Petoskey outlines $2.55 million estimate for ice-storm recovery, seeks state and federal aid

City Manager Shane Horn told the Petoskey City Council on April 21 that the March 29 ice storm produced “an unprecedented event” that knocked out both of the city’s substations and triggered large cleanup and repair costs.

Horn said early invoices and estimates show nearly $1.6 million in debris-removal costs to date — with about $600,000 invoiced so far — and that overall storm-related spending for the city is now in the range of $2.2 million to $2.55 million. “We weathered this as as well as we possibly could being that we’re about 78% underground,” Horn said.

The city is compiling documentation for possible reimbursement. Horn said Emmet County, the Michigan State Police and FEMA will review regional damage totals; a federal declaration would allow partial reimbursement. “Understanding, you know, as we were going through training through with FEMA, this is a 75% reimbursement,” Horn said, adding that the city already has access to state funds while a federal declaration is still pending.

Supporting details and contractors

Horn listed contractors and partner utilities that assisted during and after the outage: crews from the Grand Haven Board of Water and Light, Traverse City Light and Power and Zeeland Board of Public Works; mutual-aid and vendor support from Consumers Energy and ITC Michigan were also cited. He said two municipal wells were rebuilt by Peerless Midwest Inc. after damage from iron buildup; the related work appears on the city’s check register as a Peerless Midwest invoice for approximately $285,000. Horn also identified an annual supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) software expense of roughly $10,600 for water and wastewater system monitoring.

Local response and operations

City Hall functioned as a warming and charging center during the outage, supported by the city’s natural-gas generator. Horn said the generator had a recent annual load-bank test and ran continuously for approximately five days during the outage; he said the service vendor has recommended follow-up maintenance. He reported that public works crews and arborists are marking damaged street trees for removal, and that the arborist work and other storm-related costs will be included in reimbursement requests.

Next steps and budgetary implications

Horn said each community in the county is preparing cost estimates to submit to the county emergency manager, who will consolidate figures for state and federal review. He cautioned that the 75% reimbursement figure applies to eligible costs and that significant local out-of-pocket spending is likely. “This is a reimbursement process. So we’re paying upfront and then seeking reimbursement,” Horn said. He said more detailed invoicing and documentation (photos, bids, invoices) are being collected and that the city expects to propose budget amendments as the financial picture becomes clearer.

Council reaction and community volunteers

Council members and the mayor praised staff and community volunteers. Council members noted the city’s underground infrastructure limited damage in many areas but emphasized that cleanup and repair will continue through the summer. Several council members described frequent public inquiries and praised the city’s twice-daily updates and on-the-ground welfare checks.

Ending

Horn said FEMA representatives will be in the region for an assessment and that the city will continue to document storm-related costs and pursue available state and federal reimbursement. Council members asked staff to continue reporting updated estimates as invoices arrive.