The May 13, 2024, General Board Meeting was called to order at 7pm at the Newberg Township Fire Department. Minutes from the April 8, 2024, board meeting were approved as written.
Reports:
Assessor: Assessor Northrop was present and reported that Marcellus Township has decided to pay the Board of Review and asked what the board was going to do. Motion made by Covey, supported by Griffiths, to pay the Board of Review members from Decatur and Marcellus for their work on Board of Review at $14 per hour from the work in March 2024. Motion carried unanimously by voice vote. Motion made by Blackburn, supported by Covey, to move money from the General Fund Operations Account to the General Board of Review Salary and Wages Account for the 2024/2025 budget in the amount of $430.00. Roll Call Vote: Aye- Harvey, Griffiths, Blackburn, Duff and Covey. Motion carried upon roll call vote.
Ordinance: Not present. Nothing to report.
Ambulance: Ambulance Director Schrader reported twenty-one calls for the month of April; thirteen Newberg, one Porter and the remaining mutual aid calls in the surrounding area.
Fire: Chief Forrester reported three calls for the month of April; one ambulance assist Newberg, one stand by Penn and one call in Porter.
Sexton: Rifenberg reported two cremain burials for the month of April.
Building: Report read by Clerk Duff.
Treasurer: Report available for the month of April.
County Commission: The old courthouse work is continuing, and they are hoping it will be completed for the scheduled open house in October.
Public Comment: Undersheriff Roach was present and shared that the Sheriff’s office has hired two new recruits that will be starting this week. Roach will be running for Sheriff on the August Primary ballot.
Correspondence: Noted misc. correspondence.
Announcements: Memorial Day Service at Poe’s Cemetery will be on May 27 at noon.
Unfinished Business:
Road Contracts: Representatives from the Cass County Road Commission were present to discuss the road projects for Newberg Township. Motion made by Covey, supported by Harvey, to accept the road contract for Railroad Street from Main St. to High St. in the amount of $31,543.76. Motion carried unanimously by voice vote. Motion made by Covey, supported by Blackburn, to accept the road contract for Hoffman St. from Patterson Hill Rd. To M-40 in the amount of $166,307.44. Motion carried unanimously by voice vote. Motion made by Covey, supported by Griffiths, to accept the contract for Cox Rd. From Hoffman St. to Dutch Settlement Rd for gravel in the amount of $29,187.38. Motion carried unanimously by voice vote. Motion made by Covey, supported by Griffiths, to access the contract for Spring St. from Harwood Lake to Bald Hill Rd for gravel in the amount of $13,561.81. Motion carried unanimously by voice vote. Motion made by Covey, supported by Harvey, to accept the road contract for pavement marking on Hoffman St from Patterson Hill Rd to M-40 in the amount of $949.24. Motion carried unanimously by voice vote.
Township Hall: Discussion was had regarding township hall plans. Rifenberg will contact Barr Designs to move forward with the drawings.
New Business:
Special Ambulance Meeting: Discussion was had regarding the special meeting that was on May 7, 2024. The ambulance is looking at ways to increase funds to the department because of staffing shortages. Assessor Northrop shared what the process would be and how much funds could be raised for the township if they did a special assessment vs proposal on ballot for mileage. Discussion was also had about paying our volunteers for being on call since they have to remain in the area while on call. With the volunteer shortage, we had less workers having to cover more on-call time. Ambulance Director will discuss this with the department at the next meeting and bring it back to the board in June.
Online Classes for Township Board: Treasurer Blackburn shared that she has been learning a lot from the classes she has been taking and wanting to take another regarding taxes. She suggested that it would be good for some of the other board members to look into the classes since a lot of the board is new. Motion made by Duff, supported by Covey, to pay $99 to Blackburn to cover the class fee for the MTA Property Collection online class. Motion carried unanimously by voice vote.
Bills to Pay: Motion made by Griffiths, supported by Harvey, to pay the bills for the month of May in the amount of $74,657.66. Motion carried unanimously by voice vote.
Public Comment: None.
Motion made by Covey, supported by Blackburn, to adjourn meeting at 9:05pm. Motion carried unanimously by voice vote.
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