Bye!

After much soul searching, and consulting with my calendar, I have decided to dissolve this blog since I just don't have the time to maintain it. More people access Facebook than blogs (in my humble opinion), so if you are interested in the day to day happenings of Elk Township, feel free to "like" the Unofficial page @ www.facebook.com/ElkTownship  
Have a Happy Day!

March 8, 2016 Presidential Primary

NEXT ELECTION WILL BE THE MARCH 8, 2016 PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY
ABSENTEE BALLOTS ARE AVAILABLE FROM 
VICKI GATES, CLERK@
PO BOX 298, IRONS, MI  49644
OR OFFICE HOURS ARE WEDNESDAYS FROM 9-2pm

January 12, 2016 Regular Mtg

draft       ELK TOWNSHIP   draft                                                           

REGULAR BOARD MEETING

JANUARY 12, 2016

Lou Fitz, Supervisor, called the meeting to order @ 7:00pm

Prayer offered by Johnny Gates

Pledge of Allegiance, led by L. Fitz

Roll call, officials present:             Lou Fitz, Supervisor-266.5040

Vicki Gates, Clerk-510.2597

Sharon Young, Trustee-266.8432

                                                John Fairbanks, Trustee-266.8023

                                                Brandy Myers, Treasurer-bmyers42780@yahoo.com

Agenda-S. Young-motion to approve agenda as revised; J. Fairbanks seconded; passed 5-0

Minutes approval-J. Fairbanks-motion to approve December 8, 2015 regular meeting minutes as amended;

S. Young seconded; passed 5-0

Board Member Reports:

   L. Fitz, Supervisor

1.       Discussed Crystal Flash changing tanks Wed @ 9am

   V. Gates, Clerk

1.       New Clerk hours beginning Dec 1^st: Wednesdays 9-2pm

2.       Non-periodicals to be approved: L. Fitz-motion to pay Bob Englebrecht’s bill for $1342.90 re: folding & stuffing envelopes for assessment change notices; J. Fairbanks seconded; passed 5-0

L. Fitz-motion to pay J. Fairbanks for plowing the township parking lot; B. Myers seconded; passed 4-1 (J. Fairbanks dissenting)

3.       Requesting board approval on bills paid in December-S. Young-motion to approve bills; J. Fairbanks seconded; passed 5-0

4.       Presidential Primary set for March 8^th

5.       Governor Snyder signed a bill into law eliminating straight party voting in the General Election

6.       Finished the W2s, & 1099s

7.       Budget amendments-J. Fairbanks-motion to approve budget amendments; S. Young seconded; passed 5-0

8.       IRS mileage rate- J. Fairbanks-motion to lower our mileage rate to IRS standards of $.54/mile; S. Young seconded; passed 5-0

  B. Myers, Treasurer

1.       Read Treasurer’s report for December-S. Young-motion to accept Treasurer’s report;

J. Fairbanks seconded; passed 5-0

Public Comments: various

Dignitary Reports:

·         County Commissioner-J. Fairbanks-ORV meeting on Jan 29^th @ 2pm; new administrator for county is looking into timesheets of union workers

·         Fire Dept-Marilyn Zdebski- fire department report given

·         SEEFD planning committee-met for an organizational meeting, visited 2 fire departments; next meeting Jan 29^th @ Station #2 @ 10am

·         Historical Society-Marilyn VanVleet is working on family folders

·         Road Committee-Marilyn Zdebski-they have met for an organizational meeting

·         Emergency Management Damage Assessment-Don Divis-report given

Old Business:

·         Road Committee-J. Fairbanks-motion to approve committee members; B. Myers seconded; passed 5-0

New Business:

·         Kay MacDonald’s resignation from the Board of Review-S. Young-motion to accept resignation with regrets; B. Myers seconded; passed 5-0

·         Board of Review appointment of Cindy Comstock-Pudvay as an alternate-S. Young-motion to accept; J. Fairbanks seconded; passed 5-0; L. Fitz administered the Oath of Office for Cindy

·         Board of Review training for Cindy- J. Fairbanks-motion approving training @ $101 + Book @ $31.50 + mileage @ .54/mile; B. Myers seconded; passed 5-0

·         Discussed yearly calendar to be approved by resolution in February

·         Contract jobs out for bids-S. Young-motion to direct L. Fitz to put an ad in the BBN for 2 weeks to solicit bids for contract jobs; J. Fairbanks seconded; passed 5-0

J. Fairbanks-motion to approve payment for ads in BBN for 2 weeks (1/4 page ads); S. Young seconded; passed 5-0

·         Door code for Joyce Durdel with the LMWCC/HISTORICAL SOCIETY- J. Fairbanks-motion to approve; S. Young seconded; passed 5-0

·         S. Young-motion to revise the Building & Grounds maintenance contract to include weeding & watering grounds; J. Fairbanks seconded; passed 5-0

Public Comments: various

S. Young-motion to adjourn; V. Gates seconded; all in favor

Adjourned @ 8:45pm

Respectfully submitted,

Vicki Gates, Clerk            

1.13.16

Neighbors

Hey folks, sorry I have been absent on the blog for a couple months. Some of you know that my husband & I have been caring for an elderly couple in our community. The husband had a stroke, fell, broke a hip, and has had a bout of diverticulitis now. He is currently in a nursing facility. His wife has middle-stages of the dreaded Alzheimer disease. We stayed with her for 6 weeks in order to keep her calm & safe while we worked on placing her in an appropriate facility to care for her mental status as well as physical needs. She is now in a wonderful facility in Ludington connected to Oakview Medical Facility and is well taken care of. We are hoping the husband will eventually be able to come to live with us, but time will tell where is the best place for him. It has been a long and arduous journey, but that is life. We are just glad to be able to help our friends & neighbors.
Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

December minutes

 DRAFT                                                                               ELK TOWNSHIP                                                              

REGULAR BOARD MEETING

DECEMBER 8, 2015

Lou Fitz, Supervisor, called the meeting to order @ 7:00pm

Prayer offered by Johnny Gates

Pledge of Allegiance, led by L. Fitz

Roll call, officials present:             Lou Fitz, Supervisor-266.5040

Vicki Gates, Clerk-510.2597

Sharon Young, Trustee-266.8432

                                                John Fairbanks, Trustee-266.8023

                                                Brandy Myers, Treasurer-bmyers42780@yahoo.com

Agenda-J. Fairbanks-motion to approve agenda as revised; B. Myers seconded; passed 5-0

Minutes approval-J. Fairbanks-motion to approve November 10, 2015 regular meeting minutes;

S. Young seconded; passed 5-0

Board Member Reports:

   L. Fitz, Supervisor

1.       Discussed publication of an article in the MTA magazine spotlighting Elk Township’s building project of addition to the town hall (October 2015)

2.       Discussed possibility of Michigan Legislature passing bill for the recodification of Michigan’s General Law townships to “General Powers” townships

   V. Gates, Clerk

1.       New Clerk hours beginning Dec 1^st: Wednesdays 9-2pm

2.       Will be issuing a new check to Dennis Lisaius since we received his $30 admin fee check

3.       Non-periodicals to be approved: J. Fairbanks-motion to pay Pioneer Group $397.80 for printing of the Land Ordinance in the Lake County Star; L. Fitz seconded; passed 5-0

S. Young-motion to pay Northern Fire & Safety $40 for annual check of fire extinguishers at hall; J. Fairbanks seconded; passed 5-0

4.       Requesting board approval on bills paid in November, including Big Bass Lake SAD-L. Fitz-motion to approve bills; S. Young seconded; passed 5-0

  B. Myers, Treasurer

1.       Read Treasurer’s report for November-S. Young-motion to accept Treasurer’s report;

J. Fairbanks seconded; passed 5-0

Trustees-S. Young-wishes everyone a Merry Christmas; J. Fairbanks wishes everyone a Merry Christmas

Public Comments: various

Dignitary Reports:

·         County Commissioner-J. Fairbanks-discussed the balanced budget county will be passing; the new administrator for county is “very impressive”; deputy building “coming along”

·         Fire Dept-Marilyn Zdebski- fire department report given

Old Business:

·         Presentation given by Matt Biolette representing Republic as a municipal service manager, especially discussed options available for recycling with costs around $15,000/yr

·         11 ½ mile project-J. Fairbanks-motion to authorize Lake County Road Commission to contract for engineering of 2 culverts; no second so motion failed; after discussion of value of the project a motion was offered by J. Fairbanks to rescind prior motion which froze all voted millage road funds until a road committee was formed & a report was given by a 5 member committee; L. Fitz seconded; passed 5-0; after further discussion concerning safety issues & possibility of grants available to fund the project a motion was offered by J. Fairbanks to authorize Lake County Road Commission to contract for engineering of 2 culverts with monies to come out of voted millage road funds (proposed cost for this service is $10,500/site); L. Fitz seconded; passed 5-0

·         Heritage Bay project-after discussion concerning lack of drainage in places within Heritage Bay a motion was offered by J. Fairbanks to pay up to $12,000 for preliminary survey & tree work with monies to come out of voted millage road funds; L. Fitz seconded; passed 5-0

New Business:

·         Robert’s Rules of Order Resolution-L. Fitz offered resolution; S. Young seconded; passed 4-1 (J. Fairbanks dissenting)

Public Comments: various

S. Young-motion to adjourn; V. Gates seconded; all in favor

Adjourned @ 8:57pm

Respectfully submitted,

Vicki Gates, Clerk            

12.9.15

November minutes

 ELK TOWNSHIP                                                              

REGULAR BOARD MEETING

NOVEMBER 10, 2015

Lou Fitz, Supervisor, called the meeting to order @ 7:00pm

Prayer offered by Johnny Gates

Pledge of Allegiance, led by L. Fitz

Roll call, officials present:             Lou Fitz, Supervisor-266.5040

Vicki Gates, Clerk-510.2597

Sharon Young, Trustee-266.8432

                                                John Fairbanks, Trustee-266.8023

                                                Brandy Myers, Treasurer-bmyers42780@yahoo.com

Agenda-J. Fairbanks-motion to approve agenda as revised; S. Young seconded; passed 5-0

Minutes approval-J. Fairbanks-motion to approve October 13, 2015 regular meeting minutes;

S. Young seconded; passed 5-0

Board Member Reports:

   L. Fitz, Supervisor

1.       Letter to Irons Bottle Gas stopping service

2.       Hazardous Waste collection report

3.       Report on Lake County Township Association meeting; next meeting will be @ Chase on January 28, 2016 @ 7:30pm

4.       Report from Representative Jon Bumstead

5.       Matt Biolette letter representing Republic Services-B. Myers-motion to direct Supervisor to contact Matt Biolette and ask him to discuss options for recycling at our December meeting; V. Gates seconded; passed 4-1 (L. Fitz dissenting)

   V. Gates, Clerk

1.       New Clerk hours beginning Dec 1^st: Wednesdays 9-2pm

2.       Letter to Dennis Lisiaus-L. Fitz-motion to direct Clerk to send letter to Dennis Lisiaus before issuing a replacement check; J. Fairbanks seconded; passed 5-0

3.       Requesting board approval on bills paid in October-L. Fitz-motion to approve bills; S. Young seconded; passed 5-0

4.       Correspondence-7^th Day Adventist Church has decided to rent the Eden Twp hall for their meetings due to a conflict with their opening date; new/updated insurance policy to be filed; dividend check from our insurance agency/Accident Fund=$53.76

  B. Myers, Treasurer

1.       Read Treasurer’s report for October-J. Fairbanks-motion to accept Treasurer’s report;

S. Young seconded; passed 5-0

Trustees-S. Young-went to swearing in ceremony for new sheriff, Dennis Robinson & new undersheriff, Don Maiville; also went to dedication of new ambulance station named after Philip Maiville (Irons resident & previous Commissioner)

Lake County Road Commission-Steve Leonard-discussed culvert replacements for 11 ½ mile rd (2 culverts needed); J. Fairbanks-motion to table discussion until December (L. Fitz will reach out to LMWCC for possible partnership); L. Fitz seconded; passed 5-0

Public Comments: none

Dignitary Reports:

·         County Commissioner-J. Fairbanks-discussed new ambulance/fire station to be located in northern part of county including new maps showing emergency calls for the last 3 years

·         Assessor-Bob Englebrecht gave L. Fitz letter concerning dwelling in Section 29 that did not apply for a building permit

·         Fire Dept-Marilyn Zdebski- fire department report given

Old Business:

·         Land Division Ordinance-L. Fitz-motion to rescind Board action taken at regular board meeting on October 13^th meeting in regard to the Land Division Ordinance 1-2015. The Ordinance was not published in the newspaper, therefore it never became an official ordinance; V. Gates seconded; passed 5-0; L. Fitz-motion that we approve, install & publish the Land Division Ordinance 1-2015, dated November 10, 2015, for the Township of Elk, Lake County, MI, as revised; S. Young seconded; passed 4-1 (J. Fairbanks dissenting); V. Gates will excerpt it for the Lake County Star

·         Hazardous Mitigation Plan Resolution-L. Fitz-motion to adopt; S. Young seconded; passed 5-0

New Business:

·         Newsletter-draft discussed; S. Young-motion to approve printing costs of Elk Township newsletter, Black & White, 2-sided, to be printed by November 25^th and included in the tax statements; B. Myers seconded; passed 5-0

·         Lake County Community Foundation endowment-J. Fairbanks-motion to disallow participation; S. Young seconded; passed 5-0

Public Comments:

Varied, including well at cemetery is drained and flowers have been removed for the winter

S. Young-motion to adjourn; V. Gates seconded; all in favor

Adjourned @ 8:30pm

Respectfully submitted,

Vicki Gates, Clerk            

11.12.15