Two Grosse Pointe Farms voting precincts being temporarily relocated for August primary

GROSSE POINTE FARMS — Voters who plan on casting their primary election ballots in person in Grosse Pointe Farms might be doing so in a different spot this summer.

During the Aug. 2 primary, Precinct 4 at Kerby Elementary School and Precinct 5 at Brownell Middle School are being moved to Grosse Pointe South High School. Assistant City Manager/City Clerk Derrick Kozicki said Kerby and Brownell will “still (be) undergoing significant construction” in August, meaning that they can’t be used as polling locations.

The Farms City Council unanimously approved temporarily relocating these precincts to South during a meeting June 13.

“The truth is, there’s no (working) bathrooms (at Kerby and Brownell),” Kozicki said. “It is a construction site. It’s probably not safe for the voters and the (poll) workers.”

Kerby and Brownell won’t meet federal accessibility standards, either, because of ongoing construction, Kozicki said.

He said precincts 4 and 5 would vote in the South gymnasium, which is also where Precinct 1 voters would cast their ballots. Precinct 1 voters would typically vote in a classroom, Kozicki said.

“How are you going to notify voters (about the change)?” Mayor Louis Theros asked.

Kozicki said notices would be mailed to each voter impacted by the move, as required under state law. In addition, he said the city will be posting notices on the doors of affected polling locations, and information would be posted on the city’s website and emailed to residents on the city’s email list. Kozicki said officials plan to show voters which door to use at South and where to park. Voters will be able to use the school’s parking lot or park along Fisher Road during the primary, Kozicki said.

With no excuse absentee voting now allowed in Michigan, voters are increasingly casting their ballots in advance, leading to fewer voters at the polls on Election Day.

Kozicki doesn’t anticipate the relocated polling locations will create a problem. He said the city has had to relocate precincts in the past, and there “haven’t been significant issues.”