Kyle Seidel, AEW project manager, presents updates to the Downtown Revitalization Project to the Mount Clemens City Commission on Dec. 2.
By: Dean Vaglia | Mount Clemens-Clinton-Harrison Journal | Published December 11, 2024
MOUNT CLEMENS — After a delay in funding, Mount Clemens City Commissioners approved a construction contract for the updated Downtown Revitalization Project at their Dec. 2 meeting.
Commissioners awarded a $5.98 million contract to VIL Construction Inc. — the same contractor first awarded the contract at the May 6 meeting — to reconstruct Macomb Place and Cherry Street. Originally planned to begin construction in summer 2024, additional work required to receive federal funding pushed the beginning of construction to the new tentative start of mid-February 2025.
With the construction delay, city officials worked with engineering consulting firm Anderson, Eckstein & Westrick, Inc. to update details of the project.
“We ended up adding 14 new trees into the project,” AEW Project Manager Kyle Seidel said. “We also added about 25 hanging planters to the light poles. We also modified the fountain a little bit … We added lettering that says, ‘Vintage vibe, vibrant vision,’ and, ‘City of Mount Clemens Est. 1818.’”
The fountain stage, which will be moved south of Macomb Place, will be lit from below and covered by a shade sail. Some of the large rocks that would calm traffic on the curbless Macomb Place will be replaced by planter seats.
While the contract is for $5.98 million, the cost of construction is increased by 10% contingencies. Most of the project, about $4.85 million, is already funded with the extra $1.1 million able to be covered by the city’s general fund if need be. Parking kiosks for the New Street parking lot will be a separate expense as well, as no companies based in the United States produce them and inclusion in the project is banned by a “buy American, build American” policy in the project. As a result, the kiosks will be purchased at a later time.
Warren Contractors & Development, Inc. submitted the losing bid for the project at about $6.72 million.
FAN receives opioid funds
Commissioners also approved allocating $20,000 received from opioid settlement payouts to Face Addiction Now to resume operation of its HARM:LESS street outreach program. The program first ran in the city through the winter to the fall of 2024.
“The numbers here are really great: 123 unique individuals who received services and 34 successful overdose reversals. That’s amazing,” City Commissioner Spencer Calhoun said. “Two people who were assisted in securing housing. For whoever this is, this is absolutely fantastic.”
With the program running only partially through the year, Calhoun inquired with trustees about whether the funding could be provided to have FAN run HARM:LESS year-round.
Shipman said the question of year-round operations would be brought up to FAN.