01/10/05 - Minutes
CARROLLTON TOWNSHIP BOARD
DEPARTMENTAL MEETING
Monday, January 10, 2005
Roll Call: Supervisor Kozara Present
Clerk Finazzi Present
Treasurer Riley Present
Trustee Stork Present
Trustee Dalton Present
There being a quorum, Supervisor Kozara called the meeting to order at 5:30 p.m. Also in attendance: Police Chief Craig Oatten, DPW Foreman Dennis Anklam, General Office Clerk-C Mary Corcoran, Administrative Aide Megan King and Office Manager Irene Yeska.
Treasurer Riley noted that he had invited King to the meeting. Finazzi asked why Corcoran was present along with Anklam. She responded that she was there to answer any questions that Anklam could not and that they were there in place of DPS Superintendent Debby Lopez.
Acceptance of Agenda:
Supervisor Kozara stated that he would be removing item #2 – Status of collection of delinquent general invoices, adding item #12 – Liqui-force report, and moving item #4 – Status of renovation plan for the Greenfield Water Pump Station to #1 under pending business. It was moved by Riley and supported by Stork to accept the agenda as amended. There being all ayes, the motion carried.
Pending Business:
Don Scherzer, Spicer Group was present to answer any questions regarding the Greenfield pump station improvements. He presented pictures of the station for the board to review (copies are attached to these minutes). He stated that Lopez was concerned with the piping being very old. Lopez, Anklam, Scherzer and Herb Casey (City of Saginaw) had done a walk-through of the pump station building. The DPW currently use the building for storage. Riley questioned if the City of Saginaw would share in the cost for improvements since, by contract, they are required to maintain the meter pit. Board discussion followed. It was board consensus to have Lopez and Anklam talk to Delta Truss and City of Saginaw to get their views on the possible improvements that Delta Truss is requesting for fire protection.
Board discussion was held as to whether or not the Greenfield improvements (benefiting mostly Saginaw Township users) should be given a funding priority over other areas, which would benefit Carrollton Township users. It was moved by Kozara and supported by Riley to have the DPS work with Spicer Group on developing a priority list of the problem areas in the township water system and to have Kozara sign a proposal agreement with Spicer Group for up to $1,000.00. There being all ayes, the motion carried.
It was moved by Kozara and supported by Stork to appoint to the Compensation Commission: Jeff Boensch – term ending 9/30/06, Caroline Fisher – term ending 9/30/07, Craig Douglas – term ending 9/30/08, and Mark Myczkowiak – term ending 9/30/09. There being all ayes, the motion carried.
It was moved by Riley and supported by Finazzi to approve the plans for the handicap accessibility of the municipal building as designed by Spicer Group. There being all ayes, the motion carried.
Police Chief Craig Oatten informed the board that he was still in the process of obtaining sample ordinances from other college towns referencing how many non-related people might live in a residential home. He stated that once he has more information he would work closely with the Planning Commission. He would like the board to have an ordinance in place by June 2005 for the upcoming school year.
Oatten stated that DPS Superintendent Debby Lopez had asked him to inform the board that two more bids had been received for the parking lot lighting upgrade. He also presented the information papers (from a supply catalog) that had been sent out by Lopez for the bidding. Board discussion followed. Kozara asked Jerry Fritz for his insight. Fritz felt that the papers sent to the bidders were not according to the township bid policy. He stated that the board should properly re-bid the project and include new wiring along with specified light fixtures. DPW laborer Richard Salazar questioned why only the front area lights were being bid out. He felt that the back parking area lights should also be replaced, since both the police officers and the DPW laborers use that area at night. Board discussion followed. It was board consensus to re-bid (as per township policy) the parking lot lighting upgrade (both front and back areas) with detailed specifications, new wiring, and that Finazzi and Dalton should prepare the bid document. They will work with Anklam and Lopez. The three firms (Roenicke Electric, Leddy Electric and Helm Electric) were to be sent the bid document.
Yeska reported that a policy for weed cutting procedures still had not been drafted. It was board directive that the DPS prepare a checklist of their current procedures and submit them to the Clerk's office. Yeska will then prepare a draft policy.
Administrative Aide Megan King stated that the department heads had turned in their budget worksheets on time. She would have General Office Clerk-C Jessi Weiss input the figures over the next couple of days and have the next set of worksheets handed out by the end of the week. Kozara stated that the department heads would then have to fill in their projected costs for the fiscal year 2005-2006 and have them turned in to Yeska by February 7. Kozara stressed his concern with the upcoming cuts in revenue sharing. Yeska noted that the township had dipped into the contingency reserves for the first time in 27 years. Kozara requested that the board members take a serious look at the individual departments, how they are run, and how the township could possibly save money in the future.
Yeska presented the amended Hours of Work Policy to the board. Kozara asked Salazar (Teamsters union steward) to comment. Salazar stated his disapproval with the policy, especially the last sentence: "It is to be understood, that DPW laborers are required to punch in/out for lunch breaks, if they are on the township premises at the location of the DPW garage." He explained that in the past when the lunch punch in/out requirement was the practice, it created too many timecard entry complications. This happened if any type of an emergency situation (sometimes frequent) would come up. They would have to make multiple in/out entries. They ended up scrapping the practice. Removing the last sentence would still give the DPS Superintendent discretion for requiring the punch in/out. Board discussion followed. It was moved by Riley and supported by Stork to amend the Hours of Work Policy with the last sentence removed. There being all ayes, the motion carried. (A copy is attached to these minutes.)
It was moved by Stork and supported by Riley to have the township attorney prepare a new draft of the proposed Resolution #2004-51 (authorizing indemnification of public officers and employees while acting on the behalf of the township) in order to remove the "sweeping" provisions and to replace with language more fitting to township needs. There being all ayes, the motion carried.
Kozara asked the board members for their input on the Mallery rezone request from B-1 to M-1 for north 120 feet of lots 1,2,3,4,5,6 and 7 of Goulds Subdivision, Sec.13. He noted that Zoning Administrator Dale Klein had submitted his report that the township Planning Commission and the Saginaw County Metropolitan Planning Commission had recommended approval.
Stork asked what Sec. 303(3) was. Kozara cited the "additional staff comments" from the preliminary review report prepared by the Saginaw County Metropolitan Planning Commission. It stated that Sec. 303(3) appears in older ordinances in the county, but no one knows where it originated from or why. They encouraged the township to consider deleting Sec. 303(3) in the future.
It was moved by Kozara and supported by Finazzi to adopt Ordinance No. 2005-01Z to rezone from B-1 to M-1 for north 120 feet of lots 1,2,3,4,5,6 and 7 of Goulds Subdivision, Sec.13.
Because Stork had previously opposed this rezone, Riley requested Stork's viewpoint on the rezoning before the roll call vote. Stork strongly expressed his disagreement with rezoning the property to M-1. He felt that the rezoning would decrease the property value of the surrounding homes. He believed that Carrollton should stay a residential community. Yeska brought the 20-year master plan map to the meeting for the board to view. It showed that, with the exception of lots 6 and 7, the rezone was according to the plan. Board discussion followed.
Yeska noted that the owner of the property on the tax roll was Granco Investments. She questioned if Mallery was the owner of Granco Investments. The board would not be able to proceed if Mallery was not the owner, or if Granco had not stated in writing that they approved of Mallery's request. Board discussion followed. In view of the question, Kozara rescinded his motion until these issues were clarified. Finazzi agreed and the motion was withdrawn.
Kozara asked if Liqui-Force was finished inspecting the township's sewer system. Anklam stated that they were approximately 80% done. He expected Lopez to receive a report from them when they had finished.
New Business:
Kozara stated that the utility bills had been sent out on Friday, January 7, 2005. Yeska questioned why the due date and penalty date had been changed without board authorization. She stated that at the January 5 Finance Committee meeting, the directive had been: (1) to leave the regular dates (as set by ordinance) on the bills, (2) the board would authorize extensions at the January 10 meeting, and (3) a letter would be sent with the bills apologizing for the delay in getting them out, and explaining the payment/late charge/shut-off extensions. Corcoran stated that she had not been aware of this; that her objective was simply getting the bills out (with extended dates) as soon as was possible.
Yeska questioned why a parallel billing on the AS400 had not been done in order to provide for a reliable process for an accurate check and balance. Corcoran stated that she had not been advised by New World Systems to do a parallel billing. Her training had been done on the test side first before going live in early December. Her instructions had been to just get the bills out as soon as possible. Board discussion followed. It was board directive to have Yeska check the water and sewer revenues and compare the totals to the last few years to make sure the billing was in line. It was moved by Stork and supported by Dalton to extend the due date for the December 2004 utility bills to January 27, to extend the penalty date to January 28, and to extend the shut-off date to February 8. There being all ayes, the motion carried.
Stork stated that he had called Mary Kay Knoerr, Tittabawassee Township Treasurer regarding her letter requesting that Carrollton join them in seeking legal assistance for filing objection to the bankruptcy lowering of iPCS assessed property values. She informed Stork that they were not pursuing the issue any further. Riley explained that Knoerr's letter had been addressed to him as treasurer. He had not planned on responding to it until the board made their decision. He felt that the board should have all the facts before making a decision to join in any legal actions. Yeska's research found that the Georgia court did have the authority to lower the Michigan assessed value. Also, the lowered value for Carrollton Township was not significant, resulting in only a loss of about $16.00 a year. Further, the assessor had advised that he sets assessed values yearly based on the personal property tax statement which companies submit annually in February. Based on these facts, it was Riley's recommendation that the township decline Tittabawassee's request and to notify them accordingly. It was board consensus that it was not cost effective to pursue legal action and that the treasurer should notify Tittabawassee Township that Carrollton was not interested in participating.
It was moved by Stork and supported by Riley to adopt Resolution #2004-34 to amend the Police Fund Budget by $19,500.00. (A copy is attached to these minutes.)
Roll call vote: Kozara Yes
Finazzi Yes
Riley Yes
Stork Yes
Dalton Yes
There being all ayes, the motion carried.
King informed the board that the IBM PC (cash register) located at the front desk was malfunctioning. The warranty had expired in September and it needed to be replaced. She stated that the hard drive had been replaced two times under warranty and the cost to replace it (and the faulty monitor) was not cost effective. King presented a quote from NetSource One for $1,290.00 for replacement equipment. Board discussion followed. It was moved by Finazzi and supported by Riley to purchase a Dell Optiplex 170L PC with a three-year warranty for $1,290.00. There being all ayes, the motion carried.
Yeska reported to the board that all of the township's delinquent personal property taxes had been collected except for $1,838.21, which will be written off (over three years) because they are no longer collectible. Riley noted that these particular taxes (in any community) are the hardest to collect.
Kozara stated that Carrollton Township's contract with the Saginaw Area Inter Municipality Water Committee (SAIMWC) was to expire on January 31, 2005. He reminded the board that Carrollton did provide the site for the Committee's meetings for the past year. He felt that there were possibly more legal fees in the future that would need to be paid, if we continued our membership in the Committee. He asked the members what their feelings were on continuing for another year. Riley stated that he felt for the amount of money that the township has contributed, there was no real benefit for continuing. Board discussion followed. It was moved by Riley and supported by Finazzi to terminate the membership with the Saginaw Area Inter Municipality Water Committee.
Roll call vote: Riley Yes
Dalton Yes
Stork Yes
Finazzi Yes
Kozara Yes
There being all ayes, the motion carried. Kozara will send a notice of termination, which per terms of the membership agreement, must be 60 days (March 11, 2005) from the notice date.
Oatten informed the board that he would be sending an updated list of the township insured vehicles to the liability carrier, Norm Bamberger for follow through.
Adjournment:
It was moved by Finazzi and supported by Dalton to adjourn. There being all ayes, the meeting adjourned at 9:40 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Joseph Finazzi, Clerk
Public in attendance:
Jerry Fritz 3363 Terry
Richard Salazar 3031 Carla
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