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HomeMy WebLinkAboutInterlocal Agreements - 2020.11.19 - 34108 February 2, 2021 Michigan Department of State Office of the Great Seal Richard H. Austin Building, 1st Floor 430 W. Allegan Lansing, MI 48918 Dear Office of the Great Seal: On November 19, 2020 the Board of Commissioners for Oakland County entered into an agreement per MR #20604 – Board of Commissioners – Approval of Interlocal Agreement for Distribution of CARES Act Funding – City of Sylvan Lake. As required by Urban Cooperation Act 7 of 1967 - MCL 124.510(4), a copy of the signed agreement with the County of Oakland and the City of Sylvan Lake, and the authorizing Board of Commissioners Resolution are enclosed for filing by your office. Send confirmation of receipt of this agreement to: Mr. Joseph Rozell, Director of Elections Oakland County Clerk/Register of Deeds County Service Center, Building #14 East 1200 N. Telegraph Rd. Pontiac, MI 48341 (Please include our Miscellaneous Resolution number on the confirmation of receipt letter for filing purposes.) Contact our office at (248) 858-0564 if you have any questions regarding this matter. Sincerely, COUNTY OF OAKLAND Joseph J. Rozell, CERA Director of Elections Cc: Pat Davis, Corporation Counsel, Oakland County Donna Dyer, Corporation Counsel, Oakland County Dennise Dryden, Clerk, City of Sylvan Lake Hilarie Chambers, Chief Deputy Executive, Oakland County Enclosures City of Sylvan Lake Regular City Council Meeting October 21, 2020 1 In compliance with the Open Meetings Act, Public Act, MCL 15.263 ET SEQ., as amended to hold City Council meetings electronically: A Regular Meeting of the Sylvan Lake City Council was held electronically on Wednesday, October 21, 2020, opening at 7:30 p.m. Mayor Lorenz presided over the Pledge of Allegiance. Present: Lorenz, Salemi, Zubrzycki, Cassar, Clarke Absent: None Also Present: City Manager Martin, Clerk Dryden, and City Attorney Schultz APPROVAL OF AGENDA Moved by Cassar, seconded Clarke, to approve the City Council Agenda for October 19, 2020, which includes rules and procedures for virtual meetings, as submitted. Yes: All No: None MOTION CARRIED APPROVAL OF CONSENT AGENDA Moved by Cassar, seconded Clarke, to approve the following items on the consent agenda as submitted. A. September 9, 2020 Regular Meeting minutes B. Disbursement Report, Payroll check #’s 12146-12148, DD3988-4013, EFT1469-1478- 1483; and A/P check #’s 51084-51134, EFT 2256-2271; ACH 2272-2276; TOTALING: $418,845.25. C. Acceptance of Public Works and Police Reports for September 2020. Yes: All No: None MOTION CARRIED COMMITTEE REPORTS There were no reports. City of Sylvan Lake Regular City Council Meeting October 21, 2020 2 BRIEF PUBLIC COMMENTS FOR ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA Mayor Lorenz opened the meeting to the public. He asked them to raise their hand using the icon at the bottom of the screen or *9 on the phone. There were 78 guests. E-003-20 Jan Hays read a statement regarding the unsigned anti-SPAR flyer sent to some residents. She has been a residents for 35 years and she is the local realtor in the city. She is appalled by the vicious letter that was sent to neighbors. She has always supported and promoted the Prettiest Little City. She speaks up on what will help property values and what will hurt the city. All residents were invited to her pumpkin patch. A post card invitation was sent to every household. Some candidates asked to speak and if any of the other candidates had asked, they would have been welcomed. Two current City Council members attended, and she thanked them. The behavior around this election is an embarrassment for all of us. Some of the city council member’s behavior both publicly and on social media has been very unprofessional. The unsigned letter has offended her and over 900 residents who were brave enough to standup and save the city, but to attack her personally, for one’s own agenda, political reasons, is just unforgivable and not what our city should represent. She is saddened by what the city is becoming. Do not be afraid of change; be afraid of not changing. CITY MANAGER COMMENTS A-008-20 Martin started off with virtual meetings. The Open Meetings Act requires all meetings to be in person and open to the public, with few exceptions. When the pandemic hit, City Hall was obviously scrambling trying to come to terms with everything. How we were going to hold meetings and continue to operate was one of them. You may remember we cancelled our City Council, Planning Commission and Zoning Board of Appeals meetings for a time while we figured out the meeting logistics. As you are aware, the Michigan Supreme Court recently struck down the Governor’s ability to extend the Stay Home, Stay Safe Executive Order and their requirements/restrictions. What most people don’t know is that the executive order was what allowed municipalities to hold virtual meetings. So, when the Executive Orders were struck down, we were once again in limbo as to how we hold our public meetings. Thankfully, the Michigan Legislature had legislation drafted that addressed that concern. That legislation was approved by both sides the end of last week and then signed by the Governor. That is why the Council meeting was postponed from last week to this evening. We were in that small window where there was no clear authority to meet publicly without violating the open meetings act. Martin shared he had to shake his head when he heard there was a response on social media when we postponed the meeting, basically saying we didn’t know what we are talking about and we can have virtual meetings. We are now meeting under the new legislation. We will be working on rules and policies relating to in-person meetings, virtual meetings, and hybrid meetings which is a combination of in-person and virtual. We’ll keep everyone posted on how we will be holding meetings. This and the marijuana questions have taken a lot of our time. City of Sylvan Lake Regular City Council Meeting October 21, 2020 3 City Hall continues to be very busy. The Auditors finished up their work at City Hall and are completing their work on the 2019/20 audit report now. Martin acknowledge the city’s auditing firm, Janz and Knight, and John Mackey who we have worked with for many years. They are extremely knowledgeable, very thorough, and very good to work with. He appreciates all of they do. Permit applications are slowing down, but the inspections are still going strong. We’ve had a couple business license applications and inquiries, a site plan review is in process now with possibly one more coming up soon, and we have two ZBA’s we’re working on The issues we have had with our camera system is still being changed over and the issues we were having with our card access locks are being completed now. Dennise, Natalie, and Robin, in addition to their normal workload, continue to be very busy dealing with election issues. He believes City Hall is all set for the election, the rules are in place, and Dennise and crew are ready to go. A reminder that Sylvan Lake residents vote at the Community Center on November 3rd. The polls are open from 7:00 am to 8:00 pm. A few election stats as of today, we have 1563 registered voters, we have sent out 777 absentee ballots and 441 have been returned. To answer a few of the questions that have been asked, No, the polls aren’t open for multiple days, they are only open one day on November 3. There is no “early voting” per se, it is absentee voting, using the same process we have for many years. No, you cannot register to vote here if you live in Chicago. No, you cannot register to vote here if you find somebody that will say you live with them, and you cannot register to vote using a business address. Planning Commission is in the midst of discussing a new Master Plan for the City. We’ve talked about updating the Master Plan for over a year now around the conversation of the Whitfield School Property, and we are hoping for a lot of resident input. It is very important to participate, share your thoughts and ideas, hear what others think, and work with our Planners, Planning Commission, and City Council in creating a Master Plan that will guide us for the next 20 plus years. There is still time to help. Planning Commission will be discussing issues surrounding the Master Plan for a few months. We hope to hold small group sessions to allow more input and an open house to share ideas and receive more input. Make sure you watch for upcoming meetings so you can join in on the conversation. Community Involvement Kelli Kraus continued to be active in positive community engagement with a couple of awesome food trucks, Gavin Marshall continues to organize glow rolls through the neighborhoods. Memorial Park committee has been active throughout the summer and fall with the maintenance of Memorial Park. We appreciate the excitement and willingness to not only come up with ideas but put forth the effort to see them through. Parks and Rec hosted their 2nd Annual Adult Field Day. It was a lot of fun and a great success. They also hosted the annual haunted trail this past weekend, which was also a great success. Their next scheduled event is the annual Harvest Wine Tasting on November 13. Dealing with the issues surrounding the pandemic make all of these activities interesting at best, and oftentimes quite City of Sylvan Lake Regular City Council Meeting October 21, 2020 4 difficult. Make sure you keep up with what is happening by checking out the Sylvan Lake Parks and Rec Facebook page. He thanked the parks and Rec for their hard work. Last month Martin talked about the Millage Proposal. He didn’t think he needed to go over all of the points again. A newsbyte was sent out with a link to information on our website. The last thing he wanted to talk about is his least favorite topic. COVID, Politics and people. This is not intended to be a political statement, and really not even a statement as the City Manager, these are just thoughts and opinions that are weighing on him. It is very obvious that for the past few years people have been getting more and more angry over politics. It’s happened on a National level for a long time. It then made its way heavily to the State Level. Then we throw in the COVID-19 pandemic. The stress over virus related issues, the need to quarantine for safety, being lonely, or not having any alone time, have had a substantial negative impact with depression and general mental health and wellbeing. The economic shutdown and changing our lifestyle for safety has put a lot of people over the edge. In his opinion, all of these things have created a very hostile world that he has not seen in his lifetime. Add to that the ability for people to vent on social media with little repercussion, other than negative written responses, has created an extremely hostile environment. He does not look at the Nextdoor app because it is maddening, and he rarely looks at Facebook because it is upsetting to him the way people talk about each other. Then comes local politics. He has been here his entire life, and he has worked here long enough to be a part of about 30 local elections. This election far exceeds any prior election that he remembers with the amount of rhetoric, deceit, anger, name calling, and too many mean-spirited comments. It is to the point of losing friendships, or what we thought were friendships, over who people are supporting, or what issues they support. That shouldn’t happen. Especially in Sylvan Lake. We are nice, friendly people. Or we should be at least. Are the snide comments really meant to hurt others? He certainly hopes not, but they do. He knows this sounds sappy, but it truly hurt him to watch this unfold and see it continue, because he personally knows most of the people embroiled in this. He stated he can guarantee that each person running for City Council, and just about every resident in the city wants what is best for Sylvan Lake. Will we all agree on everything? Of course not. But we should respect each other’s opinions and ideas even when we don’t agree. Being nice or being mean is a choice, being loving or being hateful is also a choice. This brings him to the recent Anti-SPAR letter. He shouldn’t even mention it because anything that is put out without a name attached is meaningless to him. He has no idea who sent it, or who received it in the mail. A copy was given to him. That letter is a perfect example of the mean spirited, hurtful comments that create a canyon dividing our City. Or maybe it was so over the top bad, that people will take a step back and realize how bad this has gotten and realize this isn’t right. Either way, most of the comments made in that letter were reprehensible. Some were just mean comments not having anything to do with the upcoming election. City of Sylvan Lake Regular City Council Meeting October 21, 2020 5 There are six people running for City Council. It is fantastic that we have six people willing to donate their time, a lot of time, to the City of Sylvan Lake to keep it the great city it is. Instead of beating each other up, lets thank them for their love of the City and willingness to serve. CITY COUNCIL COMMENTS Salemi acknowledged Jack Hunger’s post on FB Sylvan Lake, What’s going on page. It was very inspirational, and everyone should read it. He echo’s a lot of what has been said. He read a statement on this discussion of allowing marijuana establishments in the city. He urged City Council and residents to consider the following: cannabis is 100% legal and highly regulated in the State of Michigan. In 2018 a proposal was placed on the ballot to legalize cannabis in the State of Michigan. 60+% of the voters in Sylvan Lake were in favor of this legislation. He stated currently there are 150 retail establishments throughout the State. It is estimated that number will increase to over 400 in 2023. Recent studies predict the nationwide cannabis market could be worth 30 billion in retail sales alone by 2021. Currently there are enough cannabis related initiatives on the ballots that could lead to cannabis being legal in all 50 states within the next four years. He feels Sylvan Lake has a unique opportunity to work with organizations willing to invest possibly millions of dollars to build new buildings or revitalize the old and revise ordinance to benefit all parties involved. For months they have received requests to revitalize the Orchard Lake corridor. We need to be business friendly and open minded about what will truly bring revitalization to Sylvan Lake. Not only will it bring revenue from sales and permits, but an excise tax which is divided up between the communities which have these establishments. Many retailers are seeing as much as 2500 customers a day. The additional traffic has spurred additional business growth with restaurants, specialty stores, etc. Much of the business growth we want to see in Sylvan. Crime rates have not risen in municipalities where these facilities are. In addition real estate values have risen. Most of the establishments hire local residents at a higher wage. He has read comments “I don’t want this in our city, or the unsavory characters.” He encourage everyone to refrain from and rethink such labels; they are derisive and inappropriate. He encouraged everybody to set aside their bias for this industry. It is an incredible opportunity for Sylvan Lake to gain growth and additional revenue. Clarke thanked Martin for his comments; he said it well. He condemned the letter that went out. It is not how we should be acting as a community. He is sorry for the people called out in the letter. He hopes the city doesn’t ever see anything like that again. He thanked Jan Hays for the pumpkin patch. He stated the Haunted Trail was awesome and it felt kind of normal. He reminded everyone of the Glow Roll this Saturday. It is another fun time, and he hopes everyone would come out. They will be going on the trail this time too. He encouraged everyone to participate. These events are helping everyone and despite all the difference of opinions we are all similar. Cassar thanked Martin and Jan Hays for their comments. He never received the letter, and he was asked if he knew who did, but he doesn’t. He was shocked by it. It was in poor taste, and uncalled City of Sylvan Lake Regular City Council Meeting October 21, 2020 6 for. It is unnecessary to call out anyone and he is sorry. He shared Adult Field Day looked like it was a great event. Zubrzycki thanked Martin for his comments. He just received the letter today and he is not sure he’ll read it. He offered his sincere apologies to Jan Hays and is hoping the city can get past this. Some people have said, what is the cure? He says it is love, humility, compassion for your neighbor, and understanding. He stated there are a lot of great candidates running for Council and everyone running wants the best for the city and he believes they would all do a good job. He quoted, “Service is love in action.” There have been a lot great things to look back on with all committees and thanked all the board and commission members. He thanked the Parks & Rec for Adult Field Day and Haunted Trail, and Jan Hays for the pumpkin patch. He stated there are two important items on the ballot, City Council, and the infrastructure millage proposal. Lorenz thanked all volunteers, Jan Hays, and Parks & Rec for their events. He also condemned the anti-SPAR letter. It definitely backfired when you don’t sign the letter and called out individuals. He doesn’t know who wrote it. He echoed the vote yes for Proposal 1. It is for 3 mills to be levied starting 2023 when the current bond millage of 5 mills will be done. Lorenz stated he saw the leaf vacuum truck today. He encouraged everyone to put their leaves in bags as GFL only has one leaf truck. Yard waste goes until the last Thursday in November, which may be Friday if it is Thanksgiving. He reminded everyone to vote November 3rd. Lorenz asked Chief Bassett to provide an update. P1-007-20 Chief Bassett shared all the officers are doing training. They have completed wellness and de- escalation training. There is more training later this month. He provided an update on the different grants he has applied for. Hazard Pay grant was $1,000 for each sworn officer was awarded, which all received on their last pay check. The Cares Act grant was approved, which he mentioned last month, for touchless plumbing at the Community center, City Hall, DPW garage, the Parks & Rec building, and for the park restrooms. There was also money approved for IT technology that were needed as a results of COVID. Last Chief Bassett shared two kayaks went missing over the last week. If anyone knows anything please contact the Police Department. He encouraged everyone to lock their kayaks. ACTION ITEMS A. Discussion Resident’s Opinion – Allowing Marijuana Retail Establishments in Sylvan Lake O-008-20 Martin explained the process and where we are at. After marijuana was legalized in the State, City Council opted out allowing marijuana establishments back in April last year. There were no firm regulations from the State at that time but said they would discuss it again in the future. City of Sylvan Lake Regular City Council Meeting October 21, 2020 7 Clarke feels there is a unique opportunity to attract a high-quality establishment on the Orchard Lake corridor. By early adopting an ordinance we can control the number, the kind and quality of marijuana establishments to go on Orchard Lake Road. Soon the surrounding communities could all adopt to allow these, and Sylvan Lake will lose control. This is why it is imperative we draft a thoughtful ordinance that protects our community. There are very few retail stores that reinvest in their store fronts. With COVID-19 causing record closings, it is predicted 25,000 retail stores nationally will close this year. How can we fix the vacancies and blight on Orchard Lake Road? This is the best opportunity to jump start the process. As many of these retail marijuana stores are doing $20,000-$30,000 sales daily. We need to put this type of business that have traffic and strength on Orchard Lake Road to attract other businesses that may want to come to Sylvan Lake. As a business owner over the last 10 years he assures everyone these businesses are the sharpest and most innovative in merchandising currently in retail. They are benchmarks on how to get a store to look better. This is not about whether you would use the marijuana business. This is about bringing an anchor business into the Orchard Lake corridor that will seek higher quality retailers. It takes a few high traffic businesses to reform a retail district. They have the capital; they want to earn community trust and support and will be a positive addition for the city. The proposal to support marijuana passed by 65% in sylvan Lake and people that were afraid of it are seeing what they feared isn’t coming to fruition. Those who voted for it expected it to be regulated like alcohol. Residents emailed concerns about increase of crime. He did research on it, and read, marijuana businesses don’t increase crime, but in fact there seems to be a reduction in crime. The journal of regional science and economics found an additional dispensary in a neighborhood leads to a reduction of 17 crimes per month per 10,000 residents. Residents also have said Council doesn’t need to pass anything because there are other places to legally obtain marijuana. The closest facility to Sylvan are Walled Lake and Hazel Park. He has heard it could bring reckless impaired driving to Sylvan. He agrees that is a reasonable concern, but the effects between marijuana impairment and alcohol are vastly different. The National Institute on drug study found drivers using marijuana tend to over estimate their impairment and may compensate by driving more slowly and increasing their following distance. There is contradicting data on DUI increasing or decreasing. He has confidence in the Police force enforcing the traffic on Orchard Lake Road. Lorenz explained the reason Council is looking at this again is because residents have voiced interest to look at this industry. It is not just about dispensaries. There are a couple of different aspects to it. There is growing, processing, transportation, testing and dispensaries. He doesn’t know where he will stand but wants to learn and he is willing to listen to the residents of Sylvan Lake. There is an economic reason for certain cities to opt in. Those opting in now, theoretically in 2021 will see between $40,000-$50,000 per dispensary in their city. Whether this is true or not, we won’t know until 2021, but if the 400+ dispensary come to Michigan as predicted, then the revenue would go down to $13,000, $20,000 or $25,000. We don’t know. With the economy how it is, it is a good reason to opt in. Mayor Lorenz opened the meeting to the public. City of Sylvan Lake Regular City Council Meeting October 21, 2020 8 Bud Krause wants clarity as to what happened and why it is being discussed again. April 2019 there was a 3 to 1 vote to prohibit marijuana establishments. August 2019 there were only three City Council members in attendance of the regular meeting. The City Attorney recommended a zoning ordinance to opt out of marijuana establishments, and the vote was 2 to 1 with Salemi and Cassar voting yes and Clarke voting against it, so the motion failed because ordinances need three votes to pass it. Next it was brought up again at the study session earlier this month. He shared he has done his research. A couple of petitions were circulated earlier this summer to go on the ballot. He understands the discussion where they want to be proactive and control a potential ordinance. He believes if an ordinance is placed on the ballot through the petition process and is voted and passed that would supersede any ordinance of the city’s books. He has heard a lot of things being said with how much money this would bring the city and crime won’t increase. He would much rather hear about the affects of crime from the Chief. His research findings are different from what Clarke and Salemi have stated. Councilmembers saying 2/3 of the voters voted for this and feels this ordinance to allow marijuana establishment should be passed based on that vote, is not correct. He feels it should go to a vote of the residents based on should they be allowed in Sylvan Lake, not just allowed in Michigan. There is a wide range of petitions that could be made to take to the voters. Philip Ross feels it needs to be investigated thoroughly, but it needs to be on our terms. Jim Cowper is in favor of letting the voters of Sylvan Lake decide. He agreed with Lorenz with learning and listening. He feels they should go slow, be wise and study it. Being an early adopter is not wise. Marijuana and alcohol is not the same. Marijuana is not legal at the federal level. He recalled Salemi saying maybe in four years it will be legal at the federal level. Four years is a long time and how it is handle could be changed too. Ed Robbins stated whenever someone talks about money, opportunity, and ground floor; he wonders what we are trying to be sold here. He agreed with Krause’s comment 65% in Sylvan voted for the Statewide marijuana, not selling it in Sylvan Lake. He feels we still don’t know all the adverse impacts that this could potentially have on our city. How does this fit with our brand “Prettiest Little City?” How does it fit with the Master Plan that is being worked on right now? He feels there are too many unanswered questions to do anything quickly. He is not for it right now, but he is keeping an open mind. Jennifer Wyatt has some concerns. There are people who need the medical marijuana for chronic pain, Alzheimer’s, and arthritis. She is in favor of having that type of marijuana for those people. She is concerned with people driving in the neighborhood after picking it up and smoking at the beach and while they are out walking. She feels everyone should have access to the actual law. She would like to hear the police department’s perspective on this also. Marijuana is a drug which can cause altered state of being. It can be a damage to the person doing it and others around them. She is sorry that people are getting their feelings hurt with the bad things being said in the city. Jennifer Hill shared she did send a letter to council outlining her concerns. She feels there are ways for those who need it medically to get it and there are delivery services too. She doesn’t want to be City of Sylvan Lake Regular City Council Meeting October 21, 2020 9 the next marijuana main street. There are opposing studies. She noted she has been involved extensively over the past year by drafting ordinances, advising cities and prosecuting. She also has been on the other side with businesses, drafting leases and other transactions. She believes using marijuana as an economic tool is a huge mistake. Look to Oakland County for economic development practices. We can do better and really start working on improving the business corridor on Orchard Lake Road. She feels the people who are inviting us to get in on it now, are people who are in it to make a lot of money. She believes it will be minimal tax dollars. Her understanding is there is supposed to be a 10% tax and a portion of that goes to the municipality based on how many facilities are in the community. There has been no distributions to any community as of yet. Sally Segal agrees with Krause, 65% sylvan voters is not necessarily for Sylvan Lake. She feels they should talk with the Chief with what his experiences have been. She believe the voters of Sylvan Lake should decide. She recognizes it is a cash cow and it will continue to be that. These facilities will bring a lot of traffic. She doesn’t believe we can tolerate the increased traffic it would bring. Brian Champa supports the city looking into it. He noted there are five different types of industries with marijuana. He stated Wild Bills sells a high percentage of their products are directly related to marijuana industry. He doesn’t believe it not being legal on a federal legal should have anything to do it. Both marijuana and alcohol are legal in Michigan. He feels this industry isn’t going away. They seem like a sustainable industry to him. He was concerned with the petition going around this summer that would allow the city to have a say in the ordinance if it was passed. The city should look at it and he supports it. Rick Eriksen mentioned the comments of increased tax revenue for the city. The current buildings that are there are already paying taxes, so even if a marijuana establishment comes in, incrementally that won’t change and help the city’s finances. More fun programs in the city, like they have been doing this summer, will help improve housing values. Luke Cassar thanked all the residents for their comments. It is very helpful for City Council. He addressed the majority voted for it in 2018. When he has asked residents do they want it Sylvan, he got the response of “not really.” He won’t say yes or no, as they are researching it and he wants to make an educated/informed decision on it. He doesn’t know if it is possible to do only medical facilities or not. Graham Cousens apologized he was driving during the public comment portion and wanted everyone to know he is condemning the anti-spar letter, his campaign or him had nothing to do with it. He hopes they will all comes together as neighbors after this election is over. Thanks to Martin for his words which should inspire all of us. Sally Segal feels a lot more homework needs to done before moving forward with this. More facts in order to proceed. The citizens need to have all the right information so they can choose. City of Sylvan Lake Regular City Council Meeting October 21, 2020 10 Lorenz felt all the comments were good and interesting. He feels this helps Council as well as the community, so we can all learn. He believes more petitions will come in the future to put a question on the ballot. They will continue to research and learn. He is not sure the law is clear as to if a community allows marijuana that they can limit the type of facilities they will have. Attorney Schultz explained under the 2018 law the city had a certain amount time to opt out of recreational marijuana. The city did this. His firm advised sylvan and other communities to opt out of the zoning too. Not everybody did that; it wasn’t strictly required. Lorenz asked Chief Bassett to share his thoughts on the topic. He understands he is putting him on the spot, and he isn’t prepared to make a statement. Chief Bassett stated this decision to allowing zoning or establishments is really for the residents and city officials. The police department would like to be part of the security, noise, odor requirements for the establishments. Clarke addressed some of the comments stated. The proposal in 2018 was passed by 56% in Michigan, and 60+% by Sylvan Lake in support of this. The language did address support of retail. He feels voters should have voted against it if they didn’t want it in Sylvan Lake. He hears the early adoption on this. He brought some historical context. In Colorado marijuana was legal 20 years ago and recreational in 2012. He noted there were communities who waited over 20 years to allow alcohol into their communities and this hurt them, he believes. Marijuana law doesn’t allow it to be smoked in a park, on the street or in your car. He has faith in the Sylvan Police Department to keep the city safe and to make sure that kind of stuff isn’t happening. The comment of marijuana on main street is why we need to move forward on this proposal. If it goes to a vote that could happen. One of the petitions was to allow 16 or 22 facilities, he is not sure. He hopes that wouldn’t have passed. This is why they need to tackle this issue, be smart about it and draft our own ordinance for it. He shared he has been working on the Orchard Lake corridor for 20 years. He has an intimate knowledge how it works. He is a retailer on Orchard Lake Road. How many facts do people need? He quantified two journals which are a very high bar of information telling you, you won’t see an increase of crime. Salemi echoed some of Clarkes comments. Most of city Council has done research on this and are fairly versed on it. He pointed out the 2018 proposal was very easy to read, which stated commercial sales through State-licensed retailers. He doesn’t believe people didn’t read it and truly understand it. Most people he is talking to say yes to it. Meg shared she has rheumatoid arthritis for the last 30 years. She can choose to take opioids or biologics. She choses not to; she choses cannabis. It helps her greatly. She feels her tax dollars are going to Walled Lake right now as she has to drive there. Dispensaries are nice places, like a boutique. As far as the unsavory people, it is cheaper to buy on the street than at a dispensary. She is not sure what the negativity is on it. She has a marijuana card and can grow it. Attorney Schultz confirmed you are allowed to grow a limited number of plants. Martin added you don’t need a medical marijuana card to grow it. Clarke thought it was 12 plants allowed to grow. Schultz confirmed that is true. City of Sylvan Lake Regular City Council Meeting October 21, 2020 11 Lorenz asked that this topic be put on the study session agenda again for next week. He feels it is clear people want to discuss it and learn about it. He would like to review the zoning ordinance that wasn’t passed. B. GWBCCC 2021 Budget C3-001-20 Dave Albery, Executive Director, Greater West Bloomfield Cable Communications Commission, along with Phil Ross, Sylvan Lake’s Representative and Deb Macon, West Bloomfield’s Representative. Albery stated City Council received in their packet the 2021 Budget. Lorenz expressed his appreciation for the work Civic Center TV is doing. He asked where we are in terms of funding? He hears things like other provides are trying to overtake cable. Albery responded revenue is dropping because people are dropping cable and receiving their video through streaming, which no city in the United States receives any revenue. You receive revenue through cable and equipment; nothing from internet streaming or equipment related to it. Albery read from the budget what their focus will be in 2021. The Commission will invest in personnel and equipment to deliver audio and video content via streaming networks, expand the use of the internet and social media outlets, and use digital technology to create mutually beneficial regional strategic and media partnerships. It will also initiate a grant application process to fund progress toward these goals. He addressed “The Megacast” they created in 2020, with daily two-hour radio, televisions and online program providing local and regional updates regarding the pandemic, economic recovery, and community information. Clarke feels the cable commission is wonderful and communicates with the residents, which is super helpful. Zubrzycki asked if the cable commission has a strategy to modify that streaming data? Albery stated that is part of the process which involves sponsorship and partnerships that would involve grant applications based on viewership. When you go to more streaming, you can have more metrics. Moved by Clarke, seconded Cassar, to approve the Greater West Bloomfield Cable Communications Commission Budget for 2021 as presented. Yes: Salemi, Zubrzycki, Cassar, Clarke, Lorenz No: None MOTION CARRIED c. Agreement for CARES Act Distribution with Oakland County CA-005-20 Martin explained Chief Bassett submitted two grants and Clerk Dryden submitted one grant. This City of Sylvan Lake Regular City Council Meeting October 21, 2020 12 agreement is required to get the funds. We have met all the requirements. The agreement remains in effect until January 31, 2021. Salemi noted he read the Tri-City Fire minutes and they discussed CARES money for them. How does that correlate to us? Martin stated it has nothing to do with this agreement. The West Bloomfield Department applied for a grant that will be paid to them and we will get a portion of that grant. Zubrzycki read Keego Harbor published the dollar amount they will receive. Martin stated the grant approved was for around $43,000 for upgrading facilities, $7,000 for Police Hazard pay and $3,000 elections expenses. Moved by Clarke, seconded Salemi, to approve the agreement for CARES Act Distribution with Oakland County and authorizing John Martin to execute the agreement. Yes: Zubrzycki, Cassar, Clarke, Lorenz, Salemi No: None MOTION CARRIED d. Resolution for Rules & Regulations for Industrial Pretreatment Program as Adopted by GLWA CA-006-20 R2-008-20 Martin explained this agreement is with GLWA who we have a wastewater agreement with. It is for the pretreatment Industrial Program. We are required to adopt this along with what used to be Pontiac Sewer Ordinance because our sewer flows to them. The City Attorney has read and approved. We have no industry affected by this rule. This adds rules for PFAS and is also tested in drinking water. Yes: Cassar, Clarke, Lorenz, Salemi, Zubrzycki No: None RESOLUTION ADOPTED e. Mayoral Appointment to Planning Commission to Fill Term A2-007-20 Mayor Lorenz stated there were four applications received. Bill Brundage has resigned with two years remaining on his term. Mayor Lorenz is appointing Jerry Nechal to the Planning Commission to fill a vacancy to expire in November 2022. Julie Kohr missed seeing anything about this position. She asked how she could find out and apply for such a position. Mayor Lorenz stated newsbytes go out and the application is online for anyone to fill out. City of Sylvan Lake Regular City Council Meeting October 21, 2020 13 Moved by Zubrzycki, seconded Clarke, to confirm Mayor Lorenz’ appointment of Jerry Nechal to the Planning Commission to fill a vacancy with a term to expire November 2022. Yes: All No: None MOTION CARRIED f. Purchase of Police Vehicle P1-008-20 Martin reminded council a police vehicle was budgeted for the last two years and they never purchased a vehicle. This purchase is a 2020 Ford Interceptor Utility Vehicle (Ford Explorer) costing $38,500. That cost includes some equipment and some prewiring for additional equipment. This vehicle replaces the 2013 Ford Explorer with about 80,000 miles on it. Clarke asked how they feel about the graphics; brighter colors to stand out. Martin stated he and the Chief will discuss it, but they do want all the cars to be the same. Moved by Clarke, seconded Salemi, to approve the purchase of a 2020 Ford Interceptor Patrol Vehicle at the cost of $38,500. Yes: Clarke, Lorenz, Salemi, Zubrzycki, Cassar No: None MOTION CARRIED g. Extension of GFL Contract CA-007-20 G-001-20 Martin reviewed when City Council approved the contract it was for 5-years with a possible 3-year extension. Martin shared he was told the cost would likely increase by $4/household/month because we are so far behind other municipalities. They asked us to approve the 3-year extension to keep the cost down or did they want to go out for bid. He noted our contact is less than neighboring communities, even with the leaf collection cost. He recommended approving the 3-year extension with the amounts they proposed. Lorenz asked how long they have to decide this. Martin stated to the end of the year. Clarke shared the most common complaint with GFL is they are just disappointing, especially with the leaf collection. They miss trash, take weird routes and speed. He would like to look into getting better service from another company. He also feels GFL is not responsive to calls or concerns. Cassar noted he has called a couple of times and the truck turned around and picked up what was City of Sylvan Lake Regular City Council Meeting October 21, 2020 14 missed. Clarke is correct in questioning GFL’s ability and efficiency at times. Salemi suggested getting comparisons. Cassar recalled last time they looked at other companies, nobody did leaf vacuuming. He is not sure if things have change. Martin stated he would get some comparisons from other communities. He is confident we won’t find another hauler who will do the leaf collection. They may have to contract with a large landscape company to do leaves. He is not sure. He will ask GFL come to the next meeting too. Lorenz feels it would be helpful if GFL has a schedule route for leaf pickup. Zubrzycki agreed it would be helpful to get comparisons from other cities. He noted he just looked up Waterford and their rate is $207 per household, annually. Mayor Lorenz opened the topic to the public. Midge Davidson likes GFL and doesn’t feel they disappoint. She feels trash and recycling are great with her. Sally Segal asked how a candidate for Planning commission is determined and how is it advertised. Martin stated the application is on the website for anybody to apply at any time. The application is put into the file for when there is an opening. If a term is expiring a newsbyte will go out. Zubrzycki got on the city website and explained where to find the application. Martin noted the regular study session is tomorrow evening, so they won’t be holding a study session until November. He reminded everyone the cost when the city was collection leaves was $45,000 for disposing 2500 yards of leaves, and that was 10 years ago. NON-ACTION ITEMS a. Security for Ferndale Park, Restroom and Boat Launch b. Seawall – Replacing Sections on Ferndale ADJOURNMENT Moved by Clarke seconded Cassar, to adjourn the regular City Council Meeting. Yes: All No: None MOTION CARRIED The meeting adjourned at 8:14 p.m. City of Sylvan Lake Regular City Council Meeting October 21, 2020 15 Dennise Dryden, City Clerk