By Barb Pert Templeton
The March 6 meeting of the Marine City Commission lasted just over an hour and five
commissioners were present. Commissioner Rita G. Roehrig was absent due to illness.
Here are some highlights:
Spring Fling event set
The Marine City Commission meets on the first and third Thursdays of the month at 7 p.m.
The Commission approved a special event permit for an event to be held outside on the grounds of old city hall at 300 Broadway in the city. The Spring Fling is set for Saturday, May 31 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Organizers are planning to have about 75 vendors, hope to have a band playing for several hours and will also invite food truck vendors to the event. Organizers plan to post yard signs for the Spring Fling on the corners around the city block.
Box city 2025
Students in the Marine City High School Interact Club will host Box City 2025 on May 30 and May 31 at the Nautical Mile Park from 4 p.m. to 7 a.m. The plan is to have students arrive at the park with cardboard boxes, sleeping bags and supplies in preparation of spending the night sleeping in the boxes. Shelterbox USA will be on site to conduct tours and demonstrations for the students and the community. Students will continue to fundraise from 5 to 8:30 p.m. A brief awards ceremony will take place from 8:30 to 9 p.m. with awards presented in various categories for the box homes, like most creative design, cutest, funkiest, etc. Awards will also be presented to the individual students who raised the most money for the event. After that, students will sit around a bonfire and chat from 9 to 11 p.m. At 11 p.m. until 6 a.m. students will participate in quiet time, taking their places inside their boxes to sleep for the night. At 6 a.m. students will wakeup and begin cleaning up the area, taking their boxes to the recycle bin at Marine City High School. At 6:30 students will be dismissed either having their parents pick them up or by walking home.
Resolution for Guy Center
Members of the commission unanimously adopted a formal resolution dedicating the property at 545 Ward Street (formally the Marine City Lions Hall) as the Guy Community Center as per the Guy Family Will. The Guy Center will serve as a community hub offering space to the public for events, gatherings and programs. A commemorative plate will be installed to honor the Guy family legacy and their contribution to the community. The city purchased the Lions Club late last year for $315,000. The new building will be known as the Otto and Bertha Guy Community Center. The city will use $200,000 in funds from the sale of the original Guy Center building at 303 Water Street to make the purchase along with a $57,000 grant from St. Clair County and a $58,000 loan the city will take out and have five years to pay off. The city actually cleared $218,567 from the sale of the old Guy Center on Water Street and will utilize the remaining $18,567 for updates at the former Lions Hall property.
Appointment to ZBA
The city had two openings on the Zoning Board of Appeals, one for a member and one for an alternate. City Clerk Jason Bell said the city received one application for the open seat and the applicant met all criteria to serve on a city board. Officials then appointed Dan Moore to the ZBA for a term ending in December 2026.
Art, History and Culture
The city had six openings on the newly formed Arts, History and Culture Commission and received two applications to fill the seats. City Clerk Jason Bell said both applicants met all the requirements to serve on the commission per city ordinances. The city commission then unanimously approved the appointments of Georgia Phelan as the representative of the Historical Society and Genvieve Prange to the Arts, History and Culture Commission as the citizen at large member for terms ending.
New Farmers Market
The City of Marine City will be taking over the weekly farmers market at the New Guy Community Center (former Lions Club) at 545 Ward Street. The market will be on Thursdays from 9:00am to 2:00pm staring July 10th and running through October 2nd. The cost will be $5 per week per booth for vendors. “We’re excited for this, it’s something new for myself I’ve never run a farmer’s market,” City Clerk Jason Bell said. Those interested in being a vendor, please email mcfarmersmarket@marinecity.gov or call (810) 765-9121. The city will hold an informational meeting in May with interested vendors to go over all details.
