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Planning & Parks Minutes April 10, 2024

Minutes of Plainfield Township Planning and Parks and Recreation Commission

Regular meeting

April 10, 2024, 2024

  1. Called to order by McDonellat 6:30p.m.
  2. Pledge of allegiance was said by all present.
  3. Roll Call:
    1. Present:  McDonell, Toth,Houthoofd, Alward, Heal, Johnson
    1. Absent: Olmstead
  4. Guest:  Patrick Ready- Building Dept, Fred Lewis, Supervisor
  5. Approval of Agenda:
    1. Motion by Toth,seconded by Houthoofd Motion carried byvoice, all ayes.
  6. Approval of Minutes:  Motion by Alward, seconded byHouthoofdto approve theFebruary 22, 2024 minutes.  Motion carried by voice, all ayes.
  7. Township board report: Houthoofd : gate system for trash system, putting in driveway so someone without a pass can leave.  Budget was approved.  Road work approved
  8. ZBA Report: Toth: Meeting to review variance request.  Lots need to be adjusted to fit since there was no practical difficulty.  Walked property and it is a very wet piece of property.  They will need to redesign to bring back to Planning Commission
  9. Community comments or questions:  no comments
  10. New Business: 
    1. Dollar General #2 Plan review:  concern addressed about safety on that part of the hi-way.Dependent on MDOT
    1. Complaint from neighbors on other Dollar General people are disturbing their dog.  First Dollar General is already for sale. 
    1. Parks and Rec Spring Break walk.  17 kids came to do the park walk. 
    1. Parks spring work:  Kokosing dropped stone at launch, trimming trees, porta potty all out. 
    1. Fred met with School Board to see if the path can be completed.  MRTF Grant, must own the land.  School Board wont release land.  Cooperative agreement.  Bridge across creek was the largest expense.  Matt Krawczak with ELS,  $200,000 for mile.  Road commission has culvert.  All public space, Township and the School are keepers of the land and need to work together. 
    1. Loon Lake park, picnic tables on hill so they have been moved closer to road,  put pad of stone to put picnic tables on.  Tate is replacing boards on walking trail to Mud Lake.  Fixed the door on bathroom.  Graffiti has been removed
    1. Kokosing parking lot is getting a culvert and cover to walking trail. 
    1. Chain lake park, cut down trees and added sand
    1. Bid documents on Pavilion went out today in paper.  Power is going underground. 
    1. June 15 Boat wash at Long Lake 10 – 4, MSU
  11. Old Business:
    1. Peterson Lake Garage condo unit:  they will need to correct the plan and bring back to Planning.  PUD:  will need master deed for size and location.  That way not everyone would need to come to planning for each lot to build.  Would need to go through Land Division Act will not have enough splits. 
    1. Zoning manual revisions/on going:  Patrick is working on. May meetingfor
    1. Park tour/ twp tour:  Patrick will schedule for next Monday at 0930
    1. Michigan Land Bank:  Invoice:
  12. General Discussion and Public Comments: 
    1. Questions about budget for new playground equipment.  Find equipment and send link to Fred and the board.  Fred ordered 2 new caterpillars.  Parks and rec need to decide what other equipment is needed.  Large unit or single unit like pogo stick.  $15000 exercise equipment has arrived.  In hallway and will be replaced shortly. 
    1. Londo lake is still asking for playground equipment and pavilion.  Individual parks do not receive equipment as cannot maintain.  What is feasibility to get a fishing dock.  May be too shallow.  Would need to be able to remove.  May be used more if we could add to the park. 
    1. DTE called and asked if we had a solar ordinance and if we needed help revising. 
  1. Motion byAlward, second by McDonell to adjourn 7:30Motion carried by voice, all ayes.

Minutes submitted by Cheryl McDonell

Approved: Date_________________                                 _____________________________

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Synopsis of Meeting MinutesPlainfield Township Board of TrusteesAugust 19th, 2026Meeting called to order at 6:30 pm by Supervisor Lewis5 members present 7 guests Items approved: 1) Agenda with additions2) Minutes from Special Meeting July 13th, 2026 and Regular Meeting July 13th, 20263) Bills to be paid 4) Private Road Maint Contract to Jeff Streeter5) Downtown Sidewalk Replace/Repair-Hunt Brothers6) Raise in Community Center Prices starting October 1, 20267) Tavern License Local Government Approval for Timber and Tides.8) Approve Master Plan for Comments9) Park Survey Approval-Riggs Surveying10)Budget Amendment Meeting adjourned at 7:18 pmPrepared by Sue Reilly, Plainfield Township Clerk Copies of meeting are available upon request from the Township Clerk. Office hours at 9 am to 4 pm Monday thru Thursday and Friday 9-1 ...
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Zoning Map July 29, 2026 ...
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Minutes of Plainfield Township Planning and Parks and Recreation CommissionRegular meeting Aug 12, 20261. Called to order by Olmsteadat 6:30p.m.2. Pledge of allegiance was said by all present.3. Roll Call:a. Present: Toth,Thayer, McDonell, Morell,Olmstead, Heal,b. Absent: Johnson4. Guest: PatrickReady, zoning enforcement; Fred Lewis, supervisor, NEMCOG Denise representative, 36 citizens a. Approval of Agenda: Motion by Johnson andseconded byMcDonellMotion carried byvoice, all ayes.5. Approval of agenda with changes to open and close meetings for zoning approval.6. Approval of Minutes: Motion by Toth, seconded byMcDonellto approve July 8, 2026minutes. Motion carried by voice, all ayes.7. Township board report: Morell: July 15th meeting: reviewed bills, library is moved, changed sick policy, MDOT changing traffic lights downtown. 2 lights to 8 lights8. ZBA Report: Toth:2260 Bliss Lane August 20, at 6:009. Community comments or questions:None10. New Business: a. Recommendation to survey parcels 073-T30-001-029-00 and 073-T40-002040-00to also consider all parks except Loon Lake Nature Center and DNR park at Long Lake Motion by McDonell and seconded by TothMotion carried by voice, all ayes.11. Motion to close the meeting: Motion by Toth and seconded by McDonell Motion carried by voice, all ayes.12. Motion to open public hearing regarding proposed zoning manualMotion by Heal and seconded by ThayerMotion carried by voice, all ayes.13. Public Commentsa. Jim Waltz: Why changed zoning? Response 2007 was the last revision, many chaged have been mad and have made the document difficult to follow. North Kokosing went from single family to multifamily?Response: No intension to change.b. Linda Hutchinson: AI data centers is the purpose of the changes in the ordinance. Listed the concerns for data centers. Response:Zoning has been adjusted to stop data centers coming to our area. The zoning has restricted the use of our land. We have an established industrial area and restrictions to defend against the building in the township.c. Jeff Streeter: agricultural changes. Fences and use for permits supersede state wetlands. Response:Exact verbiage from the existing zoning manual. Environmentally sensitive areas: the board has the right to assign areas, but we currently have no area. Will review as board. d. Rob Broadvent: question: lives on Burnside and off lake. 66 ft. from center line for utilities. He has issue with setbacks for his garage. Why do neighbors get to have a larger garage? Response: to go to ZBA to review his needs. e. Charlie Kocher: Water drainage issues: non-conforming becomes conforming once this is approved. Response: not a zoning issue but that is a drain commission issue. In zoning, a new construction cannot have water running off onto another property. The beautification project in 2004 is the concern, water has been diverted since curb and gutterf. Data center concerns. What to do if data center changes. Concern with lawsuits. g. Solar farms: leased land- we cannot control those decisions. Development still must come to the planning commission but the ownership still has to bring forth plans to be approved with special use public hearings. h. Amanda- Why allowing- Denise addressed why we cannot ban people from doing what they want with their land. We can restrict itwith discretionary standards. Solar is more difficult to fight- Public Act 33 -State allows companies to jump past local zoning for approval. Have to walk a fine line to screen development and not just have companies to go straight to state for approval. i. Medical marijuana was already in zoning. Storefronts are not allowed.j. Industrial Area: defined the area from the dump to the old junkyard, now if someone wanted to rezone for industrial, they would need to meet the new standards for the zoning requirements. k. Zoning book: onlinel. John McNaby: concerned that they were not aware or informed of any changes in a timely manner. Response: we posted in paper with 15 day notice, document now goes to county for 30 day review and then to Township Board for final approval. m. Stone: concerned that this was important and only 15 days of notice doesn’t feel like enough time. Where would they want to have posted? Agreed that the public knows these are important issues and we have to take care to be aware of what is happening at the local level.n. Morrell: new member of the community, moved in 2021. With Nemcog being involved has been very influential on making decisions and cleaning up the manual. Thanked the audience for their concernso. Jeff Streeter: why was it posted that the entire document was being changed. Response: The document was not clear and rewritten so would be more congruentthroughout, and updated with new laws. p. Denise: explained why was a total re-writing. 5,6, 8 , 9, 10 process chapters. Site plan review was vague and details were added to make clear. Public should read chapter 3 with general provisions. Chapter 4 is allowing districts and defining what can be used in the districts. Chapter 7 is a specific uses and shows charts and diagrams. q. What are changes for apartment complexes. No changes for apartment complexes. Concern that they will be allowed in lake areas. Section 11 is allowing. Multi family is different than apartment complexes. They would need fire suppression and we don’t have city water. Lake owners are concerned with extra building in areas around lakes. Planning makes recommendations to elected township board and then they approver. What is the policy to have something changed. See Patrick at the office during the week and then he brings to board if he cannot handle directly. 14. Motion to close special meeting: Motion by McDonell and seconded by MorrelMotion carried by voice, all ayes.15. Motion to open regular meeting: McDonell and seconded by Morrel Motion to carried to open meeting.16. Zoning ordinance review: Board Review: a. Denise commented about the environmentally sensitive areas. Article 3.21 The planning board can discuss now or wait for the next meeting. This is an unusual areaand she is not aware of any other townships that use this language. Motion by McDonell and Heal second to remove the environmentally sensitive area section of the chapter: Motion carried by voice, all ayes. b. Motion to forward the proposed zoning manual to the county Motion to Morell and seconded by Heal Motion carried by voice , all ayes. 17. Planning Board makes recommendation for the Master Plan: Master Plan is setting the goals for the Township. Both were updated at the same time. Verify that the master plan and the zoning match. 63 day window to have approved for grant deadline at the end of December. a. Motion to send Masterplan to Township board for review with corrections to maps. Motion by McDonell seconded by Heal. Motion carried by voice, all ayes18. General Discussion and Public Comments: Fred thanked everyone for working on the document. Thanks to MISHDA for grant money to complete this process. Communication is currently an issue, minutes are posted at township, on website and on facebook. Township board minutes are posted in the Iosco Herald as was the posting for this meeting. No other options were suggested by audience. 19. Motion byThayer, second Toth adjourn 8:20Motion carried by voice, all ayes.20. Next meeting September 9,2026 6:30pmMinutes submitted by Cheryl McDonellApproved: Date________________ _____________________________ ...
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Plainfield Township Historical CommissionJuly 21, 2026,Minutes Call to order at10:00Introductions NoneApprove Agenda MH / BNApprove Previous Meeting Minutes RDS / MHPresentBoard Members:Rona Dane Sullivan Chair PresentBruce Thayer Vice Chair PresentJim Kesler Curator PresentBernie Nuttall Secretary PresentMargy Holzheuer Treasurer PresentMembers at large:Earline Robinson, Bill Morton, Beth Thayer, Amy Albers, Erin KelahanTreasure Reportapproved as read MH / RDSCurator Work Activity: Few new items. Past Perfect Training on goingOld BusinessThe moveget keys soon, thenget measurements and assess what needs to be done. The Fairschedule is set, July 4 float driver got sick unable to partake, Friends of the Museum set just need get signatures at the bank.New BusinessRefine our organization remain as is, By Laws need to be reviewed, Newspaper Article schedule done, Business cards closed.Next Meeting 18 August 2026Adjournment 11:15 RDS / BN ...
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Free Hazardous Waste Collection Event ...
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August meeting times ...
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Just a heads up to everyone. The BIG ITEM DUMPSTER IS DOWN. Sorry for any inconvenience I will post again when it is back up and running. ...
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Elected Officials

Supervisor –  Fred Lewis
Clerk –  Sue Reilly
Treasurer – Roma J. Bassi
Trustee – Rick Morel
Trustee – Kim Kocher

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