By Dean Vaglia

Leader Staff Writer

The Charter Township of Oxford Board of Trustees had their monthly meeting on Wednesday, Oct. 13. Topics discussed include new hirings across the township, the first reading of new ordinances and setting the hours for Halloween.

Hellos and Goodbye

Chris Scheer of the Oxford Fire Department was officially recognized at the meeting. Already working full time since Sept. 7 after being a paid on-call employee since 2019, Scheer was sworn in by Oxford Fire Chief Pete Scholz with Kevin C. Snell, president of Oxford Fire Fighters Union IAFF L4763, standing beside him.

Planning Commission Chairman Michael Young’s resignation was accepted “with regrets” by the board. Young is retiring due to moving to South Carolina and will officially vacate the position on Nov. 1.

Ashley Ross, an Oxford Village resident and a member of the Village Council, was appointed unanimously to the vacated commissioner spot from Nov. 1 to Dec. 31. According to Township Supervisor Jack Curtis, Ross’ appointment was based on her location and came with Village President Kelsey Cooke’s recommendation. Trustees William Dunn and Rod Charles endorsed Ross’ appointment during their end-of-meeting comments. Ross is also a member of the village’s Zoning Board of Appeals and the Oxford Downtown Development Authority.

New Ordinance First Readings

Two new ordinances were unanimously approved on their first readings. The first, “Junk Vehicle Ordinance No. 136,” amends the existing junk vehicle law so it is carried out as a civil rather than criminal infraction. The other, “Littering Ordinance No. 137,” expands what is considered litter and makes littering a civil infraction. The ordinances will likely have their second reading at the November board meeting.

Employee Pay Changes

Following a discussion from the September meeting, the board approved 6-1 an update to the township employee step system wage scale. The scale is a 6% cost of living increase over the previous scale.

Increases to the salaried elected official positions — supervisor, clerk and treasurer — were listed but not voted on.

Holidays and Halloween

The board unanimously approved two items relating to holidays. The first, the 2022 holiday schedule, lists the following days as observed holidays by the township:

Jan 3 for New Year’s Day

Jan 17 for Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Apr 15 for Good Friday

May 30 for Memorial Day

Jul 4 for Independence Day

Sep 5 for Labor Day

Nov 11 for Veterans Day

Nov 24 for Thanksgiving

Dec 23 and 26 for Christmas Eve and Day, respectively

Dec 30 for New Year’s Eve

The second item approved 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. as the official trick-or-treating hours for Halloween, which falls on a Sunday this year.

DNR Squaw Lake Update

Approved as part of the consent agenda, Adam Lepp of the Michigan Department of Natural Resources provided the township an update on the Squaw Lake boat launch weekend and holiday use from May 21 to Sept. 6. The busiest weekend was the July 4 weekend which saw 102 vehicles pass through. Sundays were the busiest days with 409 vehicles passing over the summer. Based on when vehicles came by, Lepp wrote that the booth will likely be staffed from noon to 8 p.m. next summer.

Landscaping done to the boat launch includes adding limestone and gravel, as well as cutting grass.