Huntington Woods City Commissioner Jules Olsman's Update December 2012

COMMISSIONER’S UPDATE
December, 2012 

Summary of 2012
Based upon the brisk sale of homes in Huntington Woods during the calendar year 2012, it would appear that the economy in southeast Michigan has begun to recover. The recently approved construction of a beautiful home on Edwards and Roycourt is further evidence of renewed confidence in Huntington Woods.

The selection of Huntington Woods as one of the top ten suburban areas in the United States to live in by Caldwell Banker this summer was welcome news and another strong endorsement of our community.

This year, we selected new auditors for the City. Our auditors are now Post, Smythe, Lutz & Ziel. The City continues to perform accounting and budgeting in an exemplary fashion. This is due entirely to our City Manager Alex Allie and our Finance Director Tony Lehmann. There are not enough superlatives to describe their work on behalf of our residents.

Recently released crime statistics show that Huntington Woods continues to be a very safe area to live in. This is due to the high quality of our public safety officers and the leadership of Director Steve Fairman.

The Court of Appeals did vacate our verdict against the road builder responsible for the debacle on Coolidge. An application for leave was rejected by the Michigan Supreme Court with regard to this matter. Coolidge was successfully rebuilt this past summer.

During 2012, we rewrote, updated and clarified numerous ordinances related to blight and holding those individuals responsible for vacant homes, rental homes and/or foreclosed homes responsible for upkeep and maintenance.

The Run Walk Boom fund raiser in June was a tremendous fund raising success for our City. Next year, it will be bigger and better. In 2013, we will also see the Grand Fondo, a bicycle race that will go from the foot of Woodward to Pontiac.

I look forward to 2013 with optimism with regard to our City and look forward to continuing to help the Huntington Woods City  Commission perform its responsibilities in a satisfactory manner.

Sam’s Party Store By now, anyone who has driven on Eleven Mile Road is aware of the deplorable condition of Sam’s. The party store has now been vacant for an extended period of time and was very close to being sold at a tax sale earlier this year. The City maintains communication with the building’s owners and has offered to help in any way possible to facilitate the sale or transfer of ownership so as to get a viable business into this building. As you are aware, there were previous plans for a bakery and coffee shop which many of us felt would do phenomenally well in this location.

We are currently discussing condemnation as an option to deal with this problem. 

Wire the City Project We are currently working to secure the email address of every resident and load it into our system so as to make communication easier and cheaper.

It is presumed that almost every household in Huntington Woods has a computer. The City would like to be able to have the ability to communicate electronically with regard to City business.   You can submit your email address electronically at http://www.ci.huntington-woods.mi.us. 

Senior Survey At our last City Commission meeting, a senior survey was presented to the Commission which contains absolutely fascinating information. Most importantly, 75% of seniors who were surveyed expressed an interest in continuing to live in Huntington Woods in an alternative form of housing. This survey will, most assuredly, prompt discussion about development of cluster-type condos or other types of multi-unit developments to accommodate what will potentially be a very substantial market for this type of housing. The link to the survey is http://www.ci.huntington-woods.mi.us/vertical/sites/%7BCC8F46A0-5AD4-4749-96AE-40974FFE381C%7D/uploads/HW_Survey_Findings_2012_FINAL_OCT_2012.pdf.  I am sure this survey is going to lead to a significant dialogue about these issues.

It is my intention to seek reelection to the Huntington Woods City Commission this coming November. I hope that I can count on your support. I hope you feel that I properly represented you and the City as a Commissioner.

Barbara and I wish you and yours a healthy and prosperous New Year.