Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Meeting Actions topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Benzie County commissioners approve Crystal Lake contract, maintain $3 911 surcharge and pass bond resolution
Summary
At the April 14 Benzie County meeting commissioners approved an engineering change order and awarded the Crystal Lake Access Park construction contract contingent on DNR approval (final cost $497,810), adopted a $3 911 surcharge for FY 2026-27, authorized limited-tax capital improvement bonds, accepted the Equalization Report, approved a mapping grant, and approved $3,064,419.34 in bill payments.
Benzie County commissioners on April 14 approved a set of capital and operational motions, including awarding a Crystal Lake Access Park construction contract, adopting a 911 central-dispatch surcharge for fiscal 2026–27, and authorizing capital-improvement bonds for the county Road Commission.
The board approved payment of bills totaling $3,064,419.34 (motion by Rhonda Nye, seconded by Tim Markey; roll call: Jeannot, Markey, Nye, Roelofs, Sauer). The board then approved a work directive change for Project 135373SG2023 with Spicer Group, Inc. for $47,654 in additional engineering and design services (motion by Gary Sauer; motion carried).
For construction, the board awarded the Crystal Lake Access Park Development contract to Walton Contracting, Inc. for $555,625 contingent on Michigan Department of Natural Resources approval and simultaneously approved Change Order #1 reducing the contract by $57,815 to a final contract amount of $497,810, with funds coming from the General Fund Parks Department. Commissioners heard from Drain Commissioner Mike Fiebing, who said a title search and survey are needed to confirm county ownership and that he has budgeted funds to complete that work.
The board adopted Resolution 2026-012 to maintain a $3.00-per-device 911 surcharge for Central Dispatch operations for the July 1, 2026–June 30, 2027 collection year (motion by Tim Markey, seconded by Rhonda Nye; roll call recorded). The board also adopted Resolution 2026-013 authorizing 2026 Capital Improvement Bonds (Limited Tax General Obligation) for the Road Commission (motion by Tim Markey, seconded by Gary Sauer; roll call recorded).
Other actions recorded in the meeting minutes include acceptance of the Benzie County 2026 Equalization Report (motion by Gary Sauer, seconded by Bob Roelofs), approval of the 2026 Michigan Public Safety Critical Incident Mapping Grant, approval of a snowmobile trailer purchase for Sheriff's patrols not to exceed $12,000 from the Snowmobile Patrol fund (motion by Tim Markey, seconded by Gary Sauer), approval of a site lease agreement for the Benzonia recycling location at South Side Plaza (contingent on Joyfield Township zoning; roll-call vote showed split support), and reappointment of Sean Duperron and Roger Papineau to the Construction Board of Appeals.
County staff also presented the Benzie County 2024/2025 audit. Chuck Clarke and Ed Hoogterp informed commissioners that the Point Betsie Lighthouse restoration project may not receive state approval before September 2026 and that existing state funding expires Sept. 30, 2026.
All recorded motions that required roll-call votes show unanimous ayes except the recycling-site lease (Ayes: Markey, Nye, Roelofs; Nays: Jeannot, Sauer) and votes noting excused commissioners Len Mathieu and Christina Trigg. The meeting adjourned at 12:49 p.m.
