I'm calling the Middle Survivors Properties Committee.

Let's start off with uh city planning.

All right, ordinance number ordinance number 1218 2025.

This is by council members Harrison, Bishop, and Griffin.

Uh departmental request, an emergency ordinance determining the method of making uh public improvement of constructing high comfort pedestrian and bicycle improvements at various locations, authorizing the director of city planning commission public works andor capital projects as appropriate to enter into one or more public improvements and professional services contracts needed for the improvement, authorizing the mayor and the commissioner of purchases and supplies to acquire, accept, and record for right-of-way purposes, real property and easements authorizing the director to accept rights of entry from private property owners, authorizing the director to enter into various written standard purchases and requirements contracts needed to effectuate this ordinance, including electric slash no emission vehicles and equipment, and to enter into other agreements or execute documents necessary to conduct the program.

Okay, director, that is a lot of um words describing what this ordinance is.

Can you give us a synopsis of what this thing this ordinance will do and what's the purpose for of it?

Thank you.

Yes, good morning, Chair and Committee.

Um my name is Callie Merzman.

I'm the director of city planning.

This piece is a follow-on to ordinance number 851 2025 that came before you this summer that was authorization to apply and accept a congestion mitigation and air quality grant from NOAACA, our metropolitan planning organization.

This piece has all of the implementation authority for that grant.

And so that grant includes two key components.

One is um quick build for the most part, implementation of bicycle and pedestrian connections that follow on our Cleveland moves, three-year um rapid implementation plan for high comfort bikeways and pedestrian connections, as well as a pilot project for electric vehicles in the waste division.

So I can answer any follow-up questions to the bicycle and pedestrian element of the grant.

Um Director O'Keefe is here to answer questions as it relates to refuse vehicles.

Okay, uh, I got a couple uh questions.

I'm gonna go to um to my colleagues.

So the um this piece it states um says we want to accept 5.4 million dollar grant, right?

To apply and accept and and the apply and accept piece listed 11.9 million at 851.

So can you just can you explain what's the difference?

Why is such a big difference in the dollar amounts?

Yes, so when we were here um this summer, we were here and we had just submitted the grant application.

So we asked for a total that was much larger than what we were awarded.

There was an all there was also an e-bike rebate program that was proposed that um the CMAC evaluation committee ultimately elected not to fund, and so this piece here and the updated council summary are revised to reflect our recommended award rather than the total amount that we had applied for.

Okay, all right.

First, let me back up.

Um this piece is uh ordinance number 1218 2025 as amended, and let me read the amendments.

Um there is no legal objection to this legislation if amended as follows.

Number one, in section six at the end at the end, insert the rector of city planning commission shall provide written notice to the clerk of council whenever any purchases is is made under this section, which notice shall include details of such cooperative purchases.

Number two, in section 12, line one after shall insert not to exceed 6.85 eight one five five three two million and shall number three insert a new section 13 to read as follows.

Section 13 that a copy of an executive summary has been placed in file number 1218 2025-a.

And number four, renumbering existing 13 and 14 to new section 14 and section 15.

two million and shall number three insert a new section 13 to read as follows section 13 that a copy of an executive summary has been placed in file number 1218 2025 a and number four re-numbering existing 13 and 14 to new section 14 and section 15 okay all right um okay so director also let me uh let me see if i i got another question here um i'm gonna go to uh councilman starr first okay my question to the chair to the um the director regarding this actual acceptance of this grant as some of the plans that you have regarding this have you met with each council member um where this would take place at in their ward to get their understanding and their support for this initiative through the chair to the council member through the chair we did meet with council members as we were creating the Cleveland Moves plan over the last year um we also have reached out to every council member that has a project in this offering to meet with them we have not met with everyone yet but these elements are reflected in the overall Cleveland Moves plan I'll also mention that these dollars are available starting in state fiscal year 2030 and so there is quite a lot of process between identifying the construction funding and moving forward with the project so there will be additional engagement we'll have to go through detailed design of what the connections look like and council members and residents will be part of those conversations this is just identifying the money to move forward.

Okay to the chair that means you're just basically identifying and asking for additional support to to accept the difference of dollar amount than from the initial ask that you would gain from council at the last committee I think what is it last year was that ordinance number eight something eight one five to the councilman through the chair this is the CMAC program congestion mitigation air quality is a federally funded grant program available through NOACA so we know that we don't have enough local funds to do everything that we dream of doing on our streets we really try and leverage the local money that we do have as much as possible through external grants so this piece and the piece that came in the summer are authorizing us to pursue these federal funds that will make 80 percent of the total project cost with a 20 percent local match this ordinance allows us to accept well the summer ordinance allowed us to apply for and accept the funding this this gives us the authority to enter into contracts and actually utilize the grant funding for the projects listed.

Thank you and through the chair when you say the local match where's the local match coming from it will come from future bond sales in the year of the project future fund sales can you elaborate on that road and bridge bond sales so we're gonna bond out and use that dollars to be able to um complete do you have a total cost or estimate of what this actually will look like for this entire project to be able to fulfill the wars that are listed on the map yes um so again with that 80 percent federal 20 percent local split for the Cleveland moves portion specifically the pedestrian and bicycle improvements the um recommended grant award which is the federal portion is three point four five million dollars the 20 percent local match required for that is 86532 dollars then there's the second piece that is the um electric waste vehicle pilot program that cMAC grant award amount is two million dollars with a local match of 500 thousand dollars so in total our local match is 1.3 uh million dollars on this initiative and when through the chair we will use um bond sales from the future to be able to provide the 1.3 million dollars on what brings this total overall up to six point eight million dollars to the chair to the councilman through the chair yes that's correct okay I just um definitely so um if this ordinance is passed today um I definitely would make sure that um you reach out to council um members to make sure they're in agreements with some of the goals that you are trying to um achieve within this ordinance just to make sure you have the support of council members in their ward for some of these upgrades thank you chair and I thank you councilman starr um director now who picked the locations of these um street improvements who who who uh who came up with the locations for this they're based on the recommendations in the Cleveland Moves plan that was adopted in April so as you may recall that's a citywide plan that looks at high stress crossings and pedestrian needs as well as citywide bicycle connections um cMAC as a grant program really looks at regional connectivity and is focused on projects that can reduce emissions and so in the Cleveland Moves plan many of these are key connectors across neighborhoods or key gap fillers between where we already have trails but there's just a little bit of a gap connecting folks through a couple of them are where there are schools but no sidewalks that sort of thing um okay so I noticed that the vast majority of these um locations are on the west side uh it's a few downtown but very few are on the east side um so I was just wondering that we don't have as many trails connected on the east side is that is that the reasoning for this to the councilman through the chair there are differences in in distance as well but several key east side connections include east 55th street we're working on the entirety of that corridor through the safety action plan community college avenue and quincy are a big connector as well as St.

Uh it's a few downtown, but very few are on the east side.

Um so I was just wondering that we don't have as many trails connected on the east side.

Is that is that the reasoning for this?

To the councilman through the chair, there are differences in in distance as well, but several key east side connections include East 55th Street.

We're working on the entirety of that corridor through the safety action plan, community college avenue and quincy are a big connector as well as St.

Clair on the east side.

So we are striving for representation across the city, but really looking at where there are key connectivity and safety concerns, which are on both the east and west sides.

Okay.

Um I'm gonna go to uh councilman case.

Thank you, Mr.

Chairman.

Mr.

Chairman to the director.

Nobody reached out to me about the project that was in my ward.

The only conversation that I've had with anybody was when I was meeting last week um regarding a different topic, and we just happen to bring this up because I just saw this uh when it was introduced in the legislation.

So can you tell me what you have planned for Berea Road between Trisket and at least 117th?

Or to do it it says Detroit Detroit here, but I only represent the 117th.

Sure.

To the councilman through the chair.

I believe you also received an email from us to tee up this conversation.

Um Berea is identified in Cleveland Moves as a key connector from the neighborhoods you represent up to Detroit and the West Boulevard connection to the lakefront.

At this point, the projects have not been designed, but these are all um for the most part, like on Berea, we would be looking at a quick build construction that would put protected bike lanes in some configuration to make that connection between neighborhoods.

The configuration hasn't been determined yet.