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[00:00:21]

AS USUAL, WE HAVE A COUPLE OF OPPORTUNITIES DURING OUR MEETINGS FOR PUBLIC REMARKS.

[1. CALL MEETING TO ORDER]

ANYBODY WHO'S HERE FROM THE PUBLIC IS WELCOME TO COME TO THE PODIUM, IDENTIFY YOURSELF AND ADDRESS THE COMMISSION.

THERE WILL ALSO BE AN OPPORTUNITY AT THE END, IF YOU SO DESIRE.

SEEING NONE, WE'LL MOVE TO THE AGENDA.

[3. CHANGES TO/APPROVAL OF AGENDA ]

ANY SUGGESTIONS? CHANGES? DELETIONS TO THE AGENDA AS CIRCULATED.

I'M GOING TO PARLIAMENTARY NITPICK AND SAY THAT THE GREEN SPACE PLAN IS UNFINISHED BUSINESS, BUT I'M NOT GOING TO PRESS THE POINT.

IF THERE'S NO OTHER CHANGES, THEN THE AGENDA IS ADOPTED AS PRESENTED.

APPROVAL OF MINUTES.

[4. APPROVAL OF MINUTES]

IT'S VERY NICE MINUTES FROM OUR LAST MEETING.

WE DID ONE COMMENT OR CHANGE, PLEASE.

SO THE LAND PRESERVATION UPDATE THAT I DID I MAYBE SET FIRE BY ACCIDENT, BUT I MEANT TO SAY THAT IT WAS ACTUALLY IT WAS A RIBBON CUTTING EVENT AT DAVIS FOSTER FLOWERS, AND IT WAS FOR, LIKE, THE NEW SIGN, I THINK.

YEAH, THE NEW NAME AND SIGNAGE.

AND THEN THEY HAD A WILDFLOWER WALK.

SO IT WAS AN EVENT, NOT THE FIRE.

THAT WAS MY FAULT.

WHICH DRAWS A BIGGER CROWD.

THE FIRE. GREAT.

ANY OTHER COMMENTS OR SUGGESTIONS, PLEASE? YEAH, JUST ONE ADDITION FOR THOSE PRESENT.

I BELIEVE THE CHAIR WAS PRESENT FOR THE MEETING LAST TIME.

WELL. IF THERE'S NOTHING ELSE, THERE'S NO OBJECTION.

THE MINUTES ARE ADOPTED, AS AMENDED.

MOVING THEN TO GREEN SPACE PLAN.

[Greenspace Plan]

AT OUR LAST MEETING, WE I, BY THE POWER VESTED IN ME, APPOINTED A STUDY GROUP.

WORKING GROUP? SOMETHING ELSE TO LOOK AT OUR 2004 GREEN SPACE PLAN.

AND THINK ABOUT WHAT WE MIGHT THINK ABOUT COMMISSIONER PAUL WAS LEADING THAT GROUP, AND I KNOW THERE WAS A MEETING.

AND LOOKING FORWARD TO A SUMMARY DISCUSSION THIS EVENING.

YOU HAVE THE FLOOR.

OKAY. AS A MATTER OF FACT, IF YOU WANT, I THINK YOU CAN GET.

IF WE GET YOUR DOCUMENT UP, YOU CAN ACTUALLY GET THE MOUSE AND CONTROL THE SCROLLING.

IS THAT AM I CORRECT IN THAT? FOR A SMALL FEE? THERE WE GO.

SO. YEAH. SO WE MET TWO TIMES.

AND THE FIRST TIME WE WERE JUST KIND OF DISCUSSING, LIKE, WHAT WE THOUGHT OF IT, AND THE SECOND TIME WE WERE JUST KIND OF FINALIZING WHAT WE WANTED TO TALK ABOUT TODAY.

BUT SO WE LOOKED OVER THE GREEN SPACE PLAN, WHICH IS 20 YEARS OLD, AND OUR GOALS FOR OUR STUDY GROUP WAS TO ASSESS THE PROGRESS TOWARDS THE GOALS THAT THEY HAD SET IN THE GREEN SPACE PLAN AND IDENTIFY ANY POTENTIAL GAPS THAT THEY MAY WANT TO ADDRESS OR INVESTIGATE.

AND SOME AREAS OF INTEREST THAT WE HAD WHEN REVIEWING IT WAS UNREGULATED AREAS, WILDLIFE CORRIDORS, CITIZEN SCIENCE OPPORTUNITIES WETLAND QUALITY, FLOODING AREAS, NATURAL COMMUNITIES.

WE THOUGHT THE PLAN DID NOT ADDRESS CLIMATE CHANGE, SO WE THOUGHT THAT MIGHT BE SOMETHING THEY COULD INCLUDE, AND POSSIBLY CONNECTING GREEN SPACES THROUGH PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION. AND I'LL GO THROUGH MORE OF THOSE INDIVIDUALLY.

BUT SO THE GREEN SPACE PLAN, THEY TALKED A LOT ABOUT PRIORITY CONSERVATION CORRIDORS.

SO 84% OF THOSE ARE CURRENTLY REGULATED LANDS.

SO FLOODPLAINS, WETLANDS AND WETLAND AND LAKE BUFFERS.

AND THEY ALSO TALKED ABOUT RED AREAS WHICH WERE JUST UNREGULATED LANDS THAT SHOULD BE ADDED TO MAINTAIN ECOLOGICAL INTEGRITY AND INTERCONNECTEDNESS, WHICH WE HAVE ABOUT 600 ACRES.

SO WE THOUGHT SOME THOUGHTS ON THAT WAS WE WERE WONDERING JUST HOW ARE THE PRIORITY CONSERVATION CORRIDORS DOING? LIKE HOW HAVE THEY BEEN REGULATED PROPERLY AND ADEQUATELY BUFFERED.

SO WE THOUGHT, YOU KNOW, THAT WOULD BE SOMETHING LIKE THAT COULD BE ADDRESSED.

AND IF THEY'RE NOT PROPERLY PROTECTED, LIKE, WHAT COULD WE DO TO FIX THAT? AND WE ALSO WANTED TO KNOW WHAT THE STATUS OF THE RED AREAS WAS.

[00:05:05]

SO DID WE ADD PROTECTION FOR THESE AREAS AND HOW MUCH.

AND WE ALSO THE PLAN DID NOT REALLY TALK ABOUT THE QUALITY OF THESE AREAS.

SO YOU KNOW, WERE THEY COVERED IN INVASIVE SPECIES OR THINGS LIKE THAT.

SO THAT COULD BE SOMETHING WE COULD MONITOR TO SEE IF WHAT THE QUALITY OF THESE IS LIKE AND HOW IT'S DIFFERENT ACROSS THE TOWNSHIP.

AND WE ALSO THOUGHT FLOODING WAS SOMETHING THAT IT DIDN'T TALK ABOUT, WHICH COULD BE INTERESTING.

BECAUSE IT COULD HELP WITH WETLAND OR INCREASE FLOODING, YOU KNOW, TO PRIORITIZE AREAS FOR WETLAND PROTECTION, BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT THERE ARE SOME AREAS IN THE MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP THAT FLOODS PRETTY FREQUENTLY.

AND WE THOUGHT MAYBE THE GREEN SPACE PLAN COULD HELP WITH THAT, OR JUST EVEN MENTION IT WOULD BE NICE.

AND WE THOUGHT WE COULD INVESTIGATE POTENTIAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR WETLAND MITIGATION EFFORTS.

WE ALSO THOUGHT YOU KNOW, WE COULD INCORPORATE CITIZEN SCIENCE AND STEWARDSHIP INTO SOME OF THE ACTIONS THAT WE MAY TAKE WITH LOOKING AT THE GREEN SPACE PLAN.

AND WE ALSO NOTICED THAT THEY TALKED A LOT ABOUT WETLANDS, BUT WE ALSO HAVE OTHER NATURAL COMMUNITY TYPES.

AND WE DIDN'T WE THOUGHT MAYBE THAT COULD BE INCORPORATED INTO IT AS WELL.

AND THEY ALSO TALKED ABOUT SCENIC ROAD CORRIDORS, WHICH WE HAVE A COUPLE.

SO THERE'S LIKE 23 MILES TOTAL.

AND THE PLAN RECOMMENDED 150 FOOT BUFFER ON EITHER SIDE OF THEM WHERE NEW DEVELOPMENT IS RESTRICTED.

AND SO WE WONDERED, HAS THIS OCCURRED? WERE THE GUIDELINES FOLLOWED AND IS LIKE, WHAT'S THE PROGRESS ON THE IMPLEMENTATION AND HOW WAS THE QUALITY OF THOSE AREAS? THERE WAS ALSO AREAS OF SPECIAL CONCERN TALKED ABOUT, WHICH WAS MOSTLY AGRICULTURAL LANDS, ROAD CROSSINGS, WILDLIFE CROSSINGS AND FRAGILE LINKAGES.

THEY HAD TALKED ABOUT MITIGATING LIKE ROADKILL OR FROM LIKE WILDLIFE CROSSINGS.

AND WE WERE WONDERING LIKE WHAT EXACTLY THEY DID TO FIX THAT.

AND COULD WE GET, YOU KNOW, MORE BETTER DATA ON WILDLIFE CROSSINGS SO WE COULD IDENTIFY PRIORITY PLACES THAT, YOU KNOW, WE COULD PROTECT.

AND CAN I HOLD YOU THERE FOR A SECOND IF I UNDERSTAND.

RIGHT. THOSE ARE KIND OF THE MAJOR CATEGORIES THAT YOU SAW THE EXISTING PLAN ADDRESSING AND ISSUES.

AND THE REST THEN IS THE IMPLEMENTATION TOOLS THAT THEY WERE RECOMMENDING BE USED TO ACCOMPLISH THOSE? I'M WONDERING IF IT MIGHT MAKE SENSE TO MAYBE SPLIT THE DISCUSSION A LITTLE BIT SO WE CAN KIND OF MAYBE FOCUS A LITTLE BIT ON SOME OF THE MORE SUBSTANTIVE AREAS YOU'VE IDENTIFIED, AND THEN MAYBE ALSO LOOK AT THE IMPLEMENTATION PART EITHER TONIGHT OR AT A SUBSEQUENT I BELIEVE YOU ALSO HAVE AT THE END SOME DATA RESOURCES THAT YOU THOUGHT MIGHT BE USEFUL.

SO WE DON'T WANT TO FORGET TO LOOK AT THOSE.

BUT MAYBE IF WE COULD SORT OF FOCUS ON THESE AREAS AND SEE IF WE NEED ANY CLARIFICATION.

OKAY. IN YOUR PRIORITY CONSERVATION CORRIDORS I WAS REALLY INTERESTED IN YOUR FIRST BULLET THERE, THAT 84% OF THEM ARE CURRENTLY REGULATED.

AND I WAS CURIOUS HOW WE KNOW THAT THAT CAME RIGHT OUT OF THE PLAN.

OKAY. THAT'S WHAT THEY SAID IN THE PLAN.

THAT'S WHAT THE PLAN SAYS. I SHOULDN'T SAY THEY SAID.

THE PLAN SAYS.

IT SAYS THAT THE PRIORITY CONSERVATION CORRIDORS.

THAT OF THOSE, OF THE AREAS THAT WERE IDENTIFIED AS THE PRIORITY CONSERVATION CORPS IS 84% OF THEM ARE SUPPOSED TO BE THESE REGULATED WETLANDS, FLOODPLAINS. SO THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN AS OF 2004 OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.

SO THAT'S THE QUESTION IS THEN HOW MUCH OF THAT HAS MORE OR LESS.

YEAH. OKAY. OKAY.

THANK YOU FOR THAT CLARIFICATION.

SO IN THE SUB PARTS HERE, GIS ANALYSIS USING CURRENT WETLAND MAPS, IT FEELS TO ME LIKE THERE'S SEVERAL PARTS HERE THAT YOU'RE IMAGINING.

COULD BE QUESTIONS THAT COULD BE ANSWERED USING GIS AND OTHER SPATIAL DATA RESOURCES.

IS THAT FAIR? YEAH.

AND IN SOME CASES, YOU'VE IDENTIFIED CERTAIN DATABASES THAT COULD BE USED.

OH. SO OTHER ISSUES OF CLARIFICATION FROM THE COMMISSION.

THAT'S A LOT TO ABSORB.

[00:10:01]

BUT I THINK FROM MY FIRST READ OF THIS, THERE'S SOME REALLY GOOD QUESTIONS IN THERE.

YEAH. WHEN WE TALK ABOUT FLOODPLAINS, IS IT THE 100 YEAR FLOODPLAIN? WHAT ARE WE ACTUALLY REFERRING TO? YOU KNOW, THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION FOR A PLANNER.

YEAH. BECAUSE THERE ARE AT LEAST THREE DIFFERENT RELATED TERMS THAT ARE OFTEN USED.

OKAY. FLOODPLAINS.

FLOODWAYS, FLOODWAY FRINGES.

AND SOME OF THEM ARE HYDROLOGIC IN MEANING, AND SOME OF THEM ARE LEGAL IN MEANING.

AND MOST OF THEM ARE REGULATED BY THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT DETERMINES WHERE ONE OF THEM IS.

AND SO I'M BEING VAGUE ON PURPOSE.

AM I RIGHT IN ASSUMING THAT DEVELOPMENT ISN'T TYPICALLY ALLOWED IN FLOODPLAINS? WELL, ALMOST ALWAYS DISCOURAGED IN MY VIEW.

TRUSTEE, WOULD YOU LIKE TO WEIGH IN ON THIS? YOU'RE MORE KNOWLEDGEABLE THAN ME IN THIS.

AS FAR AS FLOODPLAINS, THERE ARE LIMITATIONS TO WHAT YOU CAN BUILD AS FAR AS RESIDENTIAL.

AND THEY HAVE TO BE SO FAR AWAY OR SO MUCH ABOVE THE FLOODPLAIN.

AND THAT'S THE 100 YEAR FLOODPLAIN.

I BELIEVE THERE ARE FLOODWAYS, WHICH ARE BASICALLY DRAINAGE AREAS THAT FLOOD OCCASIONALLY THAT ARE NOT CONSIDERED THE FLOODPLAIN BECAUSE THEY DON'T.

BASICALLY, IT'S JUST A DRAIN OFF AREA.

AND THOSE ARE REGULATED ALSO.

YOU CAN'T BUILD IN THOSE.

OTHER THAN THAT, I'M NOT REAL SURE WHAT THE LIMITATIONS ARE, BUT THEY TRY TO AVOID THE FLOODPLAIN AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE.

YEAH. MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT PRETTY MUCH ALL OF OUR WETLANDS ARE FLOODPLAINS, AND THEREFORE ALREADY AND ALMOST VICE VERSA.

IF IT OFTEN FLOODS, IT'S GOING TO BE.

WELL, THERE ARE A NUMBER OF ESPECIALLY ALONG THE RIVER.

THERE'S A FLOODPLAIN MAP FOR THAT WHICH ARE NOT NECESSARILY CONSIDERED WETLANDS, BUT THEY DO RESTRICT WHAT YOU CAN DO IN THERE.

AND THAT'S BASED ON, I BELIEVE, FEDERAL DETERMINATIONS OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.

THERE WAS EVEN.

SORRY TO GO IN THE WEEDS.

A FEW YEARS BACK, AN EFFORT MULTI-COUNTY EFFORT TO A REQUEST FOR FEMA TO USGS TO UPDATE IT, UPDATE BASED ON CHANGES IN LANDFORM AND CHANGES IN EXPECTATIONS AND SUCH CHANGES IN DRAINAGE, IF NOTHING ELSE, BECAUSE A LOT OF IT IS DEPENDENT ON FLUSHING THE STORMWATER DOWN TO THE DRAINS, OR THE EITHER THE RIVER OR THE FEEDING DRAINS.

COUNTY DRAINS.

SO ONE THING THAT I FORGOT TO MENTION, EVEN THOUGH WE MET TWICE, JUST THINKING ABOUT IT NOW, WAS THAT THE PLAN STARTS OFF WITH SAYING THAT THERE ARE THESE HUBS IN THE GREEN SPACE PLAN.

THERE ARE THE HUBS, AND THE HUBS ARE THE PARKS AND THE PRESERVES THAT ARE ALREADY PROTECTED AND ALREADY PUBLIC LAND, YOU KNOW, THAT ARE PERMANENT, YOU KNOW, GREEN SPACE IN THE TOWNSHIP. AND THEN THESE CONSERVATION CORRIDORS WOULD KIND OF CONNECT THOSE HUBS THEN.

AND SO ONE THING I GUESS WE COULD DO IS BECAUSE WE'VE ADDED PRESERVES SINCE, YOU KNOW, 2004.

SO WE PROBABLY SHOULD.

YEAH. AND WE'VE ADDED PATHWAYS AND.

YEAH. SO AT A MINIMUM, WE WANTED.

YEAH, WE COULD DEFINITELY ADD IN UPDATING THE GREEN SPACE PLAN BY ADDING IN THOSE NEW HUBS AND SEE HOW THEY FIT INTO THE IF THERE WERE ALREADY IDENTIFIED IN THE PRIORITY CONSERVATION CORRIDORS OR IF THEY WERE SEPARATE AND OUTSIDE.

SO THAT WOULD BE INTERESTING TO LOOK AT.

I THINK I HAD LIKE STUFF ABOUT HUBS AND EVERYTHING LIKE AS NOTES, BUT THEN I DELETED.

YEAH I KNOW. YEAH.

I PROBABLY MISSED IT, BUT SOMEWHERE IN THERE IS THE CORRELATING THE ACQUISITIONS THROUGH LAND PRESERVATION AS RELATED TO GOALS IN THE GREEN SPACE PLAN.

IS THAT EXPLICIT OR WHAT? WELL, AMONG THE PRIORITY CONSERVATION CORRIDORS, HUBS, CORRIDORS AND OTHER THINGS.

I'M WONDERING HOW WELL OUR LAND PRESERVE ACQUISITIONS SINCE 2004 MAP ONTO THOSE, BECAUSE THAT'S OUR MAIN WAY OF PROTECTING IN PERPETUITY SENSITIVE PROPERTY.

AND THAT'S NOT THE ONLY GOAL OF THE LAND PRESERVATION PROGRAM.

BUT THERE ARE OCCASIONS WHERE THAT PROGRAM HAS I'M THINKING OF RED CEDAR GLEN.

THAT LAND PRESERVE WAS ONE OF THOSE THAT WAS RIGHT THERE IN THE PLAN, AND EVENTUALLY IT WAS ACQUIRED.

[00:15:01]

SO I THINK WE HAVE THAT UNDER THE UNDER THE TOOLS LAND.

OKAY. I'M GETTING AHEAD OF US.

YEAH. UNDER LAND ACQUISITION IS TO LOOK AT LAND UNDER LAND ACQUISITION, GIS ANALYSIS TO LOOK AT TO SEE HOW WELL THE NEW ACQUISITIONS LINE UP WITH THE I GUESS IT DOESN'T SPECIFICALLY SAY FOR LP FOR LAND PRESERVATION JUST IS ON TOP THERE.

BUT YEAH. NO, THAT'S PROBABLY WHERE I GOT THE IDEA.

OKAY. SO NOW THAT I JUMPED AHEAD, DO YOU WANT TO GO THROUGH THE IMPLEMENTATION TOOLS.

SO, THERE ARE SEVEN.

SO THE FIRST ONE WAS CONSERVATION ZONING.

THE PLAN RECOMMENDED 30% OF EACH PARCEL FOR CONSERVATION TO BE ZONED FOR CONSERVATION, AND IDEALLY SHOULD COINCIDE WITH THE PRIORITY CONSERVATION CORRIDORS AND THE SCENIC ROAD CORRIDORS.

THEY RECOMMENDED ECOLOGICAL ASSESSMENTS BY DEVELOPING, INTEGRATE OR DEVELOP INTEGRATED WITH LAND CLEARING APPLICATIONS.

AND WE WERE JUST WONDERING, HAVE THESE BEEN IMPLEMENTED? ALMOST ALL THE IMPLEMENTATION TOOLS, WE WERE WONDERING, HAVE THESE BEEN IMPLEMENTED AND CAN THESE BE EXPANDED AT ALL? YEAH. AGAIN, LOOKING TO TRUSTEE, DO WE HAVE A LAND CLEARING APPLICATION THAT YOU'RE FAMILIAR WITH? NOT THAT I'M FAMILIAR WITH.

I THINK THERE IS AN ORDINANCE THAT LIMITS THE AMOUNT OF CLEARANCE THAT CAN BE DONE WITHOUT A PERMIT, BUT I'M NOT SURE SO I THINK YOU JUST GET PERMIT.

ANYWAY, I'VE NEVER COME ACROSS IT IN MY SIX YEARS ON THE PLANNING COMMISSION OR ON THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES HAS EVER COME UP.

ALL RIGHT, KEEP GOING.

THE NEXT ONE IS CONSERVATION EASEMENTS.

THANK YOU. SO, YEAH, WE WERE WONDERING, ARE THESE BEING USED IN THE TOWNSHIP AND WHAT IS THE PROCESS FOR USING THESE, LIKE DONATING OR ACQUIRING THEM? YEAH. YEAH, I'M SURE THERE WERE A LOT OF EASEMENTS FOR PATHWAYS, ESPECIALLY THE NEW ONE.

I KNOW THEY HAD TO GO AND GET EASEMENTS FROM ALL THE PROPERTIES ALONG THE RIVER TO BUILD THAT PATHWAY.

THEY DID, BUT THAT'S NOT REALLY A CONSERVATION EASEMENT.

OH. TRAIL EASEMENT.

IT'S A TRAIL EASEMENT.

IT'S AN ACCESS.

YES. I'M GOING TO SHUT UP NOW.

NOW, THEY DID TRY TO DESIGN IT WITH THAT IN MIND, BUT IT IS NOT.

THEY DIDN'T PURCHASE IT AS A CONSERVATION EASEMENT.

AND TO MY KNOWLEDGE ANYWAY, THAT CAME UP RECENTLY IN THE LAST LAND PRESERVATION ADVISORY BOARD.

AND IS THAT SOMETHING THAT WE WEREN'T SURE WHO ACTUALLY CAN INITIATE OR, YOU KNOW, DO A CONSERVATION EASEMENT? DO YOU KNOW, LIKE, HAS THE TOWNSHIP DONE USES THAT TOOL AT ALL? I DO NOT KNOW IF THEY'VE DONE ANYTHING.

THERE ARE SOME STATE LAWS THAT ALLOW LIKE CONSERVATION EASEMENTS AND WHATEVER.

I DON'T KNOW IF IT'S EVER BEEN APPLIED HERE.

I'LL PROBABLY JUMP AHEAD AGAIN.

I'M SORRY. THE PRESERVE WAS UNDER A ROLLING CONSERVATION EASEMENT BEFORE IT WAS DONATED TO THE TOWNSHIP.

OKAY. AS A LAND PRESERVE.

OKAY. OKAY.

AND YEAH.

SO I THINK THERE ARE CASES IN THERE DEFINITELY WORTH LOOKING INTO.

OKAY. NEXT ONE WAS VOLUNTARY STEWARDSHIP PROGRAMS, AND IT INCLUDED AWARD PROGRAMS. ADOPTION PROGRAMS, FEDERAL AND STATE PROGRAMS, AND SOME OF THESE ARE BEING IMPLEMENTED LIKE THE MERIDIAN CONSERVATION CORPS.

BUT, YOU KNOW, WE ARE WONDERING HOW CAN THIS BE EXPANDED TO ACHIEVE THE GOALS AND OR IMPROVE HABITAT QUALITY AND THE FUNCTION OF THESE AREAS? AND HOW COULD WE TRY TO EXPAND THIS? THE NEXT ONE IS LAND ACQUISITION.

SO WE ALREADY KIND OF TALKED ABOUT THAT ONE.

AND WE HAVE PURCHASE OF DEVELOPMENT RIGHTS.

SO IT WAS LIMITED TO FARMLAND PRESERVATION OR ECOLOGICAL CRITICAL AREAS.

AND WE WERE WONDERING HAVE THEY USED THIS.

IF SO, WHERE COULD THE TOWNSHIP USE THIS MORE.

AND THE LAST ONE IS LINKED SITE PLAN APPROVALS.

I'VE BEEN DOWN HERE.

WE JUST HAVE GENERAL QUESTIONS AND CONSIDERATIONS AND JUST GO OVER THOSE BRIEFLY.

SO WE MENTIONED THAT THE PLAN DIDN'T REALLY ADDRESS CLIMATE CHANGE.

SO WE WERE WONDERING LIKE HOW COULD IT ADDRESS CLIMATE CHANGE AND LIKE THE IMPACTS THAT IT COULD HAVE TO THE TOWNSHIP? AND COULD THE GREEN SPACE PLAN CONTRIBUTE TO ADDRESSING THE GOALS WITH THE TOWNSHIP'S CLIMATE SUSTAINABILITY PLAN? AND THEN WE ALSO WONDERED ABOUT PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION? WE WERE WONDERING, COULD, YOU KNOW, ACCESS TO THESE GREEN SPACES BE IMPROVED THROUGH PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION?

[00:20:05]

IS THAT POSSIBLE WITH MORE BUS ROUTES OR STOPS, ANYTHING LIKE THAT? AGAIN, GREAT QUESTIONS. KEEP GOING.

KEEP GOING. AND THEN WE JUST HAVE YOU KNOW, POTENTIAL RESOURCES AND DATA TO EXPLORE.

I HAVE NOT HAD A CHANCE TO LOOK AT THESE THOUGH, BUT THAT'S PRETTY MUCH WHERE WE GOT AFTER OUR SECOND MEETING.

WOW. I'M IMPRESSED.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR DOING ALL THAT.

THAT'S A BIG ROADMAP.

I CAN TELL YOU THAT THE DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS, DAN CRAMER, HAS AGREED TO MAKE HIS STAFF AVAILABLE TO MEET WITH YOU ALL TO LOOK AT THE KINDS OF RESOURCES THAT THE TOWNSHIP HAS IN TERMS OF DATA AND ITS ABILITY TO MARSHAL THEM FOR THESE, TO START ANSWERING THESE KINDS OF QUESTIONS.

WE HAVEN'T SET A DATE.

BUT IT SEEMS LIKE A VERY NATURAL.

I MEAN, YOU'VE PUT FOR THEM A WHOLE REALLY NICE SET OF QUESTIONS OF WHAT'S THE STUFF? WE ALREADY KNOW THAT WE CAN JUST PUT TOGETHER IN AN EASY WAY.

SO THAT'S AND THERE WILL BE A WHOLE BUNCH OF OTHER THINGS THAT WOULD BE HEAD SCRATCHERS.

HOW WOULD WE DO THAT? BUT IT MIGHT BE.

WELL, YOU CAN ORGANIZE THOSE THE QUESTIONS IN WHATEVER WAY MAKES SENSE TO YOU TO GET THE BEST RESPONSE FROM THEM.

I THINK SOME OF THE STUFF THEY'LL NEED TO THEY'LL WANT TO BRING IN PLANNING STAFF AS WELL.

SOME OF THE STUFF ON EASEMENTS AND OTHER THINGS.

AND I KNOW THAT PRINCIPAL PLANNER IS REALLY INTERESTED.

HE'S A GIS NERD HIMSELF AND REALLY ENJOYS THIS KIND OF STUFF.

HE WOULDN'T BE ABLE TO PUT A LOT OF TIME INTO IT, BUT IF PUBLIC WORKS HAS GOT SOME FOLKS THAT HAVE THE WHEREWITHAL TO MAKE SOME QUICK PROGRESS, EMMA MIGHT ALSO BE A GOOD SOURCE.

YEAH, YOU COULDN'T DO IT WITHOUT PARKS.

YEAH. AND THEN NO, AS WELL.

SO I WILL SAY THAT REVIEWING THE PLAN, I WAS REALLY IMPRESSED.

I MEAN, THEY SEEM LIKE A VERY SOLID PLAN, YOU KNOW, WITH AND THE PROCESS THAT THEY USE, YOU KNOW, WHEN THE DATA ANALYSIS THAT THEY DID.

SO I THOUGHT IT WAS VERY THOROUGH AND, YOU KNOW, REALLY COMPLETE.

AND SO I THINK THE QUESTION I THINK FOR NOW, IT'S MORE YEAH, JUST TAKING A LOOK AND SEEING HOW WE, YOU KNOW, WHAT HAVE WE WHAT HAVE WE BEEN ABLE TO ACCOMPLISH IN THE LAST 20 YEARS IN TERMS OF ACCOMPLISHING WHAT SOME OF THE THINGS ARE IN THE PLAN AND THEN UPDATING AND THEN JUST MAYBE TWEAKING SOME OF THE, YOU KNOW, SOME OF WHAT THEY'VE DELINEATED AND SEEING IF IT'S STILL IF ALL THE MAPS, YOU KNOW, ARE CURRENT AND STUFF LIKE THAT, THEN.

SO BUT YEAH, I THOUGHT IT WAS I THOUGHT IT WAS REALLY I WAS REALLY IMPRESSED.

I THOUGHT IT WAS REALLY GOOD. SO I HOPE THAT I HOPE THE TOWNSHIP IS INTERESTED IN CONTINUING TO WANT TO ACHIEVE THE PLAN.

ANY OTHER QUESTIONS FOR THE STUDY GROUP? PLEASE. I'M WONDERING IF THE GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE AUDIT THAT CLIFF HELPED WITH MIGHT HAVE SOME OVERLAP, OR MIGHT BE CONSIDERED AN ADDED RESOURCE TO EXPLORE? THAT'S A GOOD POINT.

THAT'S A VERY GOOD POINT.

I'M HAPPY TO SHARE IT WITH THE GROUP.

AGAIN, I DON'T WANT TO OVERWHELM PEOPLE, OBVIOUSLY, BUT IT ALSO SEEMS TO ME THIS IS A GREAT OPPORTUNITY TO LEARN ABOUT SOME OF THESE TERMS THAT WE HAVEN'T REALLY ADDRESSED VERY REGULARLY.

MAYBE LIKE A DATABASE OR A JUST A HELPFUL CHEAT SHEET ON WHAT THESE TERMS MEAN.

A GLOSSARY. YEAH, THAT'S THE WORD.

CHEAT SHEETS WHEN IT FITS IN YOUR PALM OF YOUR HAND.

I THINK THE GREEN SPACE PLAN HAD A NICE GLOSSARY.

GOOD. GOOD.

I MEAN, IT'D BE INTERESTING TO SEE WHAT'S IN THERE AND WHAT'S NOT.

AND IF ANY OF THOSE THINGS HAVE CHANGED IN OUR WAY OF THINKING, YOU KNOW.

CAN I MENTION ONE MORE QUICK THING? WE HAVE A PERSON IN THE AUDIENCE, A REPORTER WHO'S INTERESTED IN THIS TOPIC, AND I'M NOT SURE WHERE IT FITS INTO THIS CONVERSATION OR IF YOU WANTED TO ADD ANYTHING, BUT JUST WANTED TO MENTION THAT, TOO.

THANK YOU. WHAT DO YOU ALL IMAGINE AS THE NEXT STEP THEN? I SUPPOSE MEETING WITH DAN AND HIS STAFF.

I THINK YOU SAID THAT MOSTLY AVAILABLE DURING BUSINESS HOURS.

[00:25:02]

YEAH. OKAY.

THAT WOULD BE HARD FOR ME TO MEET JUST WITH MY NEW JOB.

BUT. IS THAT A SIMILAR CONSTRAINT FOR YOU GUYS? FOR THE WHOLE GROUP? FOR ME, DEPENDING ON WHEN BUSINESS HOURS END, BECAUSE I HAVE AT THE END OF LIKE MY SCHOOL, MY SCHOOL DAY ENDS THREE-ISH.

SO, I THINK MAINLY TOWNSHIP STAFF REHEARSAL FIVE GENERALLY IS MY UNDERSTANDING 4:30 OR 5, 04:30 OR 5, IT DEPENDS ON THE DEPARTMENT.

WELL, I'LL LET YOU WORK IT OUT WITH THEM.

IF THERE'S SOMETHING THAT WORKS FOR ALL OF YOU OR SOME OF YOU, THEN WE CAN CARRY FORWARD.

IT SOUNDS LIKE YOU'RE GOING TO BE GETTING BUSIER AND BUSIER, AND WE WANT YOU TO SUCCEED IN YOUR NEW ROLE.

SO WE'RE VERY SENSITIVE TO THAT.

THANK YOU. CAN I ASK WHERE IS THIS DOCUMENT AVAILABLE? IT WAS. I JUST MADE IT LIKE MYSELF.

I CAN SHARE IT WITH YOU IF I THINK IT'D BE GOOD TO SHARE IT WITH THE WHOLE SO WE'LL PUT IT IN THE MINUTES OF THIS MEETING.

THAT WOULD BE FINE. OR A LINK TO IT OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.

YEAH. IF YOU'RE COMFORTABLE WITH THAT, THAT'S GREAT.

THERE'S A LOT OF GOOD INFORMATION HERE.

YEAH. I SUSPECT AS IT MOVES FORWARD, THERE'S SO MANY INTERESTING TOPICS THAT HAVE SO MUCH MEAT TO THEM THAT IT'S GOING TO BE SOMETHING THAT ENDS UP GETTING BROKEN UP INTO PIECES AND PRIORITIZED.

AND I THINK THERE'S PROBABLY SOME QUESTIONS THAT CAN BE ANSWERED REALLY QUICKLY WITH DATA AT HAND.

AND THEN THERE ARE OTHERS THAT ARE GOING TO TAKE MORE TIME.

YEAH. ALL RIGHT.

IF THERE'S NOTHING ELSE ON THE WONDERFUL WORK OF OUR WORKING GROUP, WE WILL THEN MOVE TO OUR NEXT AGENDA ITEM, WHICH IS

[Resolution in support of retiring commissioner Graham Diedrich.]

A RESOLUTION OF APPRECIATION FOR RETIRING COMMISSIONER GRAHAM DIEDRICH DID THE HONORS LAST TIME.

UNLESS SOMEBODY WOULD LIKE TO STEP FORWARD AND CUT ME OFF AT THE PASS, I'LL DO IT AGAIN.

WHEREAS GRAHAM DIETRICH HAS BEEN AN ACTIVE MEMBER OF THE MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION FOR THREE YEARS, AND WHEREAS, GRAHAM HAS ASSISTED WITH THE DEVELOPMENT OF MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP'S CLIMATE SUSTAINABILITY PLAN.

AND WHEREAS, GRAHAM HAS ENGAGED WITH YOUTH AND ADULTS AT LOCAL EVENTS WITH HANDS ON ENERGY ACTIVITIES AND OUTREACH AND PARTNERSHIP WITH SOLARIZE, MERIDIAN, MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP ENERGY TEAM AND MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION OF THE TOWN CHARTER TOWNSHIP OF MERIDIAN AS FOLLOWS.

THE COMMISSION, BY MEANS OF RESOLUTION, EXTENDS TO GRAHAM DIETRICH.

GRATEFUL THANKS FOR HIS VOLUNTARY AND EXEMPLARY EFFORTS MOVED BY CHAIRMAN MCCONNELL.

SECOND. SECONDED BY COMMISSIONER FRAIZER.

ALL IN FAVOR, PLEASE SAY AYE.

AYE. ALL OPPOSED? THANK YOU. THANK YOU.

GRAHAM. GREAT TO HAVE YOU WITH US.

ANY OTHER NEW BUSINESS ANYONE WOULD LIKE TO INTRODUCE AT THIS TIME.

[Other]

MISS, RELATED TO THE GRAHAM IS THAT WE HAVE AN OPENING NOW TO FILL OUT HIS TERM IN 25.

SO IF WE DO KNOW ANYBODY WHO'S INTERESTED IT'S A THREE YEAR TERM WHICH COULD BE RENEWED.

BUT FILLING OUT HIS TERM IS ABOUT A YEAR LEFT.

THANK YOU FOR THAT CLARIFICATION.

REMINDER UNFINISHED BUSINESS.

WE HAVE NONE. REPORTS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS.

[7. REPORTS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS ]

STAFF, YOU HAVE CONTROL OF THE COMPUTER.

GOOD. YES. GO.

OKAY. ONE OF THE THINGS WE TALKED ABOUT AT OUR LAST MEETING WAS AN UPDATE ON GREEN GRANTS, SORT OF A STANDING AGENDA ITEM, BECAUSE THE GREEN GRANTS ARE AND THE CLIMATE SUSTAINABILITY PROJECTS ARE A FUN PART OF WHAT WE DO.

AND I PUT A JUST A SUMMARY OF THESE IN THE STAFF UPDATE, SO YOU CAN LINK TO THAT ON YOUR AGENDA IF YOU LIKE.

IT DOESN'T LOOK LIKE IT'S LOADING UP VERY QUICKLY.

SO I WILL NOT GO INTO THIS TOO FAR.

I'VE ASKED SOME OF THE GRANTEES FOR UPDATES ON THEIR PROJECTS.

SOME OF THEM HAVE PROVIDED THEM SOME LOOKS LIKE ARE GOING TO CARRY INTO NEXT YEAR, WHICH IS NOT A HUGE PROBLEM.

BUT I DON'T HAVE THE TOTAL ALL THE UPDATES YET, SO I'M GOING TO KEEP YOU POSTED AS THOSE COME IN.

I'M NOT SURE WHY THIS IS NOT WORKING.

THAT'S RIGHT. WE CAN MOVE ON TO LIAISONS.

WHAT I DO HAVE IS A HARD COPY.

OF THE, LET ME SEE, THE GREEN GRANTS AND THE CLIMATE SUSTAINABLE.

* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.