Category: Gov’t Watch
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The Lights Are On …
A report on the regular council meeting of December 18, 2025 EMILY KAY VOTRUBA DEC 22, 2025 In December, if I can, I like to spend quality time reflecting on the year. For me this involves transferring perennial information (birthdays, holidays, meeting dates, important anniversaries and milestones) from this year’s…
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November Council Meeting Preview
Agenda, water notices, fire & safety reports, Lake Effect, and snow snake. EMILY KAY VOTRUBA NOV 17, 2025 Thursday’s Agenda A reminder that this month’s meeting is at noon instead of 7, because at 6 on Thursday night there’s a presentation at the Life Saving Station from the recommended developer…
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Council Meeting August 2017
Herewith, audio from the August 17, 2017 Regular Council Meeting.
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Letter from Holly O’Dwyer
In reference to the letter from Kristine Mills I posted on August 25, Village board of trustees president pro tempore Holly O’Dwyer asked that I publish this email she sent to Mills August 21, which O’Dwyer says she didn’t get a response to.—Emily Votruba
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Letter from Kristine Mills to Village Council
Kristine Mills asked me to publish this letter after she received what she feels was an incomplete response to her FOIA request for documents and information related to her contract position as rentals coordinator for the Life Saving Station and other Village venues. —Emily Votruba
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Council Meeting July 2017
Herewith, audio from the July 20, 2017 Regular Council Meeting.
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Council Meeting June 2017
Herewith, audio from the June 15, 2017 Regular Council Meeting.
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Council Meeting May 2017
Herewith, audio from the May 18, 2017 Regular Council Meeting.
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Special Council Meeting Regarding Elberta Beach
Update! Kristi Mills came through with a recording of the meeting. Thanks, Kristi! It’s a bit hard to hear and hasn’t been edited for levels and whatnot, but it’s worth a listen if you care about the beach. Here are some images that were used during this morning’s special…
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Guest Column: Electric Skateboard Debate Ramps Up
Please help stop Frankfort City Council’s ongoing effort to create an ordinance banning electric skateboards citywide. By Carolyn Thayer July 14, 2017 I’m asking for your help to spread the news about the Frankfort City Council’s ongoing effort to create an ordinance banning electric skateboards citywide based on the potential for a public safety…
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Little Gathering in the Office Friday
From the head of the Employee Relations Committee, Robin Rommell: “We are having a reception at the Village office this Friday from 3:00 to 4:00 to show off our newly renovated office space and to give Village residents an opportunity to say goodbye, and a big “thank you,” to our…
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Coyote Crossing: November Council Meeting Reports
By Emily Votruba Regular Meeting, November 17, 2016 On the way to the regular council meeting, Linda Manville saw a coyote cross the road in front of her. The meeting was held at the Life Saving Station for the first time ever as far as anyone could remember. The room…
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Special Council Meeting Monday 6 pm
Update: At tonight’s special council meeting, which was attended by several members of the public, council discussed a few options for our immediate, emergency Department of Public Works needs: required water operations and testing, and plowing. Elberta’s backup water operator, Dave Bissell, who works full time in Frankfort, is available…
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Elberta & Gilmore November 2016 Election Results
For Benzie County totals, go and keep refreshing here. Here is a pdf of elberta-gilmore-election-2016-results. Scroll down for visuals of all the data.
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Get Ready to Vote Tuesday!
GENERAL ELECTION BALLOT PREVIEW for Village of Elberta and Gilmore Township Tuesday, November 8, 2016 Open from: 7 am to 8 pm Our Polling Place: The Village Community Building 401 First Street Elberta, MI 49628 Complete Michigan voting instructions, including “write-in” instructions, are available here. PDF Download: Ballot Preview 2016 See the…
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Get It in Writing: Council Approves Additional Compensation for Clerk
By Emily Votruba What follows is a (mostly) direct transcript of the special council meeting that took place on Saturday, October 1, at 1 pm. Background: In a September 6 letter to council (obtained by me from the clerk by FOIA request), our clerk, Catherine Anderson, asked for salaried compensation for the nonclerk duties she…
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August Primary 2016 on Tuesday the 2nd
Don’t miss the Gilmore/Elberta Primary Election this coming Tuesday, August 2, from 7:00 am to 8 pm at the Community Building, 401 First Street. Gilmore Township/Elberta voters will be choosing State (101st District) and U.S. congressional (1st District) representatives, as well as county prosecutor (Sara Swanson running unopposed), sheriff (Ted…
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Candidate Says Water Management, Passenger Rail, Internet Access Will Help NoMI Folks Stay and Succeed
Meet the Candidate: Lon Johnson Democrat 1st Congressional District Lon Johnson spoke at the Bayview Grille in Frankfort to a group of potential supporters on March 29 from 6 to 7 pm. Here are selections from his remarks, arranged by topic. Meet the Candidate is nonpartisan and offers any candidate…
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Signs of the Times: July Council Meeting Report
VILLAGE OF ELBERTA BOARD OF TRUSTEES REGULAR MEETING July 16, 2015 • 7 PM ||| AUDIO ||| July 16, 2015 • 7 PM The Village of Elberta Board of Trustees held a regular meeting on Thursday, July 16, 2015, at the Community Building, 401 First Street, Elberta, Michigan. The meeting was called…
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Burn After Reading: June Council Meeting
VILLAGE OF ELBERTA BOARD OF TRUSTEES REGULAR MEETING June 18, 2015 • 7 PM ||| AUDIO ||| The Village of Elberta Board of Trustees held a regular meeting on Thursday, June 18, 2015, at the Community Building, 401 First Street, Elberta, Michigan. The meeting was called to order by Diane Jenks at 7:02…
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Who Were Elberta’s First Settlers?
By Andy Bolander A proposal has recently been presented to the Village Council to honor John and Caroline Greenwood’s contributions to the development of Elberta. The proposal includes the installation of a sign under each of the village limits signs stating: “First Settlers John and Caroline Greenwood 1855.” A second…
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Solstice Approved: May Council Meeting
VILLAGE OF ELBERTA BOARD OF TRUSTEES REGULAR MEETING —DRAFT Minutes— May 21, 2015 • 7 PM ||| AUDIO ||| The Village of Elberta Board of Trustees held a regular meeting on Thursday, January 15, 2015, at the Community Building, 401 First Street, Elberta, Michigan. The meeting was called to order by Diane…
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A New Era for the Elberta Solstice Festival
EDITORIAL By Emily Votruba In the space of a couple of weeks straddling April and May, Solstice Fest 2015 went from being on, to off, to back on again. On April 15, Bill Soper, chair of the Solstice Committee, and Diane Jenks, village council president, had a discussion, based on…
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February 2015 Council Meeting: Budget Adopted
VILLAGE OF ELBERTA BOARD OF TRUSTEES REGULAR MEETING —DRAFT Minutes— —FINAL Minutes— —ADOPTED FY2015 VILLAGE OF ELBERTA BUDGET— February 19, 2015 • 7 PM ||| AUDIO |||
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Making It Official: Elberta’s New Zoning Map
By Patrick McConnell The Village of Elberta will be getting a new, more comprehensive map soon! I recently spoke with planning commission member Bill O’Dwyer about the forthcoming zoning map improvements. Below are some of the improvements one can expect from the new map. • A much larger map that is more…
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Benzie Emergency Management Seeks Feedback on Its Natural Hazards Draft Plan
Get back to Frank Post, our county emergency management coordinator, by email or phone asap! (fpost@benzieco.net, 231-882-0567) Read and download the draft plan here: 2015 Hazard Mitigation Plan More information is available at the Region 7 website.
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It’s Budget Time
Offer feedback on the budget to the Budget, Finance, and Audit Committee by contacting committee member Cathy Anderson at cathymaryanderson@gmail.com Download/view: The Proposed Village of Elberta Budget, prepared by the Budget, Finance, and Audit Committee (DRAFT)
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Where There’s Smoke: January Council Meeting
VILLAGE OF ELBERTA BOARD OF TRUSTEES REGULAR MEETING —DRAFT Minutes— —FINAL Minutes— January 15, 2015 • 7 PM ||| AUDIO ||| The Village of Elberta Board of Trustees held a regular meeting on Thursday, January 15, 2015, at the Community Building, 401 First Street, Elberta, Michigan. The meeting was called to order…
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Short and Sweet: December Council Meeting
VILLAGE OF ELBERTA BOARD OF TRUSTEES REGULAR MEETING —Minutes— December 18, 2014 • 7 PM ||| AUDIO ||| The Village of Elberta Board of Trustees held a regular meeting on Thursday, December 18, 2014, at the Community Building, 401 First Street, Elberta, Michigan. The meeting was called to order by president Diane…
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“Do We Want to Remain a Village? I Think It’s Worth It”—Diane Jenks
VILLAGE OF ELBERTA BOARD OF TRUSTEES REGULAR MEETING —DRAFT Minutes— November 20, 2014 • 7 PM ||| AUDIO ||| The newly elected Village of Elberta Board of Trustees held its first regular meeting on Thursday, November 20, 2014, at the Community Building, 401 First Street, Elberta, Michigan. The meeting was called to…
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Midterm Election 2014! Wolves, Drugs, Fire
UPDATE: View up-to the minute election results (as available) from the various Benzie townships here, and the final official Benzie County results page here. UPDATE: From Aubrey Parker: “BENZIE COUNTY: We’re hoping to do LIVE election results again tonight like we brought you in 2013, but we need your help! All…
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Op-ed: Re-elect Don Tanner
I sent the following letter to the Record-Patriot for publication this week. The Record-Patriot accepts political letters to the editor limited to 100 words. Below that is a longer version. These are my opinions and are not meant to be the Alert‘s official stance on this candidate or this race. I’ll accept…
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Revising the DEP: Special Meeting of the Village Council October 27, 2014
VILLAGE OF ELBERTA BOARD OF TRUSTEES REGULAR MEETING —DRAFT Minutes TO COME— October 27, 2014 • 7 PM ||| AUDIO ||| Revised DEP Cover Letter from Chris Olson Audit Analysis and Projections Revised DEP Resolution of Adoption
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Regular Meeting of the Village Council October 2014
VILLAGE OF ELBERTA BOARD OF TRUSTEES REGULAR MEETING —DRAFT Minutes— October 16, 2014 • 7 PM ||| AUDIO ||| The Village of Elberta Board of Trustees held its regular meeting on Thursday, October 16, 2014, at the Community Building, 401 First Street, Elberta, Michigan. The meeting was called to order by president…
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Special Meeting on DEP Tonight
Special Meeting of the Elberta Village Council Monday October 27, 2014 Community Building 401 First Street 7:00 P.M. The Village of Elberta will conduct a Special Meeting on Monday October 27, 2014, at 7:00 p.m. to consider the financial status of the Village including the 2013 – 2014 audit, the…
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Village Seeks New Deputy Clerk
The Village is *NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS* for the position of DEPUTY VILLAGE CLERK Elberta residency NOT required. This is a part time position, 12 – 16 FLEX TIME hours/week. Pay is $10.50 – $14.50 dependent upon education and experience. Complete job description and application available at the Village website or…
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Council Holds Workshop Meeting to Deal with Deficit Elimination Plan Shortfall
August 28, 2014 • 7 PM ||| AUDIO ||| —DRAFT— VILLAGE OF ELBERTA BOARD OF TRUSTEES WORKSHOP MEETING August 28, 2014 • 7 PM The Village of Elberta Board of Trustees held a special budget workshop meeting on Thursday, August 28, 2014, at the Community Building, 401 First Street, Elberta,…
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Regular (and Special) Meeting of the Village Council August 2014
VILLAGE OF ELBERTA BOARD OF TRUSTEES REGULAR AND SPECIAL MEETING —DRAFT Minutes— August 21, 2014 • 7 PM ||| AUDIO ||| The Village of Elberta Board of Trustees held its regular meeting on Thursday, August 21, 2014, at the Community Building, 401 First Street, Elberta, Michigan. The meeting was called to order…
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Regular Meeting of the Village Council July 2014
VILLAGE OF ELBERTA BOARD OF TRUSTEES REGULAR MEETING —Minutes— July 17, 2014 • 7 PM ||| AUDIO ||| The Village of Elberta Board of Trustees held its regular meeting on Thursday, July 17, 2014, at the Community Building, 401 First Street, Elberta, Michigan. The meeting was called to order by Village…
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Elberta Business Owners Speak! On State Proposal 14-1
By Emily Votruba Tomorrow, August 5, voters will decide whether to adopt a proposal to eliminate the personal property tax. The strangely worded measure doesn’t actually mention “personal property tax,” but instead says the following: Approval or disapproval of amendatory act to reduce state use tax and replace with a…
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Parks & Rec Cites Improper Transfer of Funds by Village President Pro Tem
By Emily Votruba At their June 12 regular meeting, the Parks and Recreation Commission voted to submit a letter to Council reprimanding president pro tempore Robin Rommell for improper transfer of funds. (Full disclosure: I am one of the signatories of that letter.) A statement obtained by P&R secretary Jennifer…
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Departure Letter from Interim Treasurer Toni Flynn
June 18, 2014 To the Elberta Village Council and to the Lovely People of the Town, After three months of working in the Village office, helping where I was able, I feel it is in the best interest of all for me to take my leave and allow someone with…
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Our New Tax Assessor: Barbie Eaton
In late April this year, Marvin Blackford, longtime tax assessor for Frankfort, Gilmore Township, and Crystal Lake, retired, and Gilmore and Frankfort contracted with Barbie Eaton of Brown and Associates. Ms. Eaton kindly took the time to answer a few questions about her new position. 1. What is the role…
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Gilmore Township Meetings Roundup
Regular meetings of the Gilmore Township Board are held the second Tuesday of each month at the former Elberta Library, 704 Frankfort Avenue. By James Ward January 14, 2014—Present: Ron Beyette, Carl Noffsinger, Sharyn Bower, Laura Manville, Doug Holmes. Guests: County Commissioner Don Tanner, Bob Delanoy, James Ward. Don Tanner noted…
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Motion to Fire DPW Head Fails; Raucous Public Meeting Ends Early
By Emily Votruba I’ll post a summary of last night’s Special Meeting soonish. In the meantime, here’s the audio and the documents I tweeted to the Facebook feed last night. Full audio of meeting: Police Report in the Case of the Possibly Stolen Building County Prosecutor’s Letter Declining to Pursue Case…
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Manville Takes Leave of Leave of Absence to Call Special Meeting Monday May 5
Via email from president pro tem Robin Rommell today, Village President Reggie Manville has come out of his leave of absence to call a special meeting for this coming Monday at 7 pm to discuss the following: 1. Theft of Village property 2. DPW Superintendent and 3. Parks and Recreation…
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The Sacred and the Profane
By Emily Votruba BREAKING: A special meeting of the Village Council will be held this Wednesday at 7 pm in the Community Building to deal with agenda items council didn’t get to at last Thursday’s meeting and to finalize the budget. A great deal of time was spent on 2/20 dealing…
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Budget Fuss: A Choppy Start to Turning the Fiscal Ship Around
By Emily Votruba During its regular board meeting this Thursday, February 20, the Village Council will review and most likely adopt the proposed budget for fiscal year 2014–15. At least one council member and budget committee member won’t be voting to adopt it. “We’ve had no budget meetings,” says Jennifer…
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Frankfort’s Kinda Progressive Zoning Ordinance
By Emily Votruba It’s probably not anarcho-syndicalism in the making, but the City of Frankfort’s planning commission under the leadership of Bruce Ogilvie has put together a fairly progressive and forward-thinking zoning ordinance. The comment period is NOW, and the public hearing is set for Tuesday, March 11. Take a…
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Council to Review Corrective Action Plan for Village Internal Controls, Policies and Procedures Tonight
By Emily Votruba Former Benzie County administrator Chris Olson, who was engaged by the Village Board of Trustees to help them create both a deficit elimination plan and an internal controls action plan as required by the State of Michigan, has come up with a corrective action plan (CAP) for…
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Finalized Deficit Elimination Plan Submitted to State; Calls for Sale of MiniPond/Farmers Market Park and Deep Cuts to Office and DPW
By Emily Votruba Last night in a special meeting, council approved a deficit elimination plan to submit to the Michigan Department of Treasury. The penalty for failure to meet the revised deadline of January 6 (moved again to January 8 because of the weather) was a 25% reduction in revenue…
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Council to Finalize Deficit Elimination Plan Tonight
By Emily Votruba Former Benzie County administrator Chris Olson, who was engaged by the Village Board of Trustees to help them create both a deficit elimination plan and an internal controls action plan as required by the State of Michigan, has come up with a DEP for the board to…
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Olson Presents Prioritization Results and Council Begins to Hash Out DEP
Full audio of the Dec. 30 meeting (2 parts): Full audio of the Jan. 2 meeting: At the January 2 meeting, Chris Olson came back with the compiled results of the Dec. 30 prioritization exercise, in which, after a long discussion, council members and staff placed dots next to items…
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Deficit Elimination: A Proposal from Chris Olson
The following email and pdf was received by several council members and the Village office today from former Benzie county administrator Chris Olson, in response to president Reg Manville’s request for assistance with the Village’s deficit elimination plan. This information was forwarded to the Alert by trustee Jennifer Wilkins. Tomorrow…
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Alert Reader: Some Notes on Possible Actions the People of Elberta May Take According to the Village General Law and MML, and a Word on Village Tax Rates
The Alert received the following by email from Elberta resident Teri McGregor December 20, 2013. Letters to the editor may be edited for length and minor typos/spelling issues. We welcome anyone’s input. Send letters to elberta.alert@gmail.com, subject line “Alert Reader.” Thanks for reading! By Teri McGregor The Elberta Village meeting was stimulating…
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Alert Reader: “Asleep at the Switch”
The Alert received the following by email yesterday, December 13, 2013. Letters to the editor may be edited for length and minor typos/spelling issues. We welcome anyone’s input. Send letters to elberta.alert@gmail.com, subject line “Alert Reader.” Thanks for reading! Can I post this on the ALert FB? Park and wreckers…
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Council Votes to Reinstate Sharyn Bower to Temporary Clerk Position
December 10, 2013 Full audio of meeting Village Community Building—In a four to three vote during a special meeting tonight, the Village Council decided to hire recently retired Village clerk Sharyn Bower back to the clerk’s position at two days a week, minus the benefits she requested in her application…
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Pointing Figures: Regular Council Meeting November 21, 2013
What follows, in bold type, are the official minutes for the meeting, respectfully (and very quickly) submitted by volunteer clerk Sharron May. Thanks, Sharron! My interpolations appear in regular type.—Emily Votruba The regular meeting of the Elberta Village Council was held on Thursday, November 21, 2013 at 7:00 p.m. at…
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Treasury Report on the Village’s Internal Controls
This report was given to me by two Village officials (on separate occasions). The officials asked not to be named. One of them said I should publish it on the Alert site and Facebook page, the other asked that I wait to do that until after the council meeting tonight,…
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Benzie General Election Results
November 6, 2013 Hey, everyone. Well, last night was fun. With the help of social media, roving volunteer poll reporters, friendly poll workers, and our tech-savvy friend Aubrey Ann Parker, we were able to bring you election results for several districts in real time over Facebook. Next time we hope to…
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Mini Million Mask March in Benzonia
By Robert Bruce Bushway UPDATED 11/7/13 On November 5, supporters of the activist group Anonymous rallied all around the world to protest corporate greed and government corruption. Here at home, while some citizens in Benzonia were lined up at the fire station Tuesday to cast their ballot in the general…
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Important Council Meeting Tomorrow
(Not that they’re not all important…) Attention Elbertians (and their friends)! Please attend the council meeting tomorrow night (Thursday, October 17) at 7 pm in the Community Building (401 First St.) to hear our council’s plan to prevent our being taken over by an emergency manager.
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Village Deficit Crisis: Brief, Important Update
By Emily Votruba According to Reggie and Laura Manville, the state expects to see a plan that might realistically eliminate our $558K+ deficit within the next 5 years.* If the Village does not come up with an acceptable plan by October 17, it’s very likely, again according to Reggie Manville, that…
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Special Meeting to Discuss Village Deficit, Possible Asset Sales
By Emily Votruba UPDATED 10/10/13 Look around you, in our green (and now red and orange and golden) Village. What do you see? Trees, bluffs, one of the most beautiful beaches in the world, parkland, and a few small but important business concerns. If you’re a longtime resident, you can’t…
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The State Visits the Village: Are Personnel Changes Possible?
By Emily Votruba The following article is an editorial. I have tried to present the facts as I know them in as unbiased a manner possible, but I do have a bias, as you will discover below. Please weigh in with your comments! An auditor from the State of Michigan…
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Sept 24 County Commissioners Meeting
Draft Minutes County Commissioners Meeting Minutes Sept 24 2013 Agenda
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Putney Occupancy Rate Appeal Continues Tomorrow
Tomorrow night at 6 pm at the Community Building, the Elberta Zoning Board of Appeals continues its hearing on Loy Putney’s appeal of the Council’s decision to require an occupancy rate of no more than one person per 165 square feet in his new Bay Valley Inn apartments, which he…
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County’s Development Plans for Point Betsie—What’s Going On?
Well, this Alert writer doesn’t know. But here’s a letter to the editor of the Record-Patriot that appeared this week. We obtained it from Suz McLaughlin, who received it from the letter writer. McLaughlin said Mr. Zetterberg and his family own property near Pt. Betsie and the family created the Zetterberg…
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Special Meeting Monday to Discuss Millage for Sheriff Department
UPDATE: County clerk Dawn Olney sent an email today, August 26, at about noon with an agenda attached for either a continued or rescheduled meeting on the Sheriff millage issue, to be held tomorrow (Aug. 27) at 1 pm, same place. 8 am, County Commissioners Room, Benzie County Government Center, 448…
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Putney Appeals Square Footage per Person Requirement
Sometime between the afternoon of August 20 and 12:30 pm on August 21, Sharyn Bower posted this notice. Loy Putney is appealing the stipulation of council that he house no more than 1 person per 165 sq ft at the Bay Valley worker housing apartments. Since Putney had already completed…
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Council Contemplates Selling Old Library…And Much, Much More
It was another nearly three hour meeting, with lots of decisions made and some deferred. President Reggie Manville was back, after a three-meeting absence. Employee benefits were discussed and a vote was taken on Linda Manville’s proposal that employees begin contributing 20% toward their health-care premiums. This motion was voted…
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Signs Installed to Mark Beach Road
With authorization from Council, Ken Bonney today installed stakes and signage to demarcate the Village’s platted road, known as Lakeside Boulevard. Over the years, the undeveloped stretch has become by turns rutted and covered over with soft sand, and several byways have been cut through use. The long-standing issue of…
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County Recycling Coordinator Caught Up in Driver Responsibility Act Mess
By Emily Votruba County Recycling Coordinator Mike Fiebing was pulled over in his personal vehicle on Wednesday June 5 for having a cracked windshield—a routine traffic stop, according to Sheriff Ted Schendel. Schendel told the Alert that when the officer ran Fiebing’s license record the license was found to have…
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Proposed Free WiFi Area
The Alert obtained this printout of the proposed free WiFi coverage area from Frankfort City Council member Richard Haan. This is just a preliminary plan, not final; if you’re interested in this issue, contact a Frankfort City Council member or attend one of their regular meetings, on the third Tuesday…
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Gilmore Township Meeting Report, April 2013
By James Ward April 9, 2013 ELBERTA LIBRARY—Present: Carl Noffsinger, Doug Holmes, Ron Beyette, Sharyn Bower. Guest: Don Tanner, James Ward Don Tanner, our county commissioner for District 7, spoke about the reorganization of health care services. Benzie County is among the 21 counties in the Northern Zone that shares state…
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Putney Team Responds to PC’s Request for Additional Information on “Elberta School Apartments” Plan Ahead of Hearing Tonight
By Emily Votruba Last night (May 6), the Alert received an email from Loy Putney’s attorney, Bradley Putney, with answers to some of the questions the Planning Commission asked at the first hearing on his proposed Elberta School Apartments, on April 16. According to Village attorney Edgar Roy, a number…
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Evacuation/Stop Work Deadline Passes, Putney Workers Still On Site, Work Continues
By Emily Votruba Village zoning administrator Ken Bonney came by today to give the Alert a copy of the letter he sent to Loy Putney April 24 outlining the reasons for the stop work/evacuation order. Letter from Ken Bonney to Loy Putney April 24 The letter outlines the history of…
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Plan for Frankfort Beach and Cannon Park Created by MSU Students
“The City of Frankfort was provided an opportunity to have a Master Plan created for the Lake Michigan Beach and Cannon Park area. The Master Plan study was performed by the Michigan State University Planning Department. The MSU Planning Team consisted of four (4) senior level undergraduate students. They have…
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Stop Work, Evacuation Order Issued on Putney’s Elberta School Apartments
By Emily Votruba April 25, 2013—This morning a stop work and evacuation order was issued to Loy Putney by Zoning Administrator Ken Bonney for the proposed Elberta School Apartments. The families who moved in over the weekend of April 20 need to move out by Monday, April 29, Bonney said.…
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Putney Begins Moving Workers in to Elberta School Apartments; Zoning Still up in the Air
By Emily Votruba Three days after the Planning Commission’s inconclusive hearing on Loy Putney’s special permit application to put apartments in the old Bay Valley Inn Property, the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development approved and licensed three of the completed units, and workers will begin to move in.…
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Grand Vision Meeting: Assisting Government or Agenda 21?
By Eric Pyne UPDATED 4/29/13 UPDATED 4/24/13 MILLS COMMUNITY HOUSE, April 22, 2013—The “Framework for Our Future” Input Expo at the Mills Community House in Benzonia drew members of the public and some protesters. “The Grand Vision,” a project of the Northwest Michigan Council of Governments, held an open house…
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Little Marina Park Dock Tops Out, Making Way for Possible Boardwalk Project
Roving Alert reporter and photographer Jen Wilkins informs us that Ken Bonney and Charlie Hendershott removed the dock tops from the Marina Park inlet yesterday, as directed by Council. She says: “It looks good. They even stacked them nicely at the end there for anyone who wants them to come…
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Planning Commission Hearings on “Apartments” Definition and Putney’s Special Use Permit Application
By Emily Votruba Next Tuesday, April 16, beginning at 7 pm, the Elberta Planning Commission will hold two public hearings at the Elberta Library (704 Frankfort Avenue). The public is asked to consider the Commission’s proposed definition of “apartments.” If approved by the commission and the village council, this definition…
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Tree Cutting Along Grace Road Will Not Include Historic Trees, Says Road Commission
UPDATE (5/6/13): The Road Commission said today that the project is expected to be completed before the end of June. The stretch of Grace between Forrester and M-22 will be closed until then. By Emily Votruba Photographs by Jennifer Wilkins We got a call from a concerned citizen…
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League of Women Voters Education Forum (Video)
On February 25, the League of Women Voters held a forum on new education legislation and how it might affect local control of schools. Jonathan Maue took this video and has generously let us post it here. The League of Women Voters is a national nonpartisan organization. The Benzie chapter…
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March Elberta Council Meeting Report: Holier Than Thou
By Emily Votruba VILLAGE COMMUNITY BUILDING March 21, 2013—Sharyn Bower announced that the County Board of Commissioners would be holding their regular meeting at the Village Community Building on April 16 at 6 pm as part of their tour around the county. The Planning Commission will hold two public hearings…
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Gilmore Township Meeting Report, March 2013
By James Ward March 12, 2013 ELBERTA LIBRARY—Present: Carl Noffsinger, Doug Holmes, Ron Beyette, Sharyn Bower, and Linda Manville. Guest: James Ward The treasurer’s report and minutes were approved from the meeting in February 2013. A motion was seconded to close the regular meeting and go into a public hearing on…
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Gilmore Township Meeting Report, February 2013
By James Ward February 12, 2013 ELBERTA LIBRARY—Present: Laura Manville, Carl Noffsinger, Doug Holmes, and Ron Beyette. Guest: James Ward The treasurer’s report was accepted. New business included the approval of Charlie Hendershott, Ken Holmes, and Bob Delanoy to the Board of Review. Further New Business included the following: The Axtells…
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Your Opinion Sought on Elberta’s Parks and Recreation Assets
Please plan to attend the input session on April 18 at 7 pm in the Village Community Building! See details below. A draft of the new 5 year plan can be found here: Village of Elberta Recreation Plan 2014–2019 draft for public meeting
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Elberta Planning Commission Meeting: Defining Apartments, Dredging
By Emily Votruba Transcription by Lois Schram March 5, 2013 ELBERTA LIBRARY—During initial public comment, Scott Gest said the community mapping is wrapping up for the Grand Vision. There was to be a meeting the following week. A report by Ken Bonney, new zoning administrator, was added to the…
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February Elberta Council Meeting Report: Same Playing Field
By Emily Votruba VILLAGE COMMUNITY BUILDING, February 20, 2013—A date and the spelling of Jennifer Wilkins’s name were corrected on the January meeting minutes. Wilkins’s name was also added to the agenda under the Beach Committee report, as she is a new member of that committee. PUBLIC HEARING ON 2013–14…
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Commissioners Confronted on IPMC, Deputies
By Bob Kenison and Emily Votruba March 26, 2013 BENZIE COUNTY GOVERNMENT CENTER—More than one hundred Benzie County citizens overflowed the commissioners’ chambers, spilling into the hallway at the regular meeting this past Tuesday. The people were clearly unhappy with the commissioners’ enactment of the new property maintenance code. Some…
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International Property Maintenance Code Rescinded (Audio)
BENZIE COUNTY GOVERNMENT CENTER—The county commission voted unanimously to adopt an ordinance rescinding their adoption of the International Property Maintenance Code at this morning’s regular county commissioners meeting. Members of the media were there (Record–Patriot, TV 9&10, and others), and more than 120 members of the general public. A show…
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Village of Elberta Budget for 2013–14
This budget was adopted at the February 21, 2013, council meeting after a public hearing held before the meeting. Read more about the budget adoption and other Village matters in the upcoming Council Meeting report. Village of Elberta Budget 2013-14
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Strict Construction: The New County Property Maintenance Code
By Emily Votruba At the February 19 County Commissioners meeting, the commissioners voted 6 to 1 to adopt the International Property Maintenance Code (see link below). The vote occurred during the department head reports portion of the meeting and was not on the agenda. After a presentation by Robert Theobald…
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New County Property Maintenance Rules Are Intensely Detailed, Possibly Unconstitutional
Thanks to the Joyfield Residents group on Facebook for making the pdf of the new county property maintenance code available. We haven’t actually read it yet, but you can! We’ve heard it’s pretty strict, which should please lovers of neatly trimmed grass, but cause some headaches (and pocketbook aches) for…
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Gilmore Township Meeting Report, January
By James Ward January 8, 2013—Board members present: Ron Beyette, Carl Noffsinger, Doug Holmes, and Sharyn Bower. Guests: Dennis Holcombe, Mike Jones, James Ward Recent personnel changes include the resignation of Michael Barnes from the Township Planning Commission. Connie Barnes was approved to be his replacement. The new zoning regulations were…
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POV: A Business Owner Weighs in on the Proposed Downtown Development Authority in Frankfort
Dale Evans, co-owner of the Bayview Grille at 727 Main Street, Frankfort, took time to express his views on the proposed DDA. For more on the DDA, see Colin Merry’s coverage in the Record-Patriot and the Alert‘s coverage of the first meeting. Q&A questions by Emily Votruba. Thank you for…
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Gilmore Township Meetings Roundup, November and December
By James Ward November 13, 2012—Board members present: Ron Beyette, Carl Noffsinger, Doug Holmes, Laura Manville, and Sharyn Bower. Guests: Donald Tanner, Carolee Ness, James Ward Donald Tanner, newly elected County Commissioner for our district (VII), thanked the voters for their support. He discussed the upcoming process of allocating funds for…