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As there has been speculation regarding the proposed 27700 Southfield Road (Annie Lathrup School) development, I (City Administrator Greene) wanted to share some information residents may find useful. Additional information will be added to subsequent notices when the data/information is finalized.
Property Values
Questions have arisen regarding the impact of a development on the neighboring property values. The Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) conducted a study called "Quantifying the Placemaking Effect - Evaluating the Impact of Sustained Place-based Economic Development Incentives on Michigan's Neighborhoods and Commercial Corridors, 2008-2019."
This study shows the effects of MEDC investments in projects and the impact it has on those neighboring property values. Study data shows that MEDC invested $625,010,924 across the 176 deals in the six cities and leveraged $2,617,750,023 in private investment for a total investment of $3,242,808,392 during the 2008–2019 study period. Dynamo applied findings from the empirical analysis period to all six-city deals, finding that:
- MEDC CDI deals increased occupancy rates in all residential and commercial buildings within 1,000 feet of MEDC investment sites by approximately 3%.
- Every $1.00 invested by MEDC in the six cities created $5.13 in nearby commercial property value and $1.05 in nearby residential property value for a total of $6.18 in nearby property value.
- Every $1.00 invested in CDI Deals (MEDC + Private investment) in the six cities created $0.99 in nearby commercial property value and $0.20 in nearby residential property value for a total of $1.19 in nearby property value.
- MEDC CDI deals increased residential and commercial property values by $3,864,786,405 within 2,000 feet of MEDC investment sites one year or greater after the commencement of the deals.
In short, if the Surnow Company is exploring state funding via the MEDC, the data suggest if they receive funding and the project proceeds, the property values within 2,000 feet of the development would increase.
Proposed PILOT Program
A PILOT is an investment incentive negotiated between the City of Lathrup Village and a developer of multi-unit affordable rental housing. The PILOT replaces a traditional property tax assessment with a limited and/or deferred payment, in place, or in “lieu”, of the summer and winter property taxes that most property owners in Michigan pay.
No PILOT ordinance has been approved and no negotiations have taken place with any developer. Any PILOT ordinance will be subject to multiple public meetings and any agreement is required to be voted on during a City Council meeting. Any revenue projections that are being discussed are speculative at this stage.
As it currently sits, the tax bill for 27700 Southfield Road (Annie Lathrup School) is ~$22,000 each year. It can be presumed that any agreed-upon PILOT will be greater than the current yearly payment. Additional direct municipal revenues from any site development would include building permits, utilities, rental licensing, and inspection fees. As part of the proposed plans, the City would also receive a refurbished dog park and resurfaced walking path on the west side of Annie Lathrup Park.
Public Safety
The following is feedback from Chief McKee & Lieutenant Zang related to the potential 27700 Southfield Road development.
The Lathrup Village Police Department (LVPD) does not see any imminent issues related to crime or safety as a result of this development. LVPD also does not necessarily see potential for more violent crime, but with the addition of ~130 units, and a couple hundred residents, the LVPD will see an increase in runs. The most common types of runs LVPD will potentially see are Larceny from Autos (LFAs), fraud reports, neighbor/family troubles, noise complaints, alarms, and medical emergencies. With that being said, LVPD hopes the developers will keep top security in mind with surveillance cameras in the building and parking lot. A future topic LVPD would like to discuss is building access to the interior in the event of a police, fire, or medical emergency. LVPD is often the first entity to respond to any emergency and getting access to the main portion of the building is very important. Based on experience, neighboring police agencies have coordinated with developers and landowners on ways to gain access quickly I.e. Key fob access, door codes, or Knox boxes for the fire department are just some ways to mitigate those issues.
LVPD believes it’s safe to say there will naturally be an increase in dispatched runs, but calculating just how many is a more complicated objective to complete. Only time will tell. LVPD is happy to work with anyone and be involved in any way to make sure the future residents of Lathrup Village have access to emergency personnel when they need it.
Infrastructure
Based on previous investment in infrastructure and upcoming construction projects, City Engineering does not foresee negative impacts on the City's utilities from this development. The following section goes into more detail related to water, storm sewer, and sanitary sewer.
Water:
The City’s water pressure is based on the incoming water source at the meter pits. Based on the 2023 Water Reliability Report, the water pressure at the 11-Mile meter was 52 psi. For the modeling with the 12-Mile meter operating, 52 psi was used.
Based on the modeled results, the 12” Southfield Road main adjacent to the proposed development has a modeled flow of:
- 2022 Scenario (some improvements done and the 12 Mile meter is closed) = 1,000 – 1,500 gpm
- 2028a Scenario (Southfield Road main from 12 Mile to California replaced from an 8” to 12” main and meter is open) = 1,500 to 2,000 gpm. Note that this project is now scheduled for 2027.
- The modeled results at the rear of the property flow that varies from 750 – 1,000 gpm. Engineering opinion is that if the capped water main that is in the middle of the property were to be repaired, the flows would increase closer to 1,000 – 1,500 gpm.
Engineering believes the flow is adequate for the proposed development due to its domestic use. However, the adequacy of fire protection has several more factors including the type of building, use of the building, and the type of fire protection/sprinkler system used. The development team will have a consultant specializing in sprinkler systems to calculate the requirements, run fire flow tests, and design a system that will provide the required flows for the required duration. Typically, a building over 2-3 stories will require a fire pump inside to boost pressure and flow.
- Sprinkler system review is conducted with building plan review (after site plan approval). NOTE: The Southfield Fire Department has reviewed and provided feedback on the proposed site plan.
Additionally, they are subject to standard water rates and would be charged for their share of the system/usage.
Storm Sewer:
Based on engineering records, it does not depict any storm drains adjacent to the site. It is believed that most of the stormwater is directed, or was originally designed to be directed, to the adjacent ditch system. There are a couple of storm manholes depicted on the TOPO but the belief is they are connected to the footing drains/sanitary sewer.
The current design and OCWRC requirement are to store stormwater on-site based on a 100-year storm event. The current allowable outlet of the detention system is 0.20 cfs / acre x 4 acres = 0.80 cfs. The required storage volume of the detention system is approximately 30,000 cubic feet (225,000 gallons). Please note this is a detention system, ultimately the 30,000 cft of stormwater will be discharged into the City’s storm sewer system but will be at a restricted rate and not at peak flow.
It is the engineering opinion that the storm sewer system will have a net 0.80 cfs of “peak” flow added to the system. The existing 24” storm sewer at minimum slope has a design capacity of approximately 10 cfs.
If the site did not contain storm sewers connected to the City’s system and no detention provided, the peak flow directly to the sewers would be approximately 10.35 cfs.
Sanitary Sewer:
The school is not in use but it can be estimated that the current flow into the sanitary sewer is based on the footing drains being connected and the roof drains being disconnected to the footing drains. We are going to assume that 25% of the roof drainage makes its way to the footing drains (they are not extended away from the building).
Flow = C x I x A where:
C= coefficient of runoff (0.90 for roofs)
I = Intensity (4.38 for 10 yr storm)
A = acres
Therefore Q= 0.90 x 4.38 x (22,910 sft / 43,560 sft / acre) x 25% = 0.52 cfs of discharge to the sanitary sewer system
Sanitary Sewer – Future Development:
Based on current design standards for sanitary sewer design, the proposed sanitary discharge would equate to:
128 apartments x 1.5 persons / apt = 192 persons
The average amount of water used per person is 100 gallons
The peaking factor is 4
Total amount of water used per day = 192 persons x 100 gal / person / day x 4 peaking factor = 76,800 gals / day
Converted to cfs = 76,800 gal/day x (1 cft / 7.48 gal) x (1 day / 24 hrs) x (1 hr / 3600 seconds) = 0.12 cfs.
Based on the above calculations, the flow into the sanitary sewer system will be reduced from 0.52 cfs to 0.12 cfs.
The existing 12” sanitary sewer at minimum slope has a design capacity of approximately 2.46 cfs.
Please recall that when the City separated the sewer system in the 1960s, the existing combined sewer system was converted to the sanitary sewer system so it is over-designed in size.
Additionally, they are subject to standard sewer rates and would be charged for their share of the system/usage.
LV Sanitary Retention Tank:
The following information was provided by the Oakland County Water Resource Commission (which oversees the Lathrup Village Retention Tank).
The recent project at the Lathrup Village Sanitary Retention Basin has made great operational improvements to the facility. The facility now can discharge nearly twice the amount of flow directly into the Evergreen Farmington collection system than previously. Before this project, any flow that exceeded the dry weather flow was pumped to the two retention tanks for storage until it could be pumped back out to the collection system at a maximum rate of 3 cfs. In some cases, the tank capacity would be reached before the end of the wet weather event causing a sanitary sewer overflow violation to occur. Now the facility can pump 6 cfs of flow directly to the collection system throughout a wet weather event, thereby optimizing the storage capacity of the tanks and reducing the chances of the tank capacity being reached.
This project consisted of many needed improvements to the facility that was originally constructed in 1992, including,
- Replacing two existing pumps with larger pumps
- Rehabilitating thirteen existing pumps for continued use
- Replacing 34 valves and 18 actuators
- Repairing the heating and ventilation equipment
- Repairing the concrete and joints of the existing tanks
- Updating the electrical and control systems
These improvements will benefit both Lathrup Village and the Evergreen Farmington Sanitary District operations thereby allowing the cost to be shared between entities. Lathrup Village is responsible for 25% of the total project cost with the Evergreen Farmington Sanitary District paying the remaining 75% of costs.
Roads:
While there is no doubt an increase in vehicles will provide additional wear on the road system, the distribution of Michigan Transportation Fund (MTF) major street funds among the 531 cities and villages is based on two factors: 60% based on city/village census population, and 40% based on city village “equivalent major mileage.” The balance of the MTF distribution to cities and villages is earmarked for local streets. MTF local street funds are allocated among the 531 cities and villages based on two factors: 60% based on census population, and 40% based on local street mileage.
In summary – if the population of Lathrup Village increases, additional street funds could be allocated to the City.
Public Meetings
The following are the public meetings over the past year where 27700 Southfield Road (Annie Lathrup School) related items have been listed on the agenda.
- 1-21-25 – Planning Commission – Zoning Ordinance Modification Request
- 1-6-25 – City Council Study Session – HDC Appeal Discussion
- 12-17-24 – Planning Commission – Site Plan & Zoning Ordinance Modification
- 12-12-24 – Historic District Commission – HDC Review
- 10-21-24 – City Council Study Session – PILOT Ordinance Discussion
- 9-20-24 – Downtown Development Authority – MEDC Letter of Support
- 4-16-24 – Planning Commission – Conceptual Review
The Surnow Company has withdrawn its current request to appeal the HDC decision to the City Council and has decided to revise its plans and resubmit to the HDC. That meeting will be scheduled once the updated plans are received by staff and a review timeline can be established.
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