The Austin Township Board Meeting was called to order on January 11, 2011 at 7:30 p.m. by Supervisor Kenneth Vredenburg at the Township Hall at 14132 Pierce Rd, Stanwood, MI, 49346.
Present were Kenneth Vredenburg, Carolyn Towsley, Elizabeth G. Carr, John Brockway, and John Conforte.
There was no Public Comment.
Minutes: Moved by Carolyn Towsley, supported by John Brockway to approve the minutes as written. Motion carried.
Treasurer’s Report: Independent Bank CD # 1045 was switched to a 14 month CD with 1% interest. Moved by Elizabeth G. Carr, supported by John Brockway to approve the Treasurer’s Report. Carried subject to audit.
Payment of the bills: The EFTPS payments will be coming out of the Austin Township-$824.58, Fire Department -$1354.84, and the First Responder accounts. I don’t have the total of the First Responder payment yet until their paychecks are written. Moved by John Conforte, supported by John Brockway to pay the bills. Motion carried.
Unfinished Business:
1. Fire Department and First Responder Report: The next Fire Board meeting will be January 19th at 7:00 p.m. The next Joint Township Meeting will be January 20th at 7 p.m. Carolyn Towsley is proposing an amendment (see Insert) on the payment of the bills for the Fire Department and the First Responders. The Mecosta Austin Fire Department was picked in a lottery by the DNR for a choice of used trucks. The Fire Department is hoping to replace two of our trucks with one new truck. They would combine parts from the other two rigs onto the new truck to create a grass rig. However the trucks they looked at didn’t have quite the specifications that the Fire Department is looking for, so they will continue to look and wait for a suitable truck. They should still be able to keep their place in the lottery for a truck until they find what they need.
2. Supervisor and Assessor’s Report: The Tax Tribunal about The Village at Tulleymore is scheduled for 2012. We may need to budget money for our attorney when we do the 2012 Budget. The County Road Commission is saying that we need several ‘No Thru Traffic’ signs on 8 Mile Road. They want to replace the three signs that are already there and add two more. We will have Metro Act money that we can spend. The cost will be about $250.00. Moved by Kenn Vredenburg, supported by John Conforte to purchase five ‘No Thru Traffic’ signs for 8 Mile Road at a cost of $250.00. There were four ayes and one nay. Motion carried. There are no funds for the Buchanan Road project. The Board of Review has been sworn in. The next BOR meetings will be in March.
3. Treasurer’s Report: The Equalization Dept will do our billings again for us next year. I have received the school tax collection letter from Chippewa Hills School District. It has been signed
and returned. I have not received the school tax collection letter from the Morley Stanwood School District yet. It should come soon. The tax collection is coming along well.
4. Clerk’s Report: The Mecosta Osceola Intermediate School District is holding a millage election on February 22, 2011. We need to pass a resolution accepting the NIMS system of emergency management and send it to the Equalization Dept. Resolution 2011-1 to accept the NIMS System as the basis for all incident management in the Township of Austin. Kenn Vredenburg-yes, Carolyn Towsley-yes, John Conforte-yes, John Brockway-yes, and Elizabeth G. Carr-yes. Motion carried.
New Business:
1. Budget: Please work on the budget for next month’s meeting. The Austin Township Board is not asking for any salary changes. The Budget Hearing Meeting will be on March 8, 2012 at 7:30 p.m.
2. Agenda: The Joint Township Meeting agenda should include the Fire Department, First Responders, Cemetery, and roads. It is Austin Township’s turn to host the meeting. The meeting will be on January 20, 2012 at 7:00 p.m.
3. Internet: There is nothing happening with the proposed Verizon towers. There are a couple of companies supposed to be getting grants to bring high speed internet to rural areas. We will have to wait and see what develops.
4. Clerk’s Printer: Moved by Kenn Vredenburg, supported by Carolyn Towsley to purchase an HP Laser Printer from Staples at a cost of $99.00, to be used for the printing of Voter ID cards and Registration Cards. Motion carried.
Adjourned at 9:07 p.m.
Elizabeth G. Carr
Austin Township Clerk