Rogers City city council proceedings
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE ROGERS CITY CITY COUNCIL
HELD IN COUNCIL CHAMBERS ON TUESDAY, MAY 21, 2019
Mayor McLennan presided and called the meeting to order at 7 p.m.
ROLL CALL: Adair, Bielas, Fuhrman, Nowak and McLennan.
APPROVAL OF AGENDA
Nowak/Fuhrman, to approve the agenda with the addition of a request to use Trout River Park.
Ayes – All, the motion carried.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Adair/Bielas, that the minutes of the Regular Council Meeting of May 7, 2019 be approved as written. Ayes – All, the motion carried.
CITY CLERK’S REPORT:
CHECK AND INVOICE APPROVAL:
Adair/Nowak, that the following total fund expenditures be recognized as payments made and payments to be made, in the amount of $126,025.09 and the Mayor is authorized to sign the check register. ROLL CALL: Ayes – All, the motion carried.
NEW BUSINESS:
CITY BAND MILLAGE
RESOLUTION NO. 2019-75
Nowak/Adair, to engage with Miller Canfield for a legal opinion regarding the City Band millage with the cost not to exceed $3,000. ROLL CALL: Ayes – All, the motion carried.
MERS ALTERNATIVE TRANSFER RULES
RESOLUTION NO. 2019-76
Bielas/Nowak,
WHEREAS, the City of Rogers City is a participating municipality or court in the Municipal Employees’ Retirement System of Michigan (“MERS”); and
WHEREAS, the Standard MERS Transfer policy became effective in August 2007; and
WHEREAS, under the Standard Transfer policy, all transferred employees (and rehired employees) are covered under the open employee plan associated with the defined employee group. Where the new plan is MERS Defined Contribution or Hybrid, the accrued defined benefit of transferring employee is frozen as of transfer date. Where the new plan is the MERS Defined Benefit, the transferring employee’s service and wages will transfer to the new plan for purposes of calculating their retirement benefit.
WHEREAS, pursuant to Retirement Board action on November 10, 2010, the employing municipality or court may adopt for all its MERS divisions (present and future) an alternate policy which allows all transferred employees an individual choice at the time of transfer to either be placed in: (1) the division’s open plan, or (2) the closed plan if it is the same plan type, provided there are active employees remaining in the closed division.
WHEREAS, this alternate transfer provision applies to transferred employees only; rehired employees will continue to be enrolled into the open plan; and
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that effective July 1st, 2019, the Governing Body adopts this Resolution (or for a participating court, the Chief Judge by Administrative Order) for all present and future employee divisions requiring that all transferred employees (select only one):
• shall be covered under the open plan in the division into which they are transferred.
• shall be given the individual choice to either be placed in the open or closed plan if it is the same plan type provided there are active employees remaining in the closed plan.
MERS’ Standard Transfer policy is an administrative process. Changes to such policy may impact MERS ability to administer alternate and standard transfers in the future.
ROLL CALL: Ayes – Adair, Bielas, Nowak and McLennan.
Nayes – Fuhrman, the motion carried.
COMMUNITY RECREATION PLAN
RESOLUTION NO. 2019-77
Nowak/Bielas, to request the Parks and Recreation Commission update the Community Recreation Plan. Also, approve the public survey that was included in the meeting packet with a modification to question Number 6, and approve the survey be sent to residents in the next utility bill.
Ayes – All, the motion carried.
ATLANTIC SALMON STOCKING
RESOLUTION NO. 2019-78
Fuhrman/Bielas, at a regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Rogers City conducted May 21, 2019:
WHEREAS, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources has over the past several years been stocking Atlantic salmon at multiple locations across Lake Huron; and
WHEREAS, many of those fish, though stocked many miles away, have been migrating to Rogers City; and
WHEREAS, the DNR will be stocking additional Atlantic salmon, beginning in spring 2020, with the location to be determined; and
WHEREAS, Rogers City would be an ideal location to stock these fish due to their aforementioned migration habits and the fact that a lack of predators allow them to survive their infancy; and
WHEREAS, Rogers City’s marina is well-equipped to handle the increase in anglers a robust Atlantic salmon fishery could bring, with six launch ramps and many available slips for fishermen; and
WHEREAS, the City’s marina boomed when the Chinook salmon fishery was thriving, generating revenues nearly three times their current levels; and
WHEREAS, the City’s economy was boosted substantially by that fishery and has suffered in its decline; and
WHEREAS, studies have shown that the boost to a local economy can be up to $1,000 per fish caught for a world-class species such as the Atlantic salmon; and
WHEREAS, Rogers City’s marina and local economy would very much welcome and, in fact, truly needs such a financial boost;
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the City Council of the City of Rogers City does hereby request that the DNR stock Atlantic salmon in Rogers City beginning in spring 2020.
Ayes – All, the motion carried.
PROCLAMATION – ELDER AB– USE AWARENESS
RESOLUTION NO. 2019-79
Bielas/Fuhrman, that the following proclamation be adopted by the City Council of the City of Rogers City:
WHEREAS, elder abuse is defined as a single or repeated act, or lack of appropriate action, occurring within any relationship with an expectation of trust, which causes harm or distress to an older person; and
WHEREAS, no statistics clearly define how many of the nation’s elderly are being exploited, neglected, or abused, various organizations have stated the following data:
• Only 1 in 14 incidents of elder abuse in domestic settings are brought to the attention of state or local authorities.
• Only 1 in 25 cases of financial exploitation of elders is reported.
• The problem is only expected to grow, as by 2050 some 20 percent of the country’s population will be 65 years of age or older
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the City Council of the City of Rogers City proclaims June 15, 2019 as elder abuse awareness day; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that Council enc
ROLL CALL: Ayes – All, the motion carried.
REQUEST FOR — USE OF TROUT RIVER PARK
RESOLUTION NO. 2019-80
Nowak/Adair, to allow the Rogers City Travel Abroad Club use of the Trout River Park for an “Amazing Race” type of event on June 28, 2019. Ayes – All, the motion carried.
ADJOURNMENT: Mayor McLennan declared the meeting adjourned at 7:47 p.m.
Terri L. Koss, City Clerk/Treasurer
Condensed version, complete minutes are available at City Hall.