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City Council Meeting Recap: May 19, 2025

May 20, 2025

We’re sharing a recap of the most recent City Council meeting on May 19. The full video is available to watch on our YouTube channel at youtube.com/cityofberkley.

Councilmember Black Announcement

In addition to serving on Council, Councilmember Black is also an officer in the Army. At the beginning of the meeting, he announced that he will be leaving in a few weeks for a deployment of nine months to a year. He intends to continue his obligation as a Councilmember by joining future meetings virtually.

Proclamations for LGBTQIA+ Pride Month and Juneteenth

Councilmember Vilani shared a proclamation recognizing June as LGBTQIA+ Pride Month in the City of Berkley. We strive to be an exceptional and welcoming place to live, work, play, learn, grow a business, and raise a family for all people of diverse backgrounds. We support the right of every citizen to experience equality and freedom from discrimination, and our community members who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual, and nonbinary are a vital part of our strong community.

Councilmember Black shared a proclamation recognizing June 19 as Juneteenth Celebration Day in the City of Berkley. Juneteenth is a holiday marking the end of slavery in the United States, and has been recognized as an official state holiday in Michigan since 2005. We call upon our community to pause and reflect on our nation’s history of slavery and oppression, to celebrate the progress made thus far in ending slavery and the equal rights milestones that have followed, and to acknowledge that more progress must be made to ensure those Americans of African descent are truly free and equal as we move toward a brighter future together.

First Reading of Updated PUD Application

Council approved the first reading of an amendment to the Planned Unit Development that was previously approved for a multiple-family development on the east side of Coolidge Highway (“The Columbia”). Amendments to the previously approved plans require the same process as submitting a new application, with a public hearing that was held at the March 18, 2025, Planning Commission meeting. Following the positive recommendation from the Planning Commission, the PUD amendment was presented at this Council meeting.

The updates to the PUD include consolidating all units into one building (previously, the property was going to span two buildings), decreasing the unit count from 57 to 51 units, and converting the mansard roof into a flat deck roof. Additional updates can be found in the meeting packet.

Event Approvals

Three exciting summer event applications were approved for the Berkley Art Bash (June 14), the Berkley Pride Block Party (June 22), and the Berkley Street Art Fest (July 12). These events draw both residents and visitors from other communities to our downtown to experience all that Downtown Berkley has to offer!

Budget Presentation, Public Hearing, and Associated Resolution Adoptions

Budget Presentation & Public Hearing

Our City Manager and Deputy Finance Director presented the proposed 2025-2026 operating budget, sharing an overview of several factors impacting the budget. The $37 million budget invested into our community maintains essential services while preserving a healthy 28% fund balance, ensuring that our City remains financially stable while meeting our residents' needs. The budget is guided by the priorities of our Strategic Framework, which was passed by City Council in January 2025.

The full presentation is available by clicking here, and some highlights are below:

Infrastructure investments remain a top priority, with continued focus on water main replacements, road repairs, and the state-mandated lead service line replacement program.
The budget includes community improvements like updates to the Community Center restrooms and Community Field 1 concession stand, along with our chipper service that returned in April 2025 and curbside yard waste collection.
A new Public Improvement Fund has been established with $250,000 annually plus $315,000 this fiscal year to prepare for future capital needs, including the eventual necessary replacement of Fire Engine 4.
One challenge we face is that Michigan property tax laws limit revenue growth, although costs continue to rise due to inflation. The difference between originally intended millage rates and current rates represents a 29.2% reduction in available funding.
The overall millage for city operating millages dropped from 15.6443 to 15.4622, specifically due to the “Headlee” millage reduction factor of .9861. The overall millage for the DDA operating millage dropped from 1.8014 to 1.7763, specifically due to the “Headlee” millage reduction factor of .9861.

Following the presentation, a public hearing was held to give our community the opportunity to offer public input on the proposed budget and millage rates. Council passed the proposed budget and millage rates, which will be in effect from July 1-June 30, 2026, and adopted its associated resolutions.

Resolution Adoptions

A six-year Capital Improvement Plan was included as part of the budget, with planned investments into road improvements, water distribution systems, storm/sewer/drainage systems, machinery and equipment, buildings and property, vehicles, and parks, recreation, and cultural services. The CIP, with detailed information about the projects planned for the next fiscal year, is available starting on page 56 of our budget document. It was first approved by the Planning Commission, then by Council at this meeting.
The current service fee for residential and commercial collection/disposal of solid waste that was established by Council in December 2023 is set to expire on June 30, 2024. The service fee requires a resolution to be readopted, extended or revised, and the fee was adopted at the same level currently in place for the period of July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026.
Water and sewer variable rates will increase by about 10%, but average users will not see a 10% increase in their total bill (a resident would need to use more than 1,000 units per quarter to see a 10% total increase). The way that the rates are calculated is per one unit, so the presentation showed the updated costs per one unit. The water and sewer variable rates will increase by 10% and 9.95% respectively per unit, while the Ready to Serve fixed charges for both water and sewer will not change. This is reflected in a total increase of 2.94% for one unit of water used. Your utility bill also includes a storm water fee and a refuse fee, both of which are not changing.

Fee Schedule Updates

Updates to the adopted fee schedule were shared with Council, with minor adjustments made in the Community Development and City Clerk sections. The 90-day Solicitation Fee, Individual Ice Cream Peddler License, and Cruise Fest Individual License increased from $25 to $50, bringing us in line with our surrounding communities. A document recording fee of $30 was also added, which is the fee to record deeds and other documents with Oakland County. The Community Development department added fees for temporary sign permits per the updated zoning ordinance, as well as fees for whole house generators which were mistakenly removed when the updated fee schedule was initially adopted. The fee schedule is available in its entirety by clicking here.

Ground Lease Agreement Amendment with AT&T

The City has had a Ground Lease with AT&T since 2004 for a cell tower located near the Community Center. While the lease terms run through October 2029, AT&T reached out to discuss the terms around a renewal early as they are analyzing their inventory of infrastructure against their needs and new technology. We were able to negotiate a planned renewal at the same rate as our current lease, with a provision to allow us to modify and/or replace equipment in order to be in compliance with current or future federal, state or local mandated applications, including but not limited to emergency 911 services. Council approved this amendment, and a full lease amendment will come before them at a later date after review from the City Attorney.