Livonia mayor asks council to place $150 million ‘Livonia Built’ millage on August ballot; final vote scheduled April 28

Mayor and city officials urged the Livonia City Council on Monday to place a 25-year, $150 million municipal bond millage on the August 2025 primary ballot to pay for a combined City Hall/library/police/fire-station project and related infrastructure on the City Center campus.

The administration described the plan — labeled the “Livonia Built” bond proposal — as a municipal facilities bond with a 1.43-mill rate that would fund $150,000,000 in capital projects, issued in two series and repayable over 25 years. City leaders said the package would fund replacement or major renovation of aging municipal buildings, infrastructure work on the civic campus, and park and greenway investments intended to spur private development on other portions of the site.

The mayor’s office framed the proposal as addressing an estimated $97.5 million (updated in discussion to $107 million) in municipal building needs and argued the measure would help the city retain young families and first responders by modernizing public facilities. Administration staff said the proposal would be limited to the items listed in the bond language, audited annually, and that funds must be spent only on the purposes described in the ballot language.

Council members pressed the administration and bond counsel on technical and fiscal points. City bond counsel and city staff clarified that the bond language allows the city to acquire interests in land or easements if needed, explained that the two-series issuance is intended to reduce borrowing costs by taking funds when required rather than all at once, and confirmed the bonds can be refinanced over time if market conditions improve. Officials reiterated the millage rate is projected at 1.43 mills and said the per-household impact would be less than $18 per month for roughly 85% of homeowners, with an average of about $12 per month for the typical homeowner, using conservative assumptions.

Public comment at the study meeting ran long. Supporters said the city needs to modernize aging public facilities and create a downtown gathering place to retain and attract residents and businesses. Opponents and skeptical residents said the scope and scale of the proposed City Center and the privately developed portion raised concerns about privatizing public land, the adequacy of project detail and cost estimates, possible downstream tax or fee impacts, parking for events, and whether the library or other pledged uses would be preserved. Several speakers asked for clearer cost breakdowns and written, prioritized spending plans showing how police and fire needs would be guaranteed within the package.

Council discussion produced a range of suggestions and conditions. Multiple council members said public safety should be prioritized and asked the administration to produce clearer, prioritized budget breakdowns and additional materials for voters between now and the ballot. Several members said they support asking voters to fund municipal facilities rather than repeatedly allocating small repairs to deteriorating buildings.

At the end of the study meeting Councilman Donovic moved to place the millage request on the regular meeting agenda for the April 28 voting meeting so the council may vote then on whether to put the measure before voters in August. That motion was made during the study session and will receive a final council vote at the April 28 regular meeting; the study session did not record a final passage vote on the millage itself.

The administration said additional informational materials and a tax-impact calculator would be published on the dedicated project site (LivoniaBuilt.org) and provided to council members before the regular meeting. Officials also said the proposal excludes most parkside private development costs — those would be borne by private partners if development proceeds — and any future sale or lease of city property would have to be approved by the council at a later date.

Background: The administration said the proposal builds on the Livonia Vision ’21 master plan and several years of facility studies and community engagement. The city said it has already secured approximately $20 million in prior grants and internal savings for earlier phases of the master plan and that the proposed bond is intended to fund municipal campus components that the city will own and operate.

What happens next: The council’s study-session motion put an approving resolution on the regular meeting agenda for April 28. If the council votes in favor on April 28, the city would place the millage question on the August 2025 primary ballot for voter approval. The proposal requires voter approval; the council cannot spend bond proceeds until voters authorize the millage and bonds are sold.