[00:00:40]
HI EVERYBODY. WE'RE ABOUT READY TO GO LIVE.
SO PLEASE MUTE YOURSELF IF YOU DON'T MIND.
[1. CALL MEETING TO ORDER ]
WELL, LET ME CALL THE MEETING TO ORDER AND WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A GREEN THING TONIGHT AND[2. GREEN THEME]
[INAUDIBLE] HAS JOINED US FROM THE MICHIGAN RECYCLING COALITION TO TALK ABOUT USING SOCIAL MEDIA FOR ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGE.AND SO LET ME TURN IT OVER TO KELLY.
THANK YOU FOR COMING TO TALK TO US.
THANK YOU SO MUCH. I'M GOING TO SHARE MY SCREEN HERE.
OK, SO, YEAH, I'M KELLY [INAUDIBLE], I WORK FOR THE MICHIGAN RECYCLING COALITION.
IT'S A STATEWIDE RECYCLING NONPROFIT AND OUR OFFICE IS IN LANSING.
WE'RE A COALITION OF INDIVIDUALS, BUSINESSES, GOVERNMENT AND NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS THAT RECYCLE. AND ONE OF THE PROGRAMS WE OFFER IS OUR RECYCLE MICHIGAN CAMPAIGN.
THE RECYCLE MICHIGAN CAMPAIGN WAS LAUNCHED IN TWENTY FOURTEEN, AND ITS INTENT AT THE TIME WAS TO CONNECT RECYCLING PROGRAMS IN MICHIGAN TO A STATEWIDE BRAND, BOTH GIVING IT LEGITIMACY AND REMINDING MICHIGANDERS THAT RECYCLING IS AVAILABLE IN MICHIGAN, WHERE WE LIVE, WORK AND PLAY.
RECYCLE MICHIGAN SIGNS CAN BE FOUND THROUGHOUT THE STATE IN STATE PARKS, PRIVATE BUSINESSES, OUR RECYCLING DROP OFFS AS STICKERS ON RECYCLING BINS AND EVEN ON SHIRTS LIKE THE ONE I'M WEARING. WHILE THE RECYCLE MICHIGAN LOGO WAS FREE TO USE AND STILL IS IN 2016, WE CREATED A PROGRAM TO PARTNER WITH ORGANIZATIONS THROUGHOUT THE STATE, PROVIDING THEM WITH A SIGN PROMOTION AND PREMADE CUSTOMIZABLE SOCIAL MEDIA CONTENT.
AS A SMALL STAFF ORGANIZATION OURSELVES, WE KNOW THAT SOCIAL MEDIA IS BOTH IMPORTANT AND DIFFICULT. GONE ARE THE DAYS WHEN YOU COULD JUST GET AN UNPAID INTERN TO DEVELOP AND IMPLEMENT YOUR WHOLE SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY.
SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY IS REAL JOB AND IT REQUIRES REAL TIME AND ATTENTION, THINGS THAT ARE HARD TO COME BY FOR A LOT OF RECYCLING ORGANIZATIONS.
THE GOAL OF THE RECYCLE MICHIGAN SOCIAL MEDIA PLAN IS TO EMPOWER SMALLER TIME AND STAFF CRUNCHED ORGANIZATIONS WITH THE ABILITY TO LEVERAGE THE MANY BENEFITS OF SOCIAL MEDIA TO EDUCATE AND ENHANCE PROGRAMS. I WANTED TO GIVE YOU SOME TIPS AND TRICKS TODAY THAT WE USE FOR OUR SOCIAL MEDIA PLAN THAT MAY HELP YOU WITH YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA AS WELL.
SO I'M GOING TO START OFF WITH A LITTLE BIT OF INFORMATION ABOUT SOCIAL MEDIA OVERALL AND THE VALUE IT CAN BRING TO YOU, FOLLOWED BY A SERIES OF TIPS AND BEST PRACTICES.
I'LL ALSO TALK ABOUT THE DIFFERENT SOCIAL MEDIA RESOURCES THAT ARE OUT THERE.
SO WHY IS IT IMPORTANT FOR YOUR ORGANIZATION TO BE ON SOCIAL MEDIA? BECAUSE THREE POINT EIGHT ONE BILLION PEOPLE, OVER HALF OF THE WORLD'S POPULATION, ARE ON SOCIAL MEDIA.
NO OTHER MEDIUM HAS THE SAME LEVEL OF ENGAGEMENT.
SOCIAL MEDIA IS NOT JUST FOR YOUNG PEOPLE EITHER.
IN THIS COUNTRY, EVERY GENERATION IS USING SOCIAL MEDIA EVERY DAY AND YOU PAY NOTHING TO PARTICIPATE ASIDE FROM THE INVESTMENT OF TIME IT TAKES TO CREATE AND POST CONTENT.
SINCE 2012, THE AVERAGE AMOUNT OF TIME ADULTS SPEND ON SOCIAL MEDIA HAS BEEN GROWING AT A STEADY RATE. IN 2012, IT WAS ROUGHLY 90 MINUTES PER DAY, BUT IN TWENTY TWENTY IT WAS CLOSER TO ONE HUNDRED AND EIGHTY MINUTES OR THREE HOURS.
AND I DON'T THINK IT'S A COINCIDENCE THAT THERE'S A BIG JUMP DURING TWENTY TWENTY.
THE PANDEMIC HAS DEFINITELY INCREASED THE AMOUNT OF TIME PEOPLE SPEND ON SOCIAL MEDIA.
SO FOR BETTER OR WORSE, THERE'S NEVER BEEN A BETTER TIME TO STEP UP YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY. THIS CHANGE HAS OTHER IMPLICATIONS TOO.
[00:05:02]
THE TIME SPENT ON SOCIAL MEDIA REFLECTS A DIVERSION FROM LEGACY MEDIA AND OTHER TRADITIONAL FORMS OF MASS MEDIA.SO IF YOUR STRATEGY IS FOCUSED ON TV, RADIO, NEWSPAPER, OUTDOOR AND DOESN'T INCLUDE SOCIAL, NOT BEING ON SOCIAL MEDIA DOESN'T JUST MEAN YOU'RE MISSING OUT ON THE UPSIDE BUT THERE'S A DOWNSIDE TO WHERE PEOPLE MAY BE PAYING LESS ATTENTION TO THE OTHER PARTS OF YOUR CAMPAIGN. SOCIAL MEDIA IS UNIQUE AND ITS INTERACTIVITY.
UNLIKE A NEWSPAPER OR RADIO COMMERCIAL, CONSUMERS OF SOCIAL MEDIA HAVE THE ABILITY TO TALK BACK TO LIKE, TO ENGAGE OR TO AMPLIFY MESSAGES.
IT REDUCES FRICTION AND BARRIERS TO INDIVIDUAL ACTION.
IT CREATES AN ENVIRONMENT THAT INSPIRES INFORMATION SEEKING, AS ANYONE WHO'S EVER BEEN DOWN A WIKIPEDIA HOLE CAN ATTEST TO.
IT ALSO ALLOWS FOR GREATER TARGETING OF YOUR AUDIENCE ORGANICALLY THROUGH PEOPLE SELF-SELECTING OR THROUGH DIRECT TARGETING IF YOU PURCHASE ADS OR BOOST POSTS.
AND SOCIAL MEDIA RELIES ON SELF-IDENTIFIED COMMUNITIES, WHICH ENCOURAGES TRUST.
PEOPLE ARE MORE LIKELY TO BELIEVE WHAT'S SHARED BY FRIENDS OR FAMILY.
THIS IS JUST TO SHOW THAT YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE A BIG BRAND TO HAVE AND GROW A SOCIAL MEDIA FOLLOWING. I JUST WANT TO GIVE YOU A FEW STATS ABOUT OUR RECYCLE MICHIGAN SOCIAL MEDIA. ON FACEBOOK, TWITTER AND INSTAGRAM, WE HAVE GROWN TO A FOLLOWING OF OVER THREE THOUSAND FIVE HUNDRED. OUR WEBSITE TRAFFIC AVERAGES TWENTY EIGHT UNIQUE VISITORS PER DAY.
AND OUR NEWSLETTER, WHICH WE LAUNCHED LAST YEAR, HAS BEEN GROWING BY ABOUT 16 SUBSCRIBERS PER MONTH. ONE OF THE SIMPLEST WAYS TO HAVE STEADY GROWTH WITH YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA IS JUST SIMPLY SUPPLYING CONTENT REGULARLY.
AND WE WANT TO EMPOWER YOU WITH THE TOOLS TO DO THAT.
AND WHILE WE WANT TO USE ALL THE RESOURCES AVAILABLE, I ALSO WANT YOU TO FEEL EMPOWERED TO CREATE YOUR OWN CONTENT.
SO I WANTED TO GO OVER SOME TIPS AND BEST PRACTICES FOR SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS.
A PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS.
KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE, MAKE IT EASY, USE AVAILABLE RESOURCES AND BE FEARLESS WITH YOUR CREATIVITY. THE FIRST TIP IS GET RIGHT TO THE POINT.
THE AVERAGE ATTENTION SPAN TODAY IS ONLY EIGHT SECONDS, ABOUT THE SAME AS A GOLDFISH.
SO SHORT MESSAGES, MESSAGES THAT HOOK PEOPLE IN IN THE FIRST SENTENCE AND IMAGES THAT CATCH THE EYE ARE ALL IMPORTANT FOR KEEPING YOUR AUDIENCE ENGAGED.
AND GETTING RIGHT TO THE POINT, YOU NEED TO BE SHORT AND CONCISE.
THIS IS A POST FROM ONE OF OUR SOCIAL MEDIA PLANS.
AND SHORT POSTS LIKE THIS GET THE POINT ACROSS AND YOU AREN'T WASTING THAT EIGHT SECOND ATTENTION SPAN ON A LOT OF FLUFF.
FOR INFORMATIONAL POSTS, ONE THING YOU CAN DO IS TO IMAGINE SOMEONE IS GETTING ON AN ELEVATOR AND YOU HAVE UNTIL THE DOORS CLOSED TO GET THEM A MESSAGE.
WHAT DO YOU SAY IN THAT TIME TO GET THROUGH TO THEM? LIKE SOMETHING SHORT AND SIMPLE, LIKE DON'T BAG YOUR RECYCLABLES.
YOUR FEED SHOULDN'T JUST BE DRY INFORMATION ALL THE TIME, EITHER.
MAKE SURE YOU'RE TAKING THE TIME TO LIGHTEN IT UP, A POST WITH HUMOR ARE MORE LIKELY TO BE SHARED, AND IT'S EVEN BETTER IF YOU CAN ASK A QUESTION OR COLLECT FEEDBACK, BECAUSE THAT ENGAGEMENT HELPS GROW YOUR AUDIENCE TOO.
HUMOR BOOSTS INFORMATION RETENTION.
PEOPLE ARE MORE LIKELY TO REMEMBER SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS THAT MADE THEM LAUGH.
LAUGHTER GIVES PEOPLE A POSITIVE EXPERIENCE AND MAKES YOUR POST MORE MEMORABLE.
RESEARCH SHOWS THAT JUST FORTY TWO PERCENT OF POSITIVE EXPERIENCES ARE FORGOTTEN, WHILE 60 PERCENT OF NEGATIVE EXPERIENCES FADE FROM MEMORY.
POST WITH PETS, KIDS AND FOOD AND POSTS WITH PEOPLE IN THEM ARE ALL ESPECIALLY EYE CATCHING. BRIGHT COLORS WITH HIGH CONTRAST ARE ALSO EYE CATCHING.
THIS CAN HELP TO DRAW PEOPLE IN TO READ THE MORE INFORMATIONAL PARTS OF YOUR POST.
PEOPLE ARE LOOKING FOR HUMAN ELEMENTS IN SOCIAL MEDIA.
ONE WAY TO SHOW THAT THERE'S A HUMAN BEHIND YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA IS BY FOLLOWING A HUMAN CALENDAR AND NOT JUST THE TYPICAL U.S.
HOLIDAYS THAT COME PRELOADED IN YOUR CALENDAR.
BUT IF YOU GOOGLE SOCIAL MEDIA CALENDAR, THERE ARE TONS OF HILARIOUS DAYS THAT YOU CAN USE TO YOUR ADVANTAGE, LIKE NATIONAL DONUT DAY, NATIONAL HOT DOG DAY, NATIONAL TALK LIKE A PIRATE DAY. NOT ALL OF THEM CAN BE DIRECTLY TIED TO ENVIRONMENTAL ACTIVISM, BUT MANY OF THEM CAN. AND SOMETIMES IT'S [INAUDIBLE].
WE'RE LOSING YOUR AUDIO, KELLY.
KELLY, WE'RE LOSING YOUR AUDIO.
[00:10:04]
HERE WE GO. LET ME KNOW IF IT HAPPENS AGAIN.OK. IT'S IMPORTANT TO THINK ABOUT HOW YOU FRAME THE MESSAGE.
POSITIVE MESSAGES PARALLEL WITH ABSTRACT CONCEPTS.
THINK ABOUT WHAT YOU'LL DO WITH ITEMS WHEN YOU PURCHASE THEM.
BUT IF YOU'RE PUTTING A NEGATIVE MESSAGE OUT THERE, LIKE MOST CANDY WRAPPERS AREN'T RECYCLABLE, IT'S BETTER TO PROVIDE CLEAR INSTRUCTIONS.
SO IF YOU'RE GOING TO TELL PEOPLE WHAT NOT TO DO, YOU NEED TO TELL THEM WHAT TO DO INSTEAD. PUT YOUR CANDY WRAPPERS IN THE TRASH.
TIP NUMBER TWO, A PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS.
PICTURES ARE A HUGELY IMPORTANT PART OF YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA PRESENCE.
THAT'S WHY ALL OF OUR RECYCLE MICHIGAN SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS HAVE PICTURES.
THE HUMAN BRAIN CAN RECOGNIZE A FAMILIAR OBJECT IN ONLY ONE TENTH OF A SECOND, WHICH REALLY HELPS MAKE THE MOST OF THAT EIGHT SECOND ATTENTION SPAN.
A SOCIAL MEDIA POST WITH IMAGES IS TEN TIMES MORE LIKELY TO GET ENGAGEMENT THAN ONE WITHOUT. STUDIES SHOW THAT PEOPLE ONLY REMEMBER 10 PERCENT OF WHAT THEY HAVE HEARD ONCE THREE DAYS HAVE PASSED. BUT IF YOU PAIR A RELEVANT IMAGE WITH YOUR MATERIAL, PEOPLE CAN REMEMBER SIXTY FIVE PERCENT OF THAT INFORMATION AFTER THREE DAYS.
PICTURES, THEY'RE MORE ACCESSIBLE TO ALL AUDIENCES THAN JUST TEXT.
THIS IS A PRETTY LONG SOCIAL MEDIA POST, BUT YOU DON'T ACTUALLY REALLY NEED TO READ IT TO KNOW WHAT THE POST IS ABOUT.
DITCH THE PAPER TOWELS AND USE REUSABLE WASHCLOTH.
SIMPLE GRAPHICS CAN MAKE YOUR POINT MUCH FASTER THAN A WHOLE PARAGRAPHS OR THE WORDS.
IT CAN SHOW--. YOU CAN ALSO DRAW PEOPLE IN TO ACTUALLY READ THE PARAGRAPH.
OH, ARE THOSE WASHCLOTHS OR SOMETHING ELSE? OH, THEY'RE OLD TEXTILES, EVEN COOLER.
AND WHEN IT COMES TO ACCESSIBILITY ADDING ALT TEXT HERE, IMAGES WILL MAKE THEM MORE ACCESSIBLE TO PEOPLE WHO USE SCREEN READERS.
VIDEOS CAN HELP TELL YOUR STORY TOO.
A FEW MONTHS AGO, WE STARTED INCORPORATING A VIDEO PORTION OF OUR NEWSLETTER.
IN THIS PORTION, PEOPLE SEND IN THEIR RECYCLING QUESTIONS AND WE HAVE A PARTNER RECORD A MESSAGE IN RESPONSE.
IT'S AN AWESOME INFORMATIONAL TACTIC FOR PEOPLE WHO HAVE QUESTIONS BECAUSE THEY NOT ONLY GET TO SEE THE ANSWERS TO THEIR QUESTIONS, BUT THEY ALSO GET TO SEE THROUGH THE VIDEO EXACTLY HOW IT'S IMPLEMENTED.
IF THEY HAVE THE ABILITY TO RECORD THINGS AT YOUR SITE OR IN THE PLACE WHERE THE INFORMATION IS MOST RELEVANT, IT HELPS YOUR AUDIENCE CONTEXTUALIZE WHAT YOU WANT THEM TO UNDERSTAND.
LIVE VIDEOS ARE ESPECIALLY ENGAGING ON FACEBOOK.
SO IF YOU HAVE THE ABILITY TO DO THAT, YOU SHOULD GIVE IT A TRY.
IF A PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS, A VIDEO IS WORTH A WHOLE LOT MORE.
TIP NUMBER THREE, KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE.
AUDIENCES ARE LIKE ONIONS IN THAT THERE HAVE LAYERS.
MOST PEOPLE WILL WANT A LITTLE BIT OF INFORMATION, SOME PEOPLE WILL WANT A LITTLE MORE, AND A FEW PEOPLE WILL WANT A LOT OF INFORMATION.
FIND A WAY TO MEET THE NEEDS OF EACH OF THOSE TYPES OF AUDIENCES IN ONE POST.
GOOD LINKS CAN DO THAT FOR THOSE WHO WANT MORE INFORMATION.
HERE'S AN EXAMPLE OF A POST WITH A LAYERING OF INFORMATION FOR ALL DIFFERENT AUDIENCES.
MOST PEOPLE WILL LOOK AT IT AND IT MAY GIVE THEM PAUSE TO CONSIDER BENEFICIAL WAYS TO DISPOSE OF PUMPKINS THAT ARE PAST THEIR PRIME.
BUT FOR SOME, THEY'RE GOING TO WANT TO KNOW SPECIFICS, LIKE THE MORE AUDIENCE CAN READ THE WORDS OF THE POST AND SAY, OH, YOU CAN USE THE GUTS OF THE PUMPKIN TO MAKE SOME DELICIOUS PUMPKIN SEEDS.
AND THEN FOR THOSE WHO WANT EVEN MORE INFORMATION, THEY CAN CLICK THE LINK, WHICH WILL CONNECT THEM TO A LOT MORE INFORMATION ABOUT UNCONVENTIONAL PUMPKIN USES.
KEEP IT LOCAL. ANY TIME YOU CAN FEATURE AN EMPLOYEE OR COMMUNITY MEMBER WITH A LESSON ABOUT RECYCLING IT INSTILLS TRUST IN THE COMMUNITY AND HELP SPREAD YOUR MESSAGE.
PEOPLE LOVE TO SEE THE WORK BEING DONE AND AGAIN ADDS TO THAT HUMAN ELEMENT THAT KEEPS YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA DYNAMIC AND ENGAGING.
TIP NUMBER FOUR, MAKE IT EASY.
WE HAVE THE RECYCLE MICHIGAN LOGO, WHICH WE AUTOMATICALLY USE IN EVERY ONE OF OUR PREMADE SOCIAL MEDIA PLANS.
BUT IT'S ALSO OPEN SOURCE, FREE TO USE AND AVAILABLE ON OUR WEBSITE.
THIS COMBINED WITH THE RECYCLE MICHIGAN HASHTAG HELPS CONNECT DIFFERENT RECYCLING PROGRAMS ACROSS THE STATE AND PROVIDE CONTINUITY, ENCOURAGE TRUST AND SHOW STATEWIDE COORDINATION.
WHEN SOMEONE CLICKS ON A HASHTAG, THEY'LL BE DIRECTED TO ALL POSTS ON THAT PLATFORM THAT USE THE SAME HASHTAG.
IT'S A GREAT WAY TO SHOW COORDINATION AROUND A CERTAIN TOPIC.
SOMETIMES THE MICHIGAN DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENT GREAT LAKES AND ENERGY HAS HASHTAGS FOR VERY SPECIFIC EVENTS LIKE ENERGY EFFICIENCY DAY.
SO MAKE SURE YOU'RE FOLLOWING THEIR SOCIAL MEDIA SO YOU CAN PARTICIPATE WITH THOSE HASHTAGS. TIP NUMBER FIVE, USE AVAILABLE RESOURCES.
IN RECYCLING, WE'RE LUCKY THERE ARE A LOT OF RESOURCES LIKE THESE GUYS WHO YOU MAY RECOGNIZE RECYCLING RACCOON'S.
THEY WERE LAUNCHED BY [INAUDIBLE] IN TWENTY NINETEEN AND THEY'RE STATEWIDE IS THREE SIMPLE THEMES WHICH YOU CAN SEE HERE.
RINSE CLEAN AND DRY FLAT IN YOUR CARDBOARD AND DON'T BAG RECYCLABLES.
IF YOU GO TO THEIR WEBSITE THERE ARE FREE DOWNLOADABLE RESOURCES THERE TOO.
AND I KNOW THAT IF YOU GO SEARCHING FOR OTHER TOPICS, THERE ARE PLENTY OF OTHER FREE RESOURCES OUT THERE. SOMETIMES IT'S A MATTER OF GOOGLING IT.
ONE TOOL THAT WE USE ALL THE TIME, CANVA, IT'S A FREE TOOL WITH PAID FEATURES.
WE USED IT FOR MANY YEARS AT THE BASE LEVEL, TOTALLY FREE, AND IT'S DEFINITELY WORTHWHILE
[00:15:05]
IN THAT CONTEXT. BUT THERE'S ALSO AN OPTION FOR NON-PROFITS.YOU CAN APPLY FOR CANVA FOR NON-PROFITS, WHICH GIVES YOU ACCESS TO ALL THE PRO FEATURES OF THE SOFTWARE THROUGH A GRANT FROM CANVA.
APPLICATION FOR THAT IS VERY EASY.
CANVA MAKES IT SIMPLE TO CREATE SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS, HAS PREMADE TEMPLATES THAT YOU CAN CUSTOMIZE AND LOTS OF INSPIRATION.
IF YOU'RE LOOKING TO CREATE YOUR OWN CONTENT BUT DON'T HAVE A GRAPHIC DESIGNER ON STAFF, IT CAN BE VERY HANDY.
AND THEN TIP NUMBER SIX, BE FEARLESS.
ON THE LEFT, HERE IS A PHOTO CONTEST THAT WE RAN THIS SUMMER.
IT WAS OUR FIRST TIME DOING A PHOTO CONTEST, BUT IT WORKED REALLY WELL FOR US BECAUSE WE GOT A LOT OF ENGAGEMENT AND A LOT OF CUTE PHOTOS OF PETS WITH OUR RECYCLE MICHIGAN SIGN.
AND ON THE RIGHT IS JUST A SILLY POST WE PRODUCED FOR OUR SOCIAL MEDIA PLAN.
WE CREATED A SPOTIFY PLAYLIST ABOUT RECYCLING.
I DON'T KNOW IF ANYONE EVER LISTENED TO IT, BUT THERE'S NOTHING WRONG WITH TRYING NEW THINGS AND YOU NEVER KNOW WHEN SOMETHING WILL BE UNEXPECTEDLY POPULAR AND TAKE OFF.
AND FINALLY, MAKE YOUR DATA WORK FOR YOU.
ALL THE SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS HAVE BUILT-IN TOOLS TO HELP YOU ANALYZE YOUR PERFORMANCE.
IN FACEBOOK IT'S CALLED INSIGHTS.
IN TWITTER IT'S CALLED ANALYTICS.
AND GOOGLE HAS GOOGLE ANALYTICS OR GOOGLE SEARCH CONSOLE.
IT'S A LITTLE MORE COMPLICATED TO INSTALL TO YOUR WEBSITE, BUT ONCE YOU HAVE IT, IT CAN HELP YOU LEARN A LOT ABOUT YOUR WEBSITE'S PERFORMANCE.
KEEP AN EYE ON YOUR ANALYTICS.
THEY CAN TELL YOU WHICH POSTS GENERATE THE MOST EXCITEMENT, WHICH TYPES OF POSTS GET THE MOST VIEWS. AND EVEN IN SOME CASES, WHAT TIME OF DAY IS BEST FOR MAKING POSTS.
AGAIN, THE BEST WAY TO KEEP FOLLOWERS ENGAGED IS TO CONTINUE POSTING REGULARLY.
THANK YOU SO MUCH. THAT WAS AWESOME, KELLY, AND THANK YOU FOR THIS TIMELY MESSAGE AS WE SEEK TO BE BETTER AT DISTRIBUTING INFORMATION.
I THINK WE WANTED TO OPEN IT UP FOR QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS IF COMMENTS, IF PEOPLE HAVE ANY. THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE.
I'LL LET JOHN TAKE OVER FROM HERE.
WELL, KELLY, LET ME ASK YOU A QUESTION ABOUT GROUPS.
YOU KNOW, I KNOW THERE'S A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PAGES AND GROUPS ON FACEBOOK, AND I WONDER, DO YOU MAKE USE OF GROUPS? AND IF YOU DO IT, HOW DO YOU MAKE USE OF THEM? WE DO, BUT I THINK IT'S MORE FOR, YOU KNOW, FOR GROUPS WE DO MORE INTERNALLY FOCUSED, LIKE WITH JUST OUR MEMBERS.
THINGS THAT ARE REALLY APPLICABLE TO MORE ON THE INDUSTRIAL SIDE, I THINK OF RECYCLING AND LESS JUST, YOU KNOW, AVERAGE CITIZEN.
MM HMM. YEAH. SO FOR YOUR MEMBERSHIP, WHETHER THEY'RE BUSINESS, YOU HAVE INDIVIDUAL MEMBERS TOO RIGHT? WE DO. YEAH. YEAH, OK.
OK. AND DO YOU FIND THAT YOUR GROUPS.
IS THAT REALLY HELPFUL TO KIND OF KEEP THE INFORMATION FLOWING? I THINK IT'S USEFUL AND, YOU KNOW, IT DEPENDS ON REALLY THE LEVEL OF ENGAGEMENT OF THE MEMBERS OF THE GROUP. WE DON'T HAVE A LOT OF OF ACTIVITY IN OUR GROUP, I WOULD THINK.
I WOULD SAY OUR PAGES ARE MUCH MORE ACTIVE.
MM HMM. AND HOW DO YOU GET THE WORD OUT THAT YOU EVEN HAVE A PAGE OR DON'T YOU WORRY ABOUT THAT? YOU KNOW, I THINK A LOT OF TIMES-- IT'S BEEN A LONG TIME SINCE WE FIRST STARTED, BUT, YOU KNOW, GENERATING CONTENT MAKING [INAUDIBLE].
CAN'T HEAR YOU. YOU HEAR ME NOW? YEAH, YEAH.
SORRY. YOU KNOW, JUST POSTING CONTENT AND SHARING IT TO YOUR PERSONAL PAGE AND HAVING YOUR FRIENDS SHARE IT AND, YOU KNOW, SPREADING AROUND TO EVERYBODY THAT YOU KNOW AND HAVING THEM SHARE IT CAN GROW, YOU KNOW, THE BASICALLY NUMBER OF EYEBALLS THAT SEE IT.
AND AS PEOPLE SEE YOUR CONTENT AND LIKE IT AND SHARE IT AND ENGAGE WITH IT, THAT WILL GROW YOUR AUDIENCE TOO.
DOES ANYBODY HAVE QUESTIONS FOR KELLY OR COMMENTS? GREAT. GREAT PRESENTATION, THANKS SO MUCH FOR COMING THIS EVENING.
I DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH YOU'RE AWARE OF JOHN AND LEROY'S LATEST SCHEME OF CREATING A GREEN NEIGHBORED NETWORK.
SO WE AS A TOWNSHIP TO KIND OF COMMUNICATE ENVIRONMENTALLY NOW THROUGH LEROY'S NEWSLETTER, THE GREEN GAZETTE. AND WE'RE TRYING TO BUILD A NETWORK OF FOLKS IN THE NEIGHBORHOODS WHO CAN PASS ENVIRONMENTAL INFORMATION TO THEIR OWN SOCIAL MEDIA NETWORKS.
AND I'M CURIOUS ABOUT YOUR THOUGHTS ON THAT SORT OF STRATEGY OF TRYING TO DISTRIBUTE TO THOSE, WHETHER IT'S NEXT DOOR OR FACEBOOK PAGES.
OTHER FOLKS ARE DISTRIBUTED DIFFERENT WAYS.
[00:20:03]
YEAH, I THINK THAT THAT'S DEFINITELY SOMETHING THAT I THINK CAN BE DONE, BECAUSE IT'S KIND OF LIKE HOW WE DO OUR SOCIAL MEDIA PLAN FOR RECYCLE MICHIGAN.I THINK, YOU KNOW, HOW WE DELIVER IS WE CREATE A SPREADSHEET WITH IMAGES AND TEXT AND WE PROVIDE IT TO ALL OF OUR PARTNERS AND THEY CAN JUST COPY AND PASTE THOSE TO THEIR SOCIAL MEDIA. SO IF YOU WANTED TO DO A COORDINATED EFFORT LIKE THAT, I THINK YOU COULD DEFINITELY DO THAT AND THEN DISTRIBUTE IT EITHER THROUGH FACEBOOK GROUP OR A PAGE OR THROUGH NEXT DOOR, EVEN DIRECTLY.
BUT YEAH, I THINK THAT'S A REALLY-- I THINK IT'S A GOOD WAY TO SHOW COORDINATION AMONG MULTIPLE DIFFERENT GROUPS OF PEOPLE.
ANYWAY, GREAT PRESENTATION, KELLY.
I RECENTLY HEARD A SPEAKER FROM GRANGER WHO WAS SAYING THAT ONE OF THE ISSUES THEY HAVE WITH RECYCLING IS THAT THE SECONDARY MARKET OR THE PURCHASING MARKET FOR RECYCLING GOODS HAD COLLAPSED A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO WITH THE CHINESE CUTTING OFF IMPORTS.
I WONDER, YOU MENTIONED THE INDUSTRIAL SIDE AND WHERE ARE WE AT WITH THAT? HOW IS THE MARKET FOR PURCHASING OR RECYCLED GOOD? WELL, THAT'S A COMPLICATED QUESTION.
AND I DON'T NECESSARILY HAVE ALL THE, YOU KNOW, TOOLS ON ME RIGHT NOW TO ANSWER IT FULLY, BUT I CAN SAY, YOU KNOW, THAT WAS AN ISSUE.
I THINK THAT THAT IS BEING ADDRESSED BY CREATING MORE LOCAL CONSUMERS OF THAT MATERIAL.
THE OTHER BIG WRENCH IN EVERYTHING IS THAT WITH COVID MATERIAL STREAMS HAVE CHANGED A LOT. AND SO THERE'S JUST A LOT OF MOVEMENT AND ADJUSTING THAT NEEDS TO BE DONE KIND OF ALL THE TIME. SO BUT, YOU KNOW, IT DOES HAPPEN.
IT DOES. SOMETIMES IT TAKES TIME.
THANK YOU, KELLY. THAT WAS A REALLY, REALLY INTERESTING PRESENTATION.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT SO I'M A RELATIVE NEWCOMER TO THINGS LIKE NEXT DOOR, BUT I ALREADY FIND MYSELF DELETING THEIR POSTS, DELETING NOT THE POSTS, BUT THE EMAILS THAT TELL ME ABOUT THEIR POSTS. SO HOW DO YOU REGULATE THE SORT OF LEVEL OF BOMBARDMENT THAT YOU'RE, YOU KNOW, INTERESTED PARTIES ARE WILLING TO ACCEPT? I'M AWARE OF--.
WELL, MY ALMA MATER SENDS OUT STUFF, AND RECENTLY THEIR WAY OF PRESENTING THINGS ACTUALLY INCLUDED AN OPTION FOR KIND OF A SUMMARY, LIKE A WEEKLY SUMMARY, RATHER THAN EVERY SINGLE NOTIFICATION, SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
IS THERE AN EASY WAY TO KIND OF TITRATE THE THE LEVEL OF ATTENTION IN THE TERM IN TERMS OF THE WEEK, IN TERMS OF COMMUNICATIONS THAT PEOPLE ARE OPEN TO? YOU KNOW, I'M NOT SURE ABOUT THIS NEXT DOOR, BUT I DO KNOW LIKE FOR FACEBOOK AND TWITTER, A LOT OF THOSE SETTINGS ARE PERSONAL, YOU KNOW THAT THE PERSON HAS TO SET THOSE NOTIFICATION SETTINGS FOR THEMSELVES.
SO YOU CAN GO IN AND SET, YOU KNOW, I WANT TO KNOW EVERY TIME RECYCLE MICHIGAN POSTS SOMETHING OR I WANT TO GET NO NOTIFICATIONS.
SO A LOT OF TIMES IT'S KIND OF UP TO THE PERSON TO CHOOSE THAT LEVEL.
BUT, YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT IT'S ACTUALLY A REALLY GOOD POINT THAT SOMETIMES IT'S HELPFUL TO REMIND PEOPLE, HEY, DON'T FORGET TO LIKE AND, YOU KNOW, LIKE AND FOLLOW OUR PAGE SO THAT YOU GET NOTIFICATIONS, THAT KIND OF THING.
WELL, RIGHT. NO, I MEAN, I'M JUST SORT OF TRYING TO FIGURE OUT THE SO, YOU KNOW, I GET LOTS OF POLITICAL STUFF.
I PROBABLY DELETE ONE HUNDRED POLITICAL MESSAGES A DAY.
AND, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE MOSTLY THINGS THAT I WOULD SUPPORT, BUT I JUST DON'T HAVE THE MENTAL CAPACITY OR THE TIME TO ATTEND TO EACH ONE.
AND SO THAT'S THE ISSUE OF SORT OF CHOOSING YOUR LEVEL OF COMMUNICATION IS I THINK ENDS UP BEING IMPORTANT BECAUSE OTHERWISE PEOPLE WILL JUST SORT OF SAY, WELL, IF I'M GOING TO TURN IT OFF AND TURN IT ALL OFF.
YEAH. SO THAT'S WHAT I WAS CURIOUS ABOUT, IF THERE'S A WAY TO MAKE SURE YOU CAN TUNE IT NOT JUST VIA FACEBOOK, BUT LIKE EMAIL MESSAGES, THAT KIND OF THING.
[00:25:08]
BECAUSE ONCE YOU KNOW, ONCE SOMEBODY UNSUBSCRIBES, YOU CANNOT LEGALLY EMAIL THEM AGAIN.SO, YEAH, YES, HAVING OPTIONS FOR PEOPLE IS PROBABLY A GOOD IDEA FOR THAT.
WE DON'T CURRENTLY HAVE THAT OPTION.
BUT I DO THINK THAT'S AN INTERESTING POINT THAT YOU BRING UP.
THANK YOU. THAT MAKES ME WONDER, TOO.
DO YOU HAVE ANY RULES OF THUMB YOU USE YOURSELF FOR YOU, YOU DON'T SEND MORE THAN A CERTAIN NUMBER OF EMAILS PER WEEK DO, BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT'S BROUGHT UP A GOOD POINT OF PEOPLE GETTING OVERLOADED AND THEN JUST TUNING OUT.
DO YOU HAVE ANY RULES OF THUMB THAT YOU KIND OF USE SO YOU DON'T KIND OF DRIVE PEOPLE AWAY? YOU KNOW, AND I WISH I COULD SAY THAT I HAD SCIENTIFIC REASONINGS FOR WHY, BUT WE DO SEND ONE NEWSLETTER A WEEK TO OUR MEMBERS.
AND THEN DURING THE LEAD UP TO OUR CONFERENCE, WHICH IS OUR BIG EVENT OF THE YEAR, WE SEND ANOTHER A SEPARATE EMAIL.
SO, YOU KNOW, MAXIMUM TWO EMAILS A WEEK.
OTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? ONE OF THE LATEST EFFORTS AT REACHING OUT TO THE COMMUNITY WITH ENVIRONMENTAL MESSAGES HAS BEEN AROUND SOME MUSICAL COMPOSITIONS, JINGLES.
DO YOU HAVE ANY EXPERIENCE WITH THOSE AND TIPS FOR WHAT WORKS AND WHAT DOESN'T? I DO NOT HAVE ANY EXPERIENCE WITH THAT, UNFORTUNATELY, BECAUSE WE LIKE I SAID, WE'RE A SMALL STAFF, SO WE DON'T USUALLY DO THAT LEVEL OF MARKETING.
BUT YEAH, IT'S DEFINITELY SOMETHING I'D BE INTERESTED IN.
BUT WE HAVEN'T PURSUED THAT YET.
OTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? OK, I THINK AGAIN.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH, THAT WAS VERY INFORMATIVE.
WE REALLY APPRECIATE YOU TAKING THE TIME TO KIND OF HELP US KIND OF FIGURE OUT THE SOCIAL MEDIA STUFF. THANK YOU.
YEAH. THANKS FOR HAVING ME. SORRY ABOUT THE AUDIO ISSUES.
I CAN SEND IT TO LEROY IF YOU OR I WANT TO SEND IT OUT.
THAT WOULD BE GREAT. THAT WOULD BE SWELL BECAUSE APPARENTLY WE WERE NOT ABLE TO RECORD THE FIRST HALF OF YOUR PRESENTATION ON THE TELEVISION BROADCAST.
THANKS FOR HAVING ME. WELL, THAT TAKES US TO THE APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA.
[3. APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA ]
WOULD ANYBODY LIKE TO MAKE ANY ADDITIONS OR CHANGES TO THE AGENDA? OK, CAN I GET A MOTION TO APPROVE THE AGENDA? BILL? OK. A SECOND.ROSE. IF YOU'RE IN SUPPORT, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND.
[4. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES ]
OK, MOVING ON TO THE MINUTES.DOES ANYBODY WANT TO MAKE ANY ADDITIONS OR CORRECTIONS TO THE MINUTES? JIM? I THINK I'M LOOKING AT THE MINUTES.
I'VE GOT ENOUGH PAPERS HERE FLOATING AROUND THAT I'M NOT QUITE SURE, BUT UNDER OLD BUSINESS ITEM SEVEN, THE TREE CITY UPDATE.
THERE WAS SOMETHING THAT SAID A REQUIREMENT OF THE STATE [INAUDIBLE].
AND THAT IS NOT THE STATE THAT HAS THAT REQUIREMENT.
THAT'S THE ARBOR DAY FOUNDATION, WHO SETS THE STANDARDS FOR TREE CITY, USA.
SO I THINK WE OUGHT TO [INAUDIBLE] STATE URBAN FORESTER DEALS WITH IT, BUT IT'S REALLY THE [INAUDIBLE] FOUNDATION THAT SETS THE STANDARDS.
THANK YOU, JIM. THANK YOU FOR THE CORRECTION.
ANY OTHER ADDITIONS OR CORRECTIONS TO THE MINUTES? OK, WITH THAT FRIENDLY AMENDMENT, CAN I HEAR A GET A MOTION TO APPROVE THE MINUTES? OK. TOM.
ALL IN FAVOR, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HANDS.
OK, ANY OPPOSED? OK. MINUTES ARE APPROVED.
DO WE HAVE ANY PUBLIC, ANY INDIVIDUAL ON THE ZOOM HERE OR ON THE PHONE THAT WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A PUBLIC REMARK? AND WE'LL REMIND PEOPLE THAT WE CAN TAKE TELEPHONE COMMENT AT FIVE ONE SEVEN THREE FOUR NINE ONE, TWO, THREE TWO FOR THE PEOPLE JOINING US VIA COMCAST T
[00:30:05]
WENTY ONE ON TV AND OR ANY OF THE VARIOUS INTERNET STREAMS. ALTERNATIVELY, IF THERE WERE PEOPLE IN PUBLIC WE COULD USE TO RAISE HAND FEATURE, BUT IT LOOKS LIKE EVERYONE'S ALREADY BEEN PROMOTED TO A PANELIST.I'M NOT HEARING ANY TELEPHONE RINGS.
I THINK YOU'RE SAFE TO PROCEED, SIR.
BILL. GO AHEAD. I WAS JUST CURIOUS, GIVEN THE PRESENTATION WE HEARD WHEN MR. GEBES TALKED ABOUT THE VARIOUS INTERNET STREAMS, WHERE ARE WE BEING STREAMED? HOMTV.
I BELIEVE THAT WHEN WE ARE ON HOMTV, THEY'RE ALWAYS DOING THE FACEBOOK LIVE AND THE TWITTER LIVE STREAMS AS WELL.
WE WOULD WANT TO CHECK IN AND I CAN FIND OUT IN JUST A FEW MINUTES HERE IF THAT'S CORRECT. THANK YOU.
YEAH. AND ACTUALLY, THEY'RE JUST MESSAGING ME NOW.
IT'S FACEBOOK LIVE AND YOUTUBE.
THANK YOU. AND WE'LL HAVE ANOTHER OPPORTUNITY FOR PUBLIC COMMENTS AT THE END OF THE MEETING AND SEE, WE DON'T HAVE ANYTHING UNDER NEW BUSINESS.
SO I GUESS WE MOVE ON TO OLD BUSINESS AND GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE GRANTS FOR SCHOOLS.
[7A. Green Infrastructure Grants for Schools ]
I THINK LEROY IS KIND OF INDICATED TO ME EARLIER THAT WE HAVE ONE PROPOSAL FROM HASLET IN THREE FROM OKEMOS, AND I'VE GOT SOME QUESTIONS FOR THE COMMISSION.BUT LEROY, WOULD YOU LIKE TO DO SOME SCREEN SHARING AND GIVE US A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF WHAT WE'VE GOT AND WITH RESPECT TO LETTERS OF INTEREST? YEAH, CAN YOU HEAR ME? YES. OK, I'M LOOKING AT MY SHARED SCREEN HERE, BUT BASICALLY WE'VE GOT THREE AND A HALF RESPONSES SO FAR.
ONE FROM HASLET, WE HAVE ONE FROM OKEMOS HIGH SCHOOL, WHICH RELATES TO A RAIN GARDEN, AND LUCA CAN CERTAINLY ELABORATE IF HE'S HEARD ANY MORE ON THIS.
BUT MIKE FARGO IS THE NEW OPERATIONS DIRECTOR AND HE IS EXCITED ABOUT THIS AND WANTS TO WORK WITH US, AS WELL AS THE TEACHERS WHO ARE WORKING THEIR STUDENTS TO SUPPORT SOMETHING THAT'S HIS MAIN CONCERN IS SOMETHING IS MANAGEABLE AND NOT GOING TO COST EXTRA IN TERMS OF MAINTENANCE HEADACHES.
BUT HE'S VERY INTERESTED IN MAYBE GOING EVEN BEYOND THIS RAIN GARDEN CONCEPT TO MAKE THE SCHOOL MORE GREEN, MORE ANIMAL FRIENDLY.
AND THEN WE HAVE [INAUDIBLE] THAT WANTS TO IMPROVE THE NATURE TRAIL.
AND ALSO THEIR GREENHOUSE, AND HERB GARDEN NEEDS SOME REPAIR.
AND THEN HASLET MIDDLE SCHOOL IS LOOKING AT TO CREATE A OUTDOOR CLASSROOM IN THEIR COURTYARD AREA.
I THINK I DIDN'T MENTION [INAUDIBLE] PROJECT, BUT THAT'S LOOKING TO CONTROL INVASIVE SPECIES AND THEN AND BUTTERFLY FRIENDLY OR POLLINATOR FRIENDLY PLANTINGS AROUND THE SCHOOL. THANK YOU, LEROY.
AND, YOU KNOW, THE DEADLINE FOR MANY PROPOSALS IS MARCH 15TH, AND IT LOOKS LIKE BECAUSE WE HAVE FOUR PROPOSALS THAT WE MAY HAVE TO SCORE THEM.
AND SO I HAVE A QUESTION FOR THE GROUP.
YOU KNOW, I THINK WE SHOULD LOOK AT SCREEN PROPOSALS FROM HASLET AND OKEMOS SEPARATELY, AND I'D LIKE SOME FEEDBACK ON THAT.
THAT MY REASONING IS THAT WE KIND OF INDICATED THAT IN THE SOLICITATION.
BUT ALSO I THINK WE WOULD WANT TO HAVE AT LEAST ONE PROJECT IN HASLET IN ONE PROJECT IN OKEMOS.
YOU KNOW, IF AT ALL POSSIBLE, WE'LL FUND ALL THE PROJECTS.
BUT, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, WITH FOUR PROPOSALS AND NOT KNOWING EXACTLY HOW MUCH MONEY THEY'LL ASK FOR, THAT MIGHT NOT BE POSSIBLE.
SO IS WHAT PEOPLE THINK ABOUT SCORING HASLET AND OKEMOS SEPARATELY? I JUST WANT TO PUT IN SOME INPUT FOR THE RAIN GARDEN.
SO GO AHEAD. YEAH, WE HAD THIS IDEA [INAUDIBLE] LAST YEAR, AND WE TRIED TO PUT IT IN MOTION AROUND JANUARY.
AND WE BROUGHT IT TO THE SCHOOL BOARD AND THEY TURNED IT DOWN INSTANTLY BECAUSE WE WERE GOING TO HAVE TO TEAR UP A CONCRETE PATCH.
AND I'VE EMAILED THE HEAD OF THE EARTH CLUB AND I'M WAITING FOR AN EMAIL BACK OF WHAT THEY WANT TO DO WITH IT. BUT YEAH.
SO I DON'T KNOW HOW THEY ARE--.
I DON'T KNOW IF THE RAIN GARDEN IS ACTUALLY A BECAUSE WE WERE LOOKING FOR GRANTS LAST YEAR TOO TO HELP FUND THE PROJECT.
BUT I DON'T KNOW IF IT'S AN ACTUAL FEASIBLE PROJECT OR IF IT'S JUST SOMETHING THEY'RE TRYING TO THROW OUT. BUT THAT KIND OF INTELLIGENCE.
[00:35:01]
YEAH, WITH YOU KNOW, THE OTHER THING RELATED TO FUNDING IS LEROY HAD GOOD NEWS THE OTHER DAY THAT GRANGER HAD OFFERED US A THOUSAND DOLLARS FOR THE PROGRAM, AND SO I THOUGHT THAT WAS VERY GOOD NEWS AND WHO KNOWS.YOU KNOW, IF WE GET TO THE POINT WHERE MAYBE WE CAN FUND A SECOND OR THIRD OR FOURTH PROJECT, MAYBE WE COULD APPROACH THEM TO GIVE US A LITTLE EXTRA MONEY.
BUT SO THAT HOPEFULLY WILL FUND AS MANY PROJECTS AS POSSIBLE.
BUT, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, WE MAY BE HAVING TO SCORE THEM AND JUST PICK WHAT WE CONSIDER THE BEST PROJECTS.
ANY ISSUES WITH SCORING? WHAT DO PEOPLE THINK ABOUT SCORING HASLETT AND OKEMOS SEPARATELY? ANY--? I GUESS I JUST HAD ONE QUESTION.
IN THESE LETTERS OF INTEREST, DID ANYBODY INCLUDE ANY PRELIMINARY BUDGET? DID ANYBODY INDICATE WHAT THEIR BUDGETS MIGHT BE AT ALL? I DON'T THINK SO.
I CAN SEND OUT KIND OF THE SUMMARY OF THE LETTERS OF INQUIRY, BUT OBVIOUSLY I THINK THE RAIN GARDEN WAS MENTIONED AT AROUND FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS.
LAURA BELL IS A TEACHER I'VE BEEN TALKING TO AND SHE SEEMS LIKE SHE'S CONNECTED WITH THE OPERATIONS PERSON.
AND BUT, YEAH, IT DOES SOUND LIKE A LITTLE MORE COMPLICATED, A LITTLE MORE EXPENSIVE THAN SOME OF THE OTHER PROJECTS POTENTIALLY.
DID YOU WANT TO SAY SOMETHING? I JUST WANTED TO ASK WHETHER, YOU KNOW, SOMETIMES SINCE WE DON'T HAVE A GIANT POT.
CAN FUNDS LIKE THIS BE USED AS SORT OF, YOU KNOW, TO SHAKE LOOSE MATCHES FROM INTEREST, ESPECIALLY FOR SCHOOLS, INTERESTED PARENTS OR WHATEVER? I'D REALLY LIKE TO SEE SOME WAY OF AT LEAST THINKING ABOUT POSSIBLE MULTIPLIERS, RANGER BUSINESSES, ETC.
AND I HAVE NO IDEA EXACTLY HOW TO DO THAT.
YOU KNOW, PEOPLE ALWAYS SAY, WELL, WE ALL OFFER THIS AND, YOU KNOW, IF YOU DONATE, YOUR DONATION WILL BE MATCHED OR WHATEVER.
BUT I ALWAYS THINK TO MYSELF, WELL, IF THEY'RE WILLING TO COMMIT THAT MUCH MONEY TO MATCH ANYWAY, THEY'RE BASICALLY GOING TO GIVE THAT MONEY TO THEM ANYWAY.
SO IT DOESN'T DOESN'T WORK ON ME VERY WELL.
BUT I THINK THAT'S A GOOD POINT.
WE NEED TO KIND OF EXPLORE THAT POSSIBILITY AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE.
I MEAN, IDEALLY WE WOULD FUND EVERYTHING IF WE COULD.
RIGHT. [INAUDIBLE] PICKING UP ON NED'S IDEA, THERE ARE TWO GOOD FOUNDATIONS FOR THEIR ASSOCIATED WITH BOTH THE HASLET AND THE OKEMOS SCHOOLS.
THEY DO TEACHER MATCHING GRANTS, AND PERHAPS IF WE CHALLENGE THEM TO MATCH SOME OF THESE GRANTS THAT WE'RE GOING TO APPLY.
TEACHERS KNOW ABOUT THESE ALREADY.
ANOTHER QUESTION TO ASK LEROY TO ASK THE THOSE WHO ARE SUBMITTING IT.
HAVE YOU SENT THIS TO THE OKEMOS OR HASLET SCHOOL FOUNDATION YET? THEY MAY OR MAY NOT HAVE, BUT I WOULD THINK THAT THE FEES ARE GOING TO BE FOCUSED ON THE SCHOOL. THEY WOULD BE A GOOD CANDIDATES FOR PROVIDING SOME SIGNIFICANT PORTION OF THE FUNDING FOR IT. ANOTHER CORPORATE IDEA, IF YOU'VE SEEN YOUR CAMPUS, YOU CAN SEE THAT THERE COULD BE COMMITTED TO A VERY GREEN FOOTPRINT IS DELTA DENTAL.
I MEAN, THAT HUGE CAMPUS THERE.
AND THEY'VE CLEARLY MADE A HUGE INVESTMENT IN TREES AND LANDSCAPING AND SO FORTH, MILLIONS OF DOLLARS WORTH THE PAST COUPLE OF YEARS.
SO. I KNOW VERY, VERY GOOD IDEAS.
AND IF YOU, COURTNEY. YEAH, GREAT IDEA, DELTA'S ALWAYS A GOOD ONE TO TAG INTO BILL . TO SPEAK TO THE [INAUDIBLE] TOUCH ON WHAT LUCA WAS MENTIONING.
THEY ACTUALLY HAD A CONSULTANT COME AND EXPLAIN, LIKE, WHAT IT WOULD TAKE TO INPUT A RAIN GARDEN. AND I THINK THEIR BIGGEST CONCERN WAS THE MAINTENANCE OF THE RAIN GARDEN.
AND FROM WHAT I UNDERSTOOD, IT MAY HAVE JUST BEEN MAYBE A LACK OF EDUCATION ON REALLY THE IDEA OF AS A RAIN GARDEN IS THERE'S PRETTY MUCH NO MAINTENANCE ONCE IT'S INSTALLED.
SO THERE MIGHT BE AN OPPORTUNITY THERE, TOO, BUT IT WOULD REQUIRE SOME, YOU KNOW, THE ADVOCATE, WHOEVER HAS WHO WHOEVER WROTE THE LETTER OF INTEREST PROBABLY COULD BE THAT PERSON. SO THERE MIGHT STILL BE OPPORTUNITY FOR THAT.
TO TOUCH ON YOUR QUESTION ABOUT HASLET VERSUS OKEMOS, I WOULD LIKE TO SEE SOME EQUITABLE OPPORTUNITY THERE.
RIGHT. SO HASLET TENDS TO BE IN THE BACKGROUND A LOT OF THE TIME.
AND I'D LIKE TO SEE THAT BOTH, YOU KNOW, INDIVIDUAL SCHOOL DISTRICTS HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY.
SO I LIKE THAT IDEA, [INAUDIBLE].
YEAH. AND LET ME ASK A RELATED QUESTION PROCEDURALLY, AND WE MAY HAVE TALKED ABOUT THIS AT THE LAST MEETING.
[00:40:01]
YOU KNOW, AS OF NOW, LEROY AND ROSE AND I WOULD BE THE SELECTION COMMITTEE.AND I ASK YOU THIS AGAIN AND AGAIN, OUR MARCH MEETING, BUT DOES ANYBODY AT THIS POINT KNOW THAT ALL OF YOU COULD BE ON THE SELECTION COMMITTEE? COULD IT BE AN ISSUE OF KIND OF SCORING PROPOSALS? WOULD ANYBODY DO THEY DO YOU KNOW AT THIS POINT THAT YOU'D LIKE TO BE ON THE SELECTION COMMITTEE? IF SO, JUST KIND OF RAISE YOUR HAND.
OK, I WOULD, BUT I KNOW YOU NEED ODD NUMBERS, SO THAT'S OK.
WELL, BUT JIM JUST RAISED HIS HAND, OK.
DID YOU--. SO, JIM, OK, WE GOT COURTNEY AND JIM.
THAT'S SUPER. THAT GIVES FIVE OF US.
THE OTHER THING AND WE MAY HAVE TALKED ABOUT THIS LAST TIME IS I'M KIND OF THINKING THE SELECTION COMMITTEE COMES UP WITH SCORING, COMES TO THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION, MAKES RECOMMENDATIONS TO THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION, WHICH MAKES THE DECISION IN THAT BECAUSE AGAIN, I THINK BECAUSE OF PREVIOUS DISCUSSIONS, I'M ASSUMING THE TOWNSHIP BOARD DOESN'T REALLY WANT TO GET INVOLVED IN MAKING THE DECISION.
BUT WHAT I'M THINKING IS AFTER THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION MAKES THE DECISION, WE WOULD ASK THE STUDENTS TO ACTUALLY MAKE A PRESENTATION TO THE TOWNSHIP BOARD TO MAKE THEM AWARE OF WHAT THE PROJECTS ARE GOING TO BE.
AND I THINK COURTNEY, I THINK SHAKING HER HEAD.
YES. AM I ON THE RIGHT TRACK HERE? YEAH, I WOULD AGREE.
I THINK I'M PRESENTING AND PHIL PLEASE CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, BUT WE LOOK TO THE EXPERTS, WHICH WOULD BE THE COMMISSION TO DO THE, YOU KNOW, THE HARD WORK AND, YOU KNOW, AND THEN BRING IT TO US WITH YOUR RECOMMENDATIONS.
AND THEN PRESENTATIONS ARE ANY WAY TO EDUCATE US ON THE ISSUES IS FANTASTIC.
GO AHEAD AND FINISH YOUR THOUGHT, [INAUDIBLE].
OH, I WAS JUST GOING TO KIND OF CONFIRM WE'VE GOT FIVE PEOPLE ON THE SELECTION COMMITTEE NOW. WE HAVE PROPOSALS, MANY PROPOSALS COMING IN AND MARCH 15TH.
AND, YOU KNOW, WE'VE HAD A NUMBER OF GOOD IDEAS FOR COST SHARING, WHICH, NEEDLESS TO SAY, WILL ENCOURAGE THE APPLICANTS TO LOOK INTO.
AND THEN I WOULD EXPECT THAT WE WOULD AT OUR APRIL MEETING THE SELECTION COMMITTEE WOULD COME BACK TO THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION WITH RECOMMENDATIONS, BECAUSE THEN, YOU KNOW, WE WILL HAVE ENOUGH NOTICE TO THE SCHOOLS AND THE TEACHERS AND STUDENTS TO GET STARTED IN AND THE SPRING SO THAT WE CAN GET THE PROJECTS DONE THIS YEAR.
BILL. SORT OF A PROCEDURAL QUESTION.
SO RIGHT NOW WE HAVE FOUR BRIEF LETTERS OF INTEREST.
IS THE EXPECTATION THAT THERE WOULD BE A MORE FULL DESCRIPTION OF THE PROJECT AND ITS COST AND TIMELINE? AND IF SO, HOW MANY OF THE POTENTIAL APPLICANTS WOULD BE INVITED TO GO AHEAD AND INVEST THE TIME TO DEVELOP A MORE FULL PROPOSAL? IT CAN REALLY HELP PEOPLE NOT TO WASTE TIME IF THEY'RE GIVEN SOME INDICATION OF THEIR CHANCES. AND AT THAT POINT, THE MORE THE SCORING CRITERIA CAN BE MADE TRANSPARENT TO THE APPLICANTS, THE MORE FAIR THE SYSTEM WILL BE.
NOW, THAT'S A GOOD. THOSE ARE ALL GOOD POINTS AND, YOU KNOW, WE THE COMMITTEE HAS COME UP WITH A SCORING CRITERIA WHICH COULD BE SHARED WITH THE APPLICANTS BEFORE THE DEADLINE OF MARCH 15TH.
WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT CERTAINLY HAVING PROPOSALS COME IN ON MARCH 15TH AND KIND OF LAID OUT WHAT SHOULD BE INCLUDED IN THEIR PROPOSALS, WHICH IS KIND OF WHAT YOU EXPECTED, YOU KNOW, BUDGET AND TIMELINE AND IN THE DESCRIPTION OF THE PROJECT AND SO FORTH.
BUT WE'VE CALLED THEM MINI PROPOSALS SO THAT THEY REALIZE THAT WE'RE NOT EXPECTING THEM TO WRITE 100 PAGES FOR A FIVE THOUSAND DOLLAR GRANT.
BUT THOSE ARE THOSE ARE EXCELLENT POINTS.
LEROY, YOU HAD SOMETHING YOU WANTED TO SAY.
I GUESS RELATED TO THAT PERSONALLY HAVE BEEN THE GREATEST SUPPORT, ALL THE PROJECTS.
GETTING BACK TO NED AND PHIL'S SUGGESTION, GIVING PEOPLE ENCOURAGEMENT TO LOOK FOR OTHER MATCHING SUPPORT, EVEN IF WE CAN'T TOTALLY FUND THE PROJECT, COULD BE A PART OF THE RESPONSE. SO WE ENCOURAGE EVERYONE TO MOVE FORWARD.
I ALSO BRIEFLY JUST WANTED TO MENTION THAT THREE OTHER PEOPLE BESIDES LUCA HAVE OFFERED TO PROVIDE SOME SUPPORT TO THE PROJECT'S.
BEN HOLLAND, WHO'S STUDYING ENGINEERING RIGHT NOW HAS OFFERED TO BE A RESOURCE FOR OKEMOS
[00:45:03]
. AND [INAUDIBLE] TERESA LARK, WHO'S DONE CREATE A LIST OF POLLINATOR FRIENDLY PLANTINGS, HAS OFFERED TO ASSIST.AND THEN ANOTHER GUY NAMED ETHAN BROWN FROM [INAUDIBLE], WHO DID THE RAIN GARDEN AT THE MARKET. HIS OFFER TO PROVIDE SOME TECHNICAL EXPERTISE AS WELL AND EVENTUALLY BE NICE TO GET A LITTLE RESOURCE SHEET SO THAT ANYBODY WHO'S INTERESTED IN DOING A RAIN GARDEN OR GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECT COULD SORT OF FIND OUT MORE EASILY WHERE THEY CAN GET SOME EXPERTISE AND ASSISTANCE.
SO JUST THROWING THAT OUT THERE, IF YOU'VE GOT OTHER RESOURCES TO ADD TO THAT MENU OF OPTIONS FOR PEOPLE. THANK YOU, LEROY.
JIM. [INAUDIBLE] I WAS VERY DISAPPOINTED THAT WE WERE NOT ABLE TO PLANT TREES AT HASLET WHEN WE PLANTED THEM AT OKEMOS.
SO I'M DEFINITELY WANTING TO GET BOTH SCHOOL SYSTEMS INCLUDED SOMEHOW.
BUT SOMEHOW SAYING THAT WE'RE GOING TO GREET THEM SEPARATELY AND HASLET IS GOING TO BE GRADED ON ONE STATE OR ONE SYSTEM, OKEMOS IS GOING TO BE ON A DIFFERENT.
I KIND OF PREFER TO HAVE ALL OF THEM GRADED.
AND I DON'T KNOW HOW TO DO THIS, BUT HOPEFULLY HAVE NEITHER ONE [INAUDIBLE] WITHOUT-- AND BECAUSE AND LET US TAKE THE TERRIBLE EXAMPLE AND SAY HASLET ASSUMED THAT THEY WERE GOING TO GET ONE, THEY DIDN'T PUT VERY MUCH EFFORT INTO IT.
AND WE END UP GIVING IT TO THEM ANYWAY.
THE OTHER GROUP WORKED HARD TO COMPETE WITH EACH OTHER.
THEY DON'T. [INAUDIBLE] ONE THING TO KEEP IN MIND, TOO, IS THAT, YOU KNOW, ANY OF THESE PROPOSALS, THEY HAVE TO HAVE AN ACCEPTABLE-- A GOOD PROPOSAL TO GET FUNDING REGARDLESS.
AND SO, YOU KNOW, THAT'S KIND OF A GIVEN THAT WE'RE NOT JUST GOING TO GIVE MONEY OUT UNLESS IT'S A GOOD PROJECT.
AND, YOU KNOW, WE DON'T REALLY KNOW HOW MUCH MONEY THE DIFFERENT PROJECTS MIGHT REQUEST.
SO WITH ALL THE GOOD FUNDING IDEAS THAT HAVE BEEN THROWN OUT, MAYBE THIS WILL ALL KIND OF WORK OUT. I HOPE SO.
WE ISSUE GRANTS THROUGH OUR UNIT ALL THE TIME AT THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH HUMAN SERVICES, AND WE HAVE A MINIMUM SCORE.
RIGHT? SO YOU HAVE TO HIT A MINIMUM BEFORE YOU CAN EVEN MAKE IT TO THE NEXT POOL.
SO THAT MIGHT BE A WAY TO ADDRESS THAT CONCERN.
THANK YOU. OTHER COMMENTS OR THOUGHTS ABOUT THE GREEN GRANTS FOR SCHOOLS BEFORE WE MOVE ON, ANY OTHER THOUGHTS? ACTUALLY, YOU KNOW, I'M VERY HAPPY THAT WE'VE GOT THIS AMOUNT OF INTEREST BECAUSE I KNOW WHEN WE FIRST TALKED ABOUT THIS, WE WERE WORRIED ABOUT HOW, YOU KNOW, STUDENTS ARE BUSY AND TEACHERS ARE BUSY AND WE WEREN'T TOO SURE WHAT KIND OF RESPONSE WE'D GET.
SO I I'M THINKING THAT, BOY, WE GOT FOUR LETTERS OF INTEREST.
YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT'S GOING TO MEAN FOR A VERY GOOD PROGRAM.
PHIL. AND REGARDING YOUR COMMENT ABOUT NOT GETTING TREES IN HASLET LAST YEAR, I DON'T THINK WE ALL KNOW THAT WASN'T INTENTIONAL.
IT WAS JUST IT WAS THE FACT THAT HASLET WASN'T READY FOR THOSE TREES AND OKEMOS WAS THERE WAS A GREAT LOCATION.
IT IS POSSIBLE THAT IF THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION WOULD IDENTIFY A LOCATION IN HASLET WANTED A SIMILAR NUMBER OF TREES OR EVEN HALF AS MANY TREES, AND A PROPOSAL COULD BE BROUGHT TO THE BOARD DURING THE YEAR TO SAY THIS WAS A BIG SUCCESS IN 2020.
WITH OKEMOS WE'D LIKE TO DO IT IN TWENTY, TWENTY ONE.
AND HOW WILL THE BOARD FUND? THIS BOARD HAS VERY STRONG GREEN VALUES.
AND SO I THINK OUR PROPOSAL BROUGHT BEFORE THE BOARD FOR FUNDING OF JUST TREES APART FROM THESE GRANTS AND THE FUNDING FOR THAT.
BUT I THINK A TREE GRANT FOR HASLET WOULD HAVE LIKED WITH THE BOARD THIS YEAR.
BUT THEY'RE NOT GOING TO GO OUT AND DO THE INVESTIGATION THEMSELVES.
BUT IF THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION BROUGHT SOMETHING TO THE BOARD, I'M HOPEFUL AND COURTNEY SEEMS TO BE NODDING YOUR HEAD IN AGREEMENT THAT THE BOARD WOULD FUND SOMETHING LIKE THAT. WE JUST NEED TO IDENTIFY WHERE THEY WOULD GO, HOW MANY WE NEED, BECAUSE THE
[00:50:05]
FEEDBACK THE BOARD GOT AFTER THE OKEMOS TREES WENT IN LAST FALL WAS JUST PHENOMENAL.PEOPLE LOVED IT. THEY WROTE FOR THE BOARD MEMBERS.
IT REALLY MADE A BIG IMPACT IN THE COMMUNITY AND I'M SURE IT WILL IN HASLET AS WELL.
YOU KNOW, AND PHIL OR ANYBODY ELSE, ANY OF YOU HAVE IDEAS WHO MIGHT BE APPROACHED IN THE HASLET AREA TO KIND OF EXPLORE OPPORTUNITIES.
ANYBODY COMES TO MIND THAT WE COULD KIND OF TALK TO.
APART FROM SUPERINTENDENT STEVE COOK, MIKE [INAUDIBLE] ONE OF THE HASLET SCHOOLS FOR ALMOST OVER 20 YEARS NOW.
NED YOU MIGHT HAVE BETTER CONNECTIONS THAN I DO WITH WHO AND HOW THAT MIGHT BE A GOOD PERSON CONNECTED WITH THE SCHOOLS THAT MIGHT HAVE SOME IDEAS.
WELL, EVY, MY WIFE WAS VERY ACTIVE WITH THE FOUNDATION AND ALSO THE BAND BOOSTERS AND THINGS LIKE THAT, SO SHE MIGHT ACTUALLY HAVE SOME IDEAS.
I AM NOT AS CONNECTED AS I WOULD LIKE TO BE, BUT THERE'S ALSO A GROUP THAT ISN'T THE SCHOOLS. THAT'S THE SO-CALLED HASLET BEAUTIFICATION COMMITTEE, I GUESS THEY CALL THEMSELVES OR SOMETHING. AND, YOU KNOW, THEY MAY HAVE SOME THOUGHTS ABOUT I MEAN, THEY MOSTLY PUT PLANTING'S AT CORNERS WHERE THEY'RE SEEN, FOR EXAMPLE, [INAUDIBLE] I MEAN, LIKE LANSING ROAD AND MARSH ROAD, THINGS LIKE THAT.
BUT THEY MAY HAVE THOUGHTS ABOUT WHERE, YOU KNOW, PLACES THAT WOULD BENEFIT FROM A LITTLE BIT OF BEAUTIFICATION IN THE TREE SENSE AS WELL.
SO I WILL TALK TO HER ABOUT THAT AND MAYBE WE'LL HAVE SOME OTHER.
SUPER, DON'T FORGET, MOST OF THE THINGS I THINK ABOUT ARE ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR, KIND OF SMALLER THAN TREES.
THIS IS SOMETHING BIG YOU CAN WORK ON.
JIM. GO AHEAD. I'M JUST [INAUDIBLE] HERE.
I THINK THE SELECTION THAT WE HAD IN OKEMOS WAS NOT SPECIFICALLY THE SCHOOL.
YOU KNOW, IT JUST HAPPENED TO WORK OUT THAT WAY THAT THERE WAS THAT PROPERTY AT AN IMPORTANT INTERSECTION AND IT WOULDN'T NECESSARILY BE IN HASLET AT HASLET HIGH SCHOOL.
WOULDN'T HAVE TO BE. IT COULD BE.
BUT I'M NOT SURE THAT THAT'S THE CRITICAL THING.
WITH THAT KIND OF IS IN LINE WITH NED'S THINKING ABOUT MAYBE THE HASLET BEAUTIFICATION GROUP CAN BE HELPFUL.
YEAH. ANYTHING ELSE BEFORE WE KIND OF MOVE ON TO--?
[7B. Tree City Update ]
OK, MOVING ON TO TREE CITY UPDATE.WELL. THESE PAST FEW WEEKS, WE HAVE BEEN KIND OF PUSHING AROUND A DRAFT OR A TREE CARE ORDINANCE, A DRAFT OF A TREE CARE ORDINANCE, BECAUSE THAT IS ONE OF THE STANDARDS THAT IS REQUIRED FOR THE TREE CITY CERTIFICATION.
YOU NEED TO HAVE A TREE BOARD AND YOU NEED TO HAVE A TREE CARE ORDINANCE.
WE'VE BEEN LOOKING AT THAT A BIT AND THEN EARLIER TODAY, WE HAD A LITTLE MEETING OF THE MINDS. WE SPOKE WITH LUANNE OVER AT THE PARKS DEPARTMENT BECAUSE WE FEEL THAT THE PARKS DEPARTMENT AND THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS NEEDS TO TAKE A LOOK AT THIS AND MAKE SURE THAT EVERYTHING JIVES AND ALL THE LANGUAGE MAKES SENSE AND THAT EVERYBODY'S ON THE SAME PAGE AND EVERYBODY'S ON BOARD BECAUSE WE ARE A TOWNSHIP.
THIS IS A LOT MORE COMPLICATED THAN IT WOULD BE IF WE WERE A CITY STRUCTURE.
SO RIGHT NOW THEY'RE REVIEWING THAT DRAFT AND WE'RE JUST WAITING ON WHAT THEY'VE GOT TO SAY. SOUNDS LIKE PROGRESS.
BILL, DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING YOU WANT TO ADD TO THAT OR--? OK, WELL, JUST TO MAYBE AMPLIFY A LITTLE BIT THE DISCUSSION WITH [INAUDIBLE], WITH THE COMPLICATION THAT WE FACE AS A TOWNSHIP, IS THAT WHEN WE TALK ABOUT PUBLIC TREES, THERE ARE SOME PUBLIC TREES THAT ARE ON TOWNSHIP PROPERTY AND SOME OF THAT PROPERTY IS PARKS AND LAND PRESERVES.
AND THOSE GET MANAGED BY DIFFERENT GROUPS OF PEOPLE, PUBLIC WORKS, NEARBY PARKS.
AND THEN WE HAVE STREET TREES THAT ARE MANAGED BY THE ROAD DEPARTMENT.
BUT WE ALSO HAVE STREET TREES THAT ARE INSTALLED UNDER NEW DEVELOPMENTS BY THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT. SO WHEREAS IN THIS SORT OF MODEL OF A CITY HAVING AN URBAN ARBORIST WHO
[00:55:03]
CONTROLS ALL THE PUBLIC TREES, WE'VE GOT A DISPARATE GROUP OF DEPARTMENTS THAT ARE RESPONSIBLE. SO IT'S A LITTLE BIT MORE COMPLICATED.BUT, YOU KNOW, THE GREAT THING ABOUT WORKING IN MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP IS THAT THE DIRECTOR OF PARKS AND REC SITS RIGHT NEXT TO THE DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS AND KNOWS THE DIRECTOR OF PLANNING. AND THEY ALL TALK TO THE ROAD DEPARTMENT ALL THE TIME.
SO IT'S NOT THAT HARD TO GET THEM TO SIT DOWN AND FIGURE SOMETHING OUT.
SO THAT'S WHERE WE'RE AT. THANK YOU, BILL.
AND I WAS JUST GOING TO ADD THAT THEY ALL SEEM EXCITED AND ON BOARD WITH THIS IDEA.
OTHER COMMENTS, OR QUESTIONS? OK, MOVING ON TO THE CHAIR'S REPORT.
[8. CHAIR’S REPORT ]
I HAD THE PLEASURE OF PARTICIPATING IN THE ANNUAL BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS MEETING WITH THE TOWNSHIP BOARD, AND I LEARNED THE TOWNSHIP HAS A LOT OF BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS WITH A LOT OF THINGS I DIDN'T KNOW THE TOWNSHIP WAS INVOLVED WITH.SO BUT I FOUND IT VERY HELPFUL TO KIND OF LEARN WHAT EVERYBODY IS UP TO.
AND, BOY, A LOT OF GOOD THINGS ARE HAPPENING IN THE TOWNSHIP, THAT'S FOR SURE.
AND THE TOWN-- THE BOARD, AS YOU ALL KNOW, IS VERY SUPPORTIVE OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION. AND, YOU KNOW, THAT WAS OBVIOUS WITH SOME OF THE COMMENTS THAT WERE MADE.
SO THAT WAS-- THERE'S A LONG MEETING WITH ALL THOSE BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS, BUT IT WAS DEFINITELY WORTHWHILE. THAT'S THE ONLY THING I HAVE TO SHARE.
LEROY, I THINK WE'RE UP TO STAFF REPORT.
[INAUDIBLE] ASK YOU A QUESTION ABOUT THE JOINT BOARDS AND COMMISSION MEETING? I NOTICED WHEN THE [INAUDIBLE] WAS MAKING A REPORT, SHE LISTED A NUMBER OF THE ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS CASES THAT THEY HAD HAD, AND ONE OF THEM THAT SHE MENTIONED WAS A WETLAND SETBACK VARIANCE.
AND IF I HAD PREVIOUSLY KNOWN THAT THE ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS MAKES DECISIONS ON WHAT SETBACKS AS A ZONING VARIANCE, THEN I MUST HAVE FORGOTTEN IT.
JUST CURIOUS KIND OF NEWS. AND I'M AWARE OF ANOTHER CASE WHERE THE ZBA MAYBE IT'S THE SAME CASE. I'M NOT SURE.
AND I FEEL LIKE I'VE BEEN AROUND FOR A WHILE.
AND IF I KNEW THAT, I FORGOT ABOUT IT.
SO I'M CURIOUS IF WE MIGHT LEARN A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT HOW OFTEN IT IS THAT THE ZBA IS MAKING DECISIONS ON VARIANCES IN WETLANDS SETBACKS AND HOW THAT'S HOW THAT'S GOING, JUST IT FEELS WITH THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION, ASSUMING THE ROLE OF THE WETLAND BOARD, MAYBE SOME INCREASED COMMUNICATION OR WHATEVER WOULD BE HELPFUL.
I WAS A MEMBER OF THE ZBA FOR A YEAR AND THERE WAS QUITE A FEW INDIVIDUAL CASES THAT CAME REGARDING VARIANCES FOR WETLANDS SETBACK.
WE HAVE A LOT OF VARIANCES FOR ALL KINDS OF SETBACKS, RIGHT? SO THAT KIND OF FELL WITHIN THAT SAME REALM.
BUT I WAS TALKING TO KENDRA, WHO'S ON THE PHONE TODAY REGARDING THAT AS WELL AS THAT, YOU KNOW, HAVING THAT CONVERSATION AND INVOLVING THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION IN SOME OF THESE OTHER MAJOR DECISIONS, I THINK IS REALLY A REALLY GREAT IDEA.
AND JUST REMINDING FOLKS AND EVEN MYSELF ON THE ZBA BEFORE I WAS ON THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION THAT WE HAVE AN ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION AND THAT WE HAVE THIS GROUP OF EXPERTS THAT CAN HELP US MAKE SOME BETTER DECISIONS.
SO I THINK THAT'S A REALLY GOOD POINT.
AND I THINK WE NEED TO THINK ABOUT THAT A LITTLE BIT FURTHER.
YEAH, WE HAVE LIAISONS TO A NUMBER OF OTHER BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS, SO MAYBE THAT'S SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT. I HAVE TO ADMIT THAT I MEAN, I'VE BEEN AROUND FOR A WHILE, TOO, BUT I DIDN'T I NEVER THOUGHT OF WETLAND SETBACKS AS THINGS THAT WERE IMMUTABLE.
I THOUGHT THOSE WERE ESSENTIALLY SET FROM HIGHER AUTHORITIES LIKE, FOR EXAMPLE, THE STATE LEVEL, AND I WOULDN'T HAVE THOUGHT ZBA WOULDN'T HAVE THE AUTHORITY TO MODIFY THEM, YOU KNOW, THAT'S DIFFERENT FROM A PROPERTY SET BACK OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT WHERE IT'S ESTHETIC, BUT AS LONG AS EVERYBODY AROUND AGREES, YOU KNOW, THAT'S FINE.
THIS IS SOMETHING WITH THE DIRECT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT.
POTENTIALLY. AND SO I GUESS I'M SURPRISED THAT THOSE THINGS ARE EVEN ON THE TABLE.
[01:00:01]
HEARING THAT ANYWAY, I WASN'T AWARE THAT THAT WAS POSSIBLE, I GUESS I'M SORT OF BACK ON WHAT BILL SAID. I DO THINK SO, I THINK.PLEASE CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, KENDRA'S OUR EXPERT AND SHE'S ON THE PHONE.
BUT THE 20 FOOT STEP BACK IS STATE LEVEL REGULATION.
THE 40 FOOT SETBACK IS MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP REGULATION.
SO I THINK THAT'S WHERE THE VARIANCE COMES IN IS WITHIN THAT 40 FOOT SETBACK.
NOT TO SAY IT'S RIGHT, WRONG OR INDIFFERENT.
I'M JUST SAYING I THINK THAT THAT'S BEEN WHERE THE VARIANCE HAS BEEN APPROACHED WHEN I'VE BEEN AROUND.
IT WAS A HELPFUL CLARIFICATION.
OK, YEAH, THANK YOU FOR THE CLARIFICATION.
OK, ANYBODY ELSE? OK. I THINK LEROY WE'RE UP T STAFF'S REPORT.
[9. STAFF REPORT]
GOING TO JUST SAVE MY COMMENTS FOR SOME OF THE OTHER TOPICS THAT ARE COMING UP.I DID WANT TO JUST BRIEFLY MENTION, I THINK MOST OF YOU SAW THE RECENT RESIGNATION FROM THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION. SO THAT MEANS WE WILL HAVE ANOTHER OPENING AND JUST ENCOURAGING PEOPLE TO GET THE WORD OUT.
AND WE ALREADY HAVE ONE PERSON HAS EXPRESSED AN INTEREST IN APPLYING, BUT JUST THROWING THAT OUT THERE.
LUCKILY, YOU JUST BUILT A GREAT BIG GREEN NEIGHBOR NETWORK.
SO YOU GOT A BIG NETWORK TO REACH OUT TO.
AND PROBABLY EVERYBODY GOT THE EMAIL FROM SUSAN, BUT SUSAN, BECAUSE OF OUR OTHER COMMITMENTS, SUSAN MASTEN HAD FELT THAT SHE SHOULD RESIGN.
SO WE ALL I THINK ALL OF US APPRECIATE ALL THE WORK SHE'S DONE OVER THE YEARS.
BUT I UNDERSTAND OTHER COMMITMENTS.
BY THE WAY, THERE IS A PRETTY FORMAL TRADITION OF RESOLUTIONS AND APPRECIATION.
SHE'S BEEN AND WE CAN FIND SOME [INAUDIBLE] IN THE ENTIRE MINUTES.
THANK YOU, BILL. SO IT WOULD BE REALLY NICE TO TRY TO BRING IN SOMEBODY WITH SIMILAR DEGREE OF WATER APPRECIATION BECAUSE SHE IS TRULY AN EXPERT IN THAT AREA.
AND ALSO WANTED TO JUST BRIEFLY MENTION THAT IN RESPONDING TO SUSAN AND EXPRESSING MY VERBAL APPRECIATION AND RESPONDING TO HER WILLINGNESS TO WORK ON A SORT OF AN AD HOC BASIS, IF THERE'S A PROJECT THAT FITS WITH HER INTERESTS AND TIME.
BUT MAYBE THERE'S ANOTHER SUPPORTIVE LIKE BILL MENTIONED, THE GREEN NEIGHBOR NETWORK IS ONE WAY PEOPLE CAN PARTICIPATE IN ENVIRONMENTAL PROJECTS, BUT MAYBE THERE'S AN ADVISORY ROLE THAT-- I DON'T KNOW IF OTHER BOARDS OR COMMISSIONS HAVE THOSE PEOPLE WHO ARE KIND OF LURKERS, WHO PROVIDE INPUT AND ASSISTANCE AS NEEDED, BUT MIGHT BE A WAY FOR PEOPLE WHO DON'T WANT TO ATTEND A MEETING EVERY MONTH TO ALSO CONTRIBUTE CREATIVELY.
AND I'M PRETTY MUCH DONE WITH MY COMMENTS FOR NOW.
[10A. Environmental Justice ]
AND THAT BRINGS US UP TO THE ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE WORK GROUP.ROSE, DO YOU HAVE ANY UPDATES FOR US? AND YEAH, ACTUALLY, COURTNEY, DID YOU WANT TO TALK AT ALL ABOUT WHAT WE HAD TALKED ABOUT BEFORE OR ARE WE GOING TO HOLD OFF ON THAT? I DON'T MIND MENTIONING THAT.
THERE WAS A FEW EMAILS REGARDING SOME VIOLATIONS REGARDING THE WINSLOW TRAILER PARK.
AND SO THERE WAS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR FOLKS TO IMPROVE SOME OF THE TRAILERS THAT WERE THERE.
AND I DIDN'T HAVE ENOUGH INFORMATION.
SO I SPOKE WITH MR. MENSER AND DIRECTOR KEISELBACH.
AND APPARENTLY THAT PARTICULAR TRAILERS THAT NEED THE UPGRADES, IF YOU WILL, IN ORDER TO ABIDE BY CODES, ARE VACANT.
SO IT'S REALLY UP TO THE PROPERTY OWNER AT THAT PART.
WE THOUGHT IF THERE WAS AN OPPORTUNITY WHERE ACTUAL RESIDENTS NEEDED ASSISTANCE IN IMPROVING THEIR OWN PROPERTIES OR THEIR OWN HOUSING, THAT MAYBE THAT WAS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO GATHER, YOU KNOW, MAYBE A GROUP OF VOLUNTEERS TO HELP THEM.
WE'VE SEEN THAT IN MANY COMMUNITIES WHERE, YOU KNOW, RETIRED ENGINEERS OR CONSTRUCTION WORKERS THAT COME TOGETHER AND THEY HELP FOLKS IN NEED.
SO UNFORTUNATELY FOR I GUESS FORTUNATELY IS THERE ISN'T FOLKS IN THAT TRAILER PARK THAT HAVE THAT NEED RIGHT NOW. BUT IT WAS ONE OF THOSE HOUSING KIND OF ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE THINGS THAT WE THOUGHT MAYBE WE COULD HELP WITH.
BUT THE GOOD THING IS, IS EVERYBODY LIVING THERE IS IN HABITABLE HOUSING AND THAT THE LANDLORD AND OR THE PROPERTY OWNER IS WORKING TO IMPROVE THE OTHER UNITS THERE THAT NEED THAT. YEAH, SO IF ANYTHING LIKE THIS SHOULD COME UP AGAIN, I THOUGHT THAT THIS MIGHT BE A
[01:05:09]
GREAT THING TO TALK TO OUR GREEN NEIGHBOR NETWORK ABOUT REACHING BACK INTO THE COMMUNITY AND HELPING OUT.ANYBODY HAVE ANY COMMENTS ABOUT THAT IN PARTICULAR? QUESTION. OK, ONE OTHER THING THAT I WANTED TO TELL YOU ALL ABOUT, AND I TALKED A LITTLE BIT ABOUT IT THIS MORNING AT THE GREEN DIALOG IN THE GREEN DIALOG CHAT IS THAT I SAT IN ON A LITTLE CHAT WITH THE MICHIGAN ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE COUNCIL.
IT WAS ABOUT THE INTERSECTION OF BLACK LIVES MATTER AND ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE, AND IT WAS VERY, VERY INFORMATIVE.
AND I DID INCLUDE A LINK TO THAT EARLIER IN THE DIALOG.
SO I DON'T KNOW IF LEROY SHARED THAT OR NOT, BUT I CAN SHARE IT LATER.
ANYWAY, THERE WERE TWO EXPERTS.
ONE WAS FROM THE SIERRA CLUB AND HE WAS COMING FROM MORE OF A PUBLIC HEALTH PERSPECTIVE.
AND THEN THERE WAS ANOTHER ONE WHO WAS AN ORGANIZER IN DETROIT COMING KIND OF FROM A CRIMINAL JUSTICE PERSPECTIVE.
BUT THE WHOLE POINT OF THE DISCUSSION WAS JUST ABOUT HOW ALL OF THESE DIFFERENT SYSTEMS THAT WE'VE GOT IN PLACE, OUR CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM, OUR HEALTH SYSTEM, OUR REAL ESTATE, OUR EDUCATION SYSTEMS, ALL OF THESE CREATE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS OR FALLOUT AND.
SO THE DISCUSSION WAS ABOUT THAT AND THE TAKEAWAYS, THE BIG TAKEAWAY IS I HAVE MY NOTES HERE. FINALLY, I DIDN'T HAVE ON THIS MORNING THE THINGS THAT PEOPLE OUTSIDE OF THOSE COMMUNITIES CAN DO TO HELP.
BIG THINGS ARE LOBBYING, SUPPORTING THE POLICIES THAT ARE GOING TO AFFECT SYSTEMIC CHANGE. THE LARGER CHANGE, I THINK THAT SO MUCH OF WHAT WE DO, WE FOCUS LOCAL AND WE FOCUS SMALL AND WE FOCUS GRASSROOTS.
BUT WHEN IT COMES TO THIS KIND OF STUFF, PEOPLE OF PRIVILEGE CAN ACTUALLY HELP MORE BY BY GOING BIGGER AND BY GOING MACRO AND HELPING TO TRANSFER THE POWER IN THE VOICE BACK TO THE PEOPLE WHO ARE ACTUALLY BEING IMPACTED.
SO I HAVE I DON'T WANT TO GO ON AND ON AND ON, BUT I HAVE QUITE A BIT OF INFORMATION.
THERE WAS SOME SPECIFIC BILLS THAT THEY WERE THEY TALKED ABOUT THAT I CAN SHARE WITH YOU LATER. BUT I THINK THAT WE SHOULD POST A LINK TO THAT DISCUSSION.
AND IF ANY OF YOU HAVE THE TIME TO LISTEN TO IT, I WOULD HIGHLY RECOMMEND IT.
THANK YOU, ROSE. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENT? IS THAT THE FACEBOOK LINK, ROSE? YES, IT WAS IT WAS [INAUDIBLE].
THEY WERE UP TO SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT WORK GROUP.
[10B. Sustainable Development ]
DO YOU HAVE ANY FURTHER INFORMATION ABOUT THE GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE AUDIT AND TRI-COUNTY REGIONAL PLANNING COMMISSION THAT THEY STARTED THEIR KIND OF WORK? THE REGIONAL COMMITTEE? MY SCREEN JUST FROZE UP.WELL, THERE IT IS. NO, I DON'T HAVE AN UPDATE ON THAT.
BUT KIND OF ON A RELATED NOTE, CLIFF GOT THE IDEA FOR THE GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE AUDIT FROM SMCOG SOUTHEAST MICHIGAN COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS.
AND THEY HAVE AGREED TO SPEAK AT OUR APRIL ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION MEETING ABOUT SOME OF THEIR SUCCESSES DOING THE GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE AUDITS AND OTHER KIND OF RELATED PROJECTS THAT THEY'RE INVOLVED WITH. SO THEY MIGHT THEY MIGHT GIVE US SOME IDEAS.
THEY ALSO HAVE AN EXCELLENT MANUAL ON LOW IMPACT DEVELOPMENT.
THAT THEY ARE AVAILABLE ON THEIR WEBSITE.
THE OTHER THING I JUST WANTED TO MENTION THE KIND OF RELATED TO THIS.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW OF OUR CODE OF ORDINANCES IS THAT THERE'S A NUMBER OF PLACES WHERE WE MIGHT STILL BROADEN OUR THINKING ABOUT WHAT'S POSSIBLE IN TERMS OF OUR POLICIES AND PROCEDURES AND AND CODES.
I'M JUST GOING TO SHARE MY SCREEN REAL QUICKLY, IF I CAN FIND WHICH WHICH SCREEN THAT'S ON.
GIVE ME ONE AND GIVE ME TWO MORE SECONDS HERE.
OH, BOY. WELL, MAYBE I'M NOT GOING TO SHARE RIGHT NOW, IT IS LIKE WAITING FOR THE BANJO PLAYER TO GET IN TUNE. OH, MY GOD.
WELL, I'LL JUST READ WHAT'S ON MY SCREEN, THE REGIONAL CLIMATE INITIATIVE THAT'S EMERGING.
WE'RE GOING TO BE COMING UP WITH SOME SOME INTERESTING REGIONAL POLICIES.
[01:10:03]
WE MIGHT ALSO STAY TUNED TO SOME OF THE DEVELOPMENTS IN EAST LANSING, KIND OF RELATED TO THEIR GREEN BUILDING PROCEDURES, JOHN, AS MENTIONED, THE ANN ARBOR'S ELECTRIC VEHICLE ORDINANCE. LET'S SEE, MICHELLE [INAUDIBLE] WITH [INAUDIBLE] CONSERVATION DISTRICT HAS SHARED A NATIVE PLANT ORDINANCE THAT ONE COMMUNITY ADOPTED.ANYWAY. ANYWAY, THERE'S A NUMBER OF THESE TYPES OF OPPORTUNITIES THAT ARE EMERGING RIGHT NOW THAT WE MIGHT JUST STAY TUNED TO AS WE CONTINUE THIS ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW OF OUR CODES OR ORDINANCES OR POLICIES OR PROCEDURES.
I'LL SHARE THAT. I'LL SHARE THIS LIST IN THE CHAT WINDOW.
AND I THINK I JUST HAVE TOO MANY SCREENS OPEN ON MY COMPUTER RIGHT NOW.
IT SOUNDS LIKE SOME GOOD TOPICS FOR FUTURE GREEN THINGS TO WHAT OTHER COMMUNITIES ARE DOING. SO GOOD POINT.
OK, THANKS. WELL, I THINK ONTO THE MANY REPORTS AND I THINK LEROY ALPHABETIZED IT'S THE
[11A. Board of Trustees]
BOARD OF TRUSTEES IS A FIRST.I THINK IT IS. SO WE'VE ACTUALLY HAD QUITE A BIT GOING ON IN EVEN IN THIS SHORT PERIOD OF TIME, WHICH IS FANTASTIC.
WE'RE GETTING WORK DONE QUICKLY.
I'LL SPEAK TO SOME SOCIAL JUSTICE THAT RELATES TO ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE, THAT RELATES TO THE COMMISSION AS A MEMBER OF THE DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION TASK FORCE, WHICH WE DID ADOPT A NONDISCRIMINATION AND FAIR EMPLOYMENT POLICY, WHICH SOME PEOPLE KNOW AS BE IN THE BOX. SO WHAT THAT DOES IS IT TAKES THAT CHECKBOX OFF OF THE APPLICATION OF WHETHER YOU'VE BEEN CONVICTED OF ANY TYPE OF CRIME AND ALLOWS FOR THAT FAIR OPPORTUNITY FOR YOUR SKILLS AND YOUR EXPERIENCE TO SHOW PRIOR TO A BACKGROUND CHECK.
OF COURSE, ONCE YOU BECOME A TOP CANDIDATE FOR A POSITION AT THE TOWNSHIP.
SO I THINK THAT WAS A REALLY GOOD A BIG WIN FOR FOR THE FOR THE WORK GROUP.
ALSO, JUST LAST NIGHT, WE COMMEMORATED BLACK HISTORY MONTH.
AND AGAIN, I SAID LAST NIGHT, I HAVE A FRIEND THAT SAID TO ME, GREAT FEBRUARY BLACK HISTORY MONTH, IT'S THE SHORTEST AND COLDEST THIS MONTH OF THE YEAR.
AND I TRIED TO REMIND FOLKS THAT IT'S ALSO ABRAHAM LINCOLN, LINCOLN AND FREDERICK DOUGLASS BIRTHDAYS AS WELL AS THE NAACP, WAS ESTABLISHED IN THE SECOND WEEK OF FEBRUARY AS WELL. SO THERE WAS SOME SIGNIFICANCE EVEN OF FOLKS OF NON COLOR.
AND, YOU KNOW, IT PROBABLY WAS UNINTENTIONAL, BUT SO THAT WAS REALLY IMPORTANT.
WE ADOPTED PART OF OUR 2021 GOALS WAS GOING ONE HUNDRED PERCENT RENEWABLE ENERGY FOR THE TOWNSHIP BY 2035.
SO WE'RE REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THAT.
AND THE ONLY OTHER THING TO BRING UP IS THAT THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF TALK AND WORK AROUND WETLANDS SPECIFICALLY.
WE'VE HAD SOME PROJECTS ON THE BOARD THAT HAS BROUGHT SOME DISCUSSION REGARDING WETLANDS AND EITHER WHETHER IT BE, YOU KNOW, SETBACKS OR DEVELOPMENT OR MITIGATION.
BUT I JUST WANT TO GIVE A LOT OF CREDIT TO KENDRICK [INAUDIBLE] THAT HAS WORKED REALLY HARD WITH A LOT OF FOLKS ON THIS BOARD TO CREATE THIS WETLAND OUTREACH AND PAMPHLET.
AND I KNOW YOU'VE WORKED ON THAT.
I BELIEVE WILL YOU'VE WORKED ON THAT.
AND I THINK IT'S READY TO ROLL OUT.
WHAT I'VE UNDERSTOOD IS THAT THERE MAY NEED TO BE A NEED FOR SOME RESOURCES FOR PRINTING AND DISTRIBUTION.
SO I THINK THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE CAN WORK ON AND SEE WHAT WE CAN DO TO HELP GET THAT GET THAT WORD AND GET THAT INFORMATION OUT TO THE COMMUNITY.
AND MAYBE IT NEEDS TO START AT A TARGETED APPROACH OR MAYBE, YOU KNOW, I DON'T KNOW, HEARING FROM FROM THE INDIVIDUAL DID THE PRESENTATION EARLIER.
SO THAT'S A REALLY GOOD OPPORTUNITY.
AND SHE HAD REALLY GREAT IDEAS.
THAT MIGHT BE SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT, TOO.
SO I KNOW WETLANDS BEEN A BIG TOPIC.
IT WILL CONTINUE TO BE A BIG TOPIC FOR ME.
SO AS YOU KNOW, AS WE APPROACH SOME OF THESE DEVELOPMENTS COMING UP, I JUST KNOW THAT I WILL PROBABLY REACH OUT TO YOU FOLKS FOR SOME EXPERT ADVICE.
THANK YOU, COURTNEY. ANY QUESTIONS FOR COURTNEY BEFORE WE.
OK, BROWNFIELD DEVELOPMENT REDEVELOPMENT.
[11B. Brownfield Redevelopment Authority ]
WE HAD THE BEST KIND OF MEETING, WHICH WAS THAT IT WAS CANCELED FOR LACK OF BUSINESS, SO THAT IT WAS VERY EFFICIENT.WE'RE SCHEDULED TO MEET FEBRUARY 18TH AND THEY DON'T HAVE AN AGENDA YET FOR THAT.
SO I CAN'T TELL YOU WHAT WE'LL BE ADDRESSING.
[01:15:03]
THANK YOU NED.AND WE'RE UP TO THE ENERGY TEAM, LEROY,
[11C. Energy Team ]
DO YOU HAVE THOSE TWO CHARTS THAT WE COULD SCREEN SHARE? I CAN DIG AROUND FOR THEM.OR IS IT POSSIBLE FOR ME TO SCREEN SHARE? YES, OK, I THINK I'VE GOT THEM ON MY.
WHERE ARE THEY? SOUNDS FAMILIAR.
YEAH. OH, BOY, I THINK WE NEED SOME JEOPARDY MUSIC.
WELL, LET ME YEAH WELL THAT WASN'T SUCCESSFUL, BUT LET ME JUST KIND OF MENTION A COUPLE OF THINGS. ONE, I ASKED LEROY FOR DATA FROM LAST YEAR WITH RESPECT TO SOLAR INSTALLATIONS IN THE TOWNSHIP, SO I WAS ABLE TO UPDATE A COUPLE OF CHARTS, WHICH I WANTED TO SHOW YOU.
BUT ACTUALLY, I THINK WE HAD 18 INSTALLATIONS IN THE TOWNSHIP LAST YEAR, 15 RESIDENTIAL AND THREE COMMERCIAL TO THE COMMERCIAL WERE THE TOWNSHIP INSTALLATIONS. AND THAT WAS LESS THAN THE YEAR BEFORE.
CAN YOU MAKE THAT A LITTLE BIGGER? WELL, ACTUALLY, THE OOPS WELL, ANYWAY.
THE TOP CHART IS THE NUMBER OF NEW SOLAR INSTALLATIONS IN THE TOWNSHIP.
AND AS YOU LIKE I WAS POINTING OUT THIS PAST YEAR, WE HAD FEWER THAN THE YEAR BEFORE.
BUT THAT'S NOT A BIG SURPRISE BECAUSE OF ALL THE STUFF THAT'S BEEN GOING ON WITH THE PANDEMIC AND WHATEVER THE COMMERCIAL INSTALLATIONS ARE IN THE ORANGE COLOR.
AND SO I THINK STILL WE'RE MAKING SOME PRETTY GOOD PROGRESS.
THE BOTTOM CHART THAT SHOWS ACTUALLY KILOWATTS.
AND AS YOU CAN SEE, WE'RE MAKING STEADY PROGRESS WITH RESPECT TO THE CAPACITY OF THE WELL, THAT'S A LITTLE BIGGER OF THE KIND OF CUMULATIVE CAPACITY OF THE DIFFERENT INSTALLATIONS. SO WE'RE UP TO ALMOST 900 KILOWATTS.
SO WE'RE GETTING CLOSE TO ONE MEGAWATT OF SOLAR INSTALLATIONS IN THE IN THE TOWNSHIPS.
SO I JUST WANTED TO LEROY WAS, LEROY GOT THE INFORMATION FROM TOWNSHIP STAFF ALMOST IMMEDIATELY. SO I WAS ABLE TO UPDATE THESE CHARTS AND TO CONTINUE TO KIND OF MONITOR THE PROGRESS AS WE MOVE AHEAD.
AND THE OTHER THING I JUST MENTIONED IS THAT, YOU KNOW, THERE'S A MY SOLAR STORY ZOOM MEETINGS EVERY THURSDAY.
AND LAST THURSDAY, WE HAD THE ABSOLUTE SOLAR FOLKS MAKE A ZOOM PRESENTATION TO ABOUT TWENTY ONE PARTICIPANTS TALKING ABOUT THE INSTALLATIONS AT THE FIRE STATION AND THE MARKETPLACE ON THE GREEN THERE.
AND THEY DID A REALLY GOOD JOB.
AND IF ANYBODY'S INTERESTED, YOU CAN.
THOSE ARE THE ZOOM RECORDING IS POSTED ON YOUTUBE.
ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS KIND OF DO A SEARCH FOR MY SOLAR STORY AND YOU'LL BE ABLE TO TRACK IT DOWN. IF THEY HAD LOTS OF LOTS OF GOOD PICTURES OF THE FIRE STATION AND THE FARMER'S MARKET AND THE SOLAR INSTALLATIONS.
LET'S SEE. ANY QUESTIONS FOR ME? BILL. I WAS PLEASED TO BE ABLE TO ATTEND THE MY SOLAR PRESENTATION ON THE TWO INSTALLATIONS, AND I, THEY WERE EXCELLENT PRESENTATIONS, GREAT CONTENT.
I UNDERSTOOD ALMOST EVERYTHING THE TWO PRESENTERS SAID.
BUT WHEN THE Q&A STARTED, I QUICKLY GOT BURIED.
WE HAVE SOME VERY STRONG EXPERTISE IN THIS TOWNSHIP ON THE TECHNICAL SIDE THAT WOULD REALLY PUT THESE GUYS FEET TO THE FIRE ABOUT WELL ARE THE INVERTORS INDOORS OR OUTDOORS AND HOW COME THEY WERE TWO AND [INAUDIBLE] MATCH? AND THEY WERE IN PHASES.
SO IT'S A GREAT COMMUNITY RESOURCE AND YEAH, REALLY NICE JOB.
AND I FOUND IT VERY EDUCATIONAL.
JUST TO GET MORE SPECIFICS ABOUT THE TWO PROJECTS.
AND BOY, YOU'RE RIGHT, THE QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS, LOTS OF INFORMATION COMES OUT.
LET'S SEE. THE ONE THING I TOOK AWAY FROM THAT WAS THAT THE INITIAL IDEA KIND OF GOING BACK TO OUR OKEMOS HASLETT SCHOOLS DISCUSSION WAS TO PUT EQUAL SIZED ARRAYS AT THE FARMERS MARKET, AT THE FIRE STATION.
AND WHEN THEY REALIZED HOW MUCH BIGGER THE ROOF IS DOWN THERE AND HOW MUCH THE DEMAND FOR POWER IS CONSTANT THERE, I HADN'T REALIZED THAT THOSE INSTALLATIONS WERE ACTUALLY SUPPLYING FIRE STATION FIRE STATION NEEDS IN REAL TIME.
THEY'RE NOT JUST SORT OF SELLING IT TO THE GRID AND BUYING FROM THE GRID.
RIGHT. AND THEY'RE PROVIDING ABOUT 60 PERCENT OF THE POWER TO THE FIRE STATION.
AND BECAUSE IT'S A SMALL INSTALLATION AT THE FARMERS MARKET, PROBABLY ONE HUNDRED PERCENT
[01:20:02]
OF THE ELECTRICITY FOR THE FARMERS MARKET FROM THE SMALLER INSTALLATIONS.SO WE ARE DEFINITELY MAKING PROGRESS IN OUR 100 PERCENT RENEWABLE ENERGY GOAL.
AND OF COURSE, WE HAVE, YOU KNOW, THE TOWNSHIP BUDGET WHERE IT IS EVERYBODY KNOWS, BUDGETED THREE HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS FOR THIS YEAR.
SO WE'RE GOING TO, AGAIN, MAKE VERY GOOD PROGRESS.
I POSTED THE PLAYLIST FROM GLREA AND THE THE SOLAR STORIES IN THE CHAT WINDOW, IF ANYBODY WANTS IT. SORRY NED, GO AHEAD NED.
OR WHOEVER. I JUST WANTED TO ASK AGAIN, I KNOW WE KEEP BRINGING THIS UP, BUT IF WE'RE REALLY GOING TO GET TO TOTAL RENEWABLE ENERGY BY 2035 WE'LL HAVE TO HAVE STORAGE AND AND I WANT TO MAKE SURE WE KEEP OUR EYES ON EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES AND SO FORTH.
IT'S STILL A TOUGH PROBLEM, SO I'M JUST CURIOUS ABOUT WHERE WHERE AND WHERE WE'RE GOING THERE. NOT NECESSARILY THAT I HAVE ANY SOLUTIONS.
NO, THAT'S AN EXCELLENT POINT.
IN FACT, THAT REMINDS ME THAT WHEN WE HAD A DISCUSSION WITH DEREK AND THE ABSOLUTE SOLAR STAFF ABOUT THE SERVICE CENTER.
THE SERVICE CENTER, IS KIND OF TARGETED FOR THE LARGER INSTALLATION THIS YEAR.
THE ISSUE CAME UP OF STORAGE, BATTERIES, EV CHARGERS.
AND I THINK IT WAS A GOOD DISCUSSION BECAUSE APPARENTLY THERE IS A AN ADDITION PLAN FOR THE SERVICE CENTER, TOO.
AND SO WE WERE ABLE TO WORK WITH THE SOLAR INSTALLERS TO KIND OF ANTICIPATE FUTURE NEEDS, WHICH, OF COURSE, COULD REDUCE FUTURE COSTS IF WE KIND OF DO SOME GOOD PLANNING.
SO ALL THOSE WE HAD A REALLY GOOD DISCUSSION ABOUT WHERE WE'RE GOING.
IF WE HAD BATTERIES, WHERE WOULD WE PUT THEM? WHERE WOULD WE PUT EV CHARGERS, YOU KNOW, AND THEN JUST.
WE [INAUDIBLE] DOWN THE ROAD WHEN THE COSTS COME DOWN AND WE HAVE MORE EV CHARGERS, TOO, SO THAT'S THAT'S I'M GLAD YOU BROUGHT THAT UP NED.
ESPECIALLY SEEMS RELEVANT SINCE GM'S ANNOUNCEMENT THAT THEY ARE GOING TO ULTIMATELY GO ALL ELECTRIC. IT'D BE GOOD TO BE ABLE TO SAY WE'RE KIND OF RIDING THAT SAME WAVE.
YEAH, THE ENERGY TEAM HAS BEEN TALKING ABOUT ELECTRIC VEHICLES AND THEN, YOU KNOW, AND THEN HAVING SOME DISCUSSIONS WITH DEREK ABOUT THOSE ISSUES.
SO BECAUSE THAT'S PART OF THE PLAN.
DO PART OF THE CLIMATE SUSTAINABILITY PLAN.
[11D. Green Team ]
I WAS JUST TRYING TO PULL UP A LITTLE JEOPARDY MUSIC FOR BILL, BUT I'LL WAIT ON THAT.GREEN TEAM IS MEETING NEXT THURSDAY TO TALK ABOUT RECYCLING EVENT THIS POSSIBLY SUMMER OR FALL. WE'RE ALSO GOING TO BE CONTINUING THE CONVERSATION ABOUT RECYCLING IMPROVEMENTS THAT ARE IMPROVEMENTS AT OUR RECYCLING CENTER.
SO IF PEOPLE HAVE FURTHER THOUGHTS ABOUT THAT, I REALLY APPRECIATE THE BRAINSTORM LIST THAT WE CAME UP WITH.
AND MANY OF YOU ATTENDED THAT THAT AT TWO OR FEW WEEKS AGO.
SO IF YOU'RE INTERESTED IN GETTING INVOLVED, APPRECIATE TOM'S INVOLVEMENT.
SEE WHO ELSE HAS BEEN ON THE GREEN TEAM.
SEE, I THINK MOSTLY TOM HAS BEEN AT SOME OF A GREEN TEAM MEETINGS, BUT, OH, LUCA IS ALSO.
LUCA HAS HELPED BRING IN MOST OF THE VOLUNTEERS FOR OUR EVENTS, SO ANYWAY, IF YOU'D LIKE MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THAT ZOOM MEETING NEXT THURSDAY AT FIVE O'CLOCK.
AND LET'S SEE LAND PRESERVATION.
[11E. Land Preservation Advisory Board ]
WELL, WHAT CAN I SAY ABOUT LAND PRESERVATION OUR MAIN STAFF PERSON EMMA CAMPBELL CAME UP WITH COVID JUST BEFORE OUR LAST MEETING, SO WE DID NOT HAVE A LAST MEETING. AND BUT SHE DID HAVE THINGS AND I'LL HAVE TO ASK LEROY IF SHE SHARED THIS WITH YOU, SHE HAS PUT OUT THE 2021 GOALS FOR OUR LAND PRESERVATION PROGRAM, AN ANNUAL REPORT, WHICH I BELIEVE WAS PRESENTED AT THE JOINT BOARD'S MEETING.DO YOU HAVE ACCESS TO THOSE LEROY? NOT RIGHT THE MINUTE I MIGHT BE ABLE TO FIND IT, I JUST WONDER IF IT WOULD BE GOOD.
[01:25:06]
I'VE GOT TWO RATHER LENGTHY FACTOIDS HERE THAT WE COULD JUST SHOOT OUT TO PEOPLE IF YOU COULD GET ACCESS OR IF I SHOULD SEND IT TO LEROY AND YOU SEND IT OUT TO THEM.I'D BE HAPPY TO DO THAT, JIM, THANKS.
OK, DO YOU HAVE ACCESS OR SHOULD I SEND IT TO YOU.
I CAN GET IT FROM EMMA, BUT IT WOULDN'T HURT IF YOU IF YOU THINK OF IT TO SEND IT TO ME AS WELL. OK, AWESOME.
BUT I GUESS I'LL JUST TALK ABOUT SOME OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE GOING TO TALK ABOUT AT OUR MEETING NEXT WEEK I HOPE.
ABOUT INCREASING SIGNAGE ON THE LAND PRESERVES.
TRY TO GROW EDUCATIONAL OUTREACH AND VOLUNTEER RECRUITMENT.
RECRUITMENT OF VOLUNTEERS IN MANY CAPACITIES OF ENVIRONMENTAL ACTIVITIES, [INAUDIBLE] POOLS AND INVASIVE SPECIES SHE PRESENTED, AND YOU'LL BE ABLE TO GET ACCESS HOW MANY POUNDS OF NASTY WEEDS OR INVASIVE SPECIES WERE PULLED AND GOTTEN RID OF.
SHE'S GOT A WHOLE LIST OF LAND MANAGEMENT PROGRAMS THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE LOOKING AT FOR NEXT YEAR PRESCRIBED FIRES, INVASIVE SPECIES MANAGEMENT, STEWARDSHIP ON SEE EIGHT DIFFERENT LAND PRESERVES AND PARKS THAT WILL HAVE SOME THINGS GOING ON.
SO IT'S A NICE, LONG LIST OF THINGS THAT I WILL GET TO YOU, LEROY, AND THEN YOU CAN SEND IT OUT TO EVERYBODY. OTHERWISE, I COULD READ ABOUT EIGHT PAGES AND I DON'T THINK ANYBODY'S GOING TO TOLERATE THAT.
SO WE'LL HAVE OUR MEETING NEXT WEEK AND TALK ABOUT THE THINGS I JUST TALKED ABOUT.
[11F. MI Township Association (MTA) or MI Municipal League (MML) ]
MOVING ON, TIME TO A MICHIGAN TOWNSHIP ASSOCIATION AND WHAT'S GOING ON DOWN AT THE CAPITAL? WELL, AGAIN, NOT TOO MUCH YET, LEGISLATURES JUST STARTED BACK AGAIN, MAINLY JUST ORGANIZATIONAL COMMITTEE MEETINGS AT THIS POINT.THERE IS SOME LEGISLATION MOVING ON SUPPLEMENTAL FOR COVID RELIEF.
HOWEVER, THE LEGISLATURE AND THE GOVERNOR ARE FAR APART ON THAT.
SO WHERE THAT'S GOING TO END UP IS IS YET TO BE SEEN.
BUT SO FAR, NOTHING'S REALLY HAPPENING ON THE ENVIRONMENTAL FRONT.
BUT I, I THINK WITHIN THE NEXT WEEK OR TWO, SOME OF THOSE COMMITTEES WILL START MEETING AND WE'LL SEE FURTHER MOVEMENT IN TIME TO DO ANTICIPATE ANY KIND OF PRIORITY ISSUES THAT ARE GOING TO COME UP PROBABLY RELATED TO THE ENVIRONMENT.
OR THERE IS ONE MAJOR HOLDOVER ISSUE FROM LAST SESSION THAT I BELIEVE THE HOUSE NATURAL RESOURCES COMMITTEE WILL BE TAKING UP IN THE NEXT FEW WEEKS.
AND THAT'S A TOTAL REWRITE OF PART ONE 15, WHICH IS OUR SOLID WASTE LAW.
AND IT'S VERY COMPLICATED, VERY DETAILED.
THAT'S BASICALLY BEING ENTIRELY REWRITTEN TO FOCUS MORE ON MATERIALS MANAGEMENT AS OPPOSED TO LANDFILLING.
SO A LOT OF EFFORT ON RECYCLING, A LOT OF EFFORT AND COMPOSTING THINGS OF THAT NATURE.
SO THAT'S PROBABLY THE BIGGEST ONE THAT COMES TO MIND.
OK. AND THAT BRINGS US UP TO THE PLANNING COMMISSION.
[11G. Planning Commission ]
WELL, KIND OF LIKE THE [INAUDIBLE], IT'S A IT'S BEEN A QUIET, QUIET JANUARY, WE'RE ALL THANKFUL FOR THAT. THE JANUARY 25TH MEETING WAS WAS CANCELED FOR LACK OF BUSINESS.AND WE CONTINUE TO WORK ON THE MIXED USED PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT ORDINANCE.
I WAS GOING TO MENTION THAT THE BOARD DISCUSSION OF THE REZONING THE OTHER EVENING UP THERE OFF OF CENTRAL PARK AND GRAND RIVER BASICALLY APPROVED A REZONING REQUEST THAT THE PLANNING COMMISSION HAD RECOMMENDED DENIAL OF AFTER A COUPLE MORE CONDITIONS WERE ADDED TO THE RESOLUTION HAVING
[01:30:06]
TO DO WITH WHERE THE DENSITY WOULD BE PLACED, AND I DON'T WANT TO GET INTO THE WEEDS ON THAT, BUT IN IN THAT DISCUSSION FOR ALL THE WRONG REASONS, I STARTED THINKING ABOUT TINY HOUSES AND I HAVEN'T HEARD THAT DISCUSSION IN THE TOWNSHIP MUCH BEFORE.SO SOMETHING I WAS KIND OF PIQUED MY INTEREST TO LOOK INTO OUR CURRENT ZONING REGULATIONS ABOUT MINIMUM SQUARE FOOTAGE AREA AND WHERE WE MIGHT.
THE COOL THING ABOUT THIS REZONING AND WHAT THEY'RE PROPOSING IS WHAT THEY CALL A RENTAL BY CHOICE. PEOPLE WHO WANT TO RENT HOUSES AND NOT OWN.
THEY'RE NOT INTERESTED IN A MORTGAGE, BUT THEY'RE NOT CONSTRAINED TO LIVING IN A SMALL APARTMENT. THEY CAN THEY CAN AFFORD A SINGLE FAMILY HOME AND THEY CHOOSE TO RENT INSTEAD OF OWNING. AND THAT TENDS TO BRING A CERTAIN DIFFERENT ARCHITECTURAL REQUIREMENTS AND ABILITIES. SO THAT'S KIND OF WHAT GOT ME THINKING ABOUT ARE THE THINGS WE CAN DO TO PROMOTE OR AT LEAST ENABLE, ALLOW DIFFERENT FORMS OF HOUSING THAN WERE ANTICIPATED BACK WHEN OUR CODE WAS WRITTEN. THAT'S KIND OF MY PET PROJECT FOR PLANNING GOING INTO THE COMING YEAR. WELL.
[11H. Transportation Commission ]
THE TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION.YEAH, THE TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION AT ITS LAST MEETING GOT A REALLY NICE UPDATE ON THE 2021 ROADS PROGRAM, WHICH WAS ALSO PRESENTED TO THE TOWNSHIP BOARD.
AND ONCE AGAIN, THE TOWNSHIP IS VERY TRANSPARENT IN EXACTLY HOW IT'S WORKING TO ACHIEVE ITS GOALS UNDER THE ROADS MILLAGE AND BY ALL ACCOUNTS THEY WERE AHEAD OF PACE THAT THE PROMISES THAT WERE MADE ABOUT IMPROVING ROAD QUALITY IN A TOWNSHIP WILL BE MET AHEAD OF TIME AT THE CURRENT RATE WE'RE GOING AND THOSE MAPS OF WHAT'S GOING TO BE WORKED ON IN THE COMING YEAR ARE ALL AVAILABLE ON THE TOWNSHIP WEBSITE.
THERE'S ALSO DISCUSSION OF THE PATHWAY IMPLEMENTATION AND USE OF THE PATHWAY MILLAGE FUNDS, AND THAT HAS ALSO SPARKED SOME DISCUSSION ABOUT THE TREATMENT OF SNOW AND ICE ON THE SIDEWALKS, AND SO THAT WAS ALSO MENTIONED IN THE TOWNSHIP MANAGER'S REPORT TO THE TOWNSHIP BOARD. AND THAT'S ABOUT IT, YEAH, THIS MORNING IN THE GREEN TALK GREEN DIALOG, WE HAD AN EXTENSIVE DISCUSSION OF SALT AND SALT ALTERNATIVES FOR SIDEWALKS, AND THAT WAS INTERESTING. I LEARNED A LOT.
THAT'S A GOOD DISCUSSION ON WEDNESDAY MORNINGS.
AND I THINK WE'RE UP TO A PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD AGAIN TOO DOES ANYBODY FROM THE PUBLIC OR
[12. PUBLIC REMARKS ]
THE BOARD WANT TO MAKE ANY COMMENTS? JOHN. YEAH, JUST HAVE ONE THING WHEN YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT THE GRANTS FOR THE HIGH SCHOOLS TO DO ENVIRONMENTALLY APPROPRIATE SORT OF PROJECTS, IT SEEMS TO ME BECAUSE OF MY OWN EXPERIENCE WITH WORKING ON A PROJECT THAT I WILL AS IT'S JUST ABOUT GETTING TO THE FINISH OF IT, I WILL THINK, OH, I SHOULD HAVE TAKEN SOME PICTURES ALONG THE WAY OR DONE SOME NOTES ALONG THE WAY. MAYBE THIS HAS ALREADY BEEN INCORPORATED INTO WHAT YOU'RE PROPOSING THAT THESE GROUPS DO.BUT I THINK IT WOULD BE INTERESTING NOT ONLY TO SEE THAT, BUT ALSO MAYBE IN TERMS OF PROMOTING THIS WHEN IT'S ALL SAID AND DONE TO HAVE A LITTLE HISTORY OF THE STAGES ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF THESE PROJECTS.
THAT WAS THE ONLY THOUGHT THAT I HAD.
AND SO THAT'S A GOOD SORT OF A REPORT, OF COURSE, AS IS REQUIRED, ACTUALLY, A KIND OF AN INTERIM REPORT, TOO.
BUT I THINK YOU'RE RIGHT, WE SHOULD ENCOURAGE THEM TO TAKE PHOTOGRAPHS BECAUSE A LOT OF THIS WILL BE LEND ITSELF TO THE KIND OF PHOTOS AND KIND OF A RECORD OF WHAT GETS DONE.
AND THEN THEY COULD BE HELPFUL TO OTHER FOLKS WHO WANT TO DO SIMILAR PROJECTS.
OTHER COMMENTS, QUESTIONS OR ANYTHING ELSE BEFORE WE ADJOURN, JUST MAYBE FOLLOW UP ON THAT REAL QUICK. HOMTV A WONDERFUL JOB RECORDING THE TREE PLANTING EFFORT.
SO IF THEY CAN BE ATTRACTED TO THE SIMILAR THING, THEY'VE GOT SUCH TALENT.
YEAH, THAT'S THAT'S AN EXCELLENT POINT, TOO.
YEAH. OK, CAN I CAN I HAVE A MOTION TO ADJOURN? OK, JIM. SECOND. OK, BILL.
ALL IN FAVOR. OK, HEY, THANKS, EVERYBODY.
BYE BYE.
* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.