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151 Martin, P.O. Box 3001
Birmingham, MI 48012
Ph. 248.530.1800
Fax 248.530.1080
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Welcome to the August 2018 edition of the Around Town e-Newsletter from the City of Birmingham. We hope you enjoy this e-newsletter and forward it to friends or family who may be interested in the City of Birmingham!
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Inside City Hall with Birmingham City Manager, Joe Valentine
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| Inside City Hall August 2018 Edition |
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Old Woodward Reconstruction Project Update - 95% Complete
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Photo by Ed Morykwas, River of Time Photography
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Get ready to see us now in Birmingham as the Old Woodward Reconstruction Project comes to a close this month!
Downtown's new era officially kicks off with a grand re-opening celebration on Saturday, August 11th, starting at 9:00 a.m. City leaders will mark the end of the project with a ribbon cutting ceremony at the intersection of Old Woodward and Maple, starting at 9:00 a.m. The public is invited to attend and witness this symbolic moment, marking the beginning of downtown's next chapter. The celebration will continue with the annual Day on the Town shopping extravaganza, as city merchants display their wares for purchase.
Day on the Town will run from 9:00 a.m.-7:00 p.m. with shoppers getting a chance to walk on the new concrete street, which is closed to through traffic that day. Shoppers and the public will also see and experience the new above ground amenities such as the wider sidewalks that are handicap accessible, mid-block crosswalks, curb extensions and granite benches for seating. In addition, they'll be secure in knowing that the new underground infrastructure such as sewer lines, water mains and electrical system are in place for decades to come.
The City thanks its residents, merchants and stakeholders for their patience and understanding throughout the four month reconstruction of Old Woodward from Brown to Willits/Oakland and a section of Maple. The City encourages the public to see us now in Birmingham by visiting downtown and experiencing its new era, first-hand.
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Paving the Way to a More Beautiful Downtown
We're in the final weeks of the construction project! Businesses are OPEN during construction, and they're counting on your support in these final stages of the project. The BSD is helping businesses to ensure it's "business as usual" for everyone by offering the following great perks:
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Photo by Ed Morykwas, River of TIme Photography
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FREE Two-Hour Valet Parking
(then $5 for each additional hour), Monday through Saturday, 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. Offered at four
locations:
- North Old Woodward Ave. near Willits
- Henrietta near Maple
- South Old Woodward near Brown
- Hamilton near Ferndale
Birmingham Art Contest Update
Thank you to the
art
students, enthusiasts, professionals and BSD businesses who enhanced the barricades and added something special for those walking throughout town during construction. More than 3,000 votes are in and the winner will be announced during the City ribbon cutting ceremony on Saturday, August 11th at 9:00 a.m., as part of the Day On The Town shopping extravaganza.
Birmingham Bonus Bucks
The Birmingham Bonus Bucks program has ended. Thank you for the overwhelming customer support throughout the Old Woodward Reconstruction Project. Please continue to support Birmingham businesses during the final weeks of construction.
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Grand Reopening and Sales at Day On The Town
Saturday, August 11, 9 a.m. - 7 p.m.
See Us Now In Birmingham!
Attracting shoppers from near and far, Birmingham's biggest sale event of the year will draw thousands on Saturday, August 11 from 9 a.m. - 7 p.m. Day On The Town offers bargain-hunters with a unique opportunity to find discounted high-end merchandise throughout downtown Birmingham. On top of the sales, crowds will enjoy seeing the new roads and beautiful landscape along Old Woodward and Maple.
A ribbon cutting ceremony will be held at 9 a.m. at the intersection of Old Woodward and Maple to kick off the Day On The Town event. BCB Entertainers (formerly The Straw Hat Band) will perform live during the ceremony and City officials will count down to the official ribbon cutting to signify the grand reopening of the downtown area.
Whether you're looking for clothing, shoes, jewelry, dishes, vases or toys, Birmingham is the place to be on August 11! For more information about Day On The Town, visit
www.ALLINBirmingham.com/DOTT2018.
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Revving Up for the 2018 Woodward Dream Cruise
 If you've seen the smiling faces on people waving at cars along Woodward Avenue on warm summer nights and heard the sound of rumbling engines, you know the Woodward Dream Cruise is almost here! The world's largest one-day automotive event will happen right here in Birmingham on Saturday, August 18. Whether you're into brand new hot rods, classic cars, or even people watching, the event is a must-see. We're proud of Birmingham's historic downtown, award winning parks, unique retailers and fine restaurants. We welcome the opportunity to showcase our great City as more than one million people make their way into town!
Adding to the festivities, the Birmingham Cruise Event will take place from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and is located on South Old Woodward from Merrill Street to Lincoln. The event features 300 classic cars of all makes and models, sponsor exhibits and live entertainment. Attendees will enjoy seeing Corvettes, Thunderbirds, Model A's, Mustangs, Rolls-Royce and much more.
Car lovers can satisfy their appetite with food vendors offering fresh squeezed lemonade, hot dogs, kettle corn, popcorn, baked goods and frozen treats.
The Chevrolet exhibit will be located in the "triangle" south of the 555 Building, where Old Woodward meets Woodward Avenue. They will host a variety of displays and activities starting at 9 a.m. Saturday and running through the conclusion of the Cruise at 9 p.m. Both WXYZ Channel 7 and WOMC 104.3 FM will broadcast live throughout the day from Birmingham and the Chevy event respectively.
Volunteers are needed to help park classic cars, direct traffic, and miscellaneous other event
activities. All volunteers receive a t-shirt and refreshments throughout the day. Download the
volunteer registration form and learn more about the event at
www.birminghamcruiseevent.com.
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Still Time to Enjoy Summer Concerts & Movies in the Park
Head to Birmingham's Shain Park (located at Henrietta and Martin St.) and enjoy a live concert in a beautiful setting. Bring your blanket or lawn chair, kick off your shoes and enjoy performances by local bands playing a wide variety of music genres. A special afternoon concert will be held on August 1 from 12 p.m. - 2 p.m. Visit Shain Park on your lunch break and enjoy music and entertainment! Mark your calendar to attend our final concerts of the summer:
Wednesday, August 1, 2018
- The Blue Cat (Blues, Rock and Contemporary) - Special afternoon performance, 12 p.m. - 2 p.m.
Wednesday, August 1, 2018 - Gia Warner and Bobby Lewis (Rock Classics), 7 p.m.
Wednesday, August 8, 2018 - Surreal Humdinger (Classic Rock), 7 p.m.
Wednesday, August 15, 2018 - Joey Vee (Country), 7 p.m.
Learn more at
www.bhamgov.org/summerconcerts
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Sit Back and Enjoy the Show in Booth Park
It's showtime in the great outdoors! Head to Booth Park and enjoy a family-friendly movie under the stars. The Birmingham Shopping District's popular Movie Night events offer pre-show entertainment at 7:30 p.m. followed by a movie at dusk. Join us on
Friday, August 24 - Featured presentation: The Incredibles.
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Sweet Michigan Corn at Birmingham Farmers Market
Corn Festival - Sunday, August 12, 9 a.m. - 2 p.m.
Celebrate one of Michigan's sweetest harvests with games, special kids crafts
(provided by Birmingham Youth Assistance), demonstrations, and old-fashioned corn shelling at the Corn Festival on Sunday, August 12 from 9 a.m. - 2 p.m. Enjoy fresh prepared corn recipes including roasted corn, kettle popcorn, corn bread and other homemade recipes. And of course there will be plenty of fresh roasted Michigan sweet corn for sale!
Attendees will see and pet a variety of farm animals including goats, sheep and chickens, courtesy of Bowers School Traveling Farm. The event will also feature the following food trucks: Ned's TravelBurger, Franks Etc. and Fire & Rice.
Chefs from Toast and Fleming's Prime Steakhouse will be on site preparing special corn dishes with samples for market patrons to enjoy.
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Welcome Back Free Skate at Birmingham Ice Arena
Learning to ice skate can be fun and rewarding. Whether your goal is to skate once
around the rink, spin really fast or join a hockey team - let us help you get started.
The City of Birmingham Ice Sports Arena will be offering a "Welcome Back" Free skate on Wednesday, August 22, 2018 from 5:00 pm - 7:00 pm for participants of all ages and levels of skating.
All participants will have the option to receive a FREE mini-lesson with one of our trained coaches in addition to the FREE skate session.
You may bring your own skates or there will be skates available to borrow (limited quantities). Helmets are recommended for beginners and are not provided by the City of Birmingham.
Registration for Session 1 classes will be available during the event.
Session 1 Class Dates: Tuesday, September 4, 2018 - Sunday, October 21, 2018
Learn To Skate Class Registration
For the 2018-2019 Season:
SESSION ONE:
Wednesday, August 22, 2018 5:00 pm -7:00 pm
Tuesday, August 28, 2018 5:00 pm -7:00 pm
Wednesday, September 5, 2018 5:00 pm -7:00 pm
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Use of AquaHawk portal growing as residents see benefits tracking their water usage
The City's new tool to help residents track their water usage through an online dashboard continues to grow in popularity.
Known as AquaHawk, registered users to the portal can click and view easy to understand graphic displays of their current and historical water use. In addition, registered participants can receive phone, text or email alerts when their user defined thresholds---such as gallons used or the projected cost of the bill--has been exceeded, potentially saving money on their water bill.
"We invite residents who have not yet registered for AquaHawk to be part of the growing number who are seeing its value and signing up," said Lauren Wood, City Director of Department of Public Services. "
AquaHawk is a complimentary service to our customers, so they may be better informed and aware of their water consumption."
To subscribe, residents are advised to look for AquaHawk signup information on their upcoming water bills, or register at
bit.ly/bhamaquahawk.
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Let's Go Out to the Ball Game!
Pay just $19 for your ticket to a Detroit Tigers game on these dates: August 10, 11, 12, 24, 25, 26. One dollar will be donated to the Birmingham Parks & Recreation Department for every ticket sold!
Purchase your tickets today. Go Tigers!
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August News from the Birmingham Museum
 Getting tired of the same old historical photos in the cases above the Treasurers' and Clerks' counters? Us too! In the next month look for new mini-exhibits to be going up in those spaces. What will they be? Will they feature iconic rock bands in Birmingham shot by legendary photographer Charlie Auringer? Past Birmingham civil servants? Artifacts found during the Woodward Reconstruction project? You'll have to stayed tuned to find out!
The museum is open Tuesday through Saturday, 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. and is located at
556 W. Maple Rd
. Parking is available in the Chester St. structure on the south side of Maple. Admission is $7.00 for adults, $5.00 for students and seniors, children five and under are free. Please visit us on the web at:
www.bhamgov.org/museum
or
www.facebook.com/TheBirminghamMuseum
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August News from the Baldwin Library
Music Trivia at Brady's Tavern
Wednesday, August 8 at 6:30 p.m.
Enjoy a rousing round of music-themed trivia. Please arrive by 6:30, Trivia starts at 7:00!
After-Hours Teen Laser Tag Party
Saturday, August 11, from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. Registration required.
Grades 6-12. Let's end Summer Reading with laser tag, pizza, movies, and video games after the library closes!
The Year of the Tiger: 1968
Monday, August 13 at 7:00 p.m.
Jeremy Dimick of the Detroit Historical Society will discuss the players, the season, and the city when the Detroit Tigers won the World Series 50 years ago.
Salt: The Great Magnifying Glass
Tuesday, August 14 at 7:00 p.m.
Join us for some food, fun, and a little kitchen magic with Renee Chodkowski, The Great Foodini!
The Baldwin Public Library is located at 300 W. Merrill Street in Birmingham. For more information visit www.baldwinlib.org
or call (248) 647-1700.
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Trellis Rust: Affecting Pear Trees in Southeast MI
What is Trellis Rust? It is a disease spread by the fungal pathogen Gymnosporangium sabinae. The disease is originally from Europe and may represent a serious health threat to Pyrus species, which includes both ornamental and fruit pear trees.
This disease is relatively new to North America, with noticeable signs of the disease appearing in Michigan around 2014. Experts in the landscape industry have been monitoring this disease and have put together some recommended management options. Unless the tree is in serious decline, we should be able to tolerate some rust lesions in our environmental stewardship options.
The City is aware of the disease and is monitoring the health and condition of Pear trees in City's right of ways and properties. For updates on this, articles relating to this disease, and other Forestry management issues, please visit our
Forestry webpage.
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Avoid Fines: Keep Grass & Weeds Below Eight Inches
To ensure our city looks well-maintained, the City's ordinance requires grass and weeds to be kept below eight inches high. Poison ivy, ragweed or any other poisonous, noxious or unhealthy growths are prohibited. Those in violation of this ordinance will have their lawn mowed and will be required to pay for the service. Access the entire Grass and Noxious Weed ordinance (Sec. 118-66) on the City's web site. For more information, call the Department of Public Services at
(248) 530-1700. Or, to make a complaint, call the
Birmingham Code Enforcement Hotline at 248-530-1859, and leave a detailed message.
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Thank you for reading Around Town, a monthly e-newsletter from the City of Birmingham. We hope you find the information timely and useful. Please feel free to forward this e-mail to friends and neighbors who may be interested in Birmingham.
Sincerely,
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