Belleville City Council OKs sending engineer to assess Veterans Memorial

After a lengthy presentation by Cornell Anton at Monday’s Belleville City Council meeting, the council voted unanimously to send Hennessey Engineers to evaluate the Veterans’ Memorial and to bring back a cost estimate for repairs.
Anton gave a report on the history of the monument, which was built by private donations.
He said he is working on a project to bring forth stories on the lives and deaths of each of the 51 veterans from Belleville that died in the line of duty. Those are the names that are engraved on the monument.
Anton had provided pictures of the details of the monument that need attention, including the rear wall, loose railing, bricks that need to be reset, and three flagpoles that need to be reset.
He said the four-inch movement to the POW flagpole has so much movement that, “I expect it to be lying down by the kayak launch.”
Anton said the monument was dedicated 24 years ago and six years later it needed repairs.
“Now, after 15 years of weather, we’re at it again,” he said.
Anton asked the council to honor its resolution passed Sept. 6, 2002 establishing the Veterans’ Memorial Trust Fund “… to set aside certain revenues for the care and maintenance of the Veterans’ Memorial.”
He asked the council to take action to “rectify the existing condition of the Veterans’ Memorial.”
Councilman Tom Fielder claimed credit for suggesting compiling the histories of those named on the monument, “and Cornell ran with it. I’d like us to at least have Hennessey go down there and evaluate it … whether it’s done [repaired] by the city or community…”
Then he made the formal motion to send the engineers over to find a proposed solution for repairs and a cost estimate and the council passed it.
Mayor Pro Tem Jack Loria was not present at that meeting or the past few meetings. City Manager Diana Kollmeyer explained that he was recovering from surgery.
In other business at Monday’s meeting, the council:
• Heard Mayor Kerreen Conley announce that the city just received approval to start construction of the kayak launch and attendant amenities;
• Approved the mayor’s appointment of Douglas Dalton to the Civil Service Commission with a term to expire May 31, 2018. This is Mayor Conley’s second appointment to the CSC, with one appointment left to go. Although she let all the memberships in the CSC sit vacant last year, voters rejected her request to abolish the commission;
• Agreed the goal is to resolve budget issues and approve the budget June 4 after a public hearing. Fielder said they could adjourn that council meeting with the budget and reconvene it at the next regular meeting to get extra time to work on the budget legally;
• Approved Bill Van Winkle’s request from the Canton Lions Club to collect donations to support the blind and hearing impaired. Lions members will be out on Main Street from Five Points to the Bridge on Fridays, May 22 and 29, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Van Winkle said since the volunteers are getting old, they probably won’t be out there past 3 p.m.;
• Approved the annual resolution to continue the 80%-20% split for payment of healthcare premiums by all city employees; and
• Approved accounts payable of $74,666.64 and the following departmental purchases in excess of $500: Blue Ribbon, sewer repair at 164 Main, $7,920 from water fund; Crawford Door, garage door repair, $530 from general fund; Duraware Corp., equipment replacement, $1,253 from the fire dept.; F&R Automotive, vehicle maintenance, $2,344.28 from the police dept.; Hennessey Engineers, gas main project, $5,394.27 from Trust fund, and sewer engineering, $4,400 from water dept.; Oakland County Treasurer, CLEMIS membership, $2,428.25 from police dept.; and Wayne County Accounts Receivable, prisoner lodging, $1,435 from police dept.