Banks Township Board Meeting

Monday August 17, 2009

1. The meeting was called to order at 7:30 P.M. by Supervisor Thomas Mann. Present were Supervisor Mann, Clerk Donna Heeres, Treasurer Katy Postmus, Trustee Marvin Rubingh, and Trustee Mark DeKorne. Also present: Janet Koch of the Antrim Review, Amy Jenema, Dawn Plude, Sheriff Dan Bean, and Andy Veenstra. John Hastings arrived at 7:57 PM.

2. Supervisor Mann opened the meeting with the Pledge of Allegiance and Trustee Rubingh offered prayer.

3. The minutes of the July Regular Board meeting were presented. MOTION Rubingh, DeKorne, CARRIED to approve the minutes as presented.

4. The treasurer’s report of incomes and balances was given. General Fund Balance: $344,418.25 with $40,000 due from the Fire Fund; Fire Fund Balance: $82,869.95; Roads Fund Balance: $93,798.88; Liquor Fund Balance: $2,141.67; Grand Total: $523,228.75.

5. Public Comment: Sheriff Dan Bean reported on the meeting held August 11 to gather info on the proposed ORV Ordinance for Antrim County. It is expected the County Commissioners will review this proposed ordinance to allow ORV on the county roads at their September meeting. Sheriff Bean reported on activities on the Sand Bar of Torch Lake over the Fourth of July Holiday weekend. It was busy but went well due to joint efforts of the DNR, Antrim & Kalkaska Sheriff Departments. He reported on the newly organized Lake Watch Program that will have trained observers living on each lake. They will be responsible for reporting suspicious or dangerous activities on their lake. Sheriff Bean expects to begin occupying the Bank Building in September.

6. Assessors: Amy Jenema and Dawn Plude addressed the Board on the IRS ruling that assessors are public officials and therefore must be treated as employees rather than independent contractors. MTA opinion letter was reviewed. MOTION Mann, Postmus, CARRIED to offer an employment agreement to Amy Jenema as certified assessor @ $600 per year, payable in March. Also, the Board offers to renegotiate the contract with AD Assessing with compensation @ $18,400 per year, payable monthly. The new contract will commence October 1. Draft contract will be presented at our September Board meeting. Oath of Office will be administered to the Certified Assessor to comply with status of public official.

7. Township Hall Advertising: Proposal to advertise in both the spring and fall editions of the Wedding Guide was discussed. Cost of ad in the fall edition is $220, spring edition is $175. If we purchase both, insertion in the phone guide is free. MOTION Postmus, Heeres, CARRIED to advertise availability of our township hall for weddings, etc. in both issues and also in the phone guide.

8. Zoning Administrator Report: Andy Veenstra reports that activity has been very low this year.

9. Planning Commission: Rubingh reported that the wind turbine ordinance amendment was reviewed by the Antrim County Planning Commission and revisions were recommended. The Banks Township Planning Commission reviewed the comments and recommendations and has recommended to the Board that the ordinance be adopted as proposed. The Board reviewed the ordinance in detail and felt that clarification of the language was needed. Section 4.06 1) should strike “erected prior to a non-commercial WTG” as it was cumbersome and unnecessary to the meaning of the statement. And 4.06 4) “generator” in line two should be “generator(s)”. MOTION Rubingh, DeKorne, to adopt the amendment as revised. Roll Call Vote: Postmus: Yes; Rubingh: Yes; Mann: Yes; DeKorne: Yes; Heeres: Yes. Amendment was declared adopted. It will be published in the Antrim Review ASAP with effective date 8 days after publication. Master Plan discussion was postponed. Mr. Beemon did not have revised language ready for review. Rubingh reported the Planning Commission is considering an amendment to delete “Fishing & Hunting” as permitted uses as these activities are allowed uses and permits need not be issued by the township for these uses. A property owner was present asking procedural questions about expanding a private resort.

10. Cemeteries: DeKorne reported that the Atwood Cemetery fence has been installed. A few additional parts were needed, additional cost of $72. The roofs are completed at the Ellsworth Cemetery along with painting of the soffits and posts.

11. Township Hall: John Hastings reported that the air conditioning units have not been able to keep up and occasionally trip the breaker. He requested an assessment with energy audit for the entire building. He was informed that Consumers Energy has been asked to perform an optimization audit. He reported that wedding receptions create a lot of additional work for him as renters rarely return furniture to proper places and cleaning procedures aren’t always effective. He asked that his compensation be evaluated. Postmus & Heeres agreed to review rates and compensation with him prior to the next meeting and will present a recommendation to the Board at the September meeting.

12. Phragmites: Heeres reported 8 property owners who have phragmites present on their property and who have not responded to previous letters have again been contacted for permission. One property owner has refused treatment previously. He has also been contacted again. Clerk was authorized to contact the attorney for direction on proceedings. Heidi Lang reported to the Clerk that she has submitted the applications for permits for treatment. Brian Piccolo of the DNR is awaiting receipt of stimulus funds for the treatment. The bids for treatment will be opened and awarded next week by the DNR. Letter from the Milton Neighbors group was shared with the Board.

13. Electrical Bids: Clerk opened bids for the four projects. The Board reviewed the bids and discussed the merits of each project. MOTION Mann, Heeres, to approve the Atwood Fire Hall Project. YEAS: 2, Nays: 3. MOTION FAILED. MOTION Mann, Heeres, to approve the panel, stage lights & outlets project. YEAS: 5, NAYS: None, MOTION CARRIED. MOTION Mann, Heeres, to approve the Christmas tree subpanel project. YEAS: 2, NAYS: 3, MOTION FAILED. MOTION Mann, Heeres, to approve the 2 exterior front fixtures & receptacle project. YEAS 5, NAYS: None, MOTION CARRIED. MOTION DeKorne, Postmus, CARRIED to award the bid for the upstairs panel upgrade, etc. to 3J Electric. YEAS: 5, NAYS: None. MOTION CARRIED. MOTION DeKorne, Rubingh, CARRIED To award the bid for the front lights, etc. to Eisley Electric. YEAS: 5, NAYS: None, MOTION CARRIED. Heeres was given authority to select fixtures up to $150 each in value. Discussion was held about the cost of lighting the Christmas tree decorations. Clerk will compile records of costs over the past several years to see what the actual electrical costs have been. DeKorne agreed to investigate the lawfulness of expending public funds for Christmas decorations and electricity to power them.

14. Breezeway: Supervisor Mann reported on the Ribbon Cutting ceremonies, held today, for the Breezeway. Grant assistance has been phenomenal from the East Jordan Area Chamber and the NLEA. Agreements for compensating these agencies have been drafted and were presented for approval by the Board. MOTION Mann, Heeres, CARRIED to approve the agreements with EJ Area Chamber & NLEA for $2500 each over 2 years. YEAS: 5, NAYS: None. MOTION CARRIED.

15. Roads: Estimate for application of gravel to Klooster Road was received from the Antrim County Road Commission. MOTION Rubingh, DeKorne, CARRIED to approve application of gravel to Klooster Road at an estimated cost of $6000. Supervisor will ask a narrower application be done, if possible. ACRC Manager Burt Thompson reported to Supervisor Mann that the gravel is OK on Scott Road and Lakeshore Drive. Grading has been done to these roads recently.

16. Timberlane Terrace dispute: Rubingh was in attendance at the recent hearing over boundary dispute between a property owner in White Pine Shores and the Timberlane Terrace property owners association. A shared property line is the issue. Rubingh expects the case will not be settled for a year.

17. Info items: Sheriff’s report of incidents was shared. MTA County Chapter meeting scheduled for Tuesday, August 25 @ 7 PM at Central Lake Township. Program will be on EMS. Par Plan news was distributed. Clerk reports she attended training for QVF Lite program. The software has been installed on her computer and will allow her to process voter registrations in direct communication with the State Bureau of Elections. The County Clerk’s Office has previously been an intermediary in this process.

18. Bills represented by the attached list were presented for approval for payment. MOTION Mann, Postmus, CARRIED to approve the bills as presented.

19. Next meeting will be Monday, September 21 @ 7:30 PM.

20. The meeting was adjourned at 11:10 P.M.

Respectfully submitted,

Donna L. Heeres

Banks Township Clerk