By Barb Pert Templeton
The Marine City Commission met on July 16, tackling a mid-sized agenda in an hour and 19 minutes. All seven members of the commission were in attendance at the recent meeting.
Here are some highlights:
Regarding new summer office hours
On July 10 a post on the City of Marine City Facebook page announced that the city’s office hours have changed to 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday thru Friday.
“This is really unfortunate for residents who work and now lose access to the city office,” Marine City resident Heather Warner said during public comments at the start of the meeting. “The late hours on Thursday were a great service for those who couldn’t make it during standard business hours.”
Interim City Manager Scott Adkins said the change is simply a seasonal one and will be hosted from July to October. He said they are looking at a cost savings due to the extreme heat in the afternoons and there’s some savings to be gained due to closing during the prime afternoon heat.
Marine City Police Chief James Heaslip.
“I also looked at other communities around us and their hours are all over the place,” Adkins said, listing a wide range of hours and days other municipalities offices are closed. He added that this time of year, trades like to visit the city offices early, by 7 to 7:30 a.m. to beat the heat.
The decision was driven by cost savings too and the two Thursdays before the change they didn’t have anyone come into the office after 4:30 and prior to that over four months they only averaged 1.6 people coming in.
“That’s a lot of extra time to keep things running here and keep staff here,” Adkins said.
The city offices are located at 260 S. Parker Street.
Interim City Manager Resignation
The commission accepted a letter of resignation for interim City Manager Scott Adkins who announced last week that he will leave the post on July 31. After officials voted to receive and file the resignation letter Adkins assured them, he’d still be around.
“I’m still here, I look forward to helping the new manager on board,” Adkins said. “We’ve made progress in the last 60 some days or so, we’ve seen a leveling point and there’s a lot more work to do.”
“Scott, just want to thank you for stepping in filling in that role, keeping us floating as we transition and find another city manager,” Commissioner Sean O’Brien said.
“I’d like to thank Scott again for stepping up again and just everything he’s done in the last 60 days,” Commissioner Jacob Bryson added.
Our Lady on the River Parish, aka Holy Cross Catholic Church and School got a special event permit approved by the city commission for their annual picnic. The picnic is set for Sunday, July 16 from 12;30 to 3:30 P.M.
Parish picnic date set
Our Lady on the River Parish, aka Holy Cross Catholic Church and School, at 610 S. Water Street, got a special event permit for their annual parish picnic approved by the city commission. The picnic is set for Sunday, July 26 from 12;30 to 3:30 P.M. The permit application noted that the event used to be hosted at St. Mark’s Church on Harsens Island. Organizers also noted that food setup will be on tables in the parish parking lot while games will be hosted on the lawn adjacent to the school.
Police chief back on part-time basis
Marine City Police Chief James Heaslip, who recently retired, said he’s back and into his second week in a part-time capacity and he’s staying busy. He said the department is moving forward with the processes to get accreditation.
“I’m very happy to be back,” Heaslip said.
“Thank-you for coming back,” Mayor Jennifer Vandenbossche replied.
Volunteer committee moving forward
A recent meeting to establish an active volunteer committee in Marine City included around a dozen people who all turned out to discuss potential projects in the city.
“The first meeting was a very productive sharing of ideas,” City Manager Scott Adkins, previously said.
The idea to launch a volunteer program in Marine City was first introduced by resident Heather Haas Warner who suggested getting volunteers together to pick up around town and to host fundraisers to bring money into the city.
At the July 16 city commission meeting Werner stepped up to speak during public comments and offered an update on the volunteer program.
“Right now, we seem more focused on potential beach projects and getting the beach bathrooms opened,” Warner said.
She encouraged anyone interested in taking part in the volunteer projects in the city to email the city manager, city clerk or herself and get on the list for announcements about volunteering.
