City Council agrees to replace two broken fire hydrants

Two fire hydrants along East Columbia Avenue at Victory Park are broken and have bags over them marking they don’t work.
At the Jan. 21 meeting of the Belleville City Council, a proposal to buy five hydrants at a cost of $15,177.15 was presented, to replace those two and others that are getting old.
DPS Director Melissa Frierson said they would like to start with five to replace old hydrants, especially those that are broken and then go on to replace more.
Mayor Ken Voigt said he would like to have extras on hand in case of emergencies. He asked if they should get six so one extra will be on hand.
Director Frierson said in an emergency she is able to get one in a day from a nearby fire department. She said the city has some hydrants that are from the 1920s and ‘30s.
City manager Jason Smith said the city has a total of 110 hydrants. Cost is about $3,000 each and there is three to six weeks of lead time on orders.
Mayor Voigt asked if the situation is an emergency and city manager Smith replied, “It depends on how close it is to your house.”
Frierson said the two at the park will be scrap when replaced. Mayor-pro tem Kelly Bates suggested they might be good for a dog park.
Those hydrants at the park would be used for hookups when the department fights fires across the street, Frierson said.
Mayor Voigt said he doesn’t like to impose on other fire departments, but for public safety those two should be replaced at once.
The council agreed to buy two fire hydrants at a total cost of $6,070.86 and have Frierson come back with the full list of hydrants needed. Mayor Voigt said that it would be good if they could have the list by budget time.
In other business at the Jan. 21 meeting, the council:
• Heard Mayor Voigt give a State of the City report, noting the city is in pretty good shape. He said the police department is up to full strength and the department has a resource officer and an ordinance officer. He said this year he would like to see a new boardwalk, repairs to the war memorial, and road upgrades and he doesn’t want to raise taxes. It would take $12 million to do it all, he said;
• Two items, a presentation by a bond attorney and a resolution of a proposal to bond for $3.5 million, were removed from the agenda before the meeting;
• Discussed how much residents now are charged to pay their utilities with electronic checks, debit/credit cards, or over the phone. They can still walk in as in the past and pay without an extra fee;
• Was provided the 2024 crime statistics for the city, with the calls for service being 4,276, up from 3,528 in 2023. “We’re getting busier,” said Police Chief Kris Faull;
• Took part in a goal-setting exercise where they got up from the council table and wrote their goals for the different city departments on pieces of paper hung on the wall by city manager Smith. The results will be used to prepare the upcoming budget;
• Renewed the Cityworks software program for another year for $14,580;
• Approved purchase of CINTAS first aid and eyewash stations at the DPW building and city hall. Director Frierson said the detox box at the DPW building had not been maintained and someone should be coming monthly. She said the cost of $600 is to install and then there is a monthly cost to replace whatever is removed. She said it is required by OSHA to have an eyewash station on wheels. Chief Faull said police have an eyewash station upstairs at city hall, but that is not handicapped accessible. The council approved a station downstairs. The total price was not announced;
• Approved the request of Tiger Village for a charitable gaming license. After approval by the city, the request goes on to the state for approval. Greg Cooper, a retired teacher and president of Tiger Village, explained that the program rewards student academic progress with cash and they need to raise funds. He said they would not raise funds at football games, because that’s when the football supporters have their time. They were planning to have their sales at basketball games. He said there are 30 students now in the program and only seven will get the cash award;
• Went into closed-door session to discuss tentative union agreements with the Police Officers Association of Michigan and the GELC unions.