**APPROVED MINUTES**
Mason, Michigan
May 27, 2008
The Board of Ingham County Road Commissioners met for a regular meeting on Tuesday, May 27, 2008, at 5:00 P.M. in the Board Room of the Ingham County Road Commission’s Austin E. Cavanaugh Administration Building located at 301 N. Bush Street, Mason, Michigan.
Present:
Larry R. Smith, Chair, Joseph A. Guenther, Vice Chair (late arrival due
to prior commitment), and Shirley M. Rodgers, Member.
Also Present:
William M. Conklin, Managing Director, Deborah L. Bellows, Secretary to
the Board, Francisco J. Llinas, Permits/Development Supervisor, and James L.
Charles, Interim Director of Operations, and Peter A. Cohl, Labor Counsel for
the Board.
Others Present:
Will Comstock, Eastern District employee.
AGENDA ITEM #4 – MEETING
WITH LABOR COUNSEL.
Moved by
Commissioner Rodgers and Supported by Commissioner Smith, that the Board enter
closed session at 5:05 P.M. for the purpose of discussing pending labor
contract negotiations with its labor counsel, Peter A. Cohl. Roll call vote: Commissioner Smith, yes, Commissioner Guenther, late arrival,
Commissioner Rodgers, yes. 2 yes, 1
excused. Motion carried.
Moved by
Commissioner Rodgers and Supported by Commissioner Guenther, that the Board
return to open session at 5:45 P.M.
Roll call vote: Commissioner
Smith, yes, Commissioner Guenther, yes, Commissioner Rodgers, yes. 3 yes, 0 no. Motion carried unanimously.
AGENDA ITEM #5 – CONSENT.
Moved by
Commissioner Guenther and Supported by Commissioner Rodgers, that the following
items be approved under consent:
A. Agenda
Item #7 – Routine and Special Permits (except Permit #08-0177 and Permit
#08-0210, which were pulled for additional discussion/information).
B. Agenda Item #11A – Accounts Payable.
3 yes, 0 no. Motion carried unanimously.
Agenda Item #7 – Routine & Special Permits.
Moved by
Commissioner Guenther and Supported by Commissioner Rodgers, that routine and
special permits be approved as follows:
07-0749 08-0191 08-0195 08-0196 08-0200 08-0201
08-0202 08-0209 08-0211 08-0212 08-0219 08-0223
08-0225 08-0226 08-0227 08-0228 08-0229 08-0233
08-0235 08-0238 08-0147 08-0185 08-0197 08-0198
08-0199 08-0204 08-0205 08-0206 08-0207 08-0220
08-0221 08-0224 08-0230 08-0231 08-0232 08-0236
A. Permit #08-0166 applied for by Kinawa Middle School to sponsor the Chieftan Challenge, a mile run for school aged kids, to be held on June 4, 2008, from 12:50 pm to 1:30 pm. The event is sanctioned by Meridian Township.
B. Permit #08-0213 applied for by Delta Dental to sponsor a 5k walk/run for a fundraiser to benefit Ronald McDonald House to be held on June 21, 2008, from 9:00 am to 10:00 am. The event is sanctioned by Meridian Township.
C. Permit #08-0214 applied for by Meridian Plumbing to sponsor a 5k run/walk to benefit the Greater Lansing Food Bank, on July 20, 2008, from 9:00 am to 10:30 am. The event is sanctioned by Meridian Township.
D. Permit #08-0217 applied for by Cure Kids Cancer/Sparrow Pediatric Program Fund, to hang a banner over Hamilton Road to promote Max’s Race, a fundraiser, to be held on June 13, 2008, through June 20, 2008. The event is sanctioned by Meridian Township.
3 yes, 0 no. Motion carried unanimously.
Agenda Item #11A – Accounts Payable.
Moved by
Commissioner Guenther and Supported by Commissioner Rodgers, that the accounts
payable for the period of April 28-May 11, 2008, be approved as follows: check numbers #90745 through #90808,
totaling $191,964.75. 3 yes, 0 no. Motion carried unanimously.
AGENDA ITEM #6 – SPECIAL
PERMITS FOR DISCUSSION.
Chair Larry Smith
stated he wanted to discuss Permit #08-0177, applied for by the Meridian
Township DDA for, among other locations, a beautification project which
includes placing plantings in various road rights of way, including the roundabout
located at Marsh Road and Hamilton Road.
Chair Smith said he just wanted to make sure that there will be no
memorials erected in the roundabout and that if necessary and/or required by
the Road Commission for whatever reason, the plantings would be removed and/or
replaced by the township DDA.
Commissioner
Guenther stated he would not want to see anything substantial planted in the
roundabout that might attract loitering in the area as this could create
liability problems.
Managing Director
Bill Conklin stated that it is quite common now for roundabouts to be
landscaped. He stated the intent is to
plant flowers which will not grow to more than six inches high. Commissioner Guenther stated that flowers
attract bees.
Commissioner
Rodgers stated in light of the Board having prior knowledge of this permit
coming in for approval, why wasn’t the face page of it included in the Board’s
agenda packet. Permits/Development
Supervisor Frank Llinas stated that is because of the difference between routine
and special permits. Routine permits
are not copied and included in the agenda packets. This particular permit was submitted under the routine permit
listing. Commissioner Rodgers stated
perhaps permits for plantings in the road rights of way should be treated as
special permits. Vice Chair Guenther
stated the Board did not have prior knowledge of this permit and he would not
have expected staff to know that the permit needed to be pulled and copied.
Mr. Conklin stated
from an engineering point of view, the plantings in the roundabout are not a
problem. Typically, roundabouts have
landscaping in them. Vice Chair
Guenther stated he did not want the Road Commission to become liable for
plantings in any road right of way, and especially inside roundabouts. Commissioner Rodgers suggested the Road
Commission adopt a policy regarding landscaping in roundabouts and what will,
and will not, be accepted. Vice Chair
Guenther said that the policy should also include who would maintain
landscaping in a roundabout.
Vice Chair Guenther
stated that in lieu of a policy right now for this particular permit, a
condition of the permit should be that plantings are not to be more than six
inches in height, they will be maintained by the township, and no memorials shall
be erected in the roundabout area.
Chair Smith stated that if something happens to the plantings in the
roundabout and they have to be replaced, the Road Commission will not be liable
for replacing them.
Moved by
Commissioner Guenther and Supported by Commissioner Rodgers that Permit
#08-0177, which has been applied for by the Meridian Township DDA requesting
permission to place six inch plantings within the roundabout area of the
roundabout located at Hamilton Road and Marsh Road, be approved with the
following conditions: 1) all plantings
within the roundabout area shall be a maximum height of six inches, 2) there
shall at no time be memorials of any kind erected in the roundabout area, 3)
all plantings located in any road right of way and within the roundabout area,
will be maintained and/or replaced by the permitee, and, 4) this permit
approval is granted for one year only.
3 yes, 0 no. Motion carried
unanimously.
Special Permit #08-0210. Commissioner Rodgers
asked why this permit was being brought to the
Board for approval
after the fact. She said that the date
it was signed by the County Highway Engineer was May 13th, the date
of the last meeting. While she does not
like to have add-ons to the agenda, she stated that she would prefer to do that
rather than approving permits for events after the fact.
Permits/Development
Supervisor Frank Llinas stated that sometimes there is quite an approval
process for the permittee to go through, especially through the township
processes. He stated that he does not
release the permits on our end until all the proper required documentation is
received. Often times, by the time this
is accomplished and either sent to the Road Commission by the township, or
receipt of all the required documentation is received by the Road Commission,
it is too late to get on the agenda, so the permit is approved in-house by
either the Managing Director or the Director of Engineering/County Highway
Engineer, and then Board confirmation of the event is sought for the next meeting. This is done quite frequently.
Vice Chair Guenther
stated he had the same question three years ago when he first started and he
received the same answer. He confirmed
this occurs quite frequently and sometimes it is very difficult to get the permits
on the Board agenda before the event occurs.
AGENDA ITEM #8 – MANAGING
DIRECTOR REPORTS.
A. Managing Director Bill Conklin
reviewed the EEOC Statistical Information on the 2008 seasonal road and
engineering positions.
B. Mr. Conklin passed out information
received at the recent roundabout conference he and Dan Troia attended. He said this is not for discussion now, but
at some point in the future he would like to review it in more detail,
particularly proposed policy formats that he obtained and information learned
about pedestrian signals required for roundabouts for persons with disabilities
and how this will affect the proposed 2008 construction of the roundabout at
Cedar Street and Holbrook Drive in Delhi Township.
AGENDA ITEM #9A – MERIDIAN FARMS
SUBDIVISION.
Permits/Development
Supervisor Francisco Llinas reported to the Board that in 1985, Mr. Robert
Templeton initiated the process of a land division for a parcel of land located
in part of Section 17 of Williamstown Township. The Meridian Farms Plat was created to access rural parcels of
land with most of the lots being ten acres or more. Williamstown Township required Mr. Templeton to construct a
public road before approval of the land split, thus Damon Road was built. Damon Road was constructed in two phases.
Mr. Llinas
continued that Damon Road was built in accordance with the Ingham County Road
Commission’s Procedures for Plat Street Development of 1980, except
installation of a permanent turnaround was delayed by agreement. Road construction plans were approved that
included rural road construction with bituminous surfacing in accordance with
approved construction plans. A
temporary turnaround was used for the first phase of 1320 feet of roadway with
the option that if the road was not extended east as a public road within a
reasonable amount of time, the turnaround was to be upgraded with a full size
cul-de-sac.
Mr. Llinas stated
the chronological order of events for Phase 1 is as follows:
1. Preliminary Site Plan was approved by
the Board on July 24, 1986.
2. On March
5, 1987, the Road Commission Board re-approved the Meridian Farms Preliminary
Plat and extension of Damon Road easterly an additional 559 feet.
3. On
September 3, 1987, upon recommendation of the county engineer, the Road
Commission Board approved the Meridian Farms Final Plat and accepted
jurisdiction of Damon Road as a public road for Phase 1 of the development.
4. A
temporary easement large enough to construct a cul-de-sac, as platted, was
obtained by the Road Commission.
5. Phase 2
was built and on February 15, 1990, the Board granted final approval of the
development and accepted jurisdiction of Damon Road Phase 2.
6. During the
final approval process, Mr. Templeton provided the Road Commission with a
Warranty Deed for Phase 2, two Temporary Turnaround easements and a Cul-de-sac
Construction Agreement in the amount of $2,800.00.
Mr. Llinas said
that the Board and Mr. Templeton signed a Cul-de-sac Construction Agreement in
the amount of $2,800.00 to ensure that a proper turnaround was built at the end
of Damon Road. The balance of the
account in 2008 is approximately $4,000.000.
The cul-de-sac was never built.
A copy of the Cul-de-sac agreement is not part of the file; but it is
listed as a document that was approved by the Board in its resolution of
February 15, 1990.
Now, it should be
noted here that late last year the Accounting Coordinator expressed concern
regarding the fact that Mason State Bank, who was holding the money, was
charging fees for keeping these funds in an in-active account. She was convinced that the Road Commission
should move the funds to an account that would not charge fees. In November or December of 2007, Larry Smith
and then Interim Managing Director Sandy Montgomery, signed a joint request to
Mason State Bank to close out the account and transfer the money to a different
Road Commission account. Shortly after
that, Mr. Templeton apparently tried to either withdraw the money from Mason
State Bank; or Mason State Bank notified him that there had been activity on
the account. Mr. Templeton then
contacted the Road Commission and his county commissioner and, in essence, has
accused the Road Commission of stealing the money from him. Mr. Llinas has had several conversations
with Mr. Templeton, and upon his request, Mr. Templeton has refused to provide
the Road Commission with a copy of his copy of the Cul-de-sac Agreement.
Mr. Llinas stated
that the Road Commission has temporary turnaround easements at the end of Damon
Road in order to provide adequate turnarounds for snow removal equipment. Now comes present day, and Mr. Conklin
stated that the homeowners at the end of Damon Road are aware of the turnaround
easements and do not wish to have a full blown cul-de-sac constructed at this
location. The Williamstown Township
Supervisor has expressed an interest in having improvements made to Damon Road
n 2008, using their local road matching funds.
Mr. Conklin stated he would like to retain the funds on file from Mr.
Templeton because he did not fulfill his obligation to construct a proper
turnaround, or cul-de-sac, in order to make improvements to the driveways and
construct a 3-point turn around for vehicles.
RESOLUTION TO
RETAIN FUNDS ON DEPOSIT FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF A CUL-DE-SAC AT THE END OF
DAMON ROAD IN WILLIAMSTOWN TOWNSHIP.
RESOLUTION #044-08
Moved by
Commissioner Guenther and Supported by Commissioner Rodgers. 3 yes, 0 no. Resolution carried unanimously.
BE IT RESOLVED that
upon recommendation of the Managing Director and the Permits/Development
Supervisor, the Board authorizes staff to utilize the deposit on file in the
amount of $2,800.00 plus accumulated interest, which was placed by Mr. Robert
D. Templeton in 1990 in order to ensure the construction of a cul-de-sac at the
end of Damon Road in Meridian Farms Subdivision, Williamstown Township. The funds will be used to construct a
hammerhead-type turnaround at the end of Damon Road in conjunction with local
road improvements being considered to be accomplished in 2008 on Damon Road.
AGENDA ITEM #9B – THE
GARDENS PUD IN DELHI CHARTER TOWNSHIP.
Permits/Development
Supervisor Francisco Llinas reviewed his recommendation for the approval of the
road construction located in The Gardens PUD Phase 2 development located in Section
25 of Delhi Charter Township. All
required documentation has been received and there are three streets to be
accepted into the county road system.
Mr. Llinas said there is also a Bituminous Pavement Agreement to be
signed by the Board, which has been secured by a Letter of Credit in the amount
of $49,000.00.
RESOLUTION
APPROVING THE FINAL SITE PLAN FOR THE GARDENS PLANNED UNIT DEVELOPMENT PHASE 2
IN DELHI CHARTER TOWNSHIP.
RESOLUTION #045-08
Moved by
Commissioner Guenther and Supported by Commissioner Rodgers. 3 yes, 0 no. Resolution carried unanimously.
BE IT RESOLVED that
upon recommendation of the Permits/Development Supervisor, the Board approves
the Final Site Plan for The Gardens Planned Unit Development Phase 2 which is
located in Section 25 of Delhi Charter Township. The proprietor is Delhi Gardens LLC (Mitch Fannon). The Board also approves and signs a
Bituminous Pavement Agreement in the amount of $49,000.00 and accepts the
following roads into the county road system:
Fernwood Lane, Beal Lane and Matthaei Court.
AGENDA ITEM #10A –
AGREEMENT WITH VILLAGE OF WEBBERVILLE FOR CHIP SEAL ON GRAMER ROAD.
Interim Director of
Operations Jim Charles reviewed his recommendation to approve an Agreement with
the Village of Webberville to have the Road Commission perform chip sealing on
Gramer Road between Grand River Avenue and the Leroy/Locke Township Line. He stated the over the years, the Road
Commission has performed activities for other governmental entities because the
cost would be prohibitive otherwise.
The Road Commission crews will perform the chip seal project on Gramer
Road, with the Village of Webberville paying the entire cost of the
project. The project will include
placing bituminous pads and a chip seal surface to the roadway.
RESOLUTION
APPROVING AGREEMENT WITH THE VILLAGE OF WEBBERVILLE FOR IMPROVEMENTS TO BE MADE
ON GRAMER ROAD.
RESOLUTION #046-08
Moved by
Commissioner Rodgers and Supported by Commissioner Guenther. 3 yes, 0 no. Resolution carried unanimously.
BE IT RESOLVED that
upon recommendation of the Interim Director of Operations, the Board approves
and signs an Agreement with the Village of Webberville for the Road Commission
to apply bituminous pads and a chip seal surface to Gramer Road between Grand
River Avenue and the Leroy/Locke Township Line. The Village of Webberville will pay the entire cost of the
project.
AGENDA ITEM #11B – VOTE FOR
AMENDMENTS TO THE CRAM CONSTITUTION.
Managing Director
Bill Conklin stated CRAM has sent out a ballot for changes in the service
fees. He said basically, this is a
technical correction to bring this up to date and show what is currently being
done. These changes were approved with
annual incremental increases in 2000 and have not changed since the last
incremental increase in 2003. Any
future proposed increase in the service fees would require a vote of the
membership. He recommended voting yes
on the ballot.
Moved by
Commissioner Guenther and Supported by Commissioner Rodgers, that upon
recommendation of the Managing Director, the Board casts a vote of yes on the
CRAM service fees ballot, and directs the Board Secretary to return the ballot
to CRAM in the provided unmarked envelope.
AGENDA ITEM #11C –
RATIFICATION OF OPEIU LOCAL 512 LABOR AGREEMENT.
RESOLUTION RATIFYING
THE RECENTLY TENTATIVELY AGREED TO LABOR AGREEMENT WITH OPEIU LOCAL 512
EMPLOYEES OF THE INGHAM COUNTY ROAD COMMISSION.
RESOLUTION #047-08
Moved by
Commissioner Guenther and Supported by Commissioner Rodgers. 3 yes, 0 no. Resolution carried unanimously.
BE IT RESOLVED that
upon recommendation of the Board’s labor counsel, the Board approves and
ratifies the tentative agreement, as reviewed and recommended by Peter A. Cohl,
the Board’s labor counsel, that has been reached with OPEIU Local 512 employees
of the Ingham County Road Commission.
AGENDA ITEM #11D – ANNUAL
MCRCSIP CONFERENCE.
Chair Smith asked
if anyone was going to attend the annual MCRCSIP conference this year. It is at the Soaring Eagle Casino and Resort
in Mt. Pleasant on July 16 and 17. None
of the commissioners expressed an interest in going this year. Managing Director Conklin stated he is not
available on those dates. Chair Smith
stated then that no one from Ingham would attend the 2008 conference.
AGENDA ITEM #11E – MDOT CONTRACT
FOR THE HASLETT ROAD-OKEMOS ROAD INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENTS IN 2008.
Managing Director
Conklin reviewed and recommended for approval and signing, the MDOT contract
for the intersection improvements planned for 2008 at Haslett Road and Okemos
Road.
RESOLUTION
AUTHORIZING ENTERING INTO A CONTRACT WITH THE MICHIGAN DEPARTMENT OF
TRANSPORTATION FOR INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENTS AT HASLETT & OKEMOS ROADS
LOCATED IN MERIDIAN CHARTER TOWNSHIP.
RESOLUTION #048-08
Moved by Commissioner Guenther and
Supported by Commissioner Rodgers. 3
yes, 0 no. Resolution carried
unanimously.
WHEREAS, a Contract has been presented
to the Board of Ingham County Road Commissioners for approval by and between
the Michigan Department of Transportation (herein referred to as the
Department) and the Board of Ingham County Road Commissioners (herein referred
to as Requesting Party); and
WHEREAS, in said Contract the Department
and the Requesting Party agree to the following improvements:
PART
A – FEDERAL PARTICIPATION
Left
turn lane construction and traffic signal work at the intersection of Haslett
Road and Okemos Road, including grading, drainage improvements, concrete curb
and gutter, hot mix asphalt paving, pavement markings, and slope restoration
work; and all together with necessary related work.
PART
B – NO FEDERAL PARTICIPATION
Storm
sewer reconstruction work not required by the construction of the left turn
lanes at the intersection of Haslett Road and Okemos Road; and all together
with necessary related work.
WHEREAS, the Requesting Party is fully
cognizant of the terms and conditions of the Contract as prepared and presented
by the Department.
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the
Requesting Party authorizes its Chair and its Secretary to execute this
Contract on behalf of the Requesting Party; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the total
estimated cost for this project is as follows:
Job Number 102209 Control
Section CM 33400
MDOT Contract No. 08-5201 Project
No. CM 0833 (018)
Federal Item No. RR 6394 CFDA
No. 20.205
CONTRACTED WORK
PART A PART
B TOTAL
Estimated Cost $358,000 $ 11,300 $369,300
Grand Total
Estimated Cost $358,000 $ 11,300 $369,300
Less Federal
Funds $286,400 $ 00 $286,400
Balance
(Requesting Party’s Share) $ 71,600 $
11,300 $
82,900
NO DEPOSIT REQUIRED.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Requesting Party
has designated Mr. Richard Phillips as project engineer:
Business
Address: 301 Bush Street, Mason, Michigan 48854
Telephone
Number: 517/676-9722
AGENDA ITEM #11F – LOCAL
ROAD AGREEMENT WITH AURELIUS TOWNSHIP.
Managing Director
Conklin reviewed and recommended for approval, a local road agreement with
Aurelius Township for improvements on Eifert Road between Columbia Road and
Bunker Road.
RESOLUTION
APPROVING LOCAL ROAD AGREEMENT WITH AURELIUS TOWNSHIP.
RESOLUTION #049-08
Moved by
Commissioner Guenther and Supported by Commissioner Rodgers. 3 yes, 0 no. Resolution carried unanimously.
BE IT RESOLVED that
upon recommendation of the Managing Director, the Board approves and signs a
local road agreement with Aurelius Township for 2008 improvements on Eifert
Road between Columbia Road and Bunker Road.
AGENDA ITEM #12A –
COMMUNICATIONS.
A. Letter from State Representative Barb
Byrum regarding the intersection of Grand River Avenue and Zimmer Road. Managing Director Conklin shared a little
history of this intersection with the Board.
He said as he understands, Williamstown Township residents, as well as
the township officials, have been pleading with MDOT for several years for a
traffic signal at this location.
According to the letter from Representative Byrum, MDOT told her that
they are willing to install a traffic signal at this location; however, they
believe that until the angle of the intersection comes closer to 90 degrees, a
traffic signal would only increase the dangers on the roadway. Mr. Conklin said he does not agree with
MDOT’s assessment, and said that the AASHTO manual indicates that 60 degrees is
acceptable. Also, he indicated that
back in 2003 when MDOT was making improvements to Grand River Avenue along this
stretch, the then Managing Director John Midgley wrote and asked them to put in
some wider curbs to accommodate the alignment as long as they were going right by
there with their construction project.
This request was apparently ignored.
Mr. Conklin said that in discussing this with staff, apparently MDOT has
said all along that warrants have not been met to accommodate the installation
of a traffic signal. Maybe they do now,
he doesn’t know, but he will respond to Representative Byrum, contact the
township, and have a discussion with MDOT.
B. Letter from Wheatfield Township with
thanks for removing two maple trees.
Chair Smith asked that this communication be posted at the Eastern
District Garage and shared with everyone.
AGENDA ITEM #13 – BOARD
COMMENTS.
A. Commissioner Rodgers thanked staff
for providing the Board with a copy of the employees’ work schedule for the
summer.
B. Commissioner Guenther thanked
Manager Conklin for being patient with him in not always being able to return
phone calls right away. With his
current work schedule, he is often times very hard to get a hold of. Commissioner Guenther said he is hearing
good things about the Road Commission since Mr. Conklin came aboard. He asked if the Road Commission would be
cutting back on its roadside mowing operations, much like MDOT has had to
do. Mr. Conklin said we probably would
be to some extent. Commissioner
Guenther asked if the Board could be emailed from time to time when these types
of decisions are made. He said it would
help when they are questioned by the public.
If the Board is going to be cutting back on some services, a press
release should be prepared and sent out for the public’s information.
No public comment
was offered. The meeting adjourned at
8:10 P.M.
Larry R. Smith,
Chair Deborah L. Bellows, Board Secretary