MDOT supports $700 million Rebuilding program

MDOT supports $700 million Rebuilding program

by | Jan 25, 2024 | Transportation

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 25, 2024

 

 MEDIA CONTACT
Michael Frezell
517-281-6519
[email protected] 

MDOT supports Gov. Whitmer for authorizing the final
$700 million of the Rebuilding Michigan program

Fast facts:

  • Whitmer’s Rebuilding Michigan program continues to rebuild the state highways and bridges (I, M and US routes) that are critical to the state’s economy and carry the most traffic.
  • The program will see $700 million more in investments this year to continue work on existing projects.
  • A total of $3.5 billion in bonds to finance road construction projects was authorized by the State Transportation Commission between 2020 and 2024.

 LANSING, Mich. – Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) officials are pleased Gov. Gretchen Whitmer wants to continue the successful Rebuilding Michigan program with $700 million more in investments in some of our state’s busiest roads and bridges, which she announced during the 2024 State of the State Address. 

“Since my first day in office, we’ve gotten to work moving dirt and pouring concrete to fix our damn roads and bridges, but there’s always more work to do until we get the job done right,” said Gov. Whitmer. “That’s why I’m adding another $700 million to road work this year through the Rebuilding Michigan program. To date, we’ve fixed 20,000 lane miles and 1,400 bridges, supporting over 45,000 jobs without raising taxes. This last phase includes key projects like I-94 near Detroit Metro Airport, I-696 from Southfield through Warren, and an important bridge in Erie Township. I’m proud of our progress, yet mindful of the work ahead to ensure Michigan’s infrastructure meets the needs of all its residents.”

“MDOT supports Gov. Whitmer’s promise to fix Michigan’s roads and bridges long-term through the Rebuilding Michigan program,” said State Transportation Director Bradley C. Wieferich. “MDOT stands ready to get the job done safely and efficiently. I appreciate the governor has shown the utmost confidence in our men and women at MDOT in asking for this increased investment to deliver these important projects.”

The program’s goal is to rebuild the state highways and bridges (I, M and US routes) that are critical to the state’s economy and carry the most traffic. The investment strategy is aimed at fixes that result in longer useful lives and improves the condition of the state’s infrastructure. While the $700 million is not slated to go toward any new projects or any specific projects at this time, it can be used to complete existing projects across the state.  

Here is a sample list of Rebuilding Michigan program projects expected to resume or start this year:

Last year, MDOT made great strides in repairing Michigan’s infrastructure and bringing new innovations to the forefront as highlighted in this video. MDOT thanks Gov. Whitmer for her commitment to help pave the way for a safer, more connected Michigan.

More project information is available on the MDOT website. See the governor’s 2024 State of the State Address online and join the conversation on social media using the hashtag #MISOTS2024.

Tree clearing of Blue Water Bridge plaza

Tree clearing of Blue Water Bridge plaza

by | Jan 25, 2024 | Regional News

newsroom
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 25, 2024

 

 

 

 

 

 MEDIA CONTACT
Jocelyn Garza
989-245-7117
[email protected]

 

 

 

 

Tree clearing ahead of Blue Water Bridge plaza improvements
starts Jan. 29

PORT HURON, Mich. – Crews will begin removing trees across nearly half an acre adjacent to the existing Blue Water Bridge (BWB) plaza, near Pine Grove Avenue, Harker Street, Scott Avenue, and westbound I-94 from Garfield to the Black River. This work is being completed ahead of Component One of the plaza improvements, which includes relocating the eastbound I-94 exit ramp at Pine Grove Avenue, building sound walls along portions of the project limits, and reconfiguring Pine Grove Avenue and 10th Avenue.

A total of 110 trees will be flagged for removal, with an effort to leave mature and developed trees north of Scott Avenue in place to support a future nonmotorized path.

County:
Huron                         

Highway:
Pine Grove Avenue
Harker Street
Scott Avenue

Closest city:
Port Huron

Start date:
Monday, Jan. 29, 2024

Estimated end date:
Monday, April 1, 2024

Traffic restrictions:
One intermittent lane and shoulder closure are expected on the eastbound I-94 exit ramp to Pine Grove Avenue, and along westbound I-94 from Garfield Road to the Black River.

Jobs numbers:
Based on economic modeling, the total investment of Component One construction is expected to directly and indirectly support 525 jobs.

Safety benefit:
This work will allow crews to begin work on Component One in the spring and avoid impacting the nesting season for bats, beginning in early April.

Whitmer Delivers 2024 State of the State Address

Whitmer Delivers 2024 State of the State Address

by | Jan 25, 2024 | Regional News

Governor Whitmer Header

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

January 24, 2024

Contact: [email protected]

 

Gov. Whitmer Delivers 2024 State of the State Address, Outlines Vision to Lower Costs, Improve Education, and Help Anyone Make it in Michigan

 

LANSING, Mich – Today, Governor Gretchen Whitmer delivered her 2024 State of the State address in front of a joint session of the Michigan Legislature. She laid out her plans to lower costs, improve education, and ensure anyone can “make it” in Michigan.

 

“We put together a heck of a record in 2023 and we are starting 2024 ready to rock,” said Governor Whitmer. “This year let’s keep our foot on the accelerator by continuing to focus on the issues that make a real difference in people’s lives. Let’s build more housing to expand supply and lower costs, and save family caregivers thousands on their taxes. To improve education, let’s deliver a budget that expands free pre-K for all and makes community college tuition-free for every high school graduate. Finally, let’s keep bringing supply chains and jobs back home to Michigan by shoring up our economic development toolkit so anyone can ‘make it’ in Michigan. Together, we can build a brighter future and help every Michigander have a classic Michigan story.”

 

SOTS

 

SOTS 2

 

SOTS 3

 

Housing

The State of Michigan will make the largest investment to build housing in Michigan history, nearly $1.4 billion to build or rehabilitate nearly 10,000 homes. That is 10 times what the state invested to build housing 10 years ago. Building more of every kind of housing—single family homes, apartments, and mixed-use buildings—will expand supply and lower costs. Getting this done will also support thousands of good-paying jobs in the skilled trades—from pipefitters and carpenters to bricklayers and roofers.

 

 

Caregiver Tax Credit

Michiganders with caregiving responsibilities juggle their own lives and careers while spending thousands of dollars out-of-pocket on related expenses. Governor Whitmer proposed the new Caring for MI Family Tax Credit to save thousands of Michigan families up to $5,000 off their taxes. The proposal covers caregiving expenses including counseling, transportation, and nursing or respite services.

 

 

Pre-K for All

The governor wants to provide access to free pre-K for every single 4-year-old Michigander in the next budget. Free pre-K saves families an average of $10,000 a year and helps students build a solid academic foundation for long-term success, improving literacy rates and closing achievement gaps. Data shows that children who attend pre-K have better academic outcomes, higher graduation rates, and go on to earn more money when they start working. Investments in pre-K will also attract employers seeking to expand or relocate to Michigan by giving parents more safe, affordable options for their kids when they go to work.

 

 

Community College for All

Tonight, the governor proposed we work together to make the first 2 years of community college tuition-free for every high school graduate. This will save students an average of $4,000 as they earn an associates degree or skills certificate at a community college, helping them land a better-paying, high-skill job in a career field they love. Getting this done will also help Michigan achieve its Sixty by 30 goal, to have 60% of working-age adults earn a postsecondary education by 2030. Michigan’s growing economy must be driven by a growing base of skilled talent. As more supply chains come home and advanced manufacturing businesses expand in Michigan, they will need qualified talent to meet their needs. Every student deserves a chance to pursue their passion so they can build a good life in Michigan.

 

 

Rebuilding Michigan

Infrastructure is critical to growing Michigan’s population and economy. Tonight, Governor Whitmer called on the Michigan Department of Transportation to authorize the final $700 million of the Rebuilding Michigan Plan. The five-year, $3.5 billion plan has focused on fixing Michigan’s most economically critical roads while supporting over 45,000 jobs without raising taxes by a dime. The final round of bonding projects includes 94 right along the Detroit Airport, 696 from Southfield through Warren, and a bridge in Erie Township.

 

 

Make it in Michigan

Companies are bringing supply chains back home to America—and especially to Michigan—in a big way. Michigan is showing the world that we make a lot more than just cars. In the decades ahead, we will dominate batteries, chips, and clean energy. To keep winning this race for the future, Michigan needs to upgrade its bipartisan economic development toolkit:

  1. R&D Tax Credit: unleash innovation while lowering costs for businesses.
  1. HIRE Michigan: lower overall payroll taxes for these firms. The value behind it is simple: the more you hire in Michigan, the more you should save in Michigan.
  1. Renaissance Zones: spur investment in areas of the state that are too often left out or left behind by lowering the cost of doing business in them.
  1. Innovation Fund: invest in early-stage start-ups, help launch hundreds of new Michigan-based companies, creating thousands of jobs.

 
EGLE announces $67.1 million in MI Clean Water grants

EGLE announces $67.1 million in MI Clean Water grants

by | Jan 25, 2024 | Environmental
EGLE Main GovD banner
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 25, 2024
EGLE Media Office, [email protected], 517-284-9278

EGLE announces $67.1 million in MI Clean Water grants to help Michigan communities upgrade water infrastructure, protect health and the environment

Reducing sewage overflows into Lake St. Clair and replacing hazardous lead drinking water service lines in multiple communities are some of the goals of more than $67 million in state grants recently awarded to Michigan communities.

The MI Clean Water Plan grants through the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) and support from the federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) aim to help communities upgrade aging infrastructure, ensure healthy drinking water, and protect Michigan’s environment.

Seventy percent of Michiganders are served by more than 1,000 community wastewater systems and a similar percentage get drinking water from community water systems. Those systems often struggle to find resources to address legacy issues like aging drinking water and stormwater facilities and emerging challenges like new standards for Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) “forever chemicals.”

Governor Gretchen Whitmer, the Michigan Legislature, and federal agencies have ramped up funding for aging water infrastructure – a critical move to help ensure those water systems continue to protect public health and the environment, including Michigan’s unmatched freshwater resources.

More than half of EGLE’s budget has traditionally passed through to Michigan cities, towns, villages, and other local government agencies to finance critical improvements that help them better protect residents and our natural resources.

Grant roundup

Recent grants through the DWSRF: 

  • City of West Branch for $18,000,000:  This project includes the replacement of old, undersized, and failing watermains, watermain looping, construction of a new water tower, improvements to an existing well, and the replacement of a master meter connection in the City of West Branch.
  • Detroit Water and Sewerage Department for $17,510,000:  This project includes replacing and rehabilitating approximately 31,912 linear feet of vintage cast iron water main of pipe size 6-inches through 12-inches in diameter in the City of Detroit. Neighborhoods included in this project are Dexter-Linwood, Davison, and Buffalo-Charles. Approximately 475 lead service lines will be replaced as a part of the project.
  • City of White Cloud for $4,065,000:  This project includes the verification of approximately 200 service line materials and the removal and replacement of an estimated 420 lead and galvanized service lines throughout the City of White Cloud.

 

Earmarks through Federal American Rescue Plan Act: 

  • City of Lincoln Park for $2,500,000:  This project involves the replacement of approximately 300 lead water service lines in the City of Lincoln Park. All lead service lines will be replaced with copper.
  • Delta Charter Township for $10,000,000.  This project will construct a parallel force main from the West Willow Lift Station in the West Willow Sewer district in Delta Charter Township. Additionally, the project will include improvements to the West Willow Lift Station to accommodate the additional force main. The project will increase capacity in the sewer district and provide needed reliability.
  • City of Hamtramck for $10,000,000:  This project involves watermain and lead service line replacement in the City of Hamtramck. A total of 10,825 linear feet of watermain will be replaced in Hamtramck including 252 lead service lines.  Additionally, approximately 284 lead service lines will be replaced throughout Hamtramck’s distribution system.
  • Macomb County for $5,000,000:  This grant will be specifically used for the construction of approximately 3,571 linear feet of 60-inch sewer main.  This sewer interceptor project will reduce combined sewer overflows into Lake St. Clair by conveying combined sewage to the Chapaton Retention Basin for additional system storage during wet weather events. This will also reduce combined sewer overflows from the Chapaton and Martin Retention Treatment Basins into Lake St. Clair.

 

 Descriptions of funding sources

Drinking Water State Revolving Fund: Low-interest loan program to help public water systems finance the costs of replacement and repair of drinking water infrastructure to protect public health and achieve or maintain compliance with federal Safe Drinking Water Act requirements. The DWSRF provides loans to water systems for eligible infrastructure projects. As water systems repay their loans, the repayments and interest flow back into the DWSRF to support new loans. ARPA funding operates as a grant and may be used in combination with loan dollars to reduce the financial burden on communities to pay for capital improvement debt. ARPA funded grants awarded this fiscal year: $218,398,719.

Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF): Used by local municipalities to finance construction of water pollution control projects. These projects include wastewater treatment plant upgrades and expansions, combined or sanitary sewer overflow abatement, new sewers designed to reduce existing sources of pollution, and other publicly owned wastewater treatment efforts that improve water quality. The CWSRF can also finance stormwater infrastructure projects to reduce nonpoint sources of water pollution caused by things like agricultural runoff to lakes, streams, and wetlands. As with the DWSRF, ARPA funds can be used in conjunction with CWSRF loan dollars, thereby reducing the debt communities pay for infrastructure improvements. ARPA-funded grants awarded this fiscal year: $137,982,009.

Drinking Water Asset Management Program: Provides grant funding to assist drinking water suppliers with asset management plan development and updates, and/or distribution system materials inventories as defined in Michigan’s revised Lead and Copper Rule. Awarded this fiscal year: $19,695,817.

Consolidation and Contamination Risk Reduction Program: Established to aid drinking water systems to help remove or reduce PFAS or other contaminants. Awarded this fiscal year: $20,336,215.

Substantial Public Health Risk Project Program: Protects public and environmental health by removing direct and continuous discharges of wastewater from surface or groundwater. Awarded this fiscal year: $8,000,000.

 

Additional Background

  • Since January 2019 the State of Michigan has invested over $4 billion to upgrade drinking water, stormwater, and wastewater facilities across the state, supporting over 57,000 jobs.
  • In 2022, Governor Whitmer signed a package of bills to help communities access funding for water infrastructure.
OC Displays Pride in Lions Lighting Courthouse in Blue

OC Displays Pride in Lions Lighting Courthouse in Blue

by | Jan 25, 2024 | Regional News

Oakland County Displays Pride in Lions Lighting Courthouse in Blue

Post Date:01/25/2024 10:28 AM

Pontiac, Mich. – Oakland County is lighting up the Sixth Circuit Court Building with blue lights in support of the NFC North Champion Detroit Lions.

Beginning tonight through Sunday, the white exterior of the upper part of the courthouse will be bathed in a color similar to the Lions’ iconic uniforms.

Fans driving by the Oakland County government campus, located at 1200 N. Telegraph Road in Pontiac, who want to show their Lions pride are welcome to stop to take a selfie in front of the circuit court building on any of these nights. There’s parking in the lot just south of the courthouse.

Oakland County’s electronic roadside signs on northbound Telegraph on the government campus will also have celebratory messages cheering on the team.

The last time the courthouse was illuminated was in November during the days leading up to Veterans Day, in which it was lit in green to honor those who served in the military.

Go Lions!