Aug 07, 2025 Township Board

[00:01:27]

WELL WE'VE GOT QUORUM SO HOPEFULLY HE'LL JOIN US SOON.

[1. CALL MEETING TO ORDER ]

PARDON ME. WELL. FIRST ON OUR AGENDA IS THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE.

WILL THOSE WHO ARE ABLE PLEASE STAND AND JOIN US WITH THE PLEDGE? I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS.

ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL.

NEXT ITEM ON OUR AGENDA IS ITEM THREE. ROLL CALL WILL CLERK DEMAS.

PLEASE CALL THE ROLL. SUPERVISOR HENDRICKSON. CLERK DEMAS HERE.

TREASURER DESCHAINE. HERE. TRUSTEE LENTZ. HERE.

TRUSTEE SUNDLAND. TRUSTEE TREZISE. TRUSTEE WILSON.

HERE. FIVE BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT. THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

NEXT ITEM ON OUR AGENDA IS ITEM 4.A, A PRESENTATION.

[4.A. Bob Trezise, Lansing Economic Area Partnership (LEAP) ]

WELCOME. THANK YOU, MR. SUPERVISOR. THANK YOU, EVERYBODY, FOR INVITING ME OVER TONIGHT AND TO SAY A FEW WORDS WITH YOU.

AND ABSOLUTELY THANK YOU FOR BEING A LONG TIME MEMBER OF LEAP AND OUR OVERALL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT EFFORTS.

AND JUST A COUPLE OF THINGS REAL QUICK. I'LL GET THEM OUT OF THE WAY. TIM DOESN'T LIKE THIS KIND OF THING, BUT I'M GOING TO DO IT ANYWAYS. I'VE KNOWN TIM FOR OVER 20 PLUS YEARS, MAYBE IN OUR PROFESSION AND AROUND THE STATE.

AND WHAT A GREAT HIRE. SO CONGRATULATIONS ON THAT.

IF I COULD JUST SAY. AND SECONDLY, YES, PETER, WE ARE RELATED, WE ARE SORT OF DISTANT COUSINS, IN CASE YOU'RE WONDERING. AND HOWEVER, SOMEHOW WE HAVE NEVER MET UNTIL HE CAME TO OUR FIRST OUR BOARD MEETING IS YOU APPOINTED HIM AS OUR REPRESENTATIVE AT OUR COUPLE OF BOARD MEETINGS AGO.

SO ANYWAY, JUST IN CASE, IF YOU'RE WONDERING, I DON'T HAVE A SECRET WEAPON UP THERE.

HE'S JUST SOMEONE THAT I'VE MET ONCE NOW. AND OF COURSE, WE HAD A WONDERFUL TIME GETTING TO KNOW ONE ANOTHER.

SO I ALWAYS GET THINGS COMING OUT OF. WE I KNOW YOU HAVE A BIG AGENDA TONIGHT, SO I'LL TRY TO BE BRIEF.

I WOULD LOVE IT IF YOU WOULD INTERRUPT OR ASK ME QUESTIONS.

AND THE HARDER THE QUESTIONS, THE BETTER. I REALLY ENJOY THOUGH, SO PLEASE FEEL FREE TO DO THAT.

OR MAKE YOUR COMMENTS. SO. ALL RIGHT. THERE WE GO.

YEP. JUST BRIEFLY FOR YOU AND THE AUDIENCE, WHAT IS LEAP? WE ARE THE LANSING ECONOMIC AREA PARTNERSHIP.

THE STATE HAS BEEN SPLIT OH, ABOUT 15 YEARS AGO NOW INTO TEN REGIONS.

THEY'RE CALLED COLLABORATIVE DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL REGIONS CDC.

AND WE ARE REPRESENTATIVE IN A COORDINATION FASHION WILL BE THE STRONGEST WAY I COULD PUT IT FOR INGHAM, EATON AND CLINTON COUNTY. WE ARE A 501 C6. WE HAVE A FOUNDATION.

WE ALSO HAVE SET UP THIS YEAR A NONPROFIT CALLED THRIVE, WHICH CAN HELP ADDITIONALLY, WITH UNIQUE KINDS OF TYPES OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, THINK AFFORDABLE HOUSING IS ONE EXAMPLE THAT WE COULD DO SOME WORK ON.

[00:05:04]

AND JUST IN CASE YOU'RE WONDERING, WE'RE, I'M GRATEFUL FOR THE 15,000 THAT YOU AND OTHER LARGE MUNICIPALITIES, INCLUDING THE THREE COUNTIES, ALL CONTRIBUTE OR INVEST TO LEAP EVERY YEAR.

BUT OUR PRIVATE SECTOR, THOSE CAN GO ALL THE WAY UP TO 50,000.

SO THAT IS THE LION'S SHARE OF OUR BUDGET. BUT NONETHELESS, THAT TABLE WITH PUBLIC AND PRIVATE SECTOR IS VITAL.

AND I THINK IT'S THE KEY LEADERSHIP TABLE IN OUR REGION.

IT'S MSU, IT'S LCC, THE AIRPORT, CHOOSE LANSING, CATA, ALMOST ALL THE MUNICIPALITIES, ALL THREE COUNTIES.

AND THEN, YOU KNOW, REALLY ALL THE LARGER AND MEDIUM SIZED KINDS OF BUSINESSES.

SO IT'S A UNIQUE PLACE TO HAVE CONVERSATIONS ABOUT WHAT'S BEST FOR OUR REGION.

OF COURSE, SOMETIMES PEOPLE ASK WHY? ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.

SOMETIMES ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CAN BE SEEN AS CONTROVERSIAL.

AND I GET THAT. BUT I ALWAYS REMIND PEOPLE, WHILE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IS KNOWN, I GUESS, FOR WORKING WITH BIG BUSINESS AND BIG DEVELOPERS AND INCENTIVES AND ALL OF THAT LIFE.

ALL TRUE. I JUST OFFER ONE IMPORTANT NUANCE TO THAT.

THAT'S A MEANS TO AN END. THE REASON WHY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IS A PROFESSION WAS STARTED SOME 60 YEARS AGO OR SO, WAS TO UPLIFT THE PROSPERITY AND HEALTH AND WELLNESS OF YOUR HOMETOWN AND ALL PEOPLE WITHIN IT.

SO A WIN FOR ONE IS A WIN FOR ALL. AND I ALWAYS THINK IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT TO REMIND OURSELVES WHY WHY WE ACTUALLY DO ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IS SO THAT WE CAN COMPETE AND WIN, FRANKLY, OVER SOMETIMES OTHER REGIONS IN THE STATE.

THAT'S PRETTY MUCH TOO STRONGLY PUT THERE'S MOSTLY FRIENDLY COMPETITION SORTS OF THERE.

IT'S REALLY AGAINST OTHER STATES AND VERY MUCH SO COMPETING WITH OTHER COUNTRIES THESE DAYS.

AND WE'VE GOTTEN REALLY GOOD AT THAT. OTHER REGIONS HAVE BEEN DOING THIS FOR 40 PLUS YEARS.

LEAP WILL BE ONLY CELEBRATING ITS 20TH ANNIVERSARY NEXT YEAR.

SO OUR REGION FOR WHATEVER REASON, WE COULD TALK ABOUT THAT THE REST OF THE EVENING, BUT WE'VE BEEN A LITTLE BIT BEHIND THE THE THE EIGHT BALL.

BUT NONETHELESS, WE ARE DOING A GOOD JOB OF CATCHING UP AND MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE ON THE RIGHT TRACK.

LEAPS REGIONAL PLAN THAT I'VE BEEN THERE GOING ON MY 15TH YEAR.

NOW IT'S HARD TO BELIEVE, BUT THAT'S THE TRUTH OF IT.

AND I GREW UP HERE IN THE AREA. IS MOST REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AGENCIES PRETTY MUCH HAVE ONE MISSION, WHICH IS TO MARKET AND BRAND THEIR HOMETOWN, AND THEN TO GO AROUND THE WORLD IN THE COUNTRY AND RECRUIT AND ATTRACT BUSINESS.

THAT'S WHAT MOST OF THEM DO. WE'RE DIFFERENT.

WE DO THAT REALLY WELL. OUR REGION STARTING UP TO 6 OR 7 YEARS AGO, FOR WHATEVER REASON, WAS VERY, VERY POOR, IF NOT COMPLETELY ABSENT FROM BEING ABLE TO RECRUIT BRAND NEW, LARGER BUSINESSES TO OUR REGION.

AND THAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT BECAUSE THAT'S KIND OF THE TOP OF THE PYRAMID. THERE'S NOTHING LIKE BRAND NEW JOBS AND BRAND NEW TAX BASE THAT CAN BRING A NEW, DIFFERENT TYPE OF SUPPLY CHAIN. WE WERE VERY POOR AT THAT, REALLY NON-EXISTENT.

AND SO WE'VE GOTTEN GOOD AT THAT. SO ATTRACTION RETENTION EFFORTS ALONG WITH THAT, WE LIKE TO THINK THAT WE CAN BE THE EV CAPITAL OF NORTH AMERICA.

WE STILL THINK THAT EV LIFE IS DOWN THE ROAD.

TEN, FIVE, 15 WHATEVER. BUT IT WILL BE A SIGNIFICANT PART OF OUR FUTURE, AND WE SHOULD BE POSITIONING OURSELVES NOW IN STRATEGIC WAYS TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THAT INEVITABILITY. BUT WE ALSO HAVE AG TECH, MEDTECH.

WE'RE GOING TO BE SOON LAUNCHING IN SEPTEMBER, SOMETHING CALLED CREATIVE TECH AREAS.

OF COURSE WE WORK IN AUTO RELATED. WE THINK WE'RE THE PARTICLE ACCELERATOR OF NORTH AMERICA WITH DIANETICS AND NEW WAVE, THE FAA AT MSU. SO THOSE ARE THE KIND OF THINGS THAT WE DO IN THAT ONE BUCKET, THE SECOND BUCKET.

AND WE DON'T GET NEARLY AS MUCH NOTORIETY FOR THIS, BUT IT MIGHT BE THE REAL FOUNDATION FOR A GREAT REGIONAL ECONOMY WAS TOTALLY NON-EXISTENT 20 YEARS AGO, UTTERLY ABSENT. BUT IT IS BUILDING UP A BUSINESS START UP, SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT, ENTREPRENEURIAL ECOSYSTEM BASICALLY. AND WE ARE REALLY GOOD AT THAT.

WE, LEAP HAS ABOUT A DOZEN PROGRAMS AND MILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN REALLY SERIOUS MINDED TRAINING, MENTORSHIP. A LOT OF TIMES GRANTS OR LOANS AT THE END OF THAT SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION.

NOW WE'VE STARTED UP A NETWORKING EVENT CALLED CONNECT WHERE LIKE BIG CITIES OR WHEN I SAY CITY, I MEAN REGION, REALLY. BUT YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN? CITY, SAN FRANCISCO, YOU KNOW, WHATEVER THAT KIND OF AREA.

[00:10:01]

WE HAD 110 PARTICIPANTS, AND WE PUT ON A REALLY FIRST CLASS EVENT.

WE HAD EXPERT PANELS AND, YOU KNOW, WE HAD A BAND, WE HAD FUN.

IT WAS SOCIAL AND NETWORKING. AND THAT'S A GREAT WAY TO TRY TO HELP SMALL BUSINESS YOU KNOW, REALLY GET YOUR LEGS UNDERNEATH THEM AND REALLY CONTINUE THEIR JOURNEY TO CREATE JOBS AND INVESTMENT.

AND I WOULD JUST KNOW THAT'S ONE OF THE MANY REASONS WHY MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP, WE THINK IS SO CRUCIAL TO OUR REGIONAL VISION IS YOU SEEM TO HAVE, YOU KNOW, MAYBE MORE THAN ANYBODY ELSE, BUT SO MANY REALLY ICONIC, UNIQUE, LOCALLY OWNED SMALL BUSINESSES.

I MEAN, IT'S REALLY CRITICAL. AND WHEN WE ARE RECRUITING BUSINESSES, WE LANDED A BIG ONE FROM CANADA TO CHARLOTTE.

WELL, WHAT DOES IT HAVE TO DO WITH MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP? IT'S A 160 PEOPLE. I GUARANTEE YOU A PRETTY GOOD CHUNK OF THOSE PEOPLE WILL ACTUALLY BE LIVING UP IN THIS AREA.

I BET YOU EVEN SOME IN MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP. BUT WHO KNOWS.

LET'S SAY MOST OF THEM NOT. BUT I GUARANTEE YOU THAT A LOT OF THEM WILL BE COMING HERE TO SHOP IN SUPPORTING YOUR BUSINESSES, MAKING SURE THAT THOSE MAIN STREET SMALL BUSINESSES STAY IN BUSINESS AND ULTIMATELY ARE PAYING TAX REVENUE FOR THE QUALITY SERVICES THAT YOU PROVIDE.

SO THAT WE ALSO RUN THE LANSING REGIONAL SMART ZONE.

WE'VE HAD OFTEN AND OFTEN ON CONVERSATIONS ABOUT MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP SOMEDAY IN A VERY LIMITED, CONTROLLED WAY, BUT BASICALLY WHERE THE WET LAB SPACE IS AND POSSIBLY JOINING THE SMART ZONE.

BUT OF COURSE, THAT'S JUST AN INFANCY STAGE OF MAYBE, MAYBE NOT, AND WE'LL BE HAVING, YOU KNOW, MORE CONVERSATIONS WITH HIM AND WITH YOU ABOUT WHETHER THAT'S OF INTEREST OR NOT.

BUT I THINK IT WOULD BE A GREAT THING, BECAUSE I THINK THAT SMART ZONE IS REALLY GOING TO BE MORE IMPORTANT THAN EVER.

THEN FINALLY, IF IF SMALL BUSINESS AND BIG BUSINESS AND BUILDINGS, IF YOU THINK OF ALL THAT AS BRICK, THERE'S A MORTAR THAT'S REQUIRED TO HOLD THAT BRICK IN PLACE.

AND WE THINK THAT MORTAR IS SOMETHING LIKE PEOPLE IN PLACE.

SO BUSINESSES ARE CONSTANTLY ASKING US NOW IT'S NOT US, IT'S THEM.

WHAT ARE WE DOING ABOUT THE FUNDAMENTALS OF REALLY WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT, WHICH IS CHILD CARE, AFFORDABLE HOUSING AND PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION? WHAT ARE WE DOING ABOUT THAT FROM A REGIONAL PERSPECTIVE? AND SO WE CREATED THE FIRST EVER REGIONAL CHILD CARE COALITION, WHICH HAS BROUGHT IN MANY, MANY HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS TO PROP UP OUR CHILD CARE INDUSTRY HERE.

WE ACTUALLY SEE CHILD CARE FACILITIES AS ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS, WHICH IS A GOOD BREAKTHROUGH FOR US.

SO ANYWAYS, WE HAVE A POET LAUREATE PROGRAM AND LATER ON, YOU'LL SEE THERE'S TWO BEAUTIFUL PUBLIC ART SCULPTURES THAT WE GAVE $10,000 GRANTS TO MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP THAT ARE HERE TO THIS DAY.

AND, YOU KNOW, BUILDING THE PHYSICALITY OF THE COMMUNITY, I THINK, REALLY MATTERS AS WELL FOR OUR OWN SELF-ESTEEM PURPOSES, BUT FOR ALSO DEMONSTRATING TO VISITORS, LIKE STUDENTS AT MSU, THAT THIS PLACE IS A GOOD PLACE WITH A HAPPY, HEALTHY FUTURE. AND MAYBE ART SYMBOLIZES THAT SINCE 2012, WE'VE LANDED OVER 10,000, ALMOST 10,200 DIRECT JOBS, OVER $7 BILLION OF PRIVATE INVESTMENT.

THESE ARE NOT MULTIPLIER EFFECT. WE DON'T DO THAT.

WE JUST COUNT DIRECT, BUT REALLY, WE SHOULD. CONSTRUCTION JOB.

FOR INSTANCE, THERE WERE 2000 CONSTRUCTION JOBS ON THE SITE FOR TWO YEARS AT THE ALTIUM, WHICH IS NOW LG ENERGY SOLUTION, 2.5 MILLION SQUARE FOOT PLANT. BUT WE DON'T COUNT THOSE.

WE SHOULD, BUT WE DON'T, WE JUST COUNT THE 1700 DIRECT JOBS THAT ARE CLEAR.

BUT WE'VE DONE 170 PROJECTS, 286 SMALL BUSINESSES THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE AREA.

AND SO DIRECT BENEFIT TO MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP. I GUESS IT SEEMS LIKE YESTERDAY, A LONG, LONG TIME AGO, BUT THE WHOLE PANDEMIC CRISIS, LEAP OVERNIGHT HAD BECOME A TRULY AND ONLY A SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT COMPANY.

YOU PARTICIPATED WITH OUR PROGRAMS TO GET NEARLY $25 MILLION OUT TO OVER 4000 SMALL BUSINESSES, AND BASICALLY AN 18 MONTH, TWO YEAR PERIOD OF TIME.

IT WAS A MASSIVE LIFT. WE HAD TO CREATE EVERYTHING WITHIN WEEKS THAT DIDN'T EXIST.

LEGAL AGREEMENTS ALL KINDS OF THINGS. ANYWAY, WE DID A LOT OF PROJECTS IN MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP, 86 BUSINESSES, AS A MATTER OF FACT, OVER WORTH OVER $1 MILLION.

NOT TO BE MELODRAMATIC ABOUT IT, BUT WE HAVE HAD MANY OF THOSE IN OTHER SMALL BUSINESSES LET US KNOW THAT THOSE GRANTS AND YOU ASSISTED US IN A SYSTEM OF DELIVERING THOSE DOLLARS, NOT ONLY SAVE THE BUSINESS, BUT IN SEVERAL INSTANCES, WE HAVE HAD PEOPLE CONTACT US WITH BEAUTIFUL NOTES SAYING THAT WE ACTUALLY SAVED THEIR LIVES.

AND IT'S JUST AMAZING TO HEAR ALL THAT. SO, YOU KNOW, THESE ARE THE KIND OF THINGS WE NEED TO THINK ABOUT WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT ECONOMIC

[00:15:02]

WE ARE WORKING WITH TIM AND AMBER AND THE TEAM HERE.

I WOULD SAY A VERY SIGNIFICANT TECHNOLOGY COMPANY.

THIS IS WHERE THE CONTINUITY OF LEAP IS REALLY IMPORTANT, BECAUSE THIS PARTICULAR COMPANY WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON FOR LIKE FIVE YEARS, AND WE'RE FINALLY GETTING IT TO A PLACE OF HAVING ALL THE PIECES IN PLACE, AND I HOPE IT ALL FALLS INTO PLACE AND WILL BE A GREAT THING FOR A MERIDIAN TOWNSHIPYOU MAY OR MAY NOT KNOW IS ALONG QUITE A WHILE AGO, TEN PLUS YEARS, I SUPPOSE.

BUT WE DID DO THE BROWNFIELD FOR OKEMOS POINT.

WE HAVE A CONTRACT WITH INGHAM COUNTY OTHER ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AGENCY AND RUN THEIR BROWNFIELD AUTHORITY.

THAT WAS BACK BEFORE, YOU KNOW, BEFORE OTHER THINGS.

THESE ARE THOSE TWO PUBLIC SCULPTURES. YOU PROBABLY RECOGNIZE THEM.

AND WE JUST WE DO DO RETENTION VISITS. WE HAVE WE DID DO A LARGE EPA BROWNFIELD ASSESSMENT GRANT THAT REALLY CAN KICK OFF A PROJECT FOR DEVELOPMENT THAT WOULD BE THE HUDSON SENIOR VILLAGE AREA.

SO I, THAT'S WHAT LEAP DOES. WE CANNOT DO IT WITHOUT YOU, OUR MEMBERS.

IT'S TOTAL PARTNERSHIP. IT'S ABOUT ALIGNMENT AND COORDINATION.

IN MY 30 YEARS OF MY LITTLE CAREER HERE, DOING THIS IN THE AREA, I'VE NEVER SEEN OUR REGION HAVE BETTER EXPERTS ON THE LOCAL LEVEL AND MORE COMPETENT PEOPLE IN AGENCIES ACROSS OUR REGION ACTUALLY REALLY WORKING VERY WELL IN SMART WAYS TOGETHER TO HAVE BALANCED, SMART GROWTH TOGETHER. AND SO I'M REALLY PLEASED BY WHAT WE'RE ACCOMPLISHING TOGETHER.

AND WE JUST ABSOLUTELY COULDN'T DO IT WITHOUT MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP AS OUR ANNUAL MEMBER.

OKAY. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. BOARD MEMBERS, DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FOR MR. TREZISE. TRUSTEE LENTZ. HI THERE. HOW ARE YOU? GOOD. THANKS FOR. THANKS FOR BEING HERE. I WORK TOGETHER SOMEWHAT IN MY DAY JOB, SO I APPRECIATE THAT.

RIGHT HERE IN THIS SIDE OF THINGS. MY QUESTION.

YOU KNOW, I KNOW SOMEWHAT ABOUT LEAP. I'M CURIOUS, BECAUSE OF THE VAST ARRAY OF EDUCATIONAL ACHIEVEMENT IN THIS AREA WITH SOME FOLKS, YOU KNOW, HAVING MULTIPLE DOCTORATES, WHILE OTHERS, YOU KNOW, LOOKING FOR MORE BLUE COLLAR JOBS.

HOW DOES LEAP DETERMINE WHAT ORGANIZATIONS OR TYPES OF JOBS TO REALLY PURSUE? AND IS THAT DONE PIECEMEAL, LIKE. WELL, MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP WOULD PROBABLY WANT THIS, WHEREAS CLINTON COUNTY WOULD WANT THIS.

IS THAT DETERMINED AT ALL OR IS IT KIND OF. COME ON, COME ON.

WELL, I MEAN, THERE ARE. I LOVE THAT QUESTION.

THANK YOU. THERE ARE A NUMBER OF ANSWERS TO IT.

ONE IS YOU ARE THE BOSS. SOMETIMES, LEAP IS NOT THE BOSS.

THE COMMUNITY IS THE BOSS. YOU HAVE YOUR PLAN.

YOU KNOW, WHAT YOU WANT IS DEVELOPMENT FOR YOUR COMMUNITY.

SO WE'RE GOING TO FOLLOW YOUR GUIDE GUIDANCE, YOU KNOW, WITH REGARD TO THAT.

SECONDLY, WE'RE GOING TO WITHIN THAT FRAMEWORK WE'RE GOING TO FOLLOW THE CLIENT OR PROSPECT WHEREVER THEY WANT TO GO.

WHAT WE WANT TO DO IS GIVE THEM AS MANY CHOICES AND INFORMATION ABOUT OUR ENTIRE REGION, SO THAT THEY SELECT SOMEWHERE WITHIN OUR REGION, OVER ANOTHER REGION OR ANOTHER STATE. THAT'S THE SECOND PART OF WHAT WE DO LITERALLY WITH REGARD TO WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT AND MATCHING UP LIKE THAT.

WE HAVE AN INTERESTING DEBATE IN OUR OFFICE. THIS.

WE CANNOT USE ANY STATE INCENTIVES NOW UNLESS IT MATCHES AN HOURLY AVERAGE RATE OF $24.83 AN HOUR.

SO THAT KIND OF DISCRIMINATORY DISCRIMINATE, I'M USING THAT WORD IN A MORE POSITIVE WAY, BUT THAT DISCERNS IS A BETTER WAY TO USE, YOU KNOW KINDS OF BUSINESSES THAT WE CAN WORK WITH AS FAR AS INCENTIVES.

WE WORRY ABOUT IT A LITTLE BIT, WE, IT MAKES SENSE, WE WANT TO FOCUS, I THINK, ON A KNOWLEDGE BASED ECONOMY.

YOU KNOW, THE EMERGENT BIOSOLUTIONS, NEO DIANETICS, NEO AVES, TECH SMITHS, YOU KNOW, ALL OF THOSE KIND OF BUSINESSES.

I THINK IT MAKES SENSE BECAUSE THEY PAY REALLY, REALLY WELL.

BUT THERE, THERE IS THERE ARE PEOPLE, YOU KNOW, IN LIFE THAT ARE YOUNG OR LOOKING FOR THAT FIRST BREAK TO GET ON THE FIRST RUNG OF A LADDER. AND WE CALL THOSE PATHWAY JOBS.

AND SOMETIMES THOSE ARE NOT GREAT PAYING JOBS.

AND A MANUFACTURER FOR A CERTAIN, YOU KNOW, THAT CAN BE $21 AN HOUR, FOR INSTANCE.

AND BUT WE TEND TO THINK THAT THOSE JOBS ARE EQUALLY AS IMPORTANT TO THE KNOWLEDGE BASED ECONOMY BECAUSE YOU'RE UPLIFTING SOMEBODY, MAYBE, WHO NEEDS HELP MORE THAN ANYBODY ELSE, SOMEONE THERE'S SOMEBODY WHO DOESN'T HAVE A COLLEGE DEGREE.

LIFE IS MORE OF A STRUGGLE. THEY MIGHT BE IN THE ALICE THRESHOLD, WHICH IS, YOU KNOW, WORKING CLASS, WORKING POVERTY LEVELS, BASICALLY. AND YOU GET IN THAT FIRST RUNG AND YOU GET TRAINED, YOU GET SOME SKILLS.

AND THEN HOPEFULLY AFTER A COUPLE OF YEARS, EITHER THEY'RE IN THAT COMPANY OR SOMEONE ELSE, YOU CAN BEGIN WALKING UP THAT LADDER AND MAKING BETTER MONEY.

SO SOMETIMES WE THINK WE SHOULD BE HELPING BOTH OF THOSE KIND OF BUSINESSES, AND THAT'S PROBABLY OUR APPROACH.

[00:20:04]

IT'S A LONG QUESTION. OTHER BOARD MEMBERS, ANY QUESTIONS? I THINK ONE THAT'S BEEN ON MY MIND IS, YOU KNOW, WE APPRECIATE THE WORK THAT YOU'RE DOING HERE IN MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP TO MARKET AND CERTAINLY WE'RE ALWAYS HAPPY TO HAVE YOU KNOW, NEW RESIDENTS COMING IN AS A RESULT OF SOME OF THESE PROJECTS THAT YOU'RE WORKING ON THROUGHOUT THE REGION.

HOW CAN WE BETTER ASSIST YOU TO MARKET MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP TO OTHER BUSINESSES? ONE THING THAT YOU DO, ACTUALLY, AMBER DOES A REALLY GREAT JOB.

AMBER IS ENGAGED WITH US, AND TIM IS TOO. BUT AMBER IS REALLY ENGAGED WITH US.

I MEAN, ALMOST CONTINUOUSLY. NOT AN OVERSTATEMENT.

AND THE BIGGEST THING IS IN WHAT WE CALL SITE SEARCHES.

AND IT'S NOT JUST INDUSTRIAL SITES, BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY YOU'RE VERY LIMITED AND WHAT THAT'S REALLY GOING TO MEAN FOR YOU.

BUT NO DOUBT ABOUT THESE KNOWLEDGE BASED KINDS OF BUSINESSES THAT DO COME ALONG, NOT AS OFTEN, BUT THEY DO. DOING SITE SEARCHES, MAKING SURE THAT WE ARE ULTRA PREPARED AND YOU ARE ULTRA PREPARED WITH THOSE SITES.

SO MORE AND MORE BUSINESSES ARE LOOKING FOR A SITE THAT IS ALREADY ZONED CORRECTLY AS AN EXAMPLE, THAT ALREADY HAS THE SEWER OR WATER OR ROADS OR SIDEWALK OR WHATEVER, YOU KNOW.

THE MORE PREPARED, YOU CAN HAVE AS MANY A VARIETY OF SITES READY TO GO, THE FAR MORE COMPETITIVE YOU'RE GOING TO BE.

WE'RE HAVING A LOT OF DIFFICULTY WITH LIMITED SITES LEFT IN OUR REGION, BELIEVE IT OR NOT.

AND A LOT OF THOSE TEND TO BE VERY UNREADY. AND BUSINESSES AND SITE CONSULTANTS IN THAT LIFE ARE EVEN MORE TODAY UNINTERESTED IN A SITE.

THEY DON'T WANT TO, THEY DON'T WANT A BIG FIGHT HERE FOR A HALF A YEAR.

YOU KNOW, TO BE FRANK ABOUT IT, THEY WANT YOU TO ALREADY HAVE HAD THE FIGHT AHEAD OF TIME, AND YOU'VE ALL AGREED THAT THIS IS THE WAY THE SITE IS GOING TO BE OR NOT.

YOU KNOW, SO WE KNOW. SO THAT'S THE BEST ADVICE I COULD GIVE.

YOU'RE A COMMUNITY OF CHOICE. YOU KNOW, A LOT OF FRANKLY, THIS CAN'T BE A SURPRISE.

A LOT OF THE EXECUTIVES FROM OUR COMPANIES, YOU KNOW, TEND TO REALLY, REALLY LOOK AT MERIDIAN REALLY STRONGLY AS A PLACE TO THAT THEY WANT TO BE. SO FROM THAT PERSPECTIVE, YOU'RE ALSO ALWAYS HELPING US ON THE SCHOOL DISTRICTS.

WE TALK ABOUT ALL THE TIME IN YOUR YEAR. YOU KNOW, REALLY HIGH QUALITY OF LIFE OUT HERE IS VERY ATTRACTIVE TO ESPECIALLY EXECUTIVES.

OKAY. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. PLEASURE. ALMOST EIGHT YEARS AGO, WE GOT CERTIFIED AS A REDEVELOPMENT READY COMMUNITY BY MEDC.

IS THAT STILL TO OUR ADVANTAGE? IS THERE SOMETHING MORE WE NEED TO DO, OR DO WE NEED TO BE ENGAGED WITH THAT? I MEAN IT, NUMBER ONE, IT WAS A GREAT ACHIEVEMENT.

YOU'RE ONE OF THE VERY FIRST, IF I RECALL, BACK THEN TO GET THAT IN OUR REGION, MAYBE EVEN THE STATE, I CAN'T QUITE REMEMBER, BUT YOU HAD TO WORK REALLY HARD AT IT.

I DO KNOW AT THAT TIME THE STATE AND YOU MAY RECALL THIS, THE MEDC WAS GOING TO, WAS WANTING TO TAKE A VERY RIGID LINE THAT IF YOU WEREN'T A SITE READINESS SITE READY THEIR CERTIFICATION, THAT THEY WERE NOT GOING TO DO PROJECTS OR MEANING THEY'RE NOT GOING TO USE THEIR INCENTIVES OR TOOLBOX FOR A COMMUNITY THAT IS NOT REGISTERED CERTIFIED.

AND YOU WERE. SO THAT SEEMED LIKE A PRETTY TOUGH, YOU KNOW, POLITICAL ENVIRONMENT.

AND IT'S NOT EASY TO TELL SOMEBODY, NO, IF A MAJOR BUSINESS WANTS TO GO THERE, WHETHER ITS SITE READY OR NOT.

IN OTHER WORDS, I GUESS WHAT I'M TRYING TO SAY, MR. TREASURER, IS 50/50, IN THAT I THINK YOU'RE A BETTER COMMUNITY FOR IT.

I THINK IT HELPS IN SHOWING SAYING THAT. AND WE DO TO COMPANIES WHEN WE'RE SHOWING MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP.

SO IT STILL MATTERS VERY, VERY MUCH. I DON'T THINK IN ANY WAY EVEN CLOSE CAME TO FULFILLING THE RIGIDITY THAT THE MEDC ENVISIONED, MAYBE. YEAH. THANK YOU. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? WELL, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR COMING AND PRESENTING TO US THIS EVENING.

WE CERTAINLY APPRECIATE THAT. AND FOR ALL THE WORK YOU CONTINUE TO DO IN MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP AND THE SURROUNDING AREA.

THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU. WE'LL SEE YOU AGAIN. ALL RIGHT. THANKS. BYE BYE.

[5. CITIZENS ADDRESS AGENDA ITEMS AND NON-AGENDA ITEMS ]

CITIZENS ADDRESS AGENDA ITEMS AND NON AGENDA ITEMS. THERE ARE SEVERAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR PUBLIC COMMENTS AT TONIGHT'S MEETING. MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WHO WISH TO ADDRESS OUR AGENDA OR ANY ITEM NOT ON OUR AGENDA, HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO DO SO AT THE BEGINNING OF THE MEETING AND AT THE END OF THE MEETING, THOSE WHO WISH TO ADDRESS THE BOARD MUST COMPLETE A GREEN CARD LOCATED ON THE TABLE NEAR THE DOOR, AND PRESENT THE CARD TO A BOARD OF STAFF MEMBER AT THE BEGINNING OF THE PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD.

WHEN IT'S YOUR TURN, I'LL CALL YOU UP TO THE PODIUM TO SPEAK TO THE TOPICS INDICATED.

WHILE IT'S NOT REQUIRED, IT IS HELPFUL FOR THE SAKE OF OUR MEETING MINUTES IF YOU WOULD PROVIDE YOUR NAME AND ADDRESS FOR THE RECORD, AT THE BEGINNING OF YOUR REMARKS. CITIZENS ARE REQUIRED TO LIMIT COMMENTS TO THREE MINUTES.

AN AUTOMATED SYSTEM WILL KEEP TRACK OF THE TIME, AND AN INDICATOR LIGHT AND AUDIBLE BEEP WILL ALERT YOU WHEN YOUR TIME IS EXPIRED. MEMBERS

[00:25:04]

THE MEETING FORMAT AND RULES RESTRICT BOARD MEMBERS, HOWEVER, FROM ENGAGING IN CONVERSATION WITH COMMENTERS OR ANSWERING QUESTIONS DIRECTLY, QUESTIONS AND CONCERNS MAY BE ADDRESSED BY BOARD MEMBERS AT A LATER TIME, OR MAY BE REFERRED TO A MEMBER OF THE TOWNSHIP STAFF TO FOLLOW UP ON.

PLEASE MAKE SURE TO ADDRESS ALL COMMENTS TO THE BOARD AND OR THE BOARD'S CHAIR, AND NOT TO INDIVIDUAL BOARD MEMBERS OR TO OTHERS IN THE AUDIENCE.

I DO HAVE SEVERAL GREEN CARDS THIS EVENING. FIRST UP IS JEFF KESTNER.

IF YOU DO HAVE A GREEN CARD, IF YOU COULD GIVE THAT TO THE STAFF AT THIS TIME, THAT'D BE HELPFUL. GOOD EVENING.

JEFF KESTNER RESIDENT. THE VOTERS OF MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP HAVE SENT A MESSAGE THAT THEY ARE NOT IN FAVOR OF HIGHER TAXES TO BUILD A NEW COMMUNITY CENTER.

I STRONGLY ENCOURAGE THIS BOARD TO UTILIZE THE STATE GRANT OF $5 MILLION AND REHAB AN EXISTING FACILITY.

I SPOKE THREE TIMES DURING PUBLIC COMMENT, CONDUCTED A TOWN HALL, AND HAD A TABLE AT THE FARMER'S MARKET, ALL FOR THE PURPOSE OF PROVIDING TRANSPARENCY AS TO THE REAL COST OF A COMMUNITY CENTER.

I DID NOT MEET ONE PERSON WHO STATED THERE WOULD BE A YES VOTE.

SUPPORT FOR A COMMUNITY CENTER VIA NEW TAXES IS SHALLOW AT BEST.

SO SHALLOW, IN FACT, THAT WHEN I TOOK A LOOK AT COUNTY RECORDS, I DISCOVERED IT WAS FOR TOWNSHIP BOARD MEMBERS THAT FUNDED THE 8000 CARD SENT OUT IN FAVOR OF THE COMMUNITY CENTER. THE BOARD MEMBERS ARE SCOTT HENDRICKSON, MARNA WILSON, NICK LENTZ, PETER TREZISE, ALL PART OF THE CITIZENS FOR A BETTER MERIDIAN COMMUNITY.

HERE ARE SOME FACTS. INGHAM COUNTY RANKS NUMBER ONE OUT OF 83 COUNTIES AND HAS A HIGHER TAX RATE THAN ALL OTHER MICHIGAN COUNTIES.

MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP TAXES ARE AMONG THE HIGHEST OF 1240 MICHIGAN TOWNSHIPS.

VOTERS FELT THAT THEY WERE BEING MISLED WHEN THEY DISCOVERED THE REAL COST OF A COMMUNITY CENTER WAS IN EXCESS OF $57 MILLION OVER 20 YEARS.

NOT THE $24 MILLION THAT THEY WERE BEING TOLD.

I'M GOING TO CONCLUDE WITH A FEW QUOTES FROM COMMUNITY MEMBERS.

QUOTE, THERE IS SOME SUPPORT FOR A SENIOR CENTER, BUT NOT AT THIS COST.

[INAUDIBLE] FAILED, BUT ANOTHER BUILDING COULD BE FOUND TO REPURPOSE.

JUST GETS ME HOW THERE'S ALWAYS WORDING IN THESE BALLOTS TO USE MONEY HOW THEY WANT AND NOT JUST THE CENTER.

AN EMPTY BUILDING WOULD BE A GREAT IDEA. END QUOTE.

QUOTE I THINK MOST PEOPLE ARE FOR A PLACE FOR SENIORS TO EXERCISE, BUT MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP MANAGEMENT AND THE BOARD BELIEVE THEY ARE ABOVE AND SMARTER THAN THEIR CONSTITUENTS. END QUOTE. SO AGAIN, I ENCOURAGE THIS BOARD TO UTILIZE THE STATE GRANT OF $5 MILLION AND REHAB AN EXISTING FACILITY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. JOHN WESOLOWSKI AND MILTON SCALES, YOU'RE ON DECK.

GOOD EVENING. MY NAME IS JOHN WESOLOWSKI W-E-S-OL-O-W-S-K-I, I LIVE AT 5253 GOLDEN CIRCLE. AND I WAS HERE AT THE, I THINK IT WAS THE LAST LISTENING SESSION I WAS IN JUNE WHEN WE ALL WERE MEETING AND EXPRESSING OURSELVES AS, AS VOTERS IN THE THEN UPCOMING AUGUST 5TH ELECTION. AND WE WERE ASKING QUESTIONS AND SHARING OUR POINTS OF VIEW.

AND I THINK THE BOARD GOT A PRETTY GOOD SENSE OF, OF WHERE THOSE OF US WHO TOOK THE TIME AND ENERGY TO SHOW UP THAT EVENING, THERE WERE, THERE WAS A ROOM FULL AND WE SHOWED YOU THE GENERAL WILL, I MEAN, OF COURSE, AS A PHILOSOPHICAL TERM, WHICH, YOU KNOW, IS USUALLY EXPRESSED IN AN ELECTION, REGARDLESS OF THE AMOUNT OF THE TURNOUT WHATEVER PERCENTAGE, I MEAN, IT WAS 100% TURNOUT, YOU'D REALLY HAVE THE GENERAL WILL EXPRESSED.

BUT EVERYBODY HAD AN OPPORTUNITY AT THAT MEETING.

AND THEN ON AUGUST 5TH OR AUGUST 1ST OR SECOND OR THIRD TO VOTE.

AND WE WERE ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE TO TO DO SO. BUT I REMEMBER AT THAT MEETING, I LOOKED STRAIGHT AHEAD AT THE SUPERVISOR AFTER TOWARD THE END OF THE EXPLANATIONS, AND I HAD ASKED, YOU KNOW, WHAT? IF THE VOTE TURNED OUT TO BE IN FAVOR OF THE EXPENDITURE OF THE BOND AND THE OPERATING COST OF VILLAGES? AND HE LOOKED AT ME IN THE HE LOOKED AT ME AND SAID I ASKED, WOULD THERE BE A

[00:30:02]

AND AS THE GENTLEMAN WHO JUST SPOKE INDICATED, THE VOTERS DID SPEAK IN NO UNCERTAIN TERMS, AND WE EXPRESSED OUR WILL. WE DO NOT WANT THAT.

AT LEAST ON THE TERMS THAT WERE PROPOSED, THERE WERE AT LEAST TWO PEOPLE AT THE MAY MEETING THAT I POINTED OUT WHO VOTED AGAINST IT.

ONE OF THE YOUNGEST MEMBERS HAD THE WISDOM TO VOTE AGAINST IT, TO EVEN PUT IT ON THE BALLOT.

AND I APPLAUD THAT. AND THEN THE MONEY MAN HAD ALSO VOTED AGAINST IT.

AND I WOULD RECOMMEND THAT WISDOM BE TAKEN TO HEART THAT THIS BE A TEACHABLE TO DEMONSTRATE YOUR ABILITY, YOUR INTELLECTUAL HUMILITY, AND ALLOW YOURSELVES TO BE GUIDED BY THE WILL OF THE WORLD, AS THUS EXPRESSED AS YOU GO FORWARD WITH NEXT STEPS.

THANK YOU. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. MILTON SCALES AND THEN CHERYL COLLINS, YOU'RE ON DECK.

AND THAT WOULD BE THE LAST GREEN CARD THAT WE HAVE AT SUBMIT A GREEN CARD. AND THAT WOULD BE THE TIME. THANK YOU, MISTER SUPERVISOR. MY NAME IS MILTON SCALES. I LIVE AT 1534 DOWNING STREET IN HAZLET, MICHIGAN.

I AM HERE IN SUPPORT OF THE SENIOR CENTER, BUT I DO NOT SUPPORT THE COMMUNITY CENTER. AND I THINK THE VOTERS HAVE RAISED THAT SENTIMENT THROUGH THEIR VOTE. BUT ONE THING I THINK YOU OWE US AS A BOARD, AND THAT'S A FISCAL ACCOUNTING OF WHAT WAS SPENT ENTIRELY ON THIS ELECTION. NOW, THE BEST I CAN FIGURE IS IN YOUR INVOICE APPROVAL REPORT. I FOUND $6,000 FOR THE AV BALLOT MAILING. I FOUND JUST ABOUT $3,000 FOR THE BALLOT RETURN ENVELOPES, AND I FOUND THE SPECIAL ELECTION POSTCARD AT $8,600 FOR APPROXIMATELY $17,500 OF ALL TOTAL. THOSE DRAWINGS THAT YOU HAD, THEY WERE VERY LOVELY, AND I THINK THEY COST ABOUT $23,000. SO WE'RE AT WE'RE OVER $40,000 RIGHT THERE.

YOU HAD THREE POLL WORKERS AT 19 OR 20 POLLS.

AND I KNOW YOU PAID THEM. I DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH YOU PAID THEM.

WE NEED TO KNOW THAT THERE IS ALSO EARLY VOTING OCCURRING.

SO THERE ARE POLL WORKERS DURING EARLY VOTING AT THIS TOWNSHIP HALL.

WE NEED TO KNOW HOW MUCH THAT COST, BECAUSE WE WANT TO KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DOING WITH OUR MONEY.

WHEN WE'RE TELLING YOU WE DON'T WANT SOMETHING.

YOU HAD LISTENING TOURS, BUT YOU DIDN'T HEAR US.

AND I'M NOT HERE TO TELL YOU THAT I TOLD YOU SO.

I'M NOT GOING TO SAY THAT. BUT HERE WE ARE TODAY AND ON YOUR AGENDA, YOU WANT TO LOOK AT NEXT STEPS GOING FORWARD.

I RECOMMEND AND STRONGLY SUGGEST THAT YOU LOOK AT PROVIDING OUR PRECIOUS SENIORS WITH A SENIOR CENTER AND FOCUS ON THAT AND STEP AWAY FROM THE GRANDIOSE IDEA OF HAVING A COMMUNITY CENTER.

THANK YOU. THANK YOU, SHERYL COLLINS. AND THEN JIM BRANDEL IS ON DECK.

HI. I AM SHERRY COLLINS, A PROUD RESIDENT OF 4743 NATOMA DRIVE IN OKEMOS, MICHIGAN.

I WOULD LIKE TO BEGIN BY THANKING THE BOARD MEMBERS AND TOWNSHIP OFFICIALS FOR YOUR SERVICE TO OUR COMMUNITY.

IT IS OFTEN A THANKLESS JOB. I HAVE 15 YEARS OF CIVIL SERVICE IN STATE AND FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, AND HAVE WORKED ABOUT 10 TO 15 ELECTIONS HERE IN MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP, WITH THE MAJORITY OF THOSE AS A PRECINCT CHAIR.

I AM HERE TODAY TO ADDRESS THE STATEMENT OF THE MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP CLERK ON A SOCIAL MEDIA SITE NEXT DOOR.

THE TOWNSHIP CLERK WORKS FOR ALL THE CITIZENS OF THE TOWNSHIP.

AND THIS MESSAGE AND THE CLERK'S RESPONSE TO COMMENT FELT LIKE POLITICAL MESSAGING DESIGNED TO DIVIDE,

[00:35:02]

THE CLERK IS A NEWLY ELECTED OFFICIAL WITH RELATIVELY LITTLE PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE, HAVING MENTORED DOZENS OF YOUNG PROFESSIONALS AS ADJUNCT FACULTY OF MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY. A SMALL BUSINESS OWNER AND A SUPERVISOR.

I WELCOME OPPORTUNITIES TO PROVIDE FEEDBACK. TWO DAYS AGO, I WAS ONE OF AT LEAST 88 PEOPLE WHO HELPED THE CITIZENS OF MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP CAST THEIR VOTE ABOUT THE SENIOR AND COMMUNITY CENTERS.

I SPENT 15 HOURS IN A GYM WITHOUT AIR CONDITIONING TO ALLOW 67 PEOPLE TO CAST THEIR VOTES IN MY PRECINCT.

AT LEAST 88 PEOPLE JOINED ME IN MAKING THE MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP ELECTION HAPPEN.

IF THE ELECTION WORKERS MATCH THE OVERALL VOTE TOTALS, AT LEAST 37 PEOPLE WHO WORKED VERY LONG DAYS SUPPORTED THE PROPOSAL.

TECHNICALLY, WE WORK UNDER THE CLERK. SINCE THIS POST IS IN REFERENCE TO THE FIRST ELECTION SINCE THE CLERK TOOK OFFICE.

I WOULD LIKE TO SHARE SOME OTHER FIRSTS I HAVE OBSERVED.

THE FIRST TIME I ATTENDED A MANDATORY ELECTION, TRAINING FOR EVERY ELECTION IN WHICH THE CLERK DID NOT GIVE OPENING OR CLOSING REMARKS OR A THANK YOU TO THE ELECTION WORKERS AT THE TRAINING.

THE FIRST TIME THE CLERK DID NOT VISIT MY POLLING LOCATION, THE FIRST TIME THE CLERK DID NOT GREET THE CHAIRS AND CO-CHAIRS.

WHEN WE RETURNED TO THE TOWNSHIP HALL TO MEET THE RECEIVING TEAM AND MAKE THE OFFICIAL TRANSFER OF DOCUMENTS TO MAINTAIN THE INTEGRITY OF THE ELECTION.

THE SOCIAL MEDIA POST MENTIONED LEADERSHIP, SO I WOULD LIKE TO SHARE SOME LESSONS I HAVE LEARNED ABOUT LEADERSHIP OVER MY CAREER, INCLUDING SOME THAT I WOULD GIVE TO MY YOUNGER SELF.

STAY HUMBLE. RECOGNIZE. ESPECIALLY WHEN I WAS YOUNG AND IN MY I KNOW EVERYTHING PHASE.

THE PEOPLE HAVE WHO HAVE DONE THIS LONGER THAN ME HAVE A WEALTH OF KNOWLEDGE THAT I WOULD BE WISE AND THANKFUL TO TRY TO ABSORB WHILE THEY ARE WILLING TO OFFER IT. WHEN YOU ARE PART OF A TEAM, YOU STAND WITH THAT TEAM THROUGH THE WINS AND THE LOSSES.

I'M ALMOST FINISHED. NEVER THROW SOMEONE UNDER THE BUS TO MAKE YOURSELF LOOK GOOD.

IT ALWAYS BACKFIRES. ELECTION WORKERS, AND ESPECIALLY THOSE WILLING TO BE PRECINCT CHAIRS ARE REALLY HARD TO COME BY, BE CAREFUL IN YOUR STATEMENTS TO SUPPORT ALL OF THEM.

IT IS HARD TO RUN ELECTION WITHOUT WORKERS. THANK YOU.

THANK YOU. JIM BRANDEL AND MICHAEL INGA IS ON DECK.

HELLO, BOARD. MY NAME IS JIM BRANDEL AND I LIVE AT 1504 PICCADILLY DRIVE IN THE OLD ENGLISH SUBDIVISION.

IN 2027 I WILL HAVE BEEN A 50 YEAR RESIDENT OF MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP.

I CLEARLY LOVE LIVING AND RAISING MY FAMILY THAT I DID IN MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP.

I'M AN ACCOUNTANT BY TRADE, SO THE NUMBERS I LOOK AT, I LOOK BACK AT MY 2019 TAXES, WHICH FOR THE YEAR WERE ABOUT SEVEN 7500.

I GET THIS YEAR'S WINTER TAXES ARE GOING TO BE ABOUT 9800.

I LOOK AT THE CHECKLIST, THE LAUNDRY LIST OF 2024 WINTER, AND I WANT TO EXPLAIN WHY I VOTED NO AND ENCOURAGED MY WIFE, MY MOTHER IN LAW AND MY DAUGHTER TO ALL VOTE NO.

WE ALL LIVE IN MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP. WE ALL PAY TAXES.

YES, I LIVE IN A NICE HOUSE, BUT $10,000 A YEAR, I WANTED TO SEE SOMETHING COME OFF THE LIST BEFORE YOU STARTED ADDING MORE TO THE LIST.

I GUESS MY BIGGEST QUESTION THAT I DON'T KNOW IS THE CATTLE BILL.

THE CATTLE BILL THAT I PAY $516 FOR 99% EMPTY BUSSES WHEN I DRIVE AROUND.

NOW I'M NOT DRIVING AROUND DAY. I WORK STILL, AND IT DOESN'T DO ANY GOOD TO SAY OH, BUT MY HOUSE VALUE IS GOING UP, UP AND UP IF I WANT TO LIVE IN THE REST OF MY LIFE IN THAT HOUSE, IT'S NO GOOD BECAUSE I'M NOT SELLING.

SO THERE'S NO BREAK UNLESS SOME OF THIS COMES OFF THE LAUNDRY LIST.

THE BIKE PATH IS A GOOD IDEA, BUT WILL IT EVER STOP? THE ROAD IMPROVEMENTS IS A GOOD IDEA, BUT WILL IT EVER STOP SOME? AND YOU HAVE A POLICE AND FIRE LINE, AND THEN YOU HAVE A SEPARATE POLICE AND FIRE LINE.

I THINK THE SECOND ONE IS FOR RETIREMENT BENEFITS, WHICH I DO APPRECIATE THE POLICE AND FIRE, BUT I DON'T UNDERSTAND AND THAT'S MY OWN FAULT FOR NOT STUDYING IT MORE.

WHY ALL THE LINES? I'M IN SUPPORT WITH MILTON AND JEFF THAT A SENIOR CENTER WOULD BE FINE, BUT WHEN YOU SEE $20 MILLION ON THE BALLOT, THAT SCARES A LOT OF PEOPLE AND THEY'RE NOT LIKELY TO VOTE FOR IT.

THANK YOU. THANK YOU MICHAEL INGA. AND THEN THAT'S THE LAST CARD I'VE GOT.

[00:40:01]

MR. INGA.. HELLO. HONORABLE MEMBERS OF THE TOWNSHIP BOARD.

MY NAME IS MICHAEL INGA, AND I AM HERE TODAY TO PUBLICLY SHARE SIGNIFICANT EXPERIENCES REGARDING PUBLIC HEALTH, SAFETY AND GOVERNMENT TRANSPARENCY IN OUR COMMUNITY.

LAST YEAR, I FACED SERIOUS AND UNRESOLVED ISSUES AT MY FORMER RENTAL PROPERTY, INCLUDING ONGOING ELECTRICAL PROBLEMS AND CRITICALLY SEVERE PLUMBING FAILURE THAT LED TO SEWAGE CONTAMINATING MY UNIT. YOUR OWN CODE INSPECTORS HYPOTHESIZE ABOUT POTENTIAL CROSS-CONTAMINATION, HIGHLIGHTING A PUBLIC HEALTH CONCERN DIRECTLY TIED TO THE PROPERTY'S INFRASTRUCTURE.

TO UNDERSTAND THE TOWNSHIP'S OVERSIGHT AND ENSURE PUBLIC SAFETY, I SUBMITTED AN FOIA REQUEST SPECIFICALLY ASKING FOR CRUCIAL DOCUMENTS LIKE PLUMBING BLUEPRINTS, SEWER CONNECTION MAPS, AND RELEVANT CODE ENFORCEMENT RECORDS FOR THE PROPERTY SPANNING A DECADE.

I MUST INFORM YOU AND THE PUBLIC THAT THE TOWNSHIP FAILED TO MEET ITS LEGAL OBLIGATIONS UNDER FOIA LAW.

MY REQUEST WAS DENIED DUE TO THE REPEATED FAILURE TO RESPOND WITHIN STATUTORY TIMELINES, AND EVEN WITH THE RECENT COMPLETION RESPONSE, CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE DOCUMENTS THAT COULD SHED LIGHT ON THE POTENTIAL CROSS-CONTAMINATION WERE OMITTED WITHOUT ANY EXPLANATION.

THE DOCUMENTS I REQUESTED WOULD EITHER CONFIRM THE SAFETY OF THE PROPERTY, OR PROVIDE THE EVIDENCE NEEDED TO COMPEL NECESSARY ACTION.

WITHOUT THEM, I AM A STANDSTILL. WHAT I DID RECEIVE THROUGH THE FOIA WERE RECORDS INDICATING THAT FOR OVER A DECADE, THE ONLY COMPLAINTS REGARDING THIS ENTITY THAT APPEARED IN RECORDS WERE MY OWN.

THIS, COUPLED WITH THE ONGOING NATURE OF ISSUES LIKE ELECTRICAL PROBLEMS, RAISES SERIOUS CONCERN.

SERIOUS QUESTIONS ABOUT THE TOWNSHIP'S THOROUGHNESS AND CODE ENFORCEMENT AND ITS RECORD KEEPING PRACTICES AS A DIRECT RESULT OF THESE UNADDRESSED CONCERNS AND THE TOWNSHIP'S INABILITY TO PROVIDE CRUCIAL INFORMATION OR TAKE TIMELY ACTION, I WAS LEFT IN AN UNTENABLE LIVING SITUATION.

EVEN AFTER MOVING OUT, I WAS FINANCIALLY OBLIGATED TO CONTINUE PAYING FOR A UNIT WHERE THE SIGNIFICANT HEALTH AND SAFETY QUESTIONS REMAIN UNANSWERED DUE TO THE LACK OF PROPER CHANNELS AND TRANSPARENT INFORMATION. THIS EXPERIENCE HIGHLIGHTS A CONCERNING PATTERN OF A LACK OF TRANSPARENCY AND INABILITY FOR RESIDENTS TO ACCESS CRUCIAL INFORMATION THAT AFFECTS THEIR WELL-BEING. THIS STATEMENT IS TO BRING THESE SYSTEMIC ISSUES TO YOUR ATTENTION AND TO THE PUBLIC RECORD.

I HAVE ALSO SUBMITTED A FORMAL APPEAL REGARDING THIS FOIA DENIAL, AND I URGE THIS BOARD TO ENSURE THE MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP FULLY COMPLIES WITH ITS DUTIES UNDER THE MICHIGAN FOIA LAW. RESIDENTS DESERVE FULL TRANSPARENCY AND TIMELY ACTION ON MATTERS OF PUBLIC HEALTH AND SAFETY.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME AND ATTENTION. THANK YOU.

ANYONE ELSE WISHING TO ADDRESS THE BOARD AT THIS TIME? SEEING NONE. PUBLIC COMMENT IS CLOSED AT 6:41 P.M.

NEXT ON OUR AGENDA IS ITEM SIX. TOWNSHIP MANAGER REPORT, MR.

[6. TOWNSHIP MANAGER REPORT ]

THE FIRST ONE IS THE TOWNSHIP IS IN THE PROCESS.

FRONT END OF THE PROCESS. WE'RE JUST STARTING OUT WITH UPDATING OUR WEBSITE.

AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT THE FIRM THAT WE'RE WORKING WITH WANTS TO DO IS HAVE A PUBLIC SURVEY TO GET FEEDBACK FROM THE USERS OF THAT WEBSITE.

SO WE ENCOURAGE THE PUBLIC TO GO ON OUR WEBSITE.

THERE'S A LINK RIGHT THERE TO DO A SURVEY. SO WE ENCOURAGE FOLKS TO DO THAT AS WELL AS THE BOARD AND STAFF MEMBERS.

SO ALL OF OUR PEOPLE OUT THERE THAT UTILIZE THAT TOOL, WE KNOW WE GET A LOT OF TRAFFIC ON IT, AND OBVIOUSLY WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ENSURE THAT THE REDESIGN IS OPTIMAL.

SO THAT'S A GOOD OPPORTUNITY FOR FEEDBACK FOR US.

AND THEN THE OTHER THING WAS JUST TO ACKNOWLEDGE ALL THE WORK THAT WAS DONE WITH THE ELECTION, PARTICULARLY FROM STAFF STANDPOINT THE CLERK'S OFFICE, OF COURSE, COORDINATING AND RUNNING THE ELECTION.

OUR DPW CREWS THAT HELP MOVE A LOT OF EQUIPMENT AND DO THINGS.

THE NUMEROUS STAFF WHO VOLUNTEERED FOR THE RECEIVING BOARD AND OTHER ACTIVITIES, ALL OF OUR TEMPORARY AND SHORT TERM WORKERS, AND OF COURSE, ALL THE VOLUNTEERS, ALL THE POLL WORKERS AND THAT HAVE DONE WORK AS WELL.

SO WE APPRECIATE EVERYONE'S EFFORT AND WORK ON TUESDAY EVENING.

SO IT'S A LONG DAY FOR A LOT OF PEOPLE, AND WE'RE GRATEFUL FOR THE WORK THAT THEY PUT IN.

BOARD MEMBERS, ANY QUESTIONS OF THE MANAGER ON HIS REPORT? TRUSTEE LENTZ JUST ONE, THAT BECAUSE I DON'T HAVE THE CONTRACT IN FRONT OF ME THAT WE AGREED TO FOR THE NEW SITE, THAT SURVEY AND CONDUCTING IS INCLUDED AND WHAT WE ASSIGNED AND.

YEAH, ABSOLUTELY. YEAH, THAT IS PART OF THEIR FULL DESIGN PACKAGE WITH THAT.

THIS IS JUST THE UPFRONT PROCESS TO KICK THAT OFF.

OKAY. I JUST WANTED TO ENSURE THAT. THANK YOU. YES.

OKAY. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? SEEING NONE, WE'LL MOVE ON TO AGENDA ITEM SEVEN, WHICH IS BOARD MEMBER REPORTS OF ACTIVITIES AND ANNOUNCEMENTS,

[7. BOARD MEMBER REPORTS OF ACTIVITIES AND ANNOUNCEMENTS ]

TREASURER DESCHAINE. THANK YOU. I WAS ONE OF THOSE STAFF THAT VOLUNTEERED FOR THE RECEIVING BOARD THIS YEAR. FIRST TIME DOING IT AND I WANT TO THANK THE CLERK. OUR FIRST ELECTION, I THOUGHT WENT VERY WELL. WE GOT RESULTS TO THE COUNTY QUICKER THAN WE HAVE IN A LONG,

[00:45:04]

IT'S ALWAYS TOUGH DOING SOMETHING FOR THE FIRST TIME.

AND I COMMEND YOU, CLERK DEMAS, FOR YOUR GOOD WORK.

THANK YOU. OTHER BOARD MEMBERS. CLERK DEMAS. YES.

I WANT TO THANK ALL OF OUR ELECTION WORKERS AND STAFF FOR ALL THE HARD WORK THEY PUT INTO ENSURING THIS ELECTION WENT SMOOTHLY, AS WELL AS REMAIN FREE AND FAIR. THIS WAS MY FIRST ELECTION THAT I ADMINISTERED AS CLERK AND I'M DEFINITELY TAKING NOTES.

I WAS EVERYWHERE. I WAS AT RECEIVING BOARD, ABSENTEE COUNTING BOARD, THE POLLING LOCATIONS.

I DEFINITELY WILL GO TO MORE SO BECAUSE THAT IS IMPORTANT.

I ALSO WANT TO THANK OUR DEPUTY CLERK, EMILY GORDON, FOR ALL HER HARD WORK AS WELL AS OUR SUPER CHAIRS AND OUR CHAIRS.

I ALSO WOULD LIKE TO SAY THAT I STAND WITH THE BELIEF THAT WE SHOULD KNOW WHERE OUR ELECTED OFFICIALS STAND.

THE VOTERS VOTE FOR ELECTED OFFICIALS, AND IT IS OUR RESPONSIBILITY TO REPRESENT ALL OF YOU.

SO I AM LOOKING FORWARD TO LISTENING MORE FROM RESIDENTS.

THANK YOU. OKAY. TRUSTEE LENTZ. THANK YOU. YEAH.

SO PREVIOUSLY BEFORE THIS BOARD, I HAD MENTIONED A LONG A LONG RUNNING PROJECT BY TRI COUNTY REGIONAL PLANNING REGARDING A LINE CALL CENTER THAT I WAS REALLY INTERESTED IN, APPRECIATION, AS ALWAYS, MR. OPSOMMER, FOR GUIDING ME ON A VERY CHEMICAL A JOURNEY THAT I WAS NOT EXPECTING.

WITH THAT SAID WE HAVE SEEN SOME SNAGS IN THE ROAD ON THE POTENTIAL OF THIS MOVING FORWARD.

SOME OF THE LARGER PLAYERS, BECAUSE THIS IS A MULTI MUNICIPAL PROJECT DON'T SEEM TO BE AS INTERESTED AS PREVIOUSLY THOUGHT.

THE TRI-COUNTY REGIONAL PLANNING COMMISSION IS, WE DECIDED TO SPEND A LITTLE BIT MORE OF THE GRANT MONEY TO TRY TO EVALUATE WHERE THOSE NUMBERS LIE WITHOUT THOSE LARGE PLAYERS INVOLVED, TO SEE IF IT STILL MAKES ECONOMIC SENSE TO MOVE FORWARD.

BUT IT MIGHT NOT COME TO PASS, WHICH YOU KNOW, IS TOO BAD FOR US TALKING ABOUT SOMETHING THAT WAS COULD BE SOMETHING NEW TO THIS AREA TO THIS DAY. ONE OF THE SPECIAL PROJECTS.

BUT YOU KNOW, IF THE IF THE MONEY DOESN'T MAKE SENSE, I CAN UNDERSTAND WHY US AS A REGION DON'T WANT TO MOVE FORWARD WITH IT, BUT IT WAS A SOMEWHAT ROBUST DISCUSSION IN OUR LAST MEETING.

SO, OF COURSE, I WANTED TO KEEP YOU ALL UPDATED AND MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC AS WELL.

THANK YOU. OTHER BOARD MEMBERS WITH REPORTS OF ACTIVITIES AND ANNOUNCEMENTS.

WELL, I'LL SIMPLY ADD MY THANKS TO OUR STAFF, TO THE CLERK'S OFFICE, TO CLERK DEMAS FOR THEIR HARD WORK ON THE ELECTION ON TUESDAY.

AND BEYOND THAT, EVEN TO ALL THE STAFF WHO HAVE PUT IN A LOT OF LONG HOURS GETTING THE PROPOSALS READY THAT WERE PUT IN FRONT OF THE VOTERS.

IT WOULD BE EASY, I THINK, TO SAY THAT THOSE EFFORTS TO THINK THAT THOSE EFFORTS WERE WASTED.

BUT WE HAVE LEARNED A LOT ABOUT WHAT OUR COMMUNITY THINKS ON THIS ISSUE, AND WE'VE HEARD ABOUT IT THROUGH OUR COMMUNITY LISTENING SESSIONS AND THROUGH THE BALLOTS THAT WERE CAST ON TUESDAY AND FOR THE WEEKS THAT PRECEDED IT THROUGH ABSENTEE BALLOTS.

AND SO I WOULD SAY, YOU KNOW, JUST A GENERAL THANK YOU TO THE MANY FOLKS WHO CONTRIBUTED TO THAT WORK.

TO THE FOLKS WHO SERVED ON THE SENIOR AND COMMUNITY CENTER TASK FORCE THIS WAS A LONG TIME COMING.

IT WASN'T JUST, YOU KNOW, SOMETHING THAT HAPPENED OVERNIGHT.

AND SO THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO PUT IN A LOT OF EFFORT INTO THOSE PROPOSALS.

AND NOW THAT WE'VE LEARNED SOMETHING FROM TUESDAY AND IN THE WEEKS PRIOR WE'LL HAVE TO DETERMINE HOW TO GO FORWARD.

AND PART OF THOSE FIRST STEPS WILL COME THIS EVENING AT OUR, ON OUR AGENDA LATER.

SO WE LOOK FORWARD TO THAT. NEXT ON OUR AGENDA IS ITEM EIGHT APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA.

[8. APPROVAL OF AGENDA ]

ANY DISCUSSION ON THE AGENDA? SEEING NONE. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR OF THE AGENDA, PLEASE SAY AYE.

AYE. ANY OPPOSED? AGENDA PASSES. NEXT ON OUR AGENDA IS ITEM NINE, THE CONSENT AGENDA.

[9. CONSENT AGENDA ]

THE MINUTES OF OUR JULY 22ND, 2025 REGULAR TOWNSHIP BOARD MEETING, DO WE HAVE MINUTES FROM THE CLOSED SESSION TO REVIEW?

[00:50:09]

WE HAVE A RESOLUTION SETTING THE BUDGET HEARING DATE.

WE HAVE AN OUTDOOR ASSEMBLY LIQUOR LICENSE REQUEST FOR HIGH CALIBER CARDING, A SERVICE AGREEMENT FOR THE FALL RECYCLING EVENT, AND A PUBLIC HEARING TO SET FOR JAGUAR HOMES AT 3560 HEWLETT ROAD.

WE HAVE A MOTION FOR THE CONSENT AGENDA TRUSTEE WILSON.

I MOVE THE CONSENT AGENDA EXCLUDING ITEM 9.B TO 9.C THE MINUTES FROM THE CLOSED SESSION, WHICH WE WILL HAVE TO UNDERTAKE THAT REVIEW AT A LATER DATE. OKAY. DO YOU HAVE SUPPORT? SUPPORTED BY TRUSTEE TREZISE. ANY DISCUSSION ON THE CONSENT AGENDA? SEEING NONE. CLERK DEMAS, PLEASE CALL THE ROLL. CLERK DEMAS.

YES. TREASURER DESCHAINE. YES. TRUSTEE LENTZ.

YES. TRUSTEE TREZISE. YES. TRUSTEE WILSON. YES.

SUPERVISOR HENDRICKSON. YES. MOTION CARRIES SIX ZERO.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH. ALL RIGHT. NEXT ON OUR AGENDA IS ITEM TEN A THE MERIDIAN MALL PARKING LOT RESURFACING AGREEMENT.

[10.A. Meridian Mall Parking Lot Resurfacing Agreement ]

GOOD EVENING, BOARD. IT'S BEEN A LONG WEEK. SO BRINGING THIS BACK BASED ON OUR CONVERSATION.

LAST BOARD MEETING. SO JUST A HISTORY FOR THOSE THAT MIGHT NOT MIGHT NOT WATCH THE LAST BOARD MEETING, BUT THE MERIDIAN MALL PARKING LOT ADJACENT TO THE MARKETPLACE ON THE GREEN WAS IN PRETTY SIGNIFICANT DETERIORATION.

AND THE CBL HAD RESURFACED THE PARKING LOT. JUST RECENTLY ON JULY 20TH, 2025.

AND AT THAT TIME, OR ACTUALLY PREVIOUSLY, THEY HAD ASKED THE TOWNSHIP IF WE'D BE WILLING TO CONTRIBUTE TOWARDS THE RESURFACING OF THAT PORTION BECAUSE IT'S USED BY PUBLIC PARKING FOR OUR MARKETPLACE ON THE GREEN, WHICH IS OUR FARMERS MARKET AND OTHER EVENTS THAT HAPPENED THERE.

JUST TO REVIEW THAT AS A PART OF OUR OPERATING AGREEMENT WITH CBL IS REQUIRED TO MAINTAIN 200 SPOTS ADJACENT TO THE MARKETPLACE. AND SO WITH THAT UNDERSTANDING WE TOWNSHIP STAFF RECOGNIZE THAT THIS IS A SIGNIFICANT PUBLIC USE. AND IF WE DIDN'T HAVE THIS SPACE AVAILABLE TO US IT WOULD PUT US IN A PRETTY CHALLENGING SITUATION FOR OUR FARMER'S MARKET AND ANY OF THE EVENTS THERE.

SO WE KNOW IT'S A GREAT BENEFIT. WE ALSO WANT TO BE A GREAT PARTNER TO CBL AND THE MERIDIAN MALL, WHO'S BEEN REALLY ACCOMMODATING TO US IN THAT IN THE PAST AND CONTINUES TO BE AT OUR LAST BOARD MEETING, WE HAD BROUGHT FORTH THAT THE TOTAL OF THAT RESURFACING PROJECT IS $488,495.

IT WAS BID OUT BY CBL, AND THAT WAS THE LOWEST BID.

AT THE JULY 22ND MEETING, WE HAD PROPOSED THAT WE THAT WE COULD CONTRIBUTE OR POTENTIALLY COULD CONTRIBUTE ABOUT 47.98%, WHICH WOULD EQUAL ABOUT THE SAME AMOUNT OF PARKING SPOTS, OR EXACTLY THE SAME AMOUNT OF PARKING SPOTS AS 200.

THE BOARD SUGGESTED THAT MAYBE WE COULD LOOK AT THAT AND SHARPEN OUR PENCILS A LITTLE BIT, AND POSSIBLY GET IT BELOW $200,000 BASED ON OF COURSE, THE USES IS REALLY IMPORTANT, BUT THE DAYS OF USAGE THAT WE USE THAT PARKING LOT. SO WE WENT BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD AND, AND TALKED AND WE NEGOTIATED THE OUR CONTRIBUTION DOWN TO 40% COULD BE A VERY COMPARABLE AND ACCEPTABLE AMOUNT FOR CBL.

AND THAT WOULD BE $195,398. SO AND WITH THAT, WE WE RECOMMEND USING THE FUNDING THAT'S ALREADY BEEN APPROPRIATED BY THE BOARD IN THE CAPITAL PROJECT FUND TO FUND THIS PROJECT.

SO THAT IS THAT COMPONENT THAT THE BOARD HAD ALSO RECOMMENDED THAT WE WE RETURN BACK TO OUR LEGAL COUNSEL TO ENSURE THAT WE HAVE A SUPPLEMENTAL AGREEMENT THAT THIS, THIS POTENTIAL CONTRIBUTION DOESN'T SUPERSEDE OUR EXISTING OPERATING AGREEMENT AND THAT THERE IS NO PRECEDENT SET WITH THIS, THAT IT'S JUST A GOOD PARTNERSHIP. GOOD FAITH PARTNERSHIP.

SO THE, YOU'LL SEE IN YOUR PACKET. THE PARKING MAINTENANCE AGREEMENT WAS DRAFTED BY OUR TOWNSHIP, LEGAL AND INCLUDED FOR YOUR REVIEW, INCLUDING ALL THE THINGS WE HAD TALKED ABOUT THE PREVIOUS MEETING.

SO I'M HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS. BOARD MEMBERS, ANY QUESTIONS ON THIS TOPIC? TRUSTEE WILSON, I JUST HAVE A COMMENT. THANK YOU FOR GOING BACK TO CBL AND NEGOTIATING A LOWER PRICE FOR THIS.

[00:55:04]

THANK YOU. TRUSTEE LENTZ. MY ONLY QUESTION IS IN REGARDS TO THAT AGREEMENT THAT THE ATTORNEYS RECOMMENDED.

IS THAT SOMETHING THAT IS ALREADY EXECUTED AND SIGNED, OR IS THIS IS THAT TO BE DONE AFTER WE MAKE THIS MOTION HERE TONIGHT? YEAH. IT HAS NOT BEEN EXECUTED OR SIGNED BECAUSE WE HAVEN'T HAVEN'T COMMITTED TO THE FUNDING YET.

SO I WANTED TO GET YOUR APPROVAL PRIOR TO THAT.

OKAY. I'D BE INTERESTED IN SEEING WHAT THAT IS JUST FOR, YOU KNOW.

IT'S INCLUDED IN YOUR PACKET. I'M SO SORRY. IT'S OKAY.

I GUESS I OVERLOOKED IT A COUPLE TIMES. ANYWAY.

I APPRECIATE YOU INCLUDING IT. AND ECHOING WHAT TRUSTEE WILSON SAID, THANK YOU FOR GOING BACK AND FINDING A GOOD COMMON MIDDLE GROUND FOR THIS. SURE. OTHER BOARD MEMBERS.

YEAH, I'LL GO AHEAD. TRUSTEE WILSON. DO YOU HAVE SOME COMMENTS? I'LL MAKE A COMMENT WHEN. [INAUDIBLE]. I MOVE TO ADOPT THE PARKING MAINTENANCE AGREEMENT AND AUTHORIZE THE TOWNSHIP SUPERVISOR AND CLERK TO EXECUTE THE AGREEMENT.

MOVED BY TRUSTEE WILSON. DO WE HAVE A SECOND? SUPPORT. SUPPORTED BY TRUSTEE TREZISE, ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION ON THIS TOPIC? I'LL ADD MY THANKS FOR BOTH THE RENEGOTIATION AS WELL AS THE ASK FOR ADDITIONAL ACCESSIBLE PARKING SPACES IN THE FIRST ROW OF THESE PARKING SPOTS THAT WERE REPLACED.

THIS IS SOMETHING THAT SOMEONE HAD BROUGHT UP AT THE CONCLUSION OF OUR LISTENING SESSION BACK IN JUNE.

AND WHEN THEY DID, I REALLY DIDN'T HAVE A HOPE THAT THIS WOULD BE ADDRESSED AS QUICKLY AS IT HAS.

BUT, YOU KNOW, THE CONCERN WAS THAT WHEN THE MARKET IS IN AND WHEN WE HAVE SPECIAL EVENTS, THE ACCESSIBLE PARKING SPACES THAT ARE UP AGAINST THE MARKETPLACE ITSELF ARE OFTEN OCCUPIED BY VENDORS.

AND, YOU KNOW, OTHER VEHICLES. AND SO THERE WERE ONLY, I THINK, 6 OR 7 ACCESSIBLE PARKING SPOTS AVAILABLE.

PREVIOUSLY, ONCE THOSE HAD BEEN ONE OF THE ONES CLOSER HAD BEEN TAKEN UP.

AND SO NOW WE HAVE THAT WHOLE FIRST ROW. IT'S, I THINK, WHAT, 23 SPACES LIKE THAT.

YEAH. TO TO CLARIFY THERE, WE HAD FOUR PREVIOUSLY.

WE NOW HAVE TEN. REASON FOR THAT IS A HANDICAPPED PARKING SPOT REQUIRES MORE SPACE.

SO YES, THE MALL WAS VERY GRACIOUS IN ALLOWING THAT AND SO VERY EXCITED ABOUT THAT.

GREAT. THANK YOU. WELL AND THANK YOU. SO THANK YOU FOR BRINGING THAT UP TO THEM AND FOR MAKING THAT HAPPEN. ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION ON THIS TOPIC.

SEEING NONE, [INAUDIBLE] CLERK DEMAS WILL YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL? TREASURER DESCHAINE. YES. TRUSTEE LENTZ. YES.

TRUSTEE TREZISE. YES. TRUSTEE WILSON. YES. SUPERVISOR.

HENDRICKSON. YES. CLERK DEMAS. YES. MOTION CARRIES SIX ZERO.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU. NEXT ON OUR AGENDA IS ITEM 10.B THE EYDE CENTRAL PARK PROPERTY,

[10.C. Eyde Central Park Property ]

AND AS WE MENTIONED AFTER THE FEEDBACK, WE RUN THIS CONSISTENT WITH THE WAY WE RAN THE 2005 AMENDMENT.

AND SO THE FIRST IN 2004. I'M SORRY. AND THE FIRST STEP OF THAT WAS THE BOARD REFERRING IT TO THE PLANNING COMMISSION FOR THEIR INPUT.

AND SO THAT'S WHAT'S IN FRONT OF YOU THIS EVENING JUST TO GET THE BALL ROLLING.

WE ACTUALLY DO NOT HAVE A SCHEDULE YET. WE DO NOT HAVE A FORMAL PLAN.

WE DO HAVE A FORMAL SUBMITTAL. WE JUST WANT TO GET THIS SORT OF PLACEHOLDER STEP OUT OF THE WAY TO GET THE BALL ROLLING TO ALLOW THE PLANNING COMMISSION TO THEN DISCUSS IT, PROVIDE A RECOMMENDATION BACK TO THE BOARD OF HOW TO PROCEED. THANK YOU VERY MUCH, TRUSTEE TREZISE.

I JUST DON'T KNOW THAT WE NEED TO DISCUSS THIS FURTHER, WE DID SOME LAST TIME A MOTION TO HAVE OUR PLANNING COMMISSION REVIEW IT AND MAKE THEIR RECOMMENDATION TO US. SO I WOULD MAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE ATTACHED RESOLUTION, REFERRING THE PROPOSAL FOR EYDE CENTRAL PARK PROPERTY TO THE PLANNING COMMISSION FOR ITS RECOMMENDATION AS TO WHETHER OR NOT COURT ORDERS GOVERNING THE ZONING, PERMITTED USES AND DEVELOPMENT OF PARCELS 22-202-001 AND 15-400-031 AND 22-203-001 SHOULD BE AMENDED TO REPLACE THE CURRENT ZONING WITH A NEW CLASSIFICATION. TRUSTEE TREZISE HAS MADE THE MOTION.

DO WE HAVE A SECOND? SUPPORT. TREASURER DESCHAINE HAS SUPPORTED.

NOW ON TO DISCUSSION. TRUSTEE WILSON. THANK YOU.

[01:00:05]

THE ATTACHED RESOLUTION HAS LANGUAGE IN IT THAT STATES THAT EITHER LAND HOLDINGS AND THEIR DEVELOPER WOULD WANT AN AMENDMENT TO THE PROPERTY IT'S CLAUSE 4 TO BE ASSIGNED RC, WHICH IS A DENSITY OF 14 UNITS PER ACRE, THAT IT IS CURRENTLY ZONED RD, WHICH IS EIGHT UNITS PER ACRE.

THEY BROUGHT TO US A CONCEPT PLAN THAT WAS TEN POINT SOMETHING UNITS PER ACRE, BECAUSE WE DON'T YET HAVE A SITE PLAN ON THIS. I'M VERY CONCERNED ABOUT BIASING THE PLANNING COMMISSION'S DECISION BY SENDING THIS RESOLUTION WITH IT, BECAUSE WE THEN WOULD ALLOW 14 UNITS PER ACRE, AND WE HAVEN'T SEEN A SITE PLAN, SO THEY COULD EASILY GO THE FULL 14 UNITS PER ACRE INSTEAD OF THE CONCEPT THAT WAS AT TEN. SO MY QUESTION TO YOU IS CAN WE CHANGE THE ZONING WITH A CAVEAT UNITS NOT TO EXCEED THE TEN POINT WHATEVER FOR THIS DEVELOPMENT AS PROPOSED BY THE DEVELOPER IN THEIR CONCEPT PLAN? YEAH. AND JUST TO CLARIFY ONE THING, IT'S ACTUALLY ZONED BOTH OUR.

I KNOW AND CHS. YEP. WHAT'S ULTIMATELY THAT'S WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN.

MOST LIKELY. RIGHT. THIS IS HEADING DOWN THE PATH OF A CONDITIONAL REZONING SLASH SETTLEMENT AMENDMENT, SUBJECT TO THIS PLAN KIND OF THING. ULTIMATELY, FROM A ZONING PERSPECTIVE, THOUGH, YOU HAVE TO WE HAVE TO GET IT TO A POINT WHERE THE USE IS PERMITTED WITHOUT A USE VARIANCE. AND THE ONLY WAY TO DO THAT WOULD BE TO GO TO THE NEXT HIGHER DENSITY.

SO EVEN BASED ON THE PLAN THEY HAVE, IT HAS TO GO TO RC.

AND SO ULTIMATELY, I THINK WHAT WE'RE GOING TO GET OUT OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION.

WHAT I WOULD EXPECT THAT THE PLANNING COMMISSION WOULD TALK ABOUT AND MAKE A RECOMMENDATION BACK TO THE BOARD IS LIMITING THE DENSITY, LIMITING THE CURB CUTS, LOCATION OF PARKING AREAS, LOCATION OF THE DUMPSTER, WHICH WE TALKED ABOUT LAST TIME, THINGS LIKE THAT. TO THEN GUIDE THE DISCUSSION, WHERE IF THE BOARD CHOOSES TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THIS THEY WILL THEN PROVIDE FEEDBACK TO THE TOWNSHIP ATTORNEYS TO DEVELOP THAT SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT.

SO I THINK THAT'S WHERE WE'RE GOING. I JUST THINK UNTIL WE CAN START HAVING THAT CONVERSATION, WE CANNOT LEGALLY SAY, WELL, I'LL GIVE YOU THIS DENSITY OR THIS ZONING, BUT YOU HAVE TO STAY AT THIS DENSITY.

WE CAN'T DO THAT. BUT THAT'S WHERE THIS IS GOING.

PRACTICALLY. BUT THE PLANNING COMMISSION, IN ITS WISDOM, MAY CHOOSE TO LEAVE THE PROPERTY AT RD.

ABSOLUTELY. [INAUDIBLE]. AND SO WE'RE STEERING THEM IN THE DIRECTION OF GOING TO THE HIGHEST DENSITY LEVEL WE ALLOW.

THAT'S MY CONCERN, I DON'T THINK. I THINK THEY SHOULD BE MAKING AN INDEPENDENT DECISION ABOUT WHICH ZONING CODE WOULD BE MOST APPROPRIATE FOR THE PROPERTY, AND WE DON'T LAY THAT OUT IN OUR EXPLANATION HERE OR IN THE RESOLUTION.

YEAH. AND I WOULD HOPE THAT THAT'S WHAT WE WILL GET OUT OF THE PLAN.

I MEAN, THAT'S THE EXPECTATION, I THINK, WITH ANY REZONING REQUEST IS THAT THE PLANNING COMMISSION MAKES THE MOST APPROPRIATE RECOMMENDATION FOR THE SITUATION AT HAND.

BUT YOU'RE SAYING THAT THIS RESOLUTION IS FROM THE BOARD, AND THE BOARD IS SAYING WE WANT 14 UNITS PER ACRE.

I JUST THINK WE HAVE TO HAVE MORE FLEXIBILITY HERE IN WHAT WE SEND TO THE PLANNING COMMISSION, RATHER THAN ONE DIRECTION TO GO TO THE HIGHEST DENSITY.

SO, IF I MAY, THE CLAUSE FOUR SIMPLY IS STATING THAT THE CONCEPT PLAN PRESENTED TO US IS WOULD REQUIRE ESSENTIALLY A REZONING TO RC.

I THINK THE OPERATIVE CONCERN HERE WOULD BE IN THE FINAL.

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED WHERE IT'S ASKING THE PLANNING COMMISSION FOR ITS RECOMMENDATION AS TO WHETHER THOSE COURT ORDERS GOVERNING THE ZONING COMMITTEE USE SOME DEVELOPMENT OF THE PARCELS THAT ARE SUBJECT TO THE RESOLUTIONS SHOULD BE AMENDED TO CHANGE THE ZONING DESIGNATION.

THIS IS THE OPERATIVE PHRASE TO RC MULTIPLE FAMILY RESIDENTIAL, NOT TO EXCEED 14 DWELLING UNITS PER ACRE.

I THINK MAYBE IF WE CAN ADDRESS TRUSTEE WILSON'S CONCERN HERE, IF WE STRIKE EVERYTHING AFTER DESIGNATIONS.

SO IT JUST READS AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF PARCELS THAT ARE SUBJECT TO THE RESOLUTIONS SHOULD BE AMENDED TO CHANGE THE ZONING DESIGNATIONS.

THAT ALLOWS THE PLANNING COMMISSION TO OPERATE INDEPENDENTLY AND DETERMINE WHETHER OR NOT THAT YOU KNOW, IF THEY CHOOSE TO GO TO RD, THEN SO BE IT. BUT THAT ALLOWS THEM, YOU KNOW, WITHOUT SHOWING US,

[01:05:04]

WE CAN ABSOLUTELY DO THAT IF THAT'S THE DESIRE.

ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION ON THAT TOPIC? THEN I SUPPOSE WE WOULD NEED A MOTION TO AMEND.

TRUSTEE WILSON. I'LL MOVE THAT WE AMEND. IT'S NOW THEREFORE SECTION, RIGHT? OKAY THAT WE CHANGE THE ENDING OF THE NOW THEREFORE CLAUSE TO AND AT. HANG ON SHOULD BE AMENDED TO CHANGE THE ZONING DESIGNATION PERIOD.

RIGHT. THAT'S THE RIGHT SPOT ISN'T IT? YES. OKAY.

THAT'S MY MOTION. IT'S A MOTION TO AMEND. WE HAVE A SECOND? SUPPORT. SECONDED BY TRUSTEE LENTZ. ANY DISCUSSION ON THE MOTION TO AMEN6D? TRUSTEE LENTZ. I APPRECIATE THE EXPLANATION ABOUT, FIRST OF ALL, IT BEING LEGALLY AVAILABLE TO US.

I WAS UNDER THE ASSUMPTION THAT WE DID NEED TO DESIGNATE THE ZONE OF OUR CHANGE OF ZONE THAT WE WOULD RECOMMEND.

SO I APPRECIATE YOUR EXPERTISE IN THI,S TRUSTEE WILSON.

THANK YOU. OKAY. ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION? OKAY.

SEEING NONE. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR OF THE MOTION TO AMEND, PLEASE SAY AYE.

AYE, AYE. ANY OPPOSED? THE MOTION CARRIES. NOW TO THE MAIN MOTION.

AND ALL IN FAVOR? IS THERE ANY DISCUSSION ON THE MAIN MOTION? I SUPPOSE, BEYOND WHAT WE'VE ALREADY DISCUSSED. SEEING NONE.

ALL THOSE IN FAVOR OF THE MOTION TO REFER THE AMENDED RESOLUTION TO THE PLANNING COMMISSION, PLEASE SAY AYE. AYE. ANY OPPOSED? MOTION CARRIES.

ALL RIGHTY. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. ABSOLUTELY. NEXT ON OUR AGENDA IS ITEM 11, ORDINANCE 2025-06 BACKYARD CHICKEN ORDINANCE

[11.A. Ordinance 2025-06 – Rooster Regulation]

THANK YOU, MR. SUPERVISOR. MEMBERS OF THE BOARD, THIS IS A RELATIVELY SMALL CHANGE, ACTUALLY TO OUR EXISTING PROVISIONS OF THE CODE. SO A COUPLE PIECES OF BACKGROUND THAT YOU NEED TO KNOW HERE.

OUR ORDINANCE IS SET UP AROUND THE RR DISTRICT.

IT IS NOT IDEAL, BUT THAT IS THE HAND WE'RE DEALT.

SO EVERYTHING IN OUR RESIDENTIAL ZONING DISTRICT REFERS BACK TO THE RR DISTRICT.

IT'S ALL A SET OF NESTING DOLLS. AND SO THE STANDARDS FOR BACKYARD CHICKENS ARE LOCATED IN THE RR DISTRICT.

AND IN WITHIN THAT THERE IS A PROHIBITION ON ROOSTERS IN CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES.

SO THEY TRIED TO WRITE AN EXCEPTION INTO THE RR DISTRICT FOR STANDARDS IN OTHER DISTRICTS.

IT'S VERY ELEGANTLY DONE. WHAT WE, WHAT THAT BRINGS US TO IS THE SECOND THING YOU NEED TO KNOW IS THAT THE TOWNSHIP HAS LARGELY RETAINED THE RR ZONING.

YOU KNOW, ALMOST EVERY PLACE THAT IT WAS BACK IN 1974, AND WHAT HAS HAPPENED IS IN MANY AREAS, THE TOWN TOWNSHIP IS BUILT UP AROUND THOSE PROPERTIES.

IF I HAD A MAGIC WAND, I WOULD ERASE A COUPLE OF RRS AND CHANGE IT TO SOMETHING MORE MODERN.

AND STAFF WILL AT SOME POINT BRING THAT RECOMMENDATION FORWARD.

BUT WE'RE NOT THERE YET. AND SO THIS IS THE SOLUTION TO A BIT OF A CODE ENFORCEMENT PROBLEM THAT HAS SPRUNG UP IN THE LAST YEAR.

AND SO SINCE COVID WE HAVE SEEN THROUGHOUT THE INDUSTRY, PLANNING A LARGE INCREASE IN THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE DOING BACKYARD CHICKENS, AND EVEN MORE SO THIS YEAR.

ONE OF THE THINGS THEY DON'T TELL YOU WHEN YOU GET CHICKENS AT THAT AGE IS IT'S REALLY HARD TO TELL WHETHER THEY ARE MALE OR FEMALE. AND SO OFTENTIMES PEOPLE BUY THEIR CHICKENS AT FARM AND FLEET AND END UP WITH A ROOSTER. AND MOST OF THE TIME IT'S A SIMPLE SOLUTION AND WE NEVER HEAR ABOUT IT.

BUT ON OCCASION IT BECOMES AN ISSUE AND THE ROOSTER GROWS UP AND STARTS WAKING UP THE NEIGHBORS.

MOST OF THE TIME IT'S VERY STRAIGHTFORWARD. WE SEND A QUICK NOTE TO THE OWNER, HEY, YOU CAN'T HAVE A ROOSTER.

AND IT'S DONE. WHAT WE'VE RUN INTO THIS YEAR SPECIFICALLY IS A COUPLE OF STICKY COMPLAINTS THAT ARE PROPERTIES THAT ARE ACTUALLY ZONED OR ARE THAT TECHNICALLY CAN LEGALLY HAVE A ROOSTER BUT ARE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE DEVELOPED AREA LARGELY OF HASLETT, ALTHOUGH THERE IS ONE IN THE OKEMOS AREA. AND SO IN TALKING TO OUR ATTORNEYS, WE REALIZED WE SHOULD PROBABLY ADDRESS THIS LOOPHOLE,

[01:10:01]

SO WHAT WE CAME UP WITH WAS UTILIZING THE URBAN SERVICE BOUNDARY AS OUR LINE OF DEMARCATION AS TO WHERE YOU CAN HAVE ROOSTERS.

IT'S THE MOST IT'S THE EASIEST WAY TO DO IT WITHOUT A MAJOR OVERHAUL OF THIS AND GIVES US AN OPPORTUNITY TO ACTUALLY ENFORCE IT ON A COUPLE OF PEOPLE THAT PROBABLY SHOULDN'T HAVE ROOSTERS TO BEGIN WITH. I DON'T KNOW WHY YOU WOULD HAVE A ROOSTER IN YOUR BACKYARD.

THAT'S BEYOND ME, BUT I DON'T CLAIM TO UNDERSTAND THAT AT ALL TIMES.

SO THAT'S ALL THIS DOES, IS IT ADDS A SENTENCE INTO THE THE STANDARDS THAT REQUIRE YOU TO HAVE FIVE ACRES AND BE OUTSIDE THE URBAN SERVICE BOUNDARY TO HAVE A ROOSTER.

BE HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT BACKYARD CHICKENS OR ROOSTERS IN GENERAL.

BOARD MEMBERS ANY QUESTIONS? TREASURER DESCHAINE. I THINK IT'S A GOOD SOLUTION. HOWEVER, WHAT DO YOU DO ABOUT THE TWO ROOSTERS THAT ARE CURRENTLY OUTSIDE THE URBAN SERVICE BOUNDARY THAT ARE CAUSING SUCH A PROBLEM FOR OUR NEIGHBORS? WE CAN'T APPLY THIS RETROACTIVELY. THAT IS AN EXCELLENT QUESTION, TREASURER DESCHAINE, AND ONE THAT WE WILL BE ADDRESSING ONCE WE HAVE AN ORDINANCE IN PLACE.

THEY GRANDFATHERED IN. THAT IS AN EXCELLENT QUESTION, TRUSTEE WILSON, AND ONE WE WILL BE ADDRESSING.

YOU KNOW, WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THIS AND WE HAVE A COUPLE OF APPROACHES THAT WE THINK WE CAN TAKE.

YOU KNOW, THERE'S NOT A RIGHT TO FARM CLAIM HERE, GIVEN THE WAY, GIVEN THE FACT THAT WE HAVE GUIDELINES IN PLACE, THEY'RE NOT GOING TO MEET THE STANDARDS OF THE STATE ANYWAY.

SO WE'RE NOT AS WORRIED ABOUT THAT. THAT'S MORE OF A CONCERN IF WE DON'T DO SOMETHING.

THERE'S CERTAINLY A NOISE VIOLATION. THERE'S CERTAINLY A VIOLATION OF A COUPLE OTHER THINGS.

HOPEFULLY IT'S GOING TO BE A MATTER OF WE TELL THE PEOPLE, HEY, YOU GOT TO GET RID OF THE ROOSTER. AND WE DON'T HAVE A PROBLEM.

CLERK DEMAS. WELL, HAS THIS BEEN COMMUNICATED TO THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE ROOSTERS, OR ARE THEY AWARE THAT THIS COULD BE A POSSIBILITY, THAT THEY WOULD LOSE THEIR ROOSTERS? AND WHAT HAS BEEN DONE SO FAR WITH THE NOISE COMPLAINTS? YEAH. SO THE CURRENT COMPLAINTS WE ARE STILL LOOKING FOR ONE OF THE ROOSTERS.

WE ARE AWARE OF WHERE THE OTHER ONE IS. WE HAVE MADE CONTACT WITH THAT OWNER, AND CANDIDLY, I THINK IT'S GONE NOW. I HAVEN'T GOTTEN A COMPLAINT IN A SOLID MONTH, WHICH WOULD BE A LONG PERIOD OF TIME.

BUT THE SUN HAS COME UP. THE SUN HAS COME UP.

TURNS OUT. SO, YOU KNOW, WE WILL. UNFORTUNATELY, WE'RE VERY GOOD AT TALKING TO PEOPLE THAT HAVE RANDOM FARM ANIMALS THAT THEY HAVE TO GET RID OF. THAT THAT IS NOT AN UNCOMMON OCCURRENCE IN THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT.

AND SO WE WILL HAVE THAT CONVERSATION WITH THEM.

IF THERE COMES A TIME WHEN THE ORDINANCE DOES NOT ALLOW IT.

THANK YOU. TRUSTEE LENTZ. THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE YOUR VAST KNOWLEDGE ON THIS, TIM, CONSIDERING WE TALKED ABOUT IT EARLIER. MY QUESTION IN REGARDS TO THAT URBAN SERVICE BOUNDARY.

CAN YOU WALK THROUGH, IS THAT A NATURALLY EXPANDING BOUNDARY THAT AS DEVELOPMENT COMES, THAT LINE MOVES? IS IT DETERMINED BASED ON ORDINANCE FROM THE TOWNSHIP BOARD? JUST TO GET SOME MORE INSIGHT. AND THEN I'LL HAVE A FOLLOW UP QUESTION ALONG THE LINES OF WHAT WE'VE BEEN DISCUSSING.

SO GO AHEAD. ABSOLUTELY. SO THE URBAN SERVICE BOUNDARY IS ESTABLISHED AS PART OF THE MASTER PLAN UPDATE.

IT'S REVIEWED EVERY FIVE YEARS. INITIALLY WAS ADOPTED IN 2017 AFTER YEARS OF DISCUSSION.

SLIGHT CHANGES WERE MADE TO IT IN 2022, 2023.

ACTUALLY, IT WAS EARLY 23. THE BOARD ULTIMATELY HAS FINAL SAY OVER WHERE THAT BOUNDARY IS, WHETHER IT GOES AWAY, WHETHER IT EXPANDS, WHETHER IT SHRINKS.

IT IS NOT INTENDED TO BE COMPLETELY STATIC, BUT IT IS CERTAINLY INTENDED TO BE A PRETTY HARD LINE.

I'LL NEVER SAY IT'S COMPLETELY STATIC, BECAUSE CIRCUMSTANCES CAN CHANGE AND WE MIGHT MAKE A TWEAK HERE OR THERE, WHICH IS WHAT WE DID IN 23. BUT BY AND LARGE, THAT IS A GOOD LINE TO DRAW AND TO THE GOOD ENOUGH THAT IN TALKING TO THE ATTORNEY, OUR TOWNSHIP ATTORNEYS, WE DECIDED IT WAS SOLID ENOUGH TO PUT AN ORDINANCE AT THIS POINT.

THANK YOU. MY FOLLOW UP TO THAT, WHICH I WISH I HAD A PAGE NUMBER TO REFERENCE, I'M REALIZING.

THANK YOU FOR THAT. I WAS LOOKING AT AN OLD AGENDA, BUT THE MAP OF OUR ZONED PARCELS IN THAT URBAN SERVICE DISTRICT.

WAS THAT IN YOUR OPINION, WAS THAT ON THE BOARD AND THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT IN 2017 HAVE RAISED THE RED FLAG. THE WORD RURAL RESIDENTIAL IS INSIDE OF AN URBAN SERVICE DISTRICT TO THOSE WORDS, NOT CONFLICT? I UNDERSTAND THAT YOU'RE NOT, WE'RE NOT PREPARED TO UPDATE THE ZONING HERE AND NOW, BUT IS THAT SOMETHING THAT YOU, IN YOUR CAPACITY, WOULD RECOMMEND TO NOT HAVE THESE PRETTY SMALL ISSUES COME BEFORE US ON THE BOARD

[01:15:10]

THEY SHOULD HAVE BEEN ABSORBED INTO ONE OF THE SINGLE FAMILY DISTRICTS BECAUSE THEY ARE, YOU KNOW, SMALLER THAN AN ACRE, THEY HAVE A HOUSE ON THEM, SO IT'S TRULY JUST A SUBURBAN LOT AT THIS POINT.

AND THEN A COUPLE OF THEM, YOU HAVE SORT OF OUTLIERS, RIGHT.

YOU HAVE THE WASTEWATER TREATMENT OR THE WATER PLANT THAT'S IN THE TOWNSHIP THAT'S ZONED RURAL RESIDENTIAL, AND YOU HAVE SOME MSU PARCELS. SO LIKE THERE'S A FEW THINGS THAT WE COULD FIGURE OUT A WAY TO ADDRESS THOSE, BUT IT IS SOMETHING THAT WE'RE GOING TO DO A DEEPER DIVE ON.

IN THE RELATIVELY NEW FUTURE. YOU KNOW, WE, WHEN I FIRST STARTED, MADE A COMMITMENT TO START REDUCING THE NUMBER OF RESIDENTIAL DISTRICTS WE HAD TO MAKE THE REGULATION EASIER, AND WE SORT OF KNOCKED OFF THE THREE EASY ONES.

AND NOW WE'RE DOWN TO THE COMPLICATED ONES. AND LOOKING AT THIS IS ON OUR LIST.

GOTCHA. I APPRECIATE THAT EXPLANATION. YOU KNOW, I AM IN FAVOR OF KEEPING WITH THE SPIRIT OF SIMPLIFYING SOME OF THESE ZONING CODES. SO I THINK THIS WOULD BE A, THAT WOULD BE A WELCOME ADDITION TO A FUTURE FEATURE BOARD PACKET.

AND THEN ONE LAST QUESTION. I'M ALMOST POSITIVE ON THE ANSWER TO THIS.

THERE AREN'T ANY PARCELS THAT ARE PARTIALLY IN THE URBAN SERVICE DISTRICT AND PARTIALLY NOT, CORRECT? NO, WE ACTUALLY ELIMINATED THERE WAS TWO IN THE 2023 UPDATE WE RECOMMENDED REMOVED.

WE RECOMMENDED FIXING THAT. WE REACHED OUT TO THE OWNERS AND ASKED THEM WHICH WAY THEY WANTED TO GO.

FUNCTIONALLY HAS NO BEARING ON THEM. THERE'S HOUSES ON BOTH OF THEM, BUT WE FIXED IT.

THANK YOU. I WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT THIS WASN'T A FUTURE QUESTION BEFORE US.

FOR I'M HAPPY TO SEE YOU. READY FOR MOTION? I WOULD DISCUSS AFTERWARD.

THAT'S FINE. MOVE TO ADOPT THE RESOLUTION RECOMMENDING APPROVAL.

OH, WAIT. I'M SORRY. THIS IS FOR DISCUSSION. THIS IS JUST FOR DISCUSSION. SO WHAT WE SHOULD BE DOING IS, YOU KNOW, IDENTIFYING WHETHER THIS IS SOMETHING WE WANT TO MOVE FORWARD WITH IN GENERAL, AND THEN IT'LL BE BROUGHT BACK BEFORE US. YES.

TREASURE DESCHAINE AND TRUSTEE LENTZ. I THINK WE DO WANT TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THIS, AND REGARDING THE RURAL, URBAN SERVICES BOUNDARY, IT'S ACTUALLY A BRILLIANT MOVE THAT OUR PAST BOARD MADE.

TRUSTEE WILSON REMEMBERS THIS BOARD AND BOARDS IN THE 90S AND THERE WAS HUGE GROWTH, NO GROWTH FIGHTS IN THIS TOWNSHIP ALL THE TIME.

AND ONE BOARD MIGHT BE PRO-GROWTH. THE NEXT BOARD WAS ANTI-GROWTH.

THERE WAS REALLY NO MIDDLE GROUND TO BE FOUND, IT SEEMED.

WELL, THE URBAN SERVICES BOUNDARY GIVES THAT SOLUTION HERE TO SAY THE EASTERN THIRD OF THE TOWNSHIP.

WE'RE GOING TO LEAVE RURAL, UNDEVELOPED, LARGE LOTS, THE RURAL FEEL.

THIS TOWNSHIP WAS A CENTURY AGO. THE REST OF THE TOWNSHIP WERE GOING TO ALLOW MODERATE SMART DEVELOPMENT.

SO IT'S IT REALLY IS A TRIBUTE TO PASSPORT THAT WE HAVE THIS URBAN SERVICES BOUNDARY.

AND IT'S WORKED VERY WELL WITH JUST THE MINOR CHANGES WE DID IN 23 TO MAKE SURE PARCELS WERE NOT IN BOTH DISTRICTS AT ONCE.

SO I THINK IT'S SOMETHING TO BE PROUD OF. IS WORK DONE BY PASSPORT? BY A PASSPORT, I BELIEVE. TRUSTEE SCALES. WHO'S IN THE AUDIENCE TONIGHT WAS PART OF THAT BOARD THAT DEVELOPED US IN 2017 AS WELL.

TRUSTEE LENTZ THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE THE EXPLANATION.

TREASURER DESCHAINE AND THE WORK DONE BY THE TOWNSHIP BOARDS OF THE PAST.

I NO WAY MEANT TO IMPLY THAT ANYONE YOU KNOW WAS MAKING RASH DECISIONS.

WITH THAT SAID I AM OVERALL ABSOLUTELY IN FAVOR OF THIS.

I WOULD LIKE TO PROTECT THAT ONE ROOSTER FROM THE IRE OF TOWNSHIP, SAYING THAT YOU NEED TO BE GOTTEN RID OF.

SO I KNOW THAT THERE WAS A MENTION OF A GRACE PERIOD IN THE PLANNING COMMISSION, IF I READ THOSE MINUTES CORRECT.

AND IF THERE COULD BE, I MEAN, IF WE CAN TALK TO THE THAT RESIDENT, WHICH I BELIEVE CLERK DEMAS HAD MENTIONED SOMETHING ABOUT TALKING TO THEM IN SOME WAY TO MAKE THIS A LESS STICKY SITUATION THAN AND MAYBE A LITTLE MORE LEVITY TO IT.

I WOULD ABSOLUTELY BE IN FAVOR OF THIS. YEAH, WE CAN LOOK INTO THAT ONCE, ONCE WE KNOW WHERE WE'RE AT.

THANK YOU. THE BOARD MEMBERS. I WOULD BE IN FAVOR OF THIS CHANGE.

[01:20:03]

OFTENTIMES WE GET MIRED IN, YOU KNOW, VERY COMPLEX ORDINANCES.

AND THIS IS A REFRESHINGLY SIMPLE ONE. SO THANK YOU FOR THAT.

AND THE URBAN SERVICES BOUNDARY IS ALSO ONE OF THE HOTTEST TOPICS WHEN IT COMES TIME FOR MASTER PLAN.

IT WAS ONE OF THE THINGS THAT BROUGHT OUT A LOT OF FOLKS TO, TO TALK ABOUT THAT WHEN THE BOARD WAS DISCUSSING IT, AND SOMETHING, EVEN SOMETHING AS SIMPLE AS THE EXPANDING IT TO NOT INCLUDE THOSE SPLIT PARCELS OR TO INCLUDE THOSE SPLIT PARCELS.

DREW A LOT OF FOLKS WHO WERE CONCERNED THAT THE BOARD MIGHT BE CONSIDERING MOVING IT BEYOND THAT.

AND SO JUST SOMETHING TO BE AWARE OF. YOU KNOW, WE'LL HEAR ABOUT IT, I'M SURE, IN ANOTHER 4 OR 5 YEARS.

WHENEVER THE MASTER PLAN COMES BACK UP. BUT FOR NOW IT'S A GOOD LINE.

AND I THINK IT'S SOMETHING THAT THIS, THIS ORDINANCE ABOUT THE CHICKENS WILL CERTAINLY BE ABLE TO, WELL, UTILIZE IT TO RESTRICT IT INSIDE THE URBAN SERVICES BOUNDARY.

I JUST DID SOME RESEARCH, AND ROOSTERS LIVE 5 TO 8 YEARS.

GOOD TO KNOW. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. IS THERE ANY. IS THERE ANY OPPOSITION TO BRINGING THIS BACK BEFORE THE BOARD FOR INTRODUCTION AT OUR NEXT MEETING? I DON'T SEE ANYONE. ALL RIGHT. SO THAT'S WHAT WE'LL SEE.

AND WE'LL BE LOOKING FORWARD TO TO THIS TOPIC NEXT TIME AROUND.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU. OKAY. IT IS 7:20, WE'VE BEEN AT THIS ABOUT AN HOUR AND A HALF.

I'D ASKED THE BOARD FOR MAYBE A FIVE MINUTE RECESS, AND THEN WE'LL COME BACK AT 7:25.

SEEING NO OBJECTION, WE STAND AT RECESS UNTIL 7:25.

WE'LL CALL OURSELVES BACK TO ORDER AT 7:27 P.M.

OUR NEXT ITEM ON OUR AGENDA IS ITEM 11.B COMMUNITY AND SENIOR CENTER NEXT STEPS.

[11.B. Community and Senior Center Next Steps]

WE'LL TURN THINGS OVER TO MANAGER DEMPSEY. YEAH.

THANK YOU, MR. SUPERVISOR AND BOARD MEMBERS. YES, WE DO HAVE A CADRE HERE.

IT'S A FAMILIAR TEAM, THOUGH. DEPUTY MANAGER OPSOMMER, DIRECTOR WISINSKI, DIRECTOR SCHMITT.

THE THREE OF WHICH HAVE DONE A TON OF WORK ON THIS PROJECT OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS.

SO I APPRECIATE THE FACT THAT WE HAVE A TEAM WORKING ON THIS.

SO I'M GOING TO GIVE AN OVERVIEW OF THE MEMO.

WALK THROUGH SOME OF THE OPTIONS HERE. AND THEN THEY'RE ALL HERE THIS EVENING AS WELL TO HELP ANSWER QUESTIONS THAT THE BOARD MIGHT HAVE RECEIVED WITH YOUR DISCUSSION.

SO FIRST OFF, I WANT TO BE REALLY CLEAR UP FRONT.

WHILE THE MEMO IS TITLED COMMUNITY AND SENIOR CENTER OPTIONS, IT'S REALLY SENIOR CENTER ONLY OPTIONS THAT WE HAVE HERE FOR PRESENTATION FROM OUR PERSPECTIVE. WE'RE FOCUSING IN ON THAT AT THIS POINT.

AS WE DISCUSSED AHEAD OF THE ELECTION, WE KNEW WE WOULD BE IN ONE OF TWO POSITIONS THIS EVENING, AND THIS IS THE ONE WE FIND OURSELVES IN. SO THE OPTIONS RELATE TO WHAT ARE THE BOARD'S POSSIBILITIES MOVING FORWARD.

SO WITH THAT I'LL WALK THROUGH THESE, AS I INDICATED.

YOU KNOW, OPTION ONE IS THE ABILITY TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THE POTENTIAL FOR NEW CONSTRUCTION OF A SENIOR ONLY FACILITY.

IN ALL LIKELIHOOD, ON THE CENTRAL FIRE STATION SITE.

IF YOU RECALL IN HERE, WHEN YOU SELECTED THE OPTIONS FOR MOVING FORWARD WITH THE MILLAGE VOTES, THAT WE HAD AN OPTION IN THERE THAT WAS SENIOR CENTER ONLY, AND IT LAID OUT THE SITE PLAN ON THE SITE FOR THAT AND PROVIDED THE COST ESTIMATES THERE. SO THIS WOULD BE THE OPTION THAT PROBABLY IS THE MOST VIABLE IN TERMS OF PRESERVING THE $5 MILLION STATE GRANT, AS WE INDICATED IN THE MEMO. AND WE ALL KNOW THE DEADLINE, HARD DEADLINE FOR EXPENDITURE OF THAT MONEY, THE SEPTEMBER 30TH, 2026. SO EVEN IF THE VOTE HAD PASSED, IT WAS GOING TO TAKE A LOT OF EFFORT TO MOVE EXPEDIENTLY TO EXPEND THOSE FUNDS.

BUT WE BELIEVE THAT WOULD BE THE CASE GIVEN SORT OF WHERE WE WERE AT WITH THE POTENTIAL DESIGN FIRM AND OTHER, YOU KNOW, PROCESSES MOVING FORWARD. THIS OPTION, WE DO MENTION AS PART OF THIS OPTION THE NOTION OF, WELL, WHAT ABOUT LOOKING AT OTHER EXISTING FACILITIES AND ACQUISITION OF THAT? YOU KNOW, A QUICK SORT OF REVIEW OF EXISTING PROPERTIES THAT ARE FOR SALE CURRENTLY IN THE TOWNSHIP DOESN'T REALLY YIELD ANYTHING THAT IS OF THE SIZE OR THE NATURE OF STEPPING INTO ACQUIRE. NOW, COULD THAT CHANGE AT ANY POINT HERE IN THE NEAR FUTURE OR MID-TERM FUTURE? ABSOLUTELY. WE DON'T ALWAYS KNOW WHAT PROPERTIES MIGHT BECOME AVAILABLE.

THAT IS ALWAYS AN OPEN QUESTION MARK. THE MOST SIGNIFICANT IMPACT OF THAT, THOUGH, IS THE POTENTIAL COST,

[01:25:06]

BARRING SOME SORT OF, YOU KNOW, DONATION OR SOMETHING, YOU KNOW, LIKE THAT, WHERE SOMEONE SAYS, HEY, HERE'S A, HERE'S A BUILDING. BUT IN THAT CASE, WE PROBABLY HAVE TO QUESTION ITS USABILITY, RIGHT? AND THE LIKELIHOOD OF THAT IS PROBABLY QUITE LOW.

WITH THIS OPTION, OF COURSE, THIS IS THE OPTION THAT PROVIDES NEW SPACE.

IT PROVIDES THAT OPPORTUNITY TO NOT ONLY ACCOMMODATE THE PROGRAMING CURRENTLY GOING ON AT THE SENIOR CENTER, BUT EXPANDING THAT. CERTAINLY A SCALED BACK PROPOSAL HERE WOULD SUBSTANTIALLY REDUCE THE COST.

YOU KNOW, WE HAD AN ESTIMATE ROUGHLY OF ABOUT 9.8 MILLION FOR SENIOR ONLY A FACILITY, AGAIN, WITH 5 MILLION POTENTIALLY BEING COVERED BY THE GRANT, AND THEN THE BALANCE BEING COVERED BY A BOND ISSUE THAT WOULD BE SUPPORTED WITH A MILLAGE. AND THEN, OF COURSE, THE OPERATING MILLAGE ON TOP OF THAT, CHALLENGES WITH THIS OPTION, OF COURSE, IS THAT YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE TIME FRAME TO MOVE THIS FORWARD AND PRESERVING THE $5 MILLION STATE GRANT, IT GETS VERY DIFFICULT, RIGHT.

WE WOULD HAVE TO BE LOOKING AT MOVING SOMETHING FORWARD TO THE VOTERS, WITH THE NOVEMBER ELECTION, WHICH WOULD REQUIRE TAKING ACTION BY AS EARLY AS MONDAY TO BE ABLE TO MEET THOSE DEADLINES.

SO THAT'S A VERY, VERY EXPEDIENT TIMELINE AND SORT OF PROBLEMATIC.

AND OF COURSE, WE STILL HAVE CHALLENGES RELATED TO THE TIMING OF BUILDING, ETCETERA.

SHOULD THAT MOVE FORWARD IN THAT FASHION. AND THERE WAS A VOTE THERE.

ONE THING THAT I DO WANT TO EMPHASIZE IS I HAVE ALL ALONG, YOU KNOW, THE TOWNSHIP HAS BEEN VERY GOOD ABOUT MANAGING ITS FISCAL POSITION OVERALL.

BUT, YOU KNOW, WE DO HAVE HEADWINDS. WE HAVE CHALLENGES COMING UP.

WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THAT. AS WE GET INTO THE BUDGET EARLY NEXT MONTH, I THINK WE'LL SEE SOME OF THAT SURFACE.

AS YOU KNOW, WE DO NOT HAVE A LOT OF EXTRA FINANCIAL RESOURCES TO BE ABLE TO SUPPORT EITHER OPERATIONS OR DEBT SERVICE.

SO WHILE THERE MIGHT BE PIECES OF THE COST STRUCTURE THAT WE COULD ADDRESS WITH EXISTING REVENUE, I THINK THAT'S QUITE LIMITED FROM STAFF STANDPOINT.

SEEKING ADDITIONAL FUNDING IS STILL SORT OF CRITICAL.

SO THAT'S AN IMPORTANT COMPONENT OF THIS, THIS PIECE.

SO MOVING ON TO OPTION TWO IS CONTINUING ON OR SORT OF REALLY IN THIS CASE SORT OF REVISITING THE OKEMOS PUBLIC SCHOOLS PARTNERSHIP. SO ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE LEARNED THIS WEEK THAT IS I THINK IS ACTUALLY SOMEWHAT BENEFICIAL TO US GIVEN THE CURRENT CIRCUMSTANCES, IS THAT THE SCHEDULE IS CHANGING THERE. WE WERE UNDER THE ASSUMPTION THAT THE FACILITY WOULD BE CLOSING IN THE SUMMER OF 2027.

WE NOW UNDERSTAND THAT THAT'S GOING TO BE PUSHED UNTIL MAY OF 2028.

SO EFFECTIVELY PROVIDING US AN ADDITIONAL YEAR TO ADDRESS THE SITUATION, SO THAT'S HELPFUL.

WORKING WITH, YOU KNOW, THE SCHOOL DISTRICT OBVIOUSLY ASSUMES THAT THEY'RE GOING TO BE RECEPTIVE AND CAN WORK WITH US ON AN OPPORTUNITY TO LOOK AT THEIR CONSTRUCTION PLANS AND TO SEE IF WE COULD EFFECTIVELY, YOU KNOW, ADDRESS CONSTRUCTION OF A FACILITY AS PART OF THEIR MIDDLE SCHOOL RECONSTRUCTION EFFORTS. YOU KNOW, I WOULD EXPECT, OF COURSE, THAT THE SCHOOL DISTRICT WILL LOOK TO THE TOWNSHIP TO FUND THE VAST MAJORITY OF THOSE COSTS. THE COST STRUCTURE, YOU KNOW, 9.8 MILLION MAY NOT BE THE IDEAL NUMBER.

IT COULD BE A LITTLE BIT LOWER. THERE COULD BE SOME ECONOMIES OF SCALE, DEPENDING ON HOW THAT COMPONENT OF A BUILDING WOULD TIE IN.

BUT THAT'S REALLY DIFFICULT TO SAY WITHOUT A THOROUGH ANALYSIS.

WHEN WE LOOK AT THIS OPPORTUNITY THOUGH, YOU KNOW, CERTAINLY THERE ARE CHALLENGES WITH IT, RIGHT? WHEN WE LOOK AT THE TIME PERIOD OF THE DISTRICT, WHAT THEY'RE DOING, HOW WE WOULD INTEGRATE INTO THAT PROCESS, HOW THAT LOOKS, HOW THAT MIGHT IMPACT THEIR SCHEDULE JUST BECAUSE THEY ARE BUILDING SUCH LARGE SCHOOLS.

THE LEAD TIME ON DESIGN AND PLANNING FOR THAT IS PRETTY EXTENSIVE.

SO HAVING TO UNDERSTAND THAT PROCESS IS IMPORTANT.

AND THEN THAT COULD POTENTIALLY LEAD TO A GAP IN OPERATION OF THE SENIOR CENTER ITSELF, RIGHT WHERE WE MIGHT HAVE A TIME PERIOD WHERE WE'D HAVE TO RELOCATE OPERATIONS, AND BARRING THAT, YOU KNOW, POTENTIAL CLOSURE.

SO THAT WOULD HAVE TO BE ANALYZED AND DETERMINED AS WELL.

[01:30:02]

AND BY THAT, YOU KNOW, IT COULD BE ADDITIONAL SCHOOL DISTRICT, HASLETT, FOR INSTANCE, LOOKING AT HAVING CONVERSATIONS THERE.

IT COULD BE OTHER MUNICIPALITIES IN THE REGION.

THIS IS CERTAINLY THE MOST SORT OF UNDEFINED OPTION BECAUSE PARTNERING WITH AGENCIES, THERE'S A LOT TO IT, AS YOU ALL KNOW, RIGHT. THERE'S SORT OF UNDERSTANDING THE NEEDS AND WANTS OF WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO ACHIEVE, ALIGNING THAT WITH THE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES OF OTHER ORGANIZATIONS.

CERTAINLY, IF WE COULD PARTNER WITH AN ENTITY THAT HAS AN EXISTING FACILITY THAT WE COULD LEVERAGE AND UTILIZE, THAT COULD BRING DOWN A REDUCED COST, YOU KNOW, COULD REDUCE COSTS SUBSTANTIALLY.

AND THERE'S ALSO THE POTENTIAL FOR, YOU KNOW, SAVING ON OPERATIONAL COSTS AS WELL, DEPENDING ON HOW THAT PARTNERSHIP IS, IS STRUCTURED. AS I MENTIONED, SOME OF THE CONS HERE, YOU KNOW, THE RECEPTIVITY AND WILLINGNESS OF OTHER ENTITIES WILLING TO DO THAT, AND THERE'S CERTAINLY A TIME FRAME HERE TO BE ABLE TO SIT DOWN WITH DIFFERENT GROUPS AND EXPLORE THE OPTIONS.

COULD BE A FAIRLY EXTENSIVE ALL PROCESS. THERE ARE OTHER POTENTIAL LIMITATIONS.

CERTAINLY INVESTING IN FACILITIES IF THEY WERE OUTSIDE THE BOUNDARIES OF THE TOWNSHIP, EVEN THOUGH OUR RESIDENTS MIGHT USE THAT, YOU KNOW, WE'D HAVE TO LOOK AT THE VIABILITY OF THAT FROM A LEGAL STANDPOINT.

OPERATIONALLY, YOU COULD BE SUBJECTING US TO THE WHIMS OF OTHER ORGANIZATIONS.

AGAIN, DEPENDING ON HOW YOU WOULD STRUCTURE AN AGREEMENT, WE WOULD TRY TO MINIMIZE THOSE IMPACTS.

AND CERTAINLY THERE ARE PLENTY OF EXCELLENT EXAMPLES OF GOOD PARTNERSHIPS WHERE YOU HAVE WELL-DEFINED CONTRACTS, WELL-DEFINED AGREEMENTS THAT SORT OF ADDRESS ALL THOSE POTENTIAL EXTERNALITIES THAT MIGHT, MIGHT SURFACE. AND THEN THE FOURTH OPTION HERE IS SORT OF THE SOMEWHAT OF A PAUSE OPTION, RIGHT.

SO TAKING MAYBE A LITTLE BIT OF A BREAK HERE, REASSESSING THIS WHOLE EFFORT STARTING LATER THIS YEAR OR INTO 26, AGAIN RECOGNIZING THAT WE HAVE AN ADDITIONAL YEAR HERE, GIVING US THE ABILITY TO SORT OF REVISIT THE PLANNING PROCESS, GATHERING ADDITIONAL IMPACT. CERTAINLY THE BIGGEST CON HERE IS THAT THE $5 MILLION WOULD GO AWAY.

WE WOULD NOT LIKELY SEE THAT MONEY AGAIN. YOU KNOW, THIS WAS PASSED THROUGH ARPA MONEY.

SO THE STATE WOULD MOST CERTAINLY REPROGRAM THAT QUITE QUICKLY.

AND LIKE SOME OF THE OTHER OPTIONS, YOU KNOW, THERE'S THE POTENTIAL FOR A GAP DEPENDING ON TIMING AND DEPENDING HOW LONG THE PROCESS TOOK AND DEPENDING ON WHAT THAT OUTCOME. THAT POTENTIAL MIGHT NOT BE AS STRONG IF THERE'S A COMMITMENT TO SORT OF MOVE THAT PROCESS IN A TIMELY MANNER.

WE SORT OF SET SOME TIMEFRAMES UP THAT ALLOW US TO MEET THOSE SCHEDULES AND A COMMITMENT TO, YOU KNOW, TO FOLLOW THROUGH ON THAT, YOU KNOW, WE CAN POTENTIALLY ADDRESS THAT RISK FACTOR.

SO EACH OF THESE OPTIONS OBVIOUSLY PRESENT THE DIFFERENT PROS AND CONS.

WE JUST TRIED TO PROVIDE AN INITIAL SORT OF OVERVIEW OF THOSE.

THERE ARE CERTAINLY OTHERS, AS WE KNOW, WORKING THROUGH THE PROCESS WITH THE TASK FORCE OVER A PERIOD OF MANY MONTHS OF, YOU KNOW, MULTIPLE MEETINGS WITH THE BOARD BEFORE THE DECISION WAS MADE TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THE LAST PROPOSAL.

THERE'S A LOT OF THINGS AT PLAY HERE. THERE'S A LOT OF COMPLEXITY, BUT CERTAINLY STAFF IS ALWAYS HAPPY TO HELP NAVIGATE THOSE AND WORK WITH THE BOARD TO TO FIND THE PATH FORWARD, TO MAKE SENSE FOR OUR RESIDENTS.

AND THAT IS HOPEFULLY AN OPTION THAT OUR RESIDENTS WILL BE SUPPORTIVE OF.

SO WITH THAT, I'LL STOP THERE AND WE'RE HAPPY TO ANSWER QUESTIONS.

AND AGAIN, WE HAVE THE WHOLE TEAM HERE TO HELP ASSIST WITH THAT.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH. TRUSTEE TREZISE. YEAH, I NEED TO BRING ATTENTION TO THE BOARD THAT I AS YOU KNOW, I'M CURRENTLY EMPLOYED BY THE OKEMOS PUBLIC SCHOOLS AND I AM CONCERNED ABOUT POTENTIAL CONFLICT.

AND SO I ASKED THE BOARD'S ADVICE AS FAR AS WHETHER I SHOULD RECUSE MYSELF, RECUSE MYSELF FROM THIS DISCUSSION.

I WILL NOT LEAVE THE ROOM. I WILL WATCH IT. BUT I THINK I WOULD PROBABLY BE BEST IF I DID NOT PARTICIPATE AT THIS POINT.

WELL, I'M NOT THE LEGAL AUTHORITY OF THE BOARD, THAT'S FOR SURE.

BUT YOU DON'T HAVE A FIDUCIARY DECISION MAKING YOU KNOW, ROLE AT THE SCHOOL DISTRICT, RIGHT? DEPENDS ON HOW YOU DEFINE IT. I MEAN, YOU'RE NOT A MEMBER OF THE BOARD.

YOU'RE NOT THE BOARD. I AM IN THE LEADERSHIP TEAM OF OF THE SCHOOL DISTRICT.

YEAH. WELL, I GUESS WE'LL OPEN TO THE BOARD IF THERE'S ANY THOUGHTS ON THAT.

[01:35:04]

ALTHOUGH THERE COULD BE LIMITATIONS IF YOU HAVE A DIRECT FINANCIAL IMPACT.

SO WHEN WE ARE TALKING ABOUT OPTION TWO, IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO RECUSE YOURSELF, I DON'T THINK ANY OF US WOULD VIEW THAT AS A NEGATIVE THING.

I THINK THAT THAT IS A RESPONSIBLE THING THAT YOU WOULD YOU COULD DO.

AGAIN, WE AREN'T LEGAL COUNSEL, SO I LEAVE THAT TO YOUR DISCRETION.

I HAD NO FINANCIAL INTEREST IN IT FROM EITHER SIDE.

SO IT'S NOT THAT ISSUE. BUT I DID WANT TO BRING IT UP TO THE BOARD AS A CONCERN.

I MAY PARTICIPATE MORE OR LESS THAN NECESSARY.

I DON'T THINK IT'S A LEGAL MANDATE THAT I RECUSE MYSELF.

I JUST WANTED FOR YOU AND FOR US TO WHAT YOUR FEELINGS WERE.

YEAH. ANY OTHER THOUGHTS? BOARD MEMBERS TREASURER DESCHAINE.

WOULD YOU FEEL MORE COMFORTABLE IF YOU RECUSE YOURSELF, OR ARE YOU COMFORTABLE STAYING IN BEING INVOLVED IN THIS DISCUSSION? I AM COMFORTABLE STAYING AND BEING INVOLVED. TRUSTEE LENTZ.

I THINK. CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, TRUSTEE TREZISE, BUT YOUR ROLE THERE IS INTENDED TO BE A LIMITED TIME FRAME.

IT IS NOT A. YEAH, I WAS SUPPOSED TO LIMITED SEVERAL MONTHS AGO.

THAT WAS MY UNDERSTANDING AS WELL. WITH THAT SAID, I THINK I FEEL LIKE I CAN AGREE WITH THE OTHER BOARD MEMBERS WHO HAVE SPOKEN HERE THAT I THINK THE IDEAS YOU BRING FORWARD IN CONVERSATION, THIS BOARD WOULD BE LACKING IF YOU DID NOT HAVE THEM AS A PART OF THIS DISCUSSION. SO I WOULD BE FULLY SUPPORTIVE OF YOU ENGAGING ON THIS FULLY.

THANK YOU. TRUSTEE WILSON. I CONCUR. WE'RE ONLY DISCUSSING HAVING A DISCUSSION WITH PUBLIC SCHOOLS.

THAT IS FAR ENOUGH AWAY THAT I'M COMFORTABLE WITH YOU PARTICIPATING.

I JUST WANTED YOUR COMFORT LEVEL TO BE SUFFICIENT.

I THINK IF THE BOARD OPTS TO GO WITH OPTION TWO, I THINK IT CERTAINLY GOES WITHOUT SAYING THAT WE WOULD EXPECT YOU NOT TO BE A PARTY TO THAT CONVERSATION ON EITHER SIDE. I'VE ALREADY WITHDRAWN FROM SEVERAL OPPORTUNITIES TO CONVERSE ABOUT VARIOUS RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN THE TOWNSHIP SCHOOLS IN THE LAST FEW MONTHS BECAUSE OF POTENTIAL CONFLICTS. THERE ARE DIFFERENT RESPONSIBILITIES.

WELL, WITH THAT SAID THEN WE WELCOME YOUR DISCUSSION.

AND IF YOU GET TO THE POINT WHERE AT SOME POINT YOU DO NOT FEEL COMFORTABLE, YOU'RE WELCOME TO RECUSE YOURSELF.

OKAY, NOW THEN, INTO THE ACTUAL MEAT OF THE DISCUSSION.

TREASURER DESCHAINE IF I COULD START, I APPRECIATE IT.

I THINK WITH THE TWO COMMUNITY CENTER SENIOR CENTER IS BEING DECISIVELY REJECTED BY 18 AND 16 POINTS ON THIS PAST ELECTION.

THE VOTERS ARE REALLY TELLING US NO TO NO COMMUNITY CENTER AND NO TO ANY NEW TAXES.

IT'S REALLY IT'S BEEN A QUARTER OF A CENTURY SINCE THE VOTERS OF MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP HAVE SAID NO TO A PROPOSED MILLAGE.

THAT WAS A 2 MIL INCREASE FOR A NEW LIBRARY IN 2000, 25 YEARS.

THIS BOARD NEEDS TO SIT UP AND LISTEN TO WHAT THE VOTERS HAVE TOLD US, WHICH IS THEY'RE NOT WILLING TO TAX THEMSELVES IN THESE UNECONOMIC, THESE UNCERTAIN ECONOMIC TIMES. REGARDING THE PROPOSALS THE MANAGERS BROUGHT FORWARD WITH THE TEAM, I'D LIKE TWO OF THEM. I DON'T LIKE TWO OTHERS.

THE ONES I DON'T LIKE ARE OPTION ONE IN OPTION FOUR.

OPTION FOUR BASICALLY WOULD HAVE US PAUSE, SIT BACK, LET THE $5 MILLION GRANT GO BACK TO THE STATE AND JUST CATCH OUR BREATH.

I DON'T THINK THAT'S PRUDENT TO GIVE BACK $5 MILLION TO THE STATE.

AND THERE'S A WAY WE CAN SPEND IT TO THE BETTERMENT OF THE COMMUNITY.

OUR STATE REPRESENTATIVES WORKED HARD TO GET THIS MONEY FOR US, AND WE SHOULD WE SHOULD USE IT.

REGARDING THE OPTION ONE, REALLY THAT'S THE SAME OPTION THIS BOARD DIDN'T CHOOSE IN APRIL.

LET ME PUT THIS ON THE BALLOT. SAME ONE. IT'S LESS MONEY.

THE SENIOR ONLY MILLAGE IT'S ABOUT 0.33 MILLS.

IT MIGHT HAVE PASSED IF WE PUT IT ON BACK THEN, BUT IT DIDN'T GET IN THE BALLOT.

I DON'T THINK IT'S GOING TO PASS NOW. RIGHT NOW, VOTERS ARE, BY THESE MARGINS YOU CAN TELL THEY'RE NOT IN THE MOOD TO APPROVE ANY NEW MILLAGE AFTER HOW DECISIVELY THIS ONE WAS DEFEATED.

SO WE HAD A CHANCE TO GET THE WHOLE NEW PROJECT BEFORE THE VOTERS, WE DIDN'T EXERCISE IT AND NOW THAT OPTION IS GONE.

SO TO OFFER IT NOW, I THINK IT'S A REALLY HIGH CHANCE IT WOULD BE TURNED DOWN IN NOVEMBER BECAUSE EVEN THOUGH IT'S LESS, IT'S A NEW TAX AND THERE'S A REAL ANTI-TAX SENTIMENT IN THE TOWNSHIP RIGHT NOW.

[01:40:01]

SO COULD THE COST OF CONSTRUCTION. IT COULD BE 12 MILLION.

IT COULD BE 10 MILLION. IT COULD BE 15 MILLION.

WE'RE JUST DOING ESTIMATES RIGHT NOW. SO IF WE PUT A MILLAGE FOR THE VOTERS, FOR US TO RAISE $5 MILLION AND IT COSTS SEVEN AND A HALF, OR WE NEED TEN, THAT COMES OUT OF OUR RESERVE FUND.

SO IT'S VERY RISKY TO DO THIS IN THESE UNCERTAIN TIMES.

PLUS, YOU GOT TO LOOK AT THE COST OF THESE ELECTIONS.

I GOT FROM CLERK DEMAS EARLIER THAT WE'VE ALREADY COUNTED $50,000 IN EXPENSES FOR THIS SPECIAL ELECTION, AND THAT HASN'T TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT LABOR COSTS.

IT PROBABLY DOESN'T TAKE INTO ACCOUNT THE 27,000 WE SPENT FOR DRAWINGS.

THIS ELECTION MAY HAVE COST US $100,000. TO PUT THIS QUESTION BEFORE THE VOTERS, $100,000.

SO WE'RE GOING TO THEN DO THAT AGAIN IN NOVEMBER AND LIKELY GET ANOTHER NO ANSWER, THAT'S NOT FISCALLY PRUDENT.

WE'VE GOTTEN A REAL CLEAR MESSAGE FROM OUR VOTERS.

THEY'RE NOT GOING TO TOLERATE ANY TAX INCREASE FOR EVEN A SENIOR ONLY CENTER.

SO IT'S REALLY RECKLESS AND WRONG. FURTHERMORE, TELLS THE PUBLIC, WE'RE NOT LISTENING TO YOU.

WE'RE GOING TO GIVE YOU ANOTHER QUESTION THREE MONTHS LATER FOR ANOTHER MILLAGE.

AND THAT'S GOING TO ALIENATE THEM. IT'S GOING TO THEY'RE GOING TO THINK THIS BOARD IS NOT LISTENING.

THIS BOARD THINKS THEY KNOW WHAT IS BEST FOR MY FAMILY.

OUR RESIDENTS KNOW WHAT'S BEST FOR THEIR FAMILIES.

AND THEY SHOWED THAT ON TUESDAY WHEN THEY VOTED THIS DOWN.

I THINK WE GOT TO LISTEN. I THINK WE GOT TO RESPECT WHAT THEY SAID TO US ON TUESDAY AND NOT COME BACK WITH ANOTHER MILLAGE ELECTION THREE MONTHS FROM NOW.

IT'S THE WRONG MESSAGE. OPTION TWO AND THREE BOTH HAVE POSSIBILITIES, PARTICULARLY THREE, OKEMOS SCHOOLS PARTNERSHIP. OKEMOS SCHOOLS PUT UP.

THAT'S TWO. I'M SORRY, OPTION TWO. OKEMOS SCHOOLS, AND THEY PUT THIS MILLAGE BEFORE THEIR VOTERS THREE YEARS AGO HAD A SENIOR CENTER AS PART OF THAT PROPOSAL. THEY'RE KIND OF ON THE HOOK FOR THIS TO TO PROVIDE SOME KIND OF SERVICES FOR SENIORS.

THAT'S WHY JOHN HOOD AND THE SUPERINTENDENT'S BEEN INVOLVED IN ALL THIS, AND THEY'VE BEEN HOSTING AS LONG AS THEY HAVE.

PART OF THE WAY THAT MILLAGE GOT APPROVED WAS A PROMISE TO SENIORS.

WHAT THEY'RE GOING TO DO, WE DON'T KNOW. BUT INVOLVING THEM IS IS A GOOD IDEA.

AS FOR THE $5 MILLION, WE HAVE A PROOF OF CONCEPT THAT'S WORKED ALREADY.

IT'S WILLIAMSTOWN TOWNSHIP AND WILLIAMSTOWN. THEY GOT A SMALL GRANT, LESS THAN $1 MILLION FROM INGHAM COUNTY.

THEY BOUGHT AN EXISTING FACILITY, THE OLD MERINDORF MEATS ON THE WILLIAMSTON ROAD, JUST OFF THE FREEWAY.

THEY REHABBED IT AND THEY ARE STAFFING A SENIOR CENTER THERE TODAY.

IT'S A WHOLE LOT LESS MONEY THAN WE HAVE. WE HAVE THE OPTION TO BUY A COMMERCIAL PROPERTY AND REHAB IT FOR UNDER $5 MILLION.

THERE, WE REALLY HAVEN'T LOOKED YET. THERE'S NOT A LOT OF AVAILABLE COMMERCIAL SPACE.

THERE'S A LOT FOR AT LEAST NOT AS MUCH FOR SALE.

I WAS SPEAKING WITH DAVE LEDBETTER THIS MORNING AT THE EDC MEETING.

HE SAID OFTENTIMES A PROPERTY OWNER WILL OFFER A LEASE, BUT THEY MIGHT BE OPEN TO A PURCHASE OPTION, PARTICULARLY WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT MONEY AS WE HAVE. SO FINDING A COMMERCIAL SPACE AND PURCHASING AND REHABBING IT IS AN OPTION.

WE JUST HAVEN'T EXPLORED IT YET. SO IF WE WERE TO BUY AND REHAB A FACILITY FOR $5 MILLION, THERE'S NO MONEY OUT OF OUR RESIDENTS POCKETS SO FAR.

AND AS FOR OPERATIONS, WE HAVE A CURRENT SENIOR MILLAGE THAT FUNDS 1., 1 AND A HALF STAFF PERSONS AT THE CURRENT SENIOR CENTER.

SO IF NOTHING ELSE, WE COULD HAVE EXISTING STAFF AT A REHAB FACILITY WE CREATED WITH NO ADDITIONAL COSTS.

AS FOR OPERATIONS, THERE'S GOING TO BE OPERATIONAL COSTS, HEATING, COOLING, MAINTENANCE AND SO FORTH.

AND THAT ULTIMATELY MIGHT REQUIRE US TO PUT A VERY SMALL ADDITION TO THE SENIORS AND EMPLOYEES BEFORE THE VOTERS A YEAR OR TWO DOWN THE ROAD, BUT THAT WOULD BE 1/10 OF A MILL, NOT 9/10 OF A MILL.

ANOTHER THING WE HAVEN'T REALLY EXPLORED IS OUR SENIOR CENTER FEES ARE WAY BELOW THE STATE AVERAGE FOR WHAT OTHER TOWNSHIPS AND CITIES ARE CHARGING.

IF WE WERE TO BRING THEM UP TO THE AVERAGE, WHICH IS ABOUT $100 PER YEAR, WE WOULD GENERATE 30 OR $40,000 IN ADDITIONAL REVENUE, WHICH COULD GO INTO OPERATIONS. IF IT'S A VIABLE SENIOR CENTER WITH LOTS OF ACTIVITIES, LOTS OF PROGRAMS, $100 A YEAR IS NOT AN UNREASONABLE FEE TO ASK SENIORS TO PAY.

ALLOW THEM TO PAY IT OVER FOUR QUARTERS. IT'S A REASONABLE FEE.

THEN THEY'RE COVERING MORE OF THE COST OF THE HEATING, ELECTRICITY AND OTHER MAINTENANCE COSTS.

SO THERE'S LOTS OF WAYS WE CAN FUND THIS WITH OUR NEW MILLAGE.

[01:45:01]

WE'RE CUTTING BACK ON OTHER PROGRAMS TO MAKE THE FUNDS AVAILABLE FOR THE SENIOR CENTER, FOR NOT COMING TO YOU TO SAY, GIVE US MORE, GIVE US MORE, GIVE US MORE. ALL OF OUR RESIDENTS RIGHT NOW ARE DEALING WITH REALLY BAD INFLATION.

GROCERY PRICES CONTINUE TO GO UP AGAIN AND AGAIN.

OUR UTILITY RATES WENT UP THIS YEAR 10%. PRICES ARE STILL GOING UP.

PEOPLE CAN'T GO TO THEIR EMPLOYERS AND SAY, HEY, MY PRICES ARE GOING UP, GIVE ME A RAISE.

THEY'LL BE SHOWN TO THE STREET IF THEY DO THAT.

THEY INSTEAD HAVE TO FIND A WAY TO TIGHTEN UP THEIR BUDGET AND MAKE DO WITH WHAT THEY HAVE.

WE NEED TO MAKE DO WITH WHAT WE'VE GOT AND NOT GO BACK TO THE VOTERS WITH OPTION ONE AND ACT LIKE WE DIDN'T HEAR THEM ON TUESDAY.

WE DID HEAR FROM THEM AND WE NEED TO RESPECT THAT.

WE NEED TO DO A SENIOR CENTER WITH A $5 MILLION WITH NO NEW TAXES.

ANYTHING SHORT OF THAT IS GOING TO SEND THE WRONG MESSAGE TO OUR TO OUR COMMUNITY.

SO OPTION TWO AND THREE I THINK ARE VIABLE. OPTION ONE IS REALLY, I THINK, A REALLY BAD IDEA.

THANK YOU. OTHER BOARD MEMBERS. I'LL STEP IN FOR JUST A MOMENT HERE.

YOU KNOW, I THINK IT'S SAFE TO SAY I'VE BEEN ONE OF THE MORE ARDENT SUPPORTERS OF THE SENIOR COMMUNITY CENTER ON THIS BOARD, AND, YOU KNOW, THE VOTERS HAVE MADE THEIR OPINIONS WELL KNOWN OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF WEEKS.

AND SO I THINK IT'S A GOOD THING THAT WE ARE DISCUSSING SENIOR CENTER ONLY AND NOT SENIOR AND COMMUNITY CENTER HERE THIS EVENING.

YOU KNOW, I, IT'S HARD TO YOU KNOW, BE A PUBLIC SERVANT SOMETIMES AND HAVE YOUR MOTIVES QUESTIONED.

I THINK, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF THE FOLKS UP ON THIS BOARD ESPECIALLY THOSE WHO WERE SUPPORTIVE OF THE SENIOR COMMUNITY CENTER, DID SO NOT OUT OF THE, YOU KNOW, A DESIRE TO SHAKE PEOPLE DOWN, BUT RATHER OUT OF A DESIRE TO MAKE OUR COMMUNITY A BETTER PLACE.

AND I THINK THAT'S WHAT WE'RE ALL HERE TO DO AT THE END OF THE DAY.

WE MAY DISAGREE FROM TIME TO TIME ON WHAT EXACTLY ACTION WE TAKE TO DO THAT.

BUT I THINK WE'RE ALL HERE FOR THE RIGHT REASONS.

BUT AS I SAY, THE VOTERS HAVE SPOKEN ON THE SENIOR AND COMMUNITY CENTER AS A COMBINED OPTION.

AND SO WE, YOU KNOW, WE OWE IT TO OUR RESIDENTS TO RESPECT THEIR OPINIONS TO RESPECT THEIR VOTES, AND MOVE ON FROM THAT IDEA, AT LEAST FOR THE TIME BEING.

MAYBE THEY'LL COME A TIME, YOU KNOW, 10, 20 YEARS DOWN THE ROAD WHERE THIS IS SOMETHING THE VOTERS ARE INTERESTED IN SUPPORTING, BUT IT'S CLEARLY NOT TODAY. YOU KNOW, I. SO, YOU KNOW, THE QUESTION THEN BECOMES WHICH OF OUR FOUR OPTIONS TO MOVE FORWARD WITH BECAUSE ESSENTIALLY THESE ARE, I'D SAY, MOST OF THE AVAILABLE OPTIONS TO US.

I AGREE WITH TREASURER DESCHAINE THAT OPTION 4, THE DO NOTHING OPTION IS PROBABLY NOT THE BEST COURSE OF ACTION.

RELEASING THE $5 MILLION GRANT THAT WE'VE BEEN GIVEN BY THE STATE IS NOT SOMETHING THAT I WOULD BE WILLING TO DO LIGHTLY.

I DON'T KNOW. I THINK OPTION THREE IS PARTICULARLY NEBULOUS.

WE DON'T REALLY KNOW WHAT IT MIGHT BE. IT'S SO UNCLEAR THAT I'D BE HESITANT TO, YOU KNOW, WITHOUT MORE DETAIL, HESITANT TO UNDERSTAND, YOU KNOW, WHAT IT IS WE'RE LOOKING AT HERE.

LIKELIER THAN NOT. THIS LOOKS LIKE ASKING OUR SENIORS TO GO TO OTHER SENIOR CENTERS IN THE AREA.

HANNA CENTER, WILLIAMSTON. AND IT'S NOT BEEN AN OPTION THAT I'VE BEEN PARTICULARLY WILD ABOUT.

I'M LOATHE TO SEND OUR RESIDENTS TO OTHER COMMUNITIES.

NOW, I'LL POINT OUT, AND YOU'LL SEE IN OUR PACKETS NEXT WEEK THAT AS WE'VE BEEN SITTING HERE, WE'VE RECEIVED, I THINK, 3 OR 4 EMAILS OF PEOPLE SAYING WE'RE HAPPY WITH THE HANNA CENTER, WE'LL GO THERE. AND, YOU KNOW, THAT'S, YOU KNOW, THERE'S AN OPPOSING VIEWPOINT TO EVERY VIEWPOINT.

THAT'S WHAT I'VE COME TO FIND IN THIS JOB. BUT TO ME, I'D LIKE TO FIND A WAY IF WE CAN FIND A WAY TO HAVE A SOLUTION FOR OUR RESIDENTS HERE IN THE TOWNSHIP WHERE THEY'RE NOT HAVING TO GO TO OTHER COMMUNITIES.

AND SO WHEN IT COMES TO OPTIONS, 1 OR 2 IN MY MIND NOW, YOU KNOW, EVEN OUR, YOU KNOW, THE FOLKS WHO WERE NOT IN FAVOR OF THE SENIOR AND COMMUNITY CENTER WERE, AS I RECALL, PREPARED TO VOTE FOR A SENIOR ONLY CENTER ON THE OPTION THAT WAS PRESENTED BACK IN MAY. NOW, WE'VE LEARNED THINGS SINCE THEN, AND I RESPECT PEOPLE'S ABILITY TO CHANGE THEIR MINDS, BECAUSE THAT DOES HAPPEN AS WE LEARN. AND I THINK THAT'S PART OF BEING A, YOU KNOW, UP ON THIS DAIS.

[01:50:03]

NOT ENOUGH HAS CHANGED ABOUT OUR VOTERS SINCE TWO DAYS AGO.

TO ASK THEM TO VOTE AGAIN IN THREE MONTHS. NOW YOU MIGHT SAY, OKAY, WELL, THIS IS A MUCH SMALLER PROPOSAL.

THIS IS A MUCH CHEAPER PROPOSAL. AND THERE CERTAINLY WERE YOU KNOW, I DID MY BEST TO KEEP ABREAST OF THE PUBLIC CONVERSATION, BOTH THROUGH OUR LISTENING SESSIONS AND ON SOCIAL MEDIA CONVERSATIONS I HAVE WITH PEOPLE AT, YOU KNOW, AT THE STORE OR AT THE MARKET AND WHATNOT.

AND I'D SAY THAT, BY AND LARGE, THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO SAID THEY DID NOT WISH TO HAVE ANY NEW TAXES OUTNUMBERED THE PEOPLE WHO SAID THAT THEY WOULD SUPPORT A CHEAPER, BUT STILL MORE TAXES OPTION.

NOW, THAT'S NOT A SCIENTIFIC ANALYSIS. IT'S ANECDOTAL, BUT IT'S WHAT I'VE GOT.

YOU KNOW, PERSONALLY, I WOULD I'M HAPPY TO, YOU KNOW, PONY UP MY SHARE OF THE TAX MONEY TO FUND A SENIOR CENTER AS PROPOSED AT OPTION ONE.

BUT, YOU KNOW, IT WAS NOT A SMALL MARGIN BY WHICH THE BALLOT QUESTIONS WERE DEFEATED.

AND I WONDER IF WE WOULD SEE THAT MANY PEOPLE CHANGE THEIR OPINIONS FROM AUGUST TO NOVEMBER.

AND SO I FIND MYSELF, YOU KNOW, ARRIVING AT OPTION TWO NOT BECAUSE IT'S THE BEST OPTION, BUT BECAUSE IT SEEMS LIKE THE ONLY REAL VIABLE OPTION TO MOVE FORWARD WITH SOMETHING THAT WE CAN HAVE SO THAT WE DON'T.

SO WE HAVE AS BEST AN OPPORTUNITY AS WE CAN TO NOT HAVE A HUGE GAP WITHOUT A SENIOR CENTER.

AS MANAGER DEMPSEY POINTED OUT, THERE LIKELY WOULD STILL BE SOME KIND OF GAP THERE.

BUT I THINK IT WOULD BE WISE OF US TO ATTEMPT TO AT LEAST BEGIN SOME CONVERSATIONS WITH THE OKEMOS SCHOOL DISTRICT ABOUT WHAT A PARTNERSHIP MIGHT LOOK LIKE.

YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT THERE'S, THE NOVEL APPROACH OF TRYING TO FIND THE BUILDING AND PURCHASE IT WITH THE 5 MILLION IS INTERESTING, BUT I THINK WE'RE UNDERSELLING THE AMOUNT OF COST THAT IT WOULD TAKE TO OPERATE THIS WITHOUT ANY ADDITIONAL MECHANISM, AND EVEN TREASURER DESCHAINE, IN HIS COMMENTS ABOUT THIS SAID, WHILE WE WOULD PROBABLY HAVE TO RAISE THE SENIOR CENTER MILLAGE DOWN THE LINE ANYWAY, AND SO ESSENTIALLY WHAT WE'RE SAYING IS IF WE WERE TO MOVE FORWARD WITH BUYING SOMETHING, BUYING A BUILDING NOW AND FIGURING OUT OPERATIONAL FUNDING LATER, WE'RE SAYING, WELL, WE'RE TAKING ON SOME AMOUNT OF UNFUNDED OPERATIONAL MANDATES TO OPERATE THIS FACILITY. AND THE SMALLER FACILITY THAT WAS PROPOSED IN OPTION ONE, THE SENIOR ONLY FACILITY OUR TEAM ESTIMATED AT $617,000 PER YEAR. WE'RE NOT GOING TO MAKE THAT UP IN DUES AT THE SENIOR CENTER.

AND SO WE'RE TALKING ABOUT A PRETTY MASSIVE NEW OPERATIONAL RESPONSIBILITY THAT WE PUT ON THE TOWNSHIP.

AND AS MANAGER DEMPSEY STATED IN HIS COMMENTS, THAT'S A, THAT'S YOU KNOW, WE'RE FACING A DIFFICULT BUDGET YEAR AND PROBABLY SEVERAL MORE DIFFICULT BUDGET YEARS OVER THE NEXT FEW YEARS.

AND SO I THINK IF WE CAN FIND A WAY TO PARTNER WITH THE SCHOOL DISTRICT TO HOUSE A FACILITY IN ONE OF THEIR BUILDINGS THAT THEY'RE BUILDING, OR ONE OF THE BUILDINGS THAT'S REMAINING AFTER THEY FINISH BUILDING, THAT MAY BE THE BEST HOPE TO DO THAT.

NOW, I THINK THE OTHER THING THAT WE SHOULD CONSIDER IS, YOU KNOW, IF AS WE APPROACH THE SCHOOL DISTRICT AS A POSSIBILITY, WOULD BE TO SEE IF WE CAN FIND A WAY TO USE OUR $5 MILLION GRANT IN THE SERVICE OF THE CONSTRUCTION OF A NEW FACILITY FOR THE SENIORS. NOW, MY UNDERSTANDING, BASED ON OUR PREVIOUS CONVERSATIONS, WAS THIS WOULD REQUIRE OWNERSHIP AND OWNERSHIP STAKE.

BUT IF WE WERE TO COME TO THE TABLE WITH, YOU KNOW, $5 MILLION THAT WE COULD PUT TOWARD THE REHAB OF THE FACILITY, IT MAY BE SOMETHING THAT THE SCHOOL DISTRICT WOULD BE WILLING TO ENTERTAIN TO US OVER SOME SMALL PORTION OF ONE OF THEIR BUILDINGS TO, YOU KNOW, TO DO THIS. MAY NOT, BUT IT MIGHT BE SOMETHING THAT THEY'D BE WILLING TO CONTEMPLATE, AND CERTAINLY THEY MIGHT BE MORE WILLING TO CONTEMPLATE IT IF IT CAME WITH, YOU KNOW, A $5 MILLION GRANT.

SO THAT'S WHERE MY THOUGHTS ARE. I THINK THREE AND FOUR ARE NON STARTERS FOR ME.

ONE I THINK WOULD BE UNWISE. AND TWO, I THINK WOULD LIKELY BE THE LIKELIEST CHANCE OF SUCCESS FOR A LONG

[01:55:08]

SO THAT'S MY TWO CENTS. TRUSTEE WILSON. FOR A LITTLE HISTORY, I CO-CHAIRED THE $275 MILLION BOND FOR THE OKEMOS PUBLIC SCHOOLS.

AND IN THAT PROPOSAL IT CALLED FOR THREE NEW BUILDINGS TO BE BUILT.

CHIPPEWA, KINAWA AND CORNELL. IN A PROGRESSION IN WHICH THEY WOULD MOVE STUDENTS FROM BUILDING TO BUILDING TO BUILDING.

ENDING UP WITH THREE NEW BUILDINGS. AND OLD KINAWA, WHERE THEY PLAN TO PUT THE ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICES IN.

SO AS PART OF THE BOND PROPOSAL, THERE WAS A SET ASIDE FOR $750,000 BY THE DISTRICT TO USE THAT TO RENOVATE A WING OF OLD KINAWA, ONCE ALL THE MOVES WERE MADE.

THE PROGRESSION OF TIMING FOR THOSE MOVES WAS SEVEN YEARS.

IT NOW IS APPARENT IT'S EIGHT YEARS BECAUSE WE HAVE BEEN TOLD AT LEAST EIGHT YEARS BECAUSE WE HAVE BEEN TOLD THAT KINAWA IS GOING TO STAY OPEN AN ADDITIONAL YEAR.

SO THERE'S A TIMING PROBLEM HERE. BECAUSE IF WE WAIT EIGHT YEARS, CHIPPEWA IS GOING TO BE TAKEN DOWN IN THREE, AND WE HAVE A FIVE YEAR GAP THEN OF NO COMMUNITY CENTER UNLESS WE LOOK AT A DIFFERENT AVENUE.

SENIOR CENTER. A SENIOR CENTER, I'M SORRY. THE OTHER THING THAT IS IMPORTANT TO KNOW HISTORICALLY IS OVER THE TWO YEARS THAT WE HAVE WORKED ON THIS PROPOSAL, WE HAVE LOOKED AT POSSIBILITIES OF BUILDINGS THAT WE COULD RENOVATE ALL OVER THE TOWNSHIP.

WE NEED APPROXIMATELY 15,000FT² TO DUPLICATE WHAT WE HAVE TODAY IN THE CURRENT SENIOR CENTER, TO ALLOW FOR MECHANICALS. IT WOULD BE 9 TO 10,000FT² OF USABLE SPACE, PLUS THE MECHANICALS THAT ARE NEEDED FOR THE OPERATION.

WE HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO FIND ANY BUILDING THAT WE CAN PURCHASE, BECAUSE THAT IS A CONDITION OF THE $5 MILLION GRANT FROM THE STATE.

ALTHOUGH WE HAVE LOOKED AND LOOKED AND LOOKED, AND I'VE SEEN SOME INTERESTING IDEAS OUT THERE ON SOCIAL MEDIA THAT JUST AREN'T ACHIEVABLE, WE'VE GOT TO BE REALISTIC ABOUT WHAT WE CAN DO.

IF WE CAN INDEED FIND A BUILDING FOR $5 MILLION AND DO A RENOVATION.

I'M SORRY, FOR $1 MILLION. AS WAS SUGGESTED, SOMEONE BROUGHT THAT UP EARLIER, AND WE CAN REHABILITATE IT FOR HALF TO THREE QUARTERS OF $1 MILLION. I WOULD THINK THAT WOULD BE A POSSIBILITY THAT WE COULD LOOK AT.

BUT SOMEBODY PLEASE OFFER THE TOWNSHIP A BUILDING.

SO, BECAUSE WE CAN'T FIND ONE. SO I'M THINKING OF THIS AS A TWO PRONGED APPROACH, A HYBRID KIND OF LOOK.

I DO AGREE, THERE'S NO WILL TO PUT THE ISSUE OF BUILDING A BUILDING BEFORE THE VOTERS.

WE GOT THE MESSAGE. SO THERE WON'T BE A VOTE IN NOVEMBER OF 2025.

THERE MAY BE A FUTURE VOTE FOR A MILLAGE. WE DON'T KNOW WHAT THAT TIME FRAME LOOKS LIKE, BUT WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO SEE AND WHAT OTHERS HAVE BROUGHT UP, IS PURSUING A RELATIONSHIP WITH OKEMOS SCHOOLS THAT PERHAPS THEY DO HAVE SOME SPACE, ALTHOUGH I'M A BIT DOUBTFUL ABOUT THIS BECAUSE WE KNOW WARDCLIFF IS FALLING DOWN. AND THE ONLY OTHER OPTION, I THINK, IS CENTRAL SCHOOL.

AND I KNOW THEY'RE VERY CROWDED OVER THERE. THERE'S NO ROOM AT CENTRAL.

I DON'T THINK SO. IS EDGEWOOD? EDGEWOOD IS A CHILD CARE CENTER AND GSP THAT IS ALSO UTILIZED.

IS IT FULL? CERTAINLY WOULD NOT BE ENOUGH ROOM.

THAT'S THE CHALLENGE. NOT 15,000FT². IT HAS THE CHALLENGE.

THAT'S A SMALL SCHOOL TO BEGIN WITH. YEAH. SO I WOULD PROPOSE WE LOOK AT THIS AS AN APPROACH WHERE WE WOULD BE LOOKING FOR A BUILDING UNTIL WE RUN OUT OF TIME, UNTIL WE RUN OUT OF TIME FOR THAT $5 MILLION, WHICH WE HAVE TO RETURN TO THE STATE BY SEPTEMBER 30TH OF 2026.

AND AT THE SAME TIME, PURSUE WHAT WE CAN WITH BOTH SCHOOL DISTRICTS TO SEE IF THERE'S SPACE.

NOW, A LOT OF PEOPLE HAVE SUGGESTED THAT THERE'S THE OLD MERIDIAN HIGH SCHOOL SPACE THAT'S ATTACHED TO THE LIBRARY UP ON FRANKLIN ROAD IN HASLETT.

THE SCHOOL DISTRICT IS SAYING THEY DON'T HAVE AN INTEREST IN SELLING THAT, AND ALSO IT'S TOO SMALL.

[02:00:02]

PERHAPS WE COULD ARRANGE SOMETHING WITH EITHER ONE OF THOSE SCHOOL DISTRICTS.

ALTHOUGH WE TRIED VERY HARD TO HAVE A CENTRAL LOCATION WHERE BOTH OKEMOS AND HAS WOULD FEEL LIKE IT'S THEIR CENTER.

BUT ALSO AT THE SAME TIME PURSUE FINDING A BUILDING THAT WE COULD REHABILITATE AND WOULD STILL HAVE ENOUGH MONEY LEFT FOR SEVERAL YEARS OF OPERATIONS. BECAUSE WE CANNOT DISCOUNT THAT OPERATION.

IT'S THAT 600,000 WE'RE GOING TO NEED. THANK YOU.

TRUSTEE TREZISE. YEAH, AND I'VE BEEN AROUND SCHOOLS LONG ENOUGH.

AND NOT JUST WORKING THERE OVER THE LAST 30 YEARS TO KNOW THERE PROBABLY WOULD BE VERY DIFFICULT TO FIND ROOM.

I'M SAYING IT'S IMPOSSIBLE. BUT IN THE CONSTRUCTION THEY'RE GOING THROUGH, EVERYTHING'S GOING UP.

EVERYTHING'S GETTING MORE DIFFICULT TO DESIGN.

IT'S TAKING LONGER TO DESIGN, AND I CAN'T SPEAK FOR THE SCHOOL DISTRICT, BUT I WOULD BE SURPRISED THAT THAT WOULD WORK OUT WITH THEM. IT'S WORTH PURSUING.

I THINK THE OTHER THING WE HAVE TO LOOK AT AND TREASURER DESCHAINE TALKED ABOUT FINDING A BUILDING.

TRUSTEE WILSON SAID, WE NEED 15,000FT². NO WE DON'T.

WE NEED SUFFICIENT SPACE TO HAVE A SENIOR CENTER.

THE FACT THAT THEY CURRENTLY HAVE 9000 OR 10,000FT² DOES NOT MEAN THAT IT HAS TO BE DUPLICATED.

THE SAME THING WITH THE POTENTIAL TO BUILD A STANDALONE SENIOR CENTER.

WE STARTED BY WITH THE ASSUMPTION THAT WE WOULD DUPLICATE AND ENHANCE WHAT THE CURRENT SENIOR CENTER PROVIDES.

I'M NOT SURE THAT'S WHERE WE NEED TO START. WE NEED TO LOOK AT WHAT IS NECESSARY, NOT WHAT IS DESIRED.

WE'VE BEEN TOLD WHAT WE DESIRED OR WHAT A NUMBER OF US ON THE BOARD DESIRED AS FAR AS THE COMMUNITY CENTER AND SENIOR CENTER WASN'T WHAT THE COMMUNITY DESIRED. I AM VERY NERVOUS ABOUT PUTTING ANYTHING ELSE ON THE BALLOT.

ANYTIME YOU LOSE A BALLOT FOR A MILLAGE AND YOU COME BACK WITH ANOTHER MILLAGE AND MAKES IT TWICE AS HARD TO PASS, SO I UNDERSTAND THAT. I HAVE NO PROBLEM EXPLORING WITH THE SCHOOLS OR OTHER ENTITIES, BUT I THINK OUR BEST BET IS TO DOWNSIZE OUR NEEDS IF WE'RE LOOKING TO PURCHASE A BUILDING AND REHAB, AND IF THAT'S 6000FT², WE HAVE 250 OR 300 PEOPLE THAT ARE INVOLVED NOW, IS THAT ENOUGH? CAN THEY RUN A PROGRAM? I DON'T KNOW, BUT I DON'T THINK WE NEED TO AUTOMATICALLY ASSUME WE HAVE TO DUPLICATE WHAT THEY HAVE AT CHIPPEWA.

THEY USED TO HAVE MORE ROOM AT THE SCHOOL, AND IT'S BEEN DOWNSIZED OVER THE YEARS BECAUSE THE SCHOOL NEEDED TO TAKE OVER THAT ROOM.

WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO LOOK AT WHAT WE CAN AFFORD AND WHAT CAN GO FORWARD AND PROVIDE THE BEST WE CAN DO, WHATEVER WAY WE GO. JUST AS A CLARIFYING QUESTION, AND IF YOU DON'T KNOW THE ANSWER, THAT'S FINE.

DO EITHER OF YOU WHO WORKED ON WORKED ON THE BOND OR WORKED ON IN THE DISTRICT, KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THE PLANNED UTILIZATION OF THE OLD KINAWA BUILDING? THE OLD KINAWA BUILDING RIGHT NOW IS THEY'VE SPENT OVER A MILLION AND A HALF DOLLARS FOR REMEDIATION OF MOLD.

IT'S STILL THERE. IT'S A 60 YEAR OLD BUILDING WHICH HAS SIGNIFICANT HEATING, COOLING, AIR, AIR QUALITY STUFF GOING ON. I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE LONG TERM PROSPECTS ARE, BUT I'M TELLING YOU TO TAKE IT OVER TO BUY A PORTION OF IT AND BRING IT UP TO A SAFE PLACE FOR SENIORS PROBABLY WOULD EXCEED THE $5 MILLION.

I'M JUST GUESSING THAT I'M JUST PREDICTING AND THEY WOULD NOT BE READY BECAUSE THE TIMELINE TAKES IT OUT EIGHT YEARS OR SO BEFORE THAT BUILDING WOULD EVEN HAVE A WING AVAILABLE. YEAH, AND THE MONEY FROM THE STATE HAS TO BE UTILIZED BY SEPTEMBER 30TH NEXT YEAR.

TRUSTEE LENTZ. THANK YOU. A COUPLE OF COMMENTS AND QUESTIONS, MOST OF WHICH I CAN SAY WERE ADDRESSED FROM THOSE OF YOU WHO HAVE SPOKEN SO FAR.

SO I APPRECIATE US ALL AT LEAST BEING ON THE SAME WAY WITH WHAT'S BEFORE US.

[02:05:04]

THAT'S VERY QUICK TURNAROUND. SO I APPRECIATE ALL OF YOU INVOLVED IN THAT.

A FEW OF YOU IN THE ROOM. SO I, YOU KNOW, I'M GOING TO JOIN THE MAJORITY OF YOU WHO HAVE SPOKEN IN SAYING THAT OPTION ONE MAKES ME NERVOUS, ESPECIALLY CONSIDERING THE KNOW IN THIS DOCUMENT ABOUT YOU KNOW, BECAUSE OF THE TIMELINE WE NEED TO WORK ON, IT LIMITS THE BUILDERS THAT ARE AVAILABLE TO US, WHICH COULD PUT US IN A WORLD WHERE $9.8 MILLION IS NOT ENOUGH TO FUND WHAT THE YOU KNOW, THE SENIORS AND ALL THE COMMUNITY HAD SEEN AS OPTION ONE, MEANING, IN MY EYES, A SMALLER BUILDING THAN WHAT WE'D EVEN BE ASKING FOR ORIGINALLY FOR THAT YOU KNOW, FOR A MILLAGE THAT, AGAIN, WOULD RAISE TAXES.

SO I'M JOINING ALL OF YOU IN SAYING THAT OPTION ONE, I AM NOT NECESSARILY AS INTERESTED IN PURSUING, DOING OPTION TWO, I, YOU KNOW, REALLY I'M INTERESTED IN DEFERRING TO YOU KNOW, THE SUPERVISOR WAS ON THE COMMISSION WITH THE SUPERINTENDENT. TRUSTEE WILSON WAS INVOLVED WITH THE BOND AND TRUSTEE TREZISE YOU WERE INVOLVED WITH OKEMOS SCHOOL.

SO YOU KNOW THIS WAY MORE INTIMATELY THAN I POSSIBLY COULD, AND I WOULD.

AND I APPRECIATE YOUR COUNSEL ON THAT. THE QUESTION I HAD FOR YOU, TRUSTEE WILSON, IS YOUR HYBRID APPROACH OF WAIT TO FIND SOMEWHERE WHILE PURSUING A POTENTIAL RELATIONSHIP WITH OKEMOS SCHOOLS IS.

OR HASLETT SCHOOLS. OR HASLETT SCHOOLS. THANK YOU.

IS IF THAT WAITING WERE TO OCCUR AND LET'S SAY AN AGREEMENT IS NOT SEEN VIABLE ENOUGH, THAT $5 MILLION WOULD STILL LINGER OVER AND COULD POTENTIALLY BOX US INTO A SITUATION WHERE, YOU KNOW, THIS TIME OR EARLIER OR SEPTEMBER, I APOLOGIZE.

I FORGOT THE MONTH. A YEAR FROM NOW WHERE WE NEED TO BUY SOMETHING THAT IS LESS THAN DESIRABLE, BECAUSE THERE ISN'T NECESSARILY MUCH AVAILABLE AND STILL HAVE TO TURN IT IN.

SO I GUESS I'M JUST KIND OF. YEAH, I GUESS I'M CURIOUS.

LIKE, IN YOUR EYES, IF WE WERE TO GO DOWN THIS ROUTE IN A PERFECT SITUATION, IS IT WORKED OUT THAT WE CAN SOMEHOW PERSUADE CHENOA TO BE RENOVATED SOONER WITH OUR 5 MILLION OR.

OKAY. CAN YOU CLARIFY THAT A LITTLE BIT? BECAUSE I AM INTERESTED IN WHAT YOU ARE GETTING AT.

WELL, HAVING SAID ON THE THING WITH SUPERINTENDENT HOOD, I DON'T PRESUME TO SPEAK FOR HIM, BUT I WOULD IMAGINE THAT THE CONSTRUCTION SCHEDULE IS WIRED SO TIGHTLY THAT, YOU KNOW, THEY ARE MOVING KIDS INTO OLD KINAWA OUT OF CHIPPEWA, YOU KNOW, AND VICE VERSA.

IN SUCH A ROUND ROBIN FASHION THAT THEY'RE USING THAT BUILDING RIGHT UP UNTIL THE MOMENT THAT THEY'RE NOT. THEY ARE, THAT'S EXACTLY RIGHT.

GOTCHA. SO IT SEEMS LIKE YOUR HYBRID OPTION IS MORE IN LINE WITH IT'S CLOSER TO 4 OF THE, OPTION 4 HERE OF THE WAITING UNTIL LIKE REASSESSING AND FINDING A NEW STRATEGY, JUST MAYBE WITH THE POSSIBILITY LIKE ALMOST A CROSS BETWEEN 3 AND 04, BUT SO. THAT'S NOT A WAIT AND SEE APPROACH.

IT'S A LET'S AGGRESSIVELY PURSUE LOOKING AT BOTH SCHOOL DISTRICTS.

WE KNOW BOTH SUPERINTENDENTS. WE WORK WITH THEM BEFORE PURSUING WHAT OPPORTUNITIES THERE MAY BE OUT THERE, WHILE AT THE SAME TIME WE'RE LOOKING FOR A BUILDING THAT MIGHT BE APPROPRIATE.

AND AS TO TRUSTEE TREZISE COMMENTS, IT MAY NOT BE WHAT WE HAVE CURRENTLY AND MAY HAVE TO BE SMALLER.

BUT I ALWAYS LOOK FOR OPPORTUNITIES TO EXPAND THINGS IN THE FUTURE.

WE'RE PLAYING THE TIME LINE. THE TIME GAME WITH THE $5 MILLION.

AND IF WE CAN DO SOMETHING AND GET THE SHOVEL IN THE GROUND AND MAKE ENOUGH CHANGES TO UTILIZE THOSE FUNDS AND STILL HAVE ENOUGH FOR OPERATIONS LEFT OVER, THAT WOULD BE IDEAL. AND I THINK WE JUST HAVE TO BE AGGRESSIVE ABOUT IT.

THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE THAT. BE INTERESTED TO HEAR.

I HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT THE GRANT AND THAT USE.

CAN THAT BE USED FOR OPERATIONS OR IS IT RESTRICTED TO PURCHASE.

IT'S RESTRICTED TO PURCHASE AND CONSTRUCTION.

SO WE WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO SPEND ONLY $3 MILLION ON PURCHASE AND REHAB AND THEN USE THE 2 MILLION LEFT FOR

[02:10:04]

SO LOSING TWO IS BETTER THAN. BETTER THAN LOSING.

BUT TO SAY THAT WE COULD DO THIS FOR WHATEVER COST AND HAVE THE HAVE OPERATION, THE OPERATIONS ARE GOING TO BE SEPARATE REGARDLESS, RIGHT. CAPITAL COSTS, OUR CAPITAL COSTS ARE COVERED.

AND I SUPPOSE THE REASON WHY I WAS SUGGESTING LOOKING AT THE SCHOOL DISTRICT INSTEAD OF LOOKING TO A NEW BUILDING THAT WE PURCHASED.

IS THAT THE SCHOOL DISTRICT PAYS THE BUILDING PORTION OF THE OPERATIONS IN THE SAME WAY THAT THEY DO NOW.

BUT THEY MAY NOT IN THE FUTURE. THERE'S A VERY REAL QUESTION WHETHER THEY WOULD CONTINUE.

I HAVEN'T TALKED TO ANYBODY ABOUT IT, BUT RIGHT NOW THEY'RE PROVIDING CUSTODIAL MAINTENANCE, ALL OF THAT STUFF WITHOUT CHARGING IT. YEAH. AND WHO KNOWS WHAT PART, WHAT THEY CAN OR CANNOT DO IN THE FUTURE.

RIGHT. OH RIGHT. AND I THINK YOU KNOW WE JUST HAVE TO WE HAVE TO WORK WITH SOME ASSUMPTIONS.

AND I SUPPOSE I GUESS MY POINT WAS SIMPLY THAT TO PURCHASE A NEW BUILDING, EVEN IF WE WANTED TO AGGRESSIVELY, IT WOULD STILL REQUIRE SOME MANNER OF US UNDERSTANDING HOW TO FUND THE OPERATIONS OF THE THING.

AND RIGHT NOW, THERE'S NO ANSWER FOR THAT BECAUSE THERE'S AN ADDITIONAL.

HOWEVER, YOU KNOW, IT'S EITHER 600,000 IF IT'S THE SIZE THAT'S SUGGESTED PROPOSAL ONE OR SOME PROPORTIONATELY LESS EXPENSIVE VERSION IF IT'S A SMALLER FACILITY.

TREASURER DESCHAINE. IN THE TASK FORCE, I THINK THE QUESTION WAS ASKED, CAN WE USE THIS $5 MILLION FOR LEASING A PROPERTY? WHAT WAS THIS? GIVE US A DEFINITIVE. WE HAVE TO OWN IT.

WELL I THINK. YEAH. SO YEAH, IDEALLY IT'S OWNERSHIP, BUT THERE IS A WAY TO STRUCTURE A VERY LONG TERM LEASE.

SO 50 PLUS YEARS POTENTIALLY WOULD CONSTITUTE IN SOMETHING EQUAL TO OWNERSHIP.

RIGHT. SO YOU COULD. WE COULD LOOK AT THAT OPTION, POTENTIALLY GET APPROVAL.

BUT IT WOULD HAVE TO BE AT LEAST 50, 5 0 YEARS PLUS.

SO AT THE MINIMUM. AND OF COURSE THEN WE WOULD LEASE THE BUILDING AND STILL BE ON THE HOOK FOR, YOU KNOW, OWNERS WHO COME IN AND DO THINGS AND CHARGE US FOR VARIOUS.

SURE. WE HAD A LANDLORD AS A AS THE TOWNSHIP.

RIGHT. AND IF WE WERE TO BE ASSOCIATED WITH THE MALL, WHETHER IT BE CENTRAL, THERE ARE COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH THE MALL AS WELL.

THAT CAN BE CONSIDERABLE AS WELL, BUT IT IS THE A FALLBACK POSITION TO EXERCISE BEFORE GIVING THE MONEY BACK.

I THINK THE OKLAHOMA SCHOOL PARTNERSHIP IS THE BETTER OPTION, BUT IF WE DO HAVE A 50 YEAR OPTION TO LEASE IT, WE COULD AT THE LAST, YOU KNOW, LAST QUARTER, THIS MONEY IS LOST.

PURSUE THAT OPTION RATHER THAN GIVE THE MONEY BACK.

I THINK WE WANT TO NOT GIVE IT BACK AT ALL COSTS.

YEAH. TRUSTEE WILSON LOOKING AT OPTIONS TO MERIDIAN MALL, WHICH WE DID DO WHEN WE WERE CONSIDERING THE YONKERS PROPERTY A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO.

THEIR COMMON COSTS THAT ARE CHARGED TO THE PROJECT, AND WE WERE SURPRISED AT HOW LARGE THAT WAS.

I REMEMBER THOSE. YES. SO THAT'S ANOTHER CAVEAT THAT WE HAVE TO TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION, BUT I WOULD NOT EXCLUDE THE MALL AS A POTENTIAL IF THEY HAVE THE RIGHT SIZE UNIT AND ARE WILLING TO SELL IT, WHICH THEY WERE IN THE CASE OF YONKERS.

YOU KNOW, THE MALL INVITES OUR 50 PLUS EXERCISE GROUP TO WALK EVERY DAY IN THE MALL.

THAT'S AN ATTRACTIVE THING FOR THEM TO BRING PEOPLE TO THE BUILDING.

SO POSSIBLY SOMETHING, AGAIN, NO OTHER OPTION IS THERE TO GET THEM TO NEGOTIATE SOME OF THOSE FEES, BECAUSE WE'RE BRINGING HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE INTO THE MALL EVERY WEEK.

SO THAT'S A POSSIBILITY. LET'S SEE WHAT HOW THIS PLAYS OUT.

BUT THE MALL, LIKE ANY BUSINESS, WILL DO BUSINESS IF THE BUSINESS WILL NEGOTIATE, IF THE NEGOTIATION IS BENEFICIAL TO THEM AND A SENIOR CENTER IN THE MALL WOULD BE BENEFICIAL TO THEM IN MANY WAYS. BUT THE QUESTION IS, WILL THEY DO A 50 YEAR LEASE? THEY PROBABLY LOVE A 50 YEAR LEASE GUARANTEE THAT THEY'RE GOING TO HAVE THAT MONEY OVER THE YEARS.

I MEAN, OUR MALL IS THE ECONOMIC CENTER OF THE TOWNSHIP.

LIKE IT OR NOT, EVERYTHING REVOLVES AROUND THE MALL'S HEALTH.

AND WE'RE LUCKY THE MALL'S HOLDING ON AS WELL AS IT IS.

A FEW OTHER MALLS, THE ONE ON THE WEST SIDE OF TOWN IS NOT DOING NEARLY AS WELL AS OURS.

CBL HAS SHOWN A REAL COMMITMENT TO MAKING THIS MALL WORK, AND THEY'VE BEEN A GOOD PARTNER WITH THE MARKETPLACE AND THE GREEN AND OTHER PARTNERSHIPS WE'VE TRIED WITH THEM. SO THAT IS A POSSIBILITY.

CLERK DEMAS. SO I HAVEN'T HAD THE CHANCE TO SHARE MY OPINION YET, AND IT'S BECAUSE I'M FRANKLY, I DON'T THINK THESE OPTIONS ARE IDEAL, BUT NOW'S THE TIME THAT WE NEED TO WORK TOGETHER ON THE BOARD.

I THINK THAT WE NEED TO LISTEN TO VOTERS CLEARLY WE DO NOT NEED ANOTHER TAX INCREASE.

THIS IS NOT WHAT THE VOTERS NEED RIGHT NOW. AND WE NEED TO LOOK AT A SENIOR PROJECT, A SENIOR CENTER ONLY PROJECT.

[02:15:08]

BEFORE THIS BOARD MEETING, I DECIDED TO MEET WITH MANAGER DEMPSEY AND DEPUTY MANAGER OPSOMMER TO UNDERSTAND THE TIMELINE OF THE SENIOR CENTER PLAN, OR PREVIOUSLY KNOWN AS THE COMMUNITY AND SENIOR CENTER PROJECT PLAN.

JUST TO UNDERSTAND WHERE HOW WE GOT HERE NOW AND HOW THIS ALL BEGAN.

FROM MY UNDERSTANDING, THIS BEGAN IN 2022 WHEN THIS BECAME A BOARD DISCUSSION ITEM TO BE PUT ON THE BOARD TO BE IMPLEMENTED TO THE 2023 BOARD GOALS FOR ANY OF THE BOARD MEMBERS WHO ARE ON THE BOARD PREVIOUSLY, PLEASE CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, BUT THAT IS MY UNDERSTANDING OF THIS.

AND THIS WAS AS A RESULT OF SUMMARY RESULTS FROM OUR TRI ANNUAL SURVEY WHERE PEOPLE SHOWED SUPPORT FOR A COMMUNITY CENTER.

WE ALSO WERE MADE AWARE THAT WE WOULDN'T HAVE A SENIOR CENTER AT THE OKEMOS PUBLIC SCHOOLS, THE CHIPPEWA MIDDLE SCHOOL BUILDING. I'M WONDERING WHY WE HAVEN'T HAD THE DISCUSSIONS WITH OKEMOS PUBLIC SCHOOLS TO INCORPORATE THE SENIOR CENTER INTO THE NEW CHIPPEWA MIDDLE SCHOOL.

AT LEAST FROM THE MEETING THAT I HAD WITH BOTH MANAGER DEMPSEY AND DEPUTY MANAGER OPSOMMER.

THIS AVENUE I DON'T FEEL LIKE WAS EXPLORED COMPLETELY.

AND IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE'RE EXPLORING NOW THAT THEY'RE, THAT WE HAVE AN EXTENDED TIMELINE.

SOMETHING ELSE THAT I ASKED WAS THE USE OF PRIVATE INVESTMENT.

THE HAVING DONORS CONTRIBUTE TO A SENIOR CENTER PROJECT.

I HAVE NOT HEARD BACK FROM EITHER OF THEM THAT WE HAVE DONE THIS, THAT WE HAVE REACHED OUT AND HAD THESE NEGOTIATION TALKS WITH PRIVATE INVESTMENTS, PRIVATE INVESTORS.

THIS IS SOMETHING THAT I WOULD LIKE TO EXPLORE MORE.

I KNOW THAT THIS CAN'T FUND THE COMPLETE SENIOR CENTER, BUT I'M CURIOUS AS TO WHY WE WEREN'T ABLE TO.

I HEARD THAT THIS WAS DUE TO A LACK OF RESOURCES.

AND I UNDERSTAND THAT IT IT'S A DIFFICULT TIME FOR LOCAL GOVERNMENTS.

BUT IT IS OUR RESPONSIBILITY TO BE CREATIVE, SO THAT WE DON'T WASTE TAXPAYER DOLLARS.

SO I HOPE THAT WE'RE ABLE TO EXPLORE THESE OPTIONS.

AND I WOULD BE INTERESTED IN TALKING MORE ABOUT OPTION TWO, BUT ANY DISCUSSION ABOUT PUTTING THIS ON THE BALLOT, ESPECIALLY FOR THIS YEAR, BASED ON THE ELECTION RESULTS, THIS IS NOT A CONVERSATION THAT I THINK WE SHOULD BE PURSUING RIGHT NOW, BECAUSE THAT IS NOT FISCALLY RESPONSIBLE TO OUR VOTERS.

THANK YOU. THANK YOU. WELL, IT SOUNDS AS THOUGH THERE IS NO APPETITE FROM ANYONE FOR OPTION ONE.

IS THAT A FAIR, FAIR ASSESSMENT? OKAY. WE'RE GOING TO GO AHEAD AND PUT A BIG OLD X THROUGH OPTION ONE.

AND IT SOUNDS AS THOUGH, THAT DIDN'T SEEM AS THOUGH THERE WAS ANY REAL INTEREST IN OPTIONS 3 OR 4, EITHER AS LONG TERM VIABLE OPTIONS. SO WE FIND OURSELVES WITH OPTION TWO AND PERHAPS A HYBRID OPTION TWO APPROACH WHERE WE ATTEMPT TO IDENTIFY ANOTHER FACILITY THAT'S NOT A PORTION OF EITHER SCHOOL DISTRICT.

IS THAT MORE OR LESS WHERE I CAN SEE WE'RE GOING? THEY'RE INTERESTED IN GOING, I SHOULD SAY. I THINK IT IS.

THAT'S WHERE I WANT TO GO. OKAY. WELL, MR. MANAGER, WHAT DO YOU NEED FROM US IN ORDER TO START TO EXPLORE THESE OPTIONS? YEAH, I DON'T KNOW THAT WE NEED AN OFFICIAL MOTION AT THIS POINT.

I THINK THERE'S ENOUGH CONCURRENCE HERE THAT WE CAN, NUMBER ONE, START A PATHWAY OF MEETING WITH THE SCHOOL DISTRICT, OKEMOS SCHOOL DISTRICT TO SIT DOWN AND LOOK AT OPTIONS, AND ALSO MEET WITH THE HASLETT SCHOOL DISTRICT TO LOOK AT OPTIONS THERE.

RIGHT. SO BOTH OF OUR PRIMARY DISTRICTS IN THE TOWNSHIP.

AND THEN THE OTHER PATHWAY WILL BE, YOU KNOW, MORE THOROUGH SEARCH OF POTENTIAL BUILDINGS AND PROPERTIES THAT MIGHT BE A VIABLE OPTION THAT ARE ROUGHLY WITHIN THE SIZE OF THE EXISTING FACILITY OR POTENTIALLY, YOU KNOW, WITHIN THAT RANGE OF WHERE WE WANTED TO GO, AND SEE IF THERE'S OPTIONS THERE. SO WE CAN WORK THOSE TWO TRACKS TRACK SIMULTANEOUSLY.

AND THEN AS WE PROGRESS AND HAVE MORE INFORMATION, CONTINUE TO COMMUNICATE WITH THE BOARD UNTIL SUCH TIME AS WE FEEL LIKE WE MIGHT HAVE ENOUGH INFORMATION TO MAKE A DECISION ON WHICH ROUTE WE WOULD BE ABLE TO GO.

[02:20:01]

WHEREAS THE SCHOOL DISTRICT ONES OBVIOUSLY WILL INVOLVE MORE MEETINGS AND BROADER CONVERSATIONS.

SO YES, WE'LL KEEP YOU POSTED. THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

WELL, BOARD, I APPRECIATE A THOROUGH DISCUSSION HERE.

AND I THINK I ALSO WANT TO EXTEND OUR THANKS TO THE VOTERS.

YOU KNOW, WE THIS CAME BEFORE THE VOTERS ON THE BALLOT.

IT WAS AN OPPORTUNITY TO LEARN WHERE THE COMMUNITY WAS AT, AND I THINK WE DID.

AND, YOU KNOW, HOPEFULLY WE WILL FIND A WAY TO MOVE FORWARD THAT BOTH GIVES OUR SENIORS FACILITY TO BE PROUD OF FOR THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE. WHILE NOT YOU KNOW, ASKING OUR RESIDENTS TO CONTRIBUTE MORE VIA TAXES, SO WE WILL SEE IF WE CAN MAKE, WE SEE IF WE CAN THREAD THAT NEEDLE. YEP. ALL RIGHT.

THAT BRINGS US TO ITEM 12 COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC.

[12. COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC]

I DID RECEIVE ONE NEW CARD, AND THAT'S FOR STEVE VAGNOZZI.

AND THEN IF ANYONE ELSE WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK AGAIN, YOU CAN JUST WAVE AT ME.

I'LL HAVE YOU COME UP AND SPEAK FOR A MOMENT.

STEVE. STEVE VAGNOZZI, WOODFIELD ROAD AND RIVERWOOD PARK.

BASED ON THE DISCUSSION TONIGHT. I'M COMING TO THE CONCLUSION THAT REALLY, THE ONLY REALISTIC OPTION FOR UTILIZING THE $5 MILLION STATE GRANT IS TO FIND AN EXISTING BUILDING THAT HAS THE MINIMUM NUMBER OF SIZE, MINIMUM SIZE COMPROMISES.

AS MR. TREZISE TALKED ABOUT. AND I WOULD ENCOURAGE THE TOWNSHIP STAFF AND THE BOARD TO TAKE A HARD LOOK AT WHAT CAN WE ACQUIRE AND BRING UP TO USE BY THE SENIOR CENTER FOR THE $5 MILLION. REALISTICALLY, THERE ARE GOING TO BE LOTS OF COMPLICATIONS TRYING TO USE THAT $5 MILLION GRANT.

WHEN THE SENIOR, WITH THE SENIOR CENTER ATTACHED TO ANY SCHOOL BUILDING AND I JUST THINK THAT A PRIORITY SHOULD BE PUT ON SEEING IF IT IS, AND IF THERE IS IN FACT, A VIABLE OPTION OUT THERE. THE OTHER THING I ENCOURAGE FROM THE TOWNSHIP IS TRANSPARENCY.

I SINCE I KNOW THAT BOARD MEMBERS FOLLOW WHAT'S OUT THERE ON SOCIAL MEDIA.

I THINK THE GENERAL PUBLIC, I KNOW I WAS SHOCKED WHEN I STARTED BEING INVOLVED IN THIS EFFORT AT THE CONSTRUCTION COST FOR COMMERCIAL BUILDING.

I WOULD ENCOURAGE, URGE THE TOWNSHIP TO COME UP WITH A LIST SAYING WE LOOKED AT PROPERTY A, AND IT WAS THIS SIZE AND IT WOULD HAVE COST US THIS MUCH TO ACQUIRE SO THAT, YOU KNOW, THERE ARE PEOPLE OUT THERE WHO, YOU KNOW, I MEAN, JUST GIVE THEM THE INFORMATION AND THAT'LL, FOR EXAMPLE, ANOTHER ONE THAT I'VE HEARD MORE THAN ONCE, WHICH IS THE OLD COMMUNITY ED SPACE FOR HASLETT SCHOOLS.

AND, YOU KNOW, IF IT'S 3000FT², THAT PRETTY MUCH SAYS THAT'S NOT DOABLE.

I THINK THE SENIORS DESERVE TO HAVE AS MUCH CONTINUITY AS POSSIBLE.

ANY I DON'T SEE ANY PARTNERSHIP WITH OKEMOS SCHOOLS, WITH ALL OF THEIR CONSTRUCTION GOING ON AS BEING TIME VIABLE FOR THE GRANT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. OTHER MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WISHING TO ADDRESS THE BOARD AT THIS TIME? MILTON SCALES, OLD ENGLISH ESTATES, HASLETT. THANK YOU FOR LISTENING.

[02:25:01]

YOU'RE MOVING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION, AND WE'RE HERE TO HELP YOU.

AS LONG AS YOU CONTINUE TO MOVE IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION.

WE'LL BE HERE TO OPPOSE YOU IF YOU GO OTHERWISE.

BUT I'M GLAD TO HEAR WHAT I HEARD FROM JUST ABOUT EVERY MEMBER UP HERE.

YOU SAID YOU GOT THE MESSAGE FROM THE VOTE. NOW LET'S GET TOGETHER AS A COMMUNITY AND TAKE CARE OF OUR PRECIOUS SENIORS. THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION. ANYONE ELSE WISHING TO ADDRESS THE BOARD AT THIS TIME? SEEING NONE. PUBLIC COMMENT IS CLOSED AT 8:31 P.M.

NEXT IS OTHER MATTERS AND BOARD MEMBER COMMENTS AND THE OTHER MATTERS AND BOARD MEMBER COMMENTS THIS EVENING. CLERK DEMAS.

[13. OTHER MATTERS AND BOARD MEMBER COMMENTS ]

THANK YOU. I WILL ADD, I MEANT TO MENTION THIS DURING THE DISCUSSION ITEM ON 11.B.

I WOULD ASK THAT, YOU KNOW, AS WE CONSIDER, IF WE ARE FORCED TO CONSIDER SMALLER OPTIONS FOR A SENIOR CENTER THAN WHAT WE HAVE TODAY, THAT STAFF AND, YOU KNOW, WORK WITH THE SENIOR CENTER ADVISORY BOARD SO THAT THEY ARE, YOU KNOW, WELL IN THE LOOP IN TERMS OF WHAT THAT ACTUALLY MEANS FOR THEM.

I DON'T WANT TO CATCH ANYONE BY SURPRISE. CERTAINLY SO NOTED TREASURER DESCHAINE.

I WANT TO THANK THE BOARD FOR HANDLING THIS VERY DIFFICULT ISSUE AS WELL AS THE BOARD HAS.

IT STARTED A YEAR AGO, I THINK THE EIGHTH WAS WHEN THE ORIGINAL YONKERS PROPOSAL CAME BEFORE THE BOARD, AND IT'S BEEN A YEAR OF A LOT OF WORK AND SOME CONTENTIOUS DISCUSSIONS, BUT WE STAYED TOGETHER.

WE DIDN'T TRASH EACH OTHER. WE DIDN'T MAKE THIS PERSONAL, KEPT IT ABOUT THE POLICY, ABOUT WHAT WE THOUGHT WAS BEST FOR THE TOWNSHIP.

AND I BELIEVE EVERYONE HERE, EVEN WHEN WE DISAGREED, ALL WERE LOOKING FOR WHAT IS BEST FOR THE TOWNSHIP, WHAT IS BEST FOR OUR RESIDENTS, AND I THINK WE'RE MOVING FORWARD IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION TODAY. BUT THE PROCESS HAS BEEN A GOOD PROCESS FOR THIS BOARD AND SOMETHING WE SHOULD BE PROUD OF. AND SUPERVISOR, YOU GET A LOT OF CREDIT FOR THAT AS WELL, KEEPING THE DISCUSSION FOCUSED AND MOVING FORWARD AND NOT LINGERING ON PAST RESENTMENTS OR DISAGREEMENTS. THANK YOU. TRUSTEE LENTZ. I'D LIKE TO SECOND THE COMMENTS MADE BY TREASURER DESCHAINE.

I THINK THIS WAS OVERALL ONE OF THE HARDER DECISIONS I'VE HAD TO MAKE.

AND, YOU KNOW, PERSONAL OR PROFESSIONAL LIFE IN GENERAL.

SO WITH THAT SAID, THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU FOR THE MANY DISCUSSIONS WE'VE HAD, AS WELL AS MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WHO SOME WERE HERE, SOME WERE NOT HERE. SO YOU KNOW, HOPEFULLY CAPITAL G, GOOD GOVERNMENT IS WHAT I, YOU KNOW, I LIKE TO TALK ABOUT, AND GOOD LOCAL GOVERNMENT MEANS PUTTING THINGS BEFORE THE VOTERS AND NOT DECIDING AS A DAIS ON HIGH WAS BEST FOR EVERYONE.

SO I'M GLAD WE GOT TO PUT IT BEFORE THE VOTERS.

WE HEARD LOUD AND CLEAR, LET'S MOVE FORWARD AND TAKE CARE OF OUR OUR CITIZENS.

THANK YOU. SEEING NO OTHER COMMENTS. THE LAST ITEM ON OUR AGENDA IS ITEM 14 FOR ADJOURNMENT.

WE HAVE A MOTION TO ADJOURN. MOVE TO ADJOURN.

SUPPORT. MOVED BY TRUSTEE WILSON, SUPPORTED BY TREASURER DESCHAINE.

ALL IN FAVOR, PLEASE SAY AYE. AYE. AYE. ANY OPPOSED? MEETING TO ADJOURN AT 8:33 P.M.

* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.