Garden City Council adopts blight hearing bureau, multifamily fire inspections and public‑service parking rules

The Garden City City Council voted unanimously on a package of enforcement and public‑safety measures at its March 9 meeting, approving an administrative hearing bureau to speed adjudication of blight and ordinance violations, adopting annual fire inspections for multifamily buildings, and enacting public‑service day parking rules to support street sweeping, tree trimming and similar operations.

The council also adopted a civil fine schedule tied to the new administrative hearing bureau, approved a fee amendment to add charges for multifamily fire inspections, and awarded a mechanical contract for a fire‑station renovation. Council members said the measures are intended to protect neighborhoods and public safety while providing clear administrative procedures for enforcement.

The administrative hearing bureau will operate as an administrative (noncriminal) venue for blight violations. City Manager Gibbons told the council the bureau is modeled on similar systems used by other Michigan municipalities and will use a hearing officer who must meet specified qualifications and will be hired or appointed administratively. Council discussion focused on scheduling (regular dockets to ensure timely resolution), the hearing officer’s authority to recover costs, and a target timeline to begin hearings in the summer or soon after the next budget cycle permits.

Councilmembers…