Village of Estral Beach Happenings-March 2016
Danny Swindle, , 586-7205
Calendar
Council Meetings, 1st and 3rd Tuesday, 7:00 pm start
04/23 FREE dump day – Carleton Farms (7:00-12:00)
04/24 Casino Bus Trip, Access Fundraiser, 12:00 to 7:00, $35, $20 back in gambling credit, See Kelli Gearhart or Carol Vandercook for tickets.
New garbage pickup day will be Tuesdays. Carts to be delivered this week.
Garbage
Steven's Disposal contract expired at the end of March. New 5 year contract is with Republic Services. Republic will be supplying a 96 gallon rolling cart to each house for garbage collection at the end of the week. Details on the carts will be provided. The new pickup day will be Tuesdays.
Recycling service at this time is still not cost effective but we are working with Republic to see what can be done. Large waste will be picked up for free with advance notice to Republic’s Customer Service (800) 878-4626. Please be patient during this transition phase. Residents cans sign up for Republic’s My Resource app for smartphones and tablets. This app allows residents to schedule bulk items along with other features. More information on this is available at www.republicservices.com.
Lakeshore Drive Residents - Ordinance 1052 change
Village ordinance 1052 addresses the flood control measures. The agreement with the United States Army Corp of Engineers (USACE) for the Village to operate and maintain these structures expired in 2011. The USACE says the Village’s goal should be to replace these temporary structures with permanent structures. The Village is working withState Representatives to get a bill passed to fundthe USACE to support us in reaching this goal. Please write to your State Representatives tolet them know how important this issue is to the Village. If you need examples for wording and/or contact information, contact Trustee Laurie Sharkus, 5868795, .
Until that time, ordinance 1052 is being revised totransfer the responsibility of maintaining any flood control structure along the lakefront to the property owner (i.e., rock filled cribbings), and should be effective sometime this summer. Please refer to ordinance 1052 before making any changes or repairs to these structures. The clay dikes and pump houses will still be maintained by the Village. Maintenance of the lakefront flood control measures are a FEMA requirement for obtaining home elevation grants, and to protect the Village.
Roads
The Village has received bids to resurface Center Street, Canal Street, Erie & Starlight between Center and Lakeview. Additional Road repairs will be evaluated (i.e., Sovey Street) if money is available. Hennessey Engineers will be contracted with to oversee the project. Please do not tear up Sovey Drive or other roads with your 4-wheelers.
Home-Elevation Grants
To date, four grants have been awarded to elevate homesin the Village as part ofthe FEMA flood mitigation program. Fourteen (14) houses were elevated under the first two grants, and 23 are on the list to be elevated under the current grants (about 20% of the houses in the Village). An application will be submitted for a 5th grant if a sufficient number of homeowners are interested. The grants pay 75% of the cost to elevate the house, with 25% being paid by the homeowner. Any improvements beyond that covered by the grant are paid for 100% by the homeowner (e.g., decide to elevate the house higher than the minimum required). The application and oversight process is very tedious and time consuming, so please ensure you are going to proceed before applying. Money will be required up front to pay for the application and initial cost estimate needed for the application.If you are interested in participating, you need to act while someone is willing to invest the time to put together the paperwork and while the grant is being offered. Contact Dave Emmerich, Grant Administrator, (734) 872-1177.
Dikes
The Village is applying for a USACE/DEQ permit for the north dike sloughing issue. Based on discussions with an engineering firm, the toe of the dike needs to be stabilized, so a culvert or similar structure will be installed to move the standing water away from the dike. Clay will then be installed to build up the dike in that area. In addition, rodent holes will be filled to seal.
Blight
Blight is still an issue in the Village based on resident feedback. Village Ordinances are the law, and ordinances 1019a and 1024 define blight. (Ordinances may be reviewed on the Village website, www.estralbeachvillage.org, or at the Village Hall with prior arrangements.) Other ordinances include 1051 - property maintenance code, 1009 - parking Campers and House Trailers, 1010 - Noxious, poisonous weed, brush and trees, and, 1011 - garbage and rubbish.
The Village Council is responsible for enforcing the ordinances. The Council is not looking to transform the Village into a perfectly groomed neighborhood, but we’re also hearing complaints from residents that do take care of their property asking us why we are not enforcing the blight ordinances. Oh yeah, FREE dump day 04/23/16. Trailers currently used for storage are to be removed and the Michigan Residential Building code will be used for the April 2016 blight observances which address needed building repairs to homes and sheds (e.g., siding falling off, dilapidated sheds, and temporary tenting serving as permanent storage enclosure). The Blight process employed last late fall had three Trustees drive around to perform the observances for validating the observances. Please assist the Village in these efforts to enforce longstanding ordinances, and allow the use of Village funds for other important issues. Be a good neighbor and clean up your blight.
Village Beautification
Most Homeowner Associations and small towns or villages have a Beautification committee. Berlin Township this past year awarded several homes with a beautification award. In years past, John and Sandy Wiegand spearheaded the beautification around the playground tank monument. Michele and Dave Emmerich spearheaded the fencing and landscaping of the pump station at Lakeview and Lakeshore with plans to do the same at the boat launch pump station when the lift station is repaired by Berlin Township.
The changing out of playground equipment and the ground surface material has improved the safety of the playground with more to be accomplished. Realtors have included pictures of the park when advertising Village homes for sale.
Last year, a new Village sign at Port Sunlight/Lakeview was installed – Thank you Ann Knierim for funding the sign in behalf of Hank “Dan” Knierim who hated the bullet riddled sign at the hump. Also, thanks to Carl Frank, Dave & Michele Emmerich, and Graph-X for coordinating the construction, installation, and beautification, and to the Maintenance personnel for installing the poles.
Berlin has contracted to have the sewage forwarding pump station by the boat ramp refurbished. You should see a noticeable improvement sometime this year.
We all need to look at our leaning or dilapidated mailboxes throughout the village and invest some time or a small amount of money to do our part in beautifying the village. It is also a benefit to the Postal worker delivering the mail. Maintenance will be straightening any dilapidated or leaning signs this spring.
Lastly, when the trash disposal carts arrive and are put into use, please move and store them away from the road and out of sight if practical.
Litter
Please help clean up the Village. If you notice litter, take the time to pick it up. And if you’re littering, grow up. By the way, throwing cigarette butts out car windows or dropping cigarettes to the ground is a misdemeanor in Michigan punishable by a fine. Estral Beach has ordinance 1023 to address litter that has fines and imprisonment spelled out.
Loose Dogs
With warmer weather coming, more people will be out on the roads walking, biking, etc. Please control your dogs if they are loose since there have been many complaints. All dogs outside of their personal property are to be leashed. Animal control has been called in some instances by residents and tickets have been issued.
Lighter Side / Sayings
· The police came to my door and said my dog chased someone on a bike. I said you must be joking, my dog hasn’t got a bike.
· Never trust someone that lies to you. Never lie to someone that trusts you. Lies are a temporary solution to a permanent problem.
· To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people just exist. Are you living or existing? The measure of your life will not be what you accumulate but in what you give away.
· You can’t have a better tomorrow if you’re still thinking about yesterday.
· You don’t need a parachute to skydive. You do need a parachute to skydive twice.
Danny Swindle, , 586-7205