As my journey around Southeast Michigan draws to a close for the year, I recently made a visit to Allen Park – one of our valued SEMCOG members in Wayne County. It was a pleasure to meet with City Administrator Mark Kibby to share new SEMCOG resources and learn about the exciting things happening in Allen Park.
The most notable highlight was the new City Hall and Police Department, which opened to the public on May 14, 2018. For over 40 years, city offices and the police department operated out of an old church that was supposed to be “temporary.” Let’s just say that this location was definitely not suitable for performing daily work in comfort! And for the last three years, they worked out of another unsuitable rented space.
Moving in and moving on…
The city’s Administration and the Council Municipal Complex Committee worked hard to find a more suitable location near Allen Park’s downtown, which had been a primary goal for many years. The site selected was a former medical office suite in a retail center next to the District Court and near the Community Center and Ice Arena. Just across the street are the Fire Department and the Department of Public Services. In essence, a municipal complex campus has been created, making it more convenient for anyone that needs to do business with the City of Allen Park or the District Court.
Through careful planning and design, the City Hall and Police Department facilities were built without needing to ask residents for additional funding. Project funding was obtained from three sources – selling a portion of the old City Hall property, using unspent funds from a 2010 bond, and drawing from the General Fund balance.
I enjoyed touring and learning about the new municipal complex. The building is inviting and attractive, inside and out. The complex serves the needs of the city’s residents, municipal staff, and elected officials. Congratulations Allen Park!
I have traveled many miles this year to connect with our valued SEMCOG members. As I reflect on my visits in 2018, I am reminded of the many wonderful communities Southeast Michigan has that continue to make it a great place to live, work and play!
In 2015, SEMCOG highlighted the new Dearborn and Westland City Halls in Semscope. Since SEMCOG supports efficient local government, the article focused on how these communities took existing, vacant structures in their cities and refurbished them.
If your community has a new or updated City Hall or municipal building, please let us know!
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