11935 FOWLER ROAD
HONOR, MICHIGN 49640
ANNUAL MEETING
BUDGET MEETING
FY 2019-2020
MARCH 16, 2019
2 P.M.
The Annual Meeting was called to order by Supervisor Solem at 2:00 p.m. and followed by the Pledge of Allegiance.
Supervisor Solem introduced the elected board, and the appointed board and commission members-Supervisor Paul Solem, Treasurer Cindy Gottschalk, Clerk Alison Michalak, Trustee Matt Wieber, Deputy Clerk Molly Franks. Trustee Laman is absent due to the death of his father. Supervisor Solem also introduced Leon Schmidt, Platte Township website manager. Bob Michalak, Paul Gerhart and Robin Talsma are on the Platte Township’s Zoning Board of Appeals. The Planning commission appointees are Matt Wieber and Robin Talsma.
Public Present-29
Supervisor Solem introduced the special guests in attendance. They included:
County Commissioner for District 2- Art Jeannot
Platte Township Assessor- Christy Brow
Emergency Manager- Frank Post
Sheriff- Ted Schendel
Undersheriff- Kyle Rosa
Prosecutor- Sara Swanson
The minutes from the 2018 Annual Meeting and were read by Clerk Michalak. A motion was made by Treasurer Gottschalk to accept the minutes as read. Clerk Michalak supported the motion. All ayes; motion carried.
PUBLIC INPUT:
No comment other than some of those in attendance were not able to hear. A request was made that those addressing the group would please stand when speaking. This alleviated the problem.
SUPERVISOR REPORT:
Clean Up Day 2019- The Clean Up Day will be held on Saturday, June 8, from 8 a.m. until noon. We will be accepting tires, electronics, scrap metal and junk from residents’ properties. No construction materials or hazardous waste will be accepted. American Waste will provide the disposal trucks. Robert and Annette Hulett will again be on site to dispose of scrap metal. Benzie Recycling will be taking recyclables. This is a good opportunity to clean up your property and visit with township friends, while enjoying brunch.
2. Elections 2019- An election for school millage is scheduled for May 7th. Since the
passage of Proposal 3, the township will allow in-person absentee voting at the
township hall on Saturday, May 4th. Residents will also be able to submit absentee
ballots up until 8 p.m. (closing of the polls) on election day.
In March 2020, we will hold presidential primaries.
3. Road Improvements- Road Commission Manager Matt Skeels was unable to attend to provide a report. The following updates and improvements were provided by the Board.
Hooker Road timber bridge update- asphalt still needs to be applied
Skinner Road- replace aging culvert pipe
Dymond Road- replace 2 undersize and aging culverts with one large
Esch Rd- between M22 and Indian Hill-pavement overlay
Eliza Lake Road- repairs due to logging
Iron Man- Aug 25, 2019 – portions of Fowler and M-22. Platte Township
Feel free to contact with any and all issues
4. Ironman Event- Commissioner Jeannot stated he requestedthe organizers of Ironman
contact our township directly regarding the closure of our roads. On the day of the
event, the township will experience road closures on portions of Fowler Road and M-22.
This will involve the closing of only one lane. The competition has a rolling start and a
rolling finish. This means the road closure will be prompted by the first cyclist to come
into the area and will reopen when the last cyclist has passed through.
5. Morgan School- Supervisor Solem mentioned that the Morgan School is no longer
owned by the township. It was previously understood by records on hand, that the
school would be returned to the township if the state grange dissolved. In further
research, it was discovered that the Morgan School was sold to the state grange around
1991. The Township attorney is currently working on the issues.
GUESTS
Commissioner- Art Jeannot is the County Commissioner for District 2. District 2 encompasses
Platte Township, part of Almira Township and Lake Township. Art comes every month to meet with Board, and to every township meeting, to discuss what is happening at the county level. His full report is at the hall. He is active on several county-wide agencies and committees, and has a very thorough understanding of the many issues facing the county, along with the steps being taken to address these. He provided full-color, “Budget at a Glance” handouts for everyone interested. These provide a quick summary of how county money is used. He shared that township resident Paula Figura has been appointed to a resource development committee to study the issues of internet connectivity in our rural county.
Assessor- Christy Brow, township assessor, gave her report. There have been 14 sales in the
township during the past year. An audit has been completed and it was discovered that
many structures were missing from property descriptions. During this next year, she will
be inspecting agricultural parcels to make sure they are meeting criteria to maintain that
tax designation. Sixteen building permits were issued in the last year and there were no
land divisions. She brought along two examples of property record cards, which she can
generate for any property owner if requested. She can be reached at (231)227-1095 or by
email at: michiganassessing@hotmail.com.
Sheriff Schendel and Undersheriff Rosa- Sheriff Schendel stated he maintains an open- door policy
for listening to citizen concerns. The public is always welcome. He strives to maintain a
transparent department, reporting any criminal activity to media. He said the local
authorities were able to stop a prostitution ring recently. He also spoke about a situation
where a tip was received regarding underage youngsters being served alcohol in a local
tavern. Several citations were issued to out-of-state college students, traveling as a ski
team. He also shared that the largest meth drug bust in Benzie Co. had occurred just the
day before our annual meeting. Drugs continue to be a problem in Benzie County, but
being partnered with TNT has really benefitted the local authorities.
A committee addressing school security was formed after the shooting at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas School, with the focus to place a police officer back in the school.
School response measures had not been updated since the shooting at Columbine. With
the combined efforts of Frank Post and the school superintendents, a millage was written,
placed on theballot, and passed by the residents of Benzie County. Benzie Central has
had a deputy on the school campus since January 10th. Frankfort is actively seeking a
resource officer.
Tom Mountz asked if the State Police post is still in Homestead township. Sheriff Schendel
explained that there are supposed to be two resident troopers serving Benzie County, but
that it is tough to keep them. One trooper was just promoted and that vacancy needs to
be filled. Often, temporary troopers are filling in, but the goal is to have permanent
trooper residents.
Christy Brow asked if there is a requirement that private marijuana growers need to be registered with the county. Sheriff Schendel stated that there is no requirement, only
to meet the criteria as stated in the recently passed legalization proposal and that many
details are still being worked out.
Emergency Manager- Frank Post has been working on prep and support for the first responder
community in the event of an emergency. Through preparation exercises, potential
weaknesses are identified and improvements are made regarding emergency response.
This may involve changing procedures, policies or equipment. Daily activities of
emergency response are good, but the stumble occurs when coming together for a big
event that would involve the entire county. To support emergency response community,
it is important to also determine what resources available in surrounding counties or at
the state level. He talked about the AFG grant that allowed Benzie County responders
the ability to obtain radios and allow departments to communicate with each other. A
tribal grant provided the county with a fire extinguisher simulator. If you are interested
in learning the proper way to handle one, you can contact the local fire chief for training.
This includes a power point presentation, along with hands-on practicing. The goal is
that people learn how to handle fire extinguishers comfortably. There was a winter storm
event that activated an emergency center to take some pressure off of central dispatch. Warming centers were opened for any who had lost power.
Art Jeannot pointed out that there are many talented people working for Frank, who is
retiring and shared his appreciation for all of the benefits Frank has brought to our
county. Frank has been a terrific asset.
ADJOURNMENT
Supervisor Solem entertained a motion to adjourn the annual meeting at 3:21 pm. Treasurer Gottschalk motioned to break for 20 minutes, Colin Bohash supported the motion. All ayes; motion carried.
PUBLIC HEARING- BUDGET
Supervisor Solem called the meeting to order at 3.22 p.m.
1. Budget for fiscal year 2019-2020: The minutes from the Budget meeting and Truth in
Taxation meeting were read by Clerk Michalak. Clerk Michalak also read the salary
resolution. Jeanne Strathman states that the passage of Prop 3 will require more work
for the board and wondered if they would receive additional compensation for it. The
board is comfortable with their current rate of compensation.
A motion was made by Dan Haswell, with support by Treasurer Gottschalk to accept
the minutes and resolution as read; All ayes, motioned carried.
Treasurer Gottschalk read through the proposed budget for the current fiscal year,
making note of each liability and source of revenue. Supervisor Solem entertained a
motion to accept the budget as read. Clerk Michalak made the motion, with support by
Sara Swanson. All ayes, motion carried.
PUBLIC INPUT
George Gottschalk is asked if little houses on Martin Road are legal.
Rob Bollenberg apologized for not following up on committee for the Morgan School study.
Ron Gottschalk will keep grounds cut at the Morgan School, regardless of ownership status.
ADJOURNMENT
A motion to adjourn was entertained by Supervisor Solem. A motion was made by Treasurer Gottschalk, with support from Dan Haswell. All ayes; motion carried. Meeting adjourned at 4:15 p.m.
Respectfully Submitted by,
Molly Franks, Deputy Clerk