Beth Milligan

Garfield Township trustees approved a $186,900 contract Tuesday for engineering work on a project to replace a force sewer main that recently cracked under South Airport Road near Logan's Landing. Gourdie Fraser will complete the engineering work ahead of planned repairs later this fall, with the total project cost including construction estimated at just over $1.6 million.

Two major projects – a new Homewood Suites by Hilton hotel at the corner of Three Mile Road and US-31 and a new 30-home neighborhood at the corner of Four Mile and Hammond roads – are set to move forward after East Bay Township planning commissioners granted extensions for the previously approved projects Tuesday. Both projects are targeting 2027 groundbreakings.

Grand Traverse County commissioners are gearing up to make what Vice Chair TJ Andrews called “the most significant decision” of their board service: determining the location of the county’s new jail and the future of the Governmental Center. The latter decision will be made in conjunction with the City of Traverse City, with the goal of confirming a planned approach by the end of the year.

Traverse City commissioners tonight (Monday) will discuss a strategy for addressing one of the most pressing operational issues facing the city: the potential for a full third of its employees to retire in the next 2-3 years. City Manager Benjamin Marentette says the retirement wave will impact almost every department, with the city looking to hire a consultant to identify ways to recruit, retain, and reorganize its workforce.

Traverse City crews will close Seventh Street daily starting Monday, September 14 to perform a mill -and-fill project from Wadsworth Street to South Maple Street.

Traverse City commissioners are pumping the brakes on a process to redevelop six city-owned parcels on State and Pine streets in downtown Traverse City. A recent request-for-proposals (RFP) generated two significant development proposals, but commissioners Monday agreed the RFP was flawed and raised more questions than answers. The board plans to discuss the city’s policy for payment-in-lieu-of-taxes (PILOT) agreements – a tax incentive tool planned to be used by both developers to include workforce housing in the project – before proceeding further.

Just two months after the abrupt departure of Shawn Winter, the City of Traverse City has hired a new planning director. Claire Karner, East Bay Township’s director of planning and zoning since 2019, will join the city October 19.

Traverse City Parking Services will temporarily relocate in-person operations from the Hardy Parking Structure to the adjacent Downtown Development Authority (DDA) offices starting Monday. The move is due to flooring improvements being completed in the southeast pedestrian tower of the parking garage. The tower provides the only public access to the parking offices.

Only three of five Grand Traverse County road commissioners were present for their board meeting Thursday, but tensions still flared over multiple agenda items including a planning contract for South Airport Road and commission communications.

Several thousand attendees are expected in downtown Traverse City Saturday for the annual Halloween Walk, where they’ll find smiling merchants handing out candy and creative costumes galore. They’ll also likely run into areas where city sidewalks are closed due to construction, which reroutes pedestrians abruptly – and for those with mobility and visual impairment issues, sometimes dangerously – away from clear pathways. The Ticker looks at how those sidewalk closures happen, how long they’ll last, and how enforcement could soon increase to better protect pedestrians.