MADISON & JEFFERSON UPDATE

CONCEPT APPROVED

Updates to the Madison and Jefferson project were recently presented to the City Commission after a series of public engagement with residents and approved in concept at the October 17, 2022 meeting.

Identified in the City’s Capital Improvement Plan is the reconstruction of Jefferson and Madison. The project character consists of replacing the existing streets with improvements to slow traffic and improve pedestrian accessibility, and also coordination with water and sanitary sewer utility upgrades.

Infrastructure Upgrades

Sanitary Improvements include new mains, upgrading from clay to new PVC. Sanitary Manhole upgrades and clay sewer leads will be replaced to eliminate Infiltration and Inflow (I&I).

Drinking water improvements include new water mains to replace the existing 4” and 6” main with 8”. Increasing the size will also accommodate fire flow and maintain capacity as recommended by the current Water System Reliability Study. New water services to upgrade all services to 1” copper and replace of known and unknow steel lines between the curb stop.

Stormwater improvements include the reduction of impervious surface in the two streets by narrowing the street and reduced crossing distances at the intersections bulb roots. The work includes nature based treatment for the first flush of storm events, to address target pollutants of sediments and surfactants. Treatment solutions include the use of Bio-Swales, Leaching Basins, Dry Wells, Infiltration Trenches, and Outlet Covers.

Increased Tree Canopy

27 Street trees will be planted to increase the density of the existing canopy.

Access & Mobility

A sidewalk on the north side of Jefferson is being proposed. Crossing widths at the intersections are reduced on Madison to encourage shorter pedestrian crossing distances. Parking is being recommended on the east side only on Madison to enhance mobility where sidewalks are most accessible.

UTILITY BILL SEPARATION COMING DECEMBER 2022

Going into effect with the December 2022 billing cycle, utility customers with the City of Traverse City will receive a water/sewer bill from the City and an electric and TCLPfiber (for those who have subscribed) bill from Traverse City Light & Power. The current bill that contains all utilities on one, will become two. 

Both entities are upgrading to new utility billing systems with increased user-friendly customer portals and service offerings. The separation of the billing systems will create operational efficiencies and ease of the customer’s ability to read and understand their utility usage.

The first cycle of separated utility bills will arrive in the mail for all customers. There will be no electronic statements. Instructions will be included on how to read your bill as well as how to enroll in the new customer portals.

BEBOT BEACH CLEANING COMES TO CITY BEACHES

The Council of the Great Lakes Regions has loaned a BeBot beach cleaning robot to the Watershed Center to demonstrate and test on City beaches. The program is part of the Great Lakes Plastic Cleanup and is in partnership with Michigan Sea Grant and Meijer Corporation.

Most recently, the Watershed Center tested the BeBot on the Clinch Park Beach. The City will work with the Watershed Center to deploy at City beaches next summer. 

The Bebot is a remote-controlled, solar powered robot that operates on sandy beaches and picks up small debris by mechanically sifting sand to remove plastic waste and other debris without harming the local environment. Bebots have been effective in cleaning and restoring coastlines, while preserving the natural environment and preserving the fauna, the flora and the sand during its passage.

TRAVERSE CITY LIGHT & POWER

CLIMATE ACTION PLAN

Traverse City Light & Power (TCLP) will develop a Climate Action Plan (CAP) to provide innovative utility solutions designed to reduce our carbon impact while protecting grid resiliency. Throughout the development of the CAP, TCLP will invite and encourage community stakeholders to assist in shaping a better future for our climate. Together we can make changes that make an impact.

TCLP has launched a community survey and is asking for feedback from the community through two surveys now available, one for residential customers and one for commercial customers. 

Take the Survey

The survey(s) will be conducted on behalf of TCLP by a third-party facilitator: GreatBlue Research. As such, customers may receive additional outreach from the organization via email or phone as research is being conducted.  

Recognizing the importance of stakeholder engagement, TCLP is hosting a series of open house events and conducting public surveys designed to generate feedback that can be utilized in the development of the Climate Action Plan. TCLP intends to develop and implement a strategic framework for measuring, planning, and positively impacting the climate based on the above. This strategic framework will be utilized for future corporate strategic planning as well as further collaboration with the Traverse City community and government. 

IN THE COMMUNITY

Thank you to those that attended the Community Open House on October 26th for the Master Plan and Mobility Action Plan projects. Stay tuned to more information on survey results and opportunities to engage in the process!