City moves meeting times up

By Dan DuChene
Nov. 11, 2008    ·    1:20 a.m.

Ypsilanti City Council agreed to move its normal meeting time up to 7 p.m. at its organizational meeting last night.

Normally held at 7:30 p.m., the move was made to help with the how late the meetings have been known to end.

"I think often our meetings run over," said Councilmember Lois Richardson, D-Ward 1.

Richardson had brought the subject before City Council. She said she would rather see time ended on the front end because some people find attending meetings to the end prohibitive because of families at home or work the next day.

"When we need to be here at six or six thirty we’re here," she said.

New Councilmember Michael Bodary, D-Ward 2, agreed with Richardson. He said he has to work early in the morning

"It would be a benefit to me to be able to start earlier and hopefully end earlier," he said.

It was Bodary's first meeting after defeating, incumbent, John Gawlas in August's primary election and sealing his seat after running unopposed in last week's general election.

Peter Murdock, D-Ward 3, secured his seat on City Council in last week's general election as well. The former representative of the ward, Brian Filipiak, chose not to run for re-election and Murdock cinched the Democratic nomination in August. He won against two independent candidates last week.

During council proposed business, Murdock gave listed off eight items he wanted to discuss in the future.

Two of the items related to Water Street. He recommended City Council pass a resolution expressing its commitment to listening to any purposed use of the stalled deal. He also recommended putting the cash the city has spent on the project in with the Tax Increment Financing plan for the project.

The 38-acre plot of land east of Downtown Ypsilanti called the Water Street Project has been stalled for several years. The city spent $21.5 million acquiring the property and failed to make progress after two developers pulled out of the project.

The TIF on the project allows the city to divert local property tax collected from the eventual development on the site to paying back loans taken out to fund the project. Payments begin next year, and the city is currently working with broker C.B. Richard Ellis to sell the land.

Murdock and City Manager Ed Koryzno said they had discussed putting cash the city had spent in with the Water Street TIF last week. Koryzno said he would have to look into the idea. He estimated the cash the city has paid for the project at anywhere between $500,000 and $1 million.

The city has twice agreed to take money out of the general fund to pay a Water Street-related cost, totaling $305,000, in 2006. This was in addition to the $725,000 the city agreed to pay previous developer Biltmore in a settlement agreement the year before.

Murdock also suggested formalizing a discussion with community members pushing pro-environment issues throughout the city, as a way to consolidate efforts.

"We should get some people in to address Council," Murdock said after the meeting. "We can see what we can do from a policy stand point."