Innovate Mound sends representatives to Washington D.C.
Public and private interests presented in meetings with federal government
Local leaders traveled today to Washington D.C. to advocate on behalf of Innovate Mound, an infrastructure project designed to transform Mound Road between I-696 and M-59 into a state-of-the-art corridor.
The purpose of the trip is to provide influencers and decision makers with details about the planned project as well as an opportunity to meet business leaders who rely on Mound Road for everyday operations. Key talking points will include the multi-modal improvements and Intelligent Transportation Systems integrations; the importance of the defense corridor to the local and national economies; and impact of critical infrastructure on safety, jobs and business development.
“Our representation as a united front is critical to the success of this project moving forward,” said County Executive Mark A. Hackel. “The cities of Warren and Sterling Heights, together with Macomb County, will have delegates on behalf of the public. We’re pleased to have many key players from our local business community participating as well. We have all the right elements in order and it is now time to build our personal relationships.”
Others involved in the trip include Sterling Heights Mayor Michael Taylor; Alison Jones, director of Government Relations for Ford Motor Company; Valerie Knol, manager of State and Local Government Relations for Fiat-Chrysler Automobiles; Ron Lamparter, chairman of the Defense Corridor Center for Collaboration and Synergy (DC3S); Ron Klinger, vice president of AM Specialties, Inc. and KB Tool & Die, Inc.; and others.
Meetings have been scheduled with the Office of Infrastructure Finance and Innovation to discuss TIGER/FASTLANE grants as well as funding for Defense Access Roads. Additional meetings have been scheduled with elected officials including Sen. Debbie Stabenow, Sen. Gary Peters, Rep. Sander Levin and Rep. Paul Mitchell.
Innovate Mound officially kicked off in December 2016. The design considerations tentatively in place for this project include complete roadway surface reconstruction, widening north of 17 Mile Road, landscaping, lighting, signs, driveway controls, additions of non-motorized facilities, 10-foot-wide safety path along the bike trail or corridor, connections to trail network and improvements to transit stops. This corridor could also be equipped with smart-street technology to include computerized traffic signal systems, real-time traffic speed monitoring, cameras, communications to signals and more. This technology would be able to increase emergency management and enhance safety and mobility.
The cost of the planned improvements is an estimated $217 million.
For more information on the Innovate Mound project, visit InnovateMound.org or follow on Twitter @InnovateMound.
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