City Council Meeting - 2020-03-02

Detailed briefing

City Council Meeting — March 2, 2020 ATTENDEES: Roll call recorded Cups, Leo, Johnston, and Higgins present. • Council approved the previous meeting’s minutes and later approved the bills. The agenda was reordered so bills could be considered after discussions tied to possible payments. • The Knights of Columbus received approval for its spring and fall Tootsie Roll fundraising drives, planned for the weekends of April 17 and October 9. The group will collect at Meijer Ace Hardware, Granny’s Bottle Shop, Pebbles Pharmacy, and Harbor Springs IGA. It withdrew its request to stand at the northwest corner of State and Main streets. • Council approved the Little Traverse Bay Foundation ferry license agreement for ferry operations between Harbor Springs and Petoskey, subject to the agreement’s conditions. Staff said remaining land-side matters, including sign locations and other issues, were still being worked out and are to be addressed by April 15 under the agreement. • Council also approved $22,800 from the waterfront fund for upgraded ferry-dock materials and related features recommended by the Harbor Commission. The city will own the dock. The foundation is expected to cover most of the dock cost and pay a $1,000 annual license fee; staff said Harbor Springs will not charge a monthly rental or slip rate for the ferry’s touch-and-go stop. • The city awarded the Pennsylvania Avenue paving project to Elmer’s, the low bidder, at $159,000. Staff said the bid exceeded the earlier $130,000 estimate because of the current construction market, but cited repeated patching costs—about $15,000 last year—as a reason to proceed this spring. • Council authorized staff to contact Beckett & Raeder about a landscape and passive-recreation design for the M-119/Zollweg green space. The work would use in-kind design services received after accidental tree removal connected to the school park project. Officials emphasized that any future improvements would require further public input and approvals. Worth watching: • Ferry operators must satisfy the license agreement’s remaining conditions, including unresolved land-side matters being handled by staff. • Staff must return with any specific M-119/Zollweg design proposal, cost, and public-engagement process; no final project was approved. • The police department will review 10 applications and seek interviews over the coming weeks. Upcoming: A March 16 public hearing is planned on proposed pickleball-court grant work; staff said the state grant application is due April 1. Why it matters: The meeting advanced ferry service, street repairs, waterfront investment, and early planning for city recreation and gateway space.

No open public follow-ups are linked to this meeting yet.