OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Grand Rapids City Commission Meeting - June 16, 2026

Meeting Portal — Tuesday, June 16, 2026
BodyGrand Rapids, Michigan
SessionMeeting Portal
DateTuesday, June 16, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 22:15
Transcript — Verbatim
0:00

I think that's a good question.

0:03

I think that's a good question.

1:04

You know, urban stormwater flooding.

1:06

So, thank you.

1:09

Thanks.

1:09

Um, any questions, colleagues?

1:12

Hearing and seeing none.

1:13

All those in favor?

1:14

Aye.

1:15

Any opposed?

1:16

Item carries.

1:17

Thank you.

1:18

Thank you.

1:18

Item number two is a resolution accepting a 4.3 million dollar grant and authorizing the execution of an agreement with the Michigan Economic Development Corporation for the Michigan talent partnership uh grant program.

1:31

So moved.

1:32

Support.

1:32

Moved and supported.

1:33

Ms.

1:33

Renero, come on down.

1:41

Good morning.

1:42

Good morning.

1:43

Uh this is the acceptance of the dollars.

1:47

Uh so this is a grant ask of the state at approximately seven million dollars.

1:51

We are awarded 4.3.

1:53

And this is the project in Monroe North that's going to address the reconvert or the conversion of uh division in Ionia.

1:59

Uh the stairs, the Fairbank stairs, and then also mobility improvements between the hill and the river.

2:07

Thank you.

2:08

This is, you know, these are I think we applied for this last year, and so this is how long these sorts of things take.

2:14

Um, but glad to see this on here.

2:16

I know that it was very narrow and competitive, um, but glad that Grand Rapids was able to capture this award.

2:21

Colleagues, any questions on this one?

2:23

Hearing and seeing none.

2:24

All those in favor, aye.

2:25

Aye.

2:26

Any opposed?

2:27

Item carries.

2:28

Thank you, Ms.

2:28

Rennero.

2:29

Item number three is a resolution approving a grant agreement with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service and the amount of uh 12,000 12 million 900,000 dollars for the Grand River revitalization project for the lower reach.

2:43

Do you have a motion?

2:44

I'll make the motion.

2:46

Support.

2:46

Moved and supported.

2:48

And is this Ms.

2:50

Irving?

2:52

And we've been talking about this for a minute, right?

2:55

We just had some celebrations, and you know, I was joking about the last grant being a minute, but this has been a while too.

3:02

So thank you so much.

3:04

I'll turn it over to you.

3:05

Yeah, absolutely.

3:07

Did I get a motion?

3:08

Yes.

3:08

Okay, sorry, I couldn't remember.

3:10

All right, thank you.

3:11

Yeah, absolutely.

3:12

This is exciting.

3:13

We've had this um out there with NRCS for a while.

3:17

They actually came through with more money than originally thought.

3:20

We thought we'd come in at about eleven million, and they um brought forward twelve point nine million to support the project.

3:26

We're gonna hear about this again in CD as we uh add that into the project.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Fiscal Sustainability████████████████████████████████████████40%
Engineering And Infrastructure█████████████████████████████29%
Miscellaneous█████████████████17%
Economic Development██████6%
Public Engagement████4%
Procedural████4%
Summary of Proceedings

Grand Rapids City Commission Meeting - June 16, 2026

The Grand Rapids City Commission met on June 16, 2026, to consider a consent agenda, multiple resolutions for grants, contracts, budget amendments, and financial reports. All items were approved unanimously.

Consent Calendar

  • The meeting began with approval of a consent calendar (item 1 not detailed in transcript), including routine items passed without discussion.

Discussion Items

  • Item 2: Resolution accepting a $4.3 million grant from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation for the Michigan Talent Partnership grant program. The grant supports the Monroe North project to convert Division and Ionia streets, Fairbank stairs, and mobility improvements between the hill and the river. Approved unanimously.
  • Item 3: Resolution approving a grant agreement with USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service for $12.9 million for the Grand River revitalization project (lower reach). The amount exceeded the original estimate of $11 million. Approved unanimously.
  • Item 4: Resolution approving a professional services agreement with the Greater Grand Rapids Chamber Foundation (Housing Next) for housing practices lead services, not to exceed $100,000. This is a recurring agreement to support city housing goals. Approved unanimously.
  • Item 5: Resolution approving a contract with ITERA US for managed services related to the Oracle ERP project for FY2027, not to exceed $200,000. Aimed at optimizing Oracle use. Approved unanimously.
  • Item 6: Resolution authorizing a contract with CFERT PR for public relations services, not to exceed $50,000, through calendar year 2026. Budgeted during commission budget deliberations. Approved unanimously.
  • Item 7: Resolution authorizing FY2027 insurance renewals with various providers totaling $3,209,241. Risk Manager Daniel Aday presented: total costs 2.5% less than prior year; property insurance rate improved to 4.75 cents per $1,000 insured; largest increase was 8.3% ($112,000) for general liability excess carrier MMRMA due to exposure changes. Approved unanimously.
  • Item 8: Resolution authorizing a budget substitution of $170,005 for pedestrian hybrid beacons at Lyon Street and Fuller Avenue to enhance safety at an existing crosswalk. Approved unanimously.
  • Item 9: Resolution authorizing a budget substitution of $280,900 for the MLK Jr. Street East Ramp Bridge Replacement over US 131. Project totals $37 million; city's share $1.3 million due to MDOT investment. Approved unanimously.
  • Item 10: Resolution authorizing a budget substitution of $491,865 for HVAC air handling unit replacement at the West Side Complex. Funded from remaining balances on other projects. Approved unanimously.
  • Item 11: Ordinance amending the FY2026 budget (amendment number 8) with 24 items for fiscal year cleanup. Deputy Comptroller Trisha Chapman noted income tax compliance is exceeding expectations, so the general fund should land as projected. Approved unanimously.
  • Item 12: Bid list resolution for June 16, 2026 – routine approval of citywide bids including pie management, communications, and environmental services. Approved unanimously.

Key Outcomes

  • All resolutions and ordinances passed unanimously with no opposition recorded.
  • Comptroller's warrant report for May 19–June 1, 2026: $39,767,009.70, including $5,897,000 in payroll, $23,000 in income tax warrants, 3,419 income tax refunds, and 1,057 accounts payable checks. Received and filed.
  • Treasurer's report for May 20–June 2, 2026: $666 million invested earning over 3.33%. Treasurer noted stable interest rates expected for the remainder of 2026, with oil prices declining below $90/barrel potentially lowering gas prices after a lag. Received and filed.
  • The meeting adjourned at 8:52 AM.

Meeting Transcript

I think that's a good question. I think that's a good question. You know, urban stormwater flooding. So, thank you. Thanks. Um, any questions, colleagues? Hearing and seeing none. All those in favor? Aye. Any opposed? Item carries. Thank you. Thank you. Item number two is a resolution accepting a 4.3 million dollar grant and authorizing the execution of an agreement with the Michigan Economic Development Corporation for the Michigan talent partnership uh grant program. So moved. Support. Moved and supported. Ms. Renero, come on down. Good morning. Good morning. Uh this is the acceptance of the dollars. Uh so this is a grant ask of the state at approximately seven million dollars. We are awarded 4.3. And this is the project in Monroe North that's going to address the reconvert or the conversion of uh division in Ionia. Uh the stairs, the Fairbank stairs, and then also mobility improvements between the hill and the river. Thank you. This is, you know, these are I think we applied for this last year, and so this is how long these sorts of things take. Um, but glad to see this on here. I know that it was very narrow and competitive, um, but glad that Grand Rapids was able to capture this award. Colleagues, any questions on this one? Hearing and seeing none. All those in favor, aye. Aye. Any opposed? Item carries. Thank you, Ms. Rennero. Item number three is a resolution approving a grant agreement with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service and the amount of uh 12,000 12 million 900,000 dollars for the Grand River revitalization project for the lower reach. Do you have a motion? I'll make the motion. Support. Moved and supported. And is this Ms. Irving? And we've been talking about this for a minute, right? We just had some celebrations, and you know, I was joking about the last grant being a minute, but this has been a while too. So thank you so much. I'll turn it over to you. Yeah, absolutely.

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