Although the Lake Orion Village Council says its hands are tied, residents on Park Island would like to see more road services for their tax money.
Park Island residents Howard Daenzer and William Raymor, along with several neighbors, approached the council on Sept. 25 to discuss resurfacing Park Island and converting it to a public road.
Council President Bill Siver suggested the residents could either form a Special Assessment District to make the road public, or pay for it themselves.
Daenzer said he was before the council more than a year ago to ask the DPW to determine the adequacy of the guardrail on the bridge–information he said he never received.
Village Manager JoAnn Van Tassel said former DPW Supt. Scott Baker, who has since left the village, was to have handled that.
‘We can probably go to our engineers, and again, that’s another cost,? she said.
‘Unfortunately, right now we have no DPW superintendent,? said Van Tassel. ‘I’m not sure the DPW workers are qualified to do it.?
Daenzer said it was still an issue that needed to be resolved, along with flow testing of the water line on Park Island to determine if it’s adequate for fighting fires.
The council voted to request that the Orion Township Fire Department conduct a pressure and flow test on Park Island and check the guardrail regulations. The DPW is to measure the railing on Park Island.
The council also voted to place the item on the next meeting agenda as a status report.
‘Sounds like last year we could have done (guardrail measuring) for free, and now we have to spend money to do it again,? Daenzer said.
Van Tassel said there are no public sources available to fund a private operation.
Raymor responded that there was a ‘general thought? among Park Island residents that there was an imbalance regarding how much they paid in taxes, and how many services they received in return.
‘That’s because your road is private , that’s how it was chosen to be,? Siver said, adding that the village would work with the residents if they were interested in converting the road to public status.
Village Attorney Gary Dovre said the first step would be for the residents to submit a formal petition. A year ago, the council had declined to spend $1,500 in public funds to find out what would be required to make the road public.
‘It would either be a SAD (special assessment district) or a private fundraiser,? Dovre said. ‘That’s up to the residents.
‘I think the next step would be to have (village engineering firm) Hubbell, Roth and Clark update their cost estimate,? he said. ‘But the bigger question is, who pays HRC???
Daenzer said he agreed with the council’s decision of a year ago, that it would have been premature to spend money at that time.
Council President Pro Tem Ken Van Portfliet said he believed the township fire department should be doing flow testing on the island.
‘Let’s not get the island involved in this political debate about (the fire department) not reimbursing (the village),? he said. ‘Let’s get this show on the road, and help these people out.?
‘Put a request in writing, (Fire Chief Jeff Key) works for us,? said council member John Ranville.
Van Tassel said she did not have the authority to direct Fire Chief Key to do anything, as he reports to Orion Township Supervisor Jerry Dywasuk, not her.
‘That’s who the residents should call, the township supervisor,? Van Portfliet said.
Park Island resident Robin Kowalski said residents were frustrated because the issue had been ‘going on for years.?
‘We need a timeline, and documentation for everything,? she said.
‘We just want it all documented,? Kowalski added. ‘We’re not coming back to do this again and again.?