Hey, there’s some exciting news for folks in Farmington Hills! The city officials are planning to plant some pretty nifty signs, they’re calling them “gateway elements“, at the entrances to Orchard Lake Road from the I-696 highway. These big signs will be set up on both east and west-bound entry points by next year.
The signs, they’re thinking of making them quite the spectacle. Fancy, internally illuminated displays spelling out “Farmington Hills” adorned with arches. If you’re driving in from Lansing, you’d notice the city’s name glowing amidst the dark of the night. And if you’re heading in from the east side, the same spectacle would welcome you!
The folks in charge of our city’s wallet are saying they’ve safely stashed away about $1.2 million for this project as part of the budget for 2024-25. But they’re not quite sure about the final cost just yet as the grand plan is still being sketched out.
“We aim to create a timeless iconic image for the city,”, says one of the city’s assistant managers. The city has big plans. There’s talk of fancy concrete walls, a beautiful backdrop of ornamental and evergreen trees, and low-maintenance landscaping.
Hold your horses though, these designs they’re currently chewing over aren’t the final call. More ideas will flow in before they settle on a concept. They plan to start inviting bids for the project around this fall. And if all goes as planned, you might get to see these glitzy signs come to life by the first half of 2025.
They’re also being smart about this whole thing. Timing it with the Michigan Department of Transportation’s big revamp project on I-696 to save some money. This means they’ll be able to piggyback on work already being carried out by the department like site clearing and traffic control.
Of course, the city will have to get a permit to go ahead with this. But the good news is, the department is open to coordinating on this with them.
So why exactly are they going all out for this? The officials think having big, bold signs like these would give the residents of Farmington Hills a sense of pride, promote the city as a thriving business hub and extend a warm, inviting welcome to everyone passing by.
Farmington Hills, as it turns out, has only one exit on I-696, with people coming in and going quite frequently. So they reckon Orchard Lake Road is the just perfect spot to show off the city. Can’t wait for the signs to go up!
