Park Township Board of Trustees August 9, 2021 at 6:30 p.m.
SPECIAL MEETING AGENDA
The public is invited to attend the meeting in-person or view via webinar Go to: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89870337968?pwd=VWRXYWZOMDNXYWlEZ2Y0QTB3Zkx4QT09
(Please turn off or set to “silent” mode all cell phones and other electronic devices.)
1. Call to order
2. Invocation
3. Pledge of Allegiance
4. Approval of Agenda (Additions to or Deletions from Agenda)
5. Approval of Consent Agenda a. Approval of Minutes: July 8, 2021 Regular Board Meeting
6. Public Comment (This is an opportunity for the public to address the Board and to make any appropriate comments. Please limit your comments to 2 – 3 minutes per person.)
7. Public Hearing a. DNR - Watercraft Controls on Lake Macatawa
8. Public Comment (This is an opportunity for the public to address the Board and to make any appropriate comments. Please limit your comments to 2 – 3 minutes per person.)
9. Board Comments
10. Adjourn
*NOTE: Public comment may be accepted at the time the Board is considering agenda items marked with *
The Park Township Office will provide necessary and reasonable auxiliary aids and services at the above meetings such as signers for hearing impaired persons and audio tapes of printed materials for visually impaired persons, upon receipt of five days prior notice. Disabled persons requiring such auxiliary aids or services should so notify the Park Township by contacting: WWW.PARKTOWNSHIP.ORG Park Township Office, 52-152nd Avenue, Holland, MI 49424 Phone: 616-399-4520, Fax: 616-399-8540, Email: [email protected]
1 08/09/2021 Item 5.a
PARK TOWNSHIP
REGULAR BOARD MEETING
July 8, 2021- draft
ART 1. CALL TO ORDER
Supervisor Gerard called to order the regular meeting of the Park Township Board held on July 8, 2021 at 6:30 p.m. at the Park Township Office, 52- 152nd Ave., Holland, MI 49424 in person. The public was invited to view the meeting via ZOOM (meeting ID 89953972289).
Present were Supervisor Jim Gerard, Clerk Skip Keeter, Treasurer Jan Steggerda and Trustees Terry DeHaan, Jeff Hoekstra, Loran Serne and Steve Spoelhof. Also present were Manager Howard Fink and Legal Counsel Dan Martin.
ART 2. INVOCATION - Spoelhof
ART 3. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
ART 4. APPROVAL OF AGENDA (Additions to or Deletions from Agenda)
MOTION MADE; MOTION SUPPORTED; MOTION CARRIED: A motion was made by Hoekstra and supported by DeHaan to amend the agenda to change Item 8g to read Manager Fink and Trustee Hoekstra. (7-0)
MOTION MADE; MOTION SUPPORTED; MOTION CARRIED: A motion was made by Keeter and supported by Steggerda to approve the agenda as amended. (7-0)
ART 5. APPROVAL OF CONSENT AGENDA
a Approval of Minutes: June 28, 2021 Strategic Planning Meeting b Payment of Bills
MOTION MADE; MOTION SUPPORTED; MOTION CARRIED: A motion was made by Keeter and supported by Serne to approve the consent agenda. (7-0)
ART 6. PUBLIC COMMENT (6:33pm)
2 08/09/2021 Gerard opened the public comment period: 4 persons spoke at the public comment period. Gerard closed the public comment period.
ART 7. DEPARTMENT REPORTS
a. Fire Department- no questions were asked of the Fire Department b. Sheriff’s Office – no questions were asked of the Sheriff’s Office c. Finance – no questions were asked of the Finance Department d. Building and Zoning – no questions were asked of the Building and Zoning department e. Recreation – no questions were asked of the Recreation Department
ART 8. ACTION ITEMS
a. Brewer’s Farm Conditional Zoning Map amendment for 70-15-14-200- 006 from Agricultural and Permanent Open Space to Rural Estates Residence District
The applicant, Jennifer Grant, spoke regarding the plan and the conditions of the rezoning of the property.
MOTION MADE; MOTION SUPPORTED; MOTION CARRIED: A motion was made by DeHaan and supported by Keeter to approve the conditional rezoning for parcel 70-15-14-200-006 from Agricultural and Permanent Open Space to Rural Estates Residence District as recommended by the Planning Commission with the conditions listed. (7-0)
The conditions are as follows: 1. The existing parcel shall be divided to a maximum of five (5) single-family residential parcels. 2. Platting shall not be permitted. 3. The minimum lot area shall be two and one-half (2.5) acres. 4. Each new division shall have frontage on an existing road; a private road shall not be created. 5. A maximum of one driveway shall be created off of Riley Street. 6. The use of the property shall not interfere with existing farming. 7. In addition to existing R-1 area regulations (Section 38-216 of the Zoning Ordinance), parcels not bordering Riley Street (parcels 3, 4 and 5 on the attached concept site layout plan) shall have a front yard of not less than 250 feet. 8. In addition to existing tree preservation regulations (Section 38-518 of the Zoning Ordinance): a. Clear cutting is prohibited b. No person or property owner shall allow the removal of any tree within the street right-of-way nor remove any tree within two hundred and fifty (250) feet from the improved surface of the street, linearly measured to the diameter breast height of the tree trunk. Tree removal
3 08/09/2021 shall be permitted for only the purpose of driveways or private roads intersecting the street right-of-way. Tree removal shall be the minimum amount necessary to reasonably access the lot for vehicular access and emergency services. Tree stands shall not be removed unless absolutely unavoidable.
Roll Call:
Yes: DeHaan, Hoekstra, Serne, Spoelhof, Steggerda, Keeter, Gerard
No: None b. Lake Court Overlay Text & Map Amendment
MOTION MADE; MOTION SUPPORTED; MOTION CARRIED: A motion was made by DeHaan and supported by Keeter to approve the Lake Court Overlay Text & Map Amendment as recommended by the Planning Commission. (7-0) c. Edgewood Beach Overlay Text & Map Amendment
MOTION MADE; MOTION SUPPORTED; MOTION CARRIED: A motion was made by Keeter and supported by DeHaan to approve the Edgewood Beach Overlay Text & Map Amendment as recommended by the Planning Commission. (6-1 Gerard)
Yes: DeHaan, Hoekstra, Serne, Spoelhof, Steggerda, Keeter
No: Gerard d. Section 38-155 Zone Districts Text Amendment
MOTION MADE; MOTION SUPPORTED; MOTION CARRIED: A motion was made by DeHaan and supported by Keeter to approve the Section 38-155 Zone Districts Text Amendment as recommended by the Planning Commission. (7-0) e. Section 38-6 Definition of Building Height Text Amendment
MOTION MADE; MOTION SUPPORTED; MOTION CARRIED: A motion was made by DeHaan and supported by Steggerda to approve Section 38-6 Definition of Building Height Text Amendment as recommended by the Planning Commission. (7-0) f. Road Re-Paving bids; primary, secondary and crack sealing
MOTION MADE; MOTION SUPPORTED; MOTION CARRIED: A motion was made by Spoelhof and supported by Hoekstra to approve
4 08/09/2021 the road re-paving bids; primary, secondary and crack sealing as presented. (7-0)
g. Formalizing Manager Fink’s Protocol Regarding Trustee Hoekstra’s Information Requests
Gerard asked Manager Fink to refrain from comment during the discussion and allow legal counsel to interject at any time.
Martin gave a brief history of the conflict between Manager Fink and Trustee Hoekstra. Counsel asked the Board to formalize the agreement between Manager Fink and Trustee Hoekstra. Arrangements have been made for Trustee Hoekstra to receive the information requested from the Clerk’s Office.
MOTION MADE; MOTION SUPPORTED; MOTION CARRIED: A motion was made by Gerard and supported by Steggerda that Manager Fink may ignore communication from Trustee Hoekstra outside of a public meeting without discipline with information to Trustee Hoekstra being provided under the Clerk’s direction. (4-3 Hoekstra, Serne, Spoelhof)
Roll Call:
Yes: DeHaan, Steggerda, Keeter, Gerard
No: Hoekstra, Serne, Spoelhof
MOTION MADE; MOTION SUPPORTED; MOTION FAILED: A motion was made by Spoelhof and supported by DeHaan to amend the previous motion to allow Manager Fink to ignore Trustee Hoekstra’s communication outside of a public meeting without discipline and receive information requested from the Clerk’s Office for 90 days. (2-5 Hoekstra, Serne, Steggerda, Keeter, Gerard)
Roll Call:
Yes: DeHaan, Spoelhof
No: Hoekstra, Serne, Steggerda, Keeter, Gerard
h. Live ZOOM Broadcast for Board Meetings
MOTION MADE; MOTION SUPPORTED; MOTION CARRIED: A motion was made by Steggerda and supported by Hoekstra to approve live broadcast of Board of Trustees, Planning Commission and Zoning Board of Appeals meetings. (7-0)
ART 9. MANAGER’S REPORT
5 08/09/2021
ART 10. PUBLIC COMMENT (8:04pm)
Gerard opened the public comment period: 5 persons spoke at the public comment period. Gerard closed the public comment period. (8:17pm)
ART 11. CLOSED SESSION: To review a written attorney client confidential legal opinion regarding a water craft rental ordinance
MOTION MADE; MOTION SUPPORTED; MOTION CARRIED: A motion was made by Keeter and supported by DeHaan to go into closed session pursuant to Section 8(h) of the Michigan Open Meetings Act [MCL 15.268(h)] to consider a written legal opinion from the Township Attorney, which is subject to the attorney-client privilege and exempt from disclosure under the Michigan Freedom of Information Act [MCL 15.243(1)(g)]. (7-0)
Roll Call:
Yes: DeHaan, Hoekstra, Serne, Spoelhof, Steggerda, Keeter, Gerard
No: None
MOTION MADE; MOTION SUPPORTED; MOTION CARRIED: A motion was made by Keeter and supported by DeHaan to move back into open session. (7-0)
ART 12. BOARD COMMENTS AND COMMITTEE/AGENCY REPORTS
Trustees DeHaan and Spoelhof and Clerk Keeter reported on their assigned committees’ activities for the past month
ART 13. ANNOUNCEMENTS
ART 14. REMINDER DATES
a. July 29, 2021 – Work Session
ART 15. ADJOURN
MOTION MADE; MOTION SUPPORTED; MOTION CARRIED: A motion was made by Keeter and supported by Steggerda to adjourn at 8:45pm. (7-0)
Respectfully Submitted by Clerk Skip Keeter Daniele Dykens Recording Secretary
6 08/09/2021 Item 7.a STATE OF MICHIGAN DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES LANSING GRETCHEN WHITMER DANIEL EICHINGER GOVERNOR DIRECTOR
June 25, 2021
VIA EMAIL
Mr. Skip Keeter, Park Township Clerk [email protected]
Dear Mr. Keeter:
Enclosed for your review is the investigative report regarding the local watercraft control request by Park Township for Lake Macatawa, Ottawa County.
Corporal Ivan Perez will be coordinating with your township to schedule a date and time for the public hearing.
Should you have any questions or concerns before the hearing, you can reach me by e-mail at [email protected].
Sincerely,
Lt. Thomas R. Wanless Boating Law Administrator DNR, Law Enforcement Division Recreational Safety, Enforcement & Education
Attachment cc: Lt. Gerald Thayer, DNR Cpl. Ivan Perez, DNR
7 08/09/2021
MICHIGAN DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES ______
INTEROFFICE COMMUNICATION ______
TO: Lt. Thomas R. Wanless, Boating Law Administrator
FROM: Corporal Ivan Perez
DATE: 06/21/2021
SUBJECT: Investigative Report – Lake Macatawa, Park Township, Ottawa County
Under the direction of Part 801 “Marine Safety” of 1994 PA 451, MCL 324.80110(2), the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has conducted an investigation and inquiry into whether special rules are needed on a portion of Lake Macatawa, located in Park Township, Ottawa County and included a consideration of all the following:
A. Whether the activities subject to the proposed special rules pose any issues of safety to life or property.
None anticipated.
B. The profile of the water body, including local jurisdiction, size, geographic location, and amount of vessel traffic.
The following information was referenced from online resources and verified by this investigator.
“Lake Macatawa is a 1,780-acre lake located in southwest Ottawa County, and holds two distinct basins. The lake is roughly linear in shape with a long axis that extends approximately five miles in an east-northeast to west-southwest direction. Pine Creek Bay and Big Bay are two prominent, triangular shaped bays that extend from the north side of the lake. The lake occupies portions of Park Township, Holland Township, and the City of Holland.
8 08/09/2021 Lake Macatawa has two tributaries, Macatawa River and Pine Creek. The Macatawa River flows through the lake emptying directly into Lake Michigan. For this reason, Lake Macatawa is considered to be a drowned river mouth lake because it is part of a river system and is close to Lake Michigan, both of which influence the lakes ecology and limnology. The drainage area is approximately 150 square miles.
The eastern end of the lake is marked by industrial development within the City of Holland, and includes a scrap metal recycling facility, environmental research facility owned by Michigan State University, aggregate mineral loading dock, and a pickle production facility owned by the H.J. Heinz company. The remainder of the lakeshore is marked by high-income residential development, with the notable exception of Holland State Park which borders the northern shoreline of the western end of the lake, Howard B. Dunton Park on the north shore of the eastern end, and Kollen Park near the Heinz factory, which connects to a boardwalk installed along the shoreline occupied by the facility.”
C. The current and historical depth of the water body, including whether there is an established lake level for the water body.
Lake Macatawa has an average depth of 12 feet with a maximum depth of 40 feet. About 40 percent of the lake is less than five feet deep. There is a man- made commercial shipping channel of about five miles in length that is maintained to a depth of 22 feet. It extends from Lake Michigan into the eastern basin of the lake.
D. Whether any identifiable special problems or conditions exist on the water body for the activities subject to the proposed special rules, such as rocks, pier heads, swimming areas, public access sites, shallow waters, and submerged obstacles.
9 08/09/2021 There are three public boat launches and a DNR swim area on the waters of Lake Macatawa. None of these would be impacted by any changes made to existing or enhancements of local watercraft controls.
E. Whether the proposed special rules would unreasonably interfere with normal navigational traffic.
Any special rule or local control may adversely affect vessel operation by restricting vessel speeds, increasing time of travel, limiting flow of normal navigational traffic, or enhancing distance restrictions from shore, pierheads, docks, etc.
F. Whether user conflicts exist on the water body.
Lake Macatawa is a very popular, high use all sports lake. Its waters are shared with a variety of users on both the recreational and commercial side of boating activity. These users include personal watercraft operation, stand-up paddle boarders, fishing and recreational vessels that range from non-motorized vessels less than 16 feet to motorized vessels over 65 feet in length. Yacht clubs in the lake provide sailing instruction and various races throughout the boating season. There are also various commercial barges and working vessels utilizing the waters. With all this boating activity and current local watercraft controls coupled with patrol efforts by local marine patrol entities, very little user conflicts have been reported. The reported conflicts that resulted from the historically high water of the Great Lakes Region were the primary reason for the implementation of the temporary controls approved in 2020. These issues still have relevancy this year as the water levels still remain high. Although water levels have started to decline as compared to last year’s high, we are still in the middle of a five year high as reported by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
As of June 18, 2021, the U.S. ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS WEEKLY GREAT LAKES WATER LEVEL UPDATE states the following for recent water levels, “The projected levels for June 18th indicate that all the lakes are within 3
10 08/09/2021 inches of the levels from one month ago and all are below levels from this time last year. The forecasted June 18th water levels also show that water levels are above their long-term monthly averages for June, and below their record high monthly averages for June on all lakes, except Lake Ontario…Lakes Michigan- Huron are forecast to be near their current respective levels one month from now and Lakes Erie and St. Clair are forecast to decline 2 inches by July 18th…”
G. Complaints received by local law enforcement agencies regarding activities on the water body.
Research through the Department of Natural Resources, Report All Poaching hotline, shows a total of four marine related complaints for Lake Macatawa over the last 20 years. Of the four, only one, (05/28/2002), addressed an issue related to public safety or compatibility of use. According to the complaint, a kayak user was reporting being “buzzed” by a high-speed boater.
The Ottawa County Sheriff’s Dept. provided me with the following complaint information for Park and Holland Townships combined:
Calls for service totals in Lake Macatawa by year:
2020 44 Boat Complaints in Park Township 11 Boat Complaints in Holland Township 2019 28 Boat Complaints in Park Township 4 Boat Complaints in Holland Township 2018 28 Boat Complaints in Park Township 4 Boat Complaints in Holland Township
Marine Patrol Enforcement in Holland and Park Township for 2020:
Careless/Negligent/Reckless Operation Violations 6 citizen contacts
Navigation Rules Violations 63 citizen contacts
11 08/09/2021 Significant 911 calls are noted below:
20-08290146 08/29/2020 Boat speeding through the slow no wake zone
20-06140149 06/14/2020 Yacht pulling into the marina at a high rate of speed in the slow no wake.
19-05250115 05/25/2019 Boat operating at a high rate of speed, located and citation issued.
19-07030091 07/03/2019 42ft boat at high rates of speed in the slow no wake zone
18-05280089 05/28/2018 Speed boat pulling skiers at a high rate of speed along the shoreline.
18-08310114 08/31/2018 Broken dock sticking out of the water.
It should be noted that the increase in the number of “Boat Complaints” in 2020 was mostly due to the implementation of the temporary local watercraft controls during the boating season. Also, “Boat Complaint” is not clearly defined and may not be reflective of complaints that may impact this investigation.
H. The status of any accidents that have occurred on the water body.
As reported through the U.S. Coast Guard Boat Accident Reporting Database, (BARD), there have been a total of 13 reported accidents since 2015. The accidents primarily fell into four categories as to the cause:
Weather, operator inexperience, faulty equipment, and operator inattention.
I. Historical uses of the water body and potential future uses of the water body.
The following information was referenced from online resources and verified by this investigator.
12 08/09/2021 “…The immediate shoreline of Lake Macatawa is intensively developed for residential and commercial purposes with the only natural shoreline remaining in the north end of Pine Creek Bay and around Windmill Island on the eastern end of the lake. The desire for commercial and recreational boating access has further altered the natural shoreline through extensive seawalls, docks, and dredging…”
J. Whether the water body is public or private.
The waterbody is public. Lake Macatawa has a total of three public boat launches, one of which is maintained by the State of Michigan and located near Holland State Park. The other two are located at public parks maintained by the governmental jurisdictions in which they reside. Holland State Park offers a small swim area in the lake.
K. Whether existing law adequately regulates the activities subject to the proposed special rules.
Current laws and watercraft controls adequately regulate the activities under normal circumstances. Ottawa County Marine Patrol has dedicated vessels assigned to Lake Macatawa for enforcement and emergency response. Due to the past several years of historically high waters associated with the Great Lakes and its tributaries, a Temporary Watercraft Control was established in 2020, to mitigate issues relating to high water.
Based on the above information obtained through this preliminary investigation, there appears to be concerns related to public safety in relation to high water levels within the jurisdiction of Park Township, Ottawa County. Further information will be gathered at a public hearing to determine the extent of these concerns on Lake Macatawa, and any subsequent rule or control that may be imposed or modified. I contacted Sgt. Jonathon Knott, Marine Patrol Supervisor of the Ottawa County Sheriff’s Department concerning the proposal. He stated that the temporary controls provided relief for issues regarding high water, he also mentioned that a permanent slow-no wake for vessels of all sizes for the “Narrows” should be considered.
13 08/09/2021 PUBLIC NOTICE
At the request of Park Township, Ottawa County, State of Michigan, and by the authority conferred on the Department of Natural Resources by Section 12-17 of Act 451, Part 801, Public Acts of 1994, as amended, and Section 250 of Act 380, Public Acts of 1965, and Section 41 of Act 306, Public Acts of 1969, a hearing will be held at the Park Township Office, 52 152nd Avenue, Holland, MI 49424, at 6:30 p.m., Monday, August 9, 2021.
This public hearing must adhere to current Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) Epidemic Orders that are in place at the time of the hearing.
At this hearing, the Department of Natural Resources will gather information from the public concerning watercraft controls on the waters of Lake Macatawa, Ottawa County.
Persons with disabilities needing accommodations for effective participation in the meeting should contact the Township Clerk at 616-738-4240, a week in advance to request mobility, visual, hearing, or other assistance.
All interested persons are invited to attend and offer comments orally at the public hearing. Interested persons unable to attend this hearing may within 30 days after the hearing submit written comments to:
DNR, Law Enforcement Attn: Lt. Thomas Wanless 525 W. Allegan Street Lansing, Michigan 48933 [email protected]
14 08/09/2021