Dafter Township Board

Treasurer: Kareen Brown April 13, 2015 Dafter, MI 49724 Trustee: Robert “Bob” St. Peter 7:00 p.m.

Trustee: Joyce Engelhardt - Call to order

Present: Bob Brown, Jodi Hunter, Kareen Brown, Bob St. Peter, Joyce Engelhardt Absent: N/A

- Pledge of Allegiance

Given by all in attendance

- Approval of Minutes

-March 9, 2015 Minutes - Emailed with Agenda

There were no corrections noted for the minutes that were mailed. Kareen made a motion to approve, Joyce supported. Motion passed unanimously.

- Citizen’s Comments

No citizen’s comments.

- Treasurer’s Report

Kareen presented the Treasurer’s report. Monies received totaled $39,269.49 of which all went to General Fund except $1.41 in interest to Fire Fund and $1.81 in interest to the Truck Fund. Bill payments in March totaled $10,876.58 for General Fund and $5463.76 for Fire Fund, and none for Truck Fund. This resulted in ending balances of $89,907.65 for General Fund, a deficit of ($2,840.27) for Fire Fund and $1,900.35 for Truck Fund for total funds of $88,967.73. CD’s totaled $250,352.35.

Discussion regarding the deficit in Fire Fund ensued. Jodi made a motion to transfer $20,000 to Fire Fund to cover the current deficit and the additional

payments that will be approved at this meeting. Since many of the payments were for last fiscal year and only a few will be for the new fiscal year, Jodi indicated that she would determine how much of the transfer should be considered part of the new year budgeted transfers and will account for that amount appropriately in the new budget year. Bob St. Peter seconded the motion. Motion passed unanimously.

- Approval of Bills

- List of Bill Payments Attached – Including CC from previous month approved to be paid after meeting and Epay.

Jodi presented the list of bills to be approved and passed around the

reimbursement forms that were received and paid for this meeting. Kareen asked for clarification on a few payments. Jodi answered and Kareen made the motion to approve bill payments for checks #7488 – 7514 and the E-pay. Joyce seconded the motion. Motion passed unanimously.

-Approval of Credit Card Charges submitted to be paid before the next meeting

Jodi passed around the credit card forms submitted to be approved and paid after the meeting. She explained that the postage charges and Walmart expenses were for the mailing of the newsletter. Jodi made a motion to approve the charges, Kareen seconded. Motion passed unanimously.

- Supervisor’s Report

- Property on NE corner of Soo Line and 10 Mile – See Attached Report

Bob Brown discussed that the property on Soo Line and 10 Mile had been

foreclosed and now belonged to the County. It will first be offered to the State at fair market value. It is not expected that the State will purchase the property. After the State declines, the Township will have the opportunity to purchase the

property for monies owed (back taxes, etc.) and Bob recommended that the Township purchase the property at that time to use to widen the road to the park and other Township purposes. Once the property is offered to the Township, the Board will revisit this topic.

- Property on Mackinac Trail and 10 Mile – See Attached Report

Bob Brown updated the Board that the property donated by Wells Fargo had been closed and we received the $10,000 donation. The Board discussed at length various options for this house and property. Bob Brown, Bob St. Peter and Jodi Hunter had previously visited the home and discussed that the house was in such poor shape that renovating it to livable standards would likely be very costly and would not benefit the Township. Kareen and Joyce discussed whether they thought it would be worthwhile to visit the property themselves and decided that based on the assessment of the other Board members that they did not feel it necessary. Other options were discussed including salvaging any components of the home for sale or donation and then removing the home. Discussion included whether we should use the home as a fire training facility prior to removal. The home would not be burned, but used for various other training exercises. Henry discussed several options for training uses and asked the Board to consider letting the Fire Department use the house as it is difficult to have this type of training and this

house allows for a great opportunity for hands on training. After discussion of the options, Bob Brown made a motion that we allow the Fire Department to use the house as a training facility for several months with the intention of removing the house during the Fall months with further discussion of salvaging components to be determined when the Fire Department is finished. Jodi seconded the motion. Motion passed unanimously. Jodi will take care of ensuring that the property is covered under the Township’s liability insurance.

- Correspondence

Jodi passed around an information letter from the DEQ and an invitation to nominate members for MTA Board positions.

-Clerk’s Report

-Budget to Actual Year YTD Report – See attached report

Jodi presented the Budget to Actual reports for General Fund and Other Funds. She explained that we were under budget on expenses overall, and exceed budgeted revenues in the general fund resulting in a slight increase in General Fund balance for the year. Other funds were slightly under budget on revenues and expenses were under budget but still resulted in a deficit which was covered by the General Fund resulting in an overall deficit for the year. She further indicated that she will be preparing the annual financial statements over the next month and will provide the Board members with a final copy once they are completed.

-Newsletter Mailed – 769 addresses

Jodi explained that the newsletters were being mailed on Tuesday following the meeting. Newsletter copies were provided at the meeting as well. It was explained that the mailing list was generated using a list of registered voters and all property owners in Dafter Township and cross referenced to remove duplicate addresses. Using this approach, each address for either a registered voter or property owner should receive a newsletter. Jodi explained that the Spring Clean-up coupons will only be accepted if they include the mailing address label and that the user must sign, and that blank copies will not be accepted.

-May Election – Approval of Election Workers

Jodi asked the board to approve the election officials for the May 5, 2015 State Election. The election officials are: Carol Straw, Joan Savoie, Phyllis Suggitt and Marilyn St. Peter. Kareen made a motion to approve the election workers, Joyce supported. Motion passed unanimously.

-Election Training- June 23-24 in Lansing – Requirement for New Clerks

Jodi informed the Board that she would be attending the mandatory State training for new clerks in Lansing on June 23-24. This is a required training for all new clerks.

- Fire Commissioners Report

Henry reported that they had 8 calls this year. Some of the firefighters attended a Michcon pipeline training at Kewadin Casinos. He indicated that this was a very informative training. He indicated that he and Jodi met with the insurance carrier and that the representative will be sending some information regarding updating policies for the department. Henry will start working on these updates when the information is received.

Henry met with the insurance agent regarding the last fire call and the cause of the fire was noted as “undetermined” as the house had collapsed into the basement and not much was left to examine to determine cause.

Firefighter Dave Winter will be leaving the department as he has a new job and will be moving. Henry had a small get together to have a going away party. Dave was a great asset for the department and will be missed. The Board wishes him the best in his future endeavors.

The fire department meeting included getting all the grass fire equipment ready, which is good as the weather is improving and departments in Lower Michigan are already getting calls for grass fires. Additionally, routine maintenance was done on the trucks to ensure that everything is up to date.

Henry indicate that the brush truck is in need of an oil change and indicated that he would be taking the truck for service at Quaker State as this is the least costly

option and can be easily done. He will coordinate this and turn in a receipt for the service.

Henry discussed that the week was National Telecommunicator’s Week which is the week to honor our dispatchers that call out all the fire, police, and emergency services. Last year, the Firefighters Association had brought a cake to the

dispatchers at Central Dispatch. This year, Henry would like to take them a snack tray, meat and cheese and veggies rather than a cake. Several Board members offered to donate personal funds towards this cause. Henry will take up a

collection and work with his wife and Kareen Brown to put together the trays to bring over to show our appreciation of the dispatchers. Henry commented on how helpful and accommodating these people are and how important they are.

Henry mentioned that we were able to collect on one of the Fire calls this year and Henry delivered the bill for another fire call. He and Jodi will be working on the additional billings.

Henry discussed that he is still waiting to hear back on whether our bid was accepted for the jaws of life and the other equipment from another department that we had bid on. Henry will be following up on this and keeping the Board informed. Bob St. Peter discussed that the Lions Club would like to know an amount that the Fire Department would like. It was discussed that if the bid was accepted for the jaws of life and equipment that the Lions Club could pay for this.

- Zoning Administrators Report – See Report Below

Bob Brown informed the Board of the status of the property on Mackinac Trail and Six Mile that will be the subject of the Planning Commission meeting on April 16, 2015. The applicant has requested a special exception to use the property for towing and vehicle storage and propane filling. Neighboring property owners were notified and a public notice was published regarding the meeting. The Planning Commission will consider the request at the meeting on April 16, 2015.

Bob Brown informed the Board of a conversation he had with Kristin Claus of the Sault EDC regarding a client that would like to build an automobile test track. This client is looking for acreage that can be rezoned for the use of a test track. Upon further discussion, it appears that the client would like to Township to find property that can be rezoned and present options to the client. The Board discussed that this is not an appropriate use of the Boards time as we are public officials serving our constituents. If the client wanted to find their own property and go thru the proper channels of requesting a zoning change, that the Board would consider it when presented.

Bob is also working with Chad Wilton who wishes to make a land division for purposes of building a home, garage and potentially a self-storage unit. He will be providing a site plan to Mr. Brown in the coming weeks. Bob will keep the Board informed of the status.

Kareen brought up that there is some garbage along Soo Line Road that is unsightly including an old Christmas tree and an old mattress. She is asking if we can do anything to get rid of this garbage. Bob Brown indicated that he will see if Dan can pick up these items and clean them up and we will dispose of them.

Patty Lowes asked if Bob Brown knew of the status of the property on 10 Mile Road across from their home. The property was formerly owned by Art and Vivian Riemersma and had been abandoned some time ago. The property is in poor shape and full of garbage. She wondered what could be done about this property. Bob Brown asked if the property was vacant, and asked if Kareen could check the status of the back taxes and see if the property went to the County on back taxes. He indicated that the County may come clean it up in that case. Kareen will look into it and report back to the Board.

- Parks & Recreation Committee

Bob St. Peter indicated that the Parks and Recreation Committee would be meeting on April 22 to discuss potential activities in the Township. Discussion ensued

regarding holding events to get the community together more often and involved. Discussion included having activities to honor senior citizens, or honoring the fire firefighters. Other discussion included possibly holding a dance at the hall, maybe putting together a softball tournament, poker night, euchre night and other suggestions for using the hall to get people together. Jodi mentioned that in the newsletter, we are requesting the residents send their email to her and that maybe we could use this email list to notify people of these types of events. She also

suggested that we need to have a Dafter Township Facebook page as well so that we can post events there and try to get residents to follow it. Discussion ensued about how we would set this up so that we have good control over what is put on the Facebook page. Bob Brown discussed that the Board would like to resurrect the community tea, or a gathering of the long-time residents to gather historical

information about the area and to scan pictures and record stories and other items that people are willing to share.

- Old Business

- Millage Proposal for Emergency Services

Jodi discussed that the proposal for the millage for emergency service needs to be in to Cathy Maleport by May 12. The ballot language has been approved. Jodi will follow up to find out the process of ensuring that we are able to get this on the August ballot and will keep the Board posted.

-New Business

-Payroll changes required – Certain regulations are requiring us to make some adjustments to how we process payroll. Direct deposit is going to be the best option to meet all requirements, so we will be looking for feedback and discussion on this matter. Jodi discussed that the timing of our payroll has to change to be within regulations. Payroll will need to be on the 1st of each month, causing some difficulty with getting checks signed and timing issues. In discussion with MTA, the Township would be allowed to use direct deposit to process payroll with approval of paychecks to occur at the next scheduled meeting. Jodi asked for feedback and all in attendance were in favor. Jodi will contact Luanne, the assessor to obtain feedback, and Bob Brown will discuss with Dan Fox. We will revisit this topic for a vote at the next meeting.

-Additions of Deputy Clerk and Deputy Treasurer to General Fund Bank Account

Jodi explained that the Deputy Clerk and Treasurer should be on the bank account to ensure that we always have two signers. Jodi made the motion to add Vicki Miller and Robert L. Brown to the bank accounts as approved signers. Kareen seconded. Motion passed unanimously.

-Fire Department Fun Day – June 27, 2015 – 9:00 a.m. – 5: 00 p.m.

Jodi discussed that we will be holding a fundraiser for the Fire Department on the same day as the Community Garage Sales. We will have a dunk tank, and games and food for sale. Jodi asked that anyone available plan to be there to help and that maybe we could have some of the volunteer firefighters in attendance as well. We will discuss this in further detail during the next two meetings. We need to see about getting some prizes for the games. Bob St. Peter indicated that he had some items he would donate and Jodi has previously spoke with a few people for prize donations.

Kareen asked to have a discussion about hall rentals at the next meeting, as we have not been getting many hall rentals. Kareen will investigate the cost of other town hall rentals and we will discuss further at the next meeting.

Motion to adjourn made by Jodi, supported by Kareen. Meeting adjourned at 9:15 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Supervisor report and recommendations

Date; 4/5/2015

Subject; Property on the Northeast corner of Soo Line and 10 Mile. Parcel number 004-122-015-00 more commonly known as 2958 E 10 Mile Road.

Update 4/5/2015

On March 31, 2015 the subject property was foreclosed on by the County for un-paid back taxes. This property will be offered to the State for fair market value. If the Stated declines the offer, the property will then be offered to the Township for the amount of money owed. As of 4/6/2015 the amount is $1400. If the Township declines the offer, the property will be put up for sale to the general public. It is my opinion that the State will decline the offer having no known useful purpose to the State. It may take two months before this property will be offered to the Township. I will update the Board as I receive any new developments.

Supervisor report and recommendations

On February 10, 2015 there is a “show cause” hearing regarding back taxes owed for the subject property. This hearing is the opportunity for the owner(s) to dispute the amount of taxes owed. Currently the amount owed is approximately $900.00.

The County shows several parties that have interest in this property, Dafter Township, Asset Acceptance LLC, DLG & Associates INC, Estate of Harlin A Phillips, and Rodney Hoath.

If taxes are not paid before April, the property will be foreclosed on by the County. After a short period of time, the property will be offered to the State at fair Market value. If the State declines the offer, the property will be offered to the Township for money owed, ie back taxes, processing fees, and any maintenance cost.

If we paid the taxes prior to the April deadline, we stand the risk of the aforesaid parties with interest in the property impeding on our development.

Supervisor update and recommendations

Date; 4/5/2015

Subject; Property and structure at 2274 W 10 Mile Road Update; 4/5/15

On March 25, 2015 I closed on the subject property and the Township has received the $10,000 cash donation. We are now at the point of discussing the future of this property. As stated in my earlier report, Mrs. Hunter, Mr. St. Peter and I have inspected the structure back on December 28, 2014. It is my opinion that the structure will take a significant amount of money to bring it up to living standards. I have recently asked Dan to install “PRIVATE PROPERTY” or “NO TRSSPASSING” signs on the structure and property.

Part of the un-written agreement with Wells Fargo, is that by receiving the donation property and money, we will not let the structure be occupied until it is brought to livable standards. This being said, selling the structure “AS IS” would be against the will of the donor.

When considering all options before accepting the offer from Wells Fargo, I asked Art Reid to supply me a quote to demolish the structure. Mr. Reid gave me a proposal of $4,800 to demolish the structure, backfill crawlspace with sand, add top soil, seed and mulch.

If it is the will of the Board to have the structure removed, one option to consider would be to retain the property for the possibility of a new location for a Fire Hall in the future. Of course, this is a very distant option.

The options listed below are only mine and any option the Board may have should be discussed. Several options I can think of are as follows.

A) Request quotes from contractors to renovate the structure to livable standards, then sell or rent. B) Use the structure and property for fire training and have a contractor remove all structures after the Fire Department has completed all training.

Update; 2/1/15

I have completed and submitted all the required paper work for accepting the subject offer. The process of closing is being scheduled and should happen within ninety (90) days. The Township will be given the $10,000 at time of closing.

Our Assessor Luanne has re-evaluated this structure and adjusted the taxes to reflect a more accurate value due to the poor condition. Please keep in mind, all taxes will be paid by the bank at time of closing. If It is the intent of the Board to demolish this structure after taking ownership, I would advise the demolition is completed prior to December 31, 2015 otherwise we will be taxed as having the structure.

Background;

Recently the Township was contacted by Brianna Snook who is a Disposition Asset Manager for Wells Fargo. The conversation was regarding the structure and property at 2474 W 10 Mile. Their company under their donation program will donate the house and property to Township along with $10,000.00, all closing costs and any un-paid taxes.

I spoke with Mrs. Snook on Monday January 2, regarding this offer. She stated that after closing, we can use the property with no strings attached. They ask that we maintain the property and structure to the standards of the Township, and that we do not sell the home until it is fit for occupation and up to code. Township Trustee Mr. St. Peter, Township Clerk Mrs. Hunter and I inspected this structure on December 28, 2014. I cannot speak for Mr. St. Peter’s and Mrs. Hunter’s observations but my finding are as follows.

- Standing water in the crawl space under the home.

- Much of the insulation under the home appears to be saturated and has fallen into the water in the crawl space.

- Many, if not all, the doors are damaged beyond repair. - Some of the wallboard is damaged.

- Several of the electrical outlets are pushed through the wall board. - Mold on the interior surfaces.

- The garage portion of the structure has been poorly converted to living space without wallboard. - All the carpet/floor covering will need to be cleaned or replace.

- Many of the electrical fixtures were removed from the structure.

It appears that the Township has an opportunity for a financial gain by accepting this offer. In no particular order, I have a few ideas that we may want to consider.

A) Decline the offer.

B) Accept the offer and renovate the structure to livable standards, then sell or rent. C) Accept the offer and use the structure and property for fire training.

Action required; Decline, accept, or table the offer. Respectfully submitted

Robert S. Brown

DAFTER TOWNSHIP

ZONING ADMINISTRATOR’S MONTHLY REPORT DATE: April 8, 2015

April 13, 2015 Township Board Meeting

TYPE OR PERMIT ISSUED AND NAME

1. No ne permits 3.

4. 5.

AREAS I HAVE BEEN WORKING ON

1. Working with new owners of the property on the corner of Mackinac Trail and Six Mile. The owner has applied for a special exemption to use the property for a towing business. Planning Commission meeting will be held on April 16, 2015 to hear the request.

2. I have been contacted by Kristin Claus who is the head of Sault Economic Development Cooperation (EDC). Kristin has a client looking to build an

automobile test track. The client reviewed the three test tracks in the area and found the tracks will not serve their needs. I am currently discussing this issue with the Planning Commission and Mrs. Claus.

3. I am working with Chad Wilton who is dividing 10 acres off from his father’s land at the end of 8 Mile next to the expressway. Mr. Wilton would like to build a garage, a home and possibly a “self-store” storage unit. Mr. Wilton plans on providing me a site plan in the coming weeks.

4. Various zoning questions

ROBERT S. BROWN

ZONING ADMINISTRATOR [email protected]