Senate Bills 1215-1218 were introduced with repairs for Bay City bridges in mind. | Stock Photo
Senate Bills 1215-1218 were introduced with repairs for Bay City bridges in mind. | Stock Photo
The Senate Economic and Small Business Development Committee recently approved legislation to allow municipalities to enter into public-private partnerships to improve aging infrastructure, according to MISenate GOP.
Senate Bills 1215-1218 were sponsored by state Sens. Ken Horn (R-Frankenmuth), Jeremy Moss (D-Southfield) and Wayne Schmidt (R-Traverse City). The legislation would allow municipalities to enter into public-private partnerships, which would allow for private investment to help with management of local bridges. No specific municipality is identified in the legislation, but it was introduced with Bay City in mind.
“Michigan’s infrastructure has been suffering for years, and I’m happy to partner with Bay City to offer this creative solution to address an issue that affects the entire Great Lakes Bay Region,” said Horn. “The bills seek to resolve a longstanding problem by allowing local governments across the state to address their unique infrastructure needs.”
The bills have received widespread support from stakeholders throughout the region.
Two Bay City bridges have been in a state of disrepair for years, but renovation costs have been too expensive to be covered at the local level. Temporary bridge closures have shown that a permanent closure of the bridges as a result of poor maintenance would significantly impact the region’s traffic volumes, public safety and economy.
“We are enduring a disruptive pandemic that is both accelerating financial hardships on local communities and delaying needed investments to our crumbling infrastructure. As all Michiganders know, our broken roads and bridges still need to be fixed,” said Moss. “These bills offer a new and creative tool for local municipalities to fix bridges while maintaining strong community oversight of each project — which will keep our cities thriving and accessible.”
Schmidt agreed with Moss and said that the state needs infrastructure solutions, especially as the state recovers from the impacts of the pandemic.
“This could be a helpful tool as local governments attempt to address their individual needs,” said Schmidt. “Our budget is hurting, and revenues are down, but that doesn’t stop wear and tear on our roads and bridges. We need to find a way to address these immediate needs, and this is a good start to picking back up on the infrastructure repairs we began prior to COVID-19.”
Senate Bills 1215-1218 will now move to the full Senate for further consideration.
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