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Oak Park approves MDOT-linked Z03 Plaza Deck rebuild; city to add restrooms and amenities
Summary
The council approved a contract for the Z03 Plaza Deck (Victoria Plaza/Church Street) reconstruction with MDOT supplying pavilions and utilities; the city will build restrooms and manage park amenities. Council and staff warned of two years of construction, closed ball fields and 696 ramp disruptions.
Oak Park city council voted Dec. 16 to approve a contract to reconstruct the Victoria Plaza and Church Street bridge deck — the Z03 Plaza Deck — a project MDOT will lead while the city will add park amenities and build restrooms.
City Engineer Kara Grissemer described renderings for the plaza-deck replacement and said MDOT will supply large and small pavilions, shade structures and benches, and will bring utility leads to the restroom site. Grissemer said playground equipment will be removed and salvaged if in good condition and that a new fitness training station geared to ages 13 and up will be installed. "MDOT is providing us with the pavilions and all the new shade structures and the new benches, for free as part of their project," she said.
City Manager Eric Tungate framed the agreement as a negotiated compromise: "They agreed to keep it at the same footprint... If you're gonna do this, we have to have restrooms. They said, absolutely not. And we held out and now we're gonna put restrooms in there under the condition they're gonna run all the utilities, which is the most costly part." Tungate said the city will be responsible for constructing the restroom building while MDOT provides the utilities.
Council and staff warned of major local disruptions. Grissemer said the nearby ball diamond will be closed for about two years while the bridge is replaced, and recreation staff will relocate rentals to alternate fields. She also said 696 traffic will be affected: "696 is going to be westbound only for 2 full years... Coolidge and Greenfield will not have exits in 2026. You will be able to exit at Southfield Road and take surface streets or Woodward and take surface streets."
Officials discussed project scale and funding. Grissemer and other staff said MDOT received an approximately $22,000,000 federal grant tied to the broader work; staff noted the Z03 portion could exceed that figure. Council members recalled previous problems with a 2016 project and pressed staff on engineering changes; Grissemer said a different structural engineering team is now involved and MDOT intends a full reconstruction.
Construction is expected to begin in spring and last about two years. Councilmember Sean Whitehead moved the contract approval; Councilmember Julie Edgar seconded and the roll-call vote carried.
The council did not provide a single total contract amount for the Z03 Plaza Deck in the recorded discussion; the transcript contains a phrase said when voting on the contract that was not clear on the exact dollar figure. The city and MDOT will be responsible for final scheduling and public notices as the project proceeds.
