Bridgeport Township Board Meeting September 7th, 2021

On the agenda:
Adoption of Agenda begins as 1:37
Approval of Minutes - August 3rd, 2021 begins at 2:08
Special Orders:
1. Public Hearing for Truth in Taxation begins at 2:47
Unfinished Business:
1. R21-10 Truth in taxation begins at 7:16
New Business:
1. Board Resignation begins at 8:51
2. Conflict of Interest Policy begins at 10:37
3. Planning Commission Appointment begins at 12:18
Accounts Payable Checks 68507 through 68638 $316,681.01 begins at 13:26
Police Department Report begins at 14:06
Fire Department Report begins at 17:30
Manager's Report begins at 18:50
Board Member Comments begin at 24:33
Public Comment begins at 27:45
© 2021 Carla Citizen All Rights Reserved

First I should note that they did attempt to improve the sound system and you can hear them better than usual and I Thank them for that!   If everyone would speak up loudly and clearly then we would really be in business.

They did hold the public hearing for the Truth in Taxation and there were no members of the public that came to hear it or speak up for or against it.

They announced the resignation of board member Heather Wilson due to the conflict with her job that requires her to travel out of town often.  I am sad to see Heather leave but wish her well in life!

They claim to have 30 days to fill her position and plan on having it filled by the next board meeting on October 5th, 2021.  I wonder if they will be posting notices for the opening, will they have public interviews in a board meeting if there are any applicants?  Guess we will find out on October 5th.

Any township resident that is not in default to the township and is a registered elector can apply for the open board seat.  Information can be found on this link:  Employment Opportunities

For townships to receive money from the ?? fund they have to have conflict of interest policies in place.  Bridgeport updated theirs to also include board members.

Mark Schluckbier has been appointed to the planning commission.

During the Managers Report segment she talked about updates on the Dixie Hwy project and  mentioned that Tri Valley was one business that was involved with bringing top soil for the project.  If this is Tri Valley Landscaping & Tri Valley Construction companies run by members of the Gilbert family, maybe Bridgeport needs to vet the companies they do business with better in my opinion.

There will be a ribbon cutting ceremony for the Dixie Hwy project with  Senator Horn on Monday September 20th at 9am in the parking lot at the governmental center.

The CEDAM Fellowship position has been filled by Michelle McGregor, a resident from Saginaw Township.  Welcome to Ms. McGregor!

She also gives updates about grants and funding.  Updates on community outreach like her Coffee with the Township Manager at Big Boy on September 9th and the 23rd at 9am.  They may also be hosting two  open houses for the temporary governmental center, one on Wednesday, September 15th, and another for Tuesday, October 19th.  No other information on those events yet.

During the board member comments something was brought up by Augie Tausend that is somewhat of a controversial issue across the country right now.  He talked about the moratorium on rent/evictions that has now been ended. He said there is talk about possibly extending that at the state or county levels, and if that does come about then maybe there is something that the board will look at.

** I almost forgot to add that there was a Bridgeport resident that spoke at the end of the meeting.  Because of the severe weather we were having at the time of the meeting, the residents were late getting to the meeting and missed the public comment period.  The resident is a member of a Neighborhood Watch group from the Studor Rd. area.  I am always glad to see residents speak up at meetings and glad to know there are still active & concerned residents involved that care about our community.