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a little bit about the LEED program
and about the mayor's 100.
And we'll be back with that information shortly.
But mayor, in the meantime, let's cover a few topics.
Welcome to the show.
Thank you.
Thank you.
I know as we were talking before we started,
I realized how much we have been doing this last month.
There's a lot to talk about.
Busy time of year.
It is.
Like us, the city starts over its new year July 1
and a lot of things have to happen just because of that.
Yes.
But almost on the verge of passing another annual budget
caused that stand.
Yeah, so that's on the agenda tomorrow.
So tomorrow morning at our committee of the whole,
we'll be voting on that.
And it's a balanced budget after we got passed to me
by state law.
I remind people that.
We can't run a deficit like other units of government.
And I feel good about the budget.
We made some changes, especially over the last couple weeks.
But a few notable things in the budget.
We expanded the neighborhood matching fund.
Last year, it was $50,000.
In this year's budget, it's $75,000.
Let's dive into that just a little bit,
because you've been making the city's been making awards
out of that neighborhood matching grant fund.
A little bit about the projects that
have been funded this past year.
We have.
So we just finished up around about four weeks ago
and gave out over 15 awards, small from everything
from 500 to 2,500.
And there's quite a variety.
There's funds for neighborhood murals,
some neighborhood green space and community garden space.
There's some funds for events and activities.
I think the really cool thing is that some of the allocations
are for projects that are being organized by youth.
So there's one in there to honor parents in the neighborhood.
So there's some great projects that we are funding
through that program.
And I'm excited to see this next round.
It was the very first round.
So we had a lot of, we were learning ourselves,
but there's a great review team that has been put together.
But this time with it being the first round,
we tried to be really intentional about doing outreach
to make sure that we had applications and proposals
from throughout the city, not just one certain neighborhood.
So we did a lot of outreach.
And I anticipate that will continue.
Expanding that by 50% so $75,000?
Yeah, so in this year's budget, if it's past tomorrow,
that allocation will be $75,000.
So in next year's fiscal year, we'll
be able to give out $75,000.
So roughly $25,000 a quarter.
OK, what else in this new budget?
Yeah, so in the budget also, we finalized the housing fund,
the affordable housing fund.
So we figured out a way to seed that with some revenue
from pilots and other types of fees that will come into the city
over time.
It's about just over $1 million.
And I know we want to grow that fund
and we have a plan to grow that fund.
But it's definitely a start.
And then we solidified the committee
that will oversee the housing fund.
And so those individuals will hopefully
be appointed within the next week, or not next week.
I'd say probably next six weeks.
And then in July, the commission will
have a three-hour work session to review the other 11
recommendations that came out of the Housing Advisory Committee.
So the Housing Advisory Committee, they did two things.
They looked at the Housing Strategies Report.
And they prioritized which ones they
think we should do immediately and during the midterm.
And then they made some recommendations
about the housing fund.
So from that work came 11 recommendations.
And so we have a pretty significant packet of information
as a body, and we'll review that and make decisions
in July as a commission.
Yeah, so that's exciting.
Let me tell you about one other thing in the budget.
So the other thing in the budget that really
came about in the last about 10 days or a week,
because we just met last week, was that the city commission
made a couple decisions around community engagement,
SAFE, which is the SAFE Alliance recommendations
around youth violence, and then also around community and police
relations.
So at the end of every fiscal year,
we have what's called the Contingency Fund.
So they're funds that are in a Contingency Fund.
And typically, if those are not used,
they roll over into the next year's budget.
So this year, in our Contingency Fund,
at the end of June 30, we'll have roughly $226,000
left in our Fiscal 16 Contingency Fund.
So we decided to take those dollars and to allocate them.
And we're putting $100,000 to community engagement,
because we know how critical that is.
And it can't just be a one-time event.
We really need a plan to do ongoing monthly community
engagement around critical issues in the city.
So we're putting funds aside to do community engagement
for the entire year.
And then we're taking $126,000, and we're
putting that to the implementation
of the SAFE recommendations.
And then we made some budget adjustments.
We cut a few things.
We reduced the amount we were putting in capital
to allocate $1 million over the next five years.
So $1 million every year for the next five years
to community and police relations.
We're not sure how those dollars are
going to be spent just yet, because we want
to do some community engagement first
before we make decisions.
But we wanted to make it really clear to the community
that improving community and police relations
is a top priority to us.
So those are some big changes.
Very big.
And this kind of comes in on the heels of what
was a report that came out right before our last meeting.
We didn't get a chance to discuss.
But the equity profile report for Grand Rapids.
And it's a lot of information.
It's a huge amount of data to digest,
but some takeaways that you saw out of that.
Yeah, so that is a great report.
If you haven't had a chance to read it, I encourage you to do so.
It's over 100 pages, so you need to take some time
to dive into it.
Some of it is pretty detailed when
it comes to breaking out statistics, particularly
around demographics.
For me, it affirmed a lot of what we already know,
but having the solid data and benchmark data gives,
in my opinion, gives us really good information
that we can put into.
We've talked about having a racial equity scorecard.
And I think the data in that report
provides a lot of data that we want to include in a scorecard
to show where are we and where do we want to be.
But it breaks down data geographically within the city
and then by gender and race, around employment,
around education, access, transportation, access
to transportation and transit.
And it's a really informative report.
You can find it online.
I posted it on my Facebook page right after I get done reading it.
But it's a good, if you're interested in where we are today
as a community, that's a good place to start.
If you're interested in the data, I should say.
If you're interested in really good statistics.
And what I like about it, too, is that it's city-specific.
So as you know, there's a lot of data out there.
But some of that data is county-wide.
Some of it is regional.
So there was recently a regional dashboard.
But that includes 13 counties.
And for me, I really want city-specific data.
And this is what that report provides.
OK.
All right, so 100 pages, but worth the read in it.
It's worth the read.
Good examination of our city.
So after you're done here tonight with this live show,
you're heading to a forum on community and police relations.
Is that correct?
That is correct.
So the city commission, about two weeks ago,
really in response to concerns that were brought to us
during our commission meetings, we
decided to plan five community meetings focused
on doing really two things.
One, providing an update to the community
on what we've done with the 12-point plan,
an update on the safe recommendations,
and an update on the land birth recommendations.
And then, and so we're spending at each meeting,
and I went to a meeting earlier today.
Today was the first of five.
And we spent about 30 minutes just providing information
to those who were in attendance.
And then we broke into groups, and we
have trained facilitators who are going around in the groups,
getting feedback, asking specific questions.
Do you think the city's on the right track?
What are we missing?
What do we need to do better?
What would you like to see from the city when
it comes to training?
So there's a number of questions.
And we have a dialogue.
We get feedback.
And then we also have a list of priorities
where those who participate can vote on what they think
should be the number one priority.
So tonight, we have a community session
at Stocking School here on the West Side.
And then we have three additional ones.
So earlier today I was in the third ward.
Tonight's in the first ward.
We have another one in the third ward, and then second ward.
And then we're doing one on Friday night
that will be in Spanish.
Can you tell us a little bit about how the one earlier today
went?
Yeah, it went well.
During the day, it's, I think, a little bit harder.
I'm hopeful that tonight there's a greater turnout.
But I think it went well.
And I think people had a chance to speak their mind
and share their concerns and their opinions.
And we were able to capture all of that
because we have a really great team of facilitators.
And it was structured in a way that we
have people who are tracking the feedback.
In addition to the person who's facilitating the discussion.
So I think we'll be able to, at the end of all five,
we'll be able to aggregate all of the feedback
and really start to look at some patterns and themes, which
I think is what's most important.
You had been saying that community engagement is
a huge focus right now.
And it's kind of evident with the forums
that are going on, with the public hearings
and the meetings that led up to the budget,
with the community input on doing activities and events.
It does really sound like a very deliberate action related
time we're moving forward in this city.
Yeah, that is our intent.
I mean, we've done some good community engagement in the past,
but we really need to do it in an ongoing way
and make sure that people are aware of all
of the different things happening at the city.
I think in the past, we respond to something.
So even the Parks and Rec Master Plan,
which is also on the budget or on the agenda tomorrow
to approve, when we decided to do that master plan,
we had a very deliberate process to do community engagement.
And that's typically what you find at the city
is that there's something we're working on
we'll go out and do community engagement.
But it's not ongoing and proactive.
There's not a process that we put into place where we say,
OK, these are the 12 things we're working on right now.
Do you have questions?
Do you have feedback?
And we need to do a better job of that.
So how do you find the citizens of Grand Rapids
pretty eager to engage, to be a part, to give their voice?
Yeah, you know, my answer is yes.
However, it's interesting as an elected official
because typically, the people I'm hearing from
are the people who are calling me
because they have a complaint or a problem
or something very specific they want to talk about.
And that's important.
And that's important feedback that we hear.
But I want to be more proactive as well.
So for people who aren't angry about something
or they don't want to call in and complain
or make a recommendation or share a concern or an idea,
so the people who aren't kind of self-selecting
to reach out to me or to their commissioners,
I want to make sure that they have a space where they're
comfortable also sharing their perspective
and having their voice heard.
And that's why I think the kind of reactive type
of community engagement is important,
but also being much more proactive and going out
and asking people for their input
before a final decision is made.
Well, that Park Master Plan was also another one
of those things, looking for citizen input.
Let's use the last 45 seconds to talk a little bit
about that and in the budget.
Yeah, so that is on the agenda tomorrow.
You may remember that it came before the commission
a few months ago and we actually sent it back.
That's a lengthy document as well.
It's like 280 pages.
I know, because now I've read it twice.
I've read it over the weekend.
And I have to say that the one that's coming before us
tomorrow, the revised version, is in my opinion
much better than the original version.
It's more detailed.
It's more thoughtful.
They increased detail related to the maps
and some of the recommendations and priorities.
And so I think what you will find,
if you take some time to go and look at the draft
that we're gonna be voting on tomorrow,
you will find a really comprehensive Parks Master Plan.
Okay, so eager to learn a little bit more about that.
Well, as we close out this segment,
we'll return with Mayor's guest, Shannon Harris.
She is with the Department of the Community's Children's
Office, a program director there.
A lot more she does as well.
So we'll learn about that after this break.
This is City Connection on JRTV's Livewire,
Channel 24.
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Hello, I'm so glad to have with me Shannon Harris, who I get to work with a lot at the
city on a number of projects.
She's my go-to for a number of programs, including the Mayor's Youth Council and Kidspeak and
the LEED program and the Mayor's 100, which we're going to talk about today.
But then also she helps with the partnership between the city and Grand Rapids Public Schools,
which we have a really strong partnership with them.
And the Our Community's Children, that department was actually set up to help fulfill the work
that both we have and JRPS have about how do we support young people in the city.
So I'll just welcome Shannon.
Thank you for being here.
So for people that don't know you, I want to talk a little bit about who you are and
how long you've been with the city.
So born and raised in Grand Rapids, went to JRPS schools and then went away to college
and actually graduated from Florida A&M University and then came back and I've been back ever
since.
I worked for a small newspaper, the Grand Rapids Times, and then the City of Grand Rapids
through the museum for about six and a half years.
And I've been with City Hall, Our Community's Children, for 14 and a half years.
Yeah, I'm a program coordinator, so our youth programs to better prepare young people for
college work and life, and I know it helps that I look so young, all the students think
I'm one of them, you know, so it's been a great experience thus far.
Wonderful.
So for people who aren't familiar with Our Community's Children, why don't you talk
a little bit about the department and what you do.
Sure.
Yeah, so Our Community's Children was established back in 1998.
As you said, it was a collaboration between the Grand Rapids Public Schools and the City
of Grand Rapids because they have shared interest to really better prepare young people for
whatever their next level in life is.
So that's graduated from high school, if that's getting a job, if it's post-secondary.
We try to create programs to really better prepare them for that.
And so I coordinate programs like the Mayor's Youth Council, our lead program.
Our Kids Speak was our annual youth forum where young people from kindergarten through
twelfth grade can give voice to issues that are a concern to them to elected officials.
And then we also have the Mayor's 100 campaign and a thousand of other programs and initiatives.
Yes, and I should also add, I know on this program I've talked before about the race
and equity here work that we're doing with the government alliance on race and equity.
We have a small team from the city who make up our team and as part of that cohort and
you serve on that team and are really focused on racial equity for young people in the city.
Absolutely.
Yeah, and part of that is really that youth employment.
So how do we provide opportunities and pathways and pipelines for young people to be gainfully
employed, meaningfully employed.
Yeah.
So it's been a great experience.
It has.
You've been great on that team.
Thank you.
And maybe let's go through those.
So for people who aren't familiar with the Mayor's Youth Council, why don't you talk
about that?
Yeah, so the Mayor's Youth Council started in 99.
I wasn't around during that time, but Mayor Logie was our mayor at that time and we created
this program to really have a direct link between youth and elected officials, especially
the mayor, because there wasn't a program that was around that really allowed young
people to speak directly to elected officials about issues of concern to them.
So since 99, we've had Mayor's Youth Councils and we just concluded our council for this
year.
So we had about 15, 16 students that were GRPS students that live in one of the city's
three wards to talk to you every month about issues of concern to them and issues that
come before the city commission.
They also participated in community service projects.
They actually held their own meetings, outside meetings with you.
So they got a chance to learn how to facilitate a meeting, how to put an agenda together,
how to really work together.
And then our end of the year program is our Kids Speak event.
So that's our annual event where we have young people come to City Hall and talk about
issues.
So this year's issue was about racial equity.
And so our young people on our Mayor's Youth Council created essay prompts and then they
actually recruited other youth to pick one of those essay prompts and write a testimony.
So they wrote a testimony.
We had about 27 young people come to City Hall and we had, obviously, you were there
and some of our other city commissioners, county commissioners, state legislators and
community leaders there to listen.
So often when decisions are made, young people aren't around the table.
So this is kind of a role reversal where young people are coming to you all and saying, this
is what we need in the community to make our lives better.
So it was an eye-opening experience really for me because I was really surprised at how
much our young people really knew about racial equity.
So that was a great experience.
Yeah.
It was a great experience.
I was so lucky that I get to spend time with a group of really awesome young people and
get to know them and answer their questions but also to encourage them to be leaders in
the future.
Absolutely.
I know they went to Lansing.
Yes.
This past year was the first year I had an entire group the entire year.
So last year it was split between Mayor Hartwell and I and so I was only with them for a few
months.
So it was a really great experience.
It is.
So the young people are always so candid and they are really new to city government which
is why we created the Mayor's Youth Council so young people can be seen and heard at City
Hall.
They really appreciate their time with you and they learn so much throughout their school
year about city government that they wouldn't have known prior to and one of our outcomes
is that the young people that are in both Mayor's Youth Council and our lead program
actually registered a vote when they turn 18 and actually become lifelong voters.
Yeah.
It's great.
Yeah.
Shannon doesn't lead this group but I also have a Mayor's Millennial advisory group.
So I have the Mayor's Youth Council that I meet with monthly and then I have a Mayor's
Millennial group that I also work meet with monthly again trying to encourage engagement
with the next generation but also be a mentor to them to be leaders and they shadow me at
meetings.
We do service projects together and they're a pretty awesome team as well.
Yeah.
Yeah.
So let's talk about lead and the Mayor's 100 which I know you've been working hard on
for the last few months.
Yes.
So the lead program started by your predecessor Mayor Hartwell back in 2010 at his State of
the City address.
He called for businesses to step up to the plate to hire young people ages 15 to 21 at
that time and since then we've expanded the age maximum of the 24.
So we wanted to create a program to better prepare those young people to go into the
working world.
So we created the lead which is an academic stance for leadership and employment achievement
and direction.
It's a civic engagement leadership and employment program.
It's about 80 hours of training that young people go through so 15 to 24 that live in
the city.
So we want them to live within one of the city's three wards.
The training happens at City Hall.
So it's a very comprehensive training.
So it's not just how to write a resume and cover letter and how to interview but it's
also how do you expand or enhance your public speaking skills.
They also take the disc behavioral assessment the word keys test.
We also have an acting class that really helps them build their confidence.
We have a dressing for success class.
We have a stress management class so about 80 hours and then they're eligible for a job.
So we want them to go through the same pre-employment process as any other candidate for employment
but the application pool is a lot smaller.
So for instance if we have three people that want to work in our economic development department
at the City of Grand Rapids then those three people are actually going to interview with
the economic department and then the economic department decides which one of those three
they want to work for them and so they become the employer of records.
So the Mayor's 100 business same thing they become the employer of record for the student
and through Grant dollars we're so grateful for the WK Kellogg Foundation for funding
this program as well as the City of Grand Rapids.
So we pay for 50% of their wages through Grant dollars and then the business or the department
pays for the other 50%.
So our Mayor's 100 businesses we have about 80 no 58 and we're looking for 100 that's
the goal.
That's the goal.
Yeah so we're really looking for those businesses that want to give these young people an opportunity
and really mentor them and not just employ them but also mentor them while they're there.
So we had a job fair last week Thursday at City Hall.
So we had about 22 or 23 Mayor's 100 businesses there to interview the students and we found
some great matches.
So a couple things about that I've been out pretty actively even just today I met with
a business asking them to sign on as a Mayor's 100 business and to hire a young person from
our community.
So I'm actively out trying to recruit businesses to join us in that call.
And then also we have been much more, sorry word, aggressive I should say, well that's
probably not a good word.
We've been encouraging departments within the city to also be a part of the program
and to hire young people within the city.
So one of my goals is to have 15 to 20 young people hired within the city in different
departments throughout the city.
And then hopefully they will be able to apply for a full-time job someday.
Absolutely.
And we actually hired three people in our department.
Yes.
So yes.
So we're getting there.
We've got some of the other departments that have stepped up to say yes, we want to participate.
Absolutely.
Yeah.
And that's one thing we've talked a lot about not just within our group and the work that
you're doing but also at the city is how do we recruit people who live in the city to
work at the city.
Absolutely.
That's so critical and we have a lot of openings coming up in the next few years.
We actually have several hundred retirements slated and there's going to be an incredible
opportunity for people if they want to work at the city to apply and join our team.
Yeah.
And the lead program is a great pipeline for that because they're already in City Hall
during their training and they get to meet you and some of the other elected officials
and department heads.
So they get a taste and a feel of what it's like to work for the city during the training.
So if you're a business and you want to join, there's a website dedicated to this.
But also why don't you share if someone's watching and they have a child or they're
a youth who may be interested in both applying for the Mayor's Youth Council or for the
lead program.
How do they do that?
Absolutely.
So our website is ourcommunitieschildren.com.
So communities with the YS.com and then they just look for programs and then click
on to either the lead tab or the Mayor's Youth Council tab.
We're also looking, we're actually looking for young people 15 to 24 that live in the
city of Grand Rapids to apply.
Our second cohort this summer starts on Monday so they need to get their applications in
really quickly.
We're actually going to be at the Cook Library tomorrow from 4 to 6 and we're actually there
right now.
We're acting out there about the public library downtown from 4 to 6 tonight.
Great.
I have to give my colleague Shayla a shout out for filling in for me.
So if you're listening to, you know, young people listening to this right now, get down
to the public library today until 6 and then maybe tomorrow at the Cook Library.
So either way or they can obviously apply online.
A business can also apply online as well to be a Mayor's 100 business.
Mayor's Youth Council applications will go online around July.
So next month already, oh my gosh, I can't believe it.
So for the next cohort of the Mayor's Youth Council.
Great.
And then we only have a couple minutes left but as we close, why don't we just touch
on to college through college which is an initiative that was launched last year in partnership
with the city and a number of the universities and colleges in town.
You want to talk about that?
Yeah.
So our two college through college initiative is really geared towards making sure that
young people have post-secondary plans.
So if that's a two year, four year or accreditation, we really want to encourage young people to
take that next step.
So we've actually responded in creating a place-based response at the public library
third for the T2C studio.
So drop in center for anybody that comes that wants to learn how to get to college but most
importantly get through college to get their degree.
So our goal with that is to support students not just to get into college but then also
to complete.
So we want to make sure that that completion rate is where it needs to be and then hopefully
they'll be able to through that process develop relationships and connections and decide to
stay here in the community when they graduate.
So thank you for your work on that too.
That's been a really exciting initiative that we were able to launch last year.
So with that, any final things before we finish up?
I think we're going to go into a video montage that we created for the last cohort.
So it kind of gives you a kind of a feel of what the students went through through their
lead training.
Awesome.
Thank you.
Thank you, Shannon, for your work.
Thanks.
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Living my life like it's golden
Living my life like it's golden
Living my life like it's golden, living my life like it's golden
Living my life like it's golden, living my life like it's golden
Living my life like it's golden, living my life like it's golden
Living my life like it's golden, living my life like it's golden
Living my life like it's golden, living my life like it's golden
Living my life like it's golden, living my life like it's golden
Living my life like it's golden, living my life like it's golden
Living my life like it's golden, living my life like it's golden
Living my life like it's golden, living my life like it's golden
We are doing a lot already through our city services to look at water quality, the fact that we already completed our combined sewer overflow.
So 100% sewer separation that alone reduced the discharge into the river, which we know pollutes eventually the lake.
So about, it must have been last month, we celebrated the completion of that project, which was 30 years in the making and costs probably almost $400 million.
It was a huge investment by our city. And so continuing to do things like that, we also are adding green infrastructure.
Many people probably see the different infrastructure that we're putting on streets to try to capture stormwater runoff.
So if you go down plain field, you see the bioswales that captures runoff.
We've looked at our, you know, through our building department, what can we do with new developments to encourage them to capture water on site.
And in fact, MSU Research Center is doing that in front of their building.
So we're doing what we can as a city, but then we'll also, we are also encouraging developers that as they develop land, they think about water and water quality,
especially preventing stormwater runoff going into our river, which impacts quality of water in our lake.
Okay. Well, and okay, that's what we can do. That's what we can do. I know, you know, that's the struggle.
My energy and how I try to spend my energy is figuring out what can we do right here in our city, in our own community.
We can't control everything that happens at the state level, even, or the national level.
But we have a lot of influence over what we decide to do here locally.
And knowing that we're part of, like going back to the climate mayors, knowing that we're part of and committed along with almost 300 other mayors to collectively work on this issue, I think can be powerful.
Okay. Thank you for that.
Next question is a little bit on a similar topic, but this is from Oscar and it says, is there a possibility of increasing the city's recycling pickup from bi-weekly to weekly?
Oh, you know, we have talked about this at the city quite a bit.
As of right now, we are not looking to that only because the cost of doing that is pretty significant.
So right now, our recycling is paid for. It's free to the homeowner, but we pay for that out of the refuse millage.
And so, and we, and there's a number of reasons why we decided to do recycling one week and refuse every week, but then to have it offset.
And that is really because of equipment that we have, the number of drivers that we have, and then also making sure that that we are able to get out and educate people about recycling to make sure that we don't have high contamination rates.
So I would say down the road, is it a possibility? Yes. If anything, I would love to see us do recycling weekly and refuse every other week.
I would love to switch it. I think if we continue to see increase in recycling and recycling, that's not contaminated. That's a big issue.
So if we take a load to the recycling facility and it's contaminated, what we have to do is it ends up at the incinerator.
And so we want to try to reduce contamination as much as possible.
So I would like to see an increase in recycling, reduction in refuse where we could flip-flop those, but the numbers just aren't there yet.
What about an education program that would maybe further help citizens understand contamination and what that does?
We are doing that. So the nice thing about our current program is that we track everything through the RFDI, RFID code.
And so we're able to tell on, like when the truck comes in, if it's contaminated, what neighborhood that came from.
And then we actually partner with Weemiac to help us with education.
So we'll go out into a neighborhood, we'll flyer them, we'll remind them, we'll put reminders in their water bills.
And then you probably tell from your recycling bin, we added images so we have that big sticker on the top that hopefully helps people as well.
And so we're doing what we can to reduce that contamination. And we actually have, I'd say in the last year and a half, we've seen a reduction in contaminated loads.
One more question on our natural resources here. This one's from Sarah.
So it was the status of bringing back the rapids to Grand Rapids. A lot is happening there.
And then how will it impact our economy, our local economy?
Yeah, that's a great question. There is a lot happening.
In fact, I've had just in the last couple of months, multiple meetings, including a pretty significant meeting with Army Corps of Engineers and Fish and Wildlife.
So for the river restoration project, we have to work with a number of state departments and federal departments.
And right now we are still in the process of finalizing and securing easements along the river because we want to connect our trail.
And then also to submit permits to the federal government for approval of the project.
There's a couple of things that have happened during the environmental study.
We found that we have an entire species of snuffboxed mussels and they are endangered. So they're on the endangered species list.
So we have to work with endangered species to monitor those mussels, to move them, to monitor them, and then to make sure that they're put back safely after the project.
So we're in that process now. And then the largest dam, 6th Street dam there, it acts as a land prey barrier.
So land prey are an invasive species. Again, we want to protect our fish and wildlife.
And so we've had to work on the creation of a hydraulic barrier further upstream to prevent land prey from swimming upstream.
And so that's what we've been working on Army Corps with and Fish and Wildlife is because we have to make sure that that barrier prevents land prey.
Once we get approval for the land prey, so once Army Corps approves the engineering of that land prey barrier, then that will give us really the green light.
We'll be able to finish up our permits. And so if you look at timeline, first thing we need to do is move the mussels.
Second thing we need to build the land prey barrier. And then once that's done, that's when you'll start to see construction in the river.
The plan is to do construction on the east side of the river first. So what you'll see is a big wall built in the middle of the river during low water.
So we'll wait hopefully until after spring where we have low water.
There will be a wall built in the middle of the river. We'll run the water down one side of the river, the west side.
We'll build and do the construction on the east side, then we'll flip-flop.
So that is the timeline and the to-do list.
We're still working on securing funds, but we already have over $5 million dedicated from the federal government.
We're working for state funding, hopefully to remove some of the dams. The state has done that in other cities.
And then we're looking at local funding, and then the rest will be philanthropic dollars.
Last thing about economic development is that there was an economic impact study that was done.
We anticipate that the restoration of the river will have a significant economic impact, both with development along the river,
but then also will increase tourism quite a bit in our city, which will support our hotels and our restaurants and our business owners.
And so I think it's pretty clear that it'll have a significant economic impact, positive impact on the economy.
All right. Well, today is June 12th, and it's the 50th anniversary of a Supreme Court decision you declared today, Loving Day.
You made a proclamation today. Tell us a little bit about that.
Yeah, so we're celebrating the 50th anniversary of Loving v. Virginia, which allowed interracial marriage.
And so I was out on Saturday at the celebration there at Park Church.
And again, as I said on Saturday, it's a celebration of that really significant decision,
but also a celebration of people's love and that they should be able to marry whoever they wish.
So 50 years ago, that decision made, and now there's an event here in Grand Rapids, third year, that this has happened.
Yeah, yeah. That's wonderful. As I said Saturday, glad to celebrate the day, but every day should be Loving Day.
I like that. Perfect celebration.
All right. Well, as we close out, this is City Connection on Community Media Centers, GRTV LiveWire Channel 24 with Mayor Rosalind Bliss.
And we will be back with you next month in July.
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