Belleville City Council approves more changes for Lake Fest activities

Scott Jones, representing the Belleville Yacht Club, asked the city council at its Monday meeting for use of Horizon Park on June 24 and 25.
The council approved the BYC’s plan to put up two sets of bleachers facing the water plus a small tent for the judges, just past the gazebo. The council approved everything asked for, including closing Hillside Cemetery for the races.
Jones said the BYC got a Department of Natural Resources permit to shut down Belleville Lake for the two days of the BYC’s “Thrill in the ‘Ville” hydroplane races during Lakefest.
He said the course is a mile-long loop between Horizon Park and Hillside Cemetery and the fastest class of boats will go 125 mph.
Jones said the lake will be shut down from noon to 5 p.m. on those two days, with three pauses in the activities for local boaters to get through.
He said there will be seven law enforcement boats present and a dive team.
Jones said they will have another two sets of bleachers on the Denton Road Bridge causeway.
Acting City Manager Steve Jones said in order to keep people from walking on the graves or damaging headstones, they need Hillside Cemetery to be closed from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on those two days.
He said they would use the Independent, post it on the city website, and other means to alert the public. Mayor Kerreen Conley said it should also be posted at the cemetery.
In other business at Monday’s regular meeting, the council:
• Learned there were 18 applicants for the job of city manager and the council will whittle that down to their favorite five or six each and then those candidates will be asked to fill out questionnaires before they are interviewed in person publicly starting at 6 p.m., Tuesday, June 13. If some can’t come in person from out of state, a zoom interview may be allowed, Mayor Conley said. She said she was in favor of choosing the city manager first of the two needing to be replaced because the city manager is the one who selects the police chief. “If we don’t act quickly, we lose them,” Councilwoman Kelly Bates said of the top candidates;
• Held a public hearing on the 2023-24 city budget and then approved it as presented, along with the amended 2022-23 budget. The amended budget included a contribution from the general fund of $27,000 to the cemetery fund to prevent the cemetery fund from being in deficit. Also the budgeted expenditures were less than projected by $121,500, mainly due to legal fees being less than budgeted;
• Approved the same millage rate as last year for the 2023-24 fiscal year: 15.9353 mills. There is no Headlee Rollback this year;
• Learned the city fee schedule is being updated and will be presented at a future meeting for approval;
• Approved Cadillac Asphalt for the repaving of the road in Hillside Cemetery, as recommended by Hennessey Engineers. There were three bidders and Cadillac was the lowest at $216,700.99. Best was at $237,065 and Anglin at $248,085. There are some private donations for the project and so final action on the city’s cost will be presented at an upcoming meeting. Councilman Beebe asked about a contingency of 10% and Acting City Manager Jones said that will have to be added, which is the city’s responsibility. The work includes pulverizing the existing ¾ mile roadway and using it as a base for the 3” depth paving of new asphalt;
• Approved Social District Permits for Baan Phadthai, 528 Main St., and Gloria Jean Café, 519 Main St., as required by the state for businesses to take part in the local DORA program. DORA allows people to buy a special cup at a participating bar and walk while drinking alcohol over an area of the city from the bridge to the gazebo at Horizon Park and down Main Street to Third Street;
• Extended the goat trim area as recommended by Mayor Pro-Tem Ken Voigt to include the area behind the Welcome to Belleville sign next to Hayward’s and the areas along both sides of the causeway to the Denton Road Bridge. Additional cost is $1,200. The goats originally were hired to trim along Belleville Lake in Horizon Park;
• Approved accounts payable of $81,201.06 and the following departmental purchases in excess of $500: to Lacal Equipment Inc., $527.80 for brooms for the street sweeper; to Mueller, $2,901.24 for remote readers for water meters, $2,915.89 for water meter reading system maintenance agreement, and $3,635.52 for remote readers for water meters. Building Official Rick Rutherford explained there were supply chain issues that caused problems with the billings;
• Heard Acting City Manager Jones report that last Friday the city was notified by Van Buren Township that it will not be able to help transport the city’s seniors and handicapped. Mayor Conley said they are not willing to expand their services and Jones is looking into options. Jones said data is needed from Jennifer Delano of Wheels for Independence on how many people need rides. Clerk Briana Hootman said they could look over the records from the last few years the SMART bus transported people under Wheels for Independence;
• Heard Planning Commissioner Randy Priest say, “Sidewalks is my middle name” and offer suggestions for improving the sidewalks in the city;
• Heard Therese Antoinelli, president of the chamber of commerce, say she knows the city doesn’t have a strong parks and recreation committee, but she was for extending the kayak docks so more people could dock there. Scott Jones said he would give docks to the city that he has available. He said they are the same system, installed by the same company as the city’s kayak dock. Jones said they are considered temporary docks so there shouldn’t be a problem with getting approval to move them;
• Heard Mike Renaud say he was frustrated by not being able to get the budget on the city’s website in order to study it before the meeting and comment on it at the public hearing. Renaud retired from Ford Motor Co. as a financial officer and often comments on city proposals. Acting City Manager Jones said he would look into it; and
• Thanked Redemption Bible Church, which meets at the Methodist Church, for the 40 people who showed up and cleaned Horizon Park from the gazebo to the rest room. They also stained the wood on the rose arbor. Also thanked was the Rotary Club for their annual clean up of Victory Park.