August 2022 Meeting Minutes

Posted on by NIcole Fitzgerald

Call Meeting to Order at 7:00 pm by Nicole

 

President- Nicole Fitzgerald(Present)                Trustee- Tony Spear (Present)

V.P- Victoria Wilcox (Present)                              Trustee- Fred. Boogren (Present) 

Treasurer- Frank Kren    (Present)                      Trustee- Sandra Parker (Absent)

Secretary- Nancy Mouradjian (Absent)             Trustee- Tess Cini (Absent)   

 

Prior to approving the meeting minutes, we as a board and the attendees of the meeting, representing the community, took a minute to hear from a young lady that had something to share with the residents of the community. The young lady delivered a heartfelt apology to the residents of Detroit Beach Association for breaking one (1) of the two (2) brand new tables and stated that she will work off the money that is owed for the damage. This young lady has been very true to her word.

 

Previous Meeting Minutes- 

Meeting minutes were reviewed from  July 2022. After reading the minutes from July, the board approved the presented meeting minutes. Motioned made by Nicole and all board were in favor

 

Presidents Report

The golf cart ordinance is temporarily (August 10th 2023)  changed to allow golf carts on the roads in Frenchtown Township, exciting. According to Frenchtown Township, the golf cart Guidelines are as follows: 

  • Must be a Licensed Driver
  • Operator of golf cart shall ride as near to the right side as possible & exercise due care when passing a standing vehicle
  • Operators of golf cart shall not pass or drive  between lanes of traffic. unless passing stationary object in road
  • Golf Cart cannot be operated on a sidewalk
  • roads designated for golf carts are all Frenchtown local roads
  • Golf Carts shall not be operated on streets during the time period from a half hour before sunset to a half hour after sunrise.
  • golf cart shall not operate at an excess of 15 mph, on a highway or street with a speed limit of more than 30 mph, except to cross the street
  • A golf cart operated on a township street is not required to be registered under the Michigan Vehicle code for purposes of section 3101 of the insurance code 

 

The Board wanted to have a park for the golf carts (only, NO ATV, mini bikes) to safely go up and look at the water. We discussed multiple parks and then a vote was taken on which one. The park that received the most votes was the park where 1st St. and Edgewater meet. This park has a nice grade to it and is not too steep. 

 

The Association bills are going out and it is time to get busy collecting the dues through September and October.  The dues go to so many things such as:

  • Street lights
  • playground maintenance
  • park maintenance
  • building and structure maintenance and repair
  • Snow and Salt for the winter
  • Fun Events

and so much more

 

We discussed the process of the way that the board works.

  • Something is brought to the board, by the board or resident at the meeting. 
  • The board takes the information, and then votes on what is proposed. Now, sometimes this can happen immediately or it may have to wait. For instance, the Halloween budget will be voted on; the majority will either approve it or they won’t  and that will happen right away. Now, say we need to put a stop sign where some residents have said they would like to see a stop sign, then we will not vote immediately, a facebook poll will be posted to see how many people support it. If a lot support it, then we put the sign in.
  • No single person can just make the decision. It is a majority rules, period
  • We have Officer Trustees: President, V.P, Secretary and Treasurer, and then we have trustees of the board. This is explained in the by-laws and if you are interested in a recent copy, inbox or email us and we can get you a set.

 

There are things that are in our power to change

  •  landscaping, 
  • painting, 
  • park hours, 
  • What can be in parks, 
  • What time the parks are open and close
  • Road Signs

That is just some examples.

 

Things that pertain to local and state laws (even though this is a private community)  such as roads and otherwise, we cannot change and we are required to abide by them. 

 

Respect board members’ private domain, their homes. If you want to be neighborly that is fine. Following a board member to their home,when they do not know you or where you live to “tell them how it is going to be” is not okay. Approaching a board member in any type of confrontational way is not okay. If you have an issue, come to a meeting, so that we can talk it out and get it on the record. This behavior is not acceptable of a board member either and if a board member were to do this, then I would hope that an email, text only or facebook message would be sent and that the individual would attend the meeting so that we, as a community could try to find a common ground. This is one of the purposes of having these meetings.

 

There was a brief discussion of possible water pressure issues being too high. We asked the residents at the meeting and none said that they were experiencing high water pressure; in fact a few said that they were experiencing low water pressure.

 

As briefly touched on in the beginning of the meeting, we had a couple brand new tables destroyed by two kids. One of the kids began their penance by apologizing to the residents and will be working on odds and ends within the neighborhood, the other did not show to apologize, which was part of the agreement and will have to pay for the table.

 

Committee Reports 

Financial/Treasurer Report (Frank)

The 2022-2023 budget was gone over with the board and the residents that attended the meeting. A motion was made by Frank to approve the 2022-2023 budget and it was seconded by Victoria, then approved by all. Frank also discussed the importance of making sure that all expenditures go through him so that he can make sure that the purchase is in the budget. Frank continues to monitor our bills and works to get the most affordable pricing; doing this allows savings that can be placed back into the community.

 

Beautification/ Event Committee

Not much has been happening with the beautification committee. Their hustle and bustle will pick back up around Halloween. They are planning to put something nice in the front of the office in our empty pots. If you are interested in being a part of the beautification committee reach out to the us for more information through Facebook messenger, Text only# (734) 393-2765, email detroitbeach@sbcglobal.net or leave a message on our office phone (734) 289-4354

 

Building, Maintenance and Grounds

Our head of grounds continually works with the JAWS program with getting volunteers for things like trash pick up in every park, dead animal removal, repairs on our building and pavilions and painting. The effort that has been implemented by grounds has been absolutely wonderful and it is truly appreciated. Our parks are getting the much needed attention that they have so longed for. We put seal coating the asphalt areas in Bear Park up for a vote. The vote was motioned by Frank and seconded by Tony and approved unanimously by the board. We also voted on ordering a Power Rake for the tractor. This power rake is needed to better maintain the baseball field. Nicole motioned for the vote, seconded by Victoria, ending with all board members in favorThe building is still undergoing repair and paint and we are looking to have this finished by October. Bear Park’s revitalization is almost done. There are a few more things that will be completed at some point and then we will be able to move onto another park.  We may be needing volunteers to assist with the committee. Reach out to the us for more information through Facebook messenger, Text only# (734) 393-2765, email detroitbeach@sbcglobal.net or leave a message on our office phone (734) 289-4354

 

We discussed the positives of purchasing an utility golf cart for the association instead of replacing the truck that we had. The positives were; cost effectiveness and not having to use our personal vehicle. Nicole made a motion to approve the utility golf cart, seconded by Victoria and all of the board members were in favor. Victoria volunteered to research finding us a used utility golf cart.

 

Law and Order Committee

There have been many complaints of blight. Let’s keep it clean, we all want to live in a nice and neat neighborhood. If you need help, reach out, many have and have received assistance from the wonderful residents. It is easier to ask for help than to pay a blight fine. I am always looking for volunteers to assist with doing the blight.

 

Parking in the park’s parking areas is for the parks and for the OCCASIONAL overflow of guests you may have at your home, not an extension to your driveway. If a busy event is the case at your home, please contact us and let us know so that we can get your guests temporary guest passes that have to be returned to the office in the dropbox or in person if someone is available. If you are at a park to visit the park, please make sure that you have your pass in the window so that you do not get your vehicle towed or ticketed.

 

Please, keep a vigilant eye on your surroundings. Call the non-emergency, (734) 243-7070, number for the police to look into suspicious activity, this phone number will get a car out asap according to Sheriff Goodnough. The tellthesheriff@monroemi.org  is still functioning for things that do not require immediate assistance. This will help keep our neighborhood safe and looking nice and it’s almost like a type of neighborhood watch.

 

Ongoing Business

Bear Park is almost done. We most likely will not be able to finish this year, but early next spring hopefully. Most parks will be being re-surveyed so that we can get some visually pleasing landscaping in. We did discuss changing the speed limit on most of the roads that branch off of Edgewater, Bronson, and Grand. Nicole made the motion, Tony seconded and Nicole was in favor and the remaining four (4) members of the present board,  were a nay. There will be no speed limit change. There was a discussion as to whether  to place a stop sign at Lamb and 10th, making this a 4 way stop. With the residents input as well as the request from residents that messaged us, it was put up for a vote. A motion to put this up for a vote was made by Nicole and seconded by Tony. All board members were in favor, but only after implementing a Facebook poll.

 

Just a friendly reminder, if there are any complaints that need to be addressed about any board member, please email detroitbeach@sbcglobal.net, Text only# (734) 393-2765, through Facebook messenger or come to a meeting. The messages must include the complaint against who, as well as the details, there also needs to be a date, time and your name and phone number. This is for legality and official purpose. No phone calls can be accepted for this type of complaint. Hearsay and personal vendettas are not applicable because of easily disputed legality. Not liking someone or having a disagreement is not a viable complaint, it is subjective and will not be accepted for legal purposes

 

Public Participation

Connie discussed the stop sign and its importance as well as instead of changing the speed limit, add another electronic speed measuring sign for problem areas. This is something that the board is definitely looking into. Bob gave input on the park surveys that will occur  

Adjournment

Motion made by Nicole, accepted by Frank and seconded by Victoria. All in favor. Meeting concluded at 7:50pm