The Oakland County Water Resources Commissioner’s Office, in cooperation with the City of Farmington Hills, will begin construction on the Middlebelt Road Transport and Storage Tunnel Project in December.

The project involves building a 7,600-foot long, 9-foot diameter tunnel under Middlebelt Road from just north of I-696 to 13 Mile Road in Farmington Hills. The tunnel will temporarily store excess water during heavy rain storms to reduce the like likelihood of residential sanitary sewer overflows and basement flooding.

Representatives from the City of Farmington Hills, the Oakland County Water Resources Commissioner’s Office, the design engineers (Wade Trim and NTH) and the contractor (Ric-Man Construction) will be available to answer any questions you may have regarding this project.

The Road Commission of Oakland County (RCOC), in cooperation with the Charter Township of West Bloomfield, will conduct a public input and information meeting on January 7, 2015, from 4 to 7 pm concerning the proposed reconstruction of Orchard Lake Road from 14 Mile Road to Maple Road as a four-lane boulevard.

Meeting details:

• Wednesday, January 7, 2015
• Warner Upper Elementary School (Media Center)
  30303 West 14 Mile Road, Farmington Hills, MI 48334

The purpose of the meeting is to obtain public comment and input regarding the proposed revision of the design for the reconstruction of this section of Orchard Lake Road. The design is part of the federally mandated Environmental Assessment process for the project, which is intended to help ensure the community is involved in the selection of the best design alternative.

Proposed project details:

The original preferred alternative contained in the Environmental Assessment for this portion of the Northwestern Connector project called for Orchard Lake Road to be constructed as a six-lane boulevard with a roundabout at the Powers/Orchard Lake intersection. Due to input from the community and other area road network improvements, including the completion of the Martin Parkway extension, a re-evaluation of the preferred alternative is being completed as required by Environmental Assessment process.

Through the evaluation process, it was determined that the preferred alternative could be reduced to a four-lane boulevard with a standard traffic signal at the Powers/Orchard Lake intersection. With this revision, the project is expected to achieve the goals of reducing traffic congestion and improving traffic and pedestrian safety and mobility within the corridor.

The project is a continuation of the construction currently underway at the 14 Mile/Orchard Lake/Northwestern Highway “triangle,” which is also part of the Northwestern Connector project. The Northwestern Connector project is a series of improvements intended to enhance traffic flow and alleviate congestion related to the dead-ending of Northwestern Highway at Orchard Lake Road.

Project schedule and funding

The section of Orchard Lake Road is expected to be reconstructed in 2016. The project will be paid for with federal funds and dollars from the Road Commission and West Bloomfield Township.

For more information:

Call the RCOC Department of Customer Services at 877-858-4804 or send an email via the RCOC website at www.rcocweb.org.

The January meeting will be at the Toth Residence, 5586 Abington, at 7:00 pm on Thursday, Jan 8.

The March KNIA board meeting will be at the home of Gladys Margosian, 5558 Northcote, at 7:00 pm on Tuesday, March 10th.