Work by the Leland Township Emergency Response Facilities Committee (ERFC) was once again the main topic at the Township Board.

At its meeting Monday, the board discussed two requests from trustee Nicholas Lederle concerning how the committee presents information and ideas discussed at its meetings, and whether the committee should have a recording secretary. The board took no action on Lederle’s first request, and will take the second under advisement.
Lederle, who was removed from the ERFC by the board at its Jan. 14 meeting, said he attended the committee’s Feb. 6 meeting. He called the discussion "substantive and informative."
He asked the board to make a request to the ERFC to have its meeting minutes constructed in a “findings of fact” type format.
Lederle said when committee members reach a consensus, they should clearly state how they came to the conclusion and how they reached agreement. He said it would be similar to a “findings of fact” document the township Planning Commission uses when reviewing a special land use permit or site plan for a development.
As an example, Lederle showed an e-mail document he received from clerk Jane Keen that was sent to all Township Board members as well as members of the EFRC concerning a letter the board had sent to the Leland Volunteer Fire Department (LVFD), a private citizen’s group that formed the first organized fire and rescue department for Leland Township in the 1930s. The group owns the property on which the Leland fire hall sits, and an adjacent parcel. The board asked the LVFD how much it would want for the two parcels.
In Keen’s e-mail, dated Jan. 24, she said she received a call that morning from Jerry Muir, a LVFD member, stating the group did not have anything in writing showing the price for the fire station property in the area of $200,000. The e-mail also stated that Muir said while the group has not discussed the adjacent lot, it would probably be worth a little less than $150,000. The e-mail stated that Muir based the information on past conversations, and the figures were his best guess.
Lederle said the figures were used at the Feb. 6 ERFC meeting as the basis of discussion, even if only a rough figure, and that the public should know about them. Trustee Steve Plamondon, Keen and supervisor Harry Larkin said the figures stated in the e-mail were not firm, a statement supported by another LVFD member, Wayne Wunderlich, who attended the Township Board meeting Monday.
Wunderlich, treasurer of the group, said to the best of his knowledge the LVFD has not officially responded to the township’s letter. He also said the figures have not been officially endorsed by the group and to throw them out as a “fact” was irresponsible.
Jim Kiessel, a sergeant with the county Sheriff’s Department, said he also attended the Feb. 6 committee meeting, adding Muir was in the audience. Kiessel said Muir stated the numbers were just his opinion. Kiessel added that the $700,000 figure the committee members were using at the meeting was only a “ceiling,” meaning the most they might possibly consider for purchasing the Leland fire hall property and adjacent parcel or parcels.
Tom Aemmer, chair of the ERFC, said presenting a “findings of fact” update after each meeting would be difficult because the committee is still in the information-gathering stage. He said he could see the committee forming sub-committees to investigate different ideas, instead of the entire group just focusing on one option.
“I could see the committee presenting two or three options for the public to consider before making its final recommendation to the Township Board,” he said.
In related committee matters, the board unanimously appointed Kiessel to the committee. He had asked to be appointed in January.
In other business, the board:
• Unanimously recommended that the county Road Commission ban parking on the west side of Fourth Street from Pearl Street north to the Leland Public School building. Larkin said the Leland Board of Education had submitted a request to ban parking in the area to help with the flow of traffic on Fourth Street on school days. The Road Commission asked school officials the process to start with the township to see if the board would support the request.
• Approved a revised township liquor control ordinance. Keen said it allows the township to authorize any county Sheriff’s deputy to conduct a liquor control inspection of any premises that sells liquor or alcohol.