Resource
.png)
Effective November 20 through January 3, Ferndale City Hall will once again close to the public. This decision was reached in light of the current spike in Covid-19 cases in our area, as well as the Michigan Department of Health and Human Service's (MDHHS) Emergency Gatherings and Face Masks Order, as an attempt to help safeguard the City's residents, business personnel, and staff.
Staff remain dedicated to serving our residents and businesses and are available as usual to serve you from remote locations. Payments, billing requests, and other utility services are available online at our digital payment and transaction page.
For more information about closures, visit our Updated Hours news article.
If you have questions about City Hall's reopening or anything else, please reach out to us at 248-546-2525 or by email at information@ferndalemi.gov.
Effective October 12, Ferndale City Hall will expand their public hours: Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
City Hall offices and public spaces have been outfitted with a number of additional safety measures to ensure the health and well-being of staff and visitors alike, including:
All regular City Hall services—payments, water/utility billing, permits and records, elections, code enforcement, and parking—are available to residents. For those who prefer not to visit City Hall in person, all services remain available digitally online. The Kulick Community Center remains closed at this time.
Please note that the City Clerk and Elections office has moved to the lower-level City Council chambers to promote appropriate social distancing between staff and residents. For ballots, voter registration, or questions about voting and elections, please follow the signage and visit our City Clerk staff downstairs.
If you have questions about City Hall's reopening or anything else, please reach out to us at 248-546-2525 or by email at information@ferndalemi.gov.
After a three-month COVID-19-related closure, Ferndale City Hall will reopen to the public on Monday, July 6. We will be opening with new limited hours: Monday through Thursday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
City Hall offices and public spaces have been outfitted with a number of additional safety measures to ensure the health and well-being of staff and visitors alike, including:
All regular City Hall services—payments, water/utility billing, permits and records, elections, code enforcement, and parking—are available to residents. For those who prefer not to visit City Hall in person, all services remain available digitally online. The Kulick Community Center remains closed at this time.
Please note that the City Clerk and Elections office has moved to the lower-level City Council chambers to promote appropriate social distancing between staff and residents. For ballots, voter registration, or questions about voting and elections, please follow the signage and visit our City Clerk staff downstairs.
If you have questions about City Hall's reopening or anything else, please reach out to us at 248-546-2525 or by email at information@ferndalemi.gov.
As of June 4, retailers were allowed to resume operations with restrictions. (Section 11, EO 2020-110)
As of June 8, restaurants and bars were allowed to re-open for indoor and outdoor seating with restrictions. (Section 13, EO 2020-110)
As of June 15, personal care services were allowed to re-open with restrictions. These businesses include operations that involve barbering, cosmetology services, body art services (including tattooing and body piercing), tanning services, massage services, and other similar types of care. (Section 11, 2020-114)
Outdoor fitness classes, athletic practices, training sessions, or games, provided that coaches, spectators, and participants not from the same household maintain six feet of distance from one another at all times during such activities, and that equipment and supplies are shared to the minimum extent possible and are subject to frequent and thorough disinfection and cleaning. (Section 14, EO 2020-110)
For a complete list of Ferndale businesses that are currently open, please click here.
If you are a local business in Ferndale and have yet to receive an Oakland County business kit, you may apply for one here.
Outdoor Seating and Sales Application: new application for seating and sales in public parking areas, alleys, and private property plans.
Sidewalk Café Application: existing application for seating on public sidewalks.
Walk-Up Windows: existing administrative approval application for walk-up windows.
City Council also approved the temporary resolution for mobile and sidewalk vending in Central Business District. Applicants should continue to use the existing Mobile and Sidewalk Vending application.
Beginning April 16, 2020, Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., there will be a no-cost screening for those experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 - must be eighteen years or older. Priority will be given to Oakland County residents, healthcare workers, first responders, essential or critical infrastructure employees, individuals who are ages 65 or older, and individuals with underlying conditions.
Location and instructions: 1200 N. Telegraph Rd, County Complex
Follow the drive-up testing signs to the large parking lot behind the Medical Examiners Facility (Building 28 E)
Please note: Tests are limited to 250 per day until more testing capacity is available.
Appointment is required! To schedule, please call the Oakland County Nurse On Call at: 1-800-848-5533.
For more information, please call the number provided, or click here.
On Wednesday, April 22, 2020 from 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m., please join Ferndale Police Chief Vincent Palazzolo and Fire Chief Jack Pesha, plus other key members of the City's response team, for a community roundtable and Q&A - brought to you virtually from the safety and comfort of your homes via Zoom meeting.
Bring your questions and concerns about COVID-19 and the "Stay Home, Stay Safe" executive order, share feedback and ideas...we're looking forward to hearing from you!
Join the Zoom meeting using your computer, tablet, or smartphone here.
Or join the meeting via phone, toll-free at: 888-788-0099.
Webinar ID: 973 9935 8394
.png)
Today, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed the “Stay Home, Stay Safe” Executive Order, directing all citizens to stay in their homes unless they’re a part of a critical infrastructure workforce, engaged in outdoor activity, or performing tasks necessary to the health and safety of themselves or their family. The Order also directs all Michigan businesses and operations that are not necessary to sustain or protect life to temporarily suspend in-person operations.
Effective at 12:01 a.m. on March 24, 2020, for at least the next three weeks, people may only leave their home or place of residence under very limited circumstances, and they must adhere to social distancing measures recommended by the CDC when they do so, including remaining at least six feet from people to the extent feasible under the circumstances.
“In just 13 days, we’ve gone from 0 to over 1,000 COVID-19 cases,” said Governor Whitmer. “This is an unprecedented crisis that requires all of us working together to protect our families and our communities. The most effective way we can slow the virus is to stay home. I know this will be hard, but it will be temporary. If we all come together, get serious, and do our part by staying home, we can stay safe and save lives.”
Key points from the Executive Order include:
For more information, read the Governor’s complete Executive Order.
With this morning’s Executive Order announcement, the City of Ferndale has cancelled the March 23 City Council meeting, originally scheduled for 7 p.m. this evening, and has rescheduled it for this Wednesday, March 25 at 7 p.m.
“City Council meetings are critical to the continuance of essential business and services for our city; however, the most important thing right now is the health and safety of our community,” said Joseph Gacioch, Ferndale City Manager. “Rescheduling our meeting for Wednesday allows us to change course and provide an entirely digital meeting, which is the right move under the current circumstances.”
While the requirement is only to provide a digital meeting, at Mayor Melanie Piana’s request City management and IT staff will be working to deliver the meeting both digitally and in its traditional simulcast format, streamed live on the City’s Meetings & Minutes page, on local cable access WFRN, and via YouTube.
Details about how to view and comment/engage in Wednesday’s meeting will be posted by Tuesday morning.
.png)
The Oakland County Health Division today issued emergency orders to close all playground equipment to reduce the transmission of the coronavirus.
Oakland County Executive David Coulter also closed shopping malls Countywide and will require all childcare centers to develop and implement a daily screening protocol for children, staff, parents.
“The steps we take today – as individuals, businesses and government – will save lives,” Coulter said. “We have to protect our hospital systems so they stay equipped to help the very sickest. We can get through this together, but we have to act together.”
The ban on indoor and outdoor playground equipment takes place immediately. Playground equipment in childcare centers and areas without playground equipment such as walking trails and grassy areas are exempt from the order.
Ferndale's Department of Public Works mobilized staff immediately upon receiving the order; crews will work throughout the day to construct snow fencing around play equipment at all City parks, including the Geary Park Skatepark. The Ferndale Dog Park will also be closed.
The County's orders are effective until April 17, stating, “in order to control and limit the spread of the communicable disease, it is necessary to prevent people from coming into contact with uninfected people.”
The county has also instituted a text messaging service for updates on the coronavirus. To sign up, text oakgov to 28748.
To ensure the safety of our community, the City of Ferndale has made the difficult decision to officially close City Hall to the public, effective immediately. Staff remain dedicated to serving our residents and businesses and are available in most circumstances as normal to serve you from remote locations. For more information about closures, visit our Updated Hours news article.
As we continue to move forward with COVID-19 preparation and response, the City of Ferndale will update the public with new information and critical updates on this page at least twice a week. The following updates are for Monday, March 16.
Beginning Tuesday, March 17, Ferndale City Hall will be open to the public with limited hours to reduce face-to-face interactions, per County recommendation. City Hall hours, through April 6, are Monday through Wednesday between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.
Need to make a payment or ask a question about your account? Visit our digital payments and transactions page, where you can access your account online, make payments, register for water service, and more. Need something that can’t be handled online? Give us a call or visit us during our revised hours.
For more information about City closures and protocol updates, visit ferndalemi.gov/resources/closures-hours-updated-protocols.
To be as transparent and informational as possible, the City has established a new COVID response web resource, available at www.ferndalemi.gov/services/covid-19-response. You can easily find it on the top navigation of the City’s website.
Additionally, we have established contact phone numbers and email addresses specifically for COVID-related response and questions. Reach out to us at any time with questions or concerns:
Residents and public
publicvm@ferndalemi.gov
248-837-6247
Business and downtown
businessvm@ferndalemi.gov
248-336-4156
This morning Governor Whitmer announced an Executive Order closing bars, restaurants, and cafes to “eat-in” traffic (carryout and delivery are still available). In a follow-up press conference this afternoon, Oakland County Executive David Coulter affirmed the move, explaining that the County is seeing infected patients between the ages of five and mid-90s, many with no history of travel, which means that the virus is officially locally communicable, and reinforcing the importance of social distancing.
We urge our residents to follow these directives and practice social distancing--it's simply the most effective way to slow or stop the spread and keep our community safe. If you’re unsure about the status of a Ferndale business or service, we encourage you to reach out to the owner or proprietor directly.
While State and County public health orders remain in effect affect related to COVID-19, all paid parking spaces in Ferndale’s municipal parking lots will allow for 30 minutes of free parking for delivery or pickup orders. Currently, Executive Order 2020-9 restricts the use of places of restaurants and other businesses until March 30, 2020. To support businesses during this time, the City of Ferndale will be encouraging long-term parkers head to the back of the lots, leaving the spaces closer to the businesses available for easy pickups. Retail locations offering curbside pickups for online orders may also take advantage of this service.
The City and DDA’s complimentary downtown valet service, currently offered in the Withington Parking Lot alley, will be suspended through April 6.
.png)
With this new information, several of the protocols that the County was recommending, and the City of Ferndale was following, have been updated. Under recommendation from the County, the City will be employing a social distancing plan beginning immediately and effective through April 6. This means that some of our standard operating procedures—including hours of operation, programming, events, staffing, and facilities—will be modified to minimize person-to-person contact. This is is not a panic response; on the contrary, we’re making these moves along with every other city in the County to act proactively to stop the spread of contagions before it becomes a crisis.
You’ll find updates by department/program below. More information will be added in the coming days and weeks, so please check back here regularly for up-to-date information about closings, cancellations, hours, and more. If you have additional questions or concerns, please see the resources at the bottom of this page or contact us at 248-546-2525.
City Hall will remain open. Our first and highest priority is to the people of Ferndale, and we will keep our doors open and remain available to help when and where we’re needed. To ensure the highest precautions, we’ll be implementing some procedural changes to minimize face-to-face interactions between staff and the public. We’re still working through what these modifications look like; more information will be available on Monday.
We're following the County's recommendation by eliminating contact points where larger groups of people gather, such as recreation programs and community centers.
Our DPW services are essential to a healthy and functional community. Service will continue on an essential or need-based basis. Teams will be smaller than usual to ensure essential staffing only, but will be on hand to respond to critical or emergency requests. Contract projects that are running with outside/contract staff, such as Schiffer Park, will continue.
CED will operate with a scaled-back staff at City Hall. Inspections and permitting will continue with limited face-to-face contact. Whenever possible, inspections and meetings will occur via phone or digital meeting.
Staffing will remain the same as usual. 911 and emergency services will not be affected. Protocols have been modified to allow our emergency staff to respond to incidents quickly and with extra precaution.
As of now, the March 23 meeting will remain as scheduled. Directions for digital viewing/engagement by the public will be communicated in the week prior to the meeting. The meeting will be limited to contract and essential items only; other items will be moved to a later date.
All Commission meetings scheduled between now and April 6 will be cancelled or rescheduled. The City Clerk will be in contact with staff liaisons and will ensure that cancellations are communicated to commission board members.
.png)
On March 10, the Oakland County Health Department announced the first positive-test case of COVID-19 in Oakland County (a second positive-test case has been confirmed in Macomb County).
The City of Ferndale takes the health and safety of our community very seriously. The Ferndale Fire Department is leading the effort to keep citizens educated and informed, working directly with State and County officials, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), and staff from the City’s Police, Human Resources, Communications, and City Manager’s Departments. We’re taking early preventive measures to combat the virus:
SEND US A MESSAGE
City of Ferndale, Michigan
300 East Nine Mile Road
Ferndale, Michigan 48220
