By Joseph Goral
Staff Writer
jgoral@mihomepaper.com
LAKE ORION — The Lake Orion Village Council approved an agreement with the Oakland County Board of Commissioners on April 28 for a fund matching agreement to seal cracks in roads downtown Lake Orion.
The agreement is for a local road improvement matching fund program (LRIP) that outlines terms under which Oakland County will provide up to $5,870 in matching funds toward the estimated cost of the project. Its estimated cost is $15,870, according to village documents.
“This agreement covers, actually, the current fiscal year,” Village Manager Darwin McClary said. “We’ve already completed the work last summer. This agreement has to be executed so that we can request reimbursement for that $5,870.”
McClary said he discussed with Lake Orion Public Works Director Wesley Sanchez whether purchasing the equipment would be more cost effective.
“Director Sanchez informed me that we’re looking at about $18,000 to purchase the equipment. So, for what it costs us for one year to contract this out, we could purchase the equipment and just do the work ourselves,” McClary said. “So we’re going to look into that further.”
To participate in the program, Lake Orion must fund at least half of the project cost, submit a final report on the project’s impact on local businesses and acknowledge full responsibility for administering the project.
Village Council President Pro-Tem Stan Ford made the motion to approve the agreement, which passed 6-0. Village Council President Teresa Rutt was absent from the meeting.