"Coolidge isn't perfect and might never be." That was roughly how Mayor Dan Terbrack put it to C&G Newspapers in late 2022, after City Council voted unanimously to keep the lane layout Berkley had been testing since 2019. "Is it better? It certainly appears to be. Is it safer? Yes, in a number of ways."
He also pointed out that the work wasn't done. On September 21, 2026, Berkley put money behind the next step. Council approved engineering firm Spalding DeDecker's proposal to study Coolidge Highway from 11 Mile to Webster and authorized the City Manager to sign a contract once the City Attorney finished negotiating its terms. The firm is aiming to finish around July 2027. The layout you drive today was tested with paint, and painted lines can be removed. The proposal treats Coolidge as a street to rebuild, with curbs, crosswalks and pipes underneath.
The 2019 Layout Was Built to Be Reversible
In 2019, Berkley cut Coolidge between 11 Mile and 12 Mile from four through lanes to two, added a center turn lane and two 5.5-foot bike lanes, and gained on-street parking. When it launched, WXYZ reported that the repainting would cost about $120,000, paid for by the Downtown Development Authority.
The plan was meant to be temporary. Berkley would study it for a year, then decide whether to keep going or put the road back the way it was. COVID-19 upended that schedule. With traffic down, the city couldn't collect usable baseline data, and then-City Manager Matt Baumgarten told C&G the early numbers "weren't reflective of how the corridor functions in a normal space."
Saving money while the layout was still a trial left the parking lanes unstriped. The task force estimated the new layout added about 40 on-street spaces because turning traffic no longer drifted into the parking lane. Those spaces were never marked, though, because the trial was expected to last only about a year.
What the 2022 Vote Left for Later
When Council made the layout permanent in November 2022, it approved four task force recommendations. Several of them need more than paint:
- Keep the single travel lane and center turn lane. The task force found corridor travel times changed by less than a minute.
- Keep the on-street parking, but add perpendicular striping and curb extensions at intersections so drivers stop using the parking lane as a second travel lane.
- Rebuild the southbound merge at 12 Mile to match the approach at 11 Mile, so traffic moves into one lane before the intersection.
- Keep the bike lanes for now. Any project that moves the curbs inward and adds a protected lane would need more study first.
Curb extensions require new curbs, and a protected bike lane means moving curb lines.
The 2026 Proposal Is a Road Rebuild
Spalding DeDecker's proposal says Berkley intends to pursue a "3R rehabilitation" of Coolidge from 11 Mile to Webster. In road engineering, that means resurfacing, restoration and rehabilitation. The firm's list of likely work reads like a direct answer to the 2022 list:
| What Coolidge got in 2019 | What the 2026 proposal puts in scope |
|---|---|
| New lane striping | Mill-and-overlay resurfacing with base repair where needed |
| Unstriped parking lanes | Curb and gutter replacement and reconfiguration |
| Painted lane transitions | Curb extensions, raised crosswalks, signing and striping |
| Existing signals | Signal timing and other corridor signal upgrades |
| Not part of the 2019 restriping | Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacons at crossings |
| Surface only | Water main, service line, drainage and stormwater work |
The proposal's own photos, taken south of 12 Mile in June 2026, show "deteriorating pavement conditions, substandard drainage and curb configuration," and say lane markings could be easier to see. Before recommending anything, the firm plans a crash analysis and 24-hour weekday turning-movement counts through vendor Quality Counts, LLC. That collection could also record pedestrian and bike crossings and speeds at intersections.
The 2019 trial had no reliable data to measure against. This time, the city plans to collect it before anything is designed.
Council passed Motion M-107-26 with all six members present voting yes. The proposal's fee table totals $187,687, including optional survey and geotechnical work.
The Study Doesn't Pay for Construction
The study ends with a vision and a plan to fund it. The city's recap says the goal is to "create a funding strategy." Spalding DeDecker says it will help find grants and is prepared to run the project through MDOT's Local Agency Programs unit if federal money comes through. A July 2027 study finish is not a construction date.
The study does connect to work already underway. The firm will review the DDA Strategic Plan, the 2021 City and Downtown Master Plans, the 2019 Coolidge Hwy Corridor Improvement Study, the citywide parking and signing studies, and the Dorothea Rd Stub Park concept plan. The 2019 study was a joint effort by Oak Park, Huntington Woods and Berkley. For the stretch between 11 and 12 Mile, it suggested street trees, bioswales, murals, better crosswalks, and possibly turning some parking spaces into outdoor dining or bike parking.
Where Your Input Goes
The engagement plan is detailed, but dates aren't set yet. The firm and city staff will set them at the project kickoff. The proposal lists:
- Four advisory group meetings with stakeholders, held before key milestones
- A session for business owners and an online questionnaire for them
- A meeting with the DDA Board
- A public visioning activity
- An online StoryMap that walks through the project
- Two public meetings before City Council
The city's recap also names SMART and the Road Commission for Oakland County as regional partners. That means bus stops and county road standards will be part of the discussion. The next regular Council meeting is Monday, November 16, at 7 p.m. Berkley's news page is where engagement dates are most likely to show up first.
The Same Meeting Approved a Parking Plan Near 12 Mile
Council also approved Motion M-108-26, which pays Spalding DeDecker $7,500 for a concept plan and cost estimate for a municipal lot on Cummings Avenue. The site is a city-owned parcel near the southwest corner of Twelve Mile and Cummings. The city sees a chance to combine it with some neighboring private parking through easements or licenses. Community Development Director Kristen Kapelanski said the plan would show prospective businesses nearby what the city intends, so they can make more informed decisions.
Parking is the issue throughout Berkley's corridor planning, and Coolidge has the clearest example.
Coolidge Is Already Changing Before Any Concrete Is Poured
Berkley's Economic Development Strategy, adopted in August 2026, credits the road diet directly. It calls the Coolidge Highway diet a sign the city is willing to "reshape public infrastructure in service of economic development goals" and says "the subsequent corridor revitalization validates the decision." The same document notes that a recent zoning update allows buildings up to four stories, so homes can go above ground-floor shops.
The biggest recent arrival on Coolidge is The Beverly, at 3180 Coolidge, from the Bar Pigalle team of Travis Fourmont and chef-partner Norman Valenti, as Hour Detroit reported when it was announced. According to the city's strategy, it opened in January.
Two doors south, 3142 Coolidge shows why the corridor plan and the Cummings lot plan are linked. The 5,408-square-foot building dates to 1949, sits empty, and is listed at $725,000. It's on a stretch that carries more than 17,000 vehicles a day as of 2025. The site fits only 8 to 12 parking spaces. The strategy says some local developers see that as an obstacle to retail, even though the Berkley Public Library across the street has plenty of public parking.
At the south end, the strategy marks the northeast corner of Coolidge and 11 Mile as a "Watch & Wait" site. Home & Door Products and Hunt Sign occupy 1716 Coolidge, and Durst Lumber & Ace Hardware sits at 2450 Eleven Mile. The strategy calls this corner the southern entrance to the Coolidge retail corridor. Its long-range vision is a mixed-use building with 20,300 square feet of retail along Coolidge and 11 Mile, keeping Home & Door Products and Hunt Sign as tenants, with 113 apartments. It's a concept, not an application. Even so, the city is drawing the street and the buildings along it at the same time.
Traffic varies a lot along the way, from about 12,400 vehicles a day near Rosemont to about 25,600 near the city limits as of 2025. The strategy says business viability changes "meaningfully by location" as a result. That spread is why a corridor-wide study matters. The north end toward Webster wasn't part of the 2019 trial, and the new study covers it.
For the next few weekends, Coolidge looks the way it has for seven years. The next big downtown event is the Holiday Parade and Tree Lighting on Saturday, December 5, organized by the Berkley Holiday Lights Committee and the Berkley Jr. Women's Club. The parade committee lists a 5:30 p.m. start.
If you own a home or business near Coolidge, the people buying from you next will ask what's coming to the street. At Logan Wert Real Estate Group, we follow plans like the Coolidge study so we can explain them clearly when you sell. Start with a conversation and get your home valuation.
