Meeting of the
Presque Isle Township Parks and Recreation Committee
held May 24, 2010

Call to Order: The meeting was called to order at 7:00 pm by Vice-chair Nancy Kinney.

The Pledge of Allegiance was recited.

Roll Call: In attendance were Nancy Kinney, Judy Kimball, Barry Schatz Norma Crouch, Clayton Peters, and Lynn Morrison.

Audience: Also present were Supervisor Patrick Pokorski , Jerry Broad, Jeff Lewis and Alan McConnell.

Minutes - March 15, 2010: L. Morrison made a motion to approve the minutes of the March 15, 2010 meeting as printed. Second by B. Schatz. All ayes; motion carried.
April 10, 2010: C. Peters pointed out that G. Austin needed to be changed to G. Campbell. L. Morrison made a motion to approve the minutes of the April 10, 2010 Special Meeting as printed with the above stated correction. Second by N. Crouch. All ayes; motion carried.
April 19, 2010: L. Morrison made a motion to approve the minutes of the April 19, 2010 meeting as printed. Second by C. Peters. All ayes; motion carried.

Member Items: Items on the agenda were discussed. L. Morrison had a letter regarding the lens grant extension that he would like to address under Correspondence. J. Kimball asked to address repairs to the Old Lighthouse and to discuss her summer programs. N. Kinney added the items under Old Business.

Audience Items: Jeff Lewis and Alan McConnell introduced themselves. They reported that they have recently received their certifications from Wolverine, and are now able to legally purchase and shoot the fireworks. They had some concerns in regards to liability insurance, and asked to be able to review the township's policy to see what type of coverage was extended to them personally. C. Peters gave a key to A. McConnell for the garage to go through the tube and supply inventory. They need to see what condition the old tubes are in and determine how many more need to be ordered. They also need to buy some paint and storage supplies to fix up some of the old equipment. They will get a total together and present it at the Board meeting. They also confirmed that sand was not needed. Wolverine had also asked for permission to place the order ASAP. P. Pokorski gave the go ahead for J. Lewis to get the fireworks ordered. This allows the company to anticipate the need and set aside our package. J. Lewis clarified that if something changes, the order can be returned or cancelled. P. Pokorski asked to have the item of "Paranormal Group" added under New Business.

Agenda Approval: L. Morrison made a motion to approve the agenda with the above stated additions. Second by N. Crouch. All ayes; motion carried.

Correspondence: N. Kinney read a letter from the Long Lake Improvement Assoc. on behalf of themselves and the USDA thanking the township for our help in the 2010 Cormorant depredation project. She also addressed a letter from Dawn Barrett regarding the Township Shadow. All members confirmed that they had also received a copy of the letter. L. Morrison read a letter from Susan Wenzlick that was addressed to Patrick Pokorski and Peter Pettalia regarding the Lens grant extension. In summary, it stated that the contract extension for the lighthouse is in progress. P. Pokorski should be receiving a copy of the DNRE directors' response to Senators Stabenow and Levin. It indicates that the grant will be extended for another year based on their assurance that the lens ownership will be transferred to the Township in the next Coast Guard Authorization Bill (a copy was provided with the letter). P. Pokorski should be receiving copies of the grant extension authorization, which need a signature, within the next couple of weeks. They do all the internal review of the language before sending it to us, so once a signed copy is received back by them, it's a "slam dunk" , and no further review is necessary. P. Pokorski confirmed that he had already received the forms. Members now wanted to know who's "assurance" was given, and what needs to be done to make sure that this Bill will go through and when.

OLD BUSINESS

Park Concession: N. Kinney asked if the contract had been finalized. P. Pokorski confirmed that the one that is in effect now has been.

Budget: N. Kinney asked if a budget had been presented. Members responded that one had not. C. Peters asked if N. Kinney had intentions of taking over as chair. She responded that she only found out yesterday that she was to chair this meeting. C. Peters stated that he spoke to D. Rivard, and he asked C. Peters to tell N. Kinney that he was willing to help her out in any way that he could in regards to a budget if she needed it. She accepted his offer. Some figures were presented and discussed.

CIP Projects/Budget Clean-up:
Road work: C. Peters presented figures for the 1870 park areas 1, 2,3,4,6 & 7 have been completed. Area 5 is the swath. The total approved was $2,000. Currently, with all projects except for #5 complete, the total is at $1,944.06. They would like to use the remaining amount for wild flower seeds. Area #5 was to be started today. He will have a figure of the total cost to complete the project available at next month's meeting. At the Old Lighthouse, Areas 3, 4 and 5 are complete. The estimate for Areas 1 & 5 came in at $3,000. C. Peters seemed to think that they can do it cheaper with volunteers, but it will not be able to be done until fall. This was discussed, and it was decided that due to the season and amount of work that volunteers have already done, that we just pay and have it finished. L. Morrison made a motion to allow for C. Peters to spend up to $3,000 for Ron Urban to complete the road project(s) #1 & 5 at the Old Lighthouse. All ayes; motion carried. Clarification was provided, at the request of J. Kimball, that this project did not encompass replanting. That will be addressed in the fall. It was also confirmed, at the request of B. Schatz, that no turn-out will be needed. The entire road will be widened by 2 ½" ft which will allow for two cars to pass through. Other projects and signage was also discussed.
Birch Trees: The trees behind the 1905 House will need professional attention. There was a recommendation for an arborist to come in and determine what needs to be done. It was decided to wait until fall.
B & R Electric: It was confirmed that all work has been completed. C. Peters has received numerous complements on the new lights.
Old Library: It had been previously suggested to use the building for storage. It was discussed and decided that until a new or additional use is found for the building, and since a workshop/storage facility is needed, that it should be utilized for such a purpose for the time being.
Painting Projects: The base for the 1905 house and tower still need to be sandblasted and painted, but funds have already been approved.
Landscape Plan for Old Lighthouse Park: N. Crouch AND J. KIMBALL had gone to Netta's to get an estimate and an idea for suggestions as to what types of plants to use and how many so that they could have a figure to submit for the budget. They had an estimate of about $2,000 to get the project started. A copy of the sketch was provided to C. Peters and other members. Since no one knew when the painting was going to be completed and when the landscaping could start, L. Morrison made a motion to approve up to $2,000 for landscaping around the Old Lighthouse. J. Kimball seconded. All ayes; motion carried.

Basketball Hoops: L. Morrison reviewed costs and scoped the area, and determined that there was no safe place to install the hoops and didn't think it was a good idea due to liability and safety concerns. They will continue to look for alternative locations. All members agreed.

Repairs to 1905 House: J. Kimball provided some and C. Peters was aware of what repairs needed to be done. They will try to take care of what they can, but some of them will need to be contracted out. A list needs to be organized and prioritized, and now that G. Campbell has been hired, it can be done. C. Peters will prepare a budget for next month. The top priority list item is the 1840 cottage bat problem. G. Campbell has already started, but materials need to be purchased. C. Peters came up with a figure of $250.00 to cover the cost of materials in order to be able to finish the project. L. Morrison made a motion to approve up to $250.00 towards the purchase of materials to alleviate the bat problem at the Old Lighthouse. Second by J. Kimball. All ayes; motion carried. The largest problem with the projects at the 1905 House is that people/volunteers don't know what to do because the designated maintenance person for the Museum Society has not been available.

Summer Programs: J. Kimball reported that she has 4 of the 5 programs set up, and she briefly described each of them. There will be folk singers, a DNRE cougar information session, a program on fresh water ecosystems, the paranormal investigators, and a plant and animal communities program. She anticipates it to cost about $300.00 for this year, but recommends to increase it to $1,000 for the upcoming budget. C. Peters informed that two exterior electrical outlets have been installed out there.

Advertising-Deb Pardike: B. Schatz spoke with D. Pardike and she confirmed that we are linked into their site and he has posted some events. He also informed that the Grand Lake Assoc. expressed their interest in helping out with fundraising and/or events. Fireworks fundraising was also discussed.

NEW BUSINESS

Memorials: C. Peters refreshed on the situation of the gentleman who wanted to donate a bench in memory of his wife. The item had been tabled due to the confusion of where he had wanted to have the bench set. There was discussion regarding this. C. Peters volunteered to meet with him and Mike Grohowski to discuss the location. He has yet to hear back from either of them. Once he knows of the location, he will present it to the committee to discuss. P. Pokorski will contact Mr. Donjakowski to discuss a meeting.

Resignations and replacements: C. Peters had asked to withdraw his resignation. P. Pettalia's position needs to be filled. The process of how to go about choosing a member was discussed. It was agreed to interview people this time. N. Kinney will serve as chair until the new member is added, and they can reorganize at that point.

Paranormal group: P. Pokorski reported that the group from England that came last year is coming again this year on June 6th 4:00. They are part of a 15 episode paranormal program that will be aired on the internet and on TV. They want to do a meet and greet session at 3:00- 4:00 and then start filming around 6:00 or so. Footage from their last visit can be seen on their website at www.spookylocations.com.

Other: N. Kinney reminded everyone to fill out their pay requests. L. Morrison informed of road project at the cemetery and just gave a heads-up that Parks and Rec may be called upon. P. Pokorski updated on the progress. Upcoming volunteer projects and work bees were discussed.

With no further business to discuss, the meeting was adjourned at 9:20 pm.

The next meeting is scheduled for June 28th, 2010 at 7:00 p.m.

Respectfully submitted, Erika M. Comerford