NORTHVILLE, Mich. (WXYZ) — The bollards are down and cars are rolling through downtown Northville again as the city looks to move forward following a court order to reopen streets that had been closed since summer began.
Parts of Main and Center streets, which were closed for the summer, are now back open to cars with parking and traffic signals restored after a judge ordered city officials to lower the bollards.
Watch the video report below:
"I'm glad to have the roads back open," said Cindy Dillon, who lives in Northville.
The reopening is the latest move in a now-two-year court battle between nonprofit Let's Open Northville and the city that has generated mixed opinions among residents.
"I'm not used to seeing all this traffic coming down, so it's definitely different," said Jason Bobby, a Northville resident.
The city was given seven days to open the streets back up, forcing officials to implement quick safety measures including concrete barriers to protect outdoor dining areas within street parking.
"We put bollards up at the end of last year, so we can be flexible to understand what we need to do, whether it's Fridays or Saturdays or weekends or what have you. So I think we've had to do a lot of work in six days that we were going to do in the next six months, but to make sure it's safe for dining for different store or businesses," said Brian Turnbull, the mayor of Northville.
Kate Knight, executive director of the Downtown Northville Development Authority, confirmed the barriers are a temporary solution.
"We know these are safe, they're the purview of our police chief and they're a traffic solution and they're definitely a temporary solution," Knight said.
Knight says they'll invest in a more elegant solution in the near future.
With more than 40 events still planned this summer, Knight says they're adapting their programming, including looking for ways to continue the cornhole tournament on Wednesdays.
Watch our previous report when a judge ordered Northville to open the downtown street in the video player below:
"A lot of that can be relocated or recalibrated within our existing public space, and that's our intent. It's summer in downtown Northville and it's the same experience," Knight said.
The change comes as regular summer events like Tunes on Tuesday continue to draw families downtown.
"I think always having different opinions and going back and forth on what should be finalized, I think just coming to a decision, any decision, I think people are happy about that," Bobby said.
PREVIOUS REPORT: Northville Social District returns as businesses, residents remain divided on street closures
Some residents remain neutral about the change.
"I'm neutral on that. I think there were some pluses. It was a need we had during COVID, but we have a lot of wonderful construction going on here in Northville and it has brought some traffic," Dillon said.
The ruling says that the city can still close streets for festivals, parades and special events.
Turnbull noted the case could have wider implications.
"This affects a lot of people in the state. I've had about a dozen calls from different community leaders and from people in Lansing and even in Washington because this could be precedent setting, but we are trying to do everything we can to keep it going for the city," Turnbull said.
The Northville City Council is set to have a special meeting Tuesday night where they'll have a closed discussion likely regarding this latest decision.
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