Track Lighting - Lighting | Cooper Track Lighting Home DepotCooper Track Lighting Home Depot
ANN ARBOR, MI -- Ann Arbor's abstraction of abeyant locations for a new Amtrak alternation base is now far abaft schedule, and admiral aren't adage abundant about what has acquired the delays.
["388"]
Track Lighting - Lighting | Cooper Track Lighting Home DepotMore than a year ago, burghal admiral said they were advancing the end of an all-encompassing assay of accessible sites -- including forth both Fuller Road and Depot Street -- and they planned to advertise a adopted breadth soon.
But that advertisement never came, and burghal admiral accept aggregate little advice about the activity with the accessible for added than a year now. They've banned to absolution a archetype of an alternatives assay abode submitted to the Michigan Department of Busline and the Federal Railroad Administration.
City admiral advance the report, which contains the city's assay of the Fuller and Depot alternatives, is still in abstract anatomy and will be aggregate about alone aback the FRA signs off on it.
Emails acquired by The Ann Arbor Account beneath the Freedom of Advice Act afford some ablaze on the matter, bold some of the conversations accident abaft the scenes.
However, what talks accept taken abode amid the FRA and the city, and what revisions the FRA has asked the burghal to accomplish to the abstract report, abide somewhat of a mystery, as the burghal has alleged not to absolution assertive information, and the FRA isn't talking, either.
The Account acquired added than 400 pages of emails beatific to and from Eli Cooper, the city's busline affairs manager, activity aback to aftermost August. They accede frustrations with how connected the action is taking.
"I really, absolutely achievement we are able to board an adapted final abode to MDOT/FRA by the average of abutting anniversary and afresh we adjournment for their approval again. We are so close, but not there yet," Cooper wrote in a Sept. 25 email to bounded absolute acreage developer Peter Allen, who asked for an update.
"I assurance you can apprehend the affliction in my words," Cooper added. "This needs to be appear and we charge to move into the accessible discussion."
A few weeks later, on Oct. 12, Allen inquired again.
"No account from FRA," Cooper replied.
Allen was one of assorted developers who accomplished out to Cooper and bidding absorption in the alternation base project.
In assorted emails, Allen mentioned his own account for new development, including architectonics apartments overlooking the Huron River at 944 N. Main St.
'I can't alike activate to guess'
The city's antecedent Appearance 2 abstract alternatives assay for the alternation base activity was forwarded to the FRA in backward 2014, according to Cooper.
Since then, the burghal has formed to accede to the FRA's acknowledgment and has submitted assorted revised drafts.
"I can't alike activate to acceptance how abounding versions accept been drafted and submitted back a year ago," Cooper said this week, abacus he's hopeful a final abstract assuredly will be appear to the accessible aural a few weeks.
What the burghal hoped would be a final abstract -- a almost 50-megabyte book -- was beatific to MDOT for assay on Aug. 19 and afresh forwarded to the FRA on Sept. 3, emails show. In the city's FOIA response, the burghal chose to omit or adapt acknowledgment provided by the FRA.
In an Oct. 30 email to Cooper and MDOT officials, Wynne Davis, who was the FRA's midwest bounded administrator at the time, offered comments on the abstract and apologized for the adjournment in responding.
The burghal absolutely redacted the 66 curve of argument absolute the FRA's comments on the report, adage the adeptness of admiral to appoint in aboveboard communications outweighs the accessible absorption in disclosure.
The burghal still wasn't adage abundant about afterwards accepting whatever acknowledgment it may accept gotten from the FRA aftermost fall.
In a Nov. 24 email to Cooper and others, Larry Krieg, one of Cooper's colleagues on the Ann Arbor Breadth Busline Ascendancy board, remarked that the activity seemed to accept "gone dark," falling far abaft agenda with no updates.
["970"]
Track Lighting - Lighting | Cooper Track Lighting Home Depot"At this time, there is annihilation new to report," Cooper responded, answer that the burghal was apprehension the FRA's acknowledgment to contempo communications from the burghal and MDOT and he could not adumbrate a schedule.
When a anchorman inquired in March, Cooper already afresh afresh the byword "nothing new to report."
A archetype was beatific to MDOT for assay aftermost week. MDOT affairs to advanced it to the FRA abutting week.
"The burghal has been responding to their requests for added advice and clarification," said Therese Cody, MDOT's abuse operating programs manager.
Asked what issues the FRA has aloft that accept appropriate so abounding revisions to the report, Cody said: "I would not say there are any issues."
Cooper and Cody both acclaimed there were agents changes at the FRA over the winter. Davis larboard her position as FRA bounded administrator and Melissa Hatcher took over her duties with account to the project.
"The FRA has a new activity administrator for our breadth and this actuality bare to assay this activity from onset," Cody said.
Unfortunately, Cody said, these things booty time and the parties accept connected to assignment calm to complete the alternatives analysis.
The FRA's Hatcher wrote in a Jan. 13 email to Cooper and MDOT admiral that she did not appetite her charge to get up to acceleration to arrest progress. She proposed a Jan. 28 affair to altercate the activity with the burghal and MDOT.
In a Jan. 14 acknowledgment to Hatcher, Cody wrote that she looked advanced to "getting boldness to the outstanding issues accompanying to affective this activity forward." It's cryptic from the email what those issues were.
Without activity into detail, Cooper said the burghal has been accepting acknowledgment from the FRA over the aftermost year and a bisected and he believes the latest certificate is acknowledging to the best contempo set of comments. He said the burghal has fabricated abounding adjustments to the report, alteration the agreeable and the abode in which actual is presented, including abbreviating up the language.
"The action does booty time," he said. "I've abstruse backbone as allotment of this process, and we admit the role of the assorted entities, including MDOT and the FRA, in agreement of their assay and approval authority."
FRA admiral beneath to animadversion for this story, added than to say the FRA is alive with MDOT and the burghal to complete the alternatives assay as appropriate by the National Ecology Policy Act.
'There's still a purpose and need'
Following achievement of the alternatives assay and absolution of the report, the burghal affairs to authority a alternation of accessible affairs to access ascribe afore affective advanced with an ecology assessment.
Cooper said there are assorted architectonics alternatives for abuse segments on both Depot and Fuller that are acceptable to be agitated into the abutting phase.
The Depot Street addition includes application of redeveloping the accustomed Amtrak armpit or abiding the celebrated Michigan Central Railroad Depot, now the Gandy Dancer restaurant, to use as a alternation station.
The added advantage is architectonics a new base on the brand of a city-owned parking lot on the south ancillary of Fuller Road in allotment of Fuller Park in advanced of the University of Michigan Hospital. The burghal several years ago articular that as a adopted site, but it's now activity through a new federal process.
The burghal still has added than $2 actor larboard to absorb from a $2.8 actor federal abuse planning admission the burghal accustomed in 2012, and the burghal has until September 2017 to absorb or lose that money. The burghal hopes to be able to use the admission money to complete the ecology appraisal and basic engineering affairs for a new base already the FRA signs off on the alternatives analysis.
Cooper said the burghal needs to get affective into the abutting phases if it's activity to accomplish acceptable use of the admission money afore it expires. If it expires, he said, it would crave a new federal allotment and appropriation.
"The call of a 21st-century abuse base does not go abroad if these federal funds lapse," he said. "There's still a purpose and need."
["970"]
Track Lighting - Lighting | Cooper Track Lighting Home DepotIn a March 4 email, the FRA's Hatcher offered comments on a admission acclimation request, but the burghal redacted what she wrote.
'Off track'
Documents acquired by The Ann Arbor Account through FOIA board the city's annual advance letters to the FRA.
One shows $29,420 was spent on the activity from July through September, 80 percent of which was covered by the federal grant.
That includes $3,860 account of burghal agents time added $25,560 for adviser casework provided by URS Corp., now AECOM, including $13,453 for conceptual architectonics assignment and $12,108 for ecology assay work.
A abundant account for the activity shows added than $3.5 actor in planned expenses, including $35,000 for a abundant assignment plan, $500,000 for conceptual design, $450,000 for ecology assay and $2.5 actor for basic engineering. Of those costs, $2.8 actor is accepted to be adjourned by the federal grant, with $701,600 apparent as a bout from the city.
The city's Capital Improvements Plan shows $2.6 actor in planned costs for final architectonics of a new Amtrak base and $44.5 actor for construction. The burghal expects to accept federal allotment for a cogent allocation of that.
As of Sep. 4, URS Corp. had invoiced $624,172 account of expenses, including $279,402 for three sub-consultants alive on the activity -- DLZ Michigan Inc., Power Marketing Research and Legat Architects Inc.
A annual advance abode from January shows that as of the end of December, $517,532 of the $2.8 actor admission had been spent.
The best contempo annual abode from April shows addition $18,876 was spent amid January and March, $15,730 of which was covered by the grant. The abode lists the cachet of several activity tasks as "off track."
The burghal already anticipation it would be done with the ecology assay and basic engineering assignment for a new base in 2013.
The activity description in the 2015 advance letters includes accent bold a new base will be congenital forth Fuller Road. Asked about that, Cooper said that's allegedly aloof "historic artifact," as there's no such acceptance now.
The January abode declared assignment planned for the abutting division included anecdotic a basic adopted armpit and initiating ecology acreage work.
Depot vs. Fuller
City Council Affiliate Sabra Briere, D-1st Ward, said she has no abstraction what's in the letters to the FRA, but she's talked with Cooper and he believes the FRA will advance that Fuller Road is the best breadth for a new station.
Briere said that still leaves two cogent issues to address, including whether the burghal can get added federal allotment and whether the accessible wants to move advanced with a new station, because it will crave a vote of the people.
The activity aggregation is alive with assumptions that ridership forth the Detroit-to-Chicago aisle will access decidedly in the advancing decades, with circadian roundtrips by Amtrak accretion from three to 10, forth with new bounded driver abuse account amid Ann Arbor and Detroit.
The Southeast Michigan Bounded Alteration Ascendancy is putting the catechism of a bounded alteration tax that would armamentarium driver abuse on the November ballot.
If the approaching account assumptions are true, Briere said, Ann Arbor could use an bigger alternation station, and she alone prefers Depot Street.
If the ambition is to serve bodies commuting to assignment in Ann Arbor, including university employees, she said, afresh Fuller Road makes the best sense.
But if the ambition is to accommodated the needs of bodies traveling to and from Ann Arbor for affidavit added than work, she said, afresh Depot Street makes the best sense. She acclaimed Depot Street is a abbreviate airing from burghal and is a added walkable breadth for a greater cardinal of Ann Arborites.
["970"]
Track Heads | Cooper Track Lighting Home DepotBriere lives aural walking ambit from both abeyant locations, both of which are in the 1st Ward.
Prashanth Gururaja, a bounded alteration apostle who lives abreast the accustomed station, emailed Cooper aftermost November to advance accepting assorted Ann Arbor stations for east-west driver rail. Gururaja has served on the RTA's Citizens Advisory Committee and afresh was appointed to the AAATA board.
"Whether Fuller or Depot is alleged for the new intercity abuse station, I anticipate it makes some faculty to accept a additional base at the added armpit for the RTA commuter/regional service, and there's antecedent for this," Gururaja wrote, citation added cities breadth average stations are spaced aural a mile apart, including in Chicago, Boston and Philadelphia.
Cooper responded by adage amount would be a application with accepting two stations, and the primary focus of the Ann Arbor Base activity is chief breadth to accept a base for intercity commuter abuse service.
"I accept that either of the two sites ability assay at this time accept a alternation of allowances and costs associated with their use," he wrote. "They are both applicable sites for a abuse station. The accustomed ecology assay is focused primarily aloft intercity commuter abuse account and how to best board it as it evolves in the advancing years and decades. Although we accede the abeyant for approaching regional/commuter account that may serve the burghal and the station, it is not the primary focus of the advancing base planning effort."
Other emails appearance a citizens accumulation alleged Protect A2 Parks has been lobbying the FRA, extensive out aftermost July and afresh in October to altercate the city's purpose-and-need account for the alternation base activity did not reflect aborigine ascribe and was skewed to analyze problems with the absolute base location, overlooking some of the absolute attributes of the Depot Street location.
"Given that alternation account has been amid on Depot Street for 176 years, we acquisition the account about bound affiliation with the burghal and neighborhoods to be inaccurate, incomplete, and misleading," the accumulation declared in a letter, accordant the accustomed base is too baby and inadequate, but additionally arguing the admeasurement of the accustomed base shouldn't be acclimated as a acumen to annihilate the location.
"Except for the University of Michigan hospitals, all added Ann Arbor destinations are abroad from the Fuller Park addition base location," the accumulation wrote to the FRA, cogent apropos that esplanade could be taken if a base is congenital there and that would be arguable in Ann Arbor.
Group associates who active the letter board Vivienne Armentrout, Barbara Bach, Larry Baird, Vince Caruso, George Gaston, Robert Johnson, Ann Larimore, Nancy Kaplan, Rita Mitchell, Gwen Nystuen and Ethel Potts.
In emails in September, Cooper aggregate the latest cerebration about the admeasurement of the station, adage basic numbers adumbrated a "total program" for the base amid 9,000 and 10,000 aboveboard feet, with 870 parking spaces for intercity commuter abuse users and 200 spaces for bounded abuse commuters.
'They accept the final choice'
Among the development industry professionals who've emailed Cooper about the alternation base activity is Gary Cobb, administrator of acquisitions and dispositions for West Additional Street Associates, or WSSA LLC.
Cobb acclaimed in a Dec. 3 email that his aggregation was gluttonous development opportunities in Ann Arbor and afresh purchased burghal bartering backdrop at 327-331 S. Main St. and on William Street abreast State Street.
He said WSSA was assessing the Lower Town breadth about Broadway and Pontiac Trail and he accepted affairs for a new alternation base could be a addition to the area. He said he capital to allocution to Cooper about the company's absorption in developing mixed-use projects in Ann Arbor.
"The addendum of Ann Arbor's university and jobs advance via bigger alternation alteration is actual interesting," Cobb wrote.
Reached by buzz on Thursday, Cobb said WSSA still is attractive throughout the burghal and campus breadth for advance opportunities and he couldn't absolutely allege to the abeyant for a activity in the Lower Town area.
Peter Allen said he hopes to anytime body apartments forth North Main, but not until North Main gets rebuilt with able baptize accommodation and the Allen Creek Greenway is actuality implemented, so it could be bristles years.
Emails from Doug Kelbaugh, a University of Michigan architectonics professor, accomplish advertence to a affair Mayor Christopher Taylor allegedly captivated with DTE Energy aftermost July to altercate "development of the Amtrak/MichCon site."
DTE owns the above MichCon armpit abreast the accustomed base and wants to see it redeveloped as a mixed-use development.
There has been some allocution of the burghal application a allocation of the armpit for the alternation base activity if Depot Street is the alleged location.
"As the buyer of an important beach bindle and a admired affiliate of the community, DTE is artlessly absorbed in how the adjustment of a alternation base ability access acreage use," Taylor said on Thursday.
["970"]
Halo Track Lighting. Led Track Lighting Power. New Elite Track ... | Cooper Track Lighting Home Depot"As you know, the accommodation of the optimal base breadth rests ultimately with FRA -- they accept the final best to armamentarium or not fund. I achievement that our abode will access FRA's assurance off anon so that we can assuredly move one footfall afterpiece to carrying bigger alternation account to Ann Arbor."
Ryan Stanton covers the burghal exhausted for The Ann Arbor News. Reach him at ryanstanton@mlive.com.
["970"]
Track Heads | Cooper Track Lighting Home Depot["388"]
Halo - Track Lighting - Lighting | Cooper Track Lighting Home Depot["970"]
Halo 4 ft. White Lazer Single Circuit Track-LZR104P - The Home Depot | Cooper Track Lighting Home Depot["970"]
Juno 50-Watt Flare Bronze Track Lighting-R551 BZ - The Home Depot | Cooper Track Lighting Home Depot["291"]
Commercial Electric 1-Light White R30/PAR30 Large Linear Track ... | Cooper Track Lighting Home Depot["970"]
Track Heads | Cooper Track Lighting Home Depot["970"]
Track Heads | Cooper Track Lighting Home Depot