March 13, 2023
City of Dexter City Council Meeting
Monday, March 13, 2023 at 7 p.m.
3515 Broad Street, Dexter, MI 48130 and via Zoom
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Meeting ID: 881 4138 1694#
Meeting Agenda: https://files.dextermi.gov/City_Council/2023/Agendas/2023-03-13-CC-A.pdf
Meeting Packet: https://files.dextermi.gov/City_Council/2023/Packets/2023-03-13-CC-P.pdf
As always, there are two opportunities for non-arranged public participation: one near the beginning of the meeting and one near the end of the meeting. See the agenda for details. Just state your name and address and then share your thoughts–it’s that easy!
Council will review (1) minutes of its most recent meeting(s) and (2) the upcoming meeting list. We will also hear various updates from staff, including the City Manager and the Mayor (note that corresponding written reports are included in the meeting packet).
Staff updates that might be of interest:
8180 Main St. – KLA Development and Nate Pound informed staff that they reached an agreement on the purchase of 8180 Main St. Staff anticipates KLA’s next step will be submittal of an application for conceptual PUD review.
Host an Artist for the Paint Dexter Plein Air Festival. This year, staff has been receiving a number of requests from artists looking for somewhere to stay while they are in town for the festival. In the past, residents have volunteered their homes as a place for an artist to using a Host an Artist form on the Paint Dexter website. If members of Council know of anyone who would be interested in hosting an artist, please have them contact Josh Tanghe at City Hall.
Easter Eggstravaganza. The Easter Egg Scramble portion of the Easter Eggstravaganza will be taking place the morning of Saturday, April 8th at 9:00am. The scramble will be split into three heats for children 0-3, 4-6, and 7-10. For older kids and members of the community of any age, the Eggstravaganza’s Riddle Hunt will begin Saturday, March 25th. Members of the public will use riddles to track down an Easter Egg hidden in each park that has a word used to complete a secret phrase. Once the phrase is found, families can come to 3515 Broad Street and claim a prize! The Riddle Hunt will run from the 25th of March until April 7th. Staff would also like to thank the Girl Scout Troops that assisted with the egg stuffing for this year’s event.
3515 Broad St. Update. The City Offices have officially opened to the public on March 6th. Residents are able to come in-person to the new City Hall to pay bills and conduct business. Residents looking for a tour are always welcomed to stop by or give staff a call to request a tour of the facility. Staff anticipates having all items, including cubicle walls, out of 8123 Main St. by the end of March.
Following the presentation and any discussion of these reports, Council will consider the following items as part of the Consent Agenda. Unless Council votes to do otherwise, these items are voted on as a single bundle without Council discussion.
Bills & Payroll in the amount of: $496,180.66
Sale of DPW Truck, Kubota RTV, Exmark Lawnmower via Auction
Staff placed three pieces of equipment up for auction on Govdeals.com on February 15th with a bidding deadline of March 15th at 7:00pm. The equipment up for auction is as follows:
2011 Ex Mark Lazer Z (mower)
2006 GMC Sierra 2500HD
2011 Kubota RTV 900 XT
The current bids for the equipment are: GMC Sierra (currently $5,605.55), Kubota RTV ($6,000), and Ex Mark Mower ($2,000).
The City’s purchasing policy stipulates that City Council must approve all sales made through auction. It was recommended by the Washtenaw County Road Commission that the City try the GovDeals auction website for the sale of goods and equipment. GovDeals is a widely used online government auction website, and there are no fees to the City for the posting of bids.
Easter Event Road Closure
A road closure permit request has been submitted by the Dexter United Methodist Church for their event "Face to Face with the Easter Story." The event is proposed to be held on April 8th, 2023, starting at 1:00pm at Monument Park. The road closure would be for Central Street between 11:00am to 4:00pm for animal unloading/loading as well as various animal vehicles.
Memorial Day Parade Road Closure
A road closure permit request has been submitted by the Rotary Club of Dexter to host their Memorial Day Parade on May 29. Per their permit request, the following road closures have been requested:
Dexter-Ann Arbor Road between Kensington and Alpine from 10:00 am until noon
Central Street between Fifth Street and Main Street from 9:00 am until noon
Dexter-Ann Arbor Run Road Closure
A road closure permit request has been submitted by the Ann Arbor Track Club for the Dexter- Ann Arbor Run. The event is proposed to be held on June 4, 2023, starting at 8:30am at Creekside Intermediate School. The race is proposed to travel: Baker Rd. at Creekside Intermediate School → Shield Rd. → Parker Rd. → Dexter-Chelsea Rd. → Dexter-Pinckney Rd. → Huron River Dr. → Zeeb Rd.
VC3 Quote for Networking
On Monday, February 27th, the City’s IT provider, VC3 (formerly IT Right), was on-site to transfer the City’s server infrastructure from 8123 Main Street to 3515 Broad Street. During the visit, VC3 documented the City’s IT needs related to internet access points, switches (for activating Ethernet ports), and other IT infrastructure.
Currently, most offices have only one internet port, leaving some areas of City Hall with no access to the hardline internet access. This is due to the expanded size of the 3515 Broad Street building versus 8123 Main Street. The items quoted by VC3 would remedy these issues and provide the City long-term IT infrastructure for growth and greater flexibility.
Resetting Public Hearing Date for Hotel Hickman Lease Ordinance
In October of 2022, City Council approved an ordinance to lease the property at 8050 Main St. to Hotel Hickman (Scott Thomas DBA Hotel Hickman). Since the passage of that ordinance, Scott Thomas has sold Hotel Hickman to Melissa McClure. Since the previous lease agreement specifically names Scott Thomas, Council will need to pass another ordinance to approve a lease agreement with Ms. McClure for Hotel Hickman.
On February 13th, City Council approved setting a public hearing for the March 13th meeting to consider an updated ordinance. Unfortunately, staff missed the deadline to post the public hearing notice in the newspaper.
This item has been provided to re-set the public hearing date for April 10, 2023 to consider a new ordinance to lease property to Hotel Hickman. The draft ordinance maintains the same monthly rental rate of $700, then $725 in December 2023. The lease keeps a 2-year term, and would expire at the end of March 2025.
Council will consider (i.e., take formal action on; “C”) or discuss (i.e., take no formal action on; “D”) the following business:
Updates to the Subdivision Ordinance (C)
On February 27, 2023 City Council conducted a public hearing for the purpose of considering Updates to the Subdivision Ordinance. Staff and CWA reviewed the update process and highlighted the minor changes Council had requested regarding cul-de-sac streets length, mid-block crossings, lot depth, minimum lot width and area in commercial/industrial districts, and tree lawn width. Mayor Keough opened the hearing at 7:40 pm. There were no comments offered by the public and the hearing was closed at 7:50 pm.
Concerns regarding radii at intersections, drainage swales and ditches, and a reference to National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO) Standards were addressed by the City Engineer, but not in time to be included in the meeting packet. Thus, Council postponed action to allow the city engineer recommendations to be provided for Council’s consideration at its March 13, 2023 meeting.
Proposal for Architectural Design Services from Partners in Architecture Related to Public Safety Facilities (D/C)
Following the decisions by Council during the February 27, 2023 meeting, staff connected with David Gassen of Partners in Architecture to provide design services for the next phase of the public safety facilities project. Prior to the preparation of the agenda packet, Mr. Gassen was able to provide a draft of the Partners in Architecture proposal, which is attached to this memo. Staff anticipates that a final draft of the proposal will be provided for inclusion in the packet supplement prior to the March 13th meeting.
Per the draft memo, the proposal includes the following tasks:
Environmental Assessments
Existing Utilities Analysis
Civil Survey
Geotechnical Investigation
Construction Management (CM) delivery option selection and vendor solicitation/procurement
Evaluation of concepts for both renovation /expansion and new building with phasing components
Removal of Dexter Fire Station Sign at MAV Property (C)
An item was requested by Council Member Hubbard regarding the removal of the “Proposed Future Home of the Dexter Fire Station” sign located at the MAV property. The sign was installed at the direction of Council based on a motion passed during the March 9, 2020 City Council meeting.
Fencing of 3045 Broad St. (D)
A discussion item was requested by Council Member Michels relating to the installation of fencing at the 3045 Broad St. property.
Temporary Sculpture Display (C)
After narrowing the submissions down to a final eleven during Arts, Culture and Heritage Committee’s March meeting, all submission and the ACH recommendations went in front of the Art Selection Committee on March 7th to determine the final slate. A fifth sculpture is included as a part of this year’s sculpture display, which was a part of the current fiscal year budget.
The following are the recommended sculptures per each location (see pages 141-153 of packet for images of proposed and alternate sculptures):
Mill Creek Circular Seating – Wheels in the Sky by Christine Beals
Clock Tower Plaza – Reflective Journey by John Merigian
LaFontaine – Breezin’ Series #4 by Jim Wolnosky
Library/Farmers Market – The Joneses by Todd Kime
3 Bird – Cast Concrete & Mosaic Chess/Checker Table and Chairs by Kirk Seese
Naming Policy (D)
At the February 13th meeting, City Council asked staff to procure other naming policies utilized by other municipalities . Staff has found multiple policies, including the following which are attached to this memo:
Dexter Schools
City of Chelsea, MI
City of Mount Pleasant, MI
City of Monroe, MI
Village of Lake Isabella, MI
City of Arlington
City of San Diego