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HomeMy WebLinkAboutInterlocal Agreements - 2022.10.20 - 38048 October 20, 2022 RESOLUTION #2022-2106 _ 22-350 Sponsored By: Gwen Markham Equalization - Interlocal Agreement Designating Micheal Lohmeier as the Assessor for Oakland County Chairperson and Members of the Board: WHEREAS pursuant to Public Act 660 of 2018, each county is required to notify the State Tax Commission, no later than December 31, 2020, of the individual that will serve as the County’s Designated Assessor; and WHEREAS the Designated Assessor is part of a process to ensure that local units of government are in compliance with statutory provisions of the Audit of Minimum Assessing Requirements; and WHEREAS the Designated Assessor is the individual designated by an Interlocal Agreement executed between the County Board of Commissioners and a majority of the assessing districts (cities and townships) within the county, subject to final approval of the State Tax Commission; and WHEREAS the Designated Assessor serves as the assessor of record and assumes all duties and responsibilities as the assessor of record for an assessing district that is determined to be non- compliant with an audit; and WHEREAS each county must also provide the State Tax Commission with the interlocal agreement executed by the County Board of Commissioners, a majority of the assessing districts within the county, and the proposed Designated Assessor for the county; and WHEREAS the interlocal agreement must provide enough detail regarding the assessment responsibilities for the Designated Assessor including, but not limited to, the following: 1. Information related to the scope of services being provided by the Designated Assessor, including preparation of assessment rolls, timeline for delivery of documents and execution of forms, attendance at Boards of Review meetings, duties and responsibilities related to property tax appeals, both Small Claims and Entire Tribunal, filed with the Michigan Tax Tribunal, responsibility to meet with local unit officials, and obligations of local unit assessing staff members, 2. Duties and responsibilities for each local unit within the county, including providing the Designated Assessor with reasonable access to records, documents and information, and 3. Details relating to cost and compensation for overseeing and administering the annual assessment and operating the assessing office, including payment terms and cost reimbursement; and WHEREAS an Interlocal Agreement was previously entered into between Oakland County and the participating Assessing Districts under the former Oakland County Equalization Director; and WHEREAS Oakland County has a new Oakland County Equalization Director, Micheal Lohmeier, and as a result, a new Interlocal Agreement is required with the Assessing Districts within the County that approve the Agreement; and WHEREAS Oakland County Corporation Counsel is developing the Designated Assessor Interlocal Agreement to be entered into with any and all Assessing Districts within the County that approve the Agreement. NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Oakland County Board of Commissioners approves designating Oakland County Equalization Director Micheal Lohmeier, who is an individual qualified and certified by the State Tax Commission as a Michigan Master Assessing Officer, to be the Designated Assessor for Oakland County. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Board of Commissioners approves and authorizes the Chairperson of Board to execute the required Interlocal Agreement on behalf of Oakland County upon final review and approval by Corporation Counsel. Chairperson, the following Commissioners are sponsoring the foregoing Resolution: Gwen Markham. Date: October 21, 2022 David Woodward, Commissioner Date: October 21, 2022 David Coulter, Oakland County Executive Date: October 26, 2022 Lisa Brown, County Clerk / Register of Deeds COMMITTEE TRACKING 2022-10-12 Finance - Recommend to Board 2022-10-20 Full Board - Adopted VOTE TRACKING Motioned by Commissioner Michael Gingell seconded by Commissioner Kristen Nelson to adopt the attached Interlocal Agreement: Designating Micheal Lohmeier as the Assessor for Oakland County. Yes: David Woodward, Michael Gingell, Michael Spisz, Karen Joliat, Kristen Nelson, Eileen Kowall, Christine Long, Philip Weipert, Gwen Markham, Angela Powell, Thomas Kuhn, Chuck Moss, Marcia Gershenson, William Miller III, Yolanda Smith Charles, Penny Luebs, Janet Jackson, Gary McGillivray, Robert Hoffman, Adam Kochenderfer (20) No: None (0) Abstain: None (0) Absent: (0) Passed ATTACHMENTS 1. OC Designated Assessor Interlocal Agreement 9.16.22 STATE OF MICHIGAN) COUNTY OF OAKLAND) I, Lisa Brown, Clerk of the County of Oakland, do hereby certify that the foregoing resolution is a true and accurate copy of a resolution adopted by the Oakland County Board of Commissioners on October 20, 2022, with the original record thereof now remaining in my office. In Testimony Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the seal of the Circuit Court at Pontiac, Michigan on Thursday, October 20, 2022. Lisa Brown, Oakland County Clerk / Register of Deeds INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT FOR OAKLAND COUNTY TO APPROVE THE DESIGNATED ASSESSOR FOR THE PERIOD January 1, 2023 THROUGH December 31, 2027 Public Act 660 of 2018 requires a county to have a Designated Assessor on file with the State Tax Commission as of December 31, 2020.On December 29, 2020, Oakland County met this requirement, having a majority of the Assessing Districts in favor of the Equalization Officer serving as its Designated Assessor. On August 4, 2022, Oakland County Commissioners voted to retain Micheal R Lohmeier, MMAO as its new Equalization Officer for its Equalization Division, and as a result, the interlocal agreements were required to be revised. A majority of the Assessing Districts are in favor of the Equalization Officer serving as its Designated Assessor. The following interlocal agreement (hereinafter “Agreement”) has been executed by the Board of Commissioners for Oakland County, a majority of the Assessing Districts in Oakland County, and the individual put forth as the proposed Designated Assessor. Oakland County and the Assessing Districts are collectively referred to throughout this Agreement as the “Parties.” RECITALS WHEREAS, The Assessing Districts are Municipal Corporations (cities and townships) located within the County of Oakland, in the State of Michigan; WHEREAS, The Michigan Constitution of 1963, Article 7, Section 28 permits a political subdivision to exercise jointly with any other political subdivision any power, privilege or authority which such political subdivisions share in common with each other and which each might exercise separately; WHEREAS, The Urban Cooperation Act of 1967, being MCL 124.505 et seq, and the Intergovernmental Transfer of Functions and Responsibilities Act, give effect to the Constitutional provision by providing that public agencies may enter into interlocal agreements to carry out their respective functions, powers and authority; WHEREAS, P.A. 660 of 2018 requires each County to enter into an Agreement that designates the individual who will serve as the County’s Designated Assessor. That interlocal agreement must be approved by the County Board of Commissioners and a majority of the Assessing Districts in the County. WHEREAS, P.A. 660 of 2018 mandates that the Designated Assessor shall be an advanced assessing officer or a master assessing officer. NOW, THEREFORE, based on the foregoing Recitals, and in consideration of the terms of this Agreement, the Parties agree as follows: DESIGNATED ASSESSOR – INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT Page 2 of 9 BACKGROUND INFORMATION Oakland County names MICHEAL R. LOHMEIER (R-6101), in his official capacity as the Equalization Officer for Oakland County, as the Designated Assessor for all of the Assessing Districts within Oakland County 1. Included as an addendum to this Agreement are the Oakland County SEV totals by class, including special act values, those properties deemed unique or complex by a local Assessing District, and a listing of the total number of parcels, by classification, including special act rolls, within each Assessing District. If the State Tax Commission (STC) invokes the Designated Assessor process for any Assessing District in Oakland County, the Parties agree that the Designated Assessor will perform the duties associated with being the Assessor of Record for an Assessing District at the Oakland County Equalization Division offices in the City of Pontiac, County of Oakland, State of Michigan, unless the duties of the Designated Assessor require on-site visits to the Assessing District’s location. QUALIFICATIONS OF DESIGNATED ASSESSOR Micheal R. Lohmeier has been certified as a Michigan Master Assessing Officer since 2012. In his capacity as the Oakland County Equalization Officer, he is responsible for managing the Oakland County Equalization Division. Along with its statutory duties, the Equalization Division currently acts as the contracted Assessor of Record for thirty of the fifty-two Assessing Districts in Oakland County. Micheal R. Lohmeier has disclosed any conflicts of interest involving the proposed Designated Assessor, the County, or any Assessing District, if applicable: [NONE]. It is understood that Micheal R. Lohmeier will, during the length of this agreement, maintain his assessor certification in good standing with the State Tax Commission and if required to serve as the Designated Assessor for an Assessing District in Oakland County shall act as the Assessor of Record for that Assessing District. When acting as the Assessor of Record for an Assessing District, the Designated Assessor shall meet all the requirements as set forth by the State Tax Commission’s Supervising Preparation of the Assessment Roll approved by the State Tax Commission August 21, 2018. Any additional requirements that are agreed to by the Designated Assessor, the County and the Assessing Districts may not conflict with the State Tax Commission’s Supervising Preparation of the Rolls. 1 Oakland County contains 52 Assessing Districts (cities and townships), two of which (City of Fenton and City of Northville) are not considered to be “in” Oakland County for purposes of MCL 211.10g as the largest share of their state equalized value is located in another county. A list of the remaining 50 Assessing Districts can be found here: https://www.oakgov.com/mgtbud/equal/Pages/assessing-offices.aspx DESIGNATED ASSESSOR – INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT Page 3 of 9 1.0 DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF DESIGNATED ASSESSOR 1.1 The Designated Assessor, while serving as the Assessor of Record for an Assessing District within Oakland County, shall satisfy all requirements contained State Tax Commission’s Supervising Preparation of the Assessment Roll approved by the State Tax Commission August 21, 2018. 1.2 Within 30 (thirty) days of being appointed as the Assessor of Record for the Assessing District by the STC or the voluntary election by the Assessing District to utilize the Designated Assessor, the Designated Assessor shall prepare and transmit to the Assessing District’s supervisor, manager, or chief executive a detailed proposal, including a schedule for delivery of documents, to correct deficiencies identified by the STC’s audit. 1.3 The Parties agree that the Designated Assessor, while serving as the Assessor of Record for an Assessing District, shall do the following things, as applicable to bring the Assessing District into compliance with the Audit of Minimum Assessing Requirements: 1.3.1 Make assessments of real and personal property within the Assessing District; 1.3.2 Appraise all property, process all real and personal property description changes, and prepare the assessment roll for real and personal property in the Assessing District; 1.3.3 Attend (or have a designee attend) all March, July, and December Board of Review meetings; 1.3.4 Be available for consultation on all Michigan Tax Tribunal real and personal property and special assessment appeals, and assist the Assessing District in the preparation of both the oral and written defense of appeals; 1.3.5 Prepare all necessary reports for review by the supervisor, manager, chief executive, board, or council of the Assessing District, as applicable; 1.3.6 Performs any other duties required under PA 660 of 2018. 1.4 For an Assessing District employing assessing staff other than the Assessor of Record, assessing staff will conduct their duties as under the direction and supervision of the Designated Assessor, subject to any limitations as may be agreed by the applicable Assessing District and the Designated Assessor. However, no members of said assessing staff will become employees or independent contractors of Oakland County. 1.5 While not acting in the capacity as the Designated Assessor for an Assessing District, the Designated Assessor will have the following duties and responsibilities for Oakland County and the Assessing Districts within Oakland County: Equalization Officer. 1.6 The parties understand and agree that the duties outlined in this Agreement only apply if and when the Designated Assessor is required, or the Assessing District chooses to request the Designated Assessor, to take over the assessing duties for an Assessing District DESIGNATED ASSESSOR – INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT Page 4 of 9 pursuant to the terms of PA 660 of 2018. This Agreement will have no effect on any pre- existing agreements that the parties may have, under which Oakland County performs contracted assessing services for the Assessing District. 2.0 DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF ASSESSING DISTRICTS 2.1 Any Assessing District in Oakland County that is required to utilize the services of the Designated Assessor will, during the period the Assessing District is required to or chooses to utilize the services of the Designated Assessor, do the following: 2.1.1 Provide the Designated Assessor with reasonable access to records, documents, databases and information in order to allow the Designated Assessor to serve as the Assessor of Record for the Assessing District and satisfy all requirements Supervising Preparation of the Assessment Roll approved by the State Tax Commission August 21, 2018. 2.1.2 Furnish the Designated Assessor with any applicable policies and procedures that the Designated Assessor may be subject to during the period of time the Designated Assessor serves as the Assessing District’s Assessor of Record. 2.1.3 Provide, while the Designated Assessor or his designee is physically working on behalf of the Assessing District and within the geographical boundaries of the Assessing District, any technology, equipment, and workspace necessary for the Designated Assessor or his designee to carry out their requirements under this Agreement. 2.2 The Assessing District shall, at all times and under all circumstances, remain solely liable for any and all costs, legal obligations, and/or civil liabilities associated with or in any way related to any Assessing District tax appraisal or assessment functions or any other Assessing District legal obligation under any applicable State Property Tax Laws. The Assessing District shall employ and retain its own legal representation, as necessary, to defend any such claim or challenge before the State Tax Tribunal or any other court or review body. 2.3 Except for those express statutory and/or regulatory obligations incumbent only upon licensed Equalization Division Personnel (i.e., State Licensed and Certified Real and/or Personal Property Tax Assessors) to defend property tax appraisals and assessments that they either performed, or were otherwise performed under their supervision, before the Michigan Tax Tribunal, the Parties agree that no other County employees, including any County attorneys shall be authorized, required and/or otherwise obligated under this Agreement or pursuant to any other agreement between the Parties to provide any legal representation to or for the Assessing District and/or otherwise defend, challenge, contest, appeal, or argue on behalf of the Assessing District before the Michigan Tax Tribunal or any other review body or court except to the extent the matters have been traditionally and previously handled by assessing staff, such as, but not limited to, Michigan Tax Tribunal small claims division hearings and matters before the State Tax Commission. DESIGNATED ASSESSOR – INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT Page 5 of 9 2.4 The Assessing District shall, at all times and under all circumstances, remain solely liable for any and all costs, legal obligations, and/or civil liabilities associated with or in any way related to any tax appraisal or assessment functions or any other legal obligation. The Assessing District agrees that under no circumstances shall the County or the Designated Assessor be responsible for any costs, obligations, and/or civil liabilities or any responsibility under any State Property Tax Law. 3.0 DESIGNATED ASSESSOR COMPENSATION 3.1 The Designated Assessor may charge an Assessing District that is required to contract with the Designated Assessor and that Assessing District shall pay for the reasonable costs incurred by the Designated Assessor in serving as the Assessing District’s Assessor of Record, including, but not limited to, the costs of overseeing and administering the annual assessment, preparing and defending the assessment roll, and operating the assessing office. 3.2 If the Designated Assessor is required to serve as the Assessor of Record for an Assessing District within Oakland County, the parties understand and agree that he will be serving in his official capacity as the Oakland County Equalization Officer. Therefore, an Assessing District will not make any direct payments to the Designated Assessor. Instead, the Assessing District will be responsible for paying a fee to Oakland County which fee is intended to compensate Oakland County for the reasonable costs incurred by the Designated Assessor and his staff. Oakland County will charge the Assessing District a fee equal to the average rate per parcel that it charges those districts for whom it already performs contracted assessing services, as of the date the Designated Assessor is required to serve as the Assessor of Record. The parties agree that should the standard fee not reasonably reflect the actual cost of the provision of the services required that the standard fee will be modified to a higher or lower fee, and so the fee is reasonable. The modification of the standard fee will be dependent upon the complexity of the work to be performed by the Designated Assessor, the number of staff needed to assist in completing the work and whether the Assessing District provides its own staff to assist the Designated Assessor. The Assessing District is not required to pay a retainer fee. In the event that the Designated Assessor is acting on behalf of an Assessing District for which Oakland County Equalization Department is currently contracted with to provide assessing services, the Designated Assessor will provide its Designated Assessor services at no additional cost to said Assessing District. 3.3 If the Assessing District fails, for any reason, to pay the County any monies when and as due under this Contract, the Assessing District agrees that unless expressly prohibited by law, the County or the County Treasurer, at their sole option, shall be entitled to a setoff from any other Assessing District funds that are in the County’s possession for any reason. Funds include but are not limited to the Delinquent Tax Revolving Fund (“DTRF”). Any DESIGNATED ASSESSOR – INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT Page 6 of 9 setoff or retention of funds by the County shall be deemed a voluntary assignment of the amount by the Assessing District to the County. The Assessing District waives any claims against the County or its Officials for any acts related specifically to the County’s offsetting or retaining such amounts. This paragraph shall not limit the Assessing District’s legal right to dispute whether the underlying amount retained by the County was actually due and owing under this Agreement. 3.4 If the County chooses not to exercise its right to setoff or if any setoff is insufficient to fully pay the County any amounts due and owing the County under this Contract, the County shall have the right to charge up to the then-maximum legal interest on any unpaid amount. Interest charges shall be in addition to any other amounts due to the County under this Agreement. Interest charges shall be calculated using the daily unpaid balance method and accumulate until all outstanding amounts and accumulated interest are fully paid. 3.5 Nothing in this Section shall operate to limit the County’s right to pursue or exercise any other legal rights or remedies under this Contract against the Assessing District to secure reimbursement of amounts due the County under this Agreement. The remedies in this Section shall be available to the County on an ongoing and successive basis if Assessing District at any time becomes delinquent in its payment. Notwithstanding any other term and condition in this Contract, if the County pursues any legal action in any court to secure its payment under this Contract, the Assessing District agrees to pay all costs and expenses, including attorney’s fees and court costs, incurred by the County in the collection of any amount owed by the Assessing District. 4.0 EFFECTIVE DATE AND TERM OF AGREEMENT This Agreement shall become effective when it is executed by the Oakland County Board of Commissioners, Micheal R. Lohmeier, and the governing bodies of a majority of the Assessing Districts within Oakland County, and shall expire on December 31, 2027. The terms and conditions in Section 3.0 (Compensation) shall survive and continue in full force beyond the termination of this Agreement if the Assessing District owes money to the County under this Agreement. 5.0 DESIGNATED ASSESSOR EMPLOYMENT STATUS It is understood by the parties that Micheal R. Lohmeier is appointed as the Designated Assessor based on his employment status as Oakland County Equalization Officer and that if his employment status materially changes, the parties will request that the State Tax Commission designate and approve an interim Designated Assessor until the parties are able to amend this Agreement. 6.0 ENTIRE AGREEMENT This Agreement sets forth all covenants, promises, agreements, conditions and understandings between the parties and there are no covenants, promises, agreements, conditions, or understandings, either oral or written, between the Parties other than are set forth in this Agreement. DESIGNATED ASSESSOR – INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT Page 7 of 9 7.0 AMENDMENTS This Agreement cannot be modified unless reduced to writing and signed by both Parties. 8.0 SEVERABILITY If a court of competent jurisdiction finds a term or condition of this Agreement to be illegal or invalid, then the term or condition shall be deemed severed from this Agreement. All other terms or conditions shall remain in full force and effect. 9.0 GOVERNING LAW This Agreement shall be governed, interpreted, and enforced by the laws of the State of Michigan. 10.0 COUNTERPARTS This Agreement may be executed in one or more counterparts, including facsimile copies, each of which shall be deemed an original, but all of which shall together constitute one instrument. IN WITNESS WHEREOF, ________________________________________ [name and title of assessing district official] hereby acknowledges that he/she has been authorized by a resolution of the _______________________________________ [name of assessing district], a certified copy of which is attached, to execute this Agreement on behalf of Public Body and hereby accepts and binds Public Body to the terms and conditions of this Agreement. [Signatures contained on following page] DESIGNATED ASSESSOR – INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT Page 8 of 9 EXECUTED: ____________________________________ DATE: _______________ Name and Title: WITNESSED: ___________________________________ DATE: _______________ Name and Title: IN WITNESS WHEREOF, David Woodward, Chairperson, Oakland County Board of Commissioners, hereby acknowledges that he has been authorized by a resolution of the Oakland County Board of Commissioners to execute this Agreement on behalf of Oakland County, and hereby accepts and binds Oakland County to the terms and conditions of this Agreement. EXECUTED: ____________________________________ DATE: _______________ David Woodward, Chairperson Oakland County Board of Commissioners WITNESSED: ___________________________________ DATE: _______________ Name and Title: MICHEAL R. LOHMEIER, in his official capacity as Equalization Officer for Oakland County, hereby accepts the role of Designated Assessor as outlined in this Agreement. EXECUTED: ____________________________________ DATE: _______________ Micheal R. Lohmeier Oakland County Equalization Officer DESIGNATED ASSESSOR – INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT Page 9 of 9 ADDENDUM – SEV TOTALS OAKLAND COUNTY SEV TOTALS BY CLASS Class Parcel Counts State Equalized Values Agricultural 392 87,150,370 Commercial 20,907 14,614,165,290 Industrial 4,441 2,896,770,040 Residential 448,068 68,274,369,769 Personal Property 52,372 3,863,299,665 Special Acts 650 507,403,698 David T. Woodward (Feb 13, 2023 11:32 EST)Feb 13, 2023 JoAnn Stringfellow (Feb 13, 2023 11:33 EST)Feb 13, 2023 Micheal Lohmeier (Feb 13, 2023 12:16 EST) Micheal Lohmeier Feb 13, 2023 March 13, 2023 Michigan Department of State Office of the Great Seal Richard H. Austin Building, 1st Floor 430 W. Allegan Lansing, MI 48918 Dear Office of the Great Seal: On October 20, 2022 the Board of Commissioners for Oakland County entered into an agreement per MR #22350 – Equalization – Interlocal Agreement Designating Michael Lohmeier as the Assessor for Oakland County As required by Urban Cooperation Act 7 of 1967 - MCL 124.510(4), a copy of the signed agreement with the County of Oakland and the City of Wixom, and the authorizing Board of Commissioners Resolution are enclosed for filing by your office. Send confirmation of receipt of this a greement to: Mr. Joseph Rozell, Director of Elections Oakland County Clerk/Register of Deeds County Service Center, Building #14 East 1200 N. Telegraph Rd. Pontiac, MI 48341 (Please include our Miscellaneous Resolution number on the confirmation of receipt letter for filing purposes.) Contact our office at (248) 858-0564 if you have any questions regarding this matter. Sincerely, COUNTY OF OAKLAND Joseph J. Rozell, CERA Director of Elections Cc: Donna Dyer, Corporation Counsel, Oakland County Erika Munoz-Flores, Corporation Counsel, Oakland County Catherine Buck, Clerk, City of Wixom Kimberly Hampton, Technical Specialist, Equalization Division Enclosures CITY OF WIXOM 49045 PONTIAC TRAIL REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2022 Deputy Mayor Rzeznik called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. and the Pledge of Allegiance was recited. Present: Mayor: P. Beagle (Exc.) Deputy Mayor: T. Rzeznik Councilmembers: P. Behrmann K. Gottschall T. Gronlund-Fox(Exc.) P. Sharpe R. Smiley AGENDA CHANGES: (None) PUBLIC HEARINGS: Deputy Mayor Rzeznik noted that a motion was made at the November 15, 2022 Council meeting to set a public hearing for the ordinance enactment that was under Unfinished Business on tonight’s agenda. It has been determined that a public hearing was not necessary for that one, so there will be one public hearing tonight for the Community Input Regarding the CDBG funds. 1.) Public Hearing to Solicit Community Input Regarding the Utilization of the 2023 Funds from the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program Allocation Deputy Mayor Rzeznik read the Rules for Public Speaking at a Public Hearing. He then opened the Public Hearing at 7:03 p.m. Ms. Magee explained this Public Hearing was regarding the 2023 application. The Block Grant Program provides funds for the purpose of renovating older homes, revitalizing neighborhoods, providing human services, and rebuilding community infrastructure that benefits low to moderate income residents. Qualified projects must be located in census tracts that are occupied by low to moderate income individuals and families that meet HUD’s standards and guidelines. In Wixom, we have two census tracts and both are located south of Pontiac Trail. Federal regulations considering these funds require public hearings to receive comments, recommendations and requests from individuals that seek funding for these funds. The total allocation is $49,363 and no more than 30% or $14,808 can be allocated to public services. With no comments, Deputy Mayor Rzeznik closed the Public Hearing at 7:04 p.m. Wixom City Council Meeting___________November 29, 2022 _______Page 2 PRESENTATION: 1.) Presentation of Fiscal Year 2021/2022 City of Wixom Financial Audit Martin Olejnik, the partner from Plante Moran that was on the audit, was joined by Nicolette Acho, the Senior Manager. He noted that the Opinion Letter was an unmodified opinion, which means that you can rely on the numbers that were presented for budgeted purposes and other reports. Ms. Acho reviewed some of the 2022 highlights. The unassigned fund balance in the General Fund was approximately $3.9 million this year after the City added $2.3 million to fund balance during 2022. That was up from last year. The City invested about $6.5 million into City assets, which was up from $3.6 million last year. The pension and OPEB funding continue to benefit from the bonding that the City did a few years ago. The pension system is now 101% funded and the OPEB system is 146% funded. The City has received about $1.5 million in ARPA funds which is being held for infrastructure projects. Next, she showed a five-year trend of General Fund revenue. The total revenue of $13.8 million was up about $100,000 from last year. Property taxes were consistent from prior years. The State Shared Revenue and grants increased about $350,000 from last year. She also reviewed the five-year trend of General Fund expenditures. The total expenses of $11.5 million were up about $800,000 from the prior year. That increase was primarily in personnel costs and transfers to the capital improvement fund for infrastructure improvements. Ms. Acho noted the five-year trend of General Fund revenue and expenses compared to the unrestricted fund balance. This was a combination of the committed assigned and unassigned, which was the fund balance that was truly available to the City to spend. The City has done a good job managing within its means, keeping that unrestricted fund balance consistent and increasing it over the past few years. Looking at the health of the fund, the auditors tend to look at the available fund balance compared to annual expenditures. Wixom is currently at 87% but about half of those available funds are earmarked for future capital improvements. The next slide explained how a lot of funds pass through the City, but not all of it stays. A large portion goes to the Schools and the County with a little less than half being recorded as City revenue. She reviewed the six-year trend of water operations. The water fund did have an operating loss of $200,000 this year; however, there was $800,000 of depreciation expense (a non-cash expense). Rates are being set appropriately to cover those operating expenses. Revenues were slightly down due to the fact that this was the second year the water debt millage wasn’t levied. The unrestricted net position (what was available to spend) continued upward again this year. She indicated that the sewer had an operating income this year of $36,000 and rates are being set to cover those operating costs. The unrestricted net position continued upward. Ms. Acho showed a graph of the trend of capital investment compared to the depreciation of assets currently in place. For general government, Wixom had a few Wixom City Council Meeting___________November 29, 2022 _______Page 3 years of increased capital improvements. From 2019 to 2021, we were coming down from that investment. This year had a spike and the City has earmarked about $4.8 million for future capital improvements. The water and sewer capital investments are much more in line with the depreciation of current assets. Significant investments were made in 2022. The last graph showed the funding levels of the pension and OPEB plans compared to both the State and the County. The City is very well-funded compared to both. This year the City has both a pension and an OPEB asset recorded on the balance sheet due to the overfunded status of those plans. Councilmember Gottschall clarified that the one note under the Summary of Unrecorded Possible Adjustments on page 8 was due to an accounting change. Mr. Olejnik said that was correct. He said his letter talked about the audit process, if there were any disagreements with management on how the audit went, and if there were any unusual things that happened. He said that there was nothing that happened out of the ordinary. The records were in good condition and management was very forward in providing the auditors all the information that they needed. He said the second portion of the letter was legislative items. The big items were the ARPA funding and COVID resources. He explained that there was a new required standard that was implemented this year and that was GASB 87. It was the same thing for private companies to put operating leases and capital leases on the books. Leases are supposed to be recorded on the balance sheet. Before it was just rent expense or rent income. Deputy Mayor Rzeznik thanked Mr. Olejnik and Ms. Acho, as well as the Finance Department on the great audit. MINUTES: CM-11-150-22: Moved and seconded by Councilmembers Behrmann and Gottschall to approve the Regular City Council meeting minutes of November 15, 2022. Vote: Motion Carried CORRESPONDENCE: 1.) Michigan Public Service Commission Notice of Hearing for the Customers of DTE Electric Company, Case No. U-21259 2.) Michigan Public Service Commission Notice of Hearing for the Customers of DTE Electric Company, Case No. U-21193 CALL TO THE PUBLIC: There were no comments made at this time. CITY MANAGER REPORTS: 1.) Departmental Reports - October 2022 Councilmember Sharpe noticed on the Parks and Recreation Report that Ms. Magee met with the contractor regarding the pavers at the columbarium. He asked if we were any closer to getting those pavers installed. Ms. Magee replied that the Wixom City Council Meeting___________November 29, 2022 _______Page 4 contractor has all the material on site and it was decided that they would do that in the spring. Councilmember Sharpe then asked about the Engineering Report. He was wondering about the easements for the safety paths. Mr. Sikma said they have not scheduled a meeting with the property owners yet. Mr. Benson added that we have been working on the plan for the outreach, specifically along Wixom Road. We have a long history of trying to work with the property owners with some successes and some failures. There are some unique situations for some of the property owners. Some folks want certain considerations and some want others. We are trying to be a little more personalized and hopefully be more successful. He indicated that staff was actively working on this. Councilmember Sharpe explained that we got the Air Line Trail in and the safety paths are used for bicycling as well. When you are on the east side of Wixom Road and you head north, it just stops. There is no place to go. He would like to get that done. To him, that was the next step of our bicycle centric City. He wasn’t sure if there was anything the Council could do to help, but he’d love to be asked to help. Mr. Benson said he understood. He noted that not everyone who is a property owner agrees with that perspective. Councilmember Sharpe said it is our prerogative as government to do what is best for the citizens, not for a single homeowner. Councilmember Gottschall noticed there were a few notes in the Water and Wastewater Report about cloudy water, testing and unclear water. He asked if we knew the actual cause. Mr. John replied that at the time those reports came in, the Great Lakes Water Authority had finished conducting some of the repairs on their main line that transmits water. They were pressure testing them and they brought some pumps on line. The added pressure was transmitting it. It affected us and the City of Novi. It was just air pressure. He said they visited a couple of houses to make sure that was the cause and the residents were satisfied with that. Deputy Mayor Rzeznik said that our phosphorus concentration was actually below our limit for the first time since 2018. He asked what changed. Mr. John replied that they leaned on Tribar. The discovery was made that they release phosphorus in a form that is not treatable chemically, at least not without great expense and a lot of complicated matter, which was why they have been struggling with it for the last four years. We have done everything as a wastewater plant to treat it but when it is in a form that conventional means won’t work on, it is up to us to make the discharger fix it at their end. This was the second month that it has been successful and it is measured monthly. 2.) Quarterly Investment and Budget Report - June 2022 There were no comments or questions regarding this report. CONSENT AGENDA: CM-11-151-22: Motion and seconded made by Councilmembers Gottschall and Smiley to approve the Consent Agenda as presented which included: 1.) Approval to receive and file: a. ZBA Minutes – July 11, 2022 Wixom City Council Meeting___________November 29, 2022 _______Page 5 b. Planning Commission Minutes – October 17, 2022 c. Planning Commission Minutes – October 24, 2022 Vote: Motion Carried UNFINISHED BUSINESS: 1.) Recommendation to Enact an Amendatory Ordinance to the City of Wixom’s Code of Ordinances, Title 13 “Public Services,” Chapter 13.16, “Engineering Design Standards for Subdivision and Project Improvements, “Section 13.16.20, “Generally,” to Add Provisions Adopting the Updated Stormwater Design Standards of the Oakland County Water Resources Commissioner Mr. Sikma indicated that the change recommended was due to a number of discussions throughout the last 15 years on Design Standards for Southeast Michigan. It was worked on by the County and they developed standards that show water quality, sediment controls and volume controls for up to 100-year rain event. We have calculations in place now that will allow for protection of flooding and water quality issues. This was a requirement of our NPDES permit that was updated in July. CM-11-152-22: Motion and seconded made by Councilmembers Smiley and Behrmann to enact an amendatory ordinance to the City of Wixom’s Code of Ordinances, Title 13 “Public Services,” Chapter 13.16, “Engineering Design Standards for Subdivision and Project Improvements, “Section 13.16.20, “Generally,” to add provisions adopting the updated Stormwater Design Standards of the Oakland County Water Resources Commissioner. Vote: Motion Carried TABLED ITEM: 1.) Recommendation to Approve an Amended Professional Services Agreement with SAFEbuilt Michigan, LLC to Extend the Term of the Agreement for Building Department Services for a Three-Year Period to Expire December 31, 2025 and Authorize the Mayor to Sign the Agreement CM-11-153-22: Motion and seconded made by Councilmembers Smiley and Behrmann to approve of an amended Professional Services Agreement with SAFEbuilt Michigan, LLC to extend the term of the Agreement for Building Department Services for a three-year period to expire December 31, 2025 and authorize the Mayor to sign the Agreement. Deputy Mayor Rzeznik explained that this was discussed at length at the last meeting. Councilmember Behrmann stated that there were two Councilmembers who voted to table this item. He wondered if there was any feedback from them that they were comfortable. Mr. Brown replied that he had a direct conversation about that Wixom City Council Meeting___________November 29, 2022 _______Page 6 with Councilmember Gronlund-Fox and she was satisfied with the information provided by Administration in the memo and the schedules. Vote: Motion Carried NEW BUSINESS: 1.) Recommendation to Authorize the Submittal of the 2023 Community Development Block Grant Program Allocation in the Amount of $49,363 with $4,900 to HAVEN for Battered/Abused Shelter, $4,900 for Emergency Services, $4,900 for Senior Services and $34,663 to Civic Center Improvements CM-11-154-22: Motion and seconded made by Councilmembers Smiley and Sharpe to authorize the submittal of the 2023 Community Development Block Grant Program Allocation in the amount of $49,363 with $4,900 to HAVEN for Battered/Abused Shelter, $4,900 for Emergency Services, $4,900 for Senior Services and $34,663 to Civic Center Improvements. Ms. Magee said the Block Grant required a public hearing. In the past, we have rotated the public service agencies. The recommendation was to fund HAVEN ($4,900), St. Vincent DePaul ($4,900), Meals on Wheels ($4,900) and the remainder will go toward the new playground. Councilmember Gottschall asked if we were expecting the playground to be done next year. Ms. Magee replied no. She thought it would be completed in 2024. Councilmember Gottschall then asked if we would expect to be giving next year’s portion toward that again and Ms. Magee replied that was correct. Vote: Motion Carried 2.) Recommendation to Review the Fiscal Year 2021/2022 Financial Audit and Authorization to Accept and File CM-11-155-22: Motion and seconded made by Councilmembers Sharpe and Gottschall to review the Fiscal Year 2021/2022 Financial Audit and authorization to accept and file. Vote: Motion Carried 3.) Recommendation to Approve an Interlocal Agreement between the City of Wixom and Oakland County to Designate Oakland County Equalization Director Michael R. Lohmeier as Designated Assessor for the Period of January 1, 2023 through December 31, 2027 and Authorize the Mayor to Sign the Agreement CM-11-156-22: Motion and seconded made by Councilmembers Behrmann and Sharpe to approve an Interlocal Agreement between the City of Wixom and Oakland County to designate Oakland County Equalization Director Michael R. Wixom City Council Meeting___________November 29, 2022 _______Page 7 Lohmeier as designated Assessor for the period of January 1, 2023 through December 31, 2027 and authorize the Mayor to sign the Agreement. Councilmember Gottschall confirmed that this was because they named a new assessor. He thought there was talk about our contract being amended at some point with an increase in cost. Mr. Benson said this was a procedural matter to officially designate who our Assessor is. Mr. Brown added that any modifications to the agreements on the table will be in June 2023. Vote: Motion Carried 4.) Recommendation to Approve a New Michigan Liquor Control Commission Class C On-Premise Retail Liquor License for El Camino Real, LLC of Wixom, Michigan and Authorize the Mayor to Sign the Agreement Restricting Transfer of the Liquor License CM-11-157-22: Motion and seconded made by Councilmembers Sharpe and Smiley to approve a new Michigan Liquor Control Commission Class C On-Premise Retail Liquor License for El Camino Real, LLC of Wixom, Michigan and authorize the Mayor to sign the agreement restricting transfer of the Liquor License. Mr. Benson said El Camino Real was the newest downtown business locating in the Country Corners Plaza. They received their full certificate of occupancy a few months ago and have since applied for a Class C liquor license to expand their menu. The City now has two Class C liquor licenses available for distribution based on our increase in population from the 2020 Census. Per City Council Resolution 2005-32, the City Council has previously designated that all new Class C liquor licenses should be only issued within the Village Center Area zoning district. El Camino Real is located in the VCA district so they are eligible. We received their application in October 2022 and put it through our comprehensive review process both on the Construction Development Services side, as well as the Police Department doing background checks on all of the individuals affiliated with this organization. We did not find any specific issues that would dissuade Administration from recommending approval of this Class C liquor license. They are interested in a Social District permit should they be granted a Class C liquor license. Per City practices with Class C liquor licenses issued within the VCA district, there is an existing practice to have an agreement in place to restrict the transfer of those liquor licenses outside of the City. This was a policy decision, not directly enforced by the MLCC. We do have the ability to make this a condition of approval, which the applicants have agreed to. Should they cease to operate for 90 days, the license is to be returned back to the MLCC to be reissued again by the City. Deputy Mayor Rzeznik disclosed that he is party to a liquor license in the VCA. Councilmember Smiley asked if the previous tenant had a liquor license. Mr. Benson replied no. Councilmember Smiley asked if they were taking one of the two open licenses and Mr. Benson replied yes. There will be one license left. He added that we are eligible in the downtown district for redevelopment liquor licenses which have become more liberally applicable. Unfortunately, those are not available until you are exhausted of your Class C licenses. Just because we only have two and are Wixom City Council Meeting___________November 29, 2022 _______Page 8 now down to one does not mean that we couldn’t issue more through other mechanisms. Councilmember Gottschall said when he was reviewing the application, there were two details that he noted that didn’t look correct. Number 14 talked about distance from other licenses within a two-mile radius. They were saying Loccino’s of Wixom, which was now Wixom Station, was two miles away. He wondered if this would impact this license since it was not two miles away from El Camino Real. Mr. Benson did not believe so. Councilmember Gottschall said the other detail he saw was the 500-foot distance from the school building. He wanted to clarify it was the building and not the property. Mr. Benson said that was correct. Councilmember Sharpe asked if the liquor licenses had value. He thought the owner of the license could sell the license to somebody else at a premium. Other than the cost of applying, there was no cost for the license. We are not selling a license to the applicant but approving the application. Mr. Benson explained that there was a significant filing fee with the State for that license. He thought it was $20,000. Because the Class C licenses are limited, you can transfer from within the County to any other jurisdiction. If you start to run low in the County, they can be transferred between private parties for whatever they agree to transfer them for. The intent of the Restriction Agreement was to prevent liquor licenses from being hoarded and transferred to other jurisdictions. It was his understanding that the original practice of implementing these restrictions was done proactively as a recommendation from our City Attorney. Mr. Brown added that this was a business attraction tool for us. It was a way for us to retain that tool if the business goes elsewhere or closes its doors. It allows us to retain control of that license and have that for our future attraction effort. Councilmember Sharpe said if it were to be sold to someone else, we would have the same amount of say that we do now in approving the applicant. Mr. Brown said that if they sign the agreement, it will prohibit them from selling or transferring it to someone outside of the City. The City Council would have to approve the transfer. Deputy Mayor Rzeznik stated that the most recent liquor license was purchased from an entity in Traverse City and transferred into Wixom. That was for Longhorn Steakhouse. Gerardo De Leon-Manuricio and Ismael Ruiz were present at this meeting. Mr. De Leon-Manuricio said that the restaurant has been open for two months now. Everyone was looking for a drink and he hoped the Council agreed with the liquor license. Deputy Mayor Rzeznik thanked them for coming and welcomed them to Wixom. Vote: Motion Carried Wixom City Council Meeting___________November 29, 2022 _______Page 9 5.) Recommendation to Approve a Social District Permit Application from El Camino Real, LLC at 49342 Pontiac Trail for Submission to the Michigan Liquor Control Commission and Approve the Updated Social District Map CM-11-158-22: Motion and seconded made by Councilmembers Smiley and Behrmann to approve a Social District Permit Application from El Camino Real, LLC at 49342 Pontiac Trail for submission to the Michigan Liquor Control Commission and approve the updated Social District Map. Mr. Benson said after speaking with the MLCC, we were made aware that El Camino Real can also apply for their Social District permit at the same time as their liquor license. It was contingent on the action of the MLCC, as you cannot have a Social District permit without a liquor license. In order to expedite the process, we offered to bring these together to the Council. The Council established the Social District in downtown Wixom in 2021. Currently we have two participating establishments of the five eligible. Should the MLCC grant El Camino Real the Class C liquor license, they would then become an eligible establishment. The only additional action was that we need to update the map. Their location would be listed as an eligible location with the MLCC. Councilmember Gottschall wondered if we would want to extend the boundary to the sidewalk behind the restaurant. He guaranteed that people were walking around with alcohol behind the building, not just on the Pontiac Trail side. Mr. Benson explained that the sidewalk behind the building was not a public sidewalk. It was a portion of the private structure. Councilmember Gottschall said that if we are designating units within the building, he felt we should also be able to designate the sidewalk behind it. The unit itself is not publicly owned. We do not have any control over it. Mr. Benson said the map was to reference where the liquor serving establishments physically were. Councilmember Gottschall said that the red line showed the boundaries. He proposed that we bump the red line back around the building. The rest of it wouldn’t be blue because they weren’t eligible. We know people are walking around with alcohol. He thought we should just correct the map to make it more practical for what was actually happening. Mr. Benson said he could update the map and bring it back to Council. Deputy Mayor Rzeznik noted that the area behind The Drafting Table was part of the MLCC approved beer garden. It was a separate designated district beyond the Social District. Mr. Benson believed we would run into issues with having temporary licenses within the Social District. He wondered if that could create a conflict. He said he would research the topic and report back. Councilmember Gottschall said that we should always do something that most people are doing. If they are out there, why are we crafting a map that says they are breaking the law when we know what people are doing and we are fine with it. Councilmember Sharpe agreed with Councilmember Gottschall. He didn’t think the blue section on the map was El Camino Real’s whole space. The door is on the Wixom City Council Meeting___________November 29, 2022 _______Page 10 northern side of the building. If you walk out of El Camino Real, you will be in violation because you aren’t in the zone any more. There needs to be a designated pathway to get to the street. The front of the building isn’t conducive to getting down to the street. Vote: Motion Carried CALL TO THE PUBLIC: Dr. Ajay Raman, County Commissioner-Elect in the 14th District, introduced himself. He recognized Councilmember Smiley for the well-fought race. He said he had nothing but positive things to say about him. It was a good experience and a close race. He said his hope and his goal was to be able to work with everybody. He knew there was a lot of partisan divide and people have their thoughts. He wanted to move forward and represent all the residents as best as he can. His goal was to be visible, be transparent, be honest and work in the best interest of the City. He said he planned to be at many of the Wixom Council meetings and he looked forward to working with the City. He requested that everyone contact him if he can help in any way. He said that he attending a training class yesterday and an interesting statistic that they mentioned was that only 9% of people in Michigan know what a County Commissioner is, let alone who their County Commissioner is. He said he wanted to buck that trend. He knew Wixom had good County Commissioners to this point and he hoped to continue the trend. He looked forward to working with everyone. CITY MANAGER COMMENTS: Mr. Brown said that there were two employees celebrating work anniversaries during the month of December. Russ Pierson has been with the DPW for six years and Jim Byrd has been with the DPW for 21 years. He congratulated and thanked them for their service to the City of Wixom. COUNCIL COMMENTS: Councilmember Sharpe stated that considering the Mayor was not present and the results of the game last Saturday, he had nothing further to add. Councilmember Gottschall thanked Ms. Stamper and the Finance Department for the good job with our finances. When he started on Council, we always had the unmodified opinion on reports, which was always nice. There used to be recommendations on how to clean things up or do things differently. This report and the last report didn’t have any recommendations. It was nice to see that everything has been adjusted to the standards that the auditor would like. He thanked the Commissioner-Elect for coming to introduce himself. Mr. Weipert has always done a good job of being very supportive of the City, but he felt we haven’t always been kept informed of what was going on at the County Board. He asked if Commissioner-Elect Raman could provide legislative updates so we are aware of what was happening. What happens at the County level affects the City. Councilmember Behrmann said that the Saturday before last, he noticed the DPW were in the Cemetery raking leaves in the snow. You have to give them a lot of credit for that. He appreciated all their hard work getting the leaves cleaned up throughout the entire community. Wixom City Council Meeting___________November 29, 2022 _______Page 11 Councilmember Smiley thanked Dr. Raman for stopping by. Dr. Raman had said that only 9% knew their County Commissioner and Councilmember Smiley said he didn’t believe it was that high. He asked when he would be sworn in and Dr. Raman replied in January. Councilmember Smiley congratulated him. He offered his condolences to the family of Steven Zelle, a former Planning Commissioner. He hoped to see everyone at the Annual Wixom Tree Lighting this Friday. Santa’s visit is a treat and it is great fun for all of the family. Deputy Mayor Rzeznik congratulated Ms. Stamper, the Finance team and the Department Heads for a great, squeaky clean audit. He said this was his 14th year and we have always had a really great report card. Even during the down times, we did things right. He thanked Commissioner-Elect Raman for coming by. We hope for his support with our long-standing Beck Road Improvement Corridor project. Whatever support he can provide from the County level would be very helpful. The Tree Lighting Festival has been a tradition in the City of Wixom. We sing carols, stand around with friends, there is food, there is drink, there is ice sculpting, there are carriage rides and Santa Claus will visit at 6:30 p.m. It runs from 5:00 – 11:00 p.m. on Friday, December 2nd. Please come out and you will get to see the town lit up. The DDA is doing a great job again getting a lot of the local businesses to decorate. It really looks festive. He was thankful for the big trees at the entrance. It was nice to see them all lit up. Also, the Wixom Historical Society has an open house on the Windows to Christmas at the Gibson House on December 2nd from 6:00 – 9:00 p.m. It is decorated like the Hudson windows of old. They will have cookies and hot chocolate there. ADJOURNMENT: The meeting was adjourned at 8:01 p.m. Catherine Buck City Clerk Approved 12-13-2022