Council approves funding for numerous purchases, projects

Published 9:02 am Wednesday, August 28, 2019

NILES — While recreational marijuana was the primary talking point of the Monday evening Niles City Council meeting at the Niles Fire Department Complex, the council approved 16 items, many of which came with price tags.

The following items were approved:

• Niles City Council meeting minutes from Aug. 12. It was approved unanimously.

  Planned bills payments dated Aug. 21. They were approved unanimously.

• Requests to host the Four Flags Area Apple Festival from Sept. 21 to Sept. 29 on its fairgrounds at 1740 Lake St. The council designated $6,350 from the city’s general fund to do so.

The item was approved unanimously.

• Decorative safety fencing and guardrail installments for the city hall parking lot. Custom Fence Company, of Niles, will provide the installments for $6,802.75 and install them for another $6,802.75.

Custom Fence Company will install 4-feet-high steel fencing between the employee and public parking lots of City Hall, which have an elevation difference. According to a city report, two utility workers were injured after they tried to cross the lots.

The item was approved unanimously.

• A purchase of a copier for the utilities service center at the cost of $11,626.51 from U.S. Business Systems, of Elkhart.

According to a city report, a new copier was needed to scan more documents in less time.

The item was approved unanimously.

• A purchase of a management software module, per a request from the police department. The $16,420 purchase from Core Technology, of Lansing, is meant to take excess workload off those that type up police reports, subject encounters and evidences seized while reducing grammatical and factual errors. It comes from the police department budget.

The cost was planned,  approved unanimously and will be taken from the police department’s budget.

• A purchase of an eCitation Export Fee and annual maintenance support from LexisNexis Risk Solutions of Alpharetta, Georgia. It allows clerks to type citations rather than writing them.

The $2,950 cost was planned and approved unanimously. It comes from the police department’s budget.

• A purchase of a Ford Explorer Hybrid Utility police vehicle at the cost of $36,300 from Campbell Ford, of Niles.

According to a city report, a vehicle currently used has handling issues and is beginning to require more maintenance than others. The new car would replace it.

The council unanimously approved the planned purchase. It comes from the police department’s budget.

• A bid of $56,434 from RESCO Supply of Middleton, Michigan, for the purchase of transformers meant to help the city adjust to electrical load growth.

It was approved unanimously by the council. It was budgeted in the electrical division’s five-year plan.

• A bid of $97,226 from Reed City Powerline Supply, of Reed City, Michigan for eight transformers to help the city adjust to electrical load growth.

It was approved unanimously by the council. It was budgeted in the electrical division’s five-year plan.

• A resolution to approve the city’s 2020 fiscal year budget by funds. It was approved unanimously.

• A resolution to approve a Michigan Department of Transportation contract reimbursement of $36,955.

Earlier, the council authorized the public works department to acquire land for runway protection zones for Jerry Tyler Memorial Airport.

It was approved unanimously.

• A license agreement with GL & DL Holdings to allow an encroachment of an air conditioning unit into public right of way.

George and Denise Lynch, of Niles, own the unit at 1140 S. 11th St., which will soon be the site of their medical marijuana business, Green Stem.

It was approved unanimously.

• A purchase of a case management software service meant to help the utility department organize its investigations, incidents and service orders.

The $64,217.38 cost was approved unanimously.

• A provisional medical marijuana facility license for a processing facility to Rosenberg Holdings, of Birmingham, Michigan.

Gary Vettese, of Brown City, Michigan, represented the company. He said he plans to hire 100 employees at a living wage and invest $10 million into the surrounding community.

Rosenburg Holdings will not yet be able to build in Niles, as there are no more licenses to give out. If recreational marijuana businesses are approved at a Niles City Council meeting Sept. 9, it would obtain one and build in an industrial zone.

That is because a caveat of a recreational marijuana ordinance under consideration would grant extra space in the city’s industrial park for marijuana businesses.

The council approved the license 6-2. Councilmembers Georgia Boggs and Daniel VandenHeede voted “No.”

• The full agreement of a poverty property tax exemption, which could grant residents full or partial exemption from paying property taxes if their income and asset levels meet specified maximums.

The council previously approved a similar measure, but it left out a maximum asset requirement that the state later asked it to consider.

The council approved the exemption 7-1. Boggs voted “No.”