Commission approves MDOT M-139 reconstruction agreement; city to fund water/sewer portion
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Summary
The commission authorized the city manager to accept an MDOT contract to reconstruct M-139 (I‑94 to Business Loop 94), which will convert Fair Avenue to two-way traffic and require the city to pay an estimated $229,200 for water and sanitary infrastructure replacement.
The Benton Harbor City Commission voted to authorize the city manager to accept an MDOT contract to reconstruct Highway M-139 from I‑94 to Business Loop 94, a project MDOT will largely fund but that includes a city obligation for some water and sanitary sewer work.
Deputy Clerk Bell and staff presented a committee memo describing the scope: MDOT plans to reconfigure M-139 and Fair Avenue to two‑way traffic and to reconstruct Fair Avenue with a single travel lane in each direction and bike lanes. The memo said the city will assume local jurisdiction for southbound M-139/Fair Avenue from Shoast Drive to Business Loop 94 upon completion and will receive Act 51 funding for Fair Avenue.
Commissioner Clark Griffin and other commissioners questioned whether a roundabout being proposed farther along in the MDOT project area had been part of the original presentation; staff and other commissioners clarified that the roundabout location is MDOT’s determination, partially outside the city in the township. Commissioner Clark Griffin said he could not support the roundabout component because he believed it had not been presented earlier and expressed safety concerns.
City Manager Alex Little explained the city’s water and sewer work for certain stretches would not be covered by MDOT’s base reconstruction and that, if the city did not accept its portion now, the later replacement could cost “probably 3 times, 4 times more” than the current estimate. He estimated the city’s portion for water and sanitary infrastructure along part of the Fair Avenue corridor at $229,200.
In a roll-call vote the commission approved the resolution (8–1): Commissioner Clark Griffin voted no; the remaining commissioners and the mayor voted yes.
What happens next: Staff said construction would start on Fair Avenue in the upcoming construction season; the city will schedule payment responsibilities for its portion when those costs come due, likely in 2027.
