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A Plymouth for Everyone, Kellogg Park, Plymouth, MI (2026)

04/05/2026

At the March 2nd and 16th Plymouth City Commission meetings, the board approved formal requests for Federal funding of a needed pedestrian connector between Old Village and Hines Drive. The city issued Resolutions of Support to both Michigan senators and Plymouth’s US House rep.

The project, which would be along Wilcox Rd, is long-desired fix to a significant gap in pedestrian access to Hines Drive for Plymouth residents. In fact, greater Plymouth is generally lacking in non-motorized connections to one of the metro area’s recreational jewels.

In the 3.5 miles that Hines Drive traverses Plymouth, there are only three suitable pedestrian connections (meaning, a sidewalk you’d take children or an elderly person on): Haggerty Rd to the north, Riverside Dr, and Northville Rd to the north of Old Village. Four if you count the 1-275 bike trail. Some other routes get tantalizingly close but aren’t acceptable connections while other gaps and missed connections are simply maddening. It’s clear that most of the city as well as the Lake Pointe and east Ann Arbor Trail neighbors have been poorly served with respect to pedestrian access to Hines Drive. Hines has been primarily a drive-to (or bike-to, for older riders) destination for generations. The attached image shows where the connections are acceptable and where they’re lacking.

Plymouth City has made a Wilcox Rd multi-modal connection a priority but there’s no pending project at the moment. The city won’t know for up to a year if the 2026 request for Federal funding is approved. Also, engineering for the connector needs to be completed. City admin is looking to get this preliminary work done with support from the county. Otherwise, the commission would need to authorize specific funding for this. However the city realistically can’t do the full project without support from the county, state, or federal government. Furthermore Wilcox Rd is a county road so even if the commission chose to spend the roughly $850K estimated cost for the project, they’re not authorized to do this unilaterally. For now, with the Federal request sent, the priority should be getting the engineering underway so the project is closer to being shovel-ready and pressing all available levers for financial support.

City leadership, including prior commissions at least as far back as 2022 deserve credit for elevating this connector from a nice idea to a tangible project that is suitable for requesting outside support. It was included on the board’s one year tasks for 2026 and individuals from both the city admin and the commission have been working with the County to secure funding.

Beyond the county’s required involvement in modifications to a corridor ( in this case specifically, Wilcox Rd) under their jurisdiction, there are important long-term initiatives and plans that address the poor non-motorized connectivity to Hines Drive. Namely, the county has a Connecting the Rouge initiative, and both the county and SEMCOG address needed connections in their long-range planning (links below).

Finally, in addition to the requested Federal funding, there are opportunities for state and county funding. One opportunity in particular that I’m hoping the city is pursuing is a Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP) grant from the state. There are two pathways to a TAP grant, one from the state directly, the other via SEMCOG. Presumably competition is fierce, but two communities have great examples of TAP-funded connections to Hines Dr: Northville (6 Miles and Hines connector) and Westland (trail and bridge along Ann Arbor Trail near Nankin Mills).

References:

City Commission Agenda / meeting video for March 2nd and March 16th meetings

https://www.plymouthmi.gov/agenda_center

Wayne County Connecting the Rouge initiative

https://www.connectingtherouge.org/

Wayne County Parks Master Plan

https://www.waynecountymi.gov/files/assets/mainsite/v/1/community-events-amp-recreation/documents/parks/2026-2030-wayne-county-parks-and-recreation-plan.pdf

SEMCOG Bicycle and Mobility Planning Site

https://www.semcog.org/regional-planning-and-projects/transportation-mobility/bicycle-and-pedestrian-mobility/

TAP Historic Project Search (key word: Hines)

https://www.railstotrails.org/site/content/search/

03/19/2026

In recent Township news:

On March 10th, the Board of Trustees voted 4-3 to approve a second amendment to the Brownfield Tax Increment Financing (TIF) plan for the Hillside Overlook Apartments project. This project was already approved by the Township multiple times over the last 6-8 years for both the site plan and the Brownfield TIF but developers have struggled with the costs and complexity of the project.

Before spending decades as Hillside Inn, Ernesto’s and finally the Courthouse Grille (torn down in 2023), the site at 41661 Plymouth Rd was apparently a dump. The old landfill, combined with alluvial sediments, requires an extensive cleanup, methane remediation, and an engineering solution to separate the proposed residences from contaminated soil.

While the development team had already requested a Brownfield agreement to help fund the remediation, they returned to the Township following passage at the state level of an amendment to the Brownfield Refinancing Act. This amendment targets “missing middle” income housing and provides extra juice to Brownfield projects that set aside affordable housing for qualified middle-income tenants. And according to the applicants, further increases to development and remediation costs mean the project likely can’t move forward in its current form without the additional TIF support. The details are complex and you can read further about them in the agenda packet, but the long story short is that the same project continues to move forward and the approved TIF is much larger than before. The apartments will be market-rate for the most part, but 20% of the units will be held to a reduced rent level and made available only to renters within a specified income band.

Following a grilling by some Board members and a compelling closing argument by the financial backer of the project - Kevin Kovachevich of District Capital - the vote meandered like a knuckleball after it first appeared that only commissioner Doroshewitz was vested in moving the motion forward. But ultimately Commissioner Clinton, Supervisor Curmi, and Clerk Vorva joined him and voted to pass the amendment.

While this was essentially the Board rehashing an approved project, circumstances presented them with another opportunity to choose between accepting a perpetual brownfield site or facilitating a significant housing development (109 units) adjacent to the city. The significant TIF recapture means the Township won’t see much tax benefit from this development for a long time, but there will be a tangible impact on the local housing market. Also, apartments on this parcel should go a long way toward increasing pedestrian connectivity between Haggerty Rd and Old Village.

References:

-Township meeting recorded 3/10/2026 and agenda packet: https://www.plymouthtownshipmi.gov/government/agendas_and_minutes/board_of_trustees.php

-Township meeting minutes for 11/12/2024
-Township meeting minutes for 7/11/2023
-Township meeting minutes for 12/14/2021

-Latest site plan available here: https://cms5.revize.com/revize/plymouthtownshipmi/Community%20Development/Current%20Projects/2025/PC-2502_Approved_Preliminary_Site_Plan-20240909.pdf?t=202501091300450&t=202501091300450

- Warner Norcross brief summary of State bills:
https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/new-brownfield-redevelopment-law-6046650/

And did you know? The Township and City each have Brownfield Development Authorities and both have approved projects that are currently open (meaning they are capturing tax revenue). This includes the Townes at Mill St and Plymouth Walk on Ann Arbor Rd. See here for a list of all active projects in Michigan:https://www.michigan.gov/egle/-/media/Project/Websites/egle/Documents/Legislative/RRD/Brownfields/Report-CY24-Brownfield-Redevelopment-Financing-Act.pdf

03/15/2026

Plymouth can be sliced and diced in multiple ways (the most obvious distinction being City vs Township) but in my mind, Plymouth is one community with distinct neighborhoods. There’s a reason people call the city “downtown Plymouth.” It’s seen as the beating heart of a broader area that includes the township.

Plymouth is also a suburban community that is integral to the fabric of western Wayne County. Not only does downtown Plymouth attract visitors from neighboring communities, but many Plymouth residents work, go to school, and shop in those communities as well.

And what is Plymouth not? First, it’s not living in the past. The city is not a railroad destination anymore, the township is not a farming community, and air rifles are no longer a driver of economic activity. We do have historical assets that remind us of the past, but people living their day-to-day lives do so focused on the present and future. Plymouth is also not a Hallmark movie set, a small village, or a rural community. And despite some assumptions. Plymouth is not a community only of homeowners, nor only of nuclear families, nor only of the upper middle class.

While every resident and visitor has their own personal relationship to the community, I intend to focus on the bigger picture. That doesn’t mean looking at Plymouth as a monolith, but it does mean utilizing statistics, maps, trends, and maintaining an understanding of how Plymouth fits within the broader region. I’m also not going to dwell on history or personalities.

I do bring my own perspective of Plymouth and I don’t intend to leave that at the door. However my goal isn’t to make others see the community through my eyes. Rather I hope to open some eyes and broaden some minds about what Plymouth is and what it can be in the future.

03/01/2026

Test.

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Plymouth, MI
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