Clerk recommends City Hall as Livonia's early voting site; council raises ADA and accessibility concerns
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Summary
City Clerk Lori Miller urged the council to designate City Hall as Livonia's early voting site under Public Act 81 of 2023, citing security, backup power and space for ~9,800 prior early voters; councilmembers and residents questioned ramp steepness and whether curbside voting suffices, and both an approving and a denying referral were recorded for the March 9 agenda.
City Clerk Lori Miller asked the Livonia City Council on Feb. 23 to approve a city early voting plan adopted by the election commission and to designate City Hall as the primary early voting site. The plan must be filed with Wayne County by April 6 under Public Act 81 of 2023, Miller said.
Miller told council that City Hall is a publicly owned, secure facility with backup generators, emergency lighting and sufficient indoor space to accommodate high early-voter turnout; she said the city served about 9,800 early voters at the site during prior operations. "City hall meets this requirement and offers far more advantages than the housing commission office," Miller said, citing controlled access and police presence.
Some council members and residents objected on accessibility grounds. Multiple speakers — including Councilman McCullough and public commenters — said the ramp to City Hall felt steep and might pose a barrier. "There is no way that ramp is okay," one resident said, adding that curbside pick-up is not a substitute for an accessible voting experience.
Miller described mitigations: curbside voting procedures with signage, staff trained to walk ballots to vehicles, and prior ADA audit results (12 of 14 items met, with a plan to remedy the two deficiencies). Councilwoman Budzinski emphasized the tight timeline to select a site before upcoming primaries and general elections and supported moving the item to the March 9 regular agenda so the clerk can meet filing deadlines.
Council recorded both an approving and a denying on the regular agenda: Budzinski offered an approving referral, while Councilman McCullough said he would offer a denying motion to preserve his objection on the record about ramp compliance. The council did not make a final adoption at the study session; that formal vote is scheduled for March 9.
If the council approves City Hall at the March 9 meeting, the clerk's office will finalize signage and curbside procedures and file the early voting plan with Wayne County before the April 6 deadline.