Community events announced for  City’s $40 million flood reduction projects Midland, Michigan –

The Spicer Group is returning to the Midland City Council meeting on July 22 to provide an overview of potential flood reduction infrastructure projects funded by $40 million in the current state budget. The meeting is at 7 p.m. in the Council Chambers at City Hall. The meeting can be watched live on MCTV or viewed on-demand later at cityofmidlandmi.gov/video. In the weeks ahead, the City of Midland and the Midland Business Alliance (MBA) Advisory Committee on Infrastructure are working together to host several opportunities for community members to comment and ask questions. On Monday, July 29, from 7 to 8:30 p.m., the organizations will host a virtual town hall via Zoom.

This webinar will cover the current status of the potential projects and the scoring and ranking process. After a presentation, there will be time to answer participant questions. This Zoom meeting will be recorded to allow citizens to view it later. Participants do not need to preregister but doing so allows for reminders before the event. Find out more at: https://business.mbami.org/events/details/city-of-midland-virtual-townhall-on-flood-resiliencyefforts-14944. On Monday, August 19, from 4 to 7 p.m., there will be an in-person open house at the Council Chambers on the first floor of the Midland City Hall, 333 W. Ellsworth. City staff and engineers, the MBA Advisory Committee, and Spicer Group engineers will be available to meet the community, answer questions and hear feedback. The flexible open house format is designed for citizens to drop in when they are able.

Going forward, there will be monthly updates from the Spicer Group at future City Council meetings.  Residents can find out more at the City of Midland’s flood resiliency page (cityofmidlandmi.gov/floodresiliency) or at the MBA’s flood study page (mbami.org/FloodStudy). The City’s page also accepts comments on the $40 million infrastructure projects. Through the efforts of the MBA Advisory Committee on Infrastructure and state legislators, the City of Midland is the beneficiary of the $40 million.

There are two funding provisions in the budget that support Midland’s efforts to reduce the severity of flooding and enhance flood resiliency: $25 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds, administered by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE), and a $15 million enhancement from the state, administered by the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC).  Each of these grants has specific requirements around reporting, timelines, and how funds can be used. Due to funding-related deadlines, decisions on future projects need to take place by late October. To help the City of Midland expedite the process, the MBA Advisory Committee’s engineering firm, the Spicer Group, is helping City engineers and staff in the process of evaluating, scoring and modeling potential projects. About the MBA Advisory Committee on Infrastructure Formed in 2021 by the Midland Business Alliance Board of Directors, the advisory committee’s structure is made up of MBA board members, members of the community at large, an MBA staff representative, and ex officio (non-voting) representatives from the Four Lakes Task Force, the County of Midland and the City of Midland.

The committee was charged with determining how best to work with local, state and federal partners to address longstanding issues that impact citizens, the business community and economic development. The first task was to address legacy flooding challenges and related sanitary sewer issues. In addition to communicating with stakeholders and collaborators, the committee also reports back regularly to the MBA Board of Directors. Visit www.MBAmi.org/FloodStudy for more information. About the Midland Business Alliance The Midland Business Alliance (MBA) represents more than 3,000 businesses as Midland's business hub. The goal of the MBA is to support the attraction, development and growth of businesses throughout Midland by providing an integrated portfolio of tools and resources. Additionally, the MBA manages the Midland Area Farmers Market and Midland Blooms. Visit www.MBAmi.org for more information.