What's Your Vision for Orchard Lake and Ten Mile Area?

Farmington and Farmington Hills residents have a chance to help shape the developing Orchard Lake and Ten Mile area at an upcoming design workshop.

Officials from the city, the Michigan Municipal League and Lawrence Technological University will host the workshop from 6-8 p.m. Thursday, March 19, at Farmington Hills City Hall, 31555 W. Eleven Mile Road. RSVP online or call (248) 871-2500 by Thursday, March 12.

Farmington Hills and Farmington are among a select group of Michigan cities chosen to receive technical assistance designed to attract and retain residents and employers. Specifically, the Farmington community will get help in coordinating a design plan for the Ten Mile and Orchard Lake Road area through the PlacePlans program.

PlacePlans is a joint effort between the Michigan Municipal League and Michigan State University that helps communities design and plan for transformative placemaking projects. The program is supported by the Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA) and Gov. Rick Snyder’s MIplace Partnership.

in three years, about two dozen communities have received assistance for projects that will benefit cities for years to come, Dan Gilmartin, CEO and executive director of the Michigan Municipal League said in a news release.

“The League has long supported the concept of placemaking, which is creating communities where people want to live, work and play,” he said. “These PlacePlans actually create realistic, tangible designs that make placemaking possible.”

The Lawrence Technical University team has spent the last few months studying the existing conditions of the intersection and the neighborhoods that surround it. Additionally, input has been gathered from area residents and businesses through an online survey.

“This is a great opportunity to help reimagine another important area of our community in a way that supports the needs and interests of today’s residents and businesses as well as tomorrow’s,” Nate Geinzer, an assistant city manager in Farmington Hills, said in the news release.

Farmington Economic and Community Development Director Kevin Christianson said the two cities have a chance to work together with residents and experts to transform the area to “the unique place that it can and should be.”

To learn more about the project, call Geinzer at (248) 871-2507 or ngeinzer@fhgov.com; or Christiansen at (248) 474-5500, Ext. 2226 (office), or kchristiansen@ci.farmington.mi.us.

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