Two key intersections on Eighth Street – at Cass and Union streets – are set to be rebuilt this fall after Traverse City Downtown Development Authority (DDA) board members approved a significant budget increase for the project Friday. Staff said the work was urgent since Eighth Street will be a detour route during the reconstruction of Grandview Parkway next year. DDA board members discussed updates on other projects Friday including a planned retail incubator, a potential future circulator shuttle downtown, the TART Trail redesign, and demolition and clean-up work at the site of a planned future mixed-use parking deck.

DDA board members approved a budget increase from $300,000 to $883,445 – a difference of $583,445 – for the reconstruction of the Eighth and Cass intersetion (pictured) and Eighth and Union intersection. The price hike was due in part to miscommunication between the DDA and the city’s engineering department. Staff initially believed the engineering estimate for the project was $300,000 total, or $150,000 per intersection. However, the actual estimate was $300,000 per intersection, or $600,000 total. Even beyond that mistake, the project bid from Team Elmer’s came in well over the engineering estimate at $883,444.29 – with staff pointing to the skyrocketing costs of concrete and other construction materials and the tight timeline under which the project needs to take place this fall.

That timeline is due to the looming pressure expected to be put on Eighth Street when the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) begins the reconstruction of Grandview Parkway/East Front Street between Garfield and Division next spring. Eighth Street will serve as a key detour route, particularly for drivers looking to enter downtown. Staff said work on both intersections needs to be completed this year by November. The crumbling intersections – which board members agreed pose safety and mobility challenges for pedestrians – will be reconstructed to more closely resemble the intersections seen at State/Union and State/Cass.

Derenzy said funds are available in the Old Town TIF budget for the project, particularly since the planned replacement of the Midtown riverwalk is being delayed due to staff constraints. Infrastructure work like intersections and pedestrian walkways downtown should be covered by TIF dollars, according to Derenzy. “If the district captures taxes from outside of the city to help offset from city residents not having to pay for the costs of infrastructure that is utilized by all, TIF should pay for those costs,” she wrote to the board. “It is not just for placemaking elements but for public infrastructure for the benefit of the district.”

DDA board member Todd McMillen, who owns a business on Union Street, agreed the project is a “prime example of what TIF captures are for.” He added that that the neighborhood has long wanted to see the Eighth/Union intersection improved. While the reconstruction project right now isn’t planned to use city general fund dollars, Mayor Richard Lewis said he will advocate that the city contribute in some way to the project when it goes to city commissioners next for approval.

Grandview Parkway reconstruction also came up Friday when DDA board members approved the final design for the improvement and extension of the bayfront TART trail in downtown Traverse City. The final trail plan – designed by Progressive AE – calls for expanding the segments of the existing trail width to 16 feet, with 10 feet dedicated to bi-directional bicycle use and six feet dedicated to pedestrian use. The plan also envisions future trail connections east of the Senior Center along East Front Street and Peninsula Drive and expanding a trail connection on the south side of Grandview Parkway from Hall Street to Division Street. The total project is estimated at $3,491,383, though work is anticipated to occur in phases – starting with the stretch between Murchie Bridge and the Senior Center next year at the same time as Grandview Parkway reconstruction.

DDA Board Vice Chair Scott Hardy worried about how reconstruction work will impact access to downtown and the potential economic effect it will have on downtown merchants next year. Board member Pete Kirkwood noted that the trail component of the project will have a negligible impact on traffic compared to the overall impact of Grandview Parkway work. Tart Trails Chief Executive Officer Julie Clark said her organization – partnering with the DDA and city – has placed urgency on fundraising to get trail work done next year precisely to avoid multiple shutdowns of Grandview Parkway.

“We want to bundle it together so we’re in and out...so it’s not that continued construction cycle,” she said, adding that work will also provide “much better connections across the Parkway to downtown.” Lewis said that the project area is “going to be a mess, no one denies that,” but pointed out that detours have been extensively reviewed and discussed by state and city officials and will be communicated to the public leading up to the project.

Also at Friday’s DDA meeting...
> Staff provided an update on a new retail incubator called the Cass Street Marketplace planned to launch this fall near the corner of Cass and Front. The DDA is leasing nearly 2,000 square feet of ground space next to The Pub (pictured) from Tim Pulliam and Steve Morse, with interior renovations currently underway. DDA COO Harry Burkholder estimated approximately 6-7 start-up businesses will be able to fit in the space. Working with Nick Beadleston at Commonplace, DDA staff are currently determining rental rates for stalls and preparing to launch an application process for interested tenants. Noting that “close to 95 percent of our businesses downtown are locally owned and independent,” Burkholder said the goal of the project is to create a nurturing “ecosystem” for upcoming retailers to have a downtown presence and eventually expand from the incubator into their own spaces elsewhere.

> DDA board members approved a grant agreement with the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) that will allow the DDA to receive $900,000 in state funding for demolition and environmental clean-up work at the site of a proposed new mixed-use parking deck on State Street. According to Derenzy, the work is eligible to be completed with grant funding even if the new deck – the fate of which could hinge on TIF 97 being extended next year – isn’t constructed. That will allow the city to address known environmental contamination on the property and potentially be in an advantageous position to utilize the site no matter how the deck project proceeds.

> Board members expressed support for the DDA’s Parking and Mobility Advisory Committee exploring options with BATA to offer some kind of shuttle or traffic circulator downtown. The committee noted that the conversion of public parking lots in the coming years into residential/retail developments will “create serious demand for alternative parking solutions,” and that utilizing a system with three parking decks – including the new State Street deck – should include options to help visitors/employees get around between those garages and the core downtown dining/shopping district “quickly and dependably.” That could look like a unique branded downtown trolley that operates year-round, or some other kind of partnership with BATA to provide shuttle services.

BATA’s Eric Linguar said defining the primary purpose of the circulator – whether it’s for tourists and visitors, downtown employees, or simply enhancing overall mobility options in the district – and looking at routes, frequency, and costs will all be key considerations as the DDA and BATA continue discussions. The circulator could potentially be included in the new TIF 97 plan, called Moving Downtown Forward, as board members work on finalizing a project list for the plan.