The Sun and News

Your Hometown Newspaper Serving Middleville and Caledonia Areas

No. 32/August 7, 2021 Published by J-Ad Graphics, Inc. • 1351 N. M-43 Highway, Hastings, MI 49058 143rd year

Middleville relents on ORV

restrictions – temporarily

Greg Chandler

Staff Writer

When the Middleville

Village Council approved

restrictions on the use of off-

road vehicles in the village in

late June, it inadvertently put

the village in an awkward

spot for its annual Fall Color

Tour.

However, the council cor-

rected that on Tuesday by

approving a temporary sus-

pension of the ORV ordi-

nance to allow golf carts on

the Paul Henry Thornapple

Trail and letting them cross

Main Street during the fall

event.

“Finally, we’re going to be

able to have an event here in

the village. We just need per-

mission to run the golf carts

[across the street],” Village

Clerk Glorimar Ayala said

prior to the vote.

The ORV ordinance,

which was approved on a 6-

vote June 22, requires ORV

operators who wish to drive

their vehicles on village

streets to have proof of

no-fault insurance, proper

installation of safety equip-

ment, a valid Michigan regis-

tration and a license plate.

“In the past, we’ve made

this resolution to suspend [a

ban] on motorized vehicles

on the trail. We’ve always

made some type of suspen-

sion. This time, we’re sus-

pending the ordinance that I

pushed through,” said coun-

cil Trustee Mike Cramer,

who made the motion to

approve the suspension.

The village holds the color

tour for seniors and those

with limited walking ability

each fall, offering golf cart

tours of the Paul Henry Trail,

Ayala wrote in a memo to the

council.

This year’s tour will take

place from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Tuesday, Oct. 20. In case of

rain, the event will take place

the following day, Oct. 21,

Ayala said.

The ordinance change says

that the ORV restrictions

“will be strictly enforced on

the days immediately preced-

ing and following the Fall

Color Tour event,” according

to village documents.

TK superintendent appeals

for civility at public forum

Greg Chandler

Staff Writer

With the start of a new

school year a little more

than two weeks away,

Thornapple Kellogg

Schools Superintendent

Dan Remenap is sounding

an appeal to district parents:

Be civil, even if you

disagree.

“I hope we can be

respectful, be respectful of

different ideas, respectful of

different approaches and

different opinions,”

Remenap said Thursday

night at a forum at the

Thornapple Kellogg High

School Performing Arts

Center previewing the

2021-22 school year.

“I also want to make a

commitment, a very public

commitment to assure all of

you that TK schools is

apolitical. We are apolitical

in nature. It is not the job of

any public school to push

any agenda, and that will

remain our mission going

forward.”

The forum came as

some district parents are

expressing opposition to the

possible resumption of

wearing masks as COVID-

19 rates are rebounding, and

also have spoken out on the

belief that critical race

theory is being taught in the

district’s schools. Remenap

expressed dismay about

some parents not wanting to

attend the forum because

they feared how their

opinions might be seen in

the community.

“I think one of the things

we have to do and model for

our kids is kindness ...

Disagreement does not have

to mean dislike. These are

topics that have a lot of

emotions attached to them,

but I still think everyone has

a right to their opinion and

say what they want to say,”

said Remenap, who took

over as TK superintendent

in November 2020.

About 100 people

attended the forum, which

lasted about 55 minutes.

There was no public

comment period, rather

people who had questions

on specific topics could

submit their questions on

cards that were forwarded

to Remenap to read and

respond to.

Remenap said that as of

right now, TK is planning

for in-person learning five

days a week and will not

require any COVID-

mitigation measures, such

as masks or vaccinations,

when the school year

begins.

“It’s very important that

we all understand, this is

where we are today. Things

are changing, but that

doesn’t necessarily mean

things will change for us in

the next week, two weeks,

three weeks,” he said. “It’s

just acknowledging the fact

that things are changing.”

While wearing masks

will be strongly encouraged,

Remenap said face masks

will be optional for both

staff and students.

“With that, we’re going

Middleville’s Hometown Hero has

servant heart for helping others

Mike Bremer takes out a
small piece of plain white
paper tucked in his wallet.
Printed on it in bold type are
the words “I’m Third.”
“Those words are what I
live by,” Bremer said. “God
is first, everyone else is
second, I’m third,” he
explained.
That philosophy has
propelled Bremer to serving
his community in myriad
ways, which in turn has
earned him recognition as the
2021 Hometown Hero by the
Thornapple Area Enrichment
Foundation. The honor is
given annually to an
individual or individuals in
the community who
exemplify excellence,
integrity and commitment.
“It’s a great honor, and I
certainly never saw myself
rowing the same boat as so
many of the leaders of our
community who have been
honored with this award in
the past,” he said. “Those
people are heroes, not me.”
TAEF will host its
Hometown Hero dinner
Thursday, Sept. 23, at the
Barry Expo Center, 1350
M-37. Hastings. A cash bar
reception will begin at 5:
p.m. with dinner at 6. To
attend, RSVPs may be sent to
business.mibarry.com/
events/details/taef-
hometown-hero-award-
dinner-2385.
Bremer has selected
Imagination Library of Barry
County as his charity of
choice. He is asking for

donations to the organization

in his honor. Imagination

Library provides monthly

books for Barry County

children from birth to 5 years

old. Imagination Library

currently serves 1,

children in Barry County,

delivering more than 60,

books. Donations can be

made to the Barry Community

Foundation, Fund 294, 231

S. Broadway, Hastings, MI

49058.

“Anyone who has had the

pleasure to work beside Mike

knows he serves in a humble

way, and he never shies away

from rolling up his sleeves to

do the ‘heavy work,’”

someone wrote in a

nomination letter describing

Bremer. “Mike truly

exemplifies the qualities of

excellence, integrity, and

commitment you are looking

for in your next Hometown

Hero.”

Another wrote,

“Middleville would be hard

pressed to come up with

another volunteer that has

given more of themselves

than Mike Bremer. His

service spills over traditional

volunteer service lines. From

youth sports, school,

business, and church

volunteer, he is truly our

hometown ‘superhero.’”

See BREMER, page 3

See CIVILITY, page 6

“We don’t have

the luxury of

choosing a side.”

Dan Remenap, TK

Superintendent

“... If someone wants to wear a mask,

they have a right to wear a mask”

Dan Remenap, TK Superintendent

IN THIS ISSUE...

• Middleville council refines marijuana
  ordinance language


• Gaines Township approves First
  Phase of Housing Complex


• Caledonia Township approves
  zoning for athletic training site


• Caledonia chamber golf
  outing benefits local students

Service has been central to Mike Bremer, who has

been named the 2021 Middleville Hometown Hero.

Middleville council rejects proposal

for dog park master plan

Greg Chandler
Staff Writer
The Middleville Village
Council Tuesday turned
down a proposal for a profes-
sional services company to
develop a master plan for the
village’s new dog park.
Meeting as a committee of
the whole, the council reject-
ed on a voice vote the pro-
posal from Kentwood-based
Rowe Professional Services
Company to put together a
detailed design for the dog
park at a cost of $9,740.
The dog park is planned to
be built at the end of Sherman
Street, near the village water
tower and Lee Elementary
School.
Village Manager Patricia
Rayl contacted Rowe after a
council meeting last month
in which drawings for the
new park were approved, but
questions on specifics, such
as handicap parking accessi-
bility, remained unresolved.
“They do civil engineer-

ing, planning, that sort of

thing,” Rayl told council

members, adding that Rowe

could present a proposal to

the council by the next com-

mittee-of-the-whole meeting

the first week of September.

The project scope outlined

by Rowe included develop-

ment of fencing areas for

both large dogs and small

dogs, configuration of the

access gate, accessible park-

ing and pedestrian access

pathways, according to a

company letter to Rayl dated

July 29. It also included

obtaining topographic survey

data for the property to help

determine a site design.

But council members

questioned the expense.

Trustee Tom DeVries said he

was puzzled by the proposal.

“Originally, we had dis-

cussions about different

plans, and one of the plans

was criticized because it

included $25,000-27,000 in

fencing as being too much,”

DeVries said. “Now we’re

looking at spending $9,

for a study. To me, that’s a lot

of fence ... I just don’t see

where we’re going to get the

value.”

“We’ve had false starts,

and we keep duplicating

efforts, whereas if we had

started out with somebody to

guide us along with our

design, I think we would

have already been starting

construction,” Rayl respond-

ed.

Trustee Kevin Smith

called the proposal “an enor-

mous squandering of resourc-

es.”

“I just cannot envision

where $9,000 would be

spent, even at $200 an hour.

That’s an enormous amount

of time to walk into a field

and say we can draw up yel-

low lines into two squares,

one for small dogs and one

for large dogs,” Smith said.

See DOG PARK, pg.?