Traverse City commissioners will vote Monday on allocating the last of the city’s remaining American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding, including a proposed $250,000 to support Safe Harbor’s expansion into a year-round shelter. Commissioners will also consider a recommendation from the TC Downtown Development Authority (DDA) to extend downtown’s two-way street pilot project by another two years and a proposal to work with TART Trails to apply for a Pure Michigan Trail Town designation.

ARPA Funds
City commissioners Monday will vote on allocating half a million dollars to several projects, ensuring the rest of the city’s ARPA funding is obligated before the end-of-December deadline.

Half the remaining funding – $250,000 – is proposed to go to Safe Harbor as the emergency shelter works to expand to year-round operations. One $125,000 allocation is proposed for fiscal year 2024-25, with another to follow in 2025-26. Safe Harbor Board Chair Patrick Livingston and Sakura Takano and Dave Mengebier – representing community stakeholder group the Homelessness Collective – are requesting the funding to help cover the estimated $600,000 increase in Safe Harbor’s budget required to operate year-round.

“The primary focus of the collective’s work has been on fostering safer shelter alternatives to encampments like The Pines and expanding the capacity of year-round shelters to build a healthier and safer community,” according to a joint letter from Livingston, Takano, and Mengebier. “A key part of this plan involves expanding Safe Harbor’s services year-round to provide evening meals in the winter months and overnight shelter, increasing support for individuals experiencing homelessness. This boost in shelter capacity is an essential step forward.”

Safe Harbor and the Homelessness Collective plan to apply for a similar funding commitment from Grand Traverse County commissioners, according to the letter. “The collective is also reaching out to other government and nonprofit partners for additional financial support,” the letter adds. “Safe Harbor needs the entirety of funding commitments to be secured prior to the end of January 2025 to file and receive timely approval of a special land use permit and have the necessary staff committed and in place to operate year-round.”

City Manager Liz Vogel told The Ticker in September Safe Harbor could be a likely recipient of some of the city’s remaining ARPA funds, as could the Traverse City Senior Center. A memo from Vogel to commissioners Monday recommends allocating $192,585.64 to help close the remaining funding gap at the new Senior Center, which is nearing completion on East Front Street. Commissioners will lastly consider approving a $58,478.95 contract with LSI Business Development Monday for grant-writing services to use up the final ARPA funds. The firm was one of 12 that responded to a city request-for-proposals (RFP). The goal of the contract is for the city to try and extend its ARPA dollars even further by landing additional grants – particularly those available under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) – and bringing more funding to Traverse City.

The City of Traverse City had nearly $1.7 million total in ARPA funds to spend, including accumulated interest. Funds previously went to projects including the Senior Center construction, tree plantings across the city, support for the Jubilee House, a sanitary sewer inflow and infiltration study, and pandemic employee bonuses.

Also on Monday’s agenda...
> Commissioners will consider approving a DDA recommendation to extend a pilot project converting State Street, Pine Street, and Boardman Avenue to two-way traffic by two more years. DDA board members agreed with the city’s design team – which consists of a variety of key city department heads – that a two-year extension is necessary to collect sufficient data for modeling the new grid.

Part of continuing to test the efficacy of two-way streets could include modifying some signals to make turns easier or otherwise tweaking intersections, including at State/Cass, State/Union, West Front/Pine, and West Front/Hall/Wadsworth. Other pilot modifications could include installing mid-block crosswalks on State Street, establishing new designations for deliveries and loading, tweaking alleys, and converting Front Street to two-way traffic to measure that change’s impact on the overall grid.

> Commissioners will consider approving a resolution of support to apply for a Pure Michigan Trail Town designation in partnership with TART Trails. The recognition is “awarded to communities that demonstrate their commitment to promoting outdoor recreation, preserving natural resources, and supporting local economic growth through trail systems,” according to a memo from City Communications Specialist Colleen Paveglio. “This designation will enhance city's reputation as a premier destination for our local outdoor enthusiasts and visitors, further solidifying our standing as a vibrant, four-season town for health, wellness, adventure, and ecotourism.”

Communities must apply by January 15 each year to the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) for designation consideration. If selected, a community receives a DNR press release announcing the designation and is featured in Pure Michigan marketing and trail maps as a Trail Town. Communities also put up branded signage reflecting their official designation. The state’s website lists 16 current Trail Town communities, including Elk Rapids, Cadillac, Cheboygan, Charlevoix, Reed City, and Big Rapids in northern Michigan.