REGULAR COUNCIL PROCEEDINGS CITY OF FLAT ROCK, MICHIGAN 25500 GIBRALTAR ROAD FLAT ROCK, MI 48134 MONDAY, MARCH 19, 2018 The regular meeting of the Flat Rock City Council convened at the Municipal Building, 25500 Gibraltar Road, Flat Rock, Michigan 48134, on the above date at 7:30 p.m. 1. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE 2. ROLL CALL OF COUNCIL MEMBERS: PRESENT ELECTED OFFICIALS: Mayor Dropiewski Council Members: Little, Martin, Maul, Tefend, Wrobel ALSO PRESENT: City Attorney David Grunow, City Clerk Meaghan Bachman, Fire Chief Bill Vack, Police Chief John Leacher, DPS Director Jim Lancaster, Treasurer/City Administrator Brian Marckiniak, Economic Development Director Liz Hendley, Building and Safety Director Larry Dishaw. Resolution 03-19-18-01 RESOLVED, that Flat Rock City Council hereby excuses Council Member Bergeron as absent at the regular City Council meeting of March 19, 2018. 3. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Resolution 03-19-18-02 RESOLVED, to approve the minutes of the regular City Council meeting of March 5, 2018, as presented. 4. CITIZENS TO BE HEARD: Jesses Cowell of 25683 Gibraltar Road, spoke of a violation he received for parking on asphalt. He voiced concerns that other residents are in violation of this and wondered if they were issued violations. He further voiced concerns regarding his neighbor possibly violating ordinances.
Resident Cheryl Hammond addressed a concern regarding a sign with inappropriate language located on a Huron River Drive property. She addressed questions to the City Attorney and she noted a complaint was filed with the Building Department. Sue Farrar noted it is very heard to hear the council meetings from home with the outdated sound system. She asked if there will be an electronic sign at City Hall. She also asked if the city has a full or part time ordinance officer. Diane Parker of Biggby Coffee announced Biggby s Birthday on March 21 st and encouraged all to join in the celebration. She also spoke of the Flat Rock Our Home Town 2nd Annual Easter Egg Hunt that will take place on March 24th from 1:00 4:00 PM and thanked the sponsors. Hawthorne Ridge resident Nikki Bonomo spoke of road concerns within the subdivision and inquired about the plan for the roads. 5. REPORTS FROM DEPARTMENT HEADS: Treasurer/City Administrator Brian Marciniak, noted the Board of Review will meet on March 27, 2018 to dispute assessments. Building Director Larry Dishaw, presented the City Council with various project updates. DPS Director Jim Lancaster noted yard waste pickup has begun. He gave an update regarding the roads within Hawthorne Ridge. Director Lancaster announced he is accepting applications for part-time summer help. He noted pothole problems can be reported to the Department of Public Service. Economic Development Director Liz Hendley, spoke of the Flat Rock Our Home Town 2 nd Annual Easter Egg Hunt that will take place on March 24 th from 1:00 4:00 PM and thanked all the volunteers and sponsors. Fire Chief Bill Vack informed City Council of fuel transport out of CN Railroad. Police Chief John Leacher announced CodeRed Emergency Notification System was successfully launched on Monday, March 12, 2018 and encouraged all residents to sign up for the free service. He noted any questions can be directed to the Police Department. He further announced the successful Hometown Heroes event and thanked the CSO and all volunteers for the support. 6. REPORTS FROM COUNCIL MEMBERS: Council Member Mark Maul thanked the COS for organizing the annual Hometown Heroes Award Ceremony. Council Member Jim Martin congratulated the High School Basketball and Robotics Team for their accomplishments over the weekend. Council Member Ken Wrobel noted the award ceremony for the Hometown Heroes event was very nice.
Council Member Wally Little thanked the Firefighters and Police Officers for their services and all who hosted the Hometown Heroes event. Council Member Little announced that his son was awarded Firefighter of the year in Monroe. 7. MAYOR COMMENTS: Mayor Dropiewski sponsored a table at the SWCRC meeting for the Flat Rock High School and thanked all the students who participated. The Mayor congratulated the High School Basketball Team at Districts and noted their hard work. He also noted the robotics, cheer, and bowling teams did very well this year. He wished all the Flat Rock teams good luck. Mayor Dropeiwski gave an update regarding the roads in Hawthorne Ridge. He noted the DPS Director is working to find the best solution and contractor to perform the work. He noted more information should be available by the next City Council meeting. Mayor Dropiewski presented his annual State of the City Address. The Mayor noted the state of Flat Rock is good. Mayor Dropiewski touched on the following topics: New business openings in 2017 include, Liberty Tax, T-Mobile, Calder Dairy A Safe Routes to School grant was awarded which will dramatically improve walkability and access to our schools and neighborhoods. Construction will begin in Spring and Summer of 2019. Five (5) New police officers were hired in 2017 including Xander, the new K9 officer. Jim Lancaster, the new Director of Public Services was hired in 2017 and the department hired three (3) new department of public service employees. Businesses are investing and equally important, re-investing in Flat Rock including Ford Motor Company, Target Steel, Flat Rock Metal and more. The City continues to work closely with property owners and brokers to reach out to other new businesses and make them aware of the opportunities available in Flat Rock. Flat Rock Our Hometown, the collaboration between the City and Flat Rock business community that coordinates activities in the Michigan Main Street Program, continues to grow and run successful programs such as the Christmas Passport, Easter Egg Hunt, and Furfest. The Mayor noted more programs will be announced in the future that will showcase what Flat Rock businesses have to offer. City has begun to work through the requirements of the Michigan Redevelopment Ready Communities program which will further streamline and optimize the processes and open up more potential grant opportunities. Mayor Dropiewski talked about grants for the Viaduct project on Telegraph Road, the Boardwalk along the Huron River, and the Boat launch, all important pieces towards continuing to develop the outdoor recreational opportunities that are key to economic development in Flat Rock s Downtown area. Fishing, Biking, Kayaking, and Parks are drawing people from all over the Region and are a key differentiator for Flat Rock. The Mayor talked about an immense issue facing Flat Rock which is infrastructure. The City invested millions over the last 5 years but still have critical needs requiring a lot more money. Entire subdivisions need repaving, including two
immediately, which the city doesn t have the funding for. Our representatives in Lansing talk about $175 million dollars extra, given to communities, but when you look at how its distributed, Flat Rock only received $60,000, which isn t enough to repave any roads. The Mayor noted instead of targeting the money only to regions that have the worst roads, the money is distributed statewide to areas that don t have the potholes, population, truck traffic, and other issues that contribute the most to road deterioration. He noted that a true solution would involve cities, counties, state, and federal governments working together and will require significant contributions from all. The Mayor noted we must ensure that money goes directly to fixing the problems in the areas that need it the most. The City is actively working on updating the Water and Sewer infrastructure. This year will begin looking at the Phase IV sewer project that has been planned for 30 years. The City has recently completed a large State grant funded project to assess the entire Sewer system and will now be working through the water delivery system as well. Planning will begin to rejuvenate Community Park, particularly determine future of the fountain next to the museum area. Mayor Dropiewski finalized his annual State of the City address. He noted he is proud of the progress made working together as a community over the last couple of years. Yet, the City still has great challenges that will require a community wide effort to keep us moving forward. 8. UNFINISHED BUSINESS: None 9. NEW BUSINESS Item 9-A-The Guidance Center 2017-2018 Assessment Paid for With CDBG Project Funds Resolution 03-19-18-03 Supported by Maul RESOLVED, to approve The Guidance Center 2017-2018 assessment in the amount of $2500.00 paid for with CDBG project funds. Item 9-B-Renewal of Insurance Coverage Resolution 03-19-18-04 Supported by Tefend RESOLVED, to approve the renewal of insurance coverage with the Stevenson Company in the amount of $232,780.00.
Motion carried 5-1 with Maul voting no Item 9-C-Proposal for Professional GIS Engineering Services Resolution 03-19-18-05 Motion by Bergeron RESOLVED, to approve the proposal for professional GIS engineering services with Fishbeck, Thompson, Carr & Huber (FTCH), pending revision of the agreement to reflect the proposal language to read the agreement is between FTCH and the City of Flat Rock. CLOSED SESSION ITEM A Meijer Inc. V. City of Flat Rock Michigan Tax Tribunal Resolution 03-19-18-06 Supported by Tefend RESOLVED, to convene into closed session to discuss Meijer Inc. V. City of Flat Rock Michigan Tax Tribunal. Roll call vote: Yes votes: Mayor Dropiewski, Council Members: Little, Martin, Maul, Tefend, Wrobel No votes: None Resolution 03-19-18-07 RESOLVED, to reconvene into open session. Resolution 03-19-18-08 Motion by Dropiewski Supported by Maul RESOLVED, to concur with the City Attorney to hire FROHM & WIDMER, INC. for the Meijer property at 26100 Vreeland Road, and pay the retainer of $5,000 and to further authorize up to $10,000 for their services.
Resolution 03-19-18-09 Supported by Dropiewski RESOLVED, to appoint the acting fire chief to act as the fire code official in absence of the fire chief. 12. ADJOURNMENT: Resolution 03-19-18-10 Supported by Maul RESOLVED, to adjourn the regular City Council meeting of March 19, 2018 at 8:59 PM. All voting yes; motion carried unanimously 6-0 DATE: Approved JONATHAN D. DROPIEWSKI, MAYOR MEAGHAN K. BACHMAN, CITY CLERK