Votes at a glance: Harper Woods council approves sewer payment, audit engagement and city-hall renovations

At its recent meeting the Harper Woods City Council approved several routine resolutions in a single voting sequence: payment on the sanitary sewer rehabilitation contract, the city’s annual audit engagement and renovations to City Hall’s front office.

Sewer rehabilitation: The council approved progress payment number 1 on the 2025 sanitary sewer rehabilitation by full-length CIPP lining (project 180-379). The resolution authorized payment to Forum Technologies USA in the amount of $18,543.87 and passed on a roll-call vote.

Audit engagement: The council accepted an engagement letter from the named auditors (packet references vary between "Yo and Yo" and alternate spellings) to conduct the city’s 2025 annual financial audit and approved payment of $55,125. The manager noted the city could require an additional CIFA audit if federal grant expenditures exceed $1,000,000 for 2025; staff estimated grant spending to be under that threshold.

City Hall renovations: Council approved a proposal from Right Size Facility for front-office renovations (carpet, paint, furniture and window treatments) in the amount of $59,682.16 and approved adding a 15% contingency for the total project cost. Councilmembers requested more detailed specifications and contractor qualifications; the manager said he would provide those documents.

Consent agenda and appointments: The council also approved the consent agenda and reappointed or appointed multiple residents to boards and commissions (including Michael Cadet and Kevin Kareski to the board of review, David Keane to the construction board of appeals, and others) and approved receiving and filing the minutes of recent meetings, including the regular city council meeting held 12/01/2025.

Why this matters: These votes authorize spending and contract commitments that affect the city’s fiscal outlays and operations; council also asked for follow-up documentation on scope and line-item details for insurance and renovation procurements.

Next steps: Staff will follow up with vendor/insurer documentation requested by council; no additional votes on these items were recorded in the transcript.