Council approves declaration of necessity to acquire permanent sidewalk easement at 1748 North Woodson Road

The Wixom City Council on July 7 approved a declaration of necessity to acquire a permanent sidewalk easement from the owner of 1748 North Woodson Road (parcel 17-29-151-034) at a cost of $4,508.70, authorizing the expenditure from the Safety Path Engineering account (223-555-965.390).

Resident Dale Brannigan, who identified himself as living at 1748 North Woodson Road, addressed the council during public comment and opposed placing a sidewalk on the street side of his property. "Wixom Road is 50 miles an hour in front of my home, and it's 2 lanes... it's just a very dangerous situation," Brannigan said, describing difficulty pulling into his driveway and expressing concern about pedestrian proximity and drainage and elevation challenges.

City staff and council members said they had tried multiple design options and offers to address the homeowner's safety concerns, including proposing a wider offset (30 feet) from the roadway; staff said the homeowner had refused prior offers. City staff member Tim (city staff) told the council they had acquired 11 other easements along the route and that this was the final property needed to complete the segment from Potter Road toward Hopkins/Loon Lake Road.

Council debate centered on safety trade-offs: some members said the path completion improves safety for pedestrians and cyclists and reflected voter support for the city's safety-path program, while others urged ensuring the sidewalk is placed far enough from the roadway to minimize conflict with vehicles entering driveways.

Vote: The motion to approve the declaration of necessity and purchase the easement passed on roll call (5 yes, 1 no). The roll call in the record shows Deputy Mayor Resnick (Aye), Council member Behrman (Yes), Council member Gasho (No), Council member Garland Fox (Yes), Council member O'Day (Yes), Council member Sharp (Aye). The measure passed 5–1.

Why it matters: The easement will complete a missing link of a safety path residents have supported and that staff has been acquiring along the route for several years; the council and staff said they made multiple offers to address the homeowner's concerns before pursuing the declaration of necessity.

Implementation: Staff said they had sought to minimize the easement area (the most recent ask was a 12-foot easement from the right-of-way) and had earlier offered a 30-foot option; they will finalize the purchase and proceed with sidewalk construction as part of the safety-path program.