ORGANIZATION OF WOODLAND LAKE

BOARD MEETING

                                                      NOVEMBER 13, 2002

The Board Meeting was called to order at 7:34 p.m. by Anita Grapentien.

Members present were:

   Anita Grapentein                             John Arthur                      Stan Lawrence

   Kathy Kittridge                               Bill Loughead                  Frank Ducato              

   Chuck Pendleton                             Jeff Bertoia

   Paul Jermanus                                Doug Taylor

Minutes of the Previous Meeting

Corrections were made to the September OWL meeting minutes and will be resent to Jeff Bertoia to be included on the website. 

Treasurer’s Report

There have been no expenses this month.  The account stands at $12,089.77.  A motion to accept the treasurer's report was made by Jeff Bertoia and seconded by Paul Jermanus.  Approved unanimously.

Sewer Update

Frank Grapentien attended a meeting on November 5^th regarding a Sewer Odor Problem.    Residents along Hilton Road have begun complaining about sewer odors once they had hooked up to the new system.   It has been determined that the cause of the problem is a lack of sufficient flow in the upstream sewers.  Since there is not enough flow currently the fix will be to add water to the sewers to increase the volume of water in the pipes as the sewage makes its way to the Waste Water Treatment Plant.  In order to alleviate the problem, the Township Sewer System has been adding water to the sewers by hauling it in by tanker truck.  To minimize this cost, they are looking for alternative solutions. 

There are two points to introduce water into the system.  There are two lift stations located essentially at either end of the Woodland Lake Bridge.  The lift station closest to Hacker Road sends the sewage down Hacker to Grand River, along Grand River to Hilton then east on Hilton through the affected area.  The lift station East of the bridge sends the sewage easterly toward Hunter road then south on Hunter to Hilton.  The sewage from both lift stations joins each other at Hilton and Hunter roads.  

The most cost effective and safe technique to introduce water into the West Lift Station will be to drill a well on the lift station property and draw from that well to generate the water required to keep the system flushed.  In the case of the East lift station, water from Woodland Lake will be used since the station is right next to the lake.  In both cases, the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) and the Livingston County Health Department are aware of the problem and these solutions.  The MDEQ permit for this requires that the lake level not be lowered.  Since the natural inflow to the lake is greater than that which will be drawn out for the sewers, the permit requirement should be easily met. 

The Brighton Township Sewer Committee notes that this is intended to be a temporary solution.  Once additional sewer hook-ups are accomplished that create sufficient flow in their own right the amount of additional water added will be first reduced and then eliminated altogether.  The Committee encourages all properties with sewers available to arrange for hook-up as soon as possible to help alleviate this problem.

Members of the OWL Board are concerned about the temporary solution proposed by the Sewer Committee and feel it is a knee jerk reaction to the problem.  The MDEQ did not contact the OWL Board or the Lakes Committee regarding the proposed solution.  Anita Grapentien will be contacting Bud Prine, Chairman of the Sewer Committee to request a meeting with him and Tetra Tech Company.  She will then contact the OWL Board informing them of the time and location of the meeting.  It was suggested that following the meeting, a letter be sent to John Rogers, the DEQ, and the Lakes Committee expressing our concerns with the proposed solution.

Committee Reports

Weed Control

Anita spoke to Dick from Aqua Weed Control and was informed that he has applied for the weed application permit form so that he can submit it prior to the end of December.  The application fee for the permit is $150.  Dick informed Anita that the DEQ is trying to increase the application fee to $700.  It was suggested  the OWL Board needs to write letters to reject the proposal.  Anita to send e-mail address to members of the OWL Board.

Jeff Bertoia suggested that a monthly report should be published listing special assessment district information.  Currently, Anita reviews and approves the Special Assessment District invoices and forwards them to the Township.  Jeff made a motion that Anita bring a copy of the approved Special Assessment District invoice to the monthly OWL Board meetings.  Paul Jermanus offered to keep an accounting of these charges in a general ledger which will be presented at our monthly meetings.  Paul Jermanus seconded the motion and it was approved unanimously.

Dam

Nothing new to report.

Water Quality

Doug Taylor received a call from Brian Jonckheere wanting to do two more water quality tests of Woodland Lake.  Timing is TBD.

Old Business

Frank Grapentein, Frank Ducato and Kathy Kittridge offered to summarize their notes from the September OWL meeting.  Kathy Kittridge will send the summarized notes of the answers to the questions posed to David Haywood at the September meeting and send them to Jeff Bertoia to be added to the website.

Anita reported that Gary Townes from the DNR Fishery Department still does not have a written response regarding the Large Mouth Bass virus kill.  Jeff Bertoia suggested that a letter be sent to Gary Townes.  Anita agreed to write the letter.

Frank and Anita Grapentien attended the Public Hearing to rezone Dr. Shang's Property.  They reported that many of their neighbors attended the meeting.  The Planning Commission denied the petition.  Dr. Shang then went to the County Meeting and again, the petition was denied. The Township Board pulled the request.  Dr. Shang has put the property up for sale with Keller Williams Reality.

New Business

Anita received a letter from the Michigan Water Front Alliance (MWFA), a subsidiary of Michigan Lakes and Streams.  Several people had requested information about road end use legislation.  Anita agreed to make copies of the letter and distribute to the OWL Board.

Anita attended a meeting last week at the Brighton Township Fire Hall regarding an issue about rezoning of houses along Grand River.  Paul Knopp was working on a plan that allowed properties facing Grand River to be zoned commercial.  Other properties would remain residential.  Paul Knopp passed away before completion of the project.  Doug Taylor urged the OWL Board to be mindful of when the next call to the public meeting is scheduled and encouraged attendance in order to voice opposition.

The OWL Board decided they would not be having a Christmas Party this year. 

Next Meeting

The next meeting will be Wednesday, January 8^th, 2003 at the Brighton Township Hall.

Adjournment

At 9:38 p.m. a motion was made by Paul Jermanus, seconded by Jeff Bertoia and approved by the board to adjourn the meeting.

Last modified: 12/05/03 16:58:20 -0800