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THE BIRMINGHAM BUZZ
"It's the 2016 Plan, stupid."
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Buzz # 37 -- Jan. 28, 2003

Promoting intelligence and reason in city government. Our mission: To inform and involve all Birmingham citizens.

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-- Resources such as the 2016 Plan.
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In this edition:

1) Carney assails PSD 'independence,' proposes smaller, less 'political' panel named by mayor
2) City loses bid for Booth park grant
3) Trees facing devastating attack
4) Second Jacobson's store is sold, but department store use ruled out
5) Opinion: Retreat offers ways to move forward
6) Opinion: Re-energize downtown
7) To be removed, send mail to info@bhambuzz.org


1) Carney assails PSD 'independence,' proposes smaller, less 'political' panel named by mayor

Jan. 28. 2003

Scorning the "independence" of the Principal Shopping District board and calling for "new ideas," City Commissioner Don Carney has proposed scaling back the board from 12 to nine members, and having them appointed by the mayor rather than the city manager.

Carney proposed these and other changes at the Commission's annual long-range planning session on Saturday.

Carney also suggested removing the city manager from the board, and giving his position to a member of the City Commission. And he suggested eliminating positions reserved for downtown property owners, including the position reserved for the downtown's largest property owner.

Carney also proposed that funds collected from the annual Woodward Dream Cruise go into the city's general fund, not PSD coffers.

Addressing PSD Chairman Geoff Hockman, Carney said changing circumstances downtown require a "shakeup" in the PSD. While thanking Hockman and others for their service, he said, "Maybe it's time for some new blood."

Carney said the PSD board should be more accountable to voters. "You don't stand for election," he told Hockman.

Carney criticized the "independence" of the PSD board, suggesting that some of its positions have been inappropriately "political." Last year, the PSD board spoke out against proposed changes to a downtown zoning ordinance that reduced allowable building heights. The changes, supported by Carney, ultimately were approved.

Prior to that, many merchants in the PSD supported opponents to Carney in the 2001 city election.

Carney said he would eliminate the position reserved for the city's largest property owner, and traditionally held by Jacobson's. That position is now to be filled by Birmingham property owner Edward Fuller.

Fuller spoke against the changes, reminding the Commission that the PSD is funded not by residents, and not by downtown merchants or other businesses, but by property owners. "When a business moves out, we still have to pay," said Fuller, in a not-so-vague reference to Carney's family business, which last year vacated a space in the midst of a lease with Fuller's Central Park Properties. Fuller continues to pay PSD taxes on the space; Carney is not paying on the lease.

Numerous residents and business people joined Fuller in opposition to Carney's suggestions. Birmingham activist Dorothy Conrad ridiculed the suggestion that mayoral appointments would be less political than manager appointments. Buzz editor Clinton Baller said restructuring should be considered only after less drastic measures are attempted. "I wonder how many of those who are calling for new ideas have actually offered new ideas to the PSD?" he asked.

No action was taken on Carney's proposal. The topic was tabled until a later date.


2) City loses bid for Booth park grant

Jan. 26, 2003

From the Birmingham Eccentric

By Larry Ruehlen

It's back to the drawing board for the planned remodeling of Birmingham's Booth Park.

"Even though the process has been slowed up, I'm still confident something will get done," said Bob Fox, assistant director of public services. "But the project may have to be pushed back to the fall."

The city had planned $710,000 in improvements to the park including a new playscape for children, a new ball field and an area for plants and public art. But $310,000 of the money was expected to come from state and federal grants. Fox said the city was turned down for both grants with little explanation from the state, which sent out a form rejection letter.

Grants are based on a formula and factors include population, household incomes of residents and such things as how much local money the city is willing to spend on a project. The city did receive grant money earlier in the year for the dredging of Quarton Lake.

Birmingham's Parks and Recreation Board will now have to reconsider the scope of the project. The board has already downsized it once after the original $1.1 million estimate raised eyebrows all over town.

The options include staying with the current plan and recommending that the city fund the whole thing or eliminating some of the planned improvements. The board will consider those options at a 6:30 p.m., Feb. 4, meeting at the Department of Public Services building at 851 S. Eton.

Booth Park is located on the corner of North Old Woodward and Harmon, near the art gallery section of town. In the Downtown Birmingham 2016 plan, noted urban planner Andres Duany called for the 3.93 acre park to be a transition place from the neighborhood to gallery row.


3) Trees facing devastating attack

Jan. 26, 2003

From the Birmingham Eccentric

By Larry Ruehlen

A tiny beetle could destroy as much as 10 percent of Birmingham's trees.

"This is a huge problem and it has already devastated (other) areas," said Bob Fox, Birmingham assistant director of public services. "The cost is going to be astronomical."

Fox was talking about dealing with the aftermath of an incurable infestation that is ravaging ash trees around Oakland County and much of southeast Michigan.

Scientists are just beginning to understand what they are dealing with. The Emerald Ash Borer is a beetle from Asia that bores through the bark of ash trees while microscopic in size, feeds off the water-conducting vessels of the tree, then emerges through the bark, leaving an exit hole that signals death.

"I've identified six trees that have it for sure and another 30 or 40 that show signs of infestation," said Charlie Moffat, Birmingham's city forester. "We won't know the extent of the problem until the survey is done."

Moffat is currently counting the city's ash tree population and believes the number will reach some 2,000. Some scientists believe almost all ash trees in an infected area will eventually succumb to the pest, while others say insecticides can kill the beetles if caught in time.

Some companies began injecting insecticides into infected trees last year and claimed promising results, but state scientists don't agree on the best course of treatment.

Emerald bore beetles have infested much of Wayne and Oakland counties but severe damage has also been reported in Livingston, Macomb and Monroe and Washtenaw counties. In an effort to halt the beetle's progress, state officials have quarantined all ash trees in the six-county area. The quarantine prohibits people from transporting ash trees out of the area, especially fire wood from trees that have already been chopped.

"The DNR is coming up with a plan to eradicate the pest," said Moffat. "We're not positive, but we are confident it will work."

Moffat said the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and Department of Agriculture are kicking around an idea to establish a three- to six-mile path resembling a firebreak to stop the spread of the beetle. Doing that would require cutting down every ash tree in the defined area regardless of whether they sit on public or private land.

Moffat said the current proposal calls for a path circling roughly around Marine City, Holly and Monroe.

Tim Flint, Michigan's emerald ash response coordinator, said cutting a "firebreak" has been suggested but putting such a plan into action isn't imminent.

"It's more than getting public support that may stand in the way," said Flint. "It's also the density of ash trees in southeastern Michigan that's a concern."

Flint said it might not be economically possible to cut down every ash tree in a three-mile circle encompassing the roughly 2,400 square miles where the pest is firmly entrenched.

"It's recognized that the tools are not there to save the ash trees in the core area," said Flint. "We are focusing on containment and eradication."

And starving them out may be the best way to eradicate the beetles, said Flint, which means that the food source, ash trees, would have to be eliminated locally so that ash trees throughout the state won't be doomed.

Howard Russell, an entomologist with Michigan State University, is an expert on the problem who believes precautions can be taken.

"In the long term, I don't hold out much hope for ash trees in forests," said Russell. "But in landscaped areas, people can protect ash trees."

Russell said early results with a product called Bayer Tree & Shrub Insect Control show that it helps trees fight off infestations as long as the trees aren't too far gone. The product is applied to the ground and soaked up by the tree's roots.

While the city of Livonia announced a plan to make no effort to save the city's 3,000 ash trees and instead chop them down as they die, Birmingham, Bloomfield Township, Beverly Hills, Bingham Farms and Franklin are taking a more cautious approach.

"We are still gathering information," said Franklin Village Administrator Jon Stoppels. "We have an arborist who is very in tune with what's going on, and he hasn't recommended anything like that ... we are taking a wait-and-see approach."

Beverly Hills Village Manager Brian Murphy said the village does own a fair amount of ash trees but hasn't yet formed a plan of action.

The financial implications for municipalities could be daunting. In Birmingham, where the city's urban forest is a source of pride for residents and city officials, the cost of chopping down and replacing 2,000 ash trees would exceed $2 million.

While municipalities have forestry experts to rely on, private citizens with ash trees on their property face the same difficult choices.


4) Second Jacobson's store is sold, but department store use ruled out

Jan. 23, 2003

From the Birmingham Eccentric

By Larry Ruehlen

Jacobson's second store was tentatively sold Tuesday to a developer with no plans of bringing a department store to Birmingham.

"The deal was approved as submitted and that's all I can say," said Robert A. Weisberg, attorney for Bingham Farms developer Burton-Katzman Development Co.

Officials from Burton-Katzman could not be reached for comment, but Robert Katzman, one of the owners, summed up his opinion of the former men's store at 325 N. Old Woodward Ave. earlier this month in an interview with the Eccentric.

"The site is too small and that kind of department store just doesn't happen anymore," Katzman said. "That's why Somerset is there. ... Our plan is some kind of mixed-use development with a retail component."

Katzman and partners Peter Burton and Laurence Goss formed a new company, BKG, Birmingham LLC, and bid $4.3 million for the building, which has 80,000 square feet on one acre of land. The offer was approved Tuesday by U.S. Bankruptcy Judge David T. Stosberg.

Leslie Banas, attorney for the creditors, said Katzman and his partners will have 105 days to back out of the deal for any reason and would even get their $430,000 deposit back if all other terms of the agreement are satisfied. Creditors can also seek higher offers during that time period, Banas said, and if a higher offer is made, the bidding process could begin anew.

In real estate transactions, due diligence is a grace period for buyers to thoroughly assess the property and find out what can be built. It also gives buyers a chance to look for prospective tenants. Katzman said he wants to sit down with city officials to discuss local zoning ordinances and wouldn't back out of the deal if no tenants were signed before the due diligence period ends.

The Birmingham Planning Board is currently studying the possibility of making new offices provide their own parking. The proposed changes could make it much more expensive to build offices in downtown Birmingham. Officials involved in the Burton-Katzman deal have attended planning board meetings, but have not publicly commented at the proceedings.

Birmingham developer Edward Fuller purchased the Maple Road women's store in November for $4.2 million and recently said he is on the verge of signing a major office tenant for the space. On Tuesday, Fuller said talks are ongoing with a prospective office tenant from New York and he is hopeful an agreement will be signed soon.

Local merchants had hoped a department store would buy one or both of the locations. Jacobson's anchored Birmingham's retail scene for 52 years and sold more than $40 million per year in goods in its heyday. Fuller did not get any time for due diligence.

Burton-Katzman is known for a wide range of developments, including luxury housing, office uses and retail. Locally, it owns apartments and townhouses in Birmingham and the Bloomfield Commons shopping center at Maple and Lahser in Bloomfield Township. The company also signed a deal to redevelop a former Jacobson's store in Dearborn and city officials there said the development is on schedule.

Katzman also said he expects the building to be torn down.

"I don't think we'll be able to rehab the building at all," he said. "It has multilevels that aren't cohesive. It was built over many years and the way it is now isn't conducive to the type of tenants we are looking for."

While developers with experience getting projects through the rigors of Birmingham's approval process have said it could take two to four years, Katzman has said he is more optimistic and believes the job can be done quicker.

Since Jacobson's went bankrupt last year, area retailers have been reconsidering their marketing strategy. Some have said they will downsize their operations, while others intend to focus on providing better service.

"We are really going to have to reach out to the customers and make sure we provide good service," said Dana Blake, owner of Fitigues, a woman's clothing store at 100 N. Old Woodward Ave. "Keeping contact with cards and e-mail will be important."

Fitigues is a national chain, but Blake is the only independent Fitigues store owner in the country. She's been in business for eight years and remains optimistic.

"Having a large department would have been good," she said. "However, if it's a mixed-use development, with office and residential, that will bring more people downtown. And that's important too."


5) Opinion: Retreat offers ways to move forward

Jan. 24, 2003

From the Birmingham Eccentric

When the Birmingham City Commission holds its all-day long-range planning session on Saturday, it can do more than set an agenda of issues to address in the coming year.

It can set the whole tone and tenor of the way it does business. And that's something that really needs to be done.

The city commission and by extension, members of the planning board, who are appointed by the commission, have alienated segments of the community in their actions and attitudes. It's clear that the city commission has an anti-development stance. That's understandable. That's how they presented themselves to the voters and should be expected to live up to their views.

But they have an obligation to do what is in the best interest of the city of Birmingham regardless of their personal philosophies on how the city should face the future.

These are not irreconcilable differences. It just takes a common-sense balanced approach.

But fostering a reputation that Birmingham is not a good place to do business certainly does not fit into the matrix.

Further, all members of the city government, whether appointed, elected or hired, have an obligation to be receptive to the public and treat them with respect. Too often, that has not happened.

And while it may seem like a hopeless request, the politicians need to put politics aside, at least for this one day.

Let them make plans for the future and address the pressing issues of the town. But they should set aside one portion of the retreat to reflect on what they have done in the past year and question if they have acted in the best interests of the town.

There are lessons to be learned from the debacle of the tree ordinance and serious questions should be asked of the way the city spends its money.

This retreat can be made memorable and exceptionably productive by re-evaluating the past as well as looking to the future.


6) Opinion: Re-energize downtown

Jan. 24, 2003

From the Birmingham Eccentric

Merchants in Birmingham are struggling to come up with ways to bring more excitement to downtown. A group met last week at The Community House to consider the old Night on the Town and its permutation, Day on the Town, and what's wrong with it.

Night on the Town started as an evening event and evolved into a 12-hour Saturday sale. But Day on the Town has failed to capture the excitement of the nighttime event.

Day or night, the problem is a daunting one. The merchants have groused for years that they are saddled by the competition on the shopping malls, but somehow have managed to survive.

Yet with the closing of Jacobson's and the general downturn in the economy, it's clear their concerns are genuine.

Addressing them must be a prime concern of the Birmingham Principal Shopping District, the chamber of commerce and even the city government. A concerted effort is needed by all parties to craft a long-range revitalization plan.


7) To be removed, send mail to info@bhambuzz.org

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