Wakefield township, city split tire disposal costs, apply for trail grants

By IAN MINIELLY iminielly@yourdailyglobe.com WAKEFIELD TOWNSHIP — The township met on Tuesday evening for one hour and settled all agenda items without much fuss. The township came to an agreement with the city of Wakefield that if the $7,000 grant for tire removal does not cover the cost of removal for all the tires brought in, the township and city would split the costs of removal evenly, said John Cox, supervisor. Cox also said the Western U.P. Trail Authority has applied for two grants, one for $150,000 and the other for $140,000 from the MDNR to complete the motorized trail between Wakefield and Marenisco. If the grants are approved it will allow ORV’s to make the trip without having to get on the hardball with regular motor vehicles. Cox said it would be a real boost to the local economy to be able to link the two areas up by trail. The township issued only a handful of blight notices to area residents and according to Cox, all but two are already in compliance. The township also received its report on water quality and Cox was pleased to announce the township’s water received a clean bill of health. The township received a request from GCC for information on the GASB 77 Tax Abatement. Cox said these kinds of requests are regular occurrences and the township will provide GCC with the information so they can satisfy their accounting requirements. The last item on the agenda covered was the contract the township signed with Bach Motilities for the maintenance and yearly inspection of the townships elevator. Cox said the total cost for the three year contract is $850.