Residents comment on proposed Mulvey pathway

FRASER — On Jan. 29, staffers at Anderson, Eckstein & Westrick presented a proposed plan for a Mulvey Road pathway in Fraser. 

While renderings were shown at the meeting, nothing has been set in stone. The meeting’ purpose was to garner resident input and concerns. 

Michael Vigneron, AEW vice president and director of engineering, presented the proposed plans to residents and guests. He said his team prepared conceptual designs for the pathway in order to create cost estimates, identify environmental concerns and other things, and that the intention is to secure a grant to fund the project. 

“This is all to prepare the city for all of the hurdles that might come along with funding this type of project,” Vigneron said. 

He said preliminary discussions have taken place with the grant coordinators the city intends to go after and that they suggested to get resident feedback. He explained it’s so the city council knows they’ve had resident feedback before it comes across their desk. 

The goal is to pursue a Transportation Alternative Program grant for the project estimated to come to around $1.5 million in construction. The rest of the project they hope will be paid for with federal funds. The Southeast Michigan Council of Governments and the Michigan Department of Transportation both have access to TAP funds. 

Vigneron said the project was ranked the highest in a study.

The pathway must be at least 10 feet wide to qualify for grants. Vigneron said later a normal sidewalk is around 5 or 6 feet. The pathway will be made of asphalt. 

Residents voiced concerns about the width of the pathway, stating it is too wide. Some said that it would butt up against their houses and leave only a little bit of front yard to utilize. 

“My entire front yard is probably about 30 feet from the curb to my front window and that is a massive infringement to want to put a 10 foot wide, what would end up being probably closer to 15 with easements, (pathway) on my property and then I’d literally have people 5 feet from my front window,” a resident said. 

Vigneron said the path is going to be Americans with Disabilities Act compliant. One resident said she is a disabled resident living in one of the homes down that street and that she would not be willing or responsible for its maintenance. 

“By doing such a 10-foot-wide encroachment upon my property, I will lose parking spaces in my driveway because now I can’t park across the sidewalk and I will lose parking areas,” she said. 

She had concerns about what the pathway will do to property values, tax assessments and asked if the residents on Mulvey will get a new survey done. She had a full list of concerns including roots from the nearby woods, mailboxes, maintenance and more. 

Residents asked about possibly placing the pathway on another road such as 14 Mile Road, Hayes Road or Utica Road. Vigneron explained the other mentioned segments had high numbers in the surveys. 

Residents say many cars speed down Mulvey Road, stating it’s not safe for people to cross over the road for a pathway. They mentioned students who walk to school in the street and through the snow. 

One resident pointed out that they identified an area that needs a sidewalk, but that the proposed one does not fit the neighborhood. 

“If we’re looking for a city sidewalk just for people to walk on, jog on, you know, get from point A to point B, it just seems like we’re chasing dollars for something that is out there that doesn’t fit the neighborhood,” he said. 

Vigneron said plans dating back around 15 or 20 years from the county indicated Mulvey was one of the areas considered a local connector, though it was not considered a pathway. He said some of the intentions were to connect it to the Freedom Hill Pathway in Clinton Township and that residents said it was all the more reason to put the pathway on a main road. 

Vigneron later said that, generally, the grants are for a 10-foot-wide path, but occasionally there are nuances to them. 

“Generally, these are indicated by a trust fund that’s in the federal transportation legislation,” Vigneron said. 

He said the grants get disseminated from the federal government to the states. 

“So MDOT has a pot of money that they can allocate to various applicants that meet the criteria,” Vigneron said. “And SEMCOG actually gets a direct pot of money that they can allocate to the member communities if they meet the criteria.”  

One resident said a lot of people run in the street including teams from the local high schools. She said people in cars don’t care about the speed limit and that she finds trash everywhere every day. 

“I respect everybody here because I just moved, but I do feel like it needs to be some type of sidewalk,” she said. “I think 10 feet wide is extensive, but I do feel like it needs to be something.” 

While a lot of residents would like some sort of sidewalk for running and other outdoor activities, they also said a 10-foot pathway might be a bit excessive. 

Vigneron reiterated that there are a lot of requirements for public engagement when it comes to federal funding. Investigations will continue in relation to the proposed pathway and other options. 

Vigneron wrote down all of the concerns residents mentioned during the meeting and read them back to the audience to make sure he didn’t miss anything. 

Fraser Mayor Michael Lesich and a few City Council members were present at the meeting. Lesich said he would never support a special assessment if it happened in front of anyone’s house if the city were to support the pathway. 

Lesich said he is all about getting feedback.