DDA Eyes Visioning Process for Rotary Square, Resumes Executive Director Search

The Traverse City Downtown Development Authority (DDA) is preparing to hire a firm to lead a public engagement process to create a vision for Rotary Square, the new public square at the corner of State and Union streets. The project was discussed Friday by the DDA board, which is also preparing to resume its search for a new executive director after a budget standoff with city commissioners that delayed the hiring process was resolved this week.

Rotary Square
Four firms have submitted bids to lead a public process to create a new vision for Rotary Square (pictured), with Progressive AE recommended as the consulting group that will help facilitate public engagement, create a conceptual and schematic design, and provide cost estimates for implementation.

DDA Interim CEO Harry Burkholder told board members Friday that Progressive AE – which provided a contract estimate of $141,656, in the middle of the pack of bids that ranged from $49,830 to $454,164 – was recommended by a team of DDA and city staff that interviewed firms due to its deeper bench of employees and expertise in universal design and sustainability. Staff will negotiate a final contract with Progressive AE and bring it to DDA board members for approval in July. The contract is being covered by funds from a $1 million Rotary Charities grant to the DDA for the public square project. Board Chair Gabe Schneider noted – in light of ongoing debate about whether the DDA’s tax increment financing (TIF) 97 plan will be extended beyond 2027 – that Rotary Square is a “standalone” project covered within the DDA’s “current budget and scope and timeline of TIF.”

In its request-for-proposals (RFP), the DDA called Rotary Square “one of the most significant placemaking projects in the history of downtown Traverse City.” Its new design “must go beyond the generic concepts of most municipal squares/parks – it must include truly unique and one-of-a-kind features and design elements,” the RFP states.

While the “overall vision for the public square should be shaped by public engagement,” the RFP also advises consultants to consider several key elements in the final design. Those include having the square serve as a community gathering space and focal point for people and activities downtown; being welcoming, inclusive, and easily accessible to all ages and abilities; featuring elements for both passive and active year-round recreation; including opportunities for seasonal and permanent food/beverage vending; prioritizing sustainable and climate-resilient practices; and featuring sensory elements that “stimulate interaction and connection with the natural and built environment.” The new design should help the square “serve as a defining feature for downtown Traverse City,” the RFP states.

The RFP also discusses the importance of considering surrounding properties as part of the design recommendations. That includes the construction of FishPass at the Union Street Dam site directly south of Rotary Square, as well as the potential for the DDA to eventually acquire part of the AT&T parking lot to the east of Rotary Square. Burkholder previously told The Ticker that with the close proximity between Rotary Square and FishPass, there’s “an opportunity for great collaboration between the two projects” – a relationship that should be explored in the design process to ideally create a flow between the two adjoining properties.

Board members were generally supportive of moving forward, though some expressed concern about Progressive AE being selected for a significant majority of city planning projects in recent years – particularly since one of those projects, Reimagine East Front, led to a community divide over the recommended design and the project being put on hold. Burkholder said that controversy was driven by philosophical debates over the “way in which we move cars and bikes and people, whereas this is more of a place-based project. Not to say they don’t have similarities, but I think that’s where that project got hung up. I don’t anticipate that same kind of divisiveness with this project.”

Board member Gary Howe agreed, saying that a street project has space and design constraints that force divisive choices, whereas Rotary Square is a “flat lawn” that can accommodate a wide range of design possibilities. Board member Ed Slosky said he would generally prefer to work with a wider variety of consultants on projects but understood that only a small number of firms typically respond to RFPs. Slosky said he hoped the Rotary Square visioning process ultimately leads to a more productive outcome than Reimagine East Front. “To me, Rotary Square is a very important project for this town,” he said.

DDA Executive Director Search
After city commissioners voted to approve the 2024-25 DDA budget earlier this week – avoiding a looming DDA shutdown and clearing the way for DDA board members to also approve the budget Friday – the DDA will now resume its search for a new executive director.

DDA board members were originally slated to interview four finalists for the position on June 7. One of those candidates – Holly Ball – withdrew from consideration prior to the DDA announcing on June 5 that it was postponing the search due to the budget showdown with the city commission. "Without having an approved DDA budget, in good conscience, we cannot proceed with interviews for the position of DDA executive director at this time," Todd McMillen, DDA board member and governance committee chair, said at the time. "Welcoming and showcasing our community to professionals with such uncertainty overshadowing the search process is less than ideal. We regret this delay, but I am confident in this decision given the circumstances."

On Friday, Double Haul Solutions – the consulting firm assisting with the search – announced the hiring process is now resuming. The three remaining finalists are scheduled to make on-site visits June 27 and be publicly interviewed by the DDA board June 28 starting at 8:15am. The finalists include Burkholder, Maxwell Cameron (project manager with the Detroit Economic Growth Corporation and previous executive director of Wayne Main Street), and Laura Kingman (certified project management professional whose resume includes work with the Walt Disney Company and Universal Studios and a recent stint at Great Lakes Stainless).

Once a final candidate is chosen, Double Haul Solutions “will conduct a full background check and assist the DDA, as requested, in determining employment offer terms and negotiating the contract,” according to the firm.