City Council - Regular Meeting

Good evening. Welcome to the December 15th regular city council meeting for the city of Rochester Hills. Uh, Miss Whispern, will you take role? Good evening. President Carlac here. Vice President Mongioli with notice. Mr. Blair here. Mr. Lindberg here. Miss Manino here. Miss Newower here. Mr. Scelsey here. President Carlock, we have a quorum. Thank you, Miss Wispurn. Uh approval of the agenda. I have not been made aware of any changes to the agenda. I have a motion by Mrs. Newower, seconded by Mr. Blair. All in favor of tonight's agenda? I.

Any opposed? Nope. We have an agenda. Uh you know what's missing is the pledge of allegiance. Oh yeah.

Uh so if we'll all rise and say the pledge of pledge of allegiance with our council to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God indivisible with liberty and justice for all. And now, council and youth committee reports. We will start with uh Miss Blakeley from our Rochester Hills government youth council.

Good evening, President Carlock, city council members, Mayor Barnett, and citizens of Rochester Hills. My name is Isabella Blakeley, and I'm a senior at the International Academy High School. I have served on the Rochester Hills government youth council for two years and I serve on the cemetery advisory committee as well as being the current youth chairperson. This past month, youth council has participated in the Christmas party with city council, welcomed and swore in a new member um to the youth city council from uh Rochester Adams High Schools and passed out light up wands uh for the light the village at the end of November. We also did some shopping for two local nonprofit charities last week and purchased gifts for Rainbow Connection and donated hats and gloves to the Next Steps for Seniors. We also held our annual holiday meeting party at Rochester Hills Museum uh where we had a potluck, played games, saw the train exhibit, and held a white uh elephant gift exchange. We have our winter event coming up on January 31st, 2026 called the soup herbal bowl party where we will have food, fun games like bingo, and prizes. We will be working with Neighborhood House to collect non-p perishable food donations uh which will be distributed to those in need. This event will be held at the Rochester Hills Public Library in the multi-purpose room from 1 to 3 p.m. Um this month we're going to continue coordinating the entertainment events as well as securing the food donations and raffle prizes for the Super Bowl. And then our next meeting will be on Wednesday, January 7th, 2026. Thank you so much.

Thank you, Isabella. Always a lot going on. So, uh, glad we can keep you kids busy. Uh, next up, Mrs. Newower.

Thank you, President Carlock. I just wanted to congratulate the planning commission on winning finally their decoration um, uh, in the department. They had long come in second and third. I don't know where they are, but I would encourage all of you to go and see the 3D printed version of our mayor um that they used as one of their props along with Snoop Dogg and Martha Stewart. So, congratulate our planning department and all the departments. Um you really made it look Christmas spirit in here. They all look beautiful. You guys did a great job and thank you for bringing the Christmas spirit to Rochester Hills.

Thank you, Miss Newower. Seeing no other council or committee reports, uh, next up is recognitions 2025-0570 proclamation in recognition of Chad Anderson, Mr. Tennis, 2025 MHSAA Division 1 State Championship. If council will join me in front of the dis and mayor will present the proclamation. Well, this is always usually the best part of uh our jobs and certainly of our meeting agendas and that is to recognize uh outstanding talent in the community and of course what we'll do just after that which is recognize some of our public servants. Uh I'm guessing that most of this crowd isn't here for the consent agenda later on that you're probably here to recognize and support uh some of the folks that we're going to start our our our evening with tonight. Um there are a lot of uh athletes in the state of Michigan, uh 10 million residents, uh over a thousand high schools. Um but there is only the opportunity for one person uh to be the best at their sport. Um over the years at least that I've been here we've had uh Mr. Baseball um uh we've had uh some people that have been recognized uh you know how well we've done academ or from the uh the cheer the cheer teams uh from Rochester Rochester Adams and uh Stony Creek. But in terms of individual excellence uh this is as good as it

gets. And tonight we're here to recognize the first ever Mr. tennis uh from Rochester Hills. Um joined here with uh with Chad Anderson, Mr. Tennis, and his coach uh Jerry Murphy. Uh and I'm going to ask them both to speak in just a minute. Um but I'd like to start by reading uh the proclamation just so you understand a little bit about what this award and what this recognition means. It says, "Where's in recognition of Chad Anderson, Mr. Tennis, 2025 MHSAA Division 1 State Champion. Whereas Rochester High School's varsity boys tennis team led by coach Jerry Murphy demonstrated unparallel dedication and skill throughout the 2025 and 2026 season. And after an undefeated season, team captain Chad Anderson entered the MHSAA Division 1 boys tennis finals as the top seed and number one singles, dominating his competition to secure the state championship title, the first such title in Rochester High School's history. And whereas this achievement is a testament not only to his athletic prowess but also to his commitment as a student athlete as he exemplifies excellence, leadership, and impeccable character in every facet of his life. Anderson, a leader both on and off the court, went on to be named 2025's Mr. Tennis for the state of Michigan, one of the highest honors a high school tennis player can receive anywhere in the nation, thus closing out a fantastic and historic season. Whereas these extraordinary accomplishments bring honor and distinction to his family, his school, and his entire community. Now, therefore, be it resolved that the mayor and the city council of the city of Rochester hereby congratulate Chad Anderson on his well-deserved recognition, his historic achievements, and for serving as an inspiration to his peers and future gener generations of student athletes. Let's give Chad a round of applause. [applause] Chad, before we uh we uh uh ask you to come forward, I know that it takes uh a

lot to become a champion no matter what the sport. Uh it takes a supportive environment. I know your family is here. It takes a supportive school environment. I know your principal and dean are here or athletic director are here and I know it takes a pretty good coach and I bet you had one of those in Jerry Murphy. So, I'd like to ask Coach Murphy to come forward and share a few words about Chad. Oh, thank you, Brian. I just uh you pretty much covered it here. It's said everything that um needs to really be said. The only thing I can really add to that is just a a thank you on behalf of of Rochester High School, our tennis team, uh the Anderson family for for doing this proclamation for Chad. Uh Chad was the captain of our team in addition to all of the things that were said here. Uh he was a four-time first team allstate player. Uh there's about anywhere from about 10 to 20 guys in the state who were picked first team and he was a first team player as a freshman. Okay, just to tell you how good he really was. And um this year, as it was said here, he uh he was undefeated going into the state tournament. and I'll let him come up and kind of give you a little little bit of uh what the state tournament meant to him and his experience there. Uh he cramped up in the last match, you know, and if if you've ever played tennis and know get getting the cramps in a match, um you know, sometimes you can't finish the match, but that wasn't the case. Uh he was he was bound and determined this year that he was going to win the state championship and he wasn't going to let a little cramping stop him. But, uh, I'll let him uh, speak to that issue and and what it really meant to him to win the, uh, win the award. He's, uh, next year he's going to be playing at Marquette University where his brother Clayton, who's here in the audience, um, is already, uh, playing. And so, they've

got two uh, two pretty good guys. And, uh, and and I appreciated having, if you go back through Clayton's career, [clears throat] he was a number one player for me for four years. And when he left, Chad took over as the number one player for the last two years for so for six years in a row. Uh I haven't had to really do too much coaching of the number one guys. I'll tell you that right now. But I'm going to let Chad come up here and say a few words. Coach, how long you been coaching? You really want to know? This is my 54th year coaching at Rochester High School. [applause] [applause]

Yeah. Um, this is a great proclamation and um, I didn't fully prepare a speech, but I want to thank my my school and like the community for having me out here and of course the coaches who supported me along the way and my family. Yeah. Um, the winning Mr. Tennis in the state championship meant a lot to me. It meant more than I ever thought anything on a tennis court could really mean to me. And, um, yeah, I'm thankful to celebrate the award with everyone in the community. And thank you guys for having me here. [applause]

We have uh one more recognition. They won't let us rename Rochester Road, but we did want to present this to you as the 2025 Mr. Tennis Chad Anderson. Congratulations. [applause] You want to [applause] go through and shake the hands? Oh, here you go. Stay. You stay for the picture. Apparently, we have the Kelsey brothers of tennis living in Rochester Hills. Chad, why don't you go right back to the middle? David, you got it.

[applause] [laughter]

Uh, next up is item number 2025-0588, swearing in ceremony for promoted fire staff members. They're so much taller. All right. Uh, good evening, city council, mayor, um, President Carlac. It's not our Oh, let's join. Where's my guys? Brent and Aaron, come on up here. Yeah, they're not even here. I don't here somewhere up front. Yeah, somewhere up front. Yeah.

Huh? Yeah, that's fine. All right. It's an honor to stand here tonight to recognize the dedication and outstanding service of two of our newest leaders in the Rochester Hills Fire Department. Tonight, we swear in Fire and Life Safety Lieutenant Brent Stannich and [snorts] Suppression Lieutenant Aaron Barisca. Their promotions are a testament to their exceptional skills, leadership qualities, and a commitment to the safety of our community. Both Brent and Aaron started the department as a paid on call member and were hired full-time in 2017, different months. uh and were officially placed in their role as lieutenant at the beginning of November of this year. Throughout their careers, they have consistently demonstrated professionalism and dedication to the department and its members. As you take on these new leadership roles, you are joining an amazing group of officers and will be tasked with playing a vital part in maintaining the high standards of excellence that our residents expect from the fire department. Congratulations [snorts] on your promotion and I'm so proud of both of you. [applause] So, gentlemen, if you want to come over here, come up over here. I'm gonna swear both of you in at the same time. Hello there. [laughter]

That's awesome. Do you want to raise your hand, too? Okay. So, if you'll raise your right hand and repeat after me. I do solemnly swear solemnly swear that I will support and defend that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States the constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of Michigan and the Constitution of the State of Michigan and the charter of the city of Rochester Hills and the charter of the city of Rochester and I will faithfully perform I will faithfully perform the duties of the office the duties of the office I'm going to say lieutenant suppression and fire and Safe Safety Lieutenant

in and for the city of Rochester Hills, Oakland County, Michigan. Conducting myself in a manner designed to maintain the integrity of my office to maintain the integrity of my office and the honor of the city of Rochester Hills and the honor of the city of Rochester Hills according to the best of my abilities according to the best of my abilities. So help me God. Congratulations. [applause] [applause]

This is always awkward. Your families can come up and pin you now.

That's awesome. Awesome. [laughter] [applause] So awesome. Oh, good job.

Good. [applause] Good. Uh, next up on the agenda, item 2025-0587, swearing in ceremony for two new firefighter candidates. Captain Gambino, right? Yeah.

Not a crime boss. I'm just a training lieutenant or captain. Sorry. All right. So, uh, good evening, President Carlock, members of council, Mayor Barnett. Thank you all for being here. I guess you kind of got to be, but we appreciate this is one of the biggest days for us in the in the fire service is bringing in new members. Uh we are here tonight to swear and impin our newest members of the Rochester Hills Fire Department firefighter paramedics Lens and Shanley. Uh becoming a firefighter paramedic is a demanding calling requiring courage, dedication, and commitment to service. On behalf of our department, we welcome you gentlemen, Al and Tyler uh to our department. you are joining a dedicated and professional uh professionalism, teamwork and mutual support. Um a team that is dedicated to those things. This is a challenging journey uh and it will bring you unique pride and fulfillment in the future in the years to come. We welcome to you to our team firefighter paramedic lens and firefighter paramedic Shanley and we are proud and look forward to your impact in our department. Thank you. [applause]

Okay. Yep. Come on up. You're next. Congratulations, gentlemen. Okay, if you want to raise your right hand and repeat after me. I do solemnly swear that I will support and defend I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States. Constitution of the United States, the Constitution of the State of Michigan and the Charter of the City of Rochester Hills. and that I will faithfully perform the duties of the office of the office of firefighter medic in and for the city of Rochester Hills city Oakland County Michigan

Oakland County conducting myself conducting myself in a manner designed to maintain the integrity maintain the integrity of my office in the honor of the city of Rochester Hills according to the best of my abilities. So help me God. Congratulations [applause]

[applause] [applause]

Thank you. All right. Next up, presentations. A legislative update by Senate Senator Michael Weber. Item 2025-0592. Senator Weber comes forward. Everyone exits.

I was going to say we we Yeah, they're all gone. You know that that's a tough act. They've heard you speak before.

That's a tough act to follow, but also uh you know, a very uh inspiring night to see uh to see that see all those presentations. So, um, yeah. So, for the council, thank you, President Carlock and, uh, uh, council Mayor Barnett. Uh, Michael Weber, serve as a state center for the ninth district, which includes the greater Rochester area, Troy, Sterling Heights, Shelby Township, and Udica. Um, try to do for the especially for the new council members and congratulations to you. Um, you know, I try to do this a couple times a year just to kind of give you what I would want to know if I was in your shoes because I used to be in your shoes um a while ago and and um so, you know, try to do these updates a couple times a year. Uh, the main thing to, you know, kind of update on is since we last since I was last here, we did pass a state budget in early October. Um and um you know I think mostly some good some good updates on there. Um you know like families all over Michigan, state government was live within its means and so I did support a uh a strong bipartisan state budget uh that rolls back spending for the first time in years and helps workers by eliminating taxes on tips, overtime and social security. makes needed investment our roads by finally putting every penny paid in taxes at the pump back into fixing our infrastructure. Uh so what does this mean for Rochester Hills? It's going to be a 31% increase in road funding, local road funding for you or about 3.3 million in additional money on a yearly basis. Um so that is for a total of 13.4 million. And again, this is going to be annually and not just a one-time thing. Um, Oakland County is going to receive 36% increase in road funding or close to 48 million in

additional money. And of course, you know, we work with them in terms of the triparty funding. Um, you know, for a lot of our county roads here in the city. Um overall the the bipartisan roads plan will invest two billion in long in uh annually in long-term road funding and that includes um putting 100 million annually into our local bridge program which is obviously a different fund but is you know important as um and I know Mayor Barnett remembers when I was on council we had some trouble with our bridges around that Avon uh Liveroi area and so Um, so I think hopefully that 100 million will come in handy. Um, in terms of like a local community win, um, and the mayor knows this, but we, uh, Rep. Tisdale and I, myself were able to get 2 million in the budget for the city of Rochester Hills to improve roadway infrastructure and provide access to Noiki Park um, indoor space for community gatherings. So, I know that's part of a broader um you know, dollars that the council has put forward there. Um and then in terms of revenue sharing, that's kind of the downside to to it a little bit. There is going to be less in um statutory constitutional revenue sharing. Um we think it's about 500,000 less. That's largely from the sales getting rid of the sales tax on the gas. Um, I will say both Rep. Tisdale and myself, we continue to work with the Michigan Municipal League on the revenue sharing trust fund bills. Uh, I know Rep. Tisdale Long earlier in this session did introduce reintroduce his bill on revenue sharing trust fund. We do have companion bills now in the Senate on a bipartisan basis with Senator Moss, myself, and Senator Cherry. Um, so those are before the

Senate Appropriations Committee. So, we'll keep you apprised of that. Um, in terms of, you know, some of the leg, some other legislation that we're working on that I think would be of interest. Um, we are still working towards, um, you know, noise pollution issues. Um, long story short, in 2023, I worked on this issue and was able to get money in the budget for um, a soundwall in the city of Troy and um, along I75. And uh coming through that process, we kind of decided that's it's hard to do that process every year. So So we looked at what other states did and um a few of the other states had a a state mechanism to fund the construction of soundwall barriers. Um and so I'm working with Representative Ron Robinson, who we overlap with in Udica, um on legislation. I know his bill did pass the House Transportation Committee, but essentially within MDOT, we would do a funding mechanism. Then it would be up to the legislature to fund it each year. It would it largely work as a grant program where the cities um townships could go to the state and say, you know, we think we have a case to be made for this uh soundwall funding. Um but um there's only a handful of other states that have done this so far. So we're trying to get some traction on that. Um and then lastly on the funding front um part of the and you know and of course we just saw you know and had a lot of our public safety personnel here. Um the the public safety trust fund piece did uh pass and and was implemented in the budget process and that is uh 95 million throughout the state for new local

public safety focused programs. Um resources for for law enforcement, prosecution, other public safety related requirement, recruitment, retention, training, firefighting equipment needs. Um, at this point the formula kind of is weighted towards some of these communities that have some, you know, some public safety concerns or issues. And so a city like the city of Rochester Hills, um, does not fare as well in that equation. I think now that it's established over time, we would like to try to, um, see if we can't get that to be a little more equalized. Um, but we still think it's going to mean about $47,000 to the city. um here in the first year. Um and so yeah, and so I think that that's important. Um and then yeah, I know you guys have a busy meeting, so I'll just end it there. Um for residents here and at home for more information, sign up for our monthly e-news. Uh you can visit senator michaelber.com or call our office at 517-3730994 and I can take questions if if you have time for that. Yeah, of course we do.

Appreciate the opportunity. Thank Thank you, Senator Weber. We do have a couple uh council members that wish to speak to you. Uh first up, Mr. Blair. How's it going, Senator? Good to see you. Always appreciate your updates. Um appreciate all the hard work that you do. Um remember when I spent the day with you in Lancing? I do remember that. I think that was eight years ago. [laughter] It was a while.

I had I had to check the the my camera. It's been eight years. Um but uh my my uh comments and questions are specific to the budget. Um despite how hard you and all the others work uh to represent your constituents, it is you guys have a target on your back when you miss the Jan the the July uh deadline. And you know it reflects poorly on not just just the the entire government. I know there, you know, we have a a three-year budget here in the city of Rochester Hills, which has served us very well, and we were the first in the state to do that, and now a lot of cities have followed in our footsteps. I know there are a few states um that have uh two-year budgets. Is there any chance that we might be able to see something to that effect in the state of Michigan in our lifetimes? Because it would make that process so much easier because there's always be a framework each year. It might not be exact, but I'm curious your thoughts on that.

Yeah. No, it's I think, you know, this is my ninth year in the legislature. I think we've gone past the July one twice. Um once when I was in the House and then once this year and nobody likes to do it or wants to do it, obviously in my role in uh in the Senate, I had no control over it. But I will say um you know, a lot of us have advocated. In fact, one of the things that that was put in place when I was in the House was that July one and of course, you know, as it as it played out this year, there's really not a lot of teeth to that to that law. But, um, but I, you know, it was always a good, you know, practice to to do. Um, I think it's just, um, you know, similar to to the federal level and this and that, it's it's it's better communication, better talking with our with our colleagues on the other side of the aisle and other other chamber to try to, you know, move the ball forward on on something like that. And, um, I'm hoping we'll have a smoother process here in in 26. So,

well, you've got proof that multi-year budgets work, right? So, if anybody's going to bring it, it'll be you. Uh my my second question is uh is regarding the the gasoline tax. Um it's great that that's going to go all back towards roads. I think that's important, but um we've discussed in the past, you know, the how EVs fit into that, right? Because they don't pay at the pump, so we're trying to charge them maybe higher registration fees so that they pay their fair share. with the elimination of the the credit from the federal government. Have have those equations changed at all? Like are we looking at EVs differently because maybe the the future isn't quite the way that we thought it would be in years past?

You know, that's a good question. Um I I want to say and I have to go back because we it was been a few months now since we worked on but I want to say there was a component to it that affected EVs and so let me see if I can get you more information. I'll send it through Leanne and to the whole council. Um I'll look into that tomorrow. But I think in general, yes. I mean the you know the EVs there's they're using the roads and they're a lot of times you know a lot of them are are heavier than you know some of the gas cars and um and so it does you know have that wear and tear yet they're not paying you know the fuel taxes. And so, um, it's something that, you know, other states are looking at other, you know, creative ways going forward on that because even our gas vehicles are much more fuel efficient than they were 20, you know, 25 years ago. And so the so the gas tax is probably, you know, going to be a relic um here in the next, you know, 15, 20 years. But right now, that's kind of the mechanism that we've been using as a state. And so in in a lot of the other options that other states are looking at are not necessarily super palatable either like miles driven and some of this other kind of stuff. So so it's trying to kind of figure that out and um um going forward but no you bring up some good points.

We got the motor city here in Michigan. Hopefully we can blaze the way. Yeah. Appreciate it. Thank you very much. Back to you. Thank you Mr. Blair. Next up Mrs. Newower.

Thank you President Carlock. Um, I have two questions and one comment. The first one was about the 47,000 approximately that we're going to get for public safety funds. I I could be wrong, but I think that was the amount that the RCS district or close to. I think it was they were at $55,000 that they were unable to contribute and that's why we lost our resource officer after what happened in Oakland County. Is there a way for us to make sure that we use it and not lose it and maybe fill that position that was taken from us with those funds just just you?

Yeah. I know. Yeah. I I think it's broad enough and and again we can get you the full information, you know, the full uh language on it, but yeah, I think that that it's it's um broad enough where you can maybe use something like that. Yeah, I did read the statute that was passed and my interpretation of it looks like it does cover the resource officers in the school because it's the public safety for so if there's a way that we can try to recover that deficit use that money that we're going to get because I feel like if we're not going to I could be wrong but if we don't use it or give them a goal for it it's going to be gone and they're not going to give it to us or

Yeah. Yeah, I mean it's supposed again it's supposed to be like on an annual basis and this and that, but um you and this is the first year we're really doing I mean they they tried to kind of implement it in the 2324 session and um it just never really got off the ground and so now it's in the budget and and the the legislation's passed on it and so it's just trying to work. So if we can just kind of target it to make sure that it does come to us somehow I mean I'm not sure if that's the best use for it. it will it will come to the city and so the city can can have that debate, you know, at the council table on on how best to utilize those resources.

Okay. And then the second question I have is that I was really excited to see that there's the uh tax on weed, the 24%. But what makes me nervous is that it's supposed to be going to road funding and we've been supposedly fixing our roads for the last eight years and I haven't seen that. So if there's a way for us to So that Yeah. So that part of that that's a new it is a new thing. So So yeah. So no that that is um that was what was passed in order to make the two million2 billion dollars possible. Yeah. So So it's a new thing though.

So if it's a new thing, how long will it take to get whatever revenue in in order for the roads to actually be touched? Since the last estimate that I heard was when my kids were in junior, both of them were in junior high that 75 I75 will be completed by the time they start college. So like I'm trying to think how much time will it take for them to Yeah. So So it goes into it goes into effect um I believe it's January 1st. Um and um and there is some litigation on it too. Um but no, we we've budgeted that money in this budget that goes from now through September 30th. So yeah, we're as a state, we're anticipating that revenue.

Okay. I just want to make sure that whenever there's revenue that's budgeted, it's actually spent and used for what it's budgeted for. And I know you I know you'll hold them accountable. I just hope that you can get your colleagues to hold people accountable, too.

Sure. My my last comment is I wanted to thank you for all the work you're doing with the mental health reform. Um it is disastrous here in Michigan and as a probate attorney I hope that this can help the people first who are becoming wards of the state um and are going into facilities or not actually having space in facilities and ending up in either the judicial system, the prison system or homeless because we don't have the resources. I was really really proud and happy that it was our representative that's spearheading that and a a lot of work needs to be done. You can check the dockets in Mcome Oakland and see just the number of cases that we have of people who have been deemed legally incapacitated and then people don't know what to do with them after they've been judicially

they've been judicially compromised and now we don't know what to to to do with them. So I I'm so thankful for you. I'm so thankful that you identified that as a problem and that you're working on um getting some help with that. And if you need any help, let me know. I I I'll do anything I can and we'll gather the whole army of probate attorneys to do it for you. No, I appreciate that. And there there's more to come on that front. Great. Thank you so much. That's all I have, President Carlock. Thank you, Mrs. New Bowerer. And thank you, Senator Weber, for coming out and talking to us. Thank you. I like the threeminut clock, too. Yeah. Turn it on. It's very transparent. It's very transparent. Very good. All right.

Thank you. Um, next up, public hearings, item 2025-0499, fiscal year 2025, fourth quarter budget amendments. Mr. Snider,

your mic. Yeah,

let me try that again. Sorry about that. Yeah, first time I've ever done this here. So, uh, Thea, thank you, President Carlock, City Council, Mayor Barnett, and Miss Blakeley. Well, as part of the, uh, fourth quarter budget amendment presentation tonight, I'd like to take this opportunity to present before you some of the financial highlights from the soontobe completed, uh, fiscal year 2025. And as we go through here, just uh keep in mind all the figures incorporate all of the fiscal year 2025 fourth quarter budget amendments that are in your packet as well as the projected fiscal year 2026 first quarter budget amendments. Um which basically carry forward the dollars for projects that were not completed in this current fiscal year 205 to 2026 for completion. Uh what this will help to do is give kind of an applesto apples long-term comparison. So, let's just dive right in here. So, for an overall citywide grant, total perspective as part of this fourth quarter budget amendment for the year, total revenues are proposed to increase by 1.2 million. Total expenditures are proposed to decrease by 14 million. That's that number there. Um, of that 14 million, 3.1% or 3.1 million or 2% is uh due to reductions in uh annual operating expenditures, 11.1 million or 18% for capital projects. Um, and an increase of 239,000 or 1% for interfund transfers. Uh, grand totals have a net impact on our citywide fund balances of $15 million. Actually, 15.2. Now, keep in mind we will be proposing to carry over approximately 10 million of this amount to next year to complete our current projects this year. Uh really a huge uh metric for me that I look at all the time is right here, $49 million in

capital, 49.3 with a proposed draw of 30.3 from fund balance. Uh this demonstrates a structural operating surplus of approximately $19 million for 2025. So first off, let's take a look at the $49 million in capital projects completed this year, which is a very big list and a big year. So looking at a pie chart here, well, we'll kind of start over here at major roads and kind of go around the clock here. uh 4.5 million in major roads con completed this year is the Brewster Road reconstruction from Walton to Dutton as well as Edington Boulevard from Farmborough to Woodruff. Uh we have $5.2 million into our local streets and this is really our uh annual local street ashvall and concrete programs. Uh water and sewer big chunk of the pie over here 15 plus.6 6 million. Uh primarily this was for the University Hills uh subdivision water main replacement, SCADA system replacement, Brewster Road water main replacement, Innovation Hills water connection, and some various um water and sewer urgent repairs that were needed. Some of the smaller P pieces of the pie, MIS, 649,000 for citywide photocopy replacements and network upgrades. In fleet, $2 million for replacements for three pieces of equipment and 14 vehicles. $700,000 in pathway for our annual pathway rehabilitation program as well as the Adams at Clinton River trail pathway crossing that was just completed this year. Storm water, a million dollars worth of work, including river uh bank stabilizations at Eagle's Landing, which is right outside here at Avon and Liveroy as well as at Innovation Hills. Fire Capital, one and a half million, and this was for three ambulances and heart monitors. and facilities. They kind of took the the prize this year with $18 million. Pretty good list here. Fire station number one roof HV and

interior fire training tower. Oakland County Sheriff's Office interior replacements or enhancements. The gateway and park entrance signs. Spencer Park uh docks and deck upgrades as well as the parking lot was completed this year. Innovation Hills restroom came in came online. At Bordon Park, we have brand new batting cages as well as some locker room upgrades for some of our staff there. Uh the bridge bridges were replaced at the museum. Citywide, we replaced all of our picnic tables. And at Noaki Park, we got the engineering and architectural services basically wrapping up here soon. At the Van Husen Jones Cemetery, we have a brand new irrigation system. And not very exciting, but here at city hall, we got a new chiller to keep things uh temperate. So, how does 49.3 compare to our past trend? Well, you see here, it's a pretty big number. Probably going to be a record number uh by the end of the year. And one big thing to keep in mind, this this $49 million of projects. And all of the projects from 2016 to 2025 were all delivered with no debt issued. So, we won't be paying any of these projects off over the past 20 years, over the next 20 years, rather. And if you add up all the numbers for the last 10 years, this is $300 million of infrastructure investment we have completed within the city. So we do have little time to rest as uh we have plans in motion for another big year of infrastructure reinvestment and quality of life improvements for our city next year, including the development of Noiki Park. Now, we're going to switch gears a little and cover some of the city's most significant individual funds. I love calling these our big seven. And we're going to start with probably our most important fund, the general fund. Revenues up 1.2 million, 4% and our expenditures were down or at least operating was down 944,000

or another 4% decrease. And this is very probably a consistent story throughout all the funds. Now, per our general fund fund balance policy for this year, we want to set that number at 65% of our annual operations. Any additional funds above and beyond that 65% will flow into our capital improvement fund. And this causes the increase in transfers out to the capital improvement fund to be $3 million over $3 million additional we will be contributing to the capital improvement fund. And this is really truly great news um that due to this year's favorable budget variance, higher in revenues, lower in operations, and in accordance with our fund balance policy, we'll be transferring this additional $3 million over um to the capital improvement fund this year to be used for capital projects citywide. And we have some very innovative ideas that we'll be bringing forward with uh to you in January regarding how we possibly manage this moving forward. Now, let's look at this graphically. And I love these charts and I'm sure you all do at this point especially the mayor loves my charts. But uh as we can see here the decrease in general fund fund balance we ended 2024 at right on 80% plan to go to 65 50 and 35. 35 is our new fund balance target and we aim to maintain that over the long term. So we're going to be stepping down over the course of the next three years. So as you look at this fund, it looks very much in control. And this is good because general fund is really the most important fund that we have. If any fund were to get into any trouble, the general fund could uh assist. Let's move over to the companion fund, the capital improvement fund. And this is where some other good news happens. In the capital improvement fund, you see on the revenue side, we're amending up that $3.1 million. Most of this is from the general fund. also some investment earnings came in a little bit better and

our expenditures were reducing that down by $3 million and this is a lot of this is projects not yet awarded in 2025 or projects coming in under budget which is always a good thing. So, what is really great news is we going into this budget as in the third quarter, we were planning a $3.9 million draw from our capital improvement fund. Due to the higher revenues, lower expenses, it'll be a $6 million change. So, end of the year, we are anticipating our capital improvement fund increasing $2.2 million. Basically, 9.7 coming in, 7.4 coming out. So, our capital improvement fund is anticipated to grow by $2.2 million. Looking at this graphically, you can see the increase here. There's a big spike here. That is Noiki Park and we are planning on funding that park 100% with cash on hands with no uh needed for debt. So, this is really the big thing that we have to be very strategic as we're looking forward in which capital projects to pursue on an annual basis. And uh we have a very exciting idea that we'll be bringing forward to you in January on how we manage this. What I like to look at if you compare this with the prior presentation I gave to you in July, you notice this number is pretty flat going forward. Now we're actually seeing growth in this fund. So this is very very positive and this fund is working just as we had anticipated when we initially set it up years ago. Let's move on to our next uh big three or big seven fund. our major road funds revenues down a little bit and this is mainly due to a deferment of a project that will be coming for you a little bit later tonight for the um uh the technology at Auburn Signal Exchange. It's in this year's budget. Won't be done until next year. It had a funding source that came from the LDFA. So those monies will basically the revenue and expenditure will roll to next year. And

our expenditures are down 1.2 2 million uh primarily of uh operating of $166,000 and a million dollar less in capital projects. So in total [clears throat] $800,000 less is needed from fund balance. And that basically brings us from the $956,000 to just about $153,000 draw from the major road fund. What I think is really impressive on this this particular chart here is $4.4 4 million of capital is was inputed into our roads this year with $153,000 from fund balance to accomplish this. So that's very very strong and very very positive. Looking forward kind of a crazy chart here. Keep in mind the major road fund is more of a capital fund. So we want to be able to have those dollars when those big projects happen. So finish here in 2025. Actually anticipating putting a little money in in 2026. And then we have some pretty big projects coming in in 2027, 2028, and 2029, which will draw it down a little bit. And then after those big projects are done, we look to be growing this fund. So, uh, major road funds still looking very, very good. And we did have $4.5 million in major road construction. So, how does that kind of chart out? Another real strong year in our major road um major road system. Not quite as big as in 2019. That year, we had the Auburn Corridor come online. uh also did Liveroi from Avon to north of Walton as well as Starbat and in 2022 we had uh Auburn Road again from Rochester to Culverson kind of leading into the Auburn corridor as well as Waterview and Old Port Old Perch. So grand total if you add up all these 10 years that's $59 million of major road construction rehabilitation and we have another $4 million queued up for next year. Moving on to local streets, revenues down a little bit. Um, a lot of this is again due to timing. We have a safe

streets for all grant that we received and all that work hasn't been done yet. So, we'll be carrying that revenue forward. Expenditures are down about 970,000 with some 187,000 in operating, 783 in capital. So, in in total here for uh local street fund uh positive $810,000 to fund balance. We went from drawing 750 from, we're going to add 810 back. So grand total, we anticipate local street fund to also increase over the course of this year, which is very [clears throat] impressive to me. If you look at the difference between 5 basically $2 million um of infrastructure put into our local street network, and we're actually adding $60,000 to our fund balance. So that is a really positive mark. Looking at the long-term chart, this one again pretty boring, which we kind of like, but we will be ending 2025 right here around $8 million. Slowly draw it down to local street fund has a 25% fund balance that we'll be targeting and then we'll be maintaining that going forward. Good news is we look to be able to maintain a $6 million per year pace that we put into our local street program looking forward long term. over the last 10 years. Been really keeping pretty good uh pace with that uh direction from the city council from a decade ago that kind of put out the sort of challenge to administration to fund a local street rehabilitation program of $5 million per year. And not only was it a three-year pilot program, we've been keeping that going over the past past decade plus. And if you add all these numbers up over the past 10 years, uh $52 million of investment into our local street network, if you remember from uh two slides ago, we had $59 million of major road. Add this to the $52 million

of local street grant total $111 million this community has put into its road network. And keep in mind, all with no debt issued at all. Oh, and the big spike there in 2019, that was some local road work that was done as part of the Auburn corridor. All right, rounding the horn here. Now, we're on to fire. Fire revenues were down slightly. And uh this is actually good news because a big part of this number was a transfer in from fire capital into fire operating that we thought we might need to back some funds in to keep fire operating on its balance. The good news here is we do not need a transfer in from the fire capital fund to fire operating to reverse that flow. And actually it's quite the opposite now. Funds are flowing as they should be from fire operating back into fire capital. Expenditures are lower by the exact same amount. But the big news here is our uh operating expenses were $460,000 less or 3%. A very big percentage increase. But this is very positive news that not only did we get uh fire operating stabilized uh it's also stabilized at its fund balance target and there's an extra $167,000 which will flow over to capital for all those fire capital needs that we have looking at this chart and this is nice and boring just how we like it with our expenses and revenues closely in line we can adjust up the expenditure level to basically maintain that 22 to 25% range is right where we want this one. And you might know where we're going with this a little bit. So, next fund here is our fire capital. You can see the extra some of the extra dollars coming in here from fire operating. Uh grand total of $1 million less in expenditures. A big chunk of this is this $800,000 here in fire capital and that is due to one fire engine that is still takes forever to get these fire engines in. uh has still

has not been delivered yet, but once it is delivered, we will be carrying those dollars forward to next year to take care of that. And you see a decrease here in transfers out because we don't need to transfer any funds out of fire capital anymore. It's ex going the flow is working correctly where funds are flowing back in. So, and now we'll go to probably the I always have to give you one scary chart here. And here is our one scary chart that is basically one of our prime things that we are looking at. and we will continue to monitor. So we see this fund not looking good. It looks actually better than it looked when I presented this to you um in July as part of our second quarter budget amendment. Big part of that is right here in 2026 and 2027. We have the replacement of eight ambulances uh five in 2026 and three in 2027. Keep in mind the three that we have here in 2027. Those are the place the ambulances that we just received here in 2025. Why are they in, you know, why are you replacing the ambulance in two years? Because we target them to last around 5 years and it takes three years for an ambulance to come in once it's purchased. So we won't actually pay for those ambulances until they are purchased, but they are in our budget. What does this mean? It means these dollars that we're projecting here in 2026 and 2027 for those ambulances, we probably won't be paying until 2029 to 2020 or 2030 when they actually come in. We look good to replace everything we have. Now, the problem becomes when the ambulances we're going to be replacing need to be replaced again here in 2031 and 2032. That's where we have problems. Um, but actually these ones in 2031 and 2032, we won't really be spending them till 2034 to 2035. This is exactly why we do long-term forecasting the way that we do to identify these problems very upfront and before you know we can plan for these and be proactive instead of reactive. So

these are conversations we're having with the fire department and internally and working on what we can do. So we do have um years actually to address and fix this problem and we are working on it diligently as we go. We will wrap up here with the police fund as we just kind of segueed from uh being proactive in addressing issues to reactive. Last year at this time, I show probably one of the scariest charts I think council may have ever seen. What our police fund will look like after the Oakland County Board of Commissioners approved the contractual rate increases of 36.9% of our Oakland County Sheriff's contract over the next three years, including 17.9% in year 1, this year, 2025, followed by a nine in 26 and another 9% in 2027. as we didn't receive notice of the Oakland County Sheriff's rate uh increases until last December, really right before this meeting last year. Um it was a bit of a tough issue. So, let me show you real quick here. This is where we look now. This is this was the exact same chart I presented last year. So, let's go back here because that's really scary because this is what our new reality is. So, we took advantage of an opportunity from Oakland County to defer uh $475,000 in costs from 2025 to 2027, which we will have to pay back at zero interest. So, of course, we're going to take advantage of that and keep those monies on our coffer a little bit longer. Um, and that did help to reduce our draw in 2025 um significantly. That's where we were and that's it's back where we are. So, we did have a good discussion with our city council um last year uh probably last first quarter of last year once the the news hit. Uh we looked at a couple different options. We looked at maintaining the

same millage rate and reducing our police staff by 15%. We looked at maintaining the same mill rate and reducing our general fund staff by 25%. We looked at maintaining the same millage rate, deferring all of our capital projects we had planned and we're projected to um use up our reserve balances by 2030. But as public safety is the city council's number one priority and rightfully so, we did not stay status quo and the decision was made to increase the police millage rate and thus the B bottom line city millage rate by 3.9% and we went from this scary chart to this very stable um projection looking forward. Let's get off of that one into the final comments. So, that concludes my presentation tonight of the city's fourth quarter budget amendment and fiscal year 2025 year-end review. A huge thank you to our city council for your vision for the city of Rochester Hills and your support of the city staff over the course of this year. Uh, reflecting back, 2025 has been very, very busy. I kind of can't believe this is our last city council meeting of the year already, but it has been very rewarding and a very productive year. Um perhaps in perspective of hindsight, we'll be able to better appreciate everything that we have accomplished this year. So even with all the challenges thrown our way this year with police funding and and every year with, you know, fire funding and and pathway funding, we're still committed to the same exact principles that have become the backbone of our financial foundation. and first and foremost to operate operationally sound [snorts] and continue our track record of running a structural operating surplus. When our long-term strategic planning will help us to keep operating with that structural operating surplus and we direct our structural operating surplus towards our capital needs and that's evidenced by a record amount of capital outlay accomplished in 2025 all

with no need for debt to be issued. uh we just became debt free this year and we really we have no plans to issue debt anytime into the future. So uh speaking on behalf of probably the entire staff, we're going to take a collective deep breath and try to recharge a little bit over this uh holiday season which we will need as we have another very aggressive schedule on tap for 2026 and we need to hit the ground running uh as soon as we get into January next year. So, uh, with that, I will ask for President Carlock to open a public hearing on the 2025 fourth quarter budget amendments, and I'm available for any questions or comments you may have. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Snyder. So, with that, we will open the public hearing. Um, at this point, the public can come forward and make any comments. We do not have any public comment cards, and I don't see anyone approaching the podium wishing to make any comments. So we will close the public hearing and bring the discussion back to the dis. Uh we do have a couple city council members that would like to speak. Uh first up Miss Manino.

Thank you President Carlock and uh Mr. Snyder. Um thank you for all your responses today to my questions outside of the meeting and I would ask president Carlock I don't know if we can include those lean or they can thank you. Okay. Um just a quick couple quick questions just for my own understanding. So right now it looks like we're asking for a budget amendment of a reduction of 15 million or I'm say a pickup to the budget of 15 million of which 10 you mentioned will be moved into 2026. So the numbers that we were looking at on those slides do the 26 numbers reflect the increase of 10 million moving from Oh do they have already yes that way it's apples to apples

that that was my question as we're looking at it. The other question regarding the 10 million, and you may or may not know the answer to this, but is that for projects that are already kicked off in process where purchase order commitments are made, but just they were underspent in 2025 pushing the spending out into 26 or is this just things projects never got kicked off at all? The vast majority of them are awarded already. They're just not completed. One of the biggest ones is the work at Fire Station One. that work was awarded probably in the the summer fall and that's underway right now. Okay.

So, that would be one of the biggest ones. There's also a SCADA system which is kind of the computer telemetry of the the water and sewer system. That one's under project. But of the 10 million requested to be carried over, the vast majority of it has been awarded already. It's just not completed yet. Okay. So, it's just a timing issue in terms of the recognition of the the payments. Correct. Um, regarding the reduction in operating expenses of 3 million, which in at a high level, I know we went through each fund. I can look this up later, but in general, was that due to what efficiencies or under spending or where's the 3 million pickup and operating expenditures?

Couple couple places throughout. Um, one of the biggest places maybe is in personnel. anytime there's, you know, uh, somebody retires, it takes a little bit of time to fill that new position. Sometimes we call that salary lapse.

Um, that's that's a big part of it. As well as just, uh, all of our directors keeping a tight eye on their budgets and, you know, not only using it when it's needed, not just there is no, hey, we're at the end of the year, I got to buy a bunch of paper and things like that. So, we really frown on that. So, everyone does a really good job of maintaining their budgets. Part of it's also uh the fact that we budget conservatively on our expenditures. Um when we guys get probably tired of me saying this, but with for the new folks, bear with me, but we try to always budget our expenditures at numbers we can be at or less than and budgets that people can live within and and it's not too much fun um coming to, you know, myself and Mayor Barnett saying we need more money for something. So you guys have to figure it out.

Okay. I Okay, that's that's good for me. Thank you. Well, thank you. Thank you, Miss Marino. Uh, Miss Newower. Thank you, President Carlock. I just had a question about the police um thing. It's a gentle question. I just wanted to know when um the audit from Oakland County was going to come in so that we could compare

um our numbers since that since we are doing the end review. I know that we were promised an audit. I'm just wondering when we can expect it. I believe the county has a September 1st year end and typically you have about two months to close the books. So that be October and November. So I would say uh the auditor for the Oakland County is the same auditor for the city of Rochester Hills, Raymond, and happen to personally know one of the principles on that account because he's our principal account manager here for the city of Rochester Hills. So, that will be something uh I've let them know to keep a tight eye on as they're, you know, reviewing Oakland County's books, particularly on the dispatching or the the patrol um cost center that they have. So, I would say when will we get that audit? probably first quarter of the next year, January, February, that should be completed and we will most definitely um well that's about the time we start engaging with our auditor and we will ask that question and have that that prepared

and we'll be having an opportunity to view what they provide us. Correct. Oh, absolutely. It's it's public information. So yeah, we're well within our rights to ask. And if there's a deficiency in the information that they're providing, we're be able to ask for supplements or amendments. Well, we do know their auditors very well. [snorts] So we could certainly ask for any amount of detail, you know, within reason that that [clears throat] we could provide. So Sure. And I have a question for our city attorney. We are within our rights to ask for supplements and amendments or any information that we believe is deficient from the accounting. Correct. Yes, that's correct. Okay. So if they provide us something super high level, we can go back and say provide us with X, Y, and Z. Correct.

Yes. Okay. Thank you very much. Thank you, Miss Newower. Mr. Snyder, on that topic of that um audit, would any potential findings be applied as a credit towards 26 or would it be applied as a refund towards 25? Well, this puts, you know, you got different timings because they have one fiscal year end and we have a different fiscal year end. Um,

basically Oakland County cannot profit off of their contractual deputy contracts, right? Um, that was a reason big reason for the 17.9% because they were showing a structural operating loss each year and they wanted to shore that up, but they cannot make a dollar on it. they can lose a dollar and that's fine but they cannot make one. So as the auditors go through and if they find that they are then they would have to issue somewhat of a refund to get that back into alignment. I would say that would probably be more of a credit for 2026. That's would take that a little bit of time to kind of hash out.

Yeah, that that's kind of what I expected. So we would see that in a amendment for a future quarter. We wouldn't have to go back and reopen the books for a previous calendar. No, they wouldn't be able to do that. I think where you would see it is uh this current year they have a uh the 17.9%. Next year is a 9% the following year is a 9%. Where it would happen is they would not be able to increase it 9% for next year. It would be some amount lower than that. Got it. To get to get that in line again. Got it. Understood. Thank you, Mr. Snyder. Uh Mr. Mayor.

Thank you, President uh Carlock. And uh just just a couple comments. I think um Joe and I go over these things quite a bit and uh I always appreciate [clears throat] his depth and um I don't think he appreciates my summation of uh all the things he says, but he he and his team get a tremendous amount of credit. I mean, I think they've earned certainly earned my confidence and the confidence of the other directors, and I think in large measure I've earned the confidence of the council. Um, you know, it's easy to get washed into the numbers and the charts. Um, but I am telling you, we are the financial envy of every municipality in Michigan, bar none. Maybe maybe like with 346 people. I don't know their financial situation, but I mean, what you just saw is, and I say this out loud because a lot of our leadership is here tonight, uh, they really deserve a lot of credit. um from the fact that you heard Mr. Snyder say that, you know, take away the deferred projects, we're going to come in about $4 million on the positive side of budget. Uh unfortunately, the system is set up that we have to come before you anytime, you know, a a project goes over. Uh but we don't see are the 75 contracts between those where they're doing a great job managing, monitoring, and coming in $4 million under budget. Um that is substantial and they deserve a lot of credit for that. And as Joe said, we've got uh some ideas as to how we can maybe manage that moving forward to uh respect council's uh ideas and wishes and you know fiduciary responsibility uh and and recognize the work that they're doing as well. You saw these charts with our seven major funds, you know, a $250 million budget and the only challenge at the moment is a fund that if nothing changes, which stuff changes all the time in 2031 or 2032 has challenges. Um that is not normal and

it's easy to sit on this side of the dis and think that's just how everybody else operates. Um but but that is not true um for most of our other colleague communities. Um the fact that we're paying for a new park in cash is not normal. Um the fact that we aren't proposing all of the work that you see in the next four to five years, no debt issuance. You saw most of our neighbors uh direct neighbors asking for debt issuance in this last election or millage increases or something or or the like. Um, we we we've just really managed incredibly conservatively and have done it in a way that has still allowed us to create what I think is a beautiful community, an enviable community. And so, um, this can be boring, uh, to some, um, but this is kind of like our report card at the end of the year. And financially, all A's, uh, you know, we we're doing we're not doing it on the backs of not doing any work. We're doing record amounts of work. Um, we're not doing it on the backs of uh pushing it the the the debt to future generations. We're paying for it all in cash. Um, we don't even talk about it. We used to talk about our bond rating. We don't talk about our bond rating anymore because we don't use our bond rating. Um, and so I I just a tremendous amount of credit to to CFO Snyder and his team, to the directors who are here. Um, and I just, you know, want to recognize I think very purposefully uh the fact that so much happened behind the scenes. excellent contract management, excellent, you know, on the scenes day-to-day operational issues. So that $4 million goes back in the fund for us to continue to to spend next year, which is more than most communities. Sometimes their even entire budget is for a general fund year. So, uh, our team does it well and this council, and I know this is a new council, but we we know you all well enough to know you are a conservatively minded comm community group that's, you know, financially prudent. Um, this is your team and we are knocking it out of the park.

Thank Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Uh, seeing no further council or administrative comments, do we have a motion to move forward with the fourth quarter minute? We do by motion by Mr. Blair, seconded by Mr. Lindberg. Uh, all in favor of I guess I need to read the motion first. Uh, so we have a motion in a second. No further comment. I'll read the resolution. Whereas, in accordance with the provisions of public act 2 of 1968, the uniform budgeting and accounting act, and the charter for the city of Rochester Hills, chapter 3, section 3.7, the city council may amend the budget during the fiscal year either on its own initiative or upon recommendation of the mayor. And whereas the public hearing for the proposed fiscal year 2025 fourth quarter budget amendments was noticed on November 26th, 2025. And whereas the proposed fiscal year 2025 fourth quarter budget amendments were available for public viewing beginning on December 6th, 2025. And whereas at its December 15th, 2025 city council meeting uh held a public hearing on the proposed fiscal year 2025 fourth quarter budget amendments. Now therefore, be it resolved that the Rochester Hills City Council hereby adopts the following fiscal year 2025 fund totals as amended below. All those in favor?

I. Any opposed? That motion passes. Thank you, Mr. Snyder. Thank you, city council. Next up, item 2025-0557, fiscal year 2025, fourth quarter budget amendment. RaR Mr. Snider and Mr. Jewel Mo. Sorry, a minute.

President Carlock, council, mayor. Uh I usually end the year here. Uh it's my one opportunity to really get to know any incoming new council that's here and just get get a chance to say hi and uh let them know what we're about. Uh the Rochester event recreation authority is a part of the city of Rochester and city of Rochester Hills and our budget does go through Joe and is a part of the city's budget on an annual basis and it's my opportunity to come here and uh ask for approval uh based on our fourth quarter amendment. Uh not much has changed from our second quarter to our fourth quarter amendment. Uh we're actually going to be reducing uh the amount that we're taking from our fund balance for our capital projects this year. Uh and that's due to our team's excellent work this year in you know going through our revenue development process and making sure that our expenditures are much less than than what we're taking uh for the capital projects. Uh end of the year, last meeting of the year here. I usually start the the year at City of Rochester just going over everything that we were able to do in in 2025. This year we were able to uh complete our esports gaming room. We were also able to finish the uh front porch there at RAR and uh take care of some parking lot work for the year with our capital projects. uh staff. We're at full staff uh for the authority. And we've also been able to hire and contract with uh several youth and entrepreneurs in the community, accounting for almost $465,000 in wages that uh students in high school, college uh that come back throughout the summer and and run our summer camps and other programs uh for

RAR. It's a pretty exceptional program with all of the part-time staff and entrepreneurs and contractors that we have. Uh over over 600 programs this year and about 12,000 participants uh throughout all the the programs and events that we had this summer. Lots of partnership programs with the city. And on top of that, we were able to finish our first ever master plan for the Rochester Brown Recreation Authority, which will be up for approval at Wednesday's meeting at RARA. And we also were able to uh complete all of our capital projects that we had on the slate for this year. So, with your approval, I would ask that our fourth quarter amendment be approved by city council.

We'll need to open the public hearing first and close. Right. And just to add one thing on to Mr. W's comments, uh the these budget amendments were presented before the RAR board back in November and approved by the RAR board. This is the kind of the final step bringing before the Rochester Hills City Council for final approval. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Snder. And sorry about that, Mr. Word. Um so I will open the public hearing. Uh and with that, I will open public comment on the item. I don't see any public comment cards nor anyone approaching the podium to make any public comments. So we will close the public hearing bring the discussion back to the dis and Mrs. Newower.

Thank you President Carl. Um usually councilwoman uh Terresa Mongioli she's the one who speaks on behalf of RAR. Um she's obviously not here today so I'm the lucky ducky who gets to do it. Um I just wanted to say thank you for all the programs that you do for our youth. they are um instrumental in their development. Um the I have never heard anybody say, "Oh, that pro program at RAR was not a good one." It's always been a positive experience for the kids. um your work in conjunction with the Rochester Raptors that take them now statewide um the bike team and with MSA and the um things that that have allowed even the high school kids have been able through RAR and their support have been able to from what I understand get money for college because of the support that RAR gave them. They're um excelling in their um programs at school. They're even getting lettered whatever it's called letterman jackets. Yeah. Have and I'm proud to move this motion um in the packet. So, thank you for all you do for our kids. Thank you for what you do for the kids in the school, the programs for their parents. I know that RAR supports families that need support, too. So, um we appreciate that. We see you and we're thankful for you.

Thank you, Miss New Bower. Uh Miss Manino.

Yes. Thank you, President Carlock. I I apologize I didn't get in front of this um earlier to get the answer to this question, but I tried to go out and review some information. I I I noticed that there was some type of a deterioration though in the in the expenditures. The expenditures were actually higher than budget. um the original budget that was set. I don't have the actual maybe I wasn't around, but what was the main driver of it's like a $275,000 almost $300,000 increase in expenditures. Am I reading that right? No. Okay. I must not have that right then on another note. That's why I said I apologize. Okay, maybe I need to go back and look at this. I'll send my question out in a separate email, but I apolog So, from your perspective though, we approve this. We're basically on budget is what it's showing or the the Q4 the update

there. there was a slight variation and I'd say the biggest difference was uh we had a gap in in employment uh where we had uh two new coordinators that were coming on potentially in January and they didn't come on until almost March. So we had an accounted for budget item there where we actually saved a little bit of money. uh expenditures are are down in con comparison to the revenue. So originally we were projected to pull 181,000 from fund balance to cover capital expenditures

and we're looking at only 171,000 uh from fund balance. So I we do have in in less money that that we're going to be actually taking from our fund balance this year to cover those capital improvements. But all in all, with the variation and difference, we're we're actually taking less from our from our draw than we originally anticipated. So,

okay. I Okay, I I'll leave this. I'm going to go back and and review if I get additional questions. I mean, we can go ahead and and approve this tonight, but I'll go back and review this and then I'll send in some follow-up questions if I have any. Thank you. And and like Joe said already, this was vetted by Teresa who sits on city council here along with uh a council member from city of Rochester and our budget committee team and and the full board at RARA before it even gets to this point. So uh they had a ton of questions for me and I was able to answer. So any questions that you have, I'm I'm more than happy to answer them.

Okay. Yeah, I appreciate that. I can come to you. Yes, absolutely. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Miss Manino. Um, seeing no further council comments, we have a motion by Mrs. Newower, seconded by Mr. Skeleie. Uh, I will read the resolution. Whereas the public hearing for the proposed RAR fiscal year 2025 fourth quarter budget amendments was noticed on November 25th, 2025. And whereas the proposed RAR fiscal year 2025 fourth quarter budget amendments were available for public viewing beginning on December 5th, 2025. And whereas at its December 15th, 2025 meeting, city council held a public hearing on the proposed RAR fiscal year 2025 fourth quarter budget amendments. Now therefore, be it resolved that the Rochester Hills City Council hereby adopts the RARH fiscal year 2025 fund total as amended in the amount of 3,423,230. All those in favor?

I I. Any opposed? That motion passes. Thank you, Mr. Ward. Thank you, President Carlock and Council. Thank you.

Next up, 2025-0589 Childress Avenue and Enid Street, Special Assessment District, SAD Paving Project, public hearing on Necessity. Mrs. Ballot, Mrs. Somerset, and Mrs. Taylor Somerville. God, I'm sorry. Good evening, city council president Carl, city council and mayor Barnett. Um we are here in regards to the proposed children and Eden paving project that was brought forward to you at the December 1st city council meeting. Um the next step was to excuse me was to hold a public hearing. Um if there are no questions at this time, I would like to request that you open the public hearing. Uh, okay. We will open the public hearing at this time. We have no public comment cards and I don't see any members of the public approaching the podium to make any comments. So, we will close the public hearing. Bring the discussion back to the disrup.

Thank you, President Carlock. I just wanted to say that um with respect to this particular project and the request children's avenue, there's a need to do this project because of the erosion issues and the water issues that we're having on this road. It affects public safety because if our fire trucks can't get down there or if there is an emergency and they're stuck and there's a problem, um you know, we need to fix this road. So, we appreciate the uh residents bringing this forward and um you know, there's considerations that we take when it comes to approving or disapproving these projects and this one was um really based on necessity um when it comes to the paving of this particular road. So, uh with that, I'd like to move it for uh approval.

We have a motion by Mrs. Newower. I don't see any further discussion. Do we have a second? Second by Mr. Blair.

Okay. So, so there is no resolution. So, we have a motion by Mr. do and a second by Mr. Blair to accept the public hearing at this time. So at this point we will close the public hearing and that's that's it. Is there a vote? Vote no vote. Okay. Thank you. Thank you.

We'll see you in a month. All right. Next up, consent agenda. All matters under consent agenda are considered to be routine and will be enacted by one motion without discussion. If any council member or citizen requests discussion of an item, it will be removed from the consent agenda for separate discussion. I have not been made aware of any items to be removed. I have a motion by Miss Newower, seconded by Mr. Lindberg. I will read these. 2025. Oh, I don't have to read them anymore. So, do I have a motion by Mrs. Newower, seconded by Mr. Lindberg. All in favor?

I. Any opposed?

That passes. Wow, look at that. Sped through all those. Next up, ordinance for adoption. I should have had a little moment there. Item 2025-0564 request for acceptance for second reading and adoption an ordinance to amend sections 54-166 54-226 54-228 54-261 54-262 54-302 54-346 54-382 54-383 54-502 54 54-587 54-590 54-651 54-711 54-742 54-776 and 54-86 of chapter 54 fees of the code of ordinances of the city of Rochester Hills, Oakland County, Michigan to modify and supplement fees charged for various city services to repeal conflicting ordinances and prescribe a penalty for violations. Mr. Snyder.

All right. Thank you or president Carlock, city council members, Mayor Barnett. And so tonight we have four ordinance chapters proposed for update for the upcoming fiscal year. And this is for the second and final scheduled reading. And as we mentioned last time, this is part of our annual process of reviewing and updating our ordinance to ensure the fees are set appropriately to cover our operating costs and to update any ordinance language or include new sections to ensure our ordinances are according to applicable state laws and statutes, current standards and practices, and overall competitiveness. Um, I would like to thank our city attorney, Mr. Christ, uh, for his efforts in reviewing and updating these ordinance changes. And uh if approved tonight, these ordinances shall become effective Monday, December 22nd, 2025 following their publication in the Oakland Press on Sunday, December 1st uh 21st, 2025. So, first we'll start with 2025-0564 chapter 54 fees. Within chapter 54, we have various sections of that chapter with updated fees and language as submitted by the building department for parking lots, plumbing, water distribution, temporary electrical services, electric circuits, HVAC systems, moving of buildings, EV charging stations, mobile food vending, driveway rightway approaches, pathway connections, inspection fees, service calls, temporary height and rentals, meter testing costs, and water and sewer connections. And uh if you have any questions, I am here as well as members of the building department for any questions or comments.

Thank you, Mr. Snyder. I don't see any comments or questions from council. I have a motion by Mr. Blair, seconded by Mrs. Manino. I will read the resolution resolved that an ordinance to amend sections 54-166 54-226 54-228 54-261 54-262 54-302 54-346 54-382 54-383 54-502 54-587 54-59 54-651 1 54-711 54-742 54-776 and 54-86 of chapter 54 fees of the code of ordinances of the city of Rochester Hills, Oakland County, Michigan to modify and supplement fees charged for various city services to repeal conflicting ordinances and prescribe a penalty for violations is hereby accepted for second reading. All those in favor? I.

Any opposed? That motion passes. Next up, item 2025-0565, request for acceptance for second reading and adoption, an ordinance to amend section 79, special events of the code of ordinances of the city of Rochester Hills, Oakland County, Michigan, to modify and supplement fees charged for various city services to repeal conflicting ordinances and prescribe a penalty for violations. Mr. Snyder.

Okay. Um, same opening spiel. Chapter 79 fees. Within chapter 79, there is one section of that chapter with an updated uh permit fee as submitted by the building department. So, with that uh any questions you may have, we have members of the building department here. [snorts] I see no comments or questions from city council. Uh I have a motion by Mrs. Newower, seconded by Mrs. Manino resolved that an ordinance to amend section 79 special events of the code of ordinances of the city of Rochester Hills, Oakland County, Michigan to modify and supplement fees charged for various services for various city services to repeal conflicting ordinances and prescribe a penalty for violations is hereby accepted for second reading and adoption and shall become effective Monday, December 22nd, 2025 following its publication in the Oakland Press on Sunday, December 21st, 2025. All in favor?

I. Any opposed? That motion passes. Next up, item 2025-0566. Request for acceptance for second reading and adoption an ordinance to amend a section 102-94 of chapter 102 utilities of the code of ordinances of the city of Rochester Hills, Oakland County, Michigan to modify and supplement fees charged for various city services to repeal conflicting ordinances and prescribe a penalty for violations. Mr. Snider.

Okay. Um, same opening spiel. And within chapter 102, utilities, one section of that chapter with updated permit fees as submitted by Department of Public Services for shut off and turn on charges. And um, with any questions, we have members of the the DPS staff here for answers.

I see no comments or questions from the dis. A motion by Mrs. Nubar, seconded by Mrs. Manino. resolved that an ordinance to amend section 102-94 of chapter 102 utilities of the code of ordinances of the city of Rochester Hills, Oakland County, Michigan to modify and supplement fees charged for various city services to repeal conflicting ordinances and prescribe a penalty for violations is hereby accepted for second reading and adopt adoption shall become effective Monday, December 22nd, 2025 following its publication in the Oakland Press on Sunday, December 21st, 2025. All in favor? I. Any opposed? That motion passes.

Thank you, Mr. Snyder. Uh oh, one more. One more. Almost there. 2025-0567. Request for acceptance for second reading and adoption an ordinance to amend sections 110-86, 110-88, 110-287, and 110-316 of chapter 10. 110 fees of the code of ordinances of the city of Rochester Hills, Oakland County, Michigan to modify and supplement fees charged for various city services to repeal conflicting ordinances and prescribe a penalty for violations. One more time, Mr.

One more time. Let's do it again. So within chapter 110 fees, a few sections of that chapter with updated fees and language as submitted by the uh department of public services, parks and natural resources and planning department for items such as flood plane use permits, administrative charges, site plan reviews, and wetland and water course permits. So um I as well as members of the um Department of Public Services, Parks and Natural Resources and Planning Department are here for any questions you may have.

Thank you. Seeing no questions or comments from councel, I have a motion by Mrs. Newower, seconded by Mrs. Manino. resolved that an ordinance to amend section 110-86, 1110-88, 110-287, and 110-316 of chapter 110 fees of the code of ordinances of the city of Rochester Hills, Oakland County, Michigan to modify and supplement fees charged for various city services to repeal conflicting ordinances and prescribe a penalty for violations is hereby accepted for second reading and adoption and shall become effective Monday, December 22nd, 2025. 5 following its publication in the Oakland Press on Sunday, December 21st, 2025. All in favor?

I. Any opposed? That motion passes. Well, thank you very much, council. This is my last item for you for the uh year. So, happy holidays and see you next year. Christmas. Happy holidays, Mr. Snyder.

Next up, planning and economic development. Item 2025-000022 request for purchase authorization planning approval of amendment to the gateway and park signage project to increase the contract for the construction and installation of the Bloomer Park sign in the amount of $29,925 for a new contract amount of 1,458,8960. Warren Contractors and Development, Inc., Shelby Township, Michigan. Mr. Andrews.

Good evening. President Carlock, City Council, Mayor Barnett. Uh we're requesting approval of the contract amendment for to add the Boomer Park sign back into the existing agreement with Warren Contractors. uh we defer we deferred the sign back in uh June uh while partnership negotiations were going on with Oakland County and uh they were underway with those discussions now complete now uh we're ready to proceed and fabricate and install that sign. So um with that I'll turn it over to you guys for questions.

Perfect. Thank you Mr. Andrews. I have a motion by Mr. Blair seconded by Mr. Lindberg uh resolved that the Rochester Hills City Council hereby authorizes the approval of an amendment to the Gateway and Park signage project to increase the contract for the construction and installation of the Bloomer Park sign to Warren Contractors and Development Inc. Shelby Township, Michigan in the amount of $29,925 for a new contract amount of $1,458,8960 and further authorized the mayor to execute a contract amendment on behalf of the city. Further resolved that the city's acceptance of the proposal and approval of the award of a contract shall be contingent and conditioned upon the party's entry into an execution of a written agreement acceptable to the city. All in favor?

I. Any opposed? That motion passes. Thank you, Mr. Andrews. Next up, public comment for items not on the agenda. Public comment is limited to three minutes. We have no comment cards. And I don't see anyone approaching the the podium wishing to speak. So, we will move on. Legislative and administrative comments. Do we have anything from the dis today? Nothing. Mr. Mayor, it's all you.

Thank you. Uh last meeting of the year, make a couple uh uh comments and uh certainly appreciate uh the work of the clerk's team and supporting all of our efforts. And one last time, Miss Whisper, if you could uh show my screen, I would appreciate it. [clears throat] Um wanted to start by uh recognizing uh the outstanding work of the men and women of the Department of Public Services. Uh obviously they were called into duty a couple times over the last few weeks uh with winter weather. A reminder to our residents uh to keep an eye on uh our socials uh and the city's web page, try to update those pretty regularly. We did have to uh call a um a snow emergency requesting vehicles off the street. It certainly helps us plow quicker and faster. Um and uh we appreciate everyone's adherence to that. Um, but mostly uh just to to thank the men and women who when we hunker down and uh you know cuddle up to to go to bed for the night, they head out in the opposite direction uh into the cold and snow and dark to uh make sure people can get to work and school uh in the morning. And so uh lots of uh tools and technologies out there. We encourage people to check out Plow Tracker to see where the the plows are. Uh we had a little kurfuncle with it this last time, but it was a uh with um the uh dist the the the producer. What's the right word? Mr. Blair, the

the vendor.

The vendor. That's the word. Thank you. That's why he gets paid a lot of money. Um it was with the vendor. So, uh but normally that's a great way to track and see where the uh the plows are. We just want to thank them and encourage folks to keep an eye as the winter weather uh does uh is here and we have to be mindful of that. Um, speaking of snow, on the other side of snow, there are some fun things happening. We certainly thank uh everyone who's come out to a couple of the special events that Dennis and his team did out at Innovation Hills uh with the winter lights. Um they are ongoing until uh uh January 19, January 11th, I believe. A few other fun activities out there. Check the city's website. But uh we've had a lot of fun out there. It's a beautiful uh beautiful experience. And if it's not 38 degrees below zero, it's a fun walk around the lake. And uh uh we do thank the parks team for making and helping keep Innovation Hills a uh a yearround experience for our residents and uh guests. Um of course we had the Christmas parade this past uh weekend or week and a half ago. Uh anchored by our grand marshall, our very own Pat McKay. You see uh um uh my team walking and of course the council team there. Uh some of you your first experience in the parade. Hopefully you enjoyed it. Have many more to come. It's a lot of fun. Thank the chamber um for putting together the a great parade and all the uh first responders who uh uh who kept it safe. You know, you're you're mindful of how um you know, you should never take for granted that you can pull off an event like this uh given the circumstances in our world uh especially over the last 48 hours. Um, we have a great community, a safe community, but we certainly always want to stop and thank the first responders for doing their part and helping us enjoy the holidays in so many different ways that we do uh here in our two communities. One of the things that we do to enjoy the holidays and to celebrate is what's called 30 days of giving. Um, it's an important part of our team's uh efforts here. We all go out uh this actually is I I guess before I get to 30 days of giving, this was our celebrations. I think uh one of the council members, maybe Miss Nubar mentioned it. All the

uh offices are decorated. We really get into it. Uh the the um the teams have a great time with it. If you get a chance to walk through city hall before the end of the year, um it's a great experience to see uh how many different fun things the count the uh the group's given a high level theme and then they do the rest and it's a lot of fun. So check that out. I mentioned 30 days of giving. This is something I'm really proud of. We uh uh are really uh about service in this organization. every uh individual. Um we try to go all out in November to summer to uh contribute to those less fortunate. You see uh gift wrapping for gifts for all God's kids. You see u packing for uh blessings in a backpack both for both for Aendale and Rochester. You see the OPC. You see the neighborhood house work there. I think there's also some work from parks in cleaning up some uh debris from some uh elderly seniors homes. Um, it's just a great way to we've been very blessed and to live open-handedly and to bless others as a a part of our culture and DNA here. And I love the fact that in every one of these pictures, these smiles aren't forced. This is something that people really enjoy doing as a part of our culture and our organization. 30 days of giving uh and will continue to do that, giving back to those in our community who need it the most. Uh, couple things uh just to remind you. We have one project that seems a little bit out of date uh here, but the due date is January 5th. Uh next year we'll celebrate the 250th uh anniversary of our nation. Um and uh one of the early things that they're doing out of DC, there'll be things about every month, but uh we're doing a partnership with US Conference of Mayors, National Endowment for the Arts, uh a poster project. So one of our students posters will hang in Washington DC in the capital uh during the American 250 celebration all next year. uh you see more information here, how to get involved, how to contribute your deadline, your submission deadline is January 5th. We'd love to see some fantastic uh student submissions on this so that we can uh uh have our city represented uh in Washington DC next year. Just a quick uh reminder that the

museum has a bunch of events. They have an oldtime Christmas that's happening this weekend. Uh they have uh they had this week they had some candlelight um walks throughout the the historic district. They've got the model train um experiment or expo that's going on out there. Uh if you're looking for something to do now that the kids are out of school almost and you've got some time over the next few weeks, a visit to the Rochester Hills Museum at Van Husen Farm is a great way uh to see kind of a different take on some of the traditional things about uh this holiday season. Uh do want to mention that we do have uh a couple coming uh dates that the city will be closed, city offices will be closed December 24th, 5th, and 6th and December 31st. uh and January 1st and 2nd for the holidays. Um so make sure a lot of folks come in typically around those times to pay their taxes. A lot of folks like to pay their taxes before the end of there. So just note those holiday closures. They can also be found on the city's website. And finally, uh this kind of makes sense given the last announcement that was just given or one of the most recent announcements. Usually we end with this picture uh our city logo, but today I thought I'd end with this real picture. This is not AI generated. This is a of the city's major gateway uh down on uh uh Rochester Road just north of M59. Uh a beautiful example, I think a wonderful way to brand our community and it's gotten a lot of really positive comments and anytime you do anything with gateways. Uh you're always susceptible to a lot of comments. Uh and this was actually wildly popular and uh uh one of my favorites was it's not as bad as I thought it would be, which you know, we'll take. Hey, that's a plus.

Uh thank you to the team who uh put this together. I think the council's seen them all over town. But uh a very merry Christmas, happy holidays, happy Hanukkah to all of those and uh we look forward to another great year next year. Thanks, President Carlock. Thank you, Mayor Barnett. Is uh it is a great city to live in for sure. Uh all right, next up, attorney's report. Miss Christ, I have nothing this evening.

Oh, that is quick. Thank you. Uh nominations and appointments. We have a few here. Item 2025-0580. Request to confirm the mayor's appointment of Brian Mutter, Carol Price, and Valerie McBain to the board of review for three years terms to expire December 31st, 2028 of a motion by Miss Newau, seconded by Miss Manino. uh resolved that the Rochester Hills City Council hereby confirms the mayor's appointments of Brian Mutter, Carol Price, and Valerie McBain to the board review for three years for for three-year terms to expire December 31st, 2028. All those in favor?

I.

Any opposed? That motion passes. Item 2025-0581, request to confirm the mayor's reappoint of Penny Brady, Chad Gitson, Russell Luxton Jr., Samantha Phillips, Clint Pleasant, and Dr. Tape Vo to the Citizens Pathway Review Committee for one-year terms to expire December 31st, 2026. Motion by Miss Newower, seconded by Mr. Blair. I will Oops. with this one. Read that resolution. Resolved that the Rochester Hills City Council hereby confirms the mayor's reappoints of Penny Brady, Chad Gitson, Russell Luxton Jr., Samantha Phillips, Clint Pleasant, and Dr. Tape Vo to the Citizens Pathway Review Committee for one-year terms to expire December 31st, 2026. All those in favor?

Any opposed? That motion passes. Next up, item 2025-0582. Request to confirm the mayor's reappoint of Laura Bagley, Kristen Bull, Gary Gilbert, and Jill Weir to the naming standards standing committee for one-year terms to expire December 31st, 2026. I have a motion by Miss Newower, seconded by Mr. Lindberg. resolved that the Rochester Hills City Council hereby confirms the mayor's reappoint of Laura Bagley, Kristen Bull, Gary Gilbert, and Jill Weir to the naming standing committee for one-year terms to expire on December 31st, 2026. All those in favor?

I.

Any opposed? That motion passes. Next up, 2025-0583. Request to confirm the mayor's reappoint of Dr. Steven Fleet to the Rochester Museum Foundation for a three-year term to expire December 31st, 2028. Motion by Mrs. Newower, seconded by Mr. Skelece. resolved that the Rochester Hills City Council hereby confirms the mayor's reappoint of Dr. Steven Flight to the Rochester Hills Museum Foundation for a three-year term to expire on December 31st, 2028. All those in favor?

I. Any opposed? That motion passes. Item 2025-0590, request to confirm the mayor's reappoint of Timothy Wood to the Construction Fire Prevention Board of Appeals for a three-year term to expire December 31st, 2028. I have a motion by Mrs. Newower, seconded by Miss Manino, resolved that the Rochester Hills City Council hereby confirms the mayor's reappoint of Timothy Wood to the Construction and Fire Prevention Board of Appeals for a three-year term to expire December 31st, 2028. All those in favor?

I. Any opposed?

That motion passes. Item 2025-0535, request to rescend the appointment of Marvy Newbower to the personnel board for a two-year term to expire on November 14th, 2027. Motion by Miss Manino, seconded by Mr. Lindberg. Whereas at the December 1st, 2025 meeting, the Rochester Hills City Council appointed Marvy Newbower to the personnel board for a two-year term to expire on November 14, 2027. And whereas at their October 11th meeting 2025, the Rochester Hills City Council adopted amendments to chapter 82 personnel ordinances changing the composition of the personnel board from one city council member being appointed for a two-year term to appointing the same three city council members serving on the human resources technical review committee. Therefore, be it resolved that the Rochester Hills City Council hereby rescends the recent appointment of Marvy Newower to the personnel board for a two-year term to expire on November 14th, 2027. All those in favor? I.

Any opposed? That motion passes. Next up, new business. Item 2025-0571, request for purchase authorization DPS engineering contract blanket purchase order for the Auburn Road and Technology Drive traffic signal improvements in the amount of $385,240.17 with a 10% project contingency in the amount of $38,5242 for a total not to exceed project amount of $400. 23,765.19 Raw Horn Electric Inc. Bruce Township, Michigan. Mrs. Balland,

good evening again. Um, we would like to request your approval to award the contract to Rohorn Electric um to modernize the traffic signal at Technology and Auburn. And this also is replacing deterior pavement at that location in the approach. Um, we've been working on this project um, with MDOT and finally have all the MDOT permits and we are ready to move forward. The LDFA is fully funding this project. Um, so with that, please let me know if you have any questions.

Thank you. I don't see any questions. I have a motion by Mr. Blair, seconded by Mrs. Newbower. Uh, we'll read this resolution resolved that the Rochester Hills City Council hereby authorizes a contract blanket purchase order for the Auburn Road and Technology Drive traffic signal to Raw Horn Electric, Inc., Bruce Township, Michigan in the amount of $385,240.17 with a 10% project contingency in the amount of $38,5242 for a total not to exceed contract amount of $423,765.19 and further authorizes the procurement manager to execute an agreement on behalf of the city. further resolved that the city's acceptance of the proposal and approval of the award of a contract shall be contingent and conditioned upon the party's entry into an execution of a written agreement acceptable to the city. All those in favor? I.

Any opposed? That motion passes. Thank you, Miss B. Thank you. Next up, item 2025-0579, request for purchase authorization DPS garage blanket purchase order for water service repair parts in the amount not to exceed $26,000 through December 31st, 2026. Ferguson Enterprises LLC, Flushing, Michigan. Mrs. Ballot,

right? DPS is here to request your approval for a one-year blanket purchase order. Um, and we'll also be allowed to renew it for an additional year to Ferguson Waterworks um, for water service repair parts. And we have had a contract with Ferguson before. So again, with that, if you have any questions, service parts for water service repair parts, supply lines. Yeah. Yep. Got it.

I see no city council comments. I have a motion by Miss Newower, seconded by Miss Manino. Uh, resolved that the Rochester Hills City Council hereby authorizes a blanket purchase order for water service repair parts to Ferguson Enterprises LLC, Flushing, Michigan in the amount not to exceed $26,000 through December 31st, 2026. further resolved that the city's acceptance of the proposal and approval of the award of a contract shall be contingent and conditioned upon the party's entry into and execution of a written agreement acceptable to the city. All those in favor? I. Any opposed? That motion passes.

Thank you. Have a happy holiday.

Thank you. You too, Miss Balent. Item 2025-0573, request for purchase authorization parks. I'm g try to read this fast enough to see if we can get Ken and Dennis to run. Contract blanket purchase order for the amount of purchase and installation of the Noiki Park play area in the amount of 2,22,347,000 with a 10% project contingency in the amount of $220,234.70 for a total not to exceed project amount of 2,422,581.70. cents. Michigan Playgrounds LLC DBA Midstates Recreation, Patascala, Ohio. Mr. Elbert and Mr. Andrews.

Good evening, President Carlile. Carlile Carl, excuse me. Um, city council, Mayor Barnett. Um, yeah, you have before you really what is the the first significant step um request before you in construction for New Wiki Park. Now, to take you back a few years, um really we started this process, if you will, in 2023 with significant public input on on a variety of of both randomized surveys and focus groups as to concepts of what people would like and um certainly um there there are several elements in the Wiki Park, but you know, a playground surfaced as a need in the northwest quadrant of this area. Again, it's an underparked community or portion of the community, if you will, in the northwest quadrant of the city. There is there is really no other um significant playgrounds or parks in that area. And so before you you have a request to essentially order the the playground parts and pieces and and and commit to this design. Um this this will be one of the last things that comes on the ground. It's it's a long lead time on on these items and so the the need to to get this ready for late fall um requires us to do this now. Again, we went through a uh um what you call SOQ or statement of qualifications process instead of a traditional RFP or or bid process. Um for a couple different reasons. Um, one, um, it's hard to compare apples to apples on these because at this scale, a playground, um, they come in and and give you their ideas, right? The different vendors and and the playgrounds give them the design concepts and that. So, you you sort of determine who is qualified on a variety of of of um, factors listed in the agenda item there. um do a um profuse round of interviews back and forth um over over a period of months on that and and then really negotiate with a final

company um to within a certain budget range to determine their best ideas. And so that is what you have before you today on on this. And Mr. Andrews is actually going to um walk us through um sort of almost literally in some cases some of the some of the um photos on this, but point out some of the significant elements in this park, too, because it it has it will have its own personality, assuming that um approved by council tonight, and some pretty unique items in in this element that we really haven't seen any place else um too often. So, with that, I will hand it over to Dennis.

All right. So, yeah, the playground is roughly one acre. um you know kind of champion the overall theme of the nature inspired play elements um using the natural materials and kind of having a multi-elevation space. Um the equipment that you'll see will uh be rated for kids uh from 2 to 12 and kind of meet all the applicable safety and accessibility standards and guidelines. Uh the playground features three timber towers uh which will be kind of the centerpiece of the the playscape. A lot of sensory exploration throughout, ample amount of climbing and balancing experiences for kiddos and uh the kiddos that are kind of seeking the challenges and adventures uh throughout the space. The entire playground uses kind of a port in place rubber um surfacing which will be our first one that we'll we'll have in the city uh which will create kind of an accessible um environment that supports natural way finding and movement throughout the space as well. Um you'll also see some shade cells in there for each area um for users as well as spectators. Uh so the first area that we'll kind of walk through is uh the two to five area if you will um in this kind of section as you enter the the main entrance into the park for the playground. And as you kind of traverse up that um that concrete pathway um you'll kind of see this is the main entrance into the 2 to5 area. And then um you'll see kind of the green port and place surfacing that'll lead you to that pathway and the the concrete um if you follow that that'll lead you to the towers. Uh in that two to five area, you'll see some some um swings uh some some top play and um for um you know um steps and ladders and uh as well as slides um for for top level uh two to five play as well as benches for for spectators.

Again, another angle of the two to five area kind of from the other side uh just so you can kind of get a a different perspective from it. Um, and then kind of the the meat and potatoes of the playground area, you'll kind of see the the uh central portion of it, which will feature that that those towers, those three towers, if you will, um, timber towers in those areas. Um, essentially we'll have a slide that kind of covers every level. So, you know, the kiddos depending on, you know, how much comfort comfort they'll have of going super high or maybe uh not necessarily wanting to be, you know, that elevated, they can choose one that's a little bit lower on the lower level. Uh as well, inside those towers, there's some play play elements in there that, you know, uh that the kiddos can kind of uh engage with. um as well. Uh one of the coolest things I think about this tower is um the the fact that they'll have uh wheelchair access. So somebody in a wheelchair will be able to traverse from each tower um and throughout and there'll be some play play elements in there for for those folks as well to to be able to um to play with. And from this vantage point, you can kind of see the elevation um kind of towering over the rest of the playground area. Another cool feature is the the sand pit area which kind of has the the alpine pits or the uh alpine huts if you will. Uh two two kind of houses which is kind of unique uh for for a sand pit area. Um and uh if you dig uh farther enough you you might see some Macedon or some some dino bones. So um so yeah, something cool, something that connects back to the city as well uh with the Macedon site here. So, um, something else to point out as well is those musical kind of components. Uh, you see kind of some some bongos and things of that nature. That's that's throughout. We kind of sprinkle those in um throughout um the

playground area just for a different unique feel and and u play element. And then lastly is the kind of the adventure uh climbing portion I would like to say of the of the playground area. Um, a little bit more activity over in this area. Um, of course you have the swing set which is customary for a playground area. Um, something that's uh super unique about this is the the um the um bamboo forest which kind of allows folks to kind of jump from stick to stick. And I think we got a better Yeah. So you can kind of jump from pole to pole. just gives you a little bit more challenge, you know, for those um kids who kind of want to uh you know, uh embrace a little bit more of a challenge from from sticking from or jumping from pole to pole, if you will. Uh kind of some more timbers that uh offer some some climbing experiences as well. You kind of see off in the distance a popular uh feature that we have at Innovation Hills, that bucket um swing. Um and then as well over in the corner you'll see the the summit boulder which uh you know the handholds are are kind of colored that kind of dictate dictates the pathway uh for the kids to be able to climb and kind of traverse over this this rock if you will. And so we wanted to kind of embrace and lean into the natural features and natural play. And uh we believe this this playground definitely does that. So, gives you another um vantage point of that. And with that, we'll open up to any questions that you may have. Thank you, Mr. Andrews. Now, just help me put this into perspective. Adams would be running parallel on the right side of the screen.

Correct. That's correct. So, the the there's apartment the condos are to the what would be the top of the building. Yeah. the top of this area is Arrowhead Court, if you will. Um, so yeah, to the south of this or to the top south is opposite this. Sorry for the confusion, but yeah, South is up on this one is is there are um four four land owners essentially there and and we have you know I'm engaged with all of them and have regular conversations with a couple.

Perfect. Is the material under the climbing rock the same poured? Is it foam or is it is it a I mean is it like the track you see at the high school where it's that ground up stuff. Something similar to that. Something a little bit squishy. It's definitely squishy. There's actually a variety of layers um similar to any of our playgrounds. The layers underneath are the same. It's just what you put on top. So there's there's a inches of of gravel base, but then there's a huge foam layer that sits on top of that. Um that 4 in four or six inches

um which is which is standard. And then you put this surfacing on top of that. So yes, this it'll it won't be um it won't be like ground or anything. It'll be a pretty smooth type of poured in place surfacing. It's it's a rubberized type of surface. It'll be a little different than Innovation Hills. Okay. And is it porous? Will water does does water go through that directly back into the ground? Some [snorts] some

Yeah. And you know, drainage is a is a component of this and and we have if you notice in the in one of the first pictures, we had a uh um if you will a dry riverbed um you know that that may not be dry during some times um in in that. And so, you know, drainage is a significant component. Both that and the swale in the back of the or the burm in the back has swailes coming back off the sides. And so it it it does take some, but it it's not really pvious. Um it doesn't sink a lot into that surface. Yeah, understood. Thank you. We do have some questions or comments from council. First up, Mr. Skelce.

Uh thank you, President Carlock. I got a couple questions. I see the company says Michigan Playgrounds, but they're out of Ohio. Did I mean, is it I'm like, there were no Michigan companies. [laughter]

Um, again, we went through nine um different different vendors and each each playground distributor has a, if you will, a range. So, even some of the ones that are based in quote Michigan have a Midwest range, if you will, on SAT. So they're assigned a and and we don't necessarily assign value large value at this scale to being a you know Michiganbased or Rochester Hillsbased is certainly a discussion point that we have but it it is with all of the factors in there.

And then on your second slide with those awesome wooden towers are those like timbers or are they because I look at those which I I think it's cool. I'm always like, "Oh, there's going to be a wasp nest underneath there and some kid's going to get stung or something." Or are they protected? Are they coated?

Yeah. Well, it's if if I remember correctly, it's a black lotus. It's a it's a very long um what's the word I'm looking for? Useful life. It lasts a long long time. At least as long as the useful life of traditional playground equipment. and and whether it's wood or a plastic slide, you can still get a a Unfortunately, you can get a uh um a bees nest or a wasp nest underneath and that's part of our inspection process and we remove them relatively. [laughter] Yes.

Well, I always look at playgrounds like my deck at my house. You can never make them big enough because once they're built, you're like, "Oh man, I wish I would have added, you know, six more fixtures to this or whatever." So, [snorts] looks looks like it's going to be fun. Looks looks cool. Thank you. I don't know if I can fit through any of those apparatus, but we don't have to get into a discussion of weight, but I think they do have a weight rating. Yeah, I bet I can fit into it. [laughter] Yeah. Okay. Uh, next up, uh, Mr. Lindberg.

Thank you, President Carlac. So, when I was reviewing these plans, I was thinking of my own childhood. And in the back of my neighborhood, we had a a playground with a a rusty merry ground that wobbled and was on it. You'd never see one of those today. Or um swings where the chains would pinch my fingers or stainless steel slides that got so hot in the summer sun, you couldn't go down them. And I'm reviewing these and I'm like, "Holy cow, look at this. This is amazing that we have the opportunity to provide this for the children in our city. I think it's a very innovative with the vision of the design of the entire park. And I just looked at it and I said, "Wow, it's amazing that we can do this." So, thank you for your work on it.

You and I are similar in our remembrance of of playgrounds. And but this this does have a few elements of risk that go a little beyond some of our other places. Again, the climbing wall and the and the the parkour bamboo um poles um you know appeal to a little bit um older older cl not clientele but kids and but it's still safe underneath with the surfacing and the depth of the surfacing and such. So yes, thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Lindberg. Um I did see a few things on there. I might once this ACL gets healed go start taking up some uh was that ninja warrior training. I can I can start I can start learning here. Um may maybe that's ACL friendly for people of my age. Uh next up, Miss Manino.

Yes. Thank you, President Carlock, and thank you uh Mr. Albert, Mr. Andrews, whoever answered my questions. Yeah, I think it was Ken. Thank you for uh taking the time to do that. And I would ask that that please be included. I did ask some questions specific to the quotation, but uh my question now after seeing this and I I didn't really grasp it when I was looking at it earlier is um safety standards and playground safety standards that looks really high. Okay. And I don't know if there are any guidelines in terms of that and if so what what has what are we taking into consideration in terms of safety and potential liability for the city? And so, um, you know, if you and you can't see them really well, if you if you look at these towers, if you zoom in, they're they're they're actually mesh in all those open areas as as you go up to the top. So, you're absolutely right that that that is super high. And so without it having an actual um you know mesh barrier or a a something there that that would not be appropriate for for a playground. We we meet um CPS CPSC um and the ASM standards for this as well as there is a whole series of laws that we have a certified playground safety inspector um that goes through a variety of tests even entrapment tests where they have little tools they measure so a kid can't catch their their their finger going down a slide or that the you know the slats in between aren't big enough where they can get a their head stuck you know all the way down to the type of bolts you're using and how far they can come they can come past essentially the nut before they come become a hazard. And so all that is considered and you know these pieces of equipment meet those standards. They couldn't put it on the market um without that and that was one of the requirements in our bid explicitly called out that they meet all those those standards.

Yeah. Okay. So that was my question regarding their bid and making sure that that was included as part of their parameters. was yes and liability wise you did ask liability and this is you know um it's there it's not any more liability than any other area of our park and so this is you know this is covered under the um our Michigan Municipal Risk Management Association sort of general liability policy that we have with them and so um we actually have them come out and review our parks um um especially when we have a new park if they see something or different signage or what have you that we we we put up and and change. Okay, that that that was my question. That's good for me.

Thank you, Miss Manino. Mr. Blair, now Brad had me waxing nostalgic about my playground experience? And it it does have me wondering uh with your comments, Diana, did the uh galvanized steel jungle gym with 18 coats of paint adhere to any of the modern standards? And I'm guessing they they probably didn't. Um this is an outstanding design. It's it's absolutely beautiful. And I'm I'm I'm cautious because we learned a lot with Innovation Hills. We learned that, you know, there are risks with the playground being too popular. And I was wondering if there were takeaways from Innovation Hills when it comes to maintenance, spare parts, you know, keeping, you know, money set aside for repairs so that we don't wind up in a similar situation where we're charging for parking here,

right? Um and so the short answer of yes, you know, um we we we did and it was more from a design element than a maintenance element. We made sure that there's several things that are problems in Innovation Hills, even though this is not Innovation Hills and will be a very different playground just from an accessing a simple manhole in the in the be in the middle of Innovation Hills that we can't get to with big equipment um that we didn't think about. Um th those type of things are definitely in there. We actually learned from the process Innovation Hills, which is why we're doing this this way. Um, during that process in the bid, we actually had a general contractor um, manage this whole thing on their own. And there's no general contractor construction-wise that is familiar with or knowledgeable on the, you know, the playground installation part and and all this. So, that that caused some problems on some of that. Another thing we learned is that custom pieces are expensive and hard to maintain. And we didn't put in any custom pieces on this particular one. Um, and you know, that's that that was a big takeaway um, from Innovation Hills. And we we did push the vegetation back to the edges a little bit more than making it, you know, as much in the center here. As much as that's a great feature of Innovation Hills and our playgrounds are unique and that we do that, we you know, we're going to irrigate this, which which we should have probably done at at Innov in Innovation Hills. We only irrigated the one section up at the top and that that sometimes makes the maintenance of that vegetation more difficult because we have to have staff out there watering it um with a hose and and and such. So, we we did learn some lessons, if you will. [snorts]

Appreciate you guys being on top of it. Can't wait to see it. Back to you, President Carlock. Thank you, Mr. Blair. Next up, Miss Newower. Thank you, President Carlock. I just wanted to say one of the things that I love about Rochester Hills is that they are very inclusive, and I love that there are more than just two swings that are handicap accessible. This entire park has something that everybody can use. So, I just wanted to say thank you for that. um thank you for not just meeting minimum standards or something that'll make you look good, but actually making sure that it's inclusive for um all kids with all abilities. So, thank you so much and for your small council members as well. Thank you. [laughter]

Thanks, Miss Newau. Um Mr. Lindberg, do you remember some other playground uh tragedy?

Thank you, President Carlock. Um actually um another nostalgic side. So, while Councilwoman Manino was speaking, she was asking questions about safety. And then I thought about myself again, and what I would try to do is I would actually try to climb the outside of it when I was a kid. Um, how high could I get? Could I make it up to the top? These these these would be tough to climb if you see because there there's not um horizontal things to grab onto. They're basically vertical slits. Um, not that you couldn't. And um you know if it becomes a problem like we learned at Innovation Hills that even though the rope bridge that goes across the river over the little bridge in the playground um was not meant to be climbed on top of um that they you know they do find a way and then you have to sign it and sometimes enforce it with parents that may or may not be paying attention at that specific moment. But um so we we will be looking out for that as people use it if there are spots. Um but um you know we unfortunately have a saying that you can't stop stupid in in um sometimes and um you know people that are going to be adventuresome and go beyond the rules are going to do that and our job is to make it as safe as possible. So we have done that.

Yeah. I just started thinking how would I go about climbing that? I was like well if I couldn't get my shoes in between the slits I wouldn't be able to get out. Yeah. And and maybe you don't need to be saying it in a public meeting for ideas for people that No, I'm just kidding. I know. I know. But I'm I'm thinking about that what what could go wrong and I was like, yeah, someone trying to climb the outside of it. That's each one of the new parks is a learning experience. It takes us about a year, year and a half to see how it operates and where some of the trouble spots are. And so we'll we'll be watching that and and certainly modifying if needed. All right. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Lindberg. One more question, Mr. Andrews. In the very top of the tower that's closest to us on the I'll call it the window on the right. There's what looks to be like steps. I don't know hammocks in there. I They're They're black horizontal pieces. What What's going on in there? Yeah, they're they're essentially little steps that you can kind of get to the top of the third level of the tower. Essentially kind of mesh steps, if you will. Got it. Okay. Thank you,

Mr. Mayor. Yes. Thank you. Uh just noting that Councilman Lindberg is not invited to the playground. [laughter] Uh no, just you know I I would just say this having gone through and and I want to thank uh Dennis and and Ken. they they we they've done a lot of work on this and you know I'm I'm reminded that um you know when we started with Innovation Hills uh the council trusted the administration um on some pretty unique pieces of equipment some pretty high dollar things um and uh I think that everyone would agree that that park has turned out tremendously well uh it's won every award you can win from every mom's and dad's organization across southeast Michigan and Even if it didn't win any awards, you would know just purely by the conversation you get when you go around the community and ask people if they like Innovation Hills. It's it's uh an astounding success. And this um you know, again, I think we we we want to maintain the high caliber uh the expectations that people have when they come to a Rochester Hills Park experience. Um I'm trying to raise more money privately so we can make it even cooler and bigger and wilder and more fun and more innovative. Um but um this even if as it is is going to be the most incredible play experience for um the the little mini nos and little limbergs that are out there now that are going to have an incredible experience walking and riding their bike and creating their first memories of community in this space. And so we appreciate the partnership. This is going to be a long road. Uh there may be some changes. There may be some things that ultimately go in and go out. But, uh, you have great people driving the ship. Uh, and they've delivered, uh, an incredible project already. And I'm excited to see what this thing will be and how people will someday talk about how close they live to Nwiki Park, that they can walk

to Nwiki Park, that they can hear Nikki Park, that they can be uh, in Wiki Park in just a few moments with their pets or kids or kiddos, as you say, Dennis. So, uh, excited to start this journey together and, uh, I can promise you that, uh, that safety will lead, but innovation will be pretty much right behind it to make sure we have a pretty cool experience for people.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. I have a motion by Mr. Blair, seconded by Mrs. Newbower. I will read the resolution resolved that the Rochester Hills City Council hereby authorizes a contract blanket purchase order for the purchase and installation of the Noiki Park Play Area to Michigan Playgrounds LLC DBA Midstates Recreation Pascala Ohio in the amount of 2,22,347 with a 10% project contingency in the amount of $220,00 234.70 for a total not to exceed project amount of 2,422,581.70 and further authorizes the mayor to execute an agreement on behalf of the city. Further resolved that the city's acceptance of the proposal and approval of the award of a contract shall be contingent and conditioned upon the party's entry into an execution of a written agreement acceptable to the city. All those in favor.

Any opposed? That motion passes. Thank you, Mr. Elbert and Mr. Andrews. I learned one new thing today. That certified playground safety inspector is not something they told me I could be when I was in school. [laughter] So, any kids watching this, that is a uh that is a true job. You can inspect playgrounds. Thank you very much. I want to say merry Christmas and happy holidays to everybody, too.

Merry Christmas. All right. Is there any other business before the Rochester Hills City Council? Not at this time. I have a motion by Mrs. Newower, seconded by. Nobody wants to go home. Mr. Skeleie to adjourn the meeting. All those in favor? I. Any opposed? That is an adjournment for the last meeting of 2025. Next meeting of the Rochester Hill City Council regular meeting will be January 12th, 2026 right here in the auditorium at 700 p.m. Have a very merry Christmas, happy Hanukkah, and happy holidays to everyone. Thank you.