A Pickeral agreement is being finalized; issue was tabled to Aug. 4 council meeting
By Barb Pert Templeton
After two weeks of upheaval in Algonac over who will be in charge of running the annual Pickeral Tournament, an event hosted by the Algonac Lions Club for nearly nine decades, it appears a compromise is on the horizon.
While an agenda and meeting packet for a city council meeting on July 21 listed the item under New Business as item 11d – it was quickly tabled when the meeting began.
As Mayor Rocky Gillis sought approval for the evening’s agenda, Councilman Michael Bembas moved to table agenda item 11d, “To consider Pickeral Tournament Partnership Agreement between the City of Algonac and the Algonac Lions Club.” Bembas noted that he felt it should be tabled until the city attorney reviewed the agreement. His motion was supported by Councilman Jake Skarbek.
Gillis replied, “I feel that’s probably a good move at this point’ and Mayor Pro Tem Dawn Davey concurred stating, ‘exactly’. The council then voted unanimously in favor of removing the item from the agenda.
The Algonac Lions Club has been hosting the Pickeral Tournament in the city for more than 88 years.
A second agenda item related to the same topic and listed as a “Presentation by City Manager Bryson” remained in place and he briefly addressed the topic.
Bryson said he had his first meeting with the Algonac Lions Club representatives in January, his third week as city manager, to talk about the Pickeral Tournament and how to make it bigger and better.
“We had a discussion, I wanted to convey to them the possibility of changing the footprint and making it bigger and doing some other things but unfortunately that meeting didn’t go so well so I failed at getting that done with the Lions,” Bryson said.
He described the process as “real frustrating” and noted the Lions organization is structed whereby they get a new person to run the tournament each year.
Bryson said he felt they needed something in black and white as to what each sides expectation would be going forward.
“Just to clarify it and make it a smoother transaction from year to year,” Bryson said, concluding his comments on the topic.
During council members’ comments at the end of the recent July 21 meeting, Davey made the following statement:
Algonac City Manager Arite Bryson.
“I’m really, really glad that we were able to sit down with the Lions,” she said, adding that what originally happened shouldn’t have happened to begin with.
She went on to state that she felt the conversations that they’ve had will certainly make not only the Pickeral Tournament but the community stronger.
“I hate seeing what I had been seeing,” Davey said.
She added that she hopes people realize all the good work the Lions do and perhaps even consider becoming a member of the group.
“I think moving forward it’s just going to make things stronger for years to come, hopefully,” Davey said.
A bit of background: The Pickeral Tournament debacle took shape after a July 7 meeting where the city council unanimously voted to seek new options and a fresh direction for the Fourth of July event. Then they directed City Manager Artie Bryson to inform the Lions Club. He sent a letter to the Lions outlining their plan.
The Algonac Lions responded with shock that the city was apparently stepping in to conduct a “hostile takeover” of an event their volunteers have put their hearts and souls into for decades.
At that time Davey confirmed there was a meeting between several city representatives and Lions Club members to resolve the issues. After that the issue landed on the city council’s agenda with a detailed three- page agreement for officials to consider but before the meeting date arrived members of the Lions objected to the agreement.
“We had a discussion I wanted to convey to them the possibility of changing the footprint and making it bigger and doing some other things but unfortunately that meeting didn’t go so well so I failed at getting that done with the Lions.”
Algonac City Manager Artie Bryson, referring to a January 2026 meeting he had with the Algonac Lions Club.
An additional meeting between Lions Club members and some city officials was held last weekend and then the agreement was removed from the council agenda on Tuesday, July 21.
Lions weigh-in on private meeting with the city
This was the ” Pickeral Tournament Update ” posted on the Algonac Lions Club Facebook page on July 20 by Lion’s Club member Brett Kodet.
“The Algonac Lions club and the city of Algonac have had a very productive meeting. Together we are in the final stages of reaching an agreement.
The city wants to be clear that it will solely remain an Algonac Lions event, though all help by the city and/or other organizations are highly welcomed.
“It is to our understanding though that at this time all appears to be easily resolved quickly together, so the club, city, and residents may put this behind us and strengthen a future for years to come.”
Post by Algonac Lions Club member Brett Konat, on the club’s Facebook page on July 20.
Due to the timing, it is more than likely the upcoming vote at the next city council meeting tomorrow will be postponed until their next meeting. This will give the club and the city the time needed to type up and adjust the final details of the agreement.
It is to our understanding though that at this time all appears to be easily resolved quickly together, so the club, city, and residents may put this behind us and strengthen a future for years to come.”
The topic is expected to be an item on the City of Algonac’s next council meeting agenda on Tuesday, Aug. 4 at 6 p.m. The meeting will take place at Smith Recreation Field before the ‘Touch a Truck’ event in the city.
