The Hastings Banner — Thursday, November 18, 2021 — Page 9Philanthropic organization eyes
Barry County for potential study
James Gemmell
Contributing Writer
A statewide nonprofit organization is con-
sidering a potential pilot study of the unique
way Barry County is collaborating with local
municipalities about the county’s distribution
of federal stimulus funding.
The website michiganfoundations.org
shows its Statewide Equity Fund Strategic
Support Pilot program was launched in July
to serve as a collaborative way for Michigan’s
philanthropic organizations to “address sys-
tem challenges laid bare by the COVID-
pandemic.”
Barry Community Foundation President
Bonnie Gettys apprised the Yankee Springs
Township Board at its Nov. 11 meeting that
some representatives of the Council of
Michigan Foundations had met with the
Barry Community Foundation recently to
discuss the potential study.
The study would focus on how the county
is planning to share its federal allocation of
nearly $12 million through the Coronavirus
State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds pro-
gram. That is part of the American Rescue
Plan Act signed into law in March.
The CMF declined to comment on the
potential pilot study, noting “it’s too early in
the process.”
ARPA funds have been allocated to com-
munities across the country to use for infra-
structure upgrades, based on the size of each
municipality’s population. The money is
being deposited into the bank accounts of
local governments in two installments, one
this year and the other next year. Barry
County received its first ARPA payment of
nearly $6 million in June. The second half
will arrive sometime in 2022.
Gettys is one of the officials coordinating
how the money will be distributed to local
governmental units in Barry County. Although
ARPA funds may be used only to address
existing infrastructure needs, there has been
some recent discussion in Congress about
possibly amending the law to broaden poten-
tial uses for the stimulus funds.
“Our county was just interviewed by (the
Council of Michigan Foundations) to try to
determine if they’re going to use us as a pilot
program, because of the way that we’ve
engaged everyone in the process,” Gettys told
the Yankee Springs Township Board. “And if
they do that, then they’ll do an evaluation on
how this [funding] was dispersed, how we
potentially could get even greater resident
input on where they feel the needs and wants
are.”
Barry County Board of Commissioners
Vice Chairwoman Vivian Connor, who rep-
resents the Yankee Springs community, also
spoke to the township board.
The commissioners have set a public meet-
ing Nov. 30 to discuss the applications the
county has received for first-round county
ARPA funding. The meeting will begin at 7
p.m. in the Hastings Performing Arts Center
at Hastings High School.
“We’re going to have the Community
Foundation come and tell us how they scored
the applications and the process that they
used, so we can have an understanding of it,”
Connor said. “And then, we’re going to look
at the applications and move forward from
there. We’re not going to approve any appli-
cations at that meeting, but we’ll talk about
them, look at them and see what their reason-
ing was behind it – how they ranked them.”
Initial approval of applications will take
place at a county commission Committee of
the Whole meeting, and then the Board of
Commissioners will consider the applications
Dec. 7.
“And we’re seeking public comment,
because people want to have input on these
and how we spend the money on these appli-
cations,” Connor said.
How Barry County is going about gather-
ing public input and working with local gov-
ernmental units in approaching the funding
distribution may be pioneering in scope,
Gettys said.
“This is the only county government that
I’m aware of in the State of Michigan that is
sharing their revenue from the federal gov-
ernment in this manner,” she said. “There is
no other county government that has said we
want to share, and make sure that all of our
communities are lifted up.
“I applaud Vivian and her board for really
looking at the way to lift all boats.”
Robert Geyer, a member of the Barry
Community Foundation ARPA advisory com-
mittee, told the township board he agrees
about the uniqueness of the county’s collabo-
rative approach to disbursement of the pan-
demic funding.
“I think that the [county] commissioners are
the only ones that actually did this committee
to actually do the research on this,” he said. “It
takes a lot of work. There was $15 million
worth of proposals for the first round. I think
that the commissioners are now to the stage ...
that they want us to meet with them, so they
know exactly what the proposals were, what
we looked at, and how we graded them.”
Geyer said each person on the ARPA com-
mittee used a scoring sheet to evaluate the
various proposals from the townships and
other municipalities in Barry County.
One problem that occurred in the process,
though, is that only three of the county’s 16
townships submitted applications to receive
county ARPA money. And a Yankee Springs
Township Board member said the township
was not even aware until recently that the
county had been taking applications.
“That’s what I don’t understand,” Gettys
replied. “I don’t know if the emails went to
spam. I don’t know if you got the letter, and
you didn’t open it because it was from the
Community Foundation or the chamber [of
commerce]. I don’t know what occurred
between what we did and where we got today.
All I can say is, we can draw a line in the sand
today and move forward.”
Gettys said emails were sent last spring to
all municipalities in Barry County, along with
letters saying the community foundation was
seeking pitches from local governments on
how much money they needed and why. The
foundation and the county board asked the
government leaders to base their grantrequests on long-term investments or critical
needs in their communities. Electronic copies
of each municipality’s formal proposal had to
be submitted to the county by Sept. 17 for
first-round funding.
“After we sent out the information, the
county board actually looked at the [requests
for proposals] that we put together,” Gettys
told the township board. “We are just finish-
ing the first round. We made recommenda-
tions to the county board based on the appli-
cations that we received.
“There will be another round that will be
available, so you haven’t been missed. And
we certainly want to make sure that you are
able to leverage dollars from the county, as
well as money that you currently have. That
was part of the process that we looked at
when we were reviewing applications. Points
went a little bit higher if municipalities were
willing to put dollars in, as well.”
Meanwhile, the Yankee Springs Township
Board voted 5-0 to authorize township super-
visor Rob Heethuis and Trustee Larry
Knowles to work with engineers in discuss-
ing potential water- and sewer-system proj-
ects in which the township could apply for
ARPA funding. The township board talked
about the possibility of extending municipal
water lines to the Yankee Springs Meadows
mobile home park, at 1330 N. Patterson
Road. The Michigan Department of
Environment, Great Lakes and Energy recent-
ly discovered two public water wells there
with high levels of arsenic and nitrate.
“When Yankee Springs Meadows came to
us, we couldn’t expand our water system,”
Heethuis said. “We didn’t have the capability,
even with the problems they were having and
being a willing partner to put money into the
project. We couldn’t do it, because our water
system was topped out.”
He and Knowles will look into the feasibil-
ity of adding another well to double the town-
ship’s water-storage capacity, and how to
address the contamination problem. So, rep-
resentatives from EGLE, the county health
department, and engineers may be consulted
to learn the costs of such a project.
“When you talk about expanding the water
system, you’re talking about expanding the
capability and capacity, not necessarily using
the money to put pipes in the ground going
places. If we spent a chunk of money on arse-
nic [removal] and the well, that would make
the cost to Yankee Springs Meadows or
somebody else less to tie in. They would dou-
ble our usage,” township Clerk Mike
Cunningham said.
“There’s a lot in play,” Knowles said.
“They have to build an arsenic-removal facil-
ity up there, and so they have costs they’re
going to have to do, regardless. So, if we sent
our water up there, they wouldn’t have to do
that. So, that would be money they could
spend [elsewhere].”
In addition to considering applying for
ARPA funds to address those issues, Gettys
suggested the township contact the U.S.
Department of Agriculture about grants avail-
able for rural communities to improve their
water quality and infrastructure.Health department offering
COVID-19 booster vaccinations
The Barry-Eaton District Health
Department is offering all manufacturers’
vaccine booster doses to residents who meet
at least one criteria.
Individuals who received a Pfizer or
Moderna vaccine as their primary vaccine,
with the second dose being at least six
months ago, are eligible for a booster dose if
they are:- Age 65 or older.
- Age 18 or older with underlying medical
conditions identified by the U.S. Centers for
Disease Control. - Age 18 or older living in a long-term care
setting, considering their individual risks and
benefits. - Age 18 or older working in a high-risk
setting, considering their individual risks and
benefits.
Those who are age 18 and over who
received a single dose Johnson & Johnson
(Janssen) vaccine as their primary vaccine at
least two months ago should receive a booster
dose of any type (Pfizer, Moderna or J&J).
“Vaccines for COVID-19 have been shown
to be safe and effective,” according to an Oct.
28 BEDHD press release. “It is especially
critical that unvaccinated individuals seek
vaccination as winter approaches. Holidays
during cold weather may bring people togeth-
er indoors, increasing the risk of spread of
COVID-19 and other illnesses, like flu.
Individuals who catch the flu or COVID-
may need to be hospitalized, and hospital
beds are a limited resource. Therefore, it is
important to prevent COVID-19 and flu as
much as possible.”
The local health department provides all
COVID-19 vaccines and flu vaccines for
children age 17 and under. Local pharmacies
also may provide COVID-19 boosters and flu
vaccinations.
More information can be found at barryea-
tonhealth.org.Hastings Township
previews 2022 budget
Four-way stop proposed at
Center Road intersection
Benjamin Simon
Staff Writer
The Hastings Charter Township Board of
Trustees approved a draft of its 2022 budget
Tuesday.
The budget projects a $558,967 in revenue
for the 2022 fiscal year, up from $504,271 in
2021 and $419,301 in 2020.
The jump in revenue, Clerk Anita Mennell
said, can be credited to the influx of corona-
virus relief funds. Most recently, the town-
ship received about $160,000 from the
American Rescue Plan Act, and it will receive
another $160,000 in 2022.
With the increase in revenue comes an
increase in expenditures. Spending had sub-
sided during the pandemic, dropping from
$491,040 to $273,153. That amount will rise
again in 2022 to an anticipated $354,756,
with more money dedicated to township staff
member salaries, elections, highways and
more.
After dipping $71,739 into the negative in
2020, the township projects $204,211 in rev-
enue over expenses in 2022.
The 2022 budget won’t be finalized until
the township’s next monthly meeting Dec. 14.Following the budget conversation, the
board discussed the possibility of putting a
four-way stop at the intersection of Center
and Charlton Park roads. Brown noted that
people have been killed at the intersection
and the township needs to do something to
fix it.
“This doesn’t happen every day, believe
me, but when it happens, it’s really, really
bad,” Brown said.
“Is a four-way stop actually going to make
a difference?” Trustee Timothy McNally
asked later.
“I’m going to say yes only because it can’t
do anything but help,” Brown responded. He
mentioned illuminating the stop signs so that
people could better see them. The board also
entertained placing a street light at the inter-
section, although Brown estimated most of
the accidents have happened during the day.
The board approved letting Brown look
further into implementing a four-way stop.
He will contact the county road commission,
which will determine the feasibility and
necessity of the project.
Finally, the board approved a list of 21
Hastings Charter Township residents who
will pay for weed removal on Leach Lake.
Each property owner will be charged approx-
imately $260 in taxes.Orangeville Township looking
to stop ‘Jake braking’
Greg Chandler
Staff Writer
Orangeville Township has asked the Barry
County Road Commission to put up signs
along Keller Road, encouraging semi-truck
drivers to avoid engine braking, or “Jake
braking,” as it is commonly called.
But the road commission has questions for
the township, such as how many signs it
wants and where the signs should be installed.
The term “Jake brake” comes from a prod-
uct named the Jacobs Engine Brake that’s
used by truck drivers to slow their rigs. The
compression release it uses causes a loud
noise like a jackhammer.
The township board voted to have the signs
installed after receiving calls from several resi-
dents complaining about loud noise from trucks
braking in the area of Keller between Norris
and Lindsey roads. That area is near a planned
75-acre sand and gravel mining operation that
received approval from the Barry County
Planning Commission in late September.
“The road commission will put up signs,”
Township Supervisor Tom Rook said at the
Nov. 2 meeting. “We didn’t want to get into
an ordinance because we’d then have to
enforce it. It’s a civil [infraction], so we
would end up paying the cost for enforcement
for something that isn’t a county ordinance
... [the sheriff’s department] will come out
and help us, but we have to pay for all the
fines any time we pursue a violation.”
But road commission Operations Director
Jake Welch said he sees Orangeville’s request as
problematic. If signs get installed along Keller
Road, he said, it could lead to requests for addi-
tional signage on nearby roads and possibly even
on state highways such as M-179 and M-37.He also said he sees a problem with
enforcement.
“It’s really a slippery slope,” Welch said in
an interview with The Banner.
“We’ve been trying really hard to keep our
right-of-ways clear of extra stuff – extra
signs, extra junk – so that the signs that we
have really stand out.”
Concerns about noise were raised by some
township residents when JMK Realty went
before the county planning commission with
its plan for the sand and gravel mine that
would be operated by Grand Rapids-based
Superior Asphalt at 9650 Keller Road.
The county planning commission approved
a special land use and site plan for the project.
An Orangeville Township couple, Karen
and Glenn Hayward, say they own a strip of
property that Superior Asphalt would have to
cross to get to the site, and are seeking to use
that to block the project. The Haywards live
across the road from the proposed mining
site. Karen Hayward said Monday she has not
heard any instances of “Jake braking” at or
near the site.
County Planning Director Jim McManus
said there has been no action on developing the
site. He said JMK has a soil erosion permit.
Superior Asphalt is planning a five-cell
operation, with cells ranging in size from 7.
to 10 acres, to be mined in three-year incre-
ments, according to plans presented to the
county.
Welch said the road commission has asked
the township for more details on what it
wants to address the noise concerns.
“We don’t have a firm policy on [sig-
nage],” he said. “To be honest, we would
prefer not to have a policy.”- Preschool Assistant Teachers • Preschool Lead Teachers • Paraprofessionals • Senior
Transportation Driver • Distribution Specialist • Kitchen Assistant/Food Transporters
Work with life partner to achieve
mutual goals
When you and your life part-
ner work together to achieve
your important long-term goals,
such as a comfortable retirement
lifestyle, the experience can be
greatly rewarding. However,
your success will require com-
mitment and discipline. So, what
steps should you take along the
way?
One key move is to decide
early in your relationship how
you will handle money. Many
couples merge their finances and
make joint decisions on major
purchases. But some couples
like to keep at least part of their
finances distinct, perhaps by
maintaining separate checking
or savings accounts. There’s re-
ally no one correct solution for
everyone, but whatever you de-
cide, you’ll want to be assured
that all the bills will be paid and
that neither one of you feels the
pressure of an unfair financial
burden.
Here’s another suggestion:
Try to avoid keeping financial
secrets from your partner. That
means disclosing your debts,
hidden funds or uncommon in-
vestments. These types of sur-
prises can lead to difficulties and
mistrust. Even if you’re enteringthe relationship carrying some-
thing like a heavy student loan,
it’s best to get it out in the open
right away so, together, you can
strive to gradually eliminate it.
Of course, there’s also a prac-
tical side to not keeping secrets.
Your large student loan could
affect your credit rating – an
issue that may arise when you
and your partner are seeking a
mortgage or some other type of
loan. Clearly, you both should be
aware of this potential stumbling
block before you begin the appli-
cation process.
Now, let’s consider your in-
vestments. You each may have
your own IRA and 401(k) or
similar employer-sponsored re-
tirement plan, but you might also
share a joint investment account.
However, you might not share
the same risk tolerance – per-
haps one of you tends to be more
aggressive, willing to take more
risks in exchange for potentially
higher returns, while the other
is more conservative, preferring
to keep down the risk level of a
portfolio, even if it means lesser
capacity for growth.
Again, neither you nor your
partner is necessarily “right” or
“wrong” in your views on in-vesting – and nobody’s feelings
about risk should be ignored.
But once you’ve clearly identi-
fied your retirement goals and
estimated their cost, you may
find that compromise is possible.
In other words, perhaps the con-
servative partner will realize that
a too-cautious approach could
hinder progress toward the de-
sired retirement goal, while the
partner who focuses on maxi-
mum growth will learn that a
somewhat less aggressive ap-
proach can still yield the desired
results. This type of compromise
may affect the investment choic-
es you make in your individual
accounts as well as your joint ac-
counts. And the way you choose
your investments may even
change over time, especially if
your financial goals evolve.
Ultimately, communication
is the key. As long as you’re
talking to each other and open-
ly expressing your wishes and
concerns, you and your partner
can find a way to keep moving
toward your mutual goals.
This article was written by
Edward Jones for use by your
local Edward Jones Financial
Advisor.
Edward Jones, Member SIPCJim Lundin
Financial Advisor
2169 W. M-43-Hwy., Suite A
Hastings, MI 49058
(269) 818-Financial FOCUS
Provided by the Barry County
offices of Edward JonesJeff Domenico, AAMS® CRPC®
Financial Advisor
450 Meadow Run Dr. Suite 100
Hastings, MI 49058
(269) 948-Member SIPCSuspect sought
in vehicle theft
A 28-year-old woman called police at 6:
a.m. Nov. 5 to report her Chevrolet Silverado
was stolen from her driveway in the 6000
block of Lammers Road, Hope Township, the
previous night. The woman said her hus-
band’s wallet was in the truck, and it had been
used at a Meijer and Speedway in the
Kalamazoo area. The suspect bought about
$400 worth of gift cards at Meijer, then
attempted to buy gas and more gift cards at
Speedway, where the card was declined.
Video footage of the suspect at Meijer
matched the description of a suspect sought
by police for several vehicle break-ins that
recently occurred on Dunkley Drive, a few
miles from where the truck was stolen.Meth found on
suspicious man
A caller notified police of a suspicious man
on Thornapple Lake Road in Castleton
Township near M-66 Highway at 9:02 p.m.
Nov. 7. The man, dressed all in black, was on
a bicycle, was using a flashlight and had
spent several minutes in front of a residence.
Police stopped the man, who said he was on
his way to a friend’s house in Nashville and
was having trouble with his bike. The sus-
pect, 31, of Nashville, had a small bag of
methamphetamine and a pipe on him. He also
was on probation and was arrested.Another catalytic
converter stolen
A 64-year-old man called police Nov. 10 to
report the catalytic converter had been cut out
of his truck while parked at his residence in
the 12000 block of South M-66 Highway in
Assyria Township. The man said the catalytic
converter had been taken in the past two
weeks, and he found a saw blade from the
theft that had been left behind.