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Annette Kingsbury By Annette Kingsbury By Michael Dwyer C.O.R.E Christine Lind Hage City Council City of Rochester clinton river Crittenton Dan Stickradt Dave Pruneau DDA dear crabby Downtown Rochester Grace Centers of Hope Heidi Morris Jayna Pyke L. Brooks Patterson Mayor Barnett Mayor Bryan Barnett Mayor Bryan K. Barnett Michael Dwyer Oakland County Oakland Township Oakland University OPC Paint Creek Center for the Arts paint creek trail Road Commission for Oakland County rochester Rochester Adams Rochester City Council Rochester College Rochester Community House Rochester Community Schools Rochester High School Rochester Hills Rochester Hills Fire Department Rochester Hills Museum Rochester Hills Public Library Rochester Regional Chamber of Commerce Rochester Rotary Club Stoney Creek High School Stuart Bikson The Village of Rochester Hills
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Category: Rochester Hills
Citizen Opinion: Let’s all help RARA
Written by Editor
Wednesday, 09 May 2012 18:34
2 Comments

Citizen Opinion by Scot Beaton

RARA and the Rochester Hills city council made a $2.6 million dollar mistake on Monday May 7. And they did it with your money!

Since 1946, the Rochester Avon Recreation Authority (RARA) has provided recreation programs from toddlers to adults in a variety of areas, such as dance, sports classes, sport leagues, pre-school classes, special events, fitness, skiing, and so much more. RARA allows you to enjoy diverse recreational opportunities right here in our community.

RARA Headquarters

Now, RARA is looking for a new home and the Rochester Hills city council has granted them permission to purchase an industrial building in the city of Rochester, 500 E. Second Street on a 10 year plan. The property cost is $1.4 million, $500 thousand down, $900 thousand to be financed on a land contract at 5.75% or $285 thousand in interest. Right off the bat, the building needs $575 thousand in Phase I improvements just to move in and $375 thousand in Phase II future improvements. That makes the actual cost $2.63 million total or $77.5 per square foot, for a structure with an estimated market value of only $1,007,700! RARA director Ron Jewell was quoted recently specifically about facility requirements he said he was looking for outdoor field space for the new facility. However, this new property barely has enough land for parking and NO green space for outdoor fields.

Furthermore, why is RARA purchasing this property on a land contract? Don’t they know if they are late on one payment the entire investment reverts back to the original property owner including all improvements? Who can predict our economy 10 years out? And why is RARA trying to deceive us, claiming savings of $2,100 in adult basketball rental costs and $35,000 in youth adult basketball rentals? They are only building one middle school basketball court with dimensions of  74′ by 42′ wide. NBA/NCAA regulation basketball court dimensions are is 94′ by 50′ and high school basketball courts are 84′ by 50”. Why do they think adults or high school students want to play basketball on a middle school basketball court?

Residents and taxpayers of both Rochester and Rochester Hills–please! I strongly urge you to review their proposal as they are spending YOUR tax dollars and my comments are just the tip of the iceberg. As a former member of the Rochester City Council, Monday night I would have voted NO!

But I have yet to explain the travesty that occurred Monday night. Monday night I made a fantastic creative suggestion (I personally don’t ever want an ounce of credit for this idea) that fell not only on deaf ears of RARA but also our Mayor and City Council. Years back after I left council, our city purchased light industrial property on Hamlin Rd. just east of Crooks to build a new DPS facility. To make a long story short we never built our new building there but we still own the property. Why can’t this PAID FOR PROPERTY help RARA fulfill its dream? Isn’t this all about our kids and the quality of life for our area? RARA has $2.6 million and Rochester Hills has land they could lease to RARA for any price. If I were still a member of council or your mayor, my suggestion would start at $1.00 per year for this land. I don’t know about you, but I like kids. Let’s help RARA build something really cool! Not every remaining square inch of Rochester Hills has to be a strip mall or another light industrial building. We could build the building for RARA at 3% interest, and give them a better 10 year deal than a landlord in downtown Rochester. We should solicit our business community for help. Why for example can’t one of our road pavers/bridge builders help RARA build the parking lot our front? Why can’t our parks department help build the outdoors field space RARA so desperately needs? Why can’t we help RARA build a bigger building than 33,973 square feet? A new steel building is $6-7/sq ft. Components (doors, windows, insulation, gutters & downs) $2-$3/sq ft or approx. $9/sq ft, a concrete slab a national average of $6/sq ft and erecting the structure itself is a national average of $3-$4/sq ft. Round this all up to $20/sq ft or $1,000,000 for a new 50,000 SF building with no poles to hold up the roof–pure open space!

RARA has demonstrated over the years they can book it, why can’t we help RARA build it? Not just one middle school court but 5 to 6 adult basketball courts. If we truly love our kids… RARA needs to man up, slow down on this purchase and demand our Mayor and City Council revisit this $2.6 million dollar expense at their next meeting and help RARA build their dream!

 
Hills police proposals raise doubts
Written by Annette Kingsbury
Tuesday, 08 May 2012 11:57
No Comments

With two police millages expiring next year, Rochester Hills voters will soon be asked to consider how to fund police services into the future. A committee has presented three possible options, but city council and residents who spoke at a public hearing Monday showed that there is, as yet, no consensus on how to proceed.

The city currently levies two special police millages, which expire in 2013. The two taxes aren’t enough to pay for the current level of law enforcement, so the city transfers 20 percent of its general fund to cover the balance. This year three police positions were cut; more cuts are expected in the next couple of years due to the drop in property values.

The committee recommends keeping police funding at the current level by renewing the expiring taxes and adding a new 2.5 mill tax to eliminate the general-fund subsidy. The committee offered council two ways to do that; a charter amendment or a 10-year millage. The committee also wants to offer voters a separate option of an additional 0.4 mill to add up to eight officers.

The committee is asking council for a commitment to reduce general-fund spending by 2.5 mills if voters approve a new tax. The committee did not recommend amending the charter to that effect. At the May 21 meeting, council plans to decide which approach to use, which election to go for and what the ballot language will say.

Seven residents who spoke at Monday’s hearing all indicated they see problems in getting voter approval of any of the proposals.

“I fully support the need for additional police funding,” said Lee Zendel. “Sadly, I don’t believe the voters of this city will approve of anything other than a straight renewal of the two police millages.”

“I absolutely guarantee you … it’s going to fail,” said former councilman Scot Beaton, noting the economy. “To not ask just for a flat renewal at this time … is a horrible mistake.” He asked council to use existing funds to restore the three police positions cut this year.

Resident Gordon Duda, who said he supports a straight renewal, called the proposals “simply a grab for additional tax dollars.” He said voters will need a guarantee that the general fund will be reduced to offset the new tax.

The committee has been working on solving the city’s funding needs for police and roads since 2007. They said they want a tax-neutral approach. But council members disagree as to whether that will solve the city’s structural funding problem.

“For us not to talk about increasing spending is a bit disingenuous,” said Councilman Jim Rosen. He said residents he’s talked to are concerned the city is depleting its general fund to pay for police, using funds that could otherwise pay for streets or parks.

Councilman and committee member Mike Webber said the group wanted to guarantee public-safety funding. Otherwise, future councils might prefer to use the general fund for other things.

“What the committee proposed was to secure that funding and put it aside for police,” he said.

Councilman Ravi Yalamanchi pointed to the city’s latest audit report, which was presented Monday. The auditors said the city has done a good job of responding to the economic downturn and is well-positioned for the future. It also showed an uptick in revenue, indicating things may be turning around. Based on that, and the hardships some residents are still facing, Yalamanchi said he supports a straight renewal of the existing police millages

“We have good reserves and we’re not tapping into it,” he said. “If you would ask who is the richest citizen in Rochester Hills, I would say it’s the city government, which is great. … I think we do this in incremental steps, not adding new tax burden for the residents.”

Council President Greg Hooper disagreed. “We all know that it’s unsustainable what we’re transferring right now,” he said.

 
Discover Hills’ green spaces
Written by Annette Kingsbury
Monday, 07 May 2012 10:43
No Comments

The city of Rochester Hills will offer hikers a one-hour walk on the Clinton River Trail on Saturday, May 19 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The hike will cover the stretch of trail between Avon Road and Diversion Street. It will include nature presentations and a raffle. Discover overlooked natural features and explore some of the undeveloped properties purchased by the city of Rochester Hills which are now protected as perpetual green spaces. Along the route, volunteers will share information about the plants, animals, ecology, and history of these properties, as well as their impact on the health of the Clinton River. Learn about invasive plants and efforts to eradicate them. Chat with a bike patrol officer from the Oakland County Sheriff’s Department and watch a kayak demonstration on the Clinton River.

Stop at an Information Tent to enter the raffle for a chance to win prizes donated by the event’s sponsors. You can also pick up lots of information about green spaces, the Clinton River corridor and outdoor recreation throughout the city.

Wear footwear appropriate to the weather. For more information contact the city’s Parks Department at (248) 656-4673, or parks@rochesterhills.org.