Farmington, Hills Planning Commissioners Discuss Grand River Ideas Thursday

The agenda includes discussion of a vision being drafted by the Corridor Improvement Authorities for both cities.

Farmington Planning Commissioners got a look Monday at a vision for the Grand River corridor in Farmington and Farmington Hills that includes redevelopment, a connected system of bike and walking paths, and high quality design elements.  Economic and Community Development Director Kevin Christiansen said representatives from both cities are working on a plan that covers three miles of the state-controlled road, from Mayfield in Farmington to Eight Mile Road in Farmington Hills. He said the strategy includes eight development principles: Christiansen said an overlay district will be proposed for inclusion in the master plans for both cities, and a tax increment financing (TIF) district will be established later this year to capture any …

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Grand River, Farmington Visioning Meeting Dates Set

Residents have two opportunities to help set the course of their community's future.

Farmington and Farmington Hills residents have two opportunities this month to influence the future of their communities.  On March 13, the Corridor Improvement Authorities (CIA) of Farmington Hills and Farmington will host a 5 p.m. Grand River Corridor Visioning Open House. And City of Farmington residents are invited to attend a March 27 follow-up to the Feb. 18 kick-off meeting for that city's visioning process.  The CIA open house, held at Botsford Hospital Ziegler Administration and Education Building, will highlight draft findings and recommendations of a Grand River corridor study, including the vision statement and design principles for the corridor. The information was gathered from nearly 300 ideas generated through stakeholder …

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Grand River Corridor Blends Challenges, Opportunities

After consultants reviewed findings of a corridor study Wednesday, about 40 local residents brainstormed ideas to improve the three-mile area.

About 40 area residents and business owners met Wednesday at the Costick Center in Farmington Hills to re-imagine a 3-mile stretch of Grand River, a state highway that runs through both communities.  The 2-hour long meeting focused attention on the Grand River Corridor, which covers about 460 acres along either side of the road, from Eight Mile in Farmington Hills to Power Road in Farmington. Tapping a 2005 law, each city in 2011 created a Corridor Improvement Authority (CIA), with boards that are working together to develop a vision for the area.  Consultant Jim Houk of OHM Advisors said the goal is to determine the right mix of land uses in the area that "matches the needs of the marketplace". More than half of the land is occupied by …

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First Thing Farmington-Farmington Hills

What's Your Vision for the Grand River Corridor?

Farmington and Farmington Hills residents are invited to share their ideas at a 6:30 p.m. meeting. In the meantime, let us know what you'd like to see happen with one large, vacant property.

If you have ideas for revitalizing the Grand River corridor in Farmington and Farmington Hills, a group of local volunteers wants to hear them.  The Grand River Corridor Improvement Authority boards in both cities will host a public visioning meeting today at the Costick Center in Farmington Hills. If you can't attend, they've also set up an online survey. Or you can attend one of their 7:30 a.m. meetings at the Jon Grant Community Center in Farmington Hills, on the fourth Thursday of each month.  One of the large properties currently vacant along the corridor is the former H.A. Smith Lumber Company, which closed in 2011. Tell us in a comment what you think should go into that space, then check out the list of today's events, along with …

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Share Your Vision for Grand River at Jan. 23 Public Meeting in Farmington Hills

Because the state highway is a community hub, officials say they want to hear from everyone who uses it.

Paul King, Sr. has seen a lot of change since he opened King's Garage on Grand River in Farmington more than 30 years ago, but one thing has remained the same.  "This is the hub of the area," said King, who now chairs the Farmington Grand River Corridor Improvement Authority (CIA) board. "It's still going to bloom from there."  King is among a group of residents, business owners and elected officials from Farmington and Farmington Hills who have begun to develop a vision for the Grand River corridor. After several months of taking inventory of a 3-mile stretch of the state highway that runs from Eight Mile in Farmington Hills to Power Road in Farmington, they're asking anyone with an interest in improving it to help.  The Corridor …

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Farmington Officials Approve Corridor Improvement Authority

Council members expect to use a new tool for economic redevelopment with Farmington Hills.

After months of meetings and public hearings, Farmington officials have approved a major economic redevelopment tool for a major community thoroughfare. The Corridor Improvement Authority (CIA) will ultimately include properties along Grand River from Eight Mile Road in Farmington Hills to Mayfield Avenue in Farmington. Because the roadway cuts through both cities, each will form its own CIA board, and the two boards will work together to encourage more businesses to locate in that area. At Monday's Farmington City Council meeting, a resolution to establish the Grand River Corridor Improvement Authority passed unanimously. Farmington Hills council members held their pubic hearing on the CIA last week; they'll take action similar to …

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Farmington Hills Takes Another Step Toward Grand River Corridor Authority

Residents bring questions to Monday night's public hearing.

Farmington Hills officials took another step toward creating an authority that will support redevelopment of the corridor along Grand River. Because the main thoroughfare runs through both Farmington Hills and Farmington, both city councils are working together under a grant from the Land Information Access Association (LIAA) to create a Corridor Improvement Authority (CIA). Meetings have been held with residents and business owners along the affected area, which stretches from Eight Mile Road in Farmington Hills to Mayfield Avenue in Farmington. On Monday night, the Hills council held a public hearing on the proposed boundaries for the project. Once approved, the corridor may be reduced, but not increased, in size, Hills management …

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