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Wayne County accepts $905,000 DOT grant to inventory county property for transit-oriented development
Summary
The commission approved a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Transportation for a $905,000 grant to conduct an asset scan of county-owned properties to identify potential transit-oriented development sites; the county will not be financially obligated until federal approval is confirmed.
The Wayne County Commission approved a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Transportation to perform an asset scan of county-owned properties to identify potential transit-oriented development opportunities.
The $905,000 grant will fund an inventory and feasibility work on county parcels to determine how each property could support transit hubs or transit-supporting development. Hassan Shaikh, director of economic development, described the award as a federal grant and told commissioners the county would not be obligated to spend local dollars until the federal position is known.
The grant “would allow us to look at all county owned assets and figure out what's the best highest and best use for them,” Delorean Holmes, economic vitality director, told the committee. Holmes gave the example of assessing whether a county parcel on Michigan Avenue could become a transit hub.
Commissioners asked whether the grant is linked to ongoing mass-transit planning and whether the timing or the federal grant freeze could jeopardize the award. Shaikh said the agreement would commence on commission approval and run through 2028 and that the county will take due diligence steps before obligating local funds. “We are not going to be obligated … until we find out the feds’ position,” the clerk noted during the discussion.
Commissioners also asked about whether the work could tie into ballot initiatives; staff said the grant is a separate funding vehicle intended to inform the county’s larger transit goals but would operate independently of any potential ballot measure.
The commission took a motion to approve the agreement; the motion was carried.
Votes at a glance Motion to approve cooperative agreement with U.S. Department of Transportation in the amount of $905,000: moved by Commissioner Clemente; supported by Commissioner Baker McCormick; motion carried (vote tally not specified).
