By Barb Pert Templeton
The July 15 regular meeting of the Algonac City Council lasted just under 40 minutes. All seven members of the council were present for the meeting.
Resident considers recall petitions
Algonac resident Sandra Simmons has repeatedly told members of the city council that the community was not properly notified about a public hearing for a special assessment for the fire department last year. She has repeatedly returned to the podium during public comments at council meetings seeking an explanation for the situation or even an admission that an error occurred. Despite Mayor Pro Tem Dawn Davey admitting that she was wrong about the issue at a meeting in June, Simmons appeared at the July 15 meeting to let officials know she’s considering filing recall petitions.
“I have given you multiple opportunities, this is the recall petition for Mayor Rocky B. Gillis and (Mayor Pro Tem) Dawn Davey,” Simmons said.
She said she had acquired the elected official’s manual and Chapter 19 explains the recall process.
“Now of course I’m going to read it and hopefully be able to interpret it in its entirety before anything takes place,” Simmons said. “This is now in my hands, thank you for listening,”
Contract for sewer service approved
Mayor Rocky Gillis was delighted to see approval of an invoice for work on the city pool approved by council members.
Members of the council approved a Sewer Maintenance Service Contract Proposal to Develop Contractor Request for Proposals for sewer lining by Hubbell, Roth and Clark, in Bloomfield Hills. A memo in the meeting’s packet from Water Plant Superintendent Joshua Stewart stated Hubbell, Roth & Clark would prepare bid specifications for annual sewer maintenance services. He noted that bids would be received for a one-year contract starting the summer/fall of 2025 and the contract could be extended up to two years. Stewart also noted that the city’s contract with PURIS/Inland Waters Pollution Controls had expired.
Swimming Pool Payment #7 approved
An invoice in the amount of $282,998, to Robert Clancy Contracting for work on the city’s new pool at Lions Field was unanimously approved by members of the city council. It was the seventh payment to the firm working on the new pool facilities which opened on July 15.
“We have a swimming pool, we all saw it earlier,” smiled Mayor Rocky Gillis. “So, we need to continue to pay the bills on this swimming pool.”
In a memo to officials City Manager Denice Gerstenberg said the city’s Architect, Geroge J Hartman reviewed the invoice for accuracy, accounting and construction completion percentages. The current invoice was for the billing period May 1, 2025 to May 31, 2025.
The council awarded the pool contract to the lowest bidder, Robert Clancy Contracting in Aug. 2024 with a bid of $2,924,301. The city received a Michigan National Resources Trust Fund
Grant of $300,000 and a Michigan Economic Development Corporation Revitalization and Placemaking Grant of $400,00 for the pool. In addition, a $1 million dollar grant from the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity thanks to Senator Kevin Hertel. The estimated cost to the city for the pool project after the grant funding is $1,300,000.
Handicapped restroom issue
Mayor Pro Tem Dawn Davey asked City Manager Denice Gerstenberg why a handicapped port-a-john at Riverfront Park Boat Launch was recently locked. Gerstenberg said the restroom was locked by the firm the city rents the facility from during the Pickeral Tournament and she didn’t know why they locked it. She said perhaps they thought there were enough port-a-potties being supplied. “That’s not going to happen again because it’s the only handicap facility that we have so we’re going to fix that for next year,” Gerstenberg added. Davey then confirmed via Gerstenberg that the city didn’t lock the facility the rental company did. The city manager said yes, that was the case.
