located along a T-shaped driveway that connects to North Maple Road and Dexter Avenue. The drive extends northward toward Vine Court but does not connect with that street. There would be a new connection to Dexter Avenue through the remaining, undeveloped length of Seybold Drive.

Gift of Life Expansion

At its Sept. 2 meeting, the council will consider giving final approval to the rezoning of property necessary for an expansion of the Gift of Life Michigan facility on Research Park Drive. The rezoning would change 6.55 acres from O (office district) and RE (research district) to ORL (office/research/limited industrial district). At the same meeting, the council will also consider the site plan for the project.

Aerial view of Gift of Life Michigan site.

The proposal calls for building a three-story, 40,786-square-foot addition to connect two existing buildings at 3161 and 3169 Research Park Drive, which are owned and occupied by the nonprofit. According to a staff report, the additional space will accommodate offices, a special events auditorium and “organ procurement suites.” The nonprofit’s website states that the Gift of Life is Michigan’s only federally designated organ and tissue recovery program. Cost of the expansion project will be $10.5 million.

The city planning commission recommended approval of the rezoning at its July 1, 2014 meeting. City council action to give initial approval of the site plan came at its meeting on Aug. 7.

The project would reduce the four existing curb cuts to Research Park Drive to three, connecting one of the loop driveways to an existing driveway at the east end of the site. A parking lot at the back of the site will be expanded by 38 parking spaces. Two alternate vehicle fueling stations are proposed in parking spaces near the main entry, with the driveway at the center of the site providing access for ambulances. A new shipping and receiving facility will be located on the northeast corner of the site.

Taxicab Meter Rates

Even though the council rejected one proposed change to its taxicab ordinance at its Aug. 18, 2014 meeting – which would have regulated all drivers for hire in the city – initial approval was given to another change in the part of the ordinance that regulates rates. So the council will be giving final consideration to that change on Sept 2.

The change would establish certain parameters to mitigate possible negative consequences to the setting of a very high maximum allowable taxicab rate, under which taxicab companies might eventually compete. Those parameters include a requirement that a taxicab company commit to a single rate annually and that the rate be advertised in a vehicle with signage in letters one-inch tall.

The vote by the taxicab board to recommend the ordinance change came at its July 24, 2014 meeting.

These issues were also discussed at three monthly meetings of the taxicab board prior to that, on April 23, 2014, May 22, 2014 and June 26, 2014. Representatives of the taxicab industry at those meetings advocated for the establishment of a very high maximum – not tied to gas and insurance prices. They feel it’s one mechanism that would allow them to compete with ride-sharing services like Uber and Lyft.

The proposal to regulate all drivers for hire, which the council rejected, was also intended in part to allow taxicab companies to compete with Uber and Lyft on an even playing field. Taxicab drivers are already regulated by the city.

Regarding fare regulation, the city’s current structure already allows for establishing a maximum rate to be adopted by the city council. Currently the maximum rate in Ann Arbor is $3 to get in, $2.50 per mile, and 40 cents per minute waiting time. Those maximum rates were last adjusted upwards three years ago, on May 16, 2011, in response to gas prices that had nudged past $4 per gallon. At that time, the taxicab board indicated it did not anticipate considering another rate change until the gas prices were over $5 for at least two consecutive months.

So the taxicab board’s thinking is not being driven by gas prices, which are currently between $3.75 and $4 in the Ann Arbor area. Instead, a possible increase in allowable fares is based on concern that the taxicab industry in Ann Arbor might not be able to survive unless taxis are allowed to charge more.

At its Aug. 28, 2014 meeting, taxicab board members recommended the following maximum rate schedule for eventual consideration by the council, which could appear on the council’s agenda as soon as Sept. 15: $10 to get in, $5 per mile and 40 cents per minute waiting time. In addition, a $1 surcharge could be applied for each passenger over three passengers.

At the council’s Aug. 18 meeting, Stephen Kunselman (Ward 3) – who also serves as the city council’s representative to the taxicab board – asked rhetorically if the taxicab board should be disbanded. At its Aug. 28 meeting, taxicab board chair Michael Benson announced that he’d received an email from board member Eric Sturgis, who indicated that he would be resigning from the board – because he’s moving to Jackson, Mich. It has historically been difficult to find residents willing to serve on the taxicab board.

Drivers for Hire: Uber/Lyft Operating Agreement

The ordinance change rejected by the council on Aug. 18, 2014 would have required all drivers for hire to be registered with the city, to have commercial plates on their vehicles, and to maintain insurance commensurate with commercial plates. And the absence of commercial plates on a vehicle that’s observed being used for picking up or dropping off passengers would have provided a reason for a traffic stop by Ann Arbor police. At the taxicab board meetings over the last few months, representatives of the taxicab industry argued that the state statute regulating limousines already gives the city the ability to enforce against Uber and Lyft drivers.

At the taxicab board’s Aug. 28 meeting, representatives of the taxicab industry lamented the fact that they had not attended the council’s Aug. 18 meeting to advocate for regulating all drivers for hire through a city ordinance. Representatives of Uber and Lyft numbered over 50 people at the council meeting, some of whom addressed the council during public commentary time.

Ward 3 city councilmember and taxicab board member Stephen Kunselman indicated at the board’s Aug. 28 meeting that there might be a possibility that one of the five councilmembers who voted against the ordinance at first reading on Aug. 18 might bring it back for reconsideration.

The 5-5 vote totaling 10 on the 11-member body stemmed from the absence of Margie Teall (Ward 4). Voting for the regulation of all drivers for hire were Kunselman, Sumi Kailasapathy (Ward 1), Jack Eaton (Ward 4), Chuck Warpehoski (Ward 5) and Mike Anglin (Ward 5). Voting against the change were mayor John Hieftje, Sabra Briere (Ward 1), Jane Lumm (Ward 2), Sally Petersen (Ward 2) and Christopher Taylor (Ward 3).

At the council’s Aug. 18 meeting, during deliberations on the rejected ordinance change, Briere indicated that she’d concluded as early as April of this year that an operating agreement – instead of a local ordinance – would be the right approach. Taylor indicated he had been working with Briere to come up with that kind of approach.

The resolution to be considered by the council on Sept. 2 would direct the city administrator to negotiate an operating agreement with established transportation network companies (TNCs) and to bring an agreement to the council for approval by the second council meeting in October, which is Oct. 20.

The elements to be included in the operating agreement are specified in an attachment to the resolution as follows:

Operating agreement principles include:

• Company will provide a minimum of $1M in liability insurance coverage for the driver, vehicle and passengers and any other injured parties, from the moment a driver is linked with a passenger to the moment the passenger releases the vehicle.
• Company will conduct the following at no cost to the city: background checks for each driver-applicant prior to allowing their participation. This background check will include a criminal background check, including a check for multiple relevant jurisdictions; a review of the applicant’s driving record; a mechanical inspection of the vehicle by a licensed inspector. The results of this data collection will be made available to the City for any driver / vehicle combination approved for participation in the company.
• Company will not allow participation by a driver / vehicle combination if the driver has any felony conviction; any conviction for DUI; more than 2 moving violations in any calendar year or more than 4 moving violations in a six-year period, with no more than 4 accumulated points in any calendar year.
• Company shall ensure that all driver vehicles pass an annual, mutually agreeable safety inspection conducted by a licensed mechanic.
• Prior to participation in the program, drivers shall go through a driver-education program that provides training in customer service and improves familiarity with local streets and local traffic conditions.
• Drivers shall not accept passengers except through the ride-sharing mechanism provided by the Company.
• Company will provide requested data to the City about accidents and incidents with passengers, as well as a report on customer satisfaction and safety ratings.

The resolution does not appear to define explicitly what a TNC is – and seems to allow for the possibility that an existing limo company could seek to operate under such an agreement without complying with the state statute on operation of limousines.

The resolution also leaves unspecified the intended term of the agreement – although deliberations at the council’s Aug. 18 meeting indicated that the intent of such operating agreements in other Michigan municipalities was to implement a temporary basis under which Uber and Lyft could operate, while the state legislature establishes a legislative framework under which such companies could operate.

The resolution does not direct the city administrator to provide for any explicit penalties that the city could impose on a TNC for failure to adhere to the operating agreement. The enforcement mechanism that the resolution seems to contemplate is for a TNC to provide certain kinds of data to the city upon request.

The resolution does not direct the city administrator to impose any requirements on the public accessibility of data provided by TNCs to the city. If a company were to come to an agreement with the city that data and information would be provided to the city, but only upon the condition that it not be disclosed to the public, then that data would be exempt from disclosure, even under a request made under Michigan’s Freedom of Information Act.

Extension of LDFA

The council will consider a resolution on Sept. 2 that would move ahead with a 15-year extension of the local development finance authority (LDFA). The LDFA – branded as one of about a dozen LDFA SmartZones statewide – is funded through capture of public school operating millages within the geographic areas of the Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti downtown development authority districts. In actual fact, however, no capture is made of the Ypsilanti school taxes.

The LDFA contracts with Ann Arbor SPARK to operate a business accelerator, which is meant to move start-up companies in the tech and biosciences sectors more quickly to a stage in their development when they are generating revenue from paying customers and adding jobs. Separate from the LDFA business acceleration contract with Ann Arbor SPARK, the city of Ann Arbor has historically engaged SPARK for business attraction and retention services. However, this year the $75,000 annual contract with SPARK was tabled by the council – in a vote taken at the council’s June 16, 2014 meeting. It’s expected at some point to be taken back up off the table for consideration. By council rule, it will be considered demised if it’s not considered before a lapse of six months.

The extension – which would still need approval from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation – depends on establishing a relationship between the Ann Arbor-Ypsilanti SmartZone and some other “satellite” LDFA. So the Sept. 2 resolution designates Adrian/Tecumseh as that satellite. The council’s resolution specifies the following as findings:

1. That the selection of the Adrian/Tecumseh LDFA as a satellite provides unique characteristics and specialties through its public and private resources including the location of Adrian College, Siena Heights University and Jackson College within its TIF District and the opportunities for research partnerships and student/young entrepreneur involvement. In addition partnership with another multi-jurisdictional LDFA provides opportunities for shared experiences.
2. That the selection of the Adrian/Tecumseh LDFA as a satellite provides regional cooperation and collaboration benefits to the LDFA and the Cities of Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti with joint focuses on technology (including expanding green technologies and agricultural technology) and entrepreneurial services.
3. That the selection of the Adrian/Tecumseh LDFA as a satellite provides value and support to the LDFA by strengthening existing collaboratives, making available a new/expanded technical assistance and support through its Innovation Center at Adrian College, and agricultural and manufacturing resources.

In connection with the extension, revisions to the Ann Arbor-Ypsilanti SmartZone TIF (tax increment financing) plan and development plan are being undertaken. Drafts of revisions are attached to the council’s Sept. 2 agenda item. Revisions appear to address concerns that have been raised about the current arrangement – to some extent by Ann Arbor city councilmembers.

Those concerns include the fact that TIF is not currently allowed to be spent outside the TIF district in the city of Ann Arbor; further, no TIF funds can be expended in Ypsilanti – inside or outside its TIF district – because no actual tax capture revenue is generated for the LDFA in that area. The revisions would allow TIF revenue to be expended anywhere in the entire cities of Ann Arbor or Ypsilanti.

In addition, the revisions specify in greater detail that TIF revenue can be used to pay for high-speed communications infrastructure. Specifically mentioned as eligible expenditures is the “installation of technology related infrastructure assets, i.e. fiber lines, nodes, or work spaces.”

The LDFA extension comes in the context of lingering questions about the impact on school funding of the LDFA tax capture. In FY 2013, the total amount captured by the Ann Arbor SmartZone LDFA was $1,546,577, and the current fiscal year forecast is for $2,017,835. About the same amount is forecast for FY 2015.

The LDFA captures Ann Arbor Public Schools (AAPS) operating millage, but those captured taxes don’t directly diminish the local school’s budget. That’s because in Michigan, local schools levy a millage, but the proceeds are not used directly by local districts. Rather, proceeds are first forwarded to the state of Michigan’s School Aid Fund, for redistribution among school districts statewide. That redistribution is based on a per-pupil formula as determined on a specified “count day.” And the state is supposed to “reimburse” the School Aid Fund for the taxes captured by some SmartZones in the state.

Questions raised in the last few months have centered around whether the School Aid Fund is “reimbursed” by the state’s general fund for the taxes that are captured to fund the Ann Arbor SmartZone LDFA – because the wording of the state statute is based on the term “reimburse.”

It turns out that the school taxes captured by the Ann Arbor SmartZone are not required to be “reimbursed” to the state School Aid Fund – which diminishes the amount of funding for public schools statewide. That’s a conclusion based on a reading of the LDFA statute and confirmed to The Chronicle by communications staff in the Dept. of Treasury and the MEDC. However, it’s not clear that “reimbursement” is even a useful way of framing the question – notwithstanding the wording of the state statute. That’s partly because tax capture from those LDFAs to which the state statute does apply are not “reimbursed” in the sense that the word implies – with a specific calculation done and a transfer of money (or an adjustment to the legislature’s appropriation) made based on that calculation. From an Aug. 7, 2014 staff memo: “… the reimbursement language really only served as language of intent.”

Based on subsequent inquires made by city of Ann Arbor financial staff with state officials, it appears that the setting of the statewide per-pupil allowance each year proceeds along a separate track from replenishing the School Aid Fund – which receives significant revenue from sources other than local school operating millages. It appears it’s not possible to establish a 1-to-1 relationship between local school operating taxes that are captured by LDFAs and money that flows into the School Aid Fund from various other sources that might be analyzed as “compensating” for the capture.

In any case, city staff have concluded that LDFA tax capture has not had a negative impact on Ann Arbor’s local school funding.

Appointments to Boards and Commissions

Appointments to the city of Ann Arbor’s boards and commissions are typically handled in a two-step process: (1) the mayor announces the nominations at a council meeting; and (2) the council votes on the confirmation at the next meeting of the council. The procedure is grounded in the city charter.

At the council’s Aug. 21 meeting, Anna Ercoli-Schnitzer was nominated to fill a vacancy on the commission on disability issues. Tamara Burns and Dick Mitchell were nominated to be reappointed to the design review board. Sofia Franciscus was nominated to fill the vacancy on the planning commission due to Paras Parekh’s resignation. And John Splitt was nominated for reappointment to the Downtown Development Authority board.

3:05 p.m. The staff responses to councilmembers’ questions about agenda items are now available. [Sept. 2, 2014 staff responses to questions]

4:29 p.m. Tonight only five people appear to be signed up to talk in the 10 slots for public commentary that are available at the start of the meeting. Kai Petainen is signed up to talk about the LDFA extension. Alan Haber is signed up to talk about the park advisory commission’s recommendation for redevelopment of Liberty Plaza, which is an attachment to the clerk’s report. And three people are signed up to talk about the direction to the city administrator to negotiate operating agreements with transportation network companies like Uber and Lyft: John Heed, a representative of SelectRide; and Michael Benson and LuAnne Bullington, who serve on the city’s taxicab board. (Benson is chair of that group.)

6:52 p.m. Jane Lumm (Ward 2), Jack Eaton (Ward 4), Sally Petersen (Ward 2) and mayor John Hieftje have arrived.

7:04 p.m. We’re still missing Christopher Taylor (Ward 3) and Margie Teall (Ward 4).

7:07 p.m. Call to order, moment of silence, pledge of allegiance.

7:07 p.m. Roll call of council. Margie Teall (Ward 4) and Christopher Taylor (Ward 3) are absent.

7:08 p.m. Approval of agenda.

7:09 p.m. Chuch Warpehoski (Ward 5) is adding an agenda item DS-4, which will take up the Ann Arbor SPARK contract off the table from a previous meeting. A separate vote will be taken at the time the council reaches that agenda point.

7:09 p.m. Outcome: The council has approved the evening’s agenda as amended.

7:10 p.m. Communications from the city administrator. City administrator Steve Powers reminds the council of the Sept. 8 work session with the DDA on parking issues, starting at 7 p.m.

7:10 p.m. Public commentary. This portion of the meeting offers 10 three-minute slots that can be reserved in advance. Preference is given to speakers who want to address the council on an agenda item. [Public commentary general time, with no sign-up required in advance, is offered at the end of the meeting.]

7:13 p.m. Kai Petainen is speaking about the LDFA extension. He is focusing on the jobs claims that have been made by Ann Arbor SPARK. He says that SPARK and LDFA are not telling a consistent story. He asks if it’s worth spending $58 million on 700 jobs. He asks if many of the jobs that have been created would have been created even without the existence of SPARK and the LDFA. [.pdf of Petainen's remarks]

7:14 p.m. Alan Haber is talking about the World Day of Peace. He’s talking about the importance of gathering the community. He’s supporting a proclamation later on the agenda that would recognize World Peace Day. [Teall and Taylor have now arrived at the meeting.]

7:17 p.m. John Heed is speaking against negotiating an operating agreement with Uber and Lyft, arguing that they operate in violation of state law. He gives insurance requirements as an example of the competitive playing field not being level. The operating agreements would simply shift responsibility, he says. Having a new business model does not make anybody above the law, he says.

7:21 p.m. Michael Benson is chair of the taxicab board and a resident of Ward 2. He was in Beijing during the last council meeting and couldn’t attend. He characterizes the transportation industry as in a state of flux due to a variety of factors. He’s speaking against establishing operating agreements with TNCs, arguing that they fall under the state’s limo statute. He says that the proposal that the taxicab board had made would be broad enough to cover the market, however it evolved. He points out that the city had issued a cease-and-desist order, which means that the city’s view is that Uber and Lyft are operating in violation of the law. He asks that the council reconsider the ordinance they rejected, and allow a public hearing on the question by allowing it to go to a second reading. [.pdf of Benson's remarks]

7:24 p.m. LuAnne Bullington says she’s not speaking as a member of the taxicab board, but as a citizen who knows something about transportation. A limo is licensed by the state, and a taxi is licensed by a local municipality. It’s not possible to regulate taxicabs outside of the city, she says. She says that Uber is really a $17 billion taxicab company that the state and the city of Ann Arbor can’t regulate. She notes that a court in Frankfurt, Germany had issued an order against Uber that Uber is simply ignoring.

7:24 p.m. Communications from the council. This is the first of two slots on the agenda for council communications. It’s a time when councilmembers can report out from boards, commissions and task forces on which they serve. They can also alert their colleagues to proposals they might be bringing forward in the near future.

7:24 p.m. Jack Eaton says that a meeting on the Packard Square development has been canceled and will be scheduled for a later time.

7:28 p.m. Mike Anglin is talking about the Sept. 21 World Peace Day proclamation. He says that it was added late, but he wanted it to appear on this council’s agenda. He also points to the F-3 communication from the park advisory commission, which is attached to the agenda. Anglin says that voters had overwhelmingly said they wanted additional parks in the downtown. Because the council had voted to designate part of the top of the Library Lane parking structure as a public park/plaza, it was important to start holding events there. The World Peace Day event is something that there can’t be any equivocation about, he says – as everyone agrees there should be peace in the world. It should be made possible without establishing barriers. He’s referring to the requirement that an insurance policy be in place. [The DDA's policy on use of public parking facilities for events includes an insurance requirement.]

7:30 p.m. Sumi Kailasapathy says that as she was walking in, Ray Detter had told her that there was a light agenda. She said that although the agenda is light, she had a heavy heart because it is the last day of The Ann Arbor Chronicle. She’s now talking about the beheading of journalists in the Middle East and relates her own experience growing up in a civil war in Sri Lanka. She’s talking about the importance of documenting history. She’s sending her salutations and thanks to The Chronicle.

7:32 p.m. Sabra Briere is talking about the design charrette on the Platt Road site. It was hosted by Washtenaw County, which owns the land. The county board of commissioners was interested in how the public wanted to see the site developed if it included housing. The results of the charrette are now up on the website, Briere says. If the county determines that affordable housing is appropriate, she hopes the city will be able to cooperate in that effort. She encourages people to look into that and to communicate to the county.

7:35 p.m. Jane Lumm is announcing the year-end dog swim at the Buhr Park pool on Sept. 3-4. Educational efforts will be made at the event about the dog licensing requirements. She’s thanking Kailasapathy for her comments about The Chronicle and wishes us a happy 25th wedding anniversary. She’s describing The Chronicle as public servants who have helped improve the community with an emphasis on open and transparent governance. She’s extending her sincere thanks and says The Chronicle will be missed.

7:36 p.m. Hieftje says there are some spectacular athletes at the dog swim. He tells late-arriving councilmembers that the SPARK contract has been added to the agenda to be taken up off the table.

7:37 p.m. MC-1 Confirmations. At the council’s Aug. 21 meeting, Anna Ercoli-Schnitzer was nominated to fill a vacancy on the commission on disability issues. Tamara Burns and Dick Mitchell were nominated to be reappointed to the design review board. Sofia Franciscus was nominated to fill the vacancy on the planning commission due to Paras Parekh’s resignation. And John Splitt was nominated for reappointment to the Downtown Development Authority board.

7:37 p.m. Eaton is asking that John Splitt’s nomination to be separated out from the others.

7:38 p.m. The council has confirmed all the nominations except for that of Splitt, which is being considered separately.

7:39 p.m. Stephen Kunselman says he won’t support Splitt to a third term. Eaton also says he won’t support it, and he wants to explain why. He says that The Chronicle has consistently reported on various problems with the Open Meetings Act and a compliant development plan, and he thinks that those problems stem from confirming the same people over and over again.

7:40 p.m. Kailasapathy also says she won’t support Splitt’s confirmation. She wants people who will take TIF (tax increment finance) spending seriously, and not treat it like “Halloween candy.” New people will look at things with fresh eyes, she says. She says it’s not personal.

7:42 p.m. Petersen says she’ll support Splitt and says she knows him to be an independent thinker. When she traveled with the DDA to New York City, he’d made an extra effort to get to know her. She says that Splitt represents the State Street area of the downtown.

7:44 p.m. DDA board chair John Mouat is asked to the podium by Margie Teall (Ward 4). She asks him if the DDA board members are “slackers.” Mouat is saying there is a steep learning curve on the DDA. Teall asks if there is any review of the OMA on staff. He allows that it’s been brought up as a point of discussion. It’s probably something that the DDA should look at, he says.

7:48 p.m. Kunselman is asking Mouat about the raises that Susan Pollay received as executive director. Mouat says he doesn’t feel comfortable answering that question. Kunselman says he wasn’t planning to go into detail. He’s reviewing The Chronicle’s reporting about those raises. Kunselman is now talking about the requirements of the DDA statute. He says he’s looking for new DDA members who will each year work on the TIF plan. Mouat points to the joint working session on Sept. 8, which would be a better occasion for this discussion, he says.

7:49 p.m. Anglin is comparing the compensation of DDA staff to city staff. Anglin says he’s voting against Splitt’s reappointment because he wants to see the DDA step up and provide police in the downtown.

7:51 p.m. Kailasapathy responds to Mouat’s remarks about the learning curve. The DDA’s institutional memory is not as good as it should be, she says. Kailasapathy is talking about Kunselman and The Chronicle’s retrieval of some DDA records from the Bentley Library. She wondered why long-term members of the DDA had not remembered these things.

7:53 p.m. Lumm thanks those who have said they will vote against Splitt’s appointment. She says that city administrator Steve Powers had demonstrated a courageous vote when he voted against Susan Pollay’s raise this year. However, Splitt was entitled to another term, Lumm says. Splitt has worked hard, she adds, so she will support his appointment.

7:55 p.m. Hieftje says there are membership criteria for members of the DDA. Splitt is a downtown business owner and lives in the DDA district, he says. He gives a breakdown of the mix of the DDA board in terms of thirds, based on their length of service.

7:55 p.m. The council has confirmed the nominations of John Splitt to a third term on the DDA board on a 7-4 vote. Dissenting were Kailasapathy, Kunselman, Eaton and Anglin

7:55 p.m. MC-2 Nominations. Tonight Sam Callan is being nominated to the building board of appeals. The vote on his confirmation will come at the council’s next meeting.

7:55 p.m. Public Hearings. All the public hearings are grouped together during this section of the meeting. Action on the related items comes later in the meeting. Four public hearings are scheduled tonight: one on the Ann Arbor Housing Commission’s North Maple Estates site plan; two on the Gift of Life project (one for the rezoning and the other on the site plan); and one on the changes to the taxicab rate ordinance.

7:55 p.m. PH-1 AAHC North Maple Road site plan

7:57 p.m. Thomas Partridge is speaking in support of this item, with the proviso that it should have adequate handicapped parking.

7:59 p.m. Ed Vielmetti is speaking in support of the site plan. He’s objecting to the copyright notices that are included on the various maps. Because they are planning documents that people might want to review, it’s important that the city include copyright notices that are appropriate for archival distribution.

8:02 p.m. Scott Betzoldt with Midwestern Consulting, Jennifer Hall of the AAHC and architect John Mouat are at the podium. They represent the project. Betzoldt is going first. He says that all the underground utilities will be replaced, and stormwater detention will be provided. Mouat says that his firm has worked with AAHC for over 20 years. He stresses three points. The buildings have been designed to be simple to maximize floor area. The mix of bedrooms is 1-bedroom, 2-bedroom, 3-bedroom and 4-bedroom units. He also notes that the units will be barrier-free. The building will also be certified as environmental friendly, he says, including 4×6 stud construction, which will allow for additional insulation.

8:04 p.m. Hall says that this is the first site to which the AAHC has been able to add units in over 20 years. She’s talking about the relocation plan for the current tenants. They’ll be able to move back to the site when construction is complete.

8:04 p.m. That’s it for PH-1.

8:04 p.m. PH-2 Gift of Life rezoning

8:06 p.m. Thomas Partridge expresses concern that there should be a requirement that the property be made accessible to public transportation as well as paratransit. All similar rezoning should have such a requirement.

8:07 p.m. That’s it for PH-2.

8:07 p.m. PH-3 Gift of Life site plan

8:08 p.m. Thomas Partridge reiterates the importance of making site plan approval contingent on adequate access to handicapped parking and public transportation.

8:09 p.m. That’s it for PH-3.

8:09 p.m. PH-4 Taxicab ordinance

8:12 p.m. Mark LaSarge of SelectRide is addressing the council. He’s arguing against pricing restrictions generally. He’s ticking through the costs of the taxicab industry. The city doesn’t determine prices for milk, he notes, and should not determine prices for taxicabs. He’s also arguing against the direction to the city administrator to negotiate operating agreements that the council will consider tonight.

8:16 p.m. John Heed says this should be passed, even though it will not solve all the problems. It will help the taxicab industry absorb “price shocks,” he says.

8:16 p.m. A woman introduces herself as a taxicab driver. She disagrees with the taxicab owners on the fare issue. But she agrees with them on the question of operating agreements with Uber and Lyft. Hieftje encourages her to relate her remarks to the ordinance on the agenda. She invites councilmembers to do a ride-along with her as she drives her taxi.

8:18 p.m. LuAnne Bullington is reviewing how the price structure would work. She asks councilmembers to support this ordinance change, because it gives taxicab companies flexibility. The taxicabs would simply have to post the rates, she concludes.

8:20 p.m. Rick Clark, of Amazing Blue Taxi, tells the council that he’d received a sad phone call from a customer, who would no longer be using his cab service – because she’s moving to California. She thanked him for the service. “An app is not going to care about people,” he concludes.

8:22 p.m. Thomas Partridge wants the maximum rates extended to cab-like services like Uber and Lyft. He calls for keeping Ann Arbor an affordable city.

8:23 p.m. Michael White, general manager for Uber in Michigan, speaks in support of the “deregulation” of taxicab rates. He says that the council’s focus should be on providing choice and safety. Uber provides choice and safety, he says. He’s available, if councilmembers have questions, he says.

8:26 p.m. Michael Benson, chair of the taxicab board, says that this ordinance addresses two problems – variable insurance and gas rates. The cost of doing business has to be weighed against the cost to the public. The ordinance requires posting the rates and allows a taxicab company to change its rates once during the year. This does not mean the taxicab board is in favor of complete deregulation, he says. The taxicab industry is different from others in that it operates solely in the public right of way. He encourages the council to approve the ordinance.

8:27 p.m. That’s it for PH-4.

8:27 p.m. Council minutes.

8:27 p.m. Outcome: The council has approved the minutes of the previous meeting.

8:27 p.m. Consent agenda. This is a group of items that are deemed to be routine and are voted on “all in one go.” Contracts for less than $100,000 can be placed on the consent agenda. This meeting’s consent agenda includes:

• CA-1 Street Closing: Oktoberfest Oct. 3-4, 2014 (W. Washington) requested by Arbor Brewing Company.
• CA-2 Street Closing: Oktoberfest Oct. 3-4, 2014, (W. Washington) requested by Grizzly Peak Brewing Company and the Blue Tractor.
• CA-3 Street Closing: Reception for UM President Sept. 5, 2014 (E. Washington btw. Thayer and Fletcher).
• CA-4 Contract Amendment with Hinshon Environmental ($10,000).
• CA-5 Approve a purchase order with Staples FY 2015 ($92,499).
• CA-6 PILOT for Avalon Housing 1010-1030 Arbordale Street.
• CA-7 Amend contract with Green Vision Lawn and Landscaping ($2,556).
• CA-8 Authorize contract with OPUS International Consultants, Inc. ($58,724) for Nixon/Green/Dhu Varren Intersection Improvement Study.

8:28 p.m. Councilmembers can pull items off the consent agenda for separate consideration. Tonight Briere has asked CA-6 and CA-8 to be pulled out for separate consideration. Taylor wants CA-2 pulled out.

8:28 p.m. Outcome: The council has approved the consent agenda except for the three items to be considered separately

8:28 p.m. CA-2 Street Closing: Oktoberfest Oct. 3-4, 2014 (W. Washington) requested by Grizzly Peak Brewing Company and the Blue Tractor.

8:29 p.m. This was considered separately to allow for recusal of Taylor because his firm represents the requestor of the street closing.

8:29 p.m. Outcome: The council has now approved CA-2 on the consent agenda.

8:30 p.m. CA-6 PILOT for Avalon Housing 1010-1030 Arbordale Street. Briere makes some remarks in favor of this item.

8:31 p.m. Outcome: The council has now approved CA-6 on the consent agenda.

8:31 p.m. CA-8 Authorize contract with OPUS International Consultants Inc. ($58,724) for Nixon/Green/Dhu Varren Intersection Improvement Study. Briere says that Ward 1 and Ward 2 councilmembers are delighted to see this item. She reminds city administrator Steve Powers that she’s grateful for the public participation component of the contract. Kailasapathy says that residents will definitely have a lot to say.

8:33 p.m. Lumm says, “Hear, hear,” to the comments that Briere and Kailasapathy have made. The “intersection” is problematic, she says.

8:34 p.m. Outcome: The council has now approved CA-8 on the consent agenda.

8:34 p.m. B-1 Gift of Life Rezoning. This is final approval of the rezoning of property necessary for an expansion of the Gift of Life Michigan facility on Research Park Drive. The rezoning would change 6.55 acres from O (office district) and RE (research district) to ORL (office/research/limited industrial district). The site plan, which also appears on the Sept. 2 agenda, calls for building a three-story, 40,786-square-foot addition to connect two existing buildings at 3161 and 3169 Research Park Drive, which are owned and occupied by the nonprofit. [For additional background, see Gift of Life Expansion above.]

8:35 p.m. Outcome: The council has voted without discussion to give final approval to the Gift of Life rezoning.

8:35 p.m. B-2 Taxicab Rate Ordinance. The council gave initial approval at its Aug. 18 meeting to a change in the part of the taxicab ordinance that regulates rates. This is the final consideration of that change. The change would establish certain parameters to mitigate possible negative consequences to the setting of a very high maximum allowable taxicab rate, under which taxicab companies might eventually compete. Those parameters include a requirement that a taxicab company commit to a single rate annually and that the rate be advertised in a vehicle with signage in letters one-inch tall. [For additional background, see Taxicab Meter Rates above.]

8:37 p.m. Kunselman says that staff has asked him to add an amendment – to set the date of enactment to be Oct. 14. He says he won’t bore everyone by repeating the sentiments expressed during the public hearing. He reviews how the ordinance would work, saying that it allows for the setting of a very high maximum. It would allow taxicab companies to start to compete with companies like Uber and Lyft that are competing unfairly. Lumm indicates her support for the change to the ordinance.

8:41 p.m. Hieftje says that he served on the taxicab board from November 1999 to November 2000. At that time, nobody heard much from the taxicab board, he notes. Kunselman says that he very rarely uses livery services. He said that the camaraderie among the livery service community should be taken note of. They’ve been around for a long time, he says. He’s known a number of taxicab drivers and talks about the stories they tell. He jokes that someone else on the council might want to serve as the council’s representative starting in November, when the council reassigns its board and commission appointments.

8:41 p.m. Anglin echoes Kunselman’s appreciation of the taxicab industry.

8:42 p.m. Outcome: The council has voted to give final approval to the revision to the taxicab ordinance, regarding the setting of rates.

8:42 p.m. Recess. We’re now in recess.

8:53 p.m. We’re back.

8:53 p.m. C-1 AAHC Platt Road rezoning. This is the initial rezoning approval for the AAHC’s Lower Platt Road project, which will entail demolishing four 5-bedroom units – because of their current placement in the floodplain – and constructing 32 townhomes and a community center. The zoning change would be from R1C (single-family dwelling district) and R2A (two-family dwelling district) to R4B (multi-family dwelling district). [For additional background, see AAHC: 3451 Platt Road Rezoning above.]

8:54 p.m. Lumm asks if planning manager Wendy Rampson is available. She is. Lumm asks about the delay in the site plan at the planning commission. Rampson explains to Lumm that a reconfiguration is being sought for some of the buildings.

8:54 p.m. Outcome: The council has voted to give initial approval to the rezoning of 3451 Platt Road.

8:54 p.m. DC-1 SmartZone satellite agreement. This resolution would move ahead with a 15-year extension of the local development finance authority (LDFA). The LDFA  – branded as one of about a dozen LDFA SmartZones statewide –  is funded through capture of public school operating millages within the geographic areas of the Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti downtown development authority districts. The extension requires an agreement with a satellite LDFA, which the Ann Arbor-Ypsilanti SmartZone is making with Adrian/Tecumseh. [For additional background, see Extension of LDFA above.]

8:58 p.m. Petersen is reviewing the purpose of the resolution. [She's the council's representative to the LDFA board.] Petersen is reading aloud a statement in support of economic development generally. She’s addressing the possible objection that some councilmembers might have, given the mechanism for funding the LDFA – which is through tax increment financing. She’s inviting Eric Jacobsen, board treasurer of the LDFA, to the podium.

9:00 p.m. Jacobsen notes that the recruitment of a satellite LDFA is a state mandate as a condition of the extension. He’s reviewing the reasons for choosing Adrian/Tecumseh over Brighton/Howell. He says that no Ann Arbor tax dollars would be going to Adrian/Tecumseh.

9:03 p.m. Jacobsen notes that this is just the next step in a multi-step process. One of the next steps is to define a new TIF agreement. The LDFA is in the business of economic growth – helping start-up companies, not trying to get other companies to relocate here. It’s an ecosystem for entrepreneurs, he says. Ann Arbor can compete with Palo Alto and Austin, he says. He stresses that Ann Arbor SPARK is the LDFA’s contractor – and that SPARK executes on the directive that LDFA gives.

9:04 p.m. Jacobsen reports that the Ypsilanti city council has approved the agreement earlier tonight. Five other cities are applying for two possible extensions statewide, he says.

9:08 p.m. Kailasapathy notes that the revenue estimates for the 15-year period total about $58 million. She calls that a estimate conservative. She says her understanding is that something like $3-6 million will be spent in Ypsilanti, even though there is no TIF capture in Ypsilanti. CFO Tom Crawford says that there have been informal discussions with the MEDC, and there’s an interest by MEDC in seeing the money spent in Ypsilanti as well. Ann Arbor still comes out ahead, Crawford says. Kailasapathy says $58 million is a lot of money.

9:11 p.m. Kailasapathy is confronting the contention that the ecosystem will “wither away” without the extension. She notes the increase from $200,000 in the early years of the LDFA to $2 million now. She points out that the University of Michigan has a new entrepreneurial effort. Jacobsen says that he expects all the partners will work together.

9:12 p.m. Kailasapathy is now addressing the focus on job creation. How many jobs will be created in the next 15 years? she asks.

9:14 p.m. Crawford points to the draft amended TIF plan. After getting approval from the MEDC, the city would then need to enter into negotiations on the TIF plan with the MEDC. After it get passed, the city would be jumping into that feet first, he says. Kailasapathy calculates that it would be $80,000 per job created.

9:15 p.m. Jacobsen is saying for every job created in the tech field, another five jobs are created. So if it’s $80,000 per job, the return to the community is still very impressive, he says.

9:16 p.m. Lumm says she understands that the final TIF and development plans aren’t required until next year, but she’s happy the council has been provided with draft versions. Jacobsen reiterates that goals on job creation would come after the TIF and development plans are finalized.

9:19 p.m. Briere asks Jacobsen if he were to design the agreement, whether job creation would be a “decent” metric. Yes, he says. She asks him to explain how it’s a good metric. Stephen Rapundalo, an LDFA board member and former Ward 2 city councilmember, takes the podium. Growing businesses is the goal, Rapundalo says, and the jobs come as a result of that.

9:21 p.m. Briere says that it feels good to say that we’ll project a certain number of jobs created and then go back and check to see if that’s what happened. But that “recipe” makes her nervous, she says. How many dollars we spend to get how many jobs is not a good way to think about it, she adds. So she wonders what other metrics can be offered? Rapundalo says that the number of companies that are starting is one measure, as well as the amount of funding that they are receiving. Briere says she wishes the discussion was less focused on the specific number of jobs.

9:28 p.m. Eaton asks if we acknowledge that if the $58 million is captured, that the state does not reimburse the state’s School Aid Fund. Crawford explains that the foundation grant is determined by two components: the local millage funding and the state contribution. Local schools are not harmed through the tax capture, he says. Eaton asks if the state treasurer is making up the fact that the School Aid Fund is not reimbursed. Crawford explains the complexity of the School Aid Fund mechanism. Eaton is reiterating his concern about the impact on school funding. He also talks about the “fuzzy” job creation number. He wonders if the jobs that are created are really attributable to the activities of the LDFA. Crawford compares $4 million to $10 billion that the state contributes, so he says that tax capture has a negligible impact on school funding.

9:30 p.m. Kunselman wants to know what five cities are in the running for the two slots for the 15-year extension. Automation Alley, Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo are named. Kunselman wants to know how unemployment rates in the cities compare. Ann Arbor has the lowest unemployment in the state, Kunselman is told. Now Kunselman wants to know what the options are for a five-year extension, if Ann Arbor is not selected for the 15-year extension.

9:36 p.m. Kailasapathy wants to see some of the taxes eliminated from capture – the school operating millage, because that’s the amount that is distributed from the state treasurer directly back to the school districts. Lumm expresses skepticism that Kailasapathy has characterized that accurately. Crawford confirms that’s right.

9:40 p.m. Briere ventures that the foundation grant level is set, and after that the state looks for where the money comes from to fund that grant level. Crawford is explaining that there are numerous factors. He is arguing that there is some return on the investment of the captured taxes, which generates greater revenue to the state and the local communities.

9:42 p.m. Anglin is now asking about the possibility of imposing hold-harmless requirements.

9:45 p.m. Kunselman says he appreciates all the commentary. He says that the LDFA is showing a lot of care and consideration in its willingness to work with the council – something he can’t say about every authority the council deals with. He still has a problem with the fact that the money is taken from schools. When he hears about the other communities that are in the running, because they have real need for job creation. Ann Arbor already enjoys the benefits of the economic engine that the University of Michigan provides. He wants to see Detroit and Kalamazoo get this benefit. So he won’t support the 15-year extension. He calls this greedy on Ann Arbor’s part. “We are in this as a state,” he says. “If Detroit doesn’t get better, we don’t get better.”

9:46 p.m. Teall agrees with Kunselman that everyone needs this. But Ypsilanti and Adrian/Tecumseh need this too, she says. The stronger this local region is, the stronger the state can become, she says.

9:48 p.m. Petersen is asking for clarification about who is still in the running. Houghton/Marquette already have the extension, she ventures. That’s right, confirms Crawford.

9:50 p.m. Lumm is explaining her reasons for supporting this. She hopes that LDFA and SPARK will listen to the concerns about the need for greater transparency. She remarks on the funding of fiber networks in the next 15 years as a positive. She says she does not believe that the capture of the school taxes has a negative impact on school funding.

9:53 p.m. Anglin says the council has not talked about the five-year option. Why is the 15-year plan preferable? he asks. He points to the rationale for excluding the Washtenaw Intermediate School District’s tax from capture and wonders why that exemption doesn’t apply to the AAPS operating millage. Good schools lead to good jobs, he says. He’s saying that local officials need to tell the state that they need to do better in their overall approach to funding state education.

9:54 p.m. Anglin says he’d like to see a smaller step taken – a five-year extension.

9:59 p.m. Crawford clarifies that the WISD millage is not captured. Briere ventures that the rationale for not capturing WISD’s millage is that WISD doesn’t receive per-pupil reimbursements from the state. Briere also says that the reason the council is considering the 15-year extension first is that Ann Arbor is in competition with other cities – and if Ann Arbor does not win, then the five-year extension is the fall-back position.

9:59 p.m. Anglin says he will vote against this, because he wants the state legislature to do a better job funding schools.

10:00 p.m. Eaton is noting that the 15-year extension goes out 18 years from now, because there’s three years left on the current authorization. To date, the council has only seen “fuzzy” justification for the results, he says. Eaton would support a five-year extension but says that planning for 15 years in the future at this price tag is pretty speculative.

10:02 p.m. Petersen clarifies that the council is not voting on the 15-year extension – as that’s the purview of MEDC and the state treasurer – but rather on the inclusion of Adrian/Tecumseh in the application.

10:02 p.m. Lumm returns to the school funding question.

10:04 p.m. Kunselman is asking what the TIF capture would be in other cities that are competing for the 15-year extension.

10:06 p.m. Anglin is reading aloud the parts of the resolution that address the 15-year extension and asks: “Are we reading the same document?” Hieftje thanks Crawford for all the work he’s done and also the LDFA board. The LDFA has responded to questions from the council, he says. He’s convinced that local schools are not hurt by the LDFA – as the state will fund public schools the way it wants to.

10:08 p.m. Hieftje says that he disputes the idea that job creation would happen without the efforts of the LDFA. Ann Arbor might be the only city in the state of Michigan that can compete with Palo Alto, Hieftje says. So it’s important that Ann Arbor continue to do that. He says that it would be good for some of the LDFA money to be spent in Ypsilanti. This will “lift all boats,” he says.

10:10 p.m. Warpehoski is responding to the question Kunselman asked about the TIF capture of other cities, with data he Googled.

10:13 p.m. Warpehoski notes Pfizer’s departure and says that Ann Arbor’s economy is not bulletproof. He points to SPARK’s bootcamp and a resident who went through it, who has now started a business: 1000 Tools. Warpehoski is glad that kind of innovation is happening, he says. Even if after five years there are no jobs associated with that company, he thinks the impact is positive.

10:14 p.m. Taylor says it’s all pretty simple. There’s an opportunity to obtain a few million dollars for the benefit of Ann Arbor’s economy.

10:15 p.m. Taylor notes that 2,400 were lost when Pfizer left. That was not the only negative impact. Conversely, he says, adding jobs has additional positive impact beyond just those job numbers.

10:18 p.m. Briere says she likes to look at the resolution in front of her but she’d had to look at a lot more than that with this resolution. Briere says that the state does not attach as much importance to infrastructure and schools as it once did. But now it’s willing to invest in economic development, which might indirectly help revenues to fund infrastructure and schools.

10:19 p.m. Briere says there are three things that are important: (1) money will be spent in Ypsilanti; (2) it allows investment in Adrian/Tecumseh; and (3) spending on fiber networks.

10:20 p.m. Anti-Israel activists have arrived with signs. They attended the Ypsilanti city council meeting earlier.

10:20 p.m. Briere will support the resolution.

10:22 p.m. Outcome: The council has voted 7-4 to approve the agreements with Adrian/Tecumseh regarding the extension of the LDFA, over dissent from Kailasapathy, Kunselman, Eaton and Anglin.

10:22 p.m. DC-2 Transportation Network Companies (Uber/Lyft). Direct the city administrator to negotiate operating agreements. This resolution would direct the city administrator to negotiate operating agreements with transportation network companies like Uber and Lyft. This is being considered as an alternative to the ordinance considered, but rejected at the council’s Aug. 18, 2014 meeting, which would have required all drivers for hire to be registered with the city, to have commercial plates on their vehicles, and to maintain insurance commensurate with commercial plates. And the absence of commercial plates on a vehicle that is observed being used for picking up or dropping off passengers would have provided a reason for a traffic stop by Ann Arbor police.

10:24 p.m. Briere says that the resolution was the result of electronic collaboration among herself, Taylor and Petersen. The language had been run past city staff to make sure the principles in the resolution were principles from which the staff could negotiate. Public safety was one of the concerns she’d tried to address. This is an effort to regulate companies like Uber and Lyft, she says.

10:27 p.m. Kunselman wants to know if the insurance referred to is primary or secondary. Briere invites Kunselman to make an amendment to clarify. Kunselman declines, saying he plans to vote against this resolution.

10:30 p.m. Kunselman asks assistant city attorney Abigail Elias if the cease-and-desist order is still in effect. She states that she is not familiar with the order. Kunselman ventures that the direction to the city administrator undercuts the city attorney’s authority.

10:30 p.m. Kunselman reiterates that he won’t support this resolution.

10:32 p.m. Warpehoski asks what the goal is of having a company provide customer satisfaction data. Briere indicates that it’s kind of a proxy for safety data.

10:35 p.m. Warpehoski says his concern with this provision is twofold. Are we holding TNCs to an appropriate standard for public safety? Does that compromise proprietary information? he wonders. He asks that Powers interpret this flexibly so that private information is not compromised.

10:36 p.m. Petersen says that this is data that TNCs already collect. There should be a plan to use it, if the city is going to ask for it, she says. The operating agreement should include a plan to use the data once the city has it.

10:40 p.m. Petersen ventures that once an operating agreement is in place, the cease-and-desist orders would be rescinded. Hieftje appreciates the work that Briere, Taylor and Petersen have put into it and indicates he’ll support it. Warpehoski said that if the city hears complaints about racial profiling or access of helper dogs, that should be referred to relevant boards and commissions. He also says that a blanket ban on drivers with felony convictions is an overly broad requirement to place on TNCs. Someone who is convicted of embezzlement should not be precluded as a driver. So he wants to amend the principles to indicate that only relevant felony convictions would be considered.

10:40 p.m. Lumm wants to know what other cities are doing. Briere says it varies from community to community.

10:45 p.m. Lumm says she doesn’t have enough information to evaluate Warpehoski’s amendment. She wants the city attorney’s office to address these questions. Taylor says this issue can be evaluated when the council is presented with an actual operating agreement. Teall wants to know the difference between UberX and UberBlack. Kunselman is explaining the difference. UberX is the service where drivers use their personal vehicles, he says. Uber’s Michael White has again been invited to the podium. Limo companies offer rides through UberBlack to help fill their downtime, he explains. He is now explaining how UberX works.

10:46 p.m. White says that the insurance provided by Uber for UberX is for primary, commercial insurance.

10:49 p.m. Kunselman questions whether the cease-and-desist order can be rescinded unless the operating agreement results in compliance by UberX with the state limo act. He is worried about councilmembers’ liability for direction to rescind the cease-and-desist order. He says that he’ll vote against it.

10:50 p.m. The rest of the world is moving forward with regulation, Kunselman says. Those councilmembers who are going to “dance around the law, have at it, please!”

10:52 p.m. Lumm wants to know if there will be some kind of limit on the life of the operating agreement. Briere ventures that it will be limited in time.

10:54 p.m. Lumm asks for thoughts on the term of the agreement. Taylor says that he thinks something like two years, with a provision that material changes in state law could result in earlier termination.

10:55 p.m. Lumm asks for an amendment clarifying that inspection would be done by a state licensed mechanic.

10:57 p.m. Eaton is taking Kunselman’s question to heart about the potential conflict between the city attorney’s cease-and-desist order and this resolution. Eaton says that he thinks the city attorney should review this question. Assistant city attorney Abigail Elias notes that all contracts entered into by the city are reviewed by the city attorney’s office.

10:59 p.m. Elias explains to Kunselman her view that a request for a public opinion must be made by the council. Petersen wants to know what will happen to the cease-and-desist order. Hieftje indicates that will be decided in the future. Lumm quips that the cease-and-desist order is not causing Uber and Lyft to cease and desist.

11:01 p.m. Lumm is reading aloud her prepared statement in support of this direction to the city administrator to negotiate an operating agreement. She calls the principles robust and says they provide a good framework.

11:03 p.m. Warpehoski says that he’s forwarded the text of the city’s taxicab ordinance so that Lumm can compare the current resolution on felony convictions to requirements on taxicab drivers.

11:04 p.m. Outcome: The council has voted 8-3 to direct the city administrator to negotiate operating agreements with transportation network companies like Uber and Lyft, over dissent from Kailasapathy, Kunselman and Anglin

11:04 p.m. DC-3 Accept and allocate Michigan Supreme Court State Court Administrative Office Michigan Veterans Treatment Court Program Grant ($173,911). The grant would fund the veterans treatment court.

11:04 p.m. Outcome: The council has voted to accept the Supreme Court grant.

11:04 p.m. DC-4 Community Events Funding Disbursements. The bulk of the community events disbursements were made at the council’s previous meeting. This one is an add-on for Community Works Plus ($1,000) to cover city costs for the African-American Festival Event scheduled on June 6, 2015.

11:04 p.m. Outcome: The council has voted to approve the community events fund disbursements.

11:04 p.m. DC-5 Resolution in Support of World Peace day on Sept. 21, 2014.

11:05 p.m. Anglin says that the only objection he’s heard so far is about insurance, but he ventures that no one would object to the overall intent of the resolution.

11:07 p.m. Warpehoski says this is an important commemoration worldwide. There will also be an event on the Diag, he says, and a demonstration on climate action. He says that he doesn’t see the resolution as a promise that the insurance question will be solved. He’s concerned about the appearance of a precedent.

11:08 p.m. Petersen asks city administrator Steve Powers about how a July 2012 event was handled. Powers doesn’t recall. For two more recent events, the city has required insurance: Dancing in the Streets, and the Barracuda street closure. That’s an existing city requirement, he says.

11:09 p.m. Hieftje appreciates Warpehoski raising the question.

11:09 p.m. Kunselman asks if Pizza in the Park carries insurance. Powers indicates that he’d have to check into that. Hieftje ventures that this issue will be figured out.

11:10 p.m. Outcome: The council has voted unanimously to approve the resolution calling for celebration of World Peace Day on Sept. 21, 2014.

11:10 p.m. DB-1 AAHC North Maple Estates. This vote is on the North Maple Estates site plan, which requires just one council vote. The rezoning required for the AAHC project – a 4.8-acre site at 701 N. Maple Road – has already been given final approval by the city council, at its Aug. 18, 2014 meeting. The zoning was changed from R1C (single-family dwelling district) to R4B (multi-family dwelling district). The site plan calls for demolishing 20 existing single-family homes – the public housing complex known as North Maple Estates – and constructing an eight-building, 42-unit apartment complex with a total of 138 bedrooms. [For additional background, see North Maple Estates above.]

11:10 p.m. Outcome: The council has voted to approve the site plan for North Maple Estates.

11:10 p.m. DB-2 Gift of Life site plan. This is the site plan that required the council to approve rezoning, which was completed earlier in the meeting. [For additional background, see Gift of Life Expansion above.]

11:10 p.m. Outcome: The council has voted to approve the Gift of Life site plan.

11:10 p.m. DB-3 AAHC Funding Request ($729,879) from the affordable housing trust fund. This resolution would transfer $729,879 from the affordable housing trust fund to the Ann Arbor Housing Commission. The fund transfer would support the “West Arbor” portion of the AAHC’s renovation plan. That would leave a $850,920 balance in the trust fund. The trust fund’s current balance stems largely from the council’s decision late last year – on Dec. 16, 2013 – to deposit into the trust fund the net proceeds of the sale of the former Y lot. [For additional background, see Affordable Housing Fund Transfer above.]

11:11 p.m. Outcome: The council has voted to approve the transfer from the affordable housing trust fund to the AAHC.

11:11 p.m. DS-1 Approve purchase order for Ultimate Software Group ($250,000).  This is the city’s payroll software. The amount will cover a transition period as the city moves to NuView, a different software system.

11:11 p.m. Outcome: The council has voted to approve the purchase order with Ultimate Software Group.

11:11 p.m. DS-2 Approve a contract with Northwest Consultants Inc. for the Stadium Boulevard Reconstruction Project ($930,822). This is for the design work for the Stadium Boulevard reconstruction project from Kipke Drive to Hutchins.

11:14 p.m. Teall says this is really exciting. Councilmembers are reviewing the history of this project. Kunselman asks if the city is asking for an easement from the Ann Arbor Golf & Outing Club. Michael Nearing is explaining that there is a robust public participation component of the project. It will be discussed with the public and Ann Arbor Golf & Outing.

11:16 p.m. Nearing tells Lumm the staff will keep the council apprised of the project.

11:16 p.m. Outcome: The council has voted to approve the contract with Northwest Consultants for the Stadium Boulevard design work.

11:16 p.m. Recess. We’re now in recess.

11:28 p.m. We’re back.

11:28 p.m. DS-3 Accept easement for sidewalk at 3947 Research Park Drive from American Honda Motor Co. Inc. This is a standard easement.

11:28 p.m. Outcome: The council has voted to accept the easement.

11:28 p.m. DS-4 Ann Arbor SPARK contract ($75,000). This is the item that the council had tabled back on June 16, 2014 meeting. The first vote will be on the question of taking the item up off the table.

11:29 p.m. Outcome: The council has voted to take the item up off the table.

11:29 p.m. The question of the SPARK contract is now in front of the council.

11:31 p.m. Warpehoski proposes an amendment to include a clause on the scope of the contract to include additional metrics and direction for collaboration with Washtenaw County’s Act 88 committee. [.pdf of Warphehoski's amendment, as forwarded to the city clerk, who then forwarded it to media]

11:33 p.m. Warpehoski is now arguing for the contract.

11:33 p.m. Outcome: The council has approved amendment.

11:36 p.m. Kunselman proposes an amendment to adjust the amount down to $65,000. Teall asks why he’s proposing that number. Kunselman recalls the amount was $50,000 back in 2007. And other general fund needs have arisen, he says – like the need for a warming shelter. But he says that he’ll support the contract, even if the amendment doesn’t succeed.

11:37 p.m. Hieftje says that he wants to see the $10,000 stay in SPARK’s contract because that will make the “pie” bigger. Kunselman cites the Headlee Amendment as a reason that increased property values will not create the money that will be needed.

11:38 p.m. Kailasapathy recalls her question from earlier in the year about the contributions from other municipalities – less than Ann Arbor – so she’d be happy to see it reduced to $50,000.

11:40 p.m. Paul Krutko, CEO of Ann Arbor SPARK, indicates that this information is now available as a FAQ. The next-closest municipality in terms of contribution to SPARK is Pittsfield Township.

11:41 p.m. Kunselman ventures that when the county levies Act 88 money, it’s collecting Ann Arbor taxes, too. Krutko confirms that.

11:43 p.m. Eaton indicates that the county’s Act 88 collection provides $200,000 to SPARK. He asks how much of that is due to Ann Arbor taxpayers. Krutko said he’d have to get back to him about that.

11:43 p.m. Outcome on Kunselman’s amendment: The council has rejected the amendment reducing the amount to $65,000. It received support only from Kailasapathy, Kunselman, Eaton, and Anglin.

11:44 p.m. Lumm says the city of Ann Arbor is getting good return on its investment from the $75,000.

11:46 p.m. Outcome: The council has approved the $75,000 SPARK contract over dissent from Kailasapathy, Eaton, and Anglin

11:46 p.m. Communications from council. Presentation to The Ann Arbor Chronicle.

11:47 p.m. Public comment. There’s no requirement to sign up in advance for this slot for public commentary.

11:49 p.m. Kai Petainen is now addressing the council on SPARK. He says it was sneaky to add the item to the agenda late. He ventures that the state is playing favorites with Ann Arbor’s LDFA. He criticizes the fact that the assistant city attorney Abigail Elias had said she was not familiar with the cease-and-desist order.

11:52 p.m. Ed Vielmetti is addressing the council on several issues, including the topic of copyright notices that the city puts on maps. He says that Legistar makes it difficult to search for things. He says that given the fragile state of the press in this town, it would behoove the council to move toward closed captioning for meetings. The new website for the city is beautiful, he tells the council, but he notes that many of the links are now broken.

11:53 p.m. LuAnne Bullington expresses skepticism that the city administrator will be able to negotiate an operating agreement with Uber and Lyft in the short timeframe specified in the resolution.

11:57 p.m. Changming Fan says that thanks is not enough and action means the most. He is president of TiniLite, which he says is a small company based in Ann Arbor. He says that DDA board member John Splitt had spent two hours meeting with him, so Fan appreciated his support. “He is a good man,” even though he is older and is bald, he quips.

11:59 p.m. Alan Haber says he came back to give his appreciation. He hopes a creative approach can be found to deal with the insurance question for the World Peace Day event. He’s talking about a culture of peace and non-violence for the children of the world.

12:04 a.m. Michael Benson is addressing the councilmembers, thanking them for passing the taxicab ordinance on rates. He questions whether complaints about TNCs should be forwarded to the taxicab board – not the human rights commission or the commission on disability issues. He says he doesn’t appreciate the fact that the council killed the other ordinance proposal at first reading. The taxicab board had held off holding a public hearing, because it was felt that the council would be a better venue for that – which would have taken place at the second reading of the council.

12:04 a.m. Adjournment. We are now adjourned. That is all from the hard benches.

This is the corner spot on the hard benches in the city council chambers where The Chronicle typically sat. It’s somebody else’s seat now!

Screenshot of Legistar – the city of Ann Arbor’s online agenda management system. Image links to the Sept. 2, 2014 meeting agenda.

The Sept. 2 agenda is relatively light and is dominated by land use and development issues, many of them related to the Ann Arbor housing commission’s (AAHC) extensive plan to renovate many of its existing properties.

In other significant business, the council will be considering a direction to the city administrator to negotiate operating agreements with transportation networking companies like Uber and Lyft.

And the council will consider authorizing up to a 15-year extension of the local development finance authority (LDFA), based on a collaboration with a satellite arrangement in Adrian and Tecumseh.

Separate from site plan and zoning issues associated with the AAHC’s renovations, the council will also be considering transferring $729,879 from the affordable housing trust fund to the Ann Arbor housing commission. The fund transfer would support the “West Arbor” portion of the renovation plan. That would leave a $850,920 balance in the trust fund. The trust fund’s current balance stems largely from the council’s decision late last year – on Dec. 16, 2013 – to deposit into the trust fund the net proceeds of the sale of the former Y lot.

Two projects associated with the West Arbor part of the AAHC plan appear on the council’s Sept. 2 agenda. First, the council will consider initial approval of rezoning for the 3451 Platt Road property – from R1C (single-family dwelling district) and R2A (two-family dwelling district) to R4B (multi-family dwelling district). That was forwarded to the council with a recommendation of approval from the planning commission. However, commissioners postponed consideration of the site plan for the five-building, 32-unit project, amid concerns about the site’s location in the floodplain and stormwater management. The site plan may be able to “catch up” to the zoning approval – because the council will need to give the rezoning a second and final approval at a meeting following the Sept. 2 session.

Second, the North Maple Estates site plan, which requires just one council vote, will be considered on Sept. 2. The rezoning required for the AAHC project – a 4.8-acre site at 701 N. Maple Road – has already been given final approval by the city council, at its Aug. 18, 2014 meeting. The zoning was changed from R1C (single-family dwelling district) to R4B (multi-family dwelling district). The site plan, which was shifted to the Sept. 2 agenda, calls for demolishing 20 existing single-family homes – the public housing complex known as North Maple Estates – and constructing an eight-building, 42-unit apartment complex with a total of 138 bedrooms.

A non-AAHC land development item on the council’s Sept. 2 agenda is final approval of the rezoning of property necessary for an expansion of the Gift of Life Michigan facility on Research Park Drive. The rezoning would change 6.55 acres from O (office district) and RE (research district) to ORL (office/research/limited industrial district). The site plan, which also appears on the Sept. 2 agenda, calls for building a three-story, 40,786-square-foot addition to connect two existing buildings at 3161 and 3169 Research Park Drive, which are owned and occupied by the nonprofit.

Even though the council rejected one proposed change to its taxicab ordinance at its Aug. 18 meeting – which would have regulated all drivers for hire in the city – initial approval was given to another change in the part of the ordinance that regulates rates. So the council will be giving final consideration to that change on Sept 2. The change would establish certain parameters to mitigate possible negative consequences to the setting of a very high maximum allowable taxicab rate, under which taxicab companies might eventually compete. Those parameters include a requirement that a taxicab company commit to a single rate annually and that the rate be advertised in a vehicle with signage in letters one-inch tall.

As an alternative to requiring all drivers for hire to be registered with the city and to affix commercial plates to their vehicles, the council will be considering whether to establish operating agreements with companies like Uber and Lyft. The council’s Sept. 2 agenda includes a resolution that would direct the city administrator to negotiate operating agreements with transportation network companies (TNCs) in lieu of developing a local law. The resolution does not define in specific terms what a TNC is.

In other business on Sept. 2, the council will be considering a large contract with Ultimate Software Group, worth $250,000 for payroll software to cover the period as the city transitions to NuView, a different software system. Another large contract to be considered by the council on Sept. 2 is with Northwest Consultants Inc. for $930,822  – to do the design work for the Stadium Boulevard reconstruction project from Kipke Drive to Hutchins.

A smaller contract to be considered by the council, as part of the consent agenda, is with Hinshon Environmental Consulting Inc. for additional facilitation services for the technical oversight and advisory group (TOAG). That group is overseeing and coordinating multiple wet weather-related projects in the city. The $10,000 contract amendment would bring the total contract value to $35,000.

The council will also consider the confirmation of several nominations to boards and commissions, including a reappointment of John Splitt to the board of the Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority. It would be Splitt’s third four-year term on the board.

This article includes a more detailed preview of many of these agenda items. More details on other agenda items are available on the city’s online Legistar system. The meeting proceedings can be followed Monday evening live on Channel 16, streamed online by Community Television Network starting at 7 p.m.

Affordable Housing Fund Transfer

The council will be considering a $729,879 transfer from the affordable housing trust fund to the Ann Arbor housing commission to support the “West Arbor” portion of the AAHC’s renovation plan. That would leave a $850,920 balance in the trust fund. The trust fund’s current balance stems largely from the council’s decision late last year – on Dec. 16, 2013 – to deposit the net proceeds of the sale of the former Y lot into the trust fund.

By way of background, in 2012 the city was accepted into a new rental assistance demonstration program, known as RAD, offered by the U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The program allows residents in selected housing units to receive rental assistance through long-term Section 8 subsidy vouchers that are tied to the buildings, rather than individuals. The RAD program also enables entities like the AAHC to partner with private-sector developers on housing projects – something the AAHC couldn’t previously do. The Ann Arbor city council gave necessary approvals in connection with the RAD program at its June 3, 2013 meeting. Financing for the RAD program is primarily through low-income housing tax credits (LIHTC).

According to the memo accompanying this item, out of the $16,564,370 project budget for West Arbor, low-income housing tax credits and permanent debt are expected to cover $14,091,491. That leaves a gap of $1,472,879. The AAHC has secured $50,000 from Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA) and $293,000 from a Community Challenge Planning Grant. So the AAHC has requested up to $729,879 in capital funding support from the Ann Arbor housing trust fund for the West Arbor portion of the RAD conversion.

A project included in West Arbor is the Lower Platt Road project, which will entail demolishing four 5-bedroom units – because of their current placement in the floodplain – and constructing 32 townhomes and a community center. A second project included in West Arbor is North Maple Estates, which currently offers 19 units. All those units would be demolished and replaced with 42 townhomes.

The final component of West Arbor is the renovation of the four 3-bedroom units known as the North Maple Duplexes.

AAHC: 3451 Platt Road Rezoning

The council will give initial consideration to the rezoning that’s necessary for the Lower Platt portion of West Arbor: from R1C (single-family dwelling district) and R2A (two-family dwelling district) to R4B (multi-family dwelling district).

The planning commission sent the rezoning request for the 3451 Platt Road property to the city council with a recommendation of approval – in a vote taken at its Aug. 6, 2014 meeting. However, commissioners postponed consideration of the site plan for the five-building, 32-unit project, amid concerns about the site’s location in the floodplain and stormwater management. The postponement is supposed to allow time to address staff concerns regarding the impact on natural features.

Zoning and site plan approval must ultimately be given by the city council. However, the zoning approval will require two votes by the council at two separate meetings – because changes to the zoning code are actually changes to a city ordinance. So the site plan’s delay would not necessarily delay the project, as long as the site plan is put in front of the council for consideration by the time the council takes a second vote on the rezoning.

The site includes a property currently owned by AAHC, as well as an adjacent parcel that’s being purchased by the city on behalf of AAHC.

The project calls for demolishing four single-family homes and one two-family building, and constructing a 32-unit apartment complex with five buildings, 61 parking spaces, a playground, and a community building. The new apartments will include: 8 one-bedroom units; 12 two-bedroom units; 6 three-bedroom units; 2 four-bedroom units; and 4 five-bedroom units.

Two of the proposed buildings would be in the floodplain, which raised concerns from city staff. The AAHC is working to address those concerns – possibly by eliminating or reducing the number of buildings in the floodplain. It had been expected that the AAHC could address the issues raised by city staff so that the site plan could return to the planning commission at its Aug. 19 meeting – but that didn’t happen. [.pdf of planning staff report] [.pdf of June 28, 2014 citizen participation meeting report]

This project is part of major renovations and improvements the commission is making to its low-income housing inventory. For background on the AAHC process of renovating its properties, see Chronicle coverage: “Public Housing Conversion Takes Next Step.”

The AAHC Platt Road project is different from a Washtenaw County-owned property at 2260 and 2270 Platt Road, the former location of the county’s juvenile center. That site is also being considered for affordable housing.

North Maple Estates

The council will consider the site plan for North Maple Estates – an Ann Arbor housing commission project that calls for demolishing 20 existing single-family homes – the public housing complex known as North Maple Estates – and constructing an eight-building, 42-unit apartment complex with a total of 138 bedrooms.

Aerial view of North Maple Estates site, outlined in green.

The rezoning of the 4.8-acre site at 701 N. Maple Road already has been given final approval by the city council at its Aug. 18, 2014 meeting. The zoning was changed from R1C (single-family dwelling district) to R4B (multi-family dwelling district).

The Ann Arbor planning commission had recommended the zoning and site plan for approval at its meeting on June 17, 2014. The council gave initial approval of the rezoning at its July 7, 2014 meeting.

The project is another part of the major renovation effort being undertaken by AAHC on several of its properties. The site is on the west side of North Maple, between Dexter Avenue and Hollywood Drive. [.pdf of staff report]

The units in the eight-building, 42-unit apartment complex are proposed to have a total of 138 bedrooms. The units range in size from one bedroom to five bedrooms.

The project will include a playground, community building and 73 parking spaces. According to a staff memo, the buildings will be located along a T-shaped driveway that connects to North Maple Road and Dexter Avenue. The drive extends northward toward Vine Court but does not connect with that street. There would be a new connection to Dexter Avenue through the remaining, undeveloped length of Seybold Drive.

Gift of Life Expansion

At its Sept. 2 meeting, the council will consider giving final approval to the rezoning of property necessary for an expansion of the Gift of Life Michigan facility on Research Park Drive. The rezoning would change 6.55 acres from O (office district) and RE (research district) to ORL (office/research/limited industrial district). At the same meeting, the council will also consider the site plan for the project.

Aerial view of Gift of Life Michigan site.

The proposal calls for building a three-story, 40,786-square-foot addition to connect two existing buildings at 3161 and 3169 Research Park Drive, which are owned and occupied by the nonprofit. According to a staff report, the additional space will accommodate offices, a special events auditorium and “organ procurement suites.” The nonprofit’s website states that the Gift of Life is Michigan’s only federally designated organ and tissue recovery program. Cost of the expansion project will be $10.5 million.

The city planning commission recommended approval of the rezoning at its July 1, 2014 meeting. City council action to give initial approval of the site plan came at its meeting on Aug. 7.

The project would reduce the four existing curb cuts to Research Park Drive to three, connecting one of the loop driveways to an existing driveway at the east end of the site. A parking lot at the back of the site will be expanded by 38 parking spaces. Two alternate vehicle fueling stations are proposed in parking spaces near the main entry, with the driveway at the center of the site providing access for ambulances. A new shipping and receiving facility will be located on the northeast corner of the site.

Taxicab Meter Rates

Even though the council rejected one proposed change to its taxicab ordinance at its Aug. 18, 2014 meeting – which would have regulated all drivers for hire in the city – initial approval was given to another change in the part of the ordinance that regulates rates. So the council will be giving final consideration to that change on Sept 2.

The change would establish certain parameters to mitigate possible negative consequences to the setting of a very high maximum allowable taxicab rate, under which taxicab companies might eventually compete. Those parameters include a requirement that a taxicab company commit to a single rate annually and that the rate be advertised in a vehicle with signage in letters one-inch tall.

The vote by the taxicab board to recommend the ordinance change came at its July 24, 2014 meeting.

These issues were also discussed at three monthly meetings of the taxicab board prior to that, on April 23, 2014, May 22, 2014 and June 26, 2014. Representatives of the taxicab industry at those meetings advocated for the establishment of a very high maximum – not tied to gas and insurance prices. They feel it’s one mechanism that would allow them to compete with ride-sharing services like Uber and Lyft.

The proposal to regulate all drivers for hire, which the council rejected, was also intended in part to allow taxicab companies to compete with Uber and Lyft on an even playing field. Taxicab drivers are already regulated by the city.

Regarding fare regulation, the city’s current structure already allows for the establishing of a maximum rate to be adopted by the city council. Currently the maximum rate in Ann Arbor is $3 to get in, $2.50 per mile, and 40 cents per minute waiting time. Those maximum rates were last adjusted upwards three years ago, on May 16, 2011, in response to gas prices that had nudged past $4 per gallon. At that time, the taxicab board indicated it did not anticipate considering another rate change until the gas prices were over $5 for at least two consecutive months.

So the taxicab board’s thinking is not being driven by gas prices, which are currently between $3.75 and $4 in the Ann Arbor area. Instead, a possible increase in allowable fares is based on concern that the taxicab industry in Ann Arbor might not be able to survive unless taxis are allowed to charge more.

At its Aug. 28, 2014 meeting, taxicab board members recommended the following maximum rate schedule for eventual consideration by the council, which could appear on the council’s agenda as soon as Sept. 15: $10 to get in, $5 per mile and 40 cents per minute waiting time. In addition, a $1 surcharge could be applied for each passenger over three passengers.

At the council’s Aug. 18 meeting, Stephen Kunselman (Ward 3) – who also serves as the city council’s representative to the taxicab board – asked rhetorically if the taxicab board should be disbanded. At its Aug. 28 meeting, taxicab board chair Michael Benson announced that he’d received an email from board member Eric Sturgis, who indicated that he would be resigning from the board – because he’s moving to Jackson, Mich. It has historically been difficult to find residents willing to serve on the taxicab board.

Drivers for Hire: Uber/Lyft Operating Agreement

The ordinance change rejected by the council on Aug. 18, 2014 would have required all drivers for hire to be registered with the city, to have commercial plates on their vehicles, and to maintain insurance commensurate with commercial plates. And the absence of commercial plates on a vehicle that is observed being used for picking up or dropping off passengers would have provided a reason for a traffic stop by Ann Arbor police. At the taxicab board meetings over the last few months, representatives of the taxicab industry argued that the state statute regulating limousines already gives the city the ability to enforce against Uber and Lyft drivers.

At the taxicab board’s Aug. 28 meeting, representatives of the taxicab industry lamented the fact that they had not attended the council’s Aug. 18 meeting to advocate for regulating all drivers for hire through a city ordinance. Representatives of Uber and Lyft numbered over 50 people at the council meeting, some of whom addressed the council during public commentary time.

Ward 3 city councilmember and taxicab board member Stephen Kunselman indicated at the board’s Aug. 28 meeting that there might be a possibility that one of the five councilmembers who voted against the ordinance at first reading on Aug. 18 might bring it back for reconsideration.

The 5-5 vote totaling 10 on the 11-member body stemmed from the absence of Margie Teall (Ward 4). Voting for the regulation of all drivers for hire were Sumi Kailasapathy (Ward 1), Stephen Kunselman (Ward 3), Jack Eaton (Ward 4), Chuck Warpehoski (Ward 5) and Mike Anglin (Ward 5). Voting against the change were mayor John Hieftje, Sabra Briere (Ward 1), Jane Lumm (Ward 2), Sally Petersen (Ward 2) and Christopher Taylor (Ward 3).

At the council’s Aug. 18 meeting, during deliberations on the rejected ordinance change, Sabra Briere (Ward 1) indicated that she’d concluded as early as April of this year that an operating agreement – instead of a local ordinance – would be the right approach. Christopher Taylor (Ward 3) indicated he had been working with Briere to come up with that kind of approach.

The resolution to be considered by the council on Sept. 2 would direct the city administrator to negotiate an operating agreement with established transportation network companies (TNCs) and to bring an agreement to the council for approval by the second council meeting in October, which is Oct. 20.

The elements to be included in the operating agreement are specified in an attachment to the resolution as follows:

Operating agreement principles include:

• Company will provide a minimum of $1M in liability insurance coverage for the driver, vehicle and passengers and any other injured parties, from the moment a driver is linked with a passenger to the moment the passenger releases the vehicle.
• Company will conduct the following at no cost to the city: background checks for each driver-applicant prior to allowing their participation. This background check will include a criminal background check, including a check for multiple relevant jurisdictions; a review of the applicant’s driving record; a mechanical inspection of the vehicle by a licensed inspector. The results of this data collection will be made available to the City for any driver / vehicle combination approved for participation in the company.
• Company will not allow participation by a driver / vehicle combination if the driver has any felony conviction; any conviction for DUI; more than 2 moving violations in any calendar year or more than 4 moving violations in a six-year period, with no more than 4 accumulated points in any calendar year.
• Company shall ensure that all driver vehicles pass an annual, mutually agreeable safety inspection conducted by a licensed mechanic.
• Prior to participation in the program, drivers shall go through a driver-education program that provides training in customer service and improves familiarity with local streets and local traffic conditions.
• Drivers shall not accept passengers except through the ride-sharing mechanism provided by the Company.
• Company will provide requested data to the City about accidents and incidents with passengers, as well as a report on customer satisfaction and safety ratings.

The resolution does not appear to define explicitly what a TNC is – and seems to allow for the possibility that an existing limo company could seek to operate under such an agreement without complying with the state statute on operation of limousines.

The resolution also leaves unspecified the intended term of the agreement – although deliberations at the council’s Aug. 18 meeting indicated that the intent of such operating agreements in other Michigan municipalities was to implement a temporary basis under which Uber and Lyft could operate, while the state legislature establishes a legislative framework under which such companies could operate.

The resolution does not direct the city administrator to provide for any explicit penalties that the city could impose on a TNC for failure to adhere to the operating agreement. The enforcement mechanism that the resolution seems to contemplate is for a TNC to provide certain kinds of data to the city upon request.

The resolution does not direct the city administrator to impose any requirements on the public accessibility of data provided by TNCs to the city. If a company were to come to an agreement with the city that data and information would be provided to the city, but only upon the condition that it not be disclosed to the public, then that data would be exempt from disclosure, even under a request made under Michigan’s Freedom of Information Act.

Extension of LDFA

The council will consider a resolution on Sept. 2 that would move ahead with a 15-year extension of the local development finance authority (LDFA). The LDFA  – branded as one of about a dozen LDFA SmartZones statewide –  is funded through capture of public school operating millages within the geographic areas of the Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti downtown development authority districts. In actual fact, however, no capture is made of the Ypsilanti school taxes.

The LDFA contracts with Ann Arbor SPARK to operate a business accelerator, which is meant to move start-up companies in the tech and biosciences sectors more quickly to a stage in their development when they are generating revenue from paying customers and adding jobs. Separate from the LDFA business acceleration contract with Ann Arbor SPARK, the city of Ann Arbor has historically engaged SPARK for business attraction and retention services. However, this year the $75,000 annual contract with SPARK was tabled by the council – in a vote taken at the council’s June 16, 2014 meeting. It’s expected at some point to be taken back up off the table for consideration. By council rule, it will be considered demised if it’s not considered before a lapse of six months.

The extension – which would still need approval from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation – depends on establishing a relationship between the Ann Arbor-Ypsilanti SmartZone and some other “satellite” LDFA. So the Sept. 2 resolution designates Adrian/Tecumseh as that satellite. The council’s resolution specifies the following as findings:

1. That the selection of the Adrian/Tecumseh LDFA as a satellite provides unique characteristics and specialties through its public and private resources including the location of Adrian College, Siena Heights University and Jackson College within its TIF District and the opportunities for research partnerships and student/young entrepreneur involvement. In addition partnership with another multi-jurisdictional LDFA provides opportunities for shared experiences.
2. That the selection of the Adrian/Tecumseh LDFA as a satellite provides regional cooperation and collaboration benefits to the LDFA and the Cities of Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti with joint focuses on technology (including expanding green technologies and agricultural technology) and entrepreneurial services.
3. That the selection of the Adrian/Tecumseh LDFA as a satellite provides value and support to the LDFA by strengthening existing collaboratives, making available a new/expanded technical assistance and support through its Innovation Center at Adrian College, and agricultural and manufacturing resources.

In connection with the extension, revisions to the Ann Arbor-Ypsilanti SmartZone TIF (tax increment financing) plan and development plan are being undertaken. Drafts of revisions are attached to the council’s Sept. 2 agenda item. Revisions appear to address concerns that have been raised about the current arrangement – to some extent by Ann Arbor city councilmembers.

Those concerns include the fact that TIF is not currently allowed to be spent outside the TIF district in the city of Ann Arbor; further, no TIF funds can be expended in Ypsilanti – inside or outside its TIF district – because no actual tax capture revenue is generated for the LDFA in that area. The revisions would allow TIF revenue to be expended anywhere in the entire cities of Ann Arbor or Ypsilanti.

In addition, the revisions specify in greater detail that TIF revenue can be used to pay for high-speed communications infrastructure. Specifically mentioned as eligible expenditures is the “installation of technology related infrastructure assets, i.e. fiber lines, nodes, or work spaces.”

The LDFA extension comes in the context of lingering questions about the impact on school funding of the LDFA tax capture. In FY 2013, the total amount captured by the Ann Arbor SmartZone LDFA was $1,546,577, and the current fiscal year forecast is for $2,017,835. About the same amount is forecast for FY 2015.

The LDFA captures Ann Arbor Public Schools (AAPS) operating millage, but those captured taxes don’t directly diminish the local school’s budget. That’s because in Michigan, local schools levy a millage, but the proceeds are not used directly by local districts. Rather, proceeds are first forwarded to the state of Michigan’s School Aid Fund, for redistribution among school districts statewide. That redistribution is based on a per-pupil formula as determined on a specified “count day.” And the state is supposed to “reimburse” the School Aid Fund for the taxes captured by some SmartZones in the state.

Questions raised in the last few months have centered around whether the School Aid Fund is “reimbursed” by the state’s general fund for the taxes that are captured to fund the Ann Arbor SmartZone LDFA – because the wording of the state statute is based on the term “reimburse.”

It turns out that the school taxes captured by the Ann Arbor SmartZone are not required to be “reimbursed” to the state School Aid Fund – which diminishes the amount of funding for public schools statewide. That’s a conclusion based on a reading of the LDFA statute and confirmed to The Chronicle by communications staff in the Dept. of Treasury and the MEDC. However, it’s not clear that “reimbursement” is even a useful way of framing the question – notwithstanding the wording of the state statute. That’s partly because tax capture from those LDFAs to which the state statute does apply are not “reimbursed” in the sense that the word implies – with a specific calculation done and a transfer of money (or an adjustment to the legislature’s appropriation) made based on that calculation. From an Aug. 7, 2014 staff memo: “… the reimbursement language really only served as language of intent.”

Based on subsequent inquires made by city of Ann Arbor financial staff with state officials, it appears that the setting of the statewide per-pupil allowance each year proceeds along a separate track from replenishing the School Aid Fund – which receives significant revenue from sources other than local school operating millages. It appears it’s not possible to establish a 1-to-1 relationship between local school operating taxes that are captured by LDFAs and money that flows into the School Aid Fund from various other sources that might be analyzed as “compensating” for the capture.

In any case, city staff have concluded that LDFA tax capture has not had a negative impact on Ann Arbor’s local school funding.

Appointments to Boards and Commissions

Appointments to the city of Ann Arbor’s boards and commissions are typically handled in a two-step process: (1) the mayor announces the nominations at a council meeting; (2) the council votes on the confirmation at the next meeting of the council. The procedure is grounded in the city charter.

At the council’s Aug. 21 meeting, Anna Ercoli-Schnitzer was nominated to fill a vacancy on the commission on disability issues. Tamara Burns and Dick Mitchell were nominated to be reappointed to the design review board. Sofia Franciscus was nominated to fill the vacancy on the planning commission due to Paras Parekh’s resignation. And John Splitt was nominated for reappointment to the Downtown Development Authority board.

Land use and development is set up to be a dominant theme of tonight’s meeting, as it frequently is for many of the council’s meetings. An additional highlight will be initial consideration of a change to the city’s taxicab ordinance – in response to the entry of services like Uber and Lyft into the Ann Arbor market.

A report from the city administrator on options for deer management has led to a resolution on the Aug. 18 agenda appropriating $20,000 for the development of a deer management program.

The sign on the door to the Ann Arbor city council chamber includes Braille.

Among the land use items on the Aug. 18 agenda is one related to use of city-owned land – three parking lots at Fuller Park: (1) the parking lot south of Fuller Road, next to the railroad tracks; (2) the paved parking lot north of Fuller Road at Fuller Park; and (3) the unpaved parking lot north of Fuller Road at Fuller Park. The lots are used by the University of Michigan during restricted hours.

The council will be considering a two-year lease with one additional two-year option for renewal. Annual revenue from this lease will be $78,665, and will be included as part of the parks and recreation general fund budget. The item was forwarded to the city council from the park advisory commission with a recommendation of approval.

Private land development items on the Aug. 18 agenda include final approval of the rezoning of land for the State Street Village project at 2221-2223 S. State St. The 4.5-acre parcel is proposed to be rezoned from M1 (limited industrial district) to O (office district). Also on the council’s agenda is the site plan for the project that will be made possible by approval of the rezoning – a $10 million development by Ann Arbor-based McKinley Inc. The plan calls for constructing two 4-story apartment buildings at the rear of the site, totaling 112,262 square feet, with 38 units each. Another 2,027-square-foot building – for a leasing office with two apartments above it – would be built on the front of the parcel, on South State.

Also on the agenda for final approval is the rezoning required for an Ann Arbor Housing Commission project – a 4.8-acre site at 701 N. Maple Road. The zoning would change from R1C (single-family dwelling district) to R4B (multi-family dwelling district). The site plan, which is also on the council’s Aug. 18 agenda, calls for demolishing 20 existing single-family homes – the public housing complex known as North Maple Estates – and constructing an eight-building, 42-unit apartment complex with a total of 138 bedrooms. A related item on the agenda is the vacation of a portion of the city’s right-of-way for Seybold Drive.

Rezoning for 121 W. Kingsley Street for a private development is getting initial consideration by the council on Aug. 18. The project calls for rezoning the site from a planned unit development (PUD) to D2 (downtown interface). The development would include renovating the existing two-story, 2,539-square-foot building, plus constructing two additional buildings: (1) a 3.5-story addition to the existing building; and (2) a 4.5-story structure at the southeast corner of West Kingsley and North Ashley. In total, the development would include 22 units and 40,689 square feet. The estimated cost is $6.5 million.

Getting initial consideration by the council at its Aug. 18 meeting are changes to the city’s taxicab ordinance that have been recommended by the city’s taxicab board. The recommendations come in the context of the entry of Uber and Lyft into the Ann Arbor market. The companies offer the arrangement of rides through mobile networks with drivers who operate their own vehicles. Both companies have ignored cease-and-desist orders from the city.

Uber has sent its Ann Arbor customers an email asking them to sign an online petition supporting Uber’s continued ability to operate here.

One ordinance change would establish certain parameters to mitigate possible negative consequences to the setting of a very high maximum allowable taxicab rate, under which taxicab companies might eventually compete. Those parameters include a requirement that a taxicab company commit to a single rate annually and that the rate be advertised in a vehicle with signage in letters one-inch tall. The other ordinance would require that all drivers for hire – whether they are taxicab drivers or drivers who work for Uber or Lyft – register with the city, maintain proper insurance for their vehicles and acquire commercial plates.

The Aug. 18 agenda also includes an item to confirm the re-appointment of Bob Guenzel to the board of the Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority.

This article includes a more detailed preview of many of these agenda items. More details on other agenda items are available on the city’s online Legistar system. The meeting proceedings can be followed Monday evening live on Channel 16, streamed online by Community Television Network starting at 7 p.m.

The Chronicle will be filing live updates from city council chambers during the meeting, published in this article below the preview material. Click here to skip the preview section and go directly to the live updates. The meeting is scheduled to start at 7 p.m.

Fuller Park Parking Lease

The council will be considering a possible four-year extension on a University of Michigan lease of three parking lots at Fuller Park. The lease comes to the council with a recommendation of approval from the park advisory commission. The commission gave that recommendation at its July 15, 2014 meeting.

Map of parking lots at Fuller Park that are leased to the University of Michigan.

The existing lease expires on Aug. 31, 2014. The three lots are: (1) the parking lot south of Fuller Road, next to the railroad tracks (Lot A); (2) the paved parking lot north of Fuller Road at Fuller Park (Lot B); and (3) the unpaved parking lot north of Fuller Road at Fuller Park (Lot C). The lots are used by UM during restricted hours.

The city has leased Lot A to UM since 1993. Lots B and C have been leased since 2009.

The proposal, which requires city council approval, is for a two-year lease with one additional two-year option for renewal. Annual revenue of this lease will be $78,665, and will be included as part of the parks and recreation general fund budget. [.pdf of proposed lease agreement] [.pdf of staff report]

The hours that UM can use these lots are stipulated in the agreement:

• Lot A: 4 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.
• Lot B (paved lot): 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, beginning the day after Labor Day through the Friday before Memorial Day, excluding holidays.
• Lot C (unpaved lot): 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, excluding holidays.

At the PAC meeting when the lease was recommended, parks and recreation manager Colin Smith noted that the revenue from these three lots is significant for the parks and recreation operating budget. The current agreement – which was approved by the council in 2009 and extended by two administrative renewals – is essentially the same as the agreement that will expire, Smith told PAC.

The main purpose of the lots is for the parks, Smith explained. That’s reflected in the hours when UM can use the lots – on weekdays, prior to 4-5 p.m. The outdoor pool and soccer fields don’t need the quantity of parking during the winter or off-season. “It’s an asset within the parks department that we can either have sit there, or we can lease it for a significant amount of revenue that obviously helps us provide other programs,” he said. If the city doesn’t lease those parking lots, “I am absolutely certain that people will park in it anyway,” Smith added.

State Street Village

On Aug. 18, the council will consider final approval of the rezoning of land for the State Street Village project at 2221-2223 S. State St. The 4.5-acre parcel is proposed to be rezoned from M1 (limited industrial district) to O (office district). Also on the council’s agenda for approval is the site plan for the project that will be made possible by approval of the rezoning – a $10 million development by Ann Arbor-based McKinley Inc. The plan calls for constructing two 4-story apartment buildings at the rear of the site, totaling 112,262 square feet, with 38 units each. Another 2,027 square foot building – for a leasing office with two apartments above it – would be built on the front of the parcel, on South State.

Aerial view of State Street Village site.

Action on the initial approval came at the city council’s July 21, 2014 meeting. A recommendation for the rezoning was given at the June 17, 2014 meeting of the Ann Arbor planning commission.

At that meeting, commissioners recommended approval of the site plan, development agreement and rezoning for the project.

The front part of the site is currently a surface parking lot, and is zoned O (office). The rear parcel – 4.5 acres – is vacant, and zoned M1 (limited industrial). Residential developments are permitted in office-zoned areas. [.pdf of staff report]

The development will include 114 parking spaces in the rear of the site and 13 spaces for the front. Another 22 spaces in the surface parking lot will be shared by the existing office building just south of the site.

In addition, 44 covered bicycle spaces and 8 enclosed bicycle spaces will be provided near the entrances of the apartment buildings and 2 hoops will be placed near the entrance of the rental office building.

Instead of making a $48,360 requested donation to the city for parks, McKinley has proposed two 8×10-foot grilling patios with picnic tables and grills.

According to the staff memo, the footing drains of 18 homes, or flow equivalent to 71.91 gallons per minute, will need to be disconnected from the city’s sanitary sewer system to mitigate flow from this proposed development.

North Maple Estates

To be considered for final approval by the council at its Aug. 18 meeting is the rezoning required for an Ann Arbor Housing Commission project – a 4.8-acre site at 701 N. Maple Road. The zoning would change from R1C (single-family dwelling district) to R4B (multi-family dwelling district). The site plan, which has been shifted to the Sept. 2 agenda, calls for demolishing 20 existing single-family homes – the public housing complex known as North Maple Estates – and constructing an eight-building, 42-unit apartment complex with a total of 138 bedrooms. A related item on the agenda is the vacation of a portion of the city’s right-of-way for Seybold Drive.

The Ann Arbor planning commission recommended all three items for approval at its June 17, 2014 meeting. The council gave initial approval of the rezoning at its July 7, 2014 meeting.

Aerial view of North Maple Estates site, outlined in green.

The project is part of a major renovation effort by the Ann Arbor Housing Commission of several of its properties. The site is on the west side of North Maple, between Dexter Avenue and Hollywood Drive. [.pdf of staff report]

The units in the eight-building, 42-unit apartment complex are proposed to have a total of 138 bedrooms. The units range in size from one bedroom to five bedrooms.

The project would include a playground, community building and 73 parking spaces. According to a staff memo, the buildings would be located along a T-shaped driveway that connects to North Maple Road and Dexter Avenue. The drive extends northward toward Vine Court but does not connect with that street. There would be a new connection to Dexter Avenue through the remaining, undeveloped length of Seybold Drive.

The project also requires the city to vacate a portion of the right-of-way for Seybold Drive. The surrounding land is owned by the housing commission, so if the right-of-way vacation is approved, the land would become part of the housing commission property. In a separate vote, the planning commission also recommended approving that request.

When the project was in front of the planning commission, planning staff noted three issues that need to be resolved before the project gets approval from city council:

The parcel containing two duplex buildings also owned by the Ann Arbor Housing Commission in the northeast corner of the site must be combined with the subject site, forming a single parcel as a requirement for issuance of any permits.

The legal description and comparison chart data must be confirmed to include the duplex parcel.

The northern-most parking stall, nearest the connection to Vine Court, must be relocated outside of the minimum front setback area.

According to the staff memo, after June 3 the city’s traffic engineer reviewed the proposed new connection from Seybold Drive onto Dexter Avenue, and concluded that sight distances from all approaches are acceptable. He suggested that the pavement markings on Dexter should be refreshed.

The reconstruction of North Maple Estates is part of an ongoing effort by the housing commission to upgrade the city’s housing stock for low-income residents. At the planning commission’s May 6, 2014 meeting, AAHC executive director Jennifer Hall had made a presentation about the initiative, which includes seeking private investors through low-income housing tax credits.

121 Kingsley West

Rezoning for 121 W. Kingsley Street for a proposed new development is getting initial consideration by the council on Aug. 18. The project calls for rezoning the site from a planned unit development (PUD) to D2 (downtown interface). The development would include renovating the existing two-story, 2,539-square-foot building, plus constructing two additional buildings: (1) a 3.5-story addition to the existing building; and (2) a 4.5-story structure at the southeast corner of West Kingsley and North Ashley. In total, the development would include 22 units and 40,689 square feet. The estimated cost is $6.5 million.

The rezoning is on the council’s agenda, but the site plan will not come before the council until the zoning is considered for a second and final vote. The Ann Arbor planning commission’s recommendation of approval for the site plan and the rezoning came at its July 15, 2014 meeting.

Rendering of 121 Kingsley West project, looking south from Kingsley. The existing building is in the left foreground.

Developers are Tom Fitzsimmons, Peter Allen and Mark Berg. The architect is Marc Rueter.

There would be 29 parking spaces below the buildings – though only two spaces are required, based on residential premiums that the project is seeking. The premiums give the project additional floor area, compare to what’s allowed by right. An elevator for each building will be accessible from the parking level. The parking level of the east building will include a bike room with 14 spaces.

According to a staff report, the project’s development agreement will address “easements for encroachments onto the City right of way by the existing building, onsite stormwater management, verification of LEED points, six required footing drain disconnects, future façade alterations, and the contribution to Parks and Recreation Services.” [.pdf of staff report]

Planning commissioners unanimously recommended approval of the rezoning, site plan and development agreement. However, only five commissioners on the nine-member body were present, and the commission’s bylaws stipulate that approval requires six votes. So the project was forwarded to city council for consideration with a recommendation of denial from the commission. Wendy Woods, the commission’s chair, assured the developers that city council would be informed that the project secured unanimous support from all commissioners who were present.

The project is on the same site as a previously proposed project by Peter Allen called Kingsley Lane. That had been envisioned as a larger development with 46 units in a complex with two “towers” – at four and nine stories. According to a 2006 Ann Arbor News article, pre-sales of the units were slower than expected because of the struggling housing market, and ultimately financing fell through. At a July 9, 2013 planning commission work session, planning manager Wendy Rampson reported that the developers had lost the property to the bank, but subsequently secured the land and were expected to submit a new site plan.

Taxicab Ordinances

Getting initial consideration by the council on Aug. 18 are two changes to the city’s taxicab ordinance that have been recommended by the city’s taxicab board. The recommendations come in the context of the entry of Uber and Lyft into the Ann Arbor market. The companies offer the arrangement of rides through mobile networks with drivers who operate their own vehicles. Both companies have continued to operate in Ann Arbor, despite cease-and-desist orders from the city. [.pdf of cease-and-desist sent to Lyft] [.pdf of cease-and-desist sent to Uber]

The vote to recommend the ordinance changes came at the July 24, 2014 meeting of the taxicab board.

These issues were also discussed at three monthly meetings of the taxicab board prior to that, on April 23, 2014, May 22, 2014 and June 26, 2014.

One ordinance change would establish certain parameters to mitigate possible negative consequences to the setting of a very high maximum allowable taxicab rate, under which taxicab companies might eventually compete. Those parameters include a requirement that a taxicab company commit to a single rate annually and that the rate be advertised in a vehicle with signage in letters one-inch tall.

The current structure for fare regulation already allows for the adoption of a maximum rate to be adopted by the city council. Currently the maximum rate in Ann Arbor is $3 to get in, $2.50 per mile, and 40 cents per minute waiting time. Those maximum rates were last adjusted upwards three years ago, on May 16, 2011, in response to gas prices that had nudged past $4 per gallon. At that time, the taxicab board indicated it did not anticipate considering another rate change until the gas prices were over $5 for at least two consecutive months.

So the taxicab board’s thinking is not being driven by gas prices, which are currently between $3.75 and $4 in the Ann Arbor area. Instead, a possible increase in allowable fares is based on concern that the taxicab industry in Ann Arbor might not be able to survive unless taxis are allowed to charge more.

At its July 24 meeting, taxicab board members discussed the possibility of delaying their recommendation on the ordinance changes until the board could also make a specific recommendation on the price point for a very high maximum rate. But ultimately board members felt that a recommendation on a price point for a new maximum rate could come later – especially because ordinance changes require a first and second reading in front of the council. There would be a window of opportunity between those readings to make a recommendation on the higher maximum. The taxicab board’s next meeting is scheduled for Aug. 28 at 8:30 a.m. at city hall.

The other ordinance change to be given initial consideration would require that all drivers for hire – whether they are taxicab drivers or drivers who work for Uber or Lyft – register with the city, maintain proper insurance for their vehicles and acquire commercial plates. Commercial plates would require that the commensurate commercial insurance is carried.

And the absence of commercial plates on a vehicle that is observed to be used for picking up or dropping off passengers would provide a primary reason for a traffic stop by Ann Arbor police. At the taxicab board meetings over the last few months, representatives of the taxicab industry argued that the state statute regulating limousines already gives the city the ability to enforce against Uber and Lyft drivers.

Deer Management

Attached to the Aug. 18 city council agenda is a report from the city administrator outlining issues and options for management of the urban deer herd in Ann Arbor. Based on that report is a resolution, sponsored by Sabra Briere (Ward 1) and Jane Lumm (Ward 2), that would accept the report and appropriate $20,000 from the general fund for development of a “community endorsed deer management plan.” [.pdf of Aug. 14, 2014 deer management options report]

The council had directed the preparation of the report on various options in a resolution approved at its May 5, 2014 meeting. The report was to have been delivered to the council by July 31.

Fall 2015 is the earliest date identified in the report as a possible timeframe for a culling of the herd.

Before developing a specific plan – that could involve killing deer or not – input from Washtenaw County Parks and Recreation and the University of Michigan would be sought. And the Michigan Department of Natural Resources would need to approve any plan for deer management. The Aug. 14 report includes descriptions of deer management plans in other Michigan cities that range from ordinances prohibiting the feeding of deer to culling programs that shut down city parks and prescribe shooting lanes for archers.

City of Ann Arbor staff estimate that six months would be needed for public engagement. That public engagement could start within 45 days of city council approval to proceed.

Estimated staff time to develop the specific plan is 160 hours, according to the Aug. 14 report. Contractual public engagement and support to develop a management plan are estimated at $20,000.

Other facts included in the plan are the fact that neither city parks nor golf courses have had vegetation damage by deer. The cost to the city for disposing of deer carcasses in fiscal year 2014 was $5,850.

Estimated cost to kill 40-50 deer in the city of Ann Arbor is $25,000-$27,000 per year. That amount includes city staff administration cost in the amount of $14,000.

All deer-car accidents in Washtenaw County from 2004 through 2013 are plotted in the dynamic map below. Map is by The Chronicle with data from michigantrafficcrashfacts.org.

3:50 p.m. Agenda questions. Now available are the city staff’s written responses to questions about agenda items submitted by councilmembers. [.pdf of Aug. 18, 2014 agenda responses]

3:59 p.m. Public speaker lineup. Two speakers and one alternate are signed up to talk about the Fuller Park lease agreement: Rita Mitchell, George Gaston and Larry Baird (alternate). Two speakers and one alternate are signed up to talk about the taxicab ordinance changes: Anne Choike, Scott Sanders and Michael White (alternate). Five speakers are signed up to talk about deer management: Maurita Holland, Mary Avrakotos, Trocy Grogan, Judy Cohen and Nicholas Avrakotos. Thomas Partridge is signed up to talk about electing Mark Schauer and affordable housing.

6:33 p.m. Two large groups are congregating – one outside city hall by the Dreiseitl fountain and one inside the lobby. They’re drivers for Uber and Lyft, respectively.

6:36 p.m. Two people are here in chambers so far. Both are here because they’re interested in the new taxicab ordinance revisions. Sally Petersen (Ward 2) has already arrived and is sitting at the council table.

6:44 p.m. Color coding for the TV viewing audience: Pink T-shirts are for Lyft; blue is for Uber. About 40 people total so far. Two AAPD officers are also here. One of them talks with Mozhgan Savabieasfahani and Blaine Coleman about the seating.

6:53 p.m. City attorney Stephen Postema and city administrator Steve Powers are here. Jane Lumm (Ward 2) has arrived.

6:53 p.m. Chief of police John Seto and deputy chief Greg Bazick were in the hallway on the second floor, outside council chambers. Jack Eaton (Ward 4) arrived earlier.

6:57 p.m. One guy in the back row has both pink and blue T-shirts draped over his shoulders. He drives for both Uber and Lyft.

6:59 p.m. Savabieasfahani calls supporters of the “Boycott Israel” contingent to sit on the north side of the chambers. Thomas Partridge responds by saying, “This is a city council meeting, not a rally!”

7:01 p.m. Chants of “Boycott Israel” begin. The council meeting has not yet been convened.

7:01 p.m. And we’re off.

7:01 p.m. Call to order, moment of silence, pledge of allegiance.

7:02 p.m. Roll call of council. Sabra Briere (Ward 1), Margie Teall (Ward 4), and Chuck Warpehoski (Ward 5) are absent at the rollcall.

7:02 p.m. Approval of agenda.

7:03 p.m. Outcome: The council has approved the evening’s agenda without amendment.

7:05 p.m. Communications from the city administrator. City administrator Steve Powers is talking about the closing of the Ann Arbor senior center for safety reasons. It will be open again in early September. Applications for the city fire chief position will be accepted through Sept. 15. The city’s bond rating has been confirmed as AA+.

Powers doesn’t mention the deer management report that has been submitted to the council. It’s attached to the council’s agenda as a communication. [.pdf of Aug. 18, 2014 deer management options report]

7:05 p.m. Public commentary. This portion of the meeting offers 10 three-minute slots that can be reserved in advance. Preference is given to speakers who want to address the council on an agenda item. [Public commentary general time, with no sign-up required in advance, is offered at the end of the meeting.]

Two speakers and one alternate are signed up to talk about the Fuller Park lease agreement: Rita Mitchell, George Gaston and Larry Baird (alternate). Two speakers and one alternate are signed up to talk about the taxicab ordinance changes: Anne Choike, Scott Sanders and Michael White (alternate). Five speakers are signed up to talk about deer management: Maurita Holland, Mary Avrakotos, Trocy Grogan, Judy Cohen and Nicholas Avrakotos. Thomas Partridge is signed up to talk about electing Mark Schauer and affordable housing.

Mayor John Hieftje is reviewing the rules about how many people can speak at a time and where signs can be held.

7:05 p.m. Rita Mitchell tells Hieftje that she is electing not to speak.

7:08 p.m. George Gaston is addressing the council on the topic of the Fuller Park lot leases. In an email sent to council members over the weekend, he explained how he’s calculated revenue to the University of Michigan from the Yellow and Blue permits issued for the lots. Gaston’s calculations put the UM’s revenue at a total of $521,956 annually, compared to the $78,665 amount in the lease. [.pdf of Gaston's Aug. 15 and Aug. 17, 2014 emails]

He tells the council that he’d spoken to the park advisory commission [at its July 15, 2014 meeting]. He asks the council to delay approval of the lease until they’ve reviewed the figures. Lot A was supposed to be a temporary lot, 20 years ago, he says. The lots are Yellow and Blue lots in the UM parking system, he says. Yellow permits are much cheaper, he says. The council should insist on compensation from the UM based at least on the cost of Yellow Blue permits. Gaston is reciting the history of the leasing of the lots, which involved an interest in preserving bur oak trees. [Briere has now arrived at the table. So has Warpehoski.]

7:12 p.m. Anne Choike tells the council she recently moved to Ann Arbor to teach at the law school. She is speaking in her personal interest in support of Uber and Lyft. She’s arguing for the services based on an interest in less reliance on car ownership. She relies on the bus system, Uber and Lyft, and shared rides with friends. She recites reasons why taxicab service is inadequate. She describes how she is able to spend money on local businesses, instead of on car ownership.

7:16 p.m. Scott Sanders says he’s a homeowner, with two kids and the husband of a professor. Two kids means that it’s a challenge to find a way to earn extra money. Driving in a ride-sharing service is a way to do that. He describes this as an opportunity to grow the transportation business. Instead of fighting for a smaller piece of the pie, people should be thinking about growing the size of the pie: “Coopetition.” This makes transportation more efficient and more accessible, he says. Every time he picks up riders, they express the attitude that: What did we ever do before this? He asks the council not to use a heavy hand. His remarks conclude with applause from the audience, like the previous speaker did.

7:18 p.m. Maurita Holland is speaking for various plants that have been harmed by deer. She’s also speaking for the Washtenaw Citizens for Ecological Balance. She calls for immediate action because the problem is doubling every year, she contends. The deer population in Washtenaw County is 12.5 times the recommended density, she says. “We have to do something,” she says.

7:19 p.m. Mary Avrakotos is speaking as a homeowner on the problem of deer management. She calls deer an increasing menace. She wants the council to decide quickly on a deer management plan and to insist that the city administrator adhere to a timeline on implementation.

7:22 p.m. Tracy Grogan says that spending money on a deer management plan would be money well spent. He likes deer, but deer in urban areas are nervous and tentative, he says. The problem is complex and subject to debate. Ann Arborites are thoughtful, peaceful and caring, he says. But the deer situation is brutal and costly. He wants the discussion to be elevated aggressively. The resolution tonight is an important step forward, he says. He allows that the general fund balance is a precious resource, but we owe it to ourselves to develop a plan that reflects the values of the city. His remarks draw applause.

7:25 p.m. Judy Cohen is also here to talk about the deer issue. It’s not just a matter of whether the deer are eating lilies and decimating your garden. The dollar value of the damage is high, she says. She says that Matthaei Botanical Gardens has cages around the trees to protect them from the deer, but most people don’t want cages around their own trees. She’s describing her personal close calls with deer in her car and actual accidents in her car.

7:27 p.m. Nicholas Avrakotos tells the council that we do have a problem with deer. The most severe winter in many years has not diminished the deer population, he says. He’s describing overpopulation of rabbits on an island – which has become a refuge for rabbits. He says that’s what’s happening here with respect to deer. He wants the council to acknowledge there is a problem.

7:29 p.m. Thomas Partridge calls for the election of Mark Schauer as governor and Gary Peters as U.S. Senator. Hieftje tells Partridge that he had signed to talk about agenda item F-5 and wants him to do that. Peters would have a platform that would help eliminate homelessness and provide affordable housing, Partridge responds.

7:30 p.m. Hieftje disallows Baird as an alternate speaker, saying that Mitchell was here but chose not to speak.

7:30 p.m. Communications from council. This is the first of two slots on the agenda for council communications. It’s a time when councilmembers can report out from boards, commissions and task forces on which they serve. They can also alert their colleagues to proposals they might be bringing forward in the near future.

7:32 p.m. Taylor conveys regrets from Teall, who is caring for older family members. Eaton announces a neighborhood meeting for the Packard Square development on Sept. 4.

7:33 p.m. MC-1 Confirmations. The council is being asked tonight to confirm nominations made at the council’s Aug. 7, 2014 meeting: Bob Guenzel as a reappointment to the Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority; Stephen Raiman to the energy commission to replace Dina Kurz; and Nora Lee Wright to a vacancy on the housing and human services advisory board.

7:33 p.m. Outcome: All nominations have been confirmed without discussion.

7:33 p.m. MC-2 Nominations. Anna Ercoli-Schnitzer is being nominated to fill a vacancy on the Commission on Disability Issues. Tamara Burns and Dick Mitchell are being nominated to be reappointed to the design review board. Sofia Franciscus is being nominated to fill the vacancy on the planning commission due to Paras Parekh’s resignation. And John Splitt is being nominated for reappointment to the Downtown Development Authority board. Votes on their confirmation will take place at the council’s next meeting.

7:35 p.m. Public hearings. All the public hearings are grouped together during this section of the meeting. Action on the related items comes later in the meeting. Four public hearings are scheduled tonight. Two of them relate to an Ann Arbor Housing Commission project on North Maple that involves demolishing some units and re-building them. [For additional background see North Maple Estates above] The other two public hearings relate to the McKinley project on State Street called State Street Village. [For additional background see State Street Village above]

Hieftje tells the Boycott Israel contingent to hold their signs over to the sides. They respond by exiting. In leaving some make statements: “You care more about deer than people.”

7:35 p.m. PH-1 Ann Arbor Housing Commission North Maple Road.

7:37 p.m. Thomas Partridge calls for more affordable housing.

7:37 p.m. PH-2 Seybold Drive street vacation.

7:38 p.m. No one speaks on this public hearing.

7:38 p.m. PH-3 State Street Village rezoning.

7:40 p.m. Thomas Partridge calls for more consideration of the most vulnerable.

7:40 p.m. PH-4 State Street Village site plan.

7:42 p.m. Thomas Partridge calls for public access by everyone, including seniors and the disabled.

7:42 p.m. Approval of minutes. Outcome: The minutes of the council’s previous meeting have been approved.

7:42 p.m. Consent agenda. This is a group of items that are deemed to be routine and are voted on “all in one go.” Contracts for less than $100,000 can be placed on the consent agenda. This meeting’s consent agenda includes:

• CA-1 Approve the member services agreement into the Keenan Pharmacy Purchasing Coalition ($60,000 for 2014 and $60,000 for 2015).
• CA-2 Approve July 24, 2014 recommendations of the Board of Insurance Administration.
• CA-3 Street Closure: Maynard Street on Wednesday, September 10, 2014 for the Barracuda Networks BBQ.
• CA-4 Approve agreement with the Washtenaw County Road Commission for the resurfacing of Newport Road (City Limits to Bird Road) ($90,000).

7:43 p.m. Councilmembers can pull out any item on the consent agenda for separate consideration. Briere pulls out CA-4.

7:43 p.m. Outcome: The consent agenda has been approved except for CA-4.

7:43 p.m. CA-4 Approve agreement with the Washtenaw County Road Commission for the resurfacing of Newport Road (City Limits to Bird Road) ($90,000).

7:44 p.m. Briere is thanking staff for working with the Washtenaw County Road Commission to make this happen.

7:44 p.m. Outcome: CA-4 has now been approved from the consent agenda.

7:44 p.m. B-1 Ann Arbor Housing Commission North Maple Road Rezoning. The council is considering for final approval the rezoning required for an Ann Arbor Housing Commission project – a 4.8-acre site at 701 N. Maple Road. The zoning would change from R1C (single-family dwelling district) to R4B (multi-family dwelling district). The site plan, which has been shifted to the Sept. 2 agenda, calls for demolishing 20 existing single-family homes – the public housing complex known as North Maple Estates – and constructing an eight-building, 42-unit apartment complex with a total of 138 bedrooms. A related item on the agenda is the vacation of a portion of the city’s right-of-way for Seybold Drive. [For additional background see North Maple Estates above]

7:45 p.m. Outcome: The council has voted to give final approval to the North Maple Estates rezoning.

7:45 p.m. B-2 State Street Village rezoning. The council is considering the rezoning of land for the State Street Village project at 2221-2223 S. State St. The 4.5-acre parcel is proposed to be rezoned from M1 (limited industrial district) to O (office district). Also on the council’s agenda for approval is the site plan for the project that will be made possible by approval of the rezoning – a $10 million development by Ann Arbor-based McKinley Inc. The plan calls for constructing two 4-story apartment buildings at the rear of the site, totaling 112,262 square feet, with 38 units each. Another 2,027 square foot building – for a leasing office with two apartments above it – would be built on the front of the parcel, on South State. [For additional background see State Street Village above]

7:45 p.m. Briere notes that office (O) zoning was the most flexible zoning for this site. She assures members of the public that every site plan is vetted for access to transit by all users.

7:46 p.m. Outcome: The council has voted to give final approval to the State Street Village rezoning.

7:46 p.m. C-1 121 Kingsley West rezoning. This is the initial consideration of the 121 W. Kingsley Street project. The project calls for rezoning the site from a planned unit development (PUD) to D2 (downtown interface). The development would include renovating the existing two-story, 2,539-square-foot building, plus constructing two additional buildings: (1) a 3.5-story addition to the existing building; and (2) a 4.5-story structure at the southeast corner of West Kingsley and North Ashley. In total, the development would include 22 units and 40,689 square feet. The estimated cost is $6.5 million. The rezoning is on the council’s agenda, but the site plan will not come before the council until the zoning is considered for a second and final vote. [For additional background see 121 Kingsley West above]

7:46 p.m. Outcome: Without discussion, the council has voted to give initial approval to the rezoning for 121 Kingsley West.

7:46 p.m. C-2 Taxicab ordinance amendment: Rates. Getting initial consideration tonight are two changes to the city’s taxicab ordinance that have been recommended by the city’s taxicab board. The recommendations come in the context of the entry of Uber and Lyft into the Ann Arbor market. This ordinance change would establish certain parameters to mitigate possible negative consequences to the setting of a very high maximum allowable taxicab rate, under which taxicab companies might eventually compete. Those parameters include a requirement that a taxicab company commit to a single rate annually and that the rate be advertised in a vehicle with signage in letters one-inch tall. [For additional background see Taxicab Ordinances above]

7:47 p.m. Outcome: Without discussion, the council has voted to give initial approval of the taxicab ordinance change on the maximum rate.

7:47 p.m. C-3 Taxicab ordinance amendment: Register drivers for hire. This is the second item recommended by the taxicab board. It would require the registration with the city by all drivers for hire, including those who work for Uber and Lyft. Key requirements are the affixing of commercial license plates to a vehicle and maintaining commensurate insurance. [For additional background see Taxicab Ordinances above]

7:50 p.m. Stephen Kunselman (Ward 3) is noting that he sits on the taxicab board. The board has been working to bring up the city’s laws up to date with the changes to the marketplace. The speakers tonight have not addressed the issue of public safety, he says. This ordinance will require insurance of vehicles as commercial vehicles, he notes. This will make all drivers comply with the same rules, Kunselman says. He notes that this is the first reading of the ordinance. Some items might need to be removed, but he would like that to happen at the second reading.

7:51 p.m. Kunselman compares the issue to Selma Cafe. Everyone thought it was great, and then came the annoyances from all the neighbors because of the parking in the neighborhood. Relying on personal insurance won’t work, Kunselman says, because that puts the consumer at risk.

7:52 p.m. Hieftje is reviewing the two-step process for changes to ordinances – first reading, followed by second reading with a public hearing at a later date. Lumm is thanking the city attorney’s staff for their work.

7:54 p.m. Lumm asks about the division of responsibility between the state and local municipalities with respect to taxicabs and limos. Assistant city attorney Kristen Larcom tells Lumm that her understanding of the state of Michigan’s position is that Uber and Lyft services meet the definition of a limo. There’s movement among legislators to make amendments to the state limo act, she thinks.

7:57 p.m. City CFO Tom Crawford, who serves on the taxicab board in an ex officio capacity, responds to a question from Lumm about mechanics and inspections.

7:59 p.m. Briere wants to know what the financial impact will be on drivers for Uber and Lyft. Crawford says that there’s a distinction between a limo company, the drivers and the vehicle. He says that the drivers for Uber and Lyft are 1099 workers. Briere says that this is not what she’s concerned about. She wants to know who bears the cost. How does the proposed change share responsibility? she asks.

8:03 p.m. Kailasapathy ventures that answering the cost question is challenging, and Crawford agrees. Petersen says that the real hurdle is the insurance, not the chauffeur’s license.

8:06 p.m. Anglin agrees that it’s important to understand the cost. Kunselman responds by saying the reason that Lyft and Uber can make a profit is that they are “cheating” the law. What about the companies that are complying with the law? Kunselman asks – like Ann Arbor’s taxicab companies. The reason Uber and Lyft can charge less because they aren’t carrying the associated cost of business, he says. About the use of a family car for a ride-sharing business, Kunselman says: “Lord help us all if that family vehicle gets in a wreck,” and the family goes into bankruptcy.

8:07 p.m. Anglin doesn’t want to jump into anything rapidly.

8:10 p.m. Taylor says that the solution proposed is for a problem that does not exist. Uber and Lyft provide safe service, he says. They allow Ann Arborites to maintain a carless lifestyle. These business models provide for full insurance, he contends. Drivers are taken care of by the insurance of Uber and Lyft when they’re driving. He’ll vote against this, he says. Instead he’ll be working with Briere to bring forward a resolution directing the city administrator to develop an operating agreement with Uber and Lyft. His remarks are met with applause. Hieftje says “Applause is not appropriate during the body of the meeting.”

8:13 p.m. Eaton asks a question of the city attorney’s office. He asks if there’s anything about the state limo act that prevents the city from asserting control over the same subject matter. Warpehoski gets clarification that Ann Arbor does not limit the number of taxicab licenses. He’s comparing Ann Arbor to New York, and its taxicab “cartel.” He says it’s a matter of threading the needle, balancing the right amount of regulation.

8:15 p.m. Warpehoski says he’ll vote for this at first reading, but if the text is the same by the time the ordinance comes back for second reading, he’ll vote against it at that time.

8:15 p.m. Petersen says she’ll take Warpehoski’s advice from a couple of meetings ago: If you’re going to vote against it at second reading, vote against it at first reading. She wants to support Taylor’s efforts to develop an operating agreement.

8:19 p.m. Kunselman notes that the Detroit operating agreement is for a short time, while the law is worked out. All this ordinance does is make everyone follow the same laws, he says. If councilmembers think that Uber and Lyft can self-regulate public safety, then they should vote this down and let it be a free-for-all, he says. They’re making money because they’re not paying the full cost of the business model. They’re using public streets to make a buck, he says. With Selma Cafe, everyone was having a great time going to breakfast at someone’s house, he says, but then it had to be shut down.

8:19 p.m. Kunselman says he doesn’t use Lyft and Uber because he doesn’t feel they’re safe.

8:21 p.m. Briere is describing how many cities are developing operating agreements while the state laws are sorted out. The operating agreements can address who pays for what, she says. The agreement being considered in Lansing would define an amount for which the company is responsible for insuring, she says.

8:23 p.m. Briere ventures that such operating agreements could eventually be extended to standard limo companies. She doesn’t imagine ever needing to know who every driver is, but thinks it’s rational to expect that a list be maintained – so it’s fine if Lyft and Uber maintain that list.

8:26 p.m. Lumm says the ship has left the dock and there’s no stopping it now. Even though there’s a cease-and-desist order, Uber and Lyft are continuing to do business, she says. It’s about ensuring safety for passengers, she adds. Detroit had left undefined who the “third party” is who can inspect vehicles. Lumm is talking about the fact that Uber and Lyft drivers are rated by customers, but she wonders what happens if there’s a series of bad ratings. Lumm asks that Taylor and Briere work with the taxicab board, if the ordinance revision doesn’t pass at first reading. She notes that the chair of the taxicab board [Michael Benson] had sent the council an email asking the council to support the changes.

8:29 p.m. Crawford describes himself as conflicted about the ordinance. He says that he doesn’t see Uber and Lyft as competing with taxicabs so much as with limos. The Uber and Lyft business models are designed for those who have smartphones, he notes. They have ways to rate passengers and drivers, he says, so if you have give drivers a bad experience, you might not be able to get a ride.

8:32 p.m. Kailasapathy is drawing an analogy to renting a house. If a landlord was skirting requirements on fire inspections, would the city opt to come up with operating agreements with them? Is the city council there to revise ordinance that apply to everybody, or when people break the rules, do we scramble to create operating agreements to fit their business models? For her it’s a governance issue.

8:35 p.m. Eaton says he’ll support the ordinance change. He notes that Kunselman has stated he’s willing to compromise on some of the language. Eaton says that he is sensitive to the idea that a company will self-regulate for safety. He says that the same offer of an operating agreement would need to be offered to taxicab companies. Eaton can’t imagine letting an entire industry arise under the guise of self-regulation.

8:36 p.m. Petersen says she’s not opposed to ordinance amendments, but she doesn’t think that these are the right set of amendments. She says that Kunselman should go back to the drawing board. Public safety, health and welfare is paramount, but she doesn’t think that these are insurmountable barriers.

8:39 p.m. Anglin is talking about the transportation that the AAATA’s shared taxi service provides. Briere moves to waive the council’s rules on speaking times, which the council agrees to.

8:40 p.m. Kunselman is going through the requirements in the ordinance change and asks other councilmembers if they have objections to each of them. “Does anybody have a problem with that?” is the question he poses for each requirement.

8:42 p.m. Kunselman comes to “the one that probably scares Uber and Lyft the most,” which is that they would have to comply with state limo act. He asks if councilmembers are willing to allow a company to operate in violation of state law. If so, then “have at it,” he says.

8:44 p.m. Briere calls Kailasapathy’s comparison to renting a house interesting. She extends that to the hotel industry and bed and breakfasts, and is now talking about Airbnb-type models.

8:47 p.m. Briere says she wants the company to bear the burden. The city would be adding an incredible burden to something that is a casual relationship. She thinks the city can be more creative in regulating this issue. Since April, she’s been convinced that an operating agreement is the way to go.

8:49 p.m. Lumm thinks that the requirements in the ordinance are really basic. She asks for the representative from Uber, Michael White, to explain which elements of the ordinance he objects to.

8:52 p.m. White says that there’s no need for commercial insurance on a vehicle that’s being used for three hours a week for this service, he says. Uber’s insurance covers those vehicles when they’re being used to drive for Uber, he says. If there were a safety issue, he says, it wouldn’t be just a national issue, it would be an international issue, he says.

8:54 p.m. Eaton asks which requirements White objects to. He objects to each driver having to complete the requirements.

8:55 p.m. Kailasapathy is asking about the insurance policy. It’s a liability policy, White explains.

8:57 p.m. Briere asks if White can share data about safety. Not today, he says. Briere asks if he can get it. Complaints come in as a stream, he says. Briere wants to know about percentages – out of 20 vehicles, how many complaints are there?

9:00 p.m. White says that their drivers have an average star rating of 4.6 stars out of 5.0. Briere says she’s not asking about satisfaction, but about safety. Petersen wants to know how that data is used by Uber. White is providing the standard Uber marketing message to the council.

9:01 p.m. Petersen asks if Uber can suspend a driver before they discover that people aren’t requesting rides from them. Based on White’s response, it’s not clear.

9:02 p.m. Lumm is following up with questions about the rating system.

9:05 p.m. White is taking the opportunity to explain the various advantages that Uber offers to riders.

9:07 p.m. Lumm is going back and forth with White about what he’d be willing to put in an operating agreement. He’d be willing to put a requirement in an Ann Arbor operating agreement that required the vehicle inspection to be done by a licensed mechanic.

9:12 p.m. Warpehoski has some back-and-forth with White.

9:12 p.m. Kunselman asks White if Uber would be willing to accept six points as a maximum. White says that they evaluate the nature of the violations. He’d be happy to discuss various issues. Kunselman says White has been vague. Kunselman asks if Uber would allow a felon to be a driver. No, White says. The city council had recently approved a policy on that, Kunselman notes. [Earlier this year, the city eliminated the requirement that job applicants disclose past criminal records – except for police and fire department applicants.]

White says that an English requirement would effectively arise from having to be able to go through the application system. And if they did manage to be activated as a driver, their ability to deliver quality service would be hampered by a lack of English. And that would show up in the feedback the driver would get.

9:14 p.m. Kunselman asks about possible discrimination against riders with disabilities and about red-lining. White says that studies have been done that show in Chicago, undesirable and underserved areas are much better served by Uber than by existing transportation options. Kunselman asks: Do you think that we should disband the taxicab industry in Ann Arbor?

9:20 p.m. Hieftje says there have been a lot of good comments. He mentions pipelines as a self-regulated industry, in some ways. It’s long been a goal of his to make it possible for people to live without owning a car, he says. The bike lane system has been expanded, he says. The bus system has been expanded. Ride-sharing apps are a way to expand ride-share options. So he won’t support the ordinance change tonight. He doesn’t think there’s any reason to think that Uber and Lyft aren’t concerned with safety.

9:24 p.m. Outcome: The council has rejected the ordinance at first reading on a 5-5 vote. Voting against it were Hieftje, Briere, Petersen, Lumm and Taylor.

9:24 p.m. Recess. We’re now in recess.

9:37 p.m. We’re back.

9:37 p.m. DC-1 Appropriate $20,000 to develop a community-endorsed deer management plan. This item is based on the Aug. 14 report from the city administrator on options for managing the deer population. Before developing a specific plan – that could involve killing deer or not – input from Washtenaw County Parks and Recreation and the University of Michigan would be sought. And the Michigan Department of Natural Resources would need to approve any plan for deer management.

The Aug. 14 report includes descriptions of deer management plans in other Michigan cities that range from ordinances prohibiting the feeding of deer to culling programs that shut down city parks and prescribe shooting lanes for archers. City of Ann Arbor staff estimate that six months would be needed for public engagement. That public engagement could start within 45 days of city council approval to proceed. Estimated staff time to develop the specific plan is 160 hours, according to the Aug. 14 report. Contractual public engagement and support to develop a management plan are estimated at $20,000. The report indicates that to cull 40-50 deer per year, the cost to the city would be about $25,000. According to Michigan Department of Natural Resources records 6,608 deer were taken by hunters in Washtenaw County. [For additional background see Deer Management above]

9:39 p.m. Lumm is thanking city administrator Steve Powers and community services administrator Sumedh Bahl. Lumm is reading aloud a written statement. The plan to be developed is supposed to include metrics for success, she says. The MDNR is the critical partner, she says.

9:42 p.m. Lumm allows that the problem might be concentrated in Ward 1 and Ward 2, but she hopes that the council will support it. Briere says that the problem is growing in Ward 5 as well. Briere says she doesn’t have an interest in seeing the deer slaughtered, but there are few ways to control the deer population. The problem might not be only the overpopulation of deer, she allows. She supports moving the process forward.

9:44 p.m. Hieftje says his central concern is that it be a comprehensive solution. He reports that he saw a buck walk past his front porch, even though there are no natural areas in the area.

9:47 p.m. Lumm asks Bahl to come to the podium. Powers responds first. He notes that the partners involved “aren’t quite there yet,” and the DNR has recommended that there be a community process. That comment comes in response to some public input to the effect that the city was not moving fast enough.

9:50 p.m. Lumm asks if there will be more data collected on environmental data. That will take some time, Bahl says.

9:51 p.m. Lumm is now reading aloud an email from a NAP volunteer. Young oak trees don’t survive unless the volunteer fences the trees, the email states.

9:52 p.m. Outcome: The council has voted unanimously to appropriate $20,000 to develop a deer management plan.

9:52 p.m. DC-2 Community Events Fund Disbursements. This item was added late to the agenda by Sabra Briere (Ward 1) and Chuck Warpehoski (Ward 5). The council rule on the subject reads as follows: “Council members may add items to the agenda at any time, but will use best efforts to do so prior to 5:00 p.m. on the Friday before the next Council meeting.” The two constitute the council committee for distribution of community events funding. They met at 10 a.m. today (Monday) for a meeting that was announced through the city’s notification system at 4:06 p.m. last Friday.

About half of the events to receive funding this year have already taken place. The disbursements are for a total of $55,000, including $10,000 for the Ann Arbor Street Art Fair and $25,000 for the Summer Festival.

9:54 p.m. Warpehoski apologizes for the late addition to the agenda. Some of the events that been allocated funding turned out not to be happening and so adjustments needed to be made late. The full amount is not being allocated, he says, so that late applications might be accommodated.

9:54 p.m. Outcome: The council has voted to approve the disbursements from the community events fund.

9:54 p.m. DB-1 Seybold Drive vacation. This item is related to the Ann Arbor Housing Commission’s North Maple Estates project the zoning for which the council voted on earlier in the meeting. [For additional background see North Maple Estates above]

9:54 p.m. Outcome: The council has voted to approve the vacation of Seybold Drive.

9:54 p.m. DB-2 State Street Village site plan. The council voted on the rezoning for the project earlier in the meeting. [For additional background see State Street Village above]

9:54 p.m. Outcome: The council has voted to approve the State Street Village site plan.

9:54 p.m. DS-1 Approve extended policy with EyeMed Vision Care ($305,828). The policy period is four years. The policy requires the city to pay a set monthly premium. The monthly premiums are $4.53 for single, $8.61 for two people, and $12.64 for a family from July 1, 2014 through Dec. 31, 2014. According to the staff memo accompanying the resolution, due to the fees imposed onto insurers under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the premiums will be adjusted upward on January 1, 2015. The new monthly premiums will be $4.67 for single, $8.87, for two people, and $13.02 for a family from Jan. 1, 2015 through Dec. 31, 2018.

9:55 p.m. Outcome: The council has voted to approve the extension with EyeMed.

9:55 p.m. DS-2 Approve Fuller Lot lease with University of Michigan. This item would extend the lease by the city to the University of Michigan for three parking lots at Fuller Park: (1) the parking lot south of Fuller Road, next to the railroad tracks; (2) the paved parking lot north of Fuller Road at Fuller Park; and (3) the unpaved parking lot north of Fuller Road at Fuller Park. The lots are used by the University of Michigan during restricted hours. Annual revenue from this lease will be $78,665, and will be included as part of the parks and recreation general fund budget. The item was forwarded to the city council from the park advisory commission with a recommendation of approval. [For additional background see Fuller Park Parking Lease above.]

9:57 p.m. Hieftje says that he thinks it would be useful to postpone the question.

9:58 p.m. Eaton asks that if this is sent back to the park advisory commission (PAC), then he wants the commission to review the relevant planning documents.

10:00 p.m. Briere moves to postpone until October. Lumm asks what happens, given the expiration of the current lease. Hieftje ventures that this is coming to the council later than it should have.

10:01 p.m. Anglin is concerned about the inclusion of a mention of future uses of the property.

10:01 p.m. Outcome: The council has voted to postpone the Fuller Park lot lease with the University of Michigan until the first meeting in October.

10:01 p.m. DS-3 Appropriate emergency management performance ($42,582) This item will accept $42,582 in grant funding from the state for emergency management. It will pay for part of the salary for the city’s emergency manager.

10:01 p.m. Outcome: The council has voted to approve the acceptance of the emergency program grant funds.

10:02 p.m. Communications from the council.

10:05 p.m. Kailasapathy is pointing out that the council rule regarding public commentary is that if someone vacates their reserved time, it shall be assigned to the alternate speakers. Larry Baird was the alternate who was denied an opportunity to speak. Hieftje says that he will take a look at that. But he says that the rules are under a great deal of scrutiny to make sure that the rules are followed. “Maybe I was too careful.” He was concerned that someone might bring that up to the council. Kailasapathy reiterates the point of the rule. Hieftje says he’ll look into that. Warpehoski notes that everyone has a responsibility to note the error at the time it’s made.

10:06 p.m. Clerk’s Report. Warpehoski says he’s happy to see the inclusion of accessory dwelling units in the planning commission’s work plan, which is part of the clerk’s report of communications.

10:08 p.m. Warpehoski says that if the council wants to see things move forward, they need to make the necessary resources available.

10:08 p.m. Outcome: The council has now accepted the clerk’s report.

10:08 p.m. Public comment. There’s no requirement to sign up in advance for this slot for public commentary.

10:10 p.m. Thomas Partridge says that despite the council’s vote on the taxicab ordinance, the city still needs assurances that transportation will be safety. He says the city is not making the kind of progress it needs to on affordable housing.

10:13 p.m. Kai Petainen is addressing the council on the topic of Ann Arbor SPARK. Here’s a .pdf of his remarks: [.pdf of Petainen Aug. 18, 2014]

10:16 p.m. A Lyft driver is addressing the council. He says he’s been living here for 14 years. He says that the council makes the city better and better every day. He wants them to continue to make Ann Arbor’s transportation system better.

10:18 p.m. A second Lyft driver, who’s been working with that service since May 8, is now addressing the council. Ann Arbor deserves ride-sharing in the city, he says. About 80% of riders he picks up are college students. When he picks up students who are drunk, he knows that he is saving their lives. It takes 45 minutes to an hour for other services, he says. Lyft covers him with a $1 million policy, he says.

10:21 p.m. Ed Vielmetti is addressing the council. He’s a Ward 4 resident. Two years ago, The Chronicle’s Stopped.Watched feature recorded a vehicle in storage by the city of Ann Arbor – it’s a Washtenaw County APC with a battering ram. He alludes to events in Ferguson. He hopes and prays that if something happens in this city and county, their public officials will support them in cases where injustices have been done.

10:23 p.m. Rita Mitchell says that she is choosing to speak now, although she chose not to speak earlier. She appreciates the rule that calls for speakers to speak on agenda items at the start of the meeting. She thanks the council for their action to postpone the item on leasing Fuller Park lots to UM. She hopes that the parks can be funded without leasing parkland for non-park uses. She also objects to inclusion of language in the lease about possible future use of the area as a train station. She wants the city to check into the condition of the trees that were supposed to be saved through the lease so many years ago.

10:25 p.m. Jeff Hayner says he hopes the city can get a better deal from the University of Michigan. He delivers a theatrical reading with a deer skull.

10:26 p.m. An Uber driver is now addressing the council in support of Uber and other ride-sharing services.

10:27 p.m. Adjournment. We are now adjourned. That’s all from the hard benches.

A sign on the door to the Ann Arbor city council chambers gives instructions for post-meeting clean-up.

A report from the city administrator on options for deer management has led to a resolution on the Aug. 18 agenda appropriating $20,000 for the development of a deer management program.

Screenshot of Legistar – the city of Ann Arbor’s online agenda management system. Image links to the Aug. 18, 2014 meeting agenda.

Among the land use items on the Aug. 18 agenda is one related to use of city-owned land – three parking lots at Fuller Park: (1) the parking lot south of Fuller Road, next to the railroad tracks; (2) the paved parking lot north of Fuller Road at Fuller Park; and (3) the unpaved parking lot north of Fuller Road at Fuller Park. The lots are used by the University of Michigan during restricted hours.

The council will be considering a two-year lease with one additional two-year option for renewal. Annual revenue from this lease will be $78,665, and will be included as part of the parks and recreation general fund budget. The item was forwarded to the city council from the park advisory commission with a recommendation of approval.

Private land development items on the Aug. 18 agenda include final approval of the rezoning of land for the State Street Village project at 2221-2223 S. State St. The 4.5-acre parcel is proposed to be rezoned from M1 (limited industrial district) to O (office district). Also on the council’s agenda for approval is the site plan for the project that will be made possible by approval of the rezoning – a $10 million development by Ann Arbor-based McKinley Inc. The plan calls for constructing two 4-story apartment buildings at the rear of the site, totaling 112,262 square feet, with 38 units each. Another 2,027-square-foot building – for a leasing office with two apartments above it – would be built on the front of the parcel, on South State.

Also on the agenda for final approval is the rezoning required for an Ann Arbor Housing Commission project – a 4.8-acre site at 701 N. Maple Road. The zoning would change from R1C (single-family dwelling district) to R4B (multi-family dwelling district). The site plan, which is also on the council’s Aug. 18 agenda, calls for demolishing 20 existing single-family homes – the public housing complex known as North Maple Estates – and constructing an eight-building, 42-unit apartment complex with a total of 138 bedrooms. A related item on the agenda is the vacation of a portion of the city’s right-of-way for Seybold Drive.

Rezoning for 121 W. Kingsley Street for a private development is getting initial consideration by the council on Aug. 18. The project calls for rezoning the site from a planned unit development (PUD) to D2 (downtown interface). The development would include renovating the existing two-story, 2,539-square-foot building, plus constructing two additional buildings: (1) a 3.5-story addition to the existing building; and (2) a 4.5-story structure at the southeast corner of West Kingsley and North Ashley. In total, the development would include 22 units and 40,689 square feet. The estimated cost is $6.5 million.

Getting initial consideration by the council at its Aug. 18 meeting are changes to the city’s taxicab ordinance that have been recommended by the city’s taxicab board. The recommendations come in the context of the entry of Uber and Lyft into the Ann Arbor market. The companies offer the arrangement of rides through mobile networks with drivers who operate their own vehicles. Both companies have ignored cease-and-desist orders from the city.

Uber has sent its Ann Arbor customers an email asking them to sign an online petition supporting Uber’s continued ability to operate here.

One ordinance change would establish certain parameters to mitigate possible negative consequences to the setting of a very high maximum allowable taxicab rate, under which taxicab companies might eventually compete. Those parameters include a requirement that a taxicab company commit to a single rate annually and that the rate be advertised in a vehicle with signage in letters one-inch tall. The other ordinance would require that all drivers for hire – whether they are taxicab drivers or drivers who work for Uber or Lyft – register with the city, maintain proper insurance for their vehicles and acquire commercial plates.

In other significant business at its Aug. 18 meeting, the council will also be asked to confirm the re-appointment of Bob Guenzel to the board of the Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority.

This article includes a more detailed preview of many of these agenda items. More details on other agenda items are available on the city’s online Legistar system. The meeting proceedings can be followed Monday evening live on Channel 16, streamed online by Community Television Network starting at 7 p.m.

Fuller Park Parking Lease

The council will be considering a possible four-year extension on a University of Michigan lease of three parking lots at Fuller Park. The lease comes to the council with a recommendation of approval from the park advisory commission. The commission gave that recommendation at its July 15, 2014 meeting.

Map of parking lots at Fuller Park that are leased to the University of Michigan.

The existing lease expires on Aug. 31, 2014. The three lots are: (1) the parking lot south of Fuller Road, next to the railroad tracks (Lot A); (2) the paved parking lot north of Fuller Road at Fuller Park (Lot B); and (3) the unpaved parking lot north of Fuller Road at Fuller Park (Lot C). The lots are used by UM during restricted hours.

The city has leased Lot A to UM since 1993. Lots B and C have been leased since 2009.

The proposal, which requires city council approval, is for a two-year lease with one additional two-year option for renewal. Annual revenue of this lease will be $78,665, and will be included as part of the parks and recreation general fund budget. [.pdf of proposed lease agreement] [.pdf of staff report]

The hours that UM can use these lots are stipulated in the agreement:

• Lot A: 4 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.
• Lot B (paved lot): 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, beginning the day after Labor Day through the Friday before Memorial Day, excluding holidays.
• Lot C (unpaved lot): 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, excluding holidays.

At the PAC meeting when the lease was recommended, parks and recreation manager Colin Smith noted that the revenue from these three lots is significant for the parks and recreation operating budget. The current agreement – which was approved by the council in 2009 and extended by two administrative renewals – is essentially the same as the agreement that will expire, Smith told PAC.

The main purpose of the lots is for the parks, Smith explained. That’s reflected in the hours when UM can use the lots – on weekdays, prior to 4-5 p.m. The outdoor pool and soccer fields don’t need the quantity of parking during the winter or off-season. “It’s an asset within the parks department that we can either have sit there, or we can lease it for a significant amount of revenue that obviously helps us provide other programs,” he said. If the city doesn’t lease those parking lots, “I am absolutely certain that people will park in it anyway,” Smith added.

State Street Village

On Aug. 18, the council will consider final approval of the rezoning of land for the State Street Village project at 2221-2223 S. State St. The 4.5-acre parcel is proposed to be rezoned from M1 (limited industrial district) to O (office district). Also on the council’s agenda for approval is the site plan for the project that will be made possible by approval of the rezoning – a $10 million development by Ann Arbor-based McKinley Inc. The plan calls for constructing two 4-story apartment buildings at the rear of the site, totaling 112,262 square feet, with 38 units each. Another 2,027 square foot building – for a leasing office with two apartments above it – would be built on the front of the parcel, on South State.

Aerial view of State Street Village site.

Action on the initial approval came at the city council’s July 21, 2014 meeting. A recommendation for the rezoning was given at the June 17, 2014 meeting of the Ann Arbor planning commission.

At that meeting, commissioners recommended approval of the site plan, development agreement and rezoning for the project.

The front part of the site is currently a surface parking lot, and is zoned O (office). The rear parcel – 4.5 acres – is vacant, and zoned M1 (limited industrial). Residential developments are permitted in office-zoned areas. [.pdf of staff report]

The development will include 114 parking spaces in the rear of the site and 13 spaces for the front. Another 22 spaces in the surface parking lot will be shared by the existing office building just south of the site.

In addition, 44 covered bicycle spaces and 8 enclosed bicycle spaces will be provided near the entrances of the apartment buildings and 2 hoops will be placed near the entrance of the rental office building.

Instead of making a $48,360 requested donation to the city for parks, McKinley has proposed two 8×10-foot grilling patios with picnic tables and grills.

According to the staff memo, the footing drains of 18 homes, or flow equivalent to 71.91 gallons per minute, will need to be disconnected from the city’s sanitary sewer system to mitigate flow from this proposed development.

North Maple Road

To be considered for final approval by the council at its Aug. 18 meeting is the rezoning required for an Ann Arbor Housing Commission project – a 4.8-acre site at 701 N. Maple Road. The zoning would change from R1C (single-family dwelling district) to R4B (multi-family dwelling district). The site plan, which is also on the council’s Aug. 18 has been shifted to the Sept. 2 agenda, calls for demolishing 20 existing single-family homes – the public housing complex known as North Maple Estates – and constructing an eight-building, 42-unit apartment complex with a total of 138 bedrooms. A related item on the agenda is the vacation of a portion of the city’s right-of-way for Seybold Drive.

The Ann Arbor planning commission recommended all three items for approval at its June 17, 2014 meeting. The council gave initial approval of the rezoning at its July 7, 2014 meeting.

Aerial view of North Maple Estates site, outlined in green.

The project is part of a major renovation effort by the Ann Arbor Housing Commission of several of its properties. The site is on the west side of North Maple, between Dexter Avenue and Hollywood Drive. [.pdf of staff report]

The units in the eight-building, 42-unit apartment complex are proposed to have a total of 138 bedrooms. The units range in size from one bedroom to five bedrooms.

The project would include a playground, community building and 73 parking spaces. According to a staff memo, the buildings would be located along a T-shaped driveway that connects to North Maple Road and Dexter Avenue. The drive extends northward toward Vine Court but does not connect with that street. There would be a new connection to Dexter Avenue through the remaining, undeveloped length of Seybold Drive.

The project also requires the city to vacate a portion of the right-of-way for Seybold Drive. The surrounding land is owned by the housing commission, so if the right-of-way vacation is approved, the land would become part of the housing commission property. In a separate vote, the planning commission also recommended approving that request.

When the project was in front of the planning commission, planning staff noted three issues that need to be resolved before the project gets approval from city council:

The parcel containing two duplex buildings also owned by the Ann Arbor Housing Commission in the northeast corner of the site must be combined with the subject site, forming a single parcel as a requirement for issuance of any permits.

The legal description and comparison chart data must be confirmed to include the duplex parcel.

The northern-most parking stall, nearest the connection to Vine Court, must be relocated outside of the minimum front setback area.

According to the staff memo, after June 3 the city’s traffic engineer reviewed the proposed new connection from Seybold Drive onto Dexter Avenue, and concluded that sight distances from all approaches are acceptable. He suggested that the pavement markings on Dexter should be refreshed.

The reconstruction of North Maple Estates is part of an ongoing effort by the housing commission to upgrade the city’s housing stock for low-income residents. At the planning commission’s May 6, 2014 meeting, AAHC executive director Jennifer Hall had made a presentation about the initiative, which includes seeking private investors through low-income housing tax credits.

121 Kingsley West

Rezoning for 121 W. Kingsley Street for a proposed new development is getting initial consideration by the council on Aug. 18. The project calls for rezoning the site from a planned unit development (PUD) to D2 (downtown interface). The development would include renovating the existing two-story, 2,539-square-foot building, plus constructing two additional buildings: (1) a 3.5-story addition to the existing building; and (2) a 4.5-story structure at the southeast corner of West Kingsley and North Ashley. In total, the development would include 22 units and 40,689 square feet. The estimated cost is $6.5 million.

The rezoning will be on the council’s agenda, but the site plan will not come before the council until the zoning is considered for a second and final vote. The Ann Arbor planning commission’s recommendation of approval for the site plan and the rezoning came at its July 15, 2014 meeting.

Rendering of 121 Kingsley West project, looking south from Kingsley. The existing building is in the left foreground.

Developers are Tom Fitzsimmons, Peter Allen and Mark Berg. The architect is Marc Rueter.

There would be 29 parking spaces below the buildings – though only two spaces are required, based on residential premiums that the project is seeking. The premiums give the project additional floor area, compare to what’s allowed by right. An elevator for each building will be accessible from the parking level. The parking level of the east building will include a bike room with 14 spaces.

According to a staff report, the project’s development agreement will address “easements for encroachments onto the City right of way by the existing building, onsite stormwater management, verification of LEED points, six required footing drain disconnects, future façade alterations, and the contribution to Parks and Recreation Services.” [.pdf of staff report]

Planning commissioners unanimously recommended approval of the rezoning, site plan and development agreement. However, only five commissioners on the nine-member body were present, and the commission’s bylaws stipulate that approval requires six votes. So the project was forwarded to city council for consideration with a recommendation of denial from the commission. Wendy Woods, the commission’s chair, assured the developers that city council would be informed that the project secured unanimous support from all commissioners who were present.

The project is on the same site as a previously proposed project by Peter Allen called Kingsley Lane. That had been envisioned as a larger development with 46 units in a complex with two “towers” – at four and nine stories. According to a 2006 Ann Arbor News article, pre-sales of the units were slower than expected because of the struggling housing market, and ultimately financing fell through. At a July 9, 2013 planning commission work session, planning manager Wendy Rampson reported that the developers had lost the property to the bank, but subsequently secured the land and were expected to submit a new site plan.

Taxicab Ordinances

Getting initial consideration by the council on Aug. 18 are two changes to the city’s taxicab ordinance that have been recommended by the city’s taxicab board. The recommendations come in the context of the entry of Uber and Lyft into the Ann Arbor market. The companies offer the arrangement of rides through mobile networks with drivers who operate their own vehicles. Both companies have continued to operate in Ann Arbor, despite cease-and-desist orders from the city. [.pdf of cease-and-desist sent to Lyft] [.pdf of cease-and-desist sent to Uber]

The vote to recommend the ordinance changes came at the July 24, 2014 meeting of the taxicab board.

These issues were also discussed at three monthly meetings of the taxicab board prior to that, on April 23, 2014, May 22, 2014 and June 26, 2014.

One ordinance change would establish certain parameters to mitigate possible negative consequences to the setting of a very high maximum allowable taxicab rate, under which taxicab companies might eventually compete. Those parameters include a requirement that a taxicab company commit to a single rate annually and that the rate be advertised in a vehicle with signage in letters one-inch tall.

The current structure for fare regulation already allows for the adoption of a maximum rate to be adopted by the city council. Currently the maximum rate in Ann Arbor is $3 to get in, $2.50 per mile, and 40 cents per minute waiting time. Those maximum rates were last adjusted upwards three years ago, on May 16, 2011, in response to gas prices that had nudged past $4 per gallon. At that time, the taxicab board indicated it did not anticipate considering another rate change until the gas prices were over $5 for at least two consecutive months.

So the taxicab board’s thinking is not being driven by gas prices, which are currently between $3.75 and $4 in the Ann Arbor area. Instead, a possible increase in allowable fares is based on concern that the taxicab industry in Ann Arbor might not be able to survive unless taxis are allowed to charge more.

At its July 24 meeting, taxicab board members discussed the possibility of delaying their recommendation on the ordinance changes until the board could also make a specific recommendation on the price point for a very high maximum rate. But ultimately board members felt that a recommendation on a price point for a new maximum rate could come later – especially because ordinance changes require a first and second reading in front of the council. There would be a window of opportunity between those readings to make a recommendation on the higher maximum. The taxicab board’s next meeting is scheduled for Aug. 28 at 8:30 a.m. at city hall.

The other ordinance change to be given initial consideration would require that all drivers for hire – whether they are taxicab drivers or drivers who work for Uber or Lyft – register with the city, maintain proper insurance for their vehicles and acquire commercial plates. Commercial plates would require that the commensurate commercial insurance is carried.

And the absence of commercial plates on a vehicle that is observed to be used for picking up or dropping off passengers would provide a primary reason for a traffic stop by Ann Arbor police. At the taxicab board meetings over the last few months, representatives of the taxicab industry argued that the state statute regulating limousines already gives the city the ability to enforce against Uber and Lyft drivers.

Deer Management

Attached to the Aug. 18 city council agenda is a report from the city administrator outlining issues and options for management of the urban deer herd in Ann Arbor. Based on that report is a resolution, sponsored by Sabra Briere (Ward 1) and Jane Lumm (Ward 2), that would accept the report and appropriate $20,000 from the general fund for development of a “community endorsed deer management plan.” [.pdf of Aug. 14, 2014 deer management options report]

The council had directed the preparation of the report on various options in a resolution approved at its May 5, 2014 meeting. The report was to have been delivered to the council by July 31.

Fall 2015 is the earliest date identified in the report as a possible timeframe for a culling of the herd.

Before developing a specific plan – that could involve killing deer or not – input from Washtenaw County Parks and Recreation and the University of Michigan would be sought. And the Michigan Department of Natural Resources would need to approve any plan for deer management. The Aug. 14 report includes descriptions of deer management plans in other Michigan cities that range from ordinances prohibiting the feeding of deer to culling programs that shut down city parks and prescribe shooting lanes for archers.

City of Ann Arbor staff estimate that six months would be needed for public engagement. That public engagement could start within 45 days of city council approval to proceed.

Estimated staff time to develop the specific plan is 160 hours, according to the Aug. 14 report. Contractual public engagement and support to develop a management plan are estimated at $20,000.

Other facts included in the plan are the fact that neither city parks nor golf courses have had vegetation damage by deer. The cost to the city for disposing of deer carcasses in fiscal year 2014 was $5,850.

Estimated cost to kill 40-50 deer in the city of Ann Arbor is $25,000-$27,000 per year. That amount includes city staff administration cost in the amount of $14,000.

All deer-car accidents in Washtenaw County from 2004 through 2013 are plotted in the dynamic map below. Map is by The Chronicle with data from michigantrafficcrashfacts.org

These issues have been discussed at the two previous monthly meetings of the taxicab board, on April 23, 2014 and May 22, 2014. The June 26 meeting has a scheduled start of 8:30 a.m. from the city council work room on the second floor of city hall. After the live broadcast, the Mixlr player below will be replaced with a link to the recorded .mp3 audio file.

[.mp3 of June 26, 2014 Ann Arbor Taxicab Board meeting]

Updated: The board did not act on the two draft ordinance revisions, except to ask that staff undertake some amendments for further consideration by the board at its next meeting, on July 24, 2014.

The increase reflects the recent increases in taxicab rates, authorized by the Ann Arbor city council at its May 16, 2011 meeting. The increase authorized by the council was from $2.25/mile to $2.50/mile, which had been requested by several taxicab companies in light of rising fuel prices.

The contract with Select Ride is structured so that the company is paid based upon the distance that passengers are transported together with the fare structure for the taxicab rides. The contract increase reflects a compromise under which the AATA is shouldering only part of the increased cost due to the taxicab fare increase.

This brief was filed from the downtown location of the Ann Arbor District Library, where the AATA board holds its meetings. A more detailed report will follow: [link]

During public commentary, Sue Maguire addressed the council on the topic of proposed reductions to the fire department. (Photos by the writer.)

But Monday, at its second meeting in May this year, the city council did not act, choosing instead to recess and continue the meeting the following week, on May 23. The decision to delay was prompted by uncertainty about revenue from the public parking system. The Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority and the city were poised to ratify a new agreement on parking revenue on May 2, but that agreement was put off when questions were raised about the DDA tax increment finance (TIF) capture. The DDA later called a special meeting on Friday, May 20 to address that issue.

Even though the council did not act on the budget, most of the evening’s discussion was dominated by budget talk, including extensive public commentary on the proposed cuts in the police and fire departments. The council also got a briefing from its chief of police and interim fire chief, Barnett Jones, who responded to an article published in AnnArbor.com about fire department response times, calling the calculations presented in the piece inaccurate.

In addition to putting off action on the FY 2012 budget, the council also tabled decisions on human services funding, funding for a water system study, and fee increases for next year.

However, the council did transact some business. It authorized an increase in taxicab fares in light of rising gas prices. The council also approved neighborhood stabilization funds for demolition of three houses on North Main Street to prepare the site for construction of the Near North affordable housing project. Two large vehicle purchases – a street sweeper and a sewer truck – that had been postponed from the previous meeting were authorized.

The council also revised its administrative policy on how the 2006 parks millage is to be spent. Funds outside the general fund can count as general fund money for the purpose of the policy, as long as those funds are not drawn from the parks millage. The council also gave initial approval to an ordinance on design guidelines for new buildings downtown.

FY 2012 Budget Decisions

Before the council was approval of the 2012 fiscal year budget that had been proposed by then-city administrator Roger Fraser just before he left that position to take a post as a deputy treasurer for the state of Michigan. The city’s fiscal year starts on July 1.

The city’s charter stipulates that the administrator must submit the proposed budget to the council in April and that the council must approve a budget by its second meeting in May, which this year fell on May 16. If the council fails to approve the budget – with any amendments – by its second May meeting, the budget as proposed by the administrator is adopted by default.

The budget as proposed included $77,900,405 in general fund revenues and tapped the reserves for a total of $1,022,136. The city of Ann Arbor’s total budget, including all of its funds (major street fund, parks millage, water fund, sewer fund, etc.) stands at $312,182,605 for FY 2012.

FY 2012 Budget: Announcement of Delay

At the beginning of the council’s May 16 meeting, mayor John Hieftje indicated that when the council reached the budget item on the agenda, they intended to recess the meeting and continue it the following Monday. The budget was the next-to-last agenda item.

As a reason for delaying, Hieftje cited uncertainty about the status of a new parking agreement with the Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority. Later in the week, the DDA board announced it would hold a special meeting at noon on Friday, May 20 in an attempt to address questions about its TIF capture and to ratify its side of a new parking contract with the city.

Expected amendments to the budget when the council takes it up on May 23 include: (1) use of $90,000 in general fund reserves to add to the parks allocation; (2) use of $85,600 in general fund reserves to add to human services funding; (3) use of a nominal amount of general fund reserves to cover the cost of an additional primary election (as proposed, the FY 2012 budget anticipated primaries in only two of the city’s five wards – there will be primaries in three wards); and (4) elimination of a proposed fee for three-times-weekly trash pickup in the downtown area.

Before the meeting, no budget amendments were anticipated that would change the proposed cuts in public safety positions – 13 in police services and seven in fire protection services. However, at the meeting, Hieftje hinted that some, but not all, of the cuts in police and fire might be avoided.

FY 2012 Budget: Safety Services – Public Commentary

The formal hearing on the FY 2012 budget took place at the council’s May 2 meeting. But several people had signed up for the public commentary reserved time at the beginning of the meeting, including some familiar faces from local government, past and present. [At the council's next gathering on May 23, there will presumably not be public commentary reserved time offered, as it is a continuation of the same meeting.]

Leading off public commentary was Fred Veigel, who serves on the Washtenaw County Road Commission. He introduced himself as president of the Huron Valley Central Labor Council, AFLCIO, which includes 37 local unions with 18,000 members, he said. Terminating police and firefighter positions below national standards would endanger lives and property of Ann Arbor citizens, warned Veigel. Responding to comments by Hieftje at the start of the meeting about the separation of the budget into various funds, he said, “Balderdash!” Money could be borrowed from different funds, he contended, not taken away.

He asked if the last audit of fund balances has been reviewed to see if funds are available for public safety services. The council should cut other services first, he said, like human services. The council should amend the city’s parks policy and let Washtenaw County take over the two city golf courses – that would save several hundred thousand dollars. He said he’d talked with councilmember Tony Derezinski (Ward 2) about enforcing state vehicle codes on unmarked commercial vehicles that don’t pull permits to work in the city – that could generate additional revenue.

Following Veigel to the podium was Wes Prater, who currently serves on the Washtenaw County board of commissioners. He introduced himself as a retired firefighter, and vice president of the Huron Valley Central Labor Council, AFLCIO. He told the city council it was good to be back before them – he hadn’t been there in a while. He asked to council to reflect on some basic points. What services do citizens expect to receive from government? What are the basic quality of life issues? What will ensure sound economic development in the community? What are best practices for re-entry of those who are incarcerated and for dealing with mental health issues? These are all related to the function of the emergency safety system of the city, he said.

For the fire department, eight minutes is too long for a response time – four minutes is recommended by national standards, he said. After four minutes, Prater said, a fire doubles in size every minute. Closing stations and rotating stations gives citizens a false sense of security. The fire department is struggling at this time to provide a basic level of service to the citizens, and the further reductions will make it difficult to answer more than one fire at one time. Multiple fires would require mutual aid from departments in other communities, which would require more than eight minutes, he warned.

Prater noted that according to a recent report from Washtenaw County’s equalization director, Ann Arbor’s property values had dropped less than the values in the rest of the county.

University of Michigan Graduate Employees Organization (GEO) supporters in the audience at the May 16 Ann Arbor city council meeting.

Chelsea Del Rio introduced herself as the vice president of the Graduate Employees Organization (GEO) at the University of Michigan. She told the city council that the GEO stands in solidarity with the firefighers. The GEO is concerned about the rotating closure of fire stations, especially when Station 5 on the university’s north campus is closed. It’s a great concern to the UM community, she said. It’s a concern about physical property, ranging from the safety of historical documents to research facilities, as well as a concern about safety and well-being of students, faculty staff and all Ann Arbor residents.

The unions at UM – from lecturers, to building trades, to nurses – have expressed this view to UM president Mary Sue Coleman as well, Del Rio said. She concluded by saying that the members of the GEO stand with Ann Arbor firefighters, and they urged the council to do the same.

Noting that he was a former member of the city’s park advisory commission and the planning commission, James D’Amour told the council that he was speaking to them as a citizen, not as a member of any group. He said he’d seen declines in terms of services and the promise the city was supposed to keep with respect to the parks, but said he might address that issue later. That evening, he said, he wanted to put a face on the important public safety services offered by the city.

D’Amour then recounted how 12 years ago, his second-floor neighbors – he and his wife lived on the third floor – had started a fire through careless behavior. He said that without help from the fire department, his wife wouldn’t be alive today and likely neither would he. He said he’d seen thousands of dollars paid by the city for consultants, parking structures and public art. He concluded by thanking the firefighters who saved his wife’s life 12 years ago.

Lisa Dusseau told the council she was born and raised in Ann Arbor. She was speaking to them for the first time due to the pending fire department layoffs. She said she admired the skill and fortitude it takes to be a firefighter. She said she’d been following the budget discussions on AnnArbor.com. She wondered why it took so long to get the information out. She had concerns about response times and deaths per calendar year. Increased cuts will turn Ann Arbor’s fire protection service into a surround-and-drown department. If she wanted that level of service, she said, she’d move to a township.

Dusseau contended that once staffing levels fell below 100 firefighters, the number of deaths due to fire had started to increase – even one is too many, she said. Non-essentials need to be eliminated from the budget. She’d read that money to supplement the budget was available but not applied for. She said that people wearing swim goggles at the city council was good theater, but doesn’t serve needs of the city as a whole. [This was an apparent allusion to the May 2009 public hearing on that year's budget, which included advocates for keeping Mack pool open. They had worn swim goggles – among them was James D'Amour. ] She told the council to take another look at the budget and not let staffing levels deteriorate.

Standing is Wendy Woods, former Ward 5 councilmember and current city planning commissioner. She was talking to Sandi Smith (Ward 1) before the meeting.

Former Ward 5 councilmember and current planning commissioner Wendy Woods told the council she wanted to address the issue of police and fire fighters. She said the myth needs to be debunked that fewer fires means we need fewer firefighters. The fire department has served our residents admirably, she said. They are first to respond when you’re at the lowest point in your life. They bring a calm reassurance that someone is there to help you.

Woods said she was concerned about protecting lives of citizens and their property, and also about the safety of firefighters. She urged the council to take the steps necessary to bridge the gap between the fire department and city hall. It’s just a street [Fifth Avenue] that separates them, but it might as well be the Grand Canyon, she said. She concluded with three requests: (1) don’t cut the fire department; (2) don’t cut the police department; and (3) keep residents safe.

University Bank president Stephen Ranzini introduced himself to the council as speaking for himself. He noted that he was a member of the city’s economic development corporation board.

He criticized spending $59 million on the Fifth Avenue underground parking garage at around $90,000 per parking spot – he called the project “the Big Dig.” He continued by criticizing the $43 million expenditure on the “Taj Mahal.” [He was alluding to the new municipal center, or police-courts facility, which the city is officially calling the Justice Center. Some residents have tagged the facility with the name "Raj Mahal" after former city administrator Roger Fraser.]

Ranzini said the city had a $29 million net increase in assets in FY 2010 – which the private sector would call a “profit.” He also said the city had $103 million in unrestricted funds, based on the city’s audited statements. He was referring to the city’s Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) [emphasis added]:

$103,726,801 is unrestricted and may be used to meet the government’s ongoing obligations to citizens and creditors, subject to the purpose of the fund in which they are located. This balance is comprised of $43,955,179 in governmental activities and $59,771,622 in business-type activities. [page 10]

“Governmental activities” include general fund activities such as police and fire protection and parks and recreation. “Business-type activities” include funds like water, sewer, and solid waste.

In light of the increase in assets and the amount of unrestricted funds, Ranzini questioned the need to cut police and fire staffing. There’s only one ladder truck owned by the city that is capable of responding to rescue his family from the 10-story building downtown where his family lives, he said. [The 95-foot ladder truck is deployed at Station 1 on Fifth Avenue, across from city hall.] If that ladder truck is responding to a fire in another part of the city that would have otherwise been handled by a station that is closed, he and his wife and children would die, because they can’t jump to safety, he said.

As a downtown resident, Ranzini said he could tell the council that it’s already unsafe at certain times of the day to walk outside. It’s a hostile environment for pedestrians, he said, because a culture of panhandlers is allowed to operate with impunity. The city had allowed 10 Level IV registered sex offenders to take up residence in the homeless shelter, he said, which is one block from the YMCA, and there is no visible police presence.

Ranzini said his wife is correctly afraid to leave their home by herself at night. It’s not just a rainy day, but a “financial hurricane,” he said, so what else is the $103 million rainy-day fund for, if it’s not for times like now, he asked. People say that the money is in buckets, he said, and that the money in one bucket can’t get access to the money in other buckets. So, he said, “Let’s drain the buckets.” Persisting with the fiction of the various buckets enables claims of poverty, he said.

Ranzini noted that there are “leaks in the buckets,” citing as an example the $12 million in revenue to the general fund – used in part for police and fire protection – which the city has received from the city’s public parking revenue via the Downtown Development Authority over the last six years. If the DDA had not decided to build the Fifth Avenue underground parking garage, he said, more money could have been transferred to the city. He contended that one fund can lend money to another fund. He said the city is very talented at charging fees to funds located outside the general fund. If the leaks in the buckets aren’t enough, then he suggested that the city’s charter be amended to access the money the city needs until the storm passes.

Sue Maguire introduced herself as a life-long Ann Arbor resident. She told the council how she’d been driving down Eisenhower Parkway recently, when her daughter yelled at her to call 911. Why? she asked her daughter. She pointed to the sign on the fire station, which read “Fire station closed. Call 911.” [The city is currently closing some fire stations on a rotating basis. The station near Eisenhower has a Briarwood Circle address.] They got a good laugh out of it, she said, but it really is an emergency – it’s an emergency that the city council has the ability to respond to. She told the council they need to say no to public safety cuts. She said she works in the field of crash research and knows the importance of immediate emergency response. As an Ann Arbor resident who has paid taxes her whole life, she wants public safety service to stay the same.

Thomas Partridge introduced himself as a Democratic Party member and leader. He called on the city council, the public attending the meeting and the community at large to look at major issues and the direct issues. He told them to look at the movement to recall Gov. Rick Snyder. He called on the citizens of Ann Arbor to think creatively when it comes to budgeting and to do it for multiple years, not just a single year. [The city of Ann Arbor's charter mandates that budgeting be done year by year, but the city has a two-year planning cycle.] He asked that responsible business owners think about “adopting” fire stations and police stations. He called for joining the fire departments of Ann Arbor with those of neighboring communities.

FY 2012 Budget: Council Commentary – Municipal Center

After public commentary, several council members used their communications time to discuss budget-related issues.

Mike Anglin (Ward 5) said he wanted to address a FY 2011 allocation for non-departmental contingencies – $639,000 in construction overruns for new the municipal center. He said there is money allocated in FY 2012 for asbestos abatement, but he thought the asbestos abatement had already taken place. Funds seem like they’re being shifted, he said. The building is 50,000 square feet over-sized, he said.

Sign on the Huron Street entrance to city hall before the May 16 meeting. As the logistical routines settle into place for use of the new building, staff use practical means to ensure things work as planned.

Anglin suggested that the city should simply complete the work that needs to be done – and not do anything else on the extra 50,000 square feet, until it’s an economically better time. At that point we could put money into it. He noted that this year the city had eliminated the $700,000 economic development fund. [It's been folded into the general fund balance reserve.]

He noted that there was $3 million promised from a developer of the city-owned First and Washington parcel, but the city had not ever seen that money. [The city council extended the purchase option for the developer, Village Green, most recently in August of 2010, through June 1, 2011. The council set in place a series of milestones to be met and amended the development agreement in February 2011.] Anglin said that if he’d been asked in 1990 about building a new building, he’d have been right on board. But now we need to know what we can afford and what we can’t afford.

Responding to Anglin’s remarks about cost overruns with the municipal center, mayor John Hieftje asked interim city administrator Tom Crawford about cost overruns: Were there any? Crawford said that no, he was not aware of any.

Hieftje also clarified with Crawford, who’s the city’s CFO, that it would be possible for the city to amend the budget after it’s adopted if the financial situation changes. Crawford noted that the city council does not do it frequently, but it’s a possibility, and includes bringing back laid-off workers.

FY 2012 Budget: Council Commentary – Funds/Buckets

Mayor John Hieftje asked Ann Arbor’s CFO and interim city administrator Tom Crawford to respond to comments by Stephen Ranzini during public commentary about $103 million being in a rainy day fund. Crawford suggested that Ranzini was referring to the aggregated fund balance. For some of that amount, it’s not appropriate to use it for the general fund, he said, because it comes from ratepayers for utilities.

A lot of that $103 million is reserved for construction of the new wastewater treatment plant, Crawford said. Use of those funds is not a city charter issue – it’s a basic law. Crawford said that he had a lot of concern about the idea of borrowing funds from one fund to another. He allowed that the current situation is painful, but said the city has historically not taken short-term solutions for long-term problems. And that’s the kind of fiscal discipline that has allowed the city to remain financially stable.

Hieftje asked city attorney Stephen Postema to lay out what the legal consequences would be from the state if the city were to take money inappropriately from a utility fund. Postema said he’d have to get back to the council with the specifics on that.

Stephen Kunselman (Ward 3) noted that it was an opportune time to discuss the issue of using restricted funds as they relate to public art. [The city's Percent for Art program allocates 1% of all capital projects for use on public art.] Kunselman said the council had never received a written opinion from the city attorney on that issue, and now was perhaps a good time to get that opinion.

Kunselman asked if it were possible to pass an ordinance to pay for human services in the same way that public art is paid for. Kunselman said that for the public art program, the city is pulling from restrictive funds to build a fountain. [Kunselman has raised this issue previously about obtaining a legal opinion from the city attorney: "Getting Smarter About the City Charter"]

Kunselman wanted to know about possible increases in revenue now being projected by the state. He asked Crawford if the council would receive adjusted revenue projections by their next meeting. Crawford said that would be very unlikely. Of the additional revenue being discussed by the state, Crawford said, it’s not clear how much may roll down to the local level. It will be well past May before that’s clear, he said.

Kunselman asked about the city’s own property tax projection. Crawford told Kunselman that the numbers are pretty solid – he’s not expecting a change.

Marica Higgins (Ward 4) responded to public commentary by saying what she’d heard was not a suggest to take money from one fund and put it into another, but rather to borrow against it. That, she thought, was a fair question. Hieftje said he thought that would not be wise, even if it’s possible.

Kunselman asked about a comment from the city’s public services area administrator, Sue McCormick, to the effect that there is a formula through which the city is paying for police and fire protection from utility funds, not borrowing it. Hieftje commented that the formula-based allocation is made because the city’s public safety area is delivering a service for protection of facilities, given heightened national security concerns. Crawford added that the reason for the safety services fee as applied to utility infrastructure is that the property is government-owned, so there’s no property tax collected. The fee for safety services is a mechanism the city utilities can use to contribute to the city, Crawford said.

FY 2012 Budget: Response Time Reporting by AnnArbor.com

Mayor John Hieftje introduced the topic of an AnnArbor.com article about fire protection in the city that was published over the weekend, noting that for him, it raised more questions than it answered. From the podium at the front of city council chambers, chief of police and interim fire chief Barnett Jones agreed that the article called to mind a lot of questions.

Jones said the information he’d seen in the article was not in the official reports. The article contended that at an April 23, 2010 fire, a father and six-year-old had “jumped” from a roof. Jones said that no indication of that had been made by firefighters in the written report. When he looked at it, it made him wonder, “Where did that come from?”

By way of clarification, an AnnArbor.com article published last year on April 23, 2010 about that fire included the headline: “House fire injures 3 Ann Arbor firefighters; father, child jump from roof to safety.” The first sentence of the article states: “A father and his 6-year-old daughter jumped to safety from the roof of a burning house …” Near the end of the article, the description of the descent from the roof attributed to then-fire chief Dominick Lanza is less dramatic: “Lanza said they had made it off the roof by the time firefighters arrived.”

The AAFD official documentation for that fire includes the reports that people were on the roof, but indicates firefighters were told on arrival that everyone was out of the house:

LADDER FIVE RESPONDED FOR A REPORTED HOUSE FIRE WITH PEOPLE TRAPPED ON THE ROOF. UPON ARRIVAL THE TWO STORY RESIDENCE WAS WELL INVOLVED WITH FLAMES THROUGH THE ROOF AND FIRST AND SECOND FLOOR. A BYSTANDER STATED THEY THOUGHT EVERYONE WAS OUT.

The fire investigation documentation reports an interview with the father of the family as follows:

He went to [the daughter's] bedroom and woke her up to get her out but when he attempted to escape he could not make it down the stairs through the smoke so he exited out the window on to the outside ledge and proceeded to the garage roof and then to the ground.

The Chronicle was not able to identify any descriptions in the report, or attributions to fire department officials in the AnnArbor.com article, that specifically indicate a jump was made from the roof.

Jones said the AnnArbor.com article stated that the response time for that fire was 9 minutes [and 4 seconds], but Jones said that in fact the total complement of firefighters was on the scene in 7 minutes. These are professional firefighters whose reputations could be damaged by what’s in the article, he said. Jones said he wanted to look at the reports and get together with the assistant fire chiefs and reach out to Ryan Stanton, the AnnArbor.com reporter who’d put together the article, and compare it to what’s in the actual reports. The information in the article doesn’t appear to be what the city has in the fire department reports, Jones said.

Hieftje wondered if it would make a difference if six people or four people were staffed – he wondered how they would get to the scene any faster. Jones said that for some of the fires discussed in the AnnArbor.com article, the houses were totally engulfed before the firefighters arrived. They did their best to get there as quickly as they could. So to have information put out in the community that indicated that they didn’t get to the scene fast enough – when the official reports show a different time – that needs to be clarified and corrected, Jones said.

Hieftje asked for a clarification of how “response time” is calculated. Jones said you hear a lot about the National Fire Protection Association’s (NFPA) 1710 Standards. Jones described the standards to the council. The text of the response time standard [emphasis added]:

5.2.4.1 Initial Arriving Company.
5.2.4.1.1 The fire department’s fire suppression resources shall be deployed to provide for the arrival of an engine company within a 240-second travel time to 90 percent of the incidents as established in Chapter 4.
5.2.4.1.2 Personnel assigned to the initial arriving company shall have the capability to implement an initial rapid intervention crew (IRIC).
5.2.4.2 Initial Full Alarm Assignment Capability.
5.2.4.2.1 The fire department shall have the capability to deploy an initial full alarm assignment within a 480-second travel time to 90 percent of the incidents as established in Chapter 4.

Jones told the council that it’s the four-minute “response time” standard they’ve been hearing a lot about. And based on the fire department official reports, Jones said, the fire trucks are covering the distance in the appropriate time from anywhere in the city. He said he believed there are some errors in Stanton’s calculations published in the AnnArbor.com story that need to be cleared up.

FY 2012 Budget: AnnArbor.com Fire Reporting – Background

In terms of the NFPA standards, it’s clear that the “response time” of the fire department is a time interval – with a beginning and an end. The start of the “response time” interval is when the firetruck is on the way (i.e., is en route) to the fire scene. The “response time” interval ends when the truck arrives on the scene of the fire.

This fits with the idea that the “response time” standard is meant in part to address the issue of adequate geographic fire protection coverage, which is related to the number of fire stations, hence to staffing levels. That standard does not address how efficient firefighters are at getting themselves into their gear and onto their trucks after they are notified that they need to roll. And the “response time” also does not include the interval before firefighters are notified – that is, the time it takes the 911 operator and fire dispatcher to deal with a call.

Obviously, the intervals that precede the “response time” interval also matter. And separate standards apply to those intervals. For the interval that starts with the call to 911 and ends with the notification of a fire station that it needs to roll its trucks down the road, the standard is 60 seconds. From the time a fire station receives notification, i.e., is dispatched to the fire scene, to the point when the trucks are actually on the way, the standard is also 60 seconds.

In terms of time points and the intervals between them, this is The Chronicle’s summary of what the NFPA timeline looks like:

Timepoint 1: The time when the emergency alarm is received by the public safety operator.
Interval: 1-2 [Dispatch Time (or Call Processing Time)] 60 seconds
Timepoint 2: The time when sufficient information is known to the dispatcher, and the relevant fire station is notified of the emergency.
Interval: 2-3 [Turnout Time] 60 seconds
Timepoint 3: The time at which a fire truck is en route to the emergency incident.
Interval: 3-4 [Response Time] 240 seconds (4 minutes), 480 seconds for full-alarm assignment of vehicles and personnel.
Timepoint 4: The time when a fire truck arrives at the scene.

Determining the actual intervals for a given fire is a matter of performing the clock arithmetic on the correct timepoints. The reporting in the AnnArbor.com article about the AAFD response times was based on timepoints drawn from AAFD official reports. However, instead of using Timepoint 3 (the actual en route time) for the arithmetic, it appears a different timepoint was used.

The fire reports used in the AnnArbor.com article were uploaded by that publication to a2docs.org:

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Based on The Chronicle’s review of the AAFD reports used in AnnArbor.com’s arithmetic, it seems that AAFD’s practice is not to record Timepoint 3 as a separate datapoint, but instead to copy the timepoint labeled “dispatch time” into the report field labeled “enroute time.” From a Sept. 16, 2010 report:

Ann Arbor Fire Department report for Sept. 16, 2010 fire reporting, illustrating the identical timepoint recordings for "notify time" and "enroute time."

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If the timepoint labeled “enroute time” is used for the clock arithmetic, ignoring the fact that it’s identical to the “notify time” (an equivalence that seems impossible), the result of the clock arithmetic for “response time” is 4 minutes 9 seconds [05:59:44 – 05:55:35 = 00:04:09], or 9 seconds longer than the NFPA standards that should be met for 90% of fires.

In multiple places elsewhere in the same Sept. 16, 2010 report, a “dispatch time” is recorded as 05:55 – it’s only precise to the minute. And an “alarm time” is recorded as 05:55:35 – which is also identical to the “notify time” and the “enroute times.”

The sum of the NFPA standards for the interval between the dispatch timepoint (Timepoint 2) to the on-scene arrival time (Timepoint 4) is 5 minutes. Based on that interval, the Sept. 16, 2010 “response time” + “turnout time” would be classified as meeting the NFPA standard.

One of the reports used in the AnnArbor.com article does include Timepoint 3 as a separate datapoint – in the form of a screen grab from a dispatcher’s screen. For the April 23, 2010 fire, a separate timepoint – between “dispatch” and “on-scene” – is recorded as “respond.” That’s the timepoint when the firefighters alert dispatchers that they are on the way.

Excerpt from a dispatcher screen grab included in the Ann Arbor fire department report for April 23, 2010. The "respond time" corresponds to the "enroute time," or Timepoint 3, when the firefighters let the dispatcher know they're on the way to the scene.

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Using the “respond” timepoint for the clock arithmetic on the April 23, 2010 fire yields a 2 minute 37 second “response time” for the first-arriving vehicle and a 7 minute 6 second response for the fifth vehicle on the scene (including the battalion chief), which is Ann Arbor’s “full alarm assignment.” Both of those “response times” meet the NFPA standard.

In an email to The Chronicle, assistant fire chief Chuck Hubbard noted that sometimes firefighters tell the dispatcher over the radio at the station that they’re responding to a call, then climb aboard the trucks and head to the fire scene, rather than radioing from the truck. That introduces some uncertainty in the response time data.

Assistant fire chief Chuck Hubbard attended the council's May 16 meeting.

While the “response time” standard addresses travel time to a fire scene, and relates to the number of stations maintained in the city and their geographic distribution, the other time intervals relate to call-center efficiency and the ability of firefighters to assemble their gear and start rolling down the road. It’s not clear what accounts for the three-minute interval between “dispatch” and “respond” for the April 23, 2010 fire.

It does seem clear that, without an understanding of actual AAFD operating procedures and how they relate to the data included in official AAFD reports, it’s difficult to draw definitive conclusions from those reports about the actual time intervals that are relevant for evaluating Ann Arbor fire department performance against NFPA standards.

The uncertainty of the data in the reports is supported by a notation in a report made five days after an April 13, 2010 fire [emphasis added]:

04/18/2010 09:51:55 ETAYLOR All individual personnel names were added to each apparatus for complete accountability of who was at the scene. The injury report was updated with the proper age of the firefighter who was injured at the scene. Also wanted to note that some of the times were estimated because of inaccurate times reported by central dispatch.

FY 2012 Budget: AnnArbor.com Community Comparison Reporting

At the council meeting, chief Jones went on to say that a AnnArbor.com article had failed to include in its presentation of data about other Big 10 university communities that some of those fire department have their own ambulances. That requires additional staffing, he said.

Each ambulance would require an additional seven staff, he said. Taking East Lansing as an example [home of Michigan State University], Jones said that if the ambulance personnel were subtracted, it would work out to approximately the same relative staffing level as Ann Arbor.

FY 2012 Budget: Council/Staff Response – Fire Protection

Speaking about the fire protection study that the International City/County Management Association (ICMA) is conducting for the city, chief Jones characterized that organization as the neutral third party that would bring in experts from the fire service profession to do the study. [The contract with ICMA, for not more than $54,000, was authorized at the city council's Feb. 7, 2011 meeting.]

Toward the beginning of the council meeting, mayor John Hieftje had asked interim city administrator Tom Crawford about the status of the fire protection study that the city has commissioned. Crawford said it’s expected to be delivered in July. [In connection with the appointment of the interim administrator from an internal pool of candidates, the fire protection study was one of the major projects identified as important for the appointee to carry forward.]

Chief Jones noted that he’d been working with the two assistant fire chiefs, and he’d be bringing a recommendation to fill the open fire chief position by promoting from within. [Jones is head of public safety services for the city and is serving as interim fire chief in the wake of Dominick Lanza's resignation this spring, after only about a year on the job.]

Ann Arbor is an intelligent community, Jones said, and we need to have the facts in front of us. The ICMA would provide those facts. ICMA would give clear advice so that Ann Arbor is prepared to go in the right direction, he said.

Marcia Higgins (Ward 4) wanted to know who would be doing the fire protection study – city managers? Who are the actual people who have the expertise to evaluate the fire department, she asked. Jones told her it would be experts from the relevant field of city government. For Ann Arbor’s study, it would be Don James, a firefighter from Florida, who would lead the study. He’d be assisted by a data analyst and a third person who is an ex-fire chief, Jones said.

Higgins asked who would write the report. She wanted to know if it would be filtered. Jones told Higgins, “No, ma’am.” He said a personal friend of his – the fire chief in Troy – had tried to influence that report, and they’d “slapped him” a few times. ICMA will not “water down” their results, Jones assured Higgins.

During his communications time, Stephen Rapundalo (Ward 2) said he wanted to clear up some misinformation. He said there’s a perception that the city has refused to meet with firefighters to negotiate a new contract. He said that’s clearly not accurate. The city has met at least 16 times with the firefighters’ negotiating team, most recently a week or so ago. A state mediator has participated in meetings on three occasions. Another another meeting was scheduled later this week. The firefighters had filed an Act 312 petition requesting arbitration in March. Among the issues in dispute are wages, pension, rank differential, and staffing levels. All of those have the potential to affect the budget, depending on how the arbitrator rules, Rapundalo said.

Despite the uncertainty of the situation, the city continues to meet and hope that “cooler heads will prevail,” Rapundalo said. He hoped that the two sides can come to an understanding to mitigate some of the cuts.

FY 2012 Budget: Council Deliberations

The decision to recess the meeting and continue it a week later is driven by a city charter requirement that the council adopt its budget no later than the second meeting in May, which began May 16. When the meeting resumes on May 23, it will be considered to be the same meeting.

Sabra Briere (Ward 1) said she’d looked it up in Robert’s Rules of Order and what should happen is to “adjourn to date and time specific” After clarifying with city attorney Stephen Postema that either the word “recess” or “adjourn” would work, Hieftje noted that the date and time would be 7 p.m. on May 23.

Outcome: The council voted unanimously to recess the meeting until Monday, May 23 at 7 p.m.

Human Services Funding

Before the council was a resolution to allocate $1,159,029 in funding to nonprofits in the city that provide human services.

The $1,159,029 amount to be allocated reflects a 9% reduction from FY 2011 human services funding levels. The council had postponed consideration of the human services allocation at its May 2, 2011 meeting in order to explore ways of “finding another dime.”

The city’s support for human services is allocated in coordination with other entities: the United Way of Washtenaw County ($1,677,000), Washtenaw County ($1,015,000) and the Washtenaw Urban County ($363,154).

On Monday, councilmembers were inclined to delay action on all budget-related issues, given their plan to delay action on the FY 2012 budget, which was achieved through a recess of the meeting until Monday, May 23. When the meeting continues at that time, the resolution on human services funding can be taken off the table for deliberation and a vote.

It’s possible that when the budget resolution is considered on May 23, an amendment will be proposed to draw $85,600 from the city’s general fund reserve to increase the human services allocation. That budget amendment is expected to be proposed by Sabra Briere (Ward 1) and Marcia Higgins (Ward 4).

Outcome: The council voted to lay on the table the resolution on human services funding. It can be taken up off the table when the meeting resumes on Monday, May 23.

Water System Study

Before the council was a $208,984 contract with AECOM for a study of the city’s water distribution system. The money for the study, which dates from a 2007 request for proposals (RFP), was allocated in the fiscal year 2011 budget of the city’s water fund. The level of service (LOS) study to be done by AECOM will recommend a sustainable level of service for the city’s water distribution system, and determine how much investment it would take to achieve that level. The study would also help the city decide, for example, which water mains should be replaced first.

Water System Study: Council Deliberations

Cresson Slotten, unit manager in the systems planning department, fielded questions from the council on the study. He described it as the second part of a two-part study. The first part had addressed the capacity and technical function of the water distribution system. The second phase looks at the level of services and will involve a citizens group, addressing issues like taste and odor, and will provide cost estimates to deliver the desired level of service.

Mayor John Hieftje pointed out that the money for the study derives from fees paid by water consumers.

Stephen Kunselman (Ward 3) asked Slotten if the four water main breaks in his neighborhood in the last year would be included in the scope of the study. Slotten allowed that this kind of issue is part of the study. Other factors include taste – as pipes begin to age, taste might be affected – color and odor.

Kunselman then noted that the city has a very qualified staff. They know where breaks are, so why can’t the city do this internally? Why do they need to hire it out? Slotten said the city has maintained the system well, but hasn’t gone out to citizens and asked them for their views.

Sabra Briere (Ward 1) said if she understood the proposal correctly, what the city is seeking is a consultant to communicate better with people who live in Ann Arbor, to ask the right questions and give the staff the information they have to share. Briere said it seems not to be a one-time thing – it seems to be a recurring theme about why the city hires consultants. Is it that the city doesn’t have the capacity to do the work, she asked, or doesn’t have the capacity to communicate?

One thing a consultant brings, Slotten said, is the ability to compare standards to other communities across the U.S. and Canada. The consultant has evaluated assets in communities across the country, and brings that experience and context. Sandi Smith (Ward 1) said the question has come up from residents about the city possibly privatizing its water distribution system. Smith provided the historical note that Ann Arbor had actually purchased its system originally from a private company in 1908.

Christopher Taylor (Ward 3) asked Slotten to speak to the value of the consultant as it relates to the city’s capital planning. Slotten said that one of the reasons this particular firm was selected is that they use a capital asset prioritization simulator (CAPS) that takes advantage of information that the city is already tracking, like where breaks are occurring.

Marcia Higgins (Ward 4) said she could appreciate that the city wants to have the study done. However, she had a problem taking on a $200,000 study. She said she was not sure she could support it. She was particularly concerned about the $10,550 contingency. She felt like the city did not do a good job making sure that unused contingencies are returned to fund balances.

CFO Tom Crawford noted that contingencies are used only if needed. Contingencies are reviewed quarterly, he said, and when the project is closed, contingencies go back.

Carsten Hohnke (Ward 5) said he was not for the amendment, saying that if there are concerns about accounting and how contingencies are closed out, then that issue should be addressed directly. Hieftje said he would not support the amendment either, saying the contingency could cover critical work that needs to be done.

Outcome on contingency amendment: Amending out the contingency was approved on a 6-5 vote with support from: Smith, Briere, Rapundalo, Higgins, Kunselman and Anglin.

Hieftje then asked if Higgins perhaps would like to delay a final vote until other budget issues were also addressed. So she moved that the issue be laid on the table.

Outcome: The council voted to lay the resolution on the table. They’ll be able to take it up off the table when the meeting resumes on May 23.

Neighborhood Stabilization Program Funds: Near North Demolition

Before the council was a resolution to add to its neighborhood stabilization program (NSP) budget, and a corresponding expenditure to pay for the demolition of three houses as site preparation for the Near North affordable housing project on North Main.

The addition to the NSP budget came from a reimbursement. The owner of a house paid back NSP money to the city, previously expended to demolish the owner’s property. That reimbursement amounted to $24,135. NSP funds come originally from federal grants allocated through the Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA).

In addition, city staff identified an NSP homeowner acquisition and rehabilitation project that was completed under budget by $11,750. Combined, the additional revenue to the NSP budget and the savings on the rehabilitation project amount to $35,885. Of that amount, $33,292 will be used to pay for the demolition of 718, 722, and 724 N. Main St., with the remaining $2,593 going to administration costs in the office of community development, which oversees the NSP. The money will be allocated to the nonprofit Avalon Housing, which is developing the Near North project with Three Oaks.

The city council originally approved rezoning for the project – a four-story, 39-unit mixed use residential building on a 1.19-acre site – on Sept. 21, 2009.

NSP Near North Demolitions: Council Deliberations

Sabra Briere (Ward 1) asked Mary Jo Callan, head of the city/county office of community development, to explain how the funding worked. Neighborhood stabilization program (NSP) funds received in 2009 were used initially to demolish a residential property. A lien was placed on it for $24,135. When the property was sold, the sale proceeds were used to pay back the city. When the NSP program receives income, the city tries to apply the money to an existing, shovel-ready project, Callan said.

Kunselman noted there are lots of blighted properties in the city that could use these funds. Why were these houses on North Main selected and not others? Why wouldn’t the developer be responsible for tearing down the houses? Callan told Kunselman those were great questions. The funds have a time limit on them, so part of the reason to use them on the Near North demolitions is that it’s a project ready to go, there’s a clear owner, a clear title, and there are no potential delays. In addition, NSP funds can only be used on certain census tracts.

Kunselman wanted to know if a lien would be placed on the property and how the Near North developer would pay it back. Callan said that certain liens are forgiven. But if the property were sold, it would have to get paid back. Kunselman concluded from what Callan said that the money for demolition is a grant. Callan told him, “It’s an investment in permanently affordable housing.” The expectation is that the housing will be permanently affordable. The city’s strategy is not heavily weighted towards “recycling” the money, as Kunselman was suggesting: use money for demolition; place a lien on the property; the property sells; the lien is paid back; and the money becomes available for demolition of another blighted property.

Kunselman asked community services area administrator Sumedh Bahl how many blighted properties the city’s nuisance committee had identified. Bahl said the committee is prioritizing a list and in the next few months, that list would be shared with the council. Kunselman wondered if the city would have any money to undertake demolitions. There was a house torn down in his neighborhood where the money was paid back. Was there any way to make sure the North Main property owner does pay it back?

Sabra Briere (Ward 1) said she was intrigued that it’s a permanent loan that gets paid back only if a property is sold. She said it’s a disincentive to sell, and a reason to give this kind of grant. She asked if there are other similar situations in the offing. Callan said this is the city’s model for investing in affordable housing. She said the need to repay on sale of the property is absolutely a disincentive to sell, but that Avalon Housing doesn’t need the disincentive in the case of the Near North project, because affordable housing is their mission.

Briere wondered if, generally speaking, NSP funds were not for demolition. Callan explained that demolition is, in fact, an allowable activity for NSP funds – it’s about stabilizing neighborhoods. Although the city has not used NSP funds often for that, she said she’d talked with Margie Teall (Ward 4) about setting aside some of the NSP funds for demolition.

Outcome: The council voted to approve the NSP allocations so that the houses on North Main could be demolished in preparation for the Near North housing project.

Large Vehicle Purchases

Before the council were authorizations for the purchase of two large vehicles – an Elgin street sweeper ($273,300) and a combination sewer truck ($398,806).

The staff memo accompanying the request for the sweeper states: “The sweeper being replaced has been in service ten years and has 5,960 hours of use. Over the last two years, this unit has been taken to Fleet Service for maintenance and repairs 87 times of which 33% have been for breakdowns. The total cost of all repairs over the same time frame have exceeded $113,250.”

About the combination sewer truck: “This truck will replace a 2004 unit with 8060 hours of use. Over the last two years, this unit has been taken to Fleet Service for maintenance and repairs 53 times of which 58% have been for breakdowns. These breakdowns have taken the unit out of service from as little as four hours to as long as two weeks.”

The council had postponed the purchases from its May 2, 2011 meeting with a request for additional information about the vehicles.

Large Vehicle Purchases: Council Deliberations

Stephen Kunselman (Ward 3) wanted to know if the trucks had any resale value. Craig Hupy, head of systems planning for the city, said they did. The city is known for keeping its trucks in pretty good shape, he said. But the city kept the trucks in service for a longer time than a dealership would be willing to offer a guaranteed buy-back, so the re-sale value depends on the market, Hupy said.

Kunselman asked if the same sewer truck purchase proposal had been brought before the council last year. No, said Hupy. It was in a previous year’s budget. But Hupy described how the city had a desire to do cooperative bidding with other cities and they’d gone together with three other cities to bid for the truck. Agreeing with the other cities on the specifications for the trucks was like “herding cats,” Hupy said, but in the end the city had gotten about a 10% better deal than if it had gone out to bid by itself.

Mayor John Hieftje drew out the fact that the vehicles to be replaced had frequently been out of service, and in the case of the combination sewer truck could delay cleaning out of sewers, which could result in sewers backing up.

Marcia Higgins (Ward 4) picked up on the idea that the city needs the truck – it’s needed to do sewer clear-outs, which can result in sewer backups for residents if they’re not done. Hearing that, said Higgins, boggled her mind. She said she understood comments by Hupy and Hieftje to mean that if the city doesn’t do sewer clear-outs, it can cause sewer backups in the basement. Hupy allowed that the failure to do sewer clear-outs “can result in” sewer backups – not “cause.” Hupy said it was his understanding that if the city has not performed adequate sewer maintenance and a resident experiences sewer backups, then it can result in a payable claim.

Higgins also wanted to know how the vehicles were being paid for. If a vehicle is not originally paid for out of the fleet fund, does the revenue from resale go back to the fund it was paid out of? Hupy said he’d defer to the financial folks to answer the question – Sue McCormick, public services area administrator. The truck was originally paid out of sewer funds, said McCormick. So money from resale goes back to the sewer fund.

As the city moves ahead, McCormick said, it purchases new vehicles from the fleet fund. So the next time a truck like this is replaced, it’ll be bought out of the fleet fund with money contributed by the sanitary sewer fund. Sabra Briere (Ward 1) wanted McCormick to explain why the city was moving to a strategy of paying for vehicles out of the fleet fund.

McCormick described the history at the city related to pressures on general fund fleet purchases. That had resulted in a very slow vehicle replacement schedule, with older vehicles. And the city wound up with very low reliability on daily production work. So the decision was made years ago to stop purchasing vehicles from the fleet fund and to pay for vehicles through cash flow. The city has now done away with that practice, McCormick said, and is returning to a strategy of paying for new vehicles out of the fleet fund. The reason, she said, is that if you think about paying annual depreciation on a vehicle, as opposed to “cash flowing it,” the cash-flow approach impacts utility rates in the year when the expense is incurred, instead of spreading it over the life of the vehicle. The fleet fund approach is thus more favorable to ratepayers, she said.

Kunselman wrapped up his comments by saying he would be supporting the purchase. He noted there have been four water main breaks within two blocks of his house, and when the city comes with the trucks, they’re right there and they pull everything out of the hole.

Outcome: The council approved both truck purchases on separate votes.

“Parks Fairness” Resolution

Before the council was a proposed revision to the 2006 administrative policy that governs the use of the city’s parks capital improvements and maintenance millage, including how the city’s general fund should support Ann Arbor’s parks.

A key point to the revision includes an additional provision that “for the purpose of this resolution all funds other than the Millage which are used to support Parks and Recreation system activities shall be considered the same as City’s General Fund support.” The proposed budget for fiscal year 2012 calls for using money from the METRO Act fund and the city’s stormwater fund to pay for certain parks operations, which the city would like to count as general fund support.

The new provision in the policy helps the city’s planned budget for FY 2012 conform with another administrative policy requirement – that the amount of general fund parks support not decrease any more than other parts of the general fund.

A further amendment that was before the council on May 16 would have changed the standard of general fund support from one that is based on hard dollars to one that is based on service levels, with FY 2011 as a baseline: “[T]he General Fund budget supporting the Parks and Recreation system for that year may be reduced by a higher percentage than the average percentage reduction of the total City General Fund budget as long as the FY11 level of service within Parks and Recreation system is not materially reduced.”

That second amendment would have helped the city conform with the policy this year, because the proposed FY 2012 budget called for spending $90,000 less on parks than would otherwise be required if the administrative policy were left unamended. The city contends that the $90,000 reduction in expenditures is due to increased efficiency, and would not affect service standards. [Chronicle coverage: "Council to Get Reminder of Parks Promise"]

The city council also revised the 2006 administrative policy during the FY 2010 budget cycle, so that millage funding for the natural area preservation program would not automatically increase by 3% every year.

Parks Fairness Resolution: Council Deliberations

Christopher Taylor (Ward 3) began by introducing the background for the resolution: The 2006 parks maintenance and capital improvements millage was accompanied by a city council resolution outlining how the millage money should be spent. Generally speaking, he said, the resolution was meant to have any reductions/increases in parks funding be on a parallel track with general fund reductions/increases.

Taylor indicated that he’d be suggesting a friendly amendment to a resolution revising the 2006 policy. In the midst of his remarks, which Taylor self-described as a “long and wandering introduction,” Mayor John Hieftje wanted to get the issue of the amendment settled. But Taylor told the mayor that he’d not gotten to the actual amendment yet.

The amendment that Taylor wanted to make to his own resolution was this:  Strike the proposed addition of a clause that would establish service levels as the standard that parks spending would be measured against, instead of a hard dollar figure comparison to the general fund. The reason he wanted to strike the clause was that he felt it might be possible to find a way to make up the additional $90,000 for parks in the FY 2012 budget, which the current administrative policy would require, if it were not amended.

Confusion ensued among councilmembers as they struggled to understand what Taylor intended. In sum, the following language from his amendment was stricken, which left that part of the administrative policy intact.

… [T]he General Fund budget supporting the Parks and Recreation system for that year may be reduced by a higher percentage than the average percentage reduction of the total City General Fund budget as long as the FY11 level of service within Parks and Recreation system is not materially reduced.

Surviving amendment was the part of Taylor’s resolution that allowed non-millage funds outside the general fund to count for purposes of calculating the amount of general fund support for the parks.

Outcome: The council voted unanimously to revise the parks millage administrative policy to allow non-millage funds external to the general fund to count as general fund money for purposes of the policy.

Taxicab Fares

Before the council was an increase in the allowable fare for cabs operating in the city. The rate increase affects only the mileage component of fares, which were last approved on May 19, 2008.

The mileage increase from $2.25/mile to $2.50/mile had been requested by several taxicab companies in light of rising fuel prices, which are currently just over $4/gallon. The city’s taxicab board has indicated that with this increase, it does not anticipate considering another rate change until the gas prices are over $5/gallon for at least two consecutive months. The board had voted to recommend the change at its April 28, 2011 meeting.

Members of the taxicab board include the city’s CFO Tom Crawford, and William Clock, an officer with the Ann Arbor police department, as non-voting members. [The city's ordinance actually requires that the city's CFO and the chief of police serve as non-voting members.] The five voting members are Stephen Kunselman (representative to the board from the city council) as well as Barbara Krick, C. Robert Snyder, Tom Oldakowski and Timothy Hull.

[Hull has filed nominating petitions to contest the city council Democratic primary in Ward 2 against incumbent Stephen Rapundalo. Kunselman will be running for re-election in the Ward 3 Democratic primary.]

Crawford, who is also interim city administrator, had announced the public hearing on the taxicab fare increase at the city council’s May 2, 2011 meeting.

Taxicab Fares: Public Hearing

Michael Benson introduced himself as a Ward 2 resident and president of the University of Michigan graduate student body. He told the council he wanted to speak about the process for the increase. He noted fuel costs are in fact going up and he understands the need for the increase. But he noted that in the past, a temporary surcharge has been used to address increased fuel prices – why not this time? He asked that the increase be amended with some kind of sunset clause that would require the increase to be reviewed after a certain period, and that a recommendation be brought back to the council.

Thomas Partridge called on the council to postpone the increase. Any increase in rates harms the most vulnerable residents first, he said. Executives in limousines pulling up to Google are not concerned about taxicab rates, he said. He called on the council to table the measure and come up with a better proposal.

Taxicab Fares: Council Deliberations

Carsten Hohnke (Ward 5) inquired whether a formula been considered that would tie taxicab rates to some objective third-party measure of fuel prices, so that requests for fare increases would come before the council less frequently. Stephen Kunselman (Ward 3), who sponsored the resolution as the city council’s appointee to the taxicab board, responded to Hohnke by saying that other costs have also increased – it’s not just the gas increase that’s driving this. He told Hohnke that no formula tied to fuel prices has been discussed.

In response to Benson’s suggestion made during public commentary to sunset the increase, Kunselman said he was not going to make that recommendation. Taxicab companies are struggling for other reasons. Kunselman amended one of the “whereas” clauses to make it clear that gas prices have now exceeded $4/gallon – they didn’t jump by $4/gallon.

Outcome: The council voted unanimously to approve the fare increase.

Downtown Design Guidelines

Before the council was initial approval to an amendment of its land use control ordinance that will establish design guidelines for new projects in downtown Ann Arbor, and set up a seven-member design review board (DRB) to provide developers with feedback on their projects’ conformance to the design guidelines.

All city of Ann Arbor ordinances require approval at an initial first reading before the council, a public hearing, and a final approval.

The project review by the DRB will come before a meeting with nearby residents – which is already required as part of the citizen participation ordinance. While the DRB process is required, conformance with the recommendations of that body is voluntary.

The city council had previously approved the design guideline review program at its Feb. 7, 2011 meeting. The city planning commission unanimously recommended the change to the city’s ordinance at its April 5, 2011 meeting. [Previous Chronicle coverage, which includes a detailed timeline of the design guidelines work, dating back to a work group formed in 2006: "Ann Arbor Hotel First to Get Design Review?"]

Council deliberations were brief. Marcia Higgins (Ward 4) noted that the ordinance now before the council is coming back after being presented at the February meeting. The city’s planning commission had been asked to expedite it, she said, and they had done that. That means that new construction will fall under the ordinance. She urged her colleagues to pass it, saying, “It’s exactly what we wanted.”

Outcome: The council voted unanimously to approve the design guidelines, which will need a final approval before the ordinance is enacted.

Communications and Comment

Every city council agenda contains multiple slots for city councilmembers and the city administrator to give updates or make announcements about important issues that are coming before the city council. And every meeting typically includes public commentary on subjects not necessarily on the agenda.

Comm/Comm: Transformers in Neighborhoods

Stephen Kunselman (Ward 3) informed his council colleagues that in response to an issue raised in Arbor Oaks subdivision by a city engineer – it concerned electrical transformers in the easements of backyards – he and Stephen Rapundalo (Ward 2) had contacted Paul Ganz, DTE’s regional manager, and DTE had sent crews out to investigate. Everything is safe, he reported, and there is no danger of electrocution. DTE is going to address some of the visual issues that had caused concern.

Present: Stephen Rapundalo, Mike Anglin, Margie Teall, Sabra Briere, Sandi Smith, Tony Derezinski, Stephen Kunselman, Marcia Higgins, John Hieftje, Christopher Taylor, Carsten Hohnke.

Council meeting to be continued: May 23, 2011 at 7 p.m. in the second-floor council chambers at 301 E. Huron. [confirm date]