Village of Constantine

Regular Council Meeting
October 19, 2009
Council Room, 7:30 PM

President Weiss called the Regular October 19, 2009 Meeting of the Constantine Village Council to order at 7:30PM at the Village Hall.

ROLL CALL
Present at Roll Call: Trustees Brewer, Brown, Harder, LaFluer, Mathers and President Weiss. Also present: Manager Honeysett, Treasurer Strawser, Administrative Assistant Lammott and Clerk Strawser. Absent: Trustee Moore. The pledge of allegiance followed Roll Call.

AGENDA
Motion by Mathers, Seconded by Brewer, to approve the agenda as presented. Motion passed by affirmation 6 – 0. Absent: Moore.

MINUTES
Motion by Harder, Seconded by LaFluer, to approve the Regular October 5, 2009 Meeting minutes as presented. Motion passed by affirmation 6 – 0. Absent: Moore.

PAYMENT OF THE BILLS
In response to questions, Manager Honeysett said they are seeking a grant to help update the downtown’s historic lights which are aging out. He explained that the Incubator window replacement and State Farm decal and the “space for rent” sign were reimbursables that the DDA would pay for. Administrative Assistant Lammott explained that employee insurance charges are spread by department.

Motion by Brewer, Seconded by Harder, to pay the bills and make the necessary transfers totaling $49,449.27. Motion passed by Roll Call 6 – 0. Absent: Moore.

AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION
Clerk Strawser advocated council members attendance at the November 2009 Elected Officials Academy in Kalamazoo.

Fire Chief Haydon entered at 7:50PM.

PUBLIC HEARING – SIGNATURE BUILDING INITIATIVE GRANT – 130 E. WATER ST.
President Weiss opened the Public Hearing to hear comment on the request to apply for a Signature Building Grant on the building at 130 E. Water Street to order at 742PM.

Treasurer Strawser, citing financial cuts at the state level, and current and anticipated Village financial obligation, asked the Council to be mindful of how they spend tax dollars. President Weiss responded that her cited costs were not from [Village] Council funds, rather from DDA accounts and the Dell Lawsuit money.

President Weiss closed the Public Hearing at 7:45PM.

CONSENT AGENDA
Manager Honeysett read the list of meetings he attended in September, asking Council to strike the September 15 th Rotary meeting, as he missed that meeting, but attended the other four.

In response to questions, he said the St. Joseph County EDC meeting involved ways to help MSUE’s Brad Neumann remain employed, and that SOSAC, formerly known as the [school’s] Excellence Committee dealt with marketing and general ideas.

Police Commissioner Brewer gave a synopsis of the September 2009 Police Department report. He said there was an improvement in the number of tickets written. Manger Honeysett said that all officers are radar certified, which should also improve ticket writing. Police Chief Bedell announced a spaghetti dinner fundraiser at the American Legion, October 23 rd, to help raise money to replace the Three Rivers Police K-9; the [now deceased] police dog useful to other departments.

DPW Commissioner Harder gave a synopsis of the September 2009 DPW report. The DPW’s Marcus Woltke was praised for saving the Village money by building the box and other adaptations to the Village leaf machine, in time for leaf pickup. Trustee Harder explained that the Heffner’s Tree Service works on Village trees too close to power lines or too large for the DPW to handle.

Manager Honeysett read the September 2009 Fire Department report. Firefighter Douglas Lawrence has completed Fire Fighter II certification. Fire Chief Haydon reported a high monthly call volume for the Village in September; the majority of all calls were medical rescues. He also explained that medical services bill was for required annual SCBA respiratory fit testing.

Manager Honeysett exited at 7:56PM. Re-entered at 7:57PM.

Motion by Mathers, Seconded by Brewer, to accept and file the Manager’s and Commissioners’ reports. Motion passed by affirmation 6 – 0. Absent: Moore.

SIGNATURE BUILDING INITIATIVE GRANT – 130 EAST WATER STREET Trustees questions and discussion centered on the grant’s timeline, the financial obligations of the proposed grant and the possible risk to the Village should the business fail or the grantees default. President Weiss asked that the resolution include an authorization to apply for the grant.

Motion by Brewer, Seconded by Brown, to adopt Resolution No. 09-03. Motion passed by Roll Call 6 – 0. Absent: Moore.

RESOLUTION 09-03

SIGNATURE BUILDING INITIATIVE GRANT – 130 EAST WATER STREET

WHEREAS, the Village of Constantine has received approval for the Notice of Intent for the Strategic Building Initiative Program through the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, and

WHEREAS, the property to be purchased and rehabilitated is located at 130 East Water Street in Constantine, Michigan, and

WHEREAS, the SBI project is consistent with the village’s commitment to restoring its downtown through the rehabilitation of its buildings and the promotion of new shops and businesses, and

WHEREAS, funding for the project totals $45,000 toward the purchase of the building and $15,000 toward the renovation of the ground floor, and

WHEREAS, the funding for the $45,000 purchase price will be shared by the MEDC in the form of a community development block grant and $11,250 local match, while the $15,000 renovation cost will be borne by the Developer, and

WHEREAS, the proposed project will create at least one full-time job (or its equivalent in part-time employment) and that at least 51% of the created jobs will benefit low and moderate income persons, and

WHEREAS, no project costs will be incurred prior to a formal grant award, completion of the environmental review procedures and formal, written authorization to incur costs s received from MEDC, and

WHEREAS, the MEDC requires a Certifying Officer to be designated by the local unit of government,

NOW THEREFORE, the Constantine Village Council hereby designates the Village Manager Mark Honeysett as its Certifying Officer and authorizes an application for the SBI grant.

UNSAFE BUILDING – 557 OSBORN STREET
Manager Honeysett reported that the Fire Department declined using the house and buildings at 557 Osborn for burn training, so Roberts Brothers Excavating has been notified of their bid award.

SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOL (SR2S)
Manager Honeysett reported that twelve persons met on October 12 th to discuss the SR2S Design Initiative process. The first of several community meetings is set for Monday, November 9 th, with a walking audit to begin at the high school at 3:00PM, a light refreshment time at the high school at 5:00PM, followed by the community meeting at 5:30PM. He said planning was wide open, mentioning that MSUE officials are looking into the possibility of using grant funds for a truck bypass of the schools.

CURED IN PLACE BIDS – WEST WATER STREET
Manager Honeysett reported that RFP’s for Cured in Place Lining in roughly 600 feet of sewer main on West Water Street were mailed to the four (4) companies who bid on such work in the past; the proposals are due back October 29 th and will be presented at the Regular November 2 nd Council meeting.

ENERGY AUDIT UPDATE
Manager Honeysett reported he is working with the DPW’s Hamminga and Bookkeeper Boulette in completing the Rebuild Michigan Enrollment Agreement, with inclusion of all Village buildings and possibly enrolling the Township Hall/Library as well. He said the Village may additional join in the Michigan Municipal League’s Green Initiative as a way to reduce electric, natural gas, and gasoline consumption.

WEST SIXTH STREET RESURFACING
Manager Honeysett explained that the Rural Task Force has already approved 80% grant funding for resurfacing West 6 th Street in the summer of 2010. The Village is responsible for 20% of costs, the money to come from the Major Street Fund.

Motion by Mathers, Seconded by LaFluer, to authorize the Village Manager to contract with Fleis and Vandenbrink of Grand Rapids MI to prepare a preliminary design, a final design and construction engineering for the West Sixth Street resurfacing project at a cost of $13,300.00. Motion passed by Roll Call 6 – 0. Absent: Moore.

METRO ACT RIGHT-OF-WAY PERMIT EXTENSION
Clerk Strawser gave a short history of the METRO Act, saying the previous agreement with AT&T expired in June 2009.

Motion by Brown, Seconded by Harder, to authorize the Village Manager to sign the Metro Act Right-0f-Way Permit Agreement with AT&T. Motion passed by Roll Call 6 – 0. Absent: Moore.

Meeting adjourned at 8:46PM.

Ruth Strawser
Village Clerk