Brandon Twp.- Try again.
At their Oct. 21 meeting, the township board unanimously approved rescinding a motion made at their Oct. 6 meeting that formed a new recreation subcommittee.
The new motion disbanded the ‘new? subcommittee, which never effectively met or took any action, and means the old subcommittee? consisting of Supervisor Kathy Thurman and Trustees Dana DePalma and Jayson Rumball, will reconvene in an effort to move recreation forward.
‘The reason it was rescinded was because the township policy states that only the supervisor can appoint members to a committee with board approval,? said Thurman. ‘At the Oct. 6 meeting, we had a trustee that changed the appointments. That was contrary to policy.?
The Oct. 6 motion formed a new subcommittee consisting of Rumball, DePalma, Clerk Candee Allen, Ortonville Village Manager John Lyons, and village resident and former fire chief Bob McArthur. The motion passed 5-2, with Thurman and Trustee Bill DeWitt voting no. The following day, Thurman and Allen both discovered that according to Michigan Compiled Law 42.10 (h), one of the duties of the supervisor is to be ex-officio on all committees of the board. Consultations with the Michigan Townships Association as well as township attorney Stuart Cooney confirmed they would be in violation of the law to keep the committee as it stood.
The first meeting of the new subcommittee was to be Oct. 16, but ended before it got started as it had not been communicated to Rumball, DePalma, McArthur and Lyons that the subcommittee was not properly formed. McArthur, whom the township board had hoped would help the subcommittee by using fire authority guidelines, subsequently resigned and Lyons expressed frustration as the village council needs a recreation plan to move forward with grant applications.
Toward that end, a joint recreation plan workshop is now planned for 7 p.m., Oct. 30, at the library, 304 South St, Ortonville. In attendance will be the village planning commission and township planning commission. Residents are invited to come to the workshop and give input on parks and recreation in both the village and township.
‘The township needs to renew a 5-year recreation plan,? said Thurman. ‘The village does not have a rec plan, but is looking to establish one. We are going to work together to create a joint plan which makes sense, because part of our recreation programs are held on village property that we maintain. Having a joint recreation plan will allow both the village and township to pursue grant opportunities… We are looking for ideas for park development, recreational opportunities and pathways. We’re hoping we will have many in attendance and this will help us to form goals and objectives for the next five years.?