City Council Study Session

City Council Study Session Monday, April 07, 2025, at 6:00 PM 27400 Southfield Road, Lathrup Village, Michigan 48076 1. Call to Order by Mayor Garrett at 6:01 pm 2. Discussion Items A. City Council Goal Setting Councilmembers discussed the City Council Goals, including attending one Government training annually and the review and handling of a digital input/feedback form for use by residents. The council discussed the timeline and the wording to relay the timeline that will be used for reviewing the feedback. B. City Residential Parcel 24-13-153-005 CA Greene explained that there is a small parcel of land that is owned by the City on Redwood Dr. that is not buildable, and a homeowner has been maintaining it for years since it looks like an extension of their yard. CA Greene and Attorney Baker will communicate with the adjacent property owner to see if they are still interested in purchasing the property and, if so, will bring a purchase agreement before the Council in the future. C. San Jose Gate Access Design CA Greene explained a mockup design, and Councilmember Jennings shared the computer image with the audience of an emergency vehicle swing gate that will open and have signs that state “Emergency and Authorized Vehicles Only.” Mrs. Daniels, a San Jose resident, asked if it was operated by siren, and CA Greene said no by key. Mr. Daniels said it was a “good thing if you open it up and have a way to close it off.” CA Greene said the next step is for the Council to approve a Traffic Order and that the street would not be open until the gate is installed. Mr. Daniels asked if it would be installed by a company or your people (DPW), and CA Greene said DPW. Councilmember Hammond asked if funds would come from the General Fund, and CA Greene said the Local Roads Fund. D. Business Sign Ordinance 27400 Southfield Rd | Lathrup Village, MI 48076 | 248.557.2600 | www.lathrupvillage.org  Mayor Pro Tem Kantor, voiced concern for the brightness of LED signs including an ATM sign, and there was discussion among City Council members and Attorney Baker about the impact of the bright signs and measuring foot candles of light for LED signs, since we do not have it in a current ordinance, but we do have one for rope lights. Mayor Pro Tem Kantor, also said that he has seen Open signs on, after the business is closed, and thought maybe that should be put into an ordinance, and Mayor Garrett said she thought that a letter should be sent to the business owners and said that she didn’t want us to be a City that is hard on businesses. Councilmember Jennings mentioned only having Open signs and not other signs and mentioned that he would like uniformity in the signs in Lathrup Village. Attorney Baker said that we used to have only eight colors unless it was a corporate sign. Mayor Garrett agreed about the brightness of the signs but thought businesses were hurting due to them being set back from the road. The sign concerns will be discussed at the next study session. E. TEDF Category B FY26 Program CA Greene, explained three sites that could possibly be submitted for a matching grant to repair the roads, and Council discussed the three options, and decided on concrete roads, in the area where Lathrup Blvd and Lincoln meet, and asked him to proceed with grant request, which includes coming before Council at a future meeting for formal approval. 3. Public Comments Lauren Beras thanked Bruce Kantor and Timothy Hillman for the Finance Review Committee meeting, noted that only 10 people came, and asked if we could get this information out to more people. She also mentioned that she wanted to help with a recycling program at City Hall, and she would like to spearhead that and would like approval and guidance. She will follow up with this. CA Greene said we do have a recycling program, but not everyone understands this and utilizes the bins. Timothy Hillman commented that a Variance for a sign was given to Middle Eats, and they have not used it, and asked when someone does not take the Variance granted to them, is there a process to pull it back? 4. Mayor and Council Comments Mayor Garrett received an education award from the MML because she finished her courses. Mayor Garrett mentioned a corner in need of repair on Roseland and Santa Barbara streets. Mayor Garrett expressed that it was a great pleasure to give a Proclamation to Mrs. Marjorie Jones, who is 105, and it brought tears to her eyes. She thought we could present our proclamation in a nicer design, like a plaque. Mayor Pro Tem Kantor responded to Lauren, saying that it was disappointing that only 10 people were there, but he expected a low turnout. Mayor Pro Tem Kantor said they will do more educational sessions, and by August or September, after the Absentee Ballots go out, they talked about sending postcards to every house. Mayor Pro Tem Kantor also mentioned a possible ad in the Southfield Sun, 27400 Southfield Rd | Lathrup Village, MI 48076 | 248.557.2600 | www.lathrupvillage.org  going door to door, some in-home educational sessions, putting messages on water bills, placing a fact document on the table and front desk at City Hall, and getting Town Hall signs and placing them in neighborhoods. He also said that Timothy Hillman made a cool document that is on the website. Mayor Pro Tem Kantor asked about us getting an agreement for a resident discount rate with a critter control company like Oak Park and Birmingham have in place. CA Greene said we use someone, and he will reach out to them. Councilmember Hammond asked how the Rules and procedures we made for Council meetings will affect the news media if they come to meetings and move their cameras around. Mayor Garrett thought we could do an addendum for News Outlets with credentials. Councilmember Jennings said that Southfield Public Schools will have an enrollment fair on Thursday, May 8th, from 4:00 pm - 7:00 pm at Southfield High School for the Arts & Technology Fieldhouse. Councilmember Jennings wanted to know if there were grants for street sign replacements because residents have complained of faded and worn signs. Mayor Pro Tem Kantor, to Timothy Hillman, said that the approved variance stays with the property (Middle Eats). Surnow Representative Jordan, who happened to be in the meeting, said he would look into the Middle Eats sign variance and asked what room the Planning Commission meeting (Tues. April 15, 2025) would be in, and CA Greene said it would be in the Community Room. Councilmember Hammond said that he wouldn’t be able to represent the City Council at the Planning Commission next week due to his work schedule. Councilmember Hammond shared that his office hours are April 24, 2025, from 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm, right before the April 24, 2025, Business Town Hall State of the City Address, at 6:00 pm. 5. Adjourn 7:13 pm 27400 Southfield Rd | Lathrup Village, MI 48076 | 248.557.2600 | www.lathrupvillage.org