Belleville City Council approves appointments made by Mayor Conley

At a 20-minute regular meeting March 7, the Belleville City Council approved Mayor Kerreen Conley’s seven reappointments and appointments to the planning commission and one to the board of review.
A new appointment was that of retired Mayor/Councilman Tom Fielder to fill a vacancy on the planning commission with a term to expire Dec. 31, 2025.
Another new appointment was Cornell Anton, Jr. to the board of review, with a term to expire Dec. 31, 2025.
The council also approved the following reappointments some of which were long overdue:
• Becky Hasen, Mike Renaud, and John Juriga, with terms to expire Dec. 31, 2022; and
• Michael Hawkins, Matt Wagner, and Randy Priest, with terms to expire Dec. 31, 2023.
In other business, the council:
• Agreed to meet at 6 p.m. on April 11 and 13 for departmental budget study sessions. Other dates had been announced previously, but these are the new dates;
• Approved accounts payable of $355,856.79 and a departmental expenditure of more than $500 to Detroit Salt, $2,862.90 for road salt from the DPW budget;
• Heard Councilman Steve Jones say that he would like to have the BORA DORA sidewalk markings placed on the council’s follow-up list. DPW Director Rick Rutherford said this isn’t a good time to paint on sidewalks and it would be better later in the season. Mayor Pro Tem Ken Voigt said they could use a metal stencil. They agreed May might be a better time to paint on sidewalks. Mayor Pro Tem Voigt said the Main/Liberty intersection also should be put on the follow-up list since it is terrible. “If we can’t get a grant, we may have to” spend city funds because it is in really poor shape;
• Heard Juriga invite the council to the 1 to 3 p.m., April 9 open house and dedication of the new Belleville Area District Library. He said they want to put up a large tent and will come to a future meeting of the council for permission;
• Heard Police Chief/City Manager Dave Robinson say they had a “busy, busy day today,” referring to the teenager with a gun at the high school. “Everything went OK and hopefully the individual gets a bit of help.” Chief Robinson and Mayor Conley were slightly late to the council meeting because they had attended a meeting of parents at the high school who wanted to talk about the gun incident; and
• Heard Fielder comment on the statements concerning bad street surfaces in the city. He said the previous Downtown Development Authority, when it looked at the repairs needed for Main Street, decided to do it right and completely redo the street. He said there were less expensive ways to do it, but “the DDA chose to do it the right way.” He said Belleville Road, just over the bridge, was repaired last year by the county and now is breaking up again. “There’s a tremendous difference with Van Buren Township on the other side of the bridge.” Fielder also asked the administration to post the city’s meetings on its website so residents would know when the meetings are being held.