Crockery Lake Association Minutes
March 9, 2020
1. Meeting called to order 7:01 p.m.
Members Present: Bob Blauwkamp, President; Pat Wolters, Vice President; Susan McClure, Secretary; Greg Slater, Treasurer; Directors Dennis Arms, Carl Elliott, Paula Humphrey, Betsy Ludwick
Guests: None
2. Approval of Agenda
Additions
Welcome Packet, Budget, Appeal for Fireworks Fund
Susan McClure moved to accept the amended agenda; Pat Wolters seconded. Passed.
3. Secretary's Report
Susan McClure presented the Secretary's Report. Bob Blauwkamp asked if any item needed attention. Susan asked for a follow-up to the proposed Crockery Creek Watershed Council on January 28, 2020. Carl Elliot reported Callie Melton, the organizer, invited Ben Jordan of the Ottawa County Conservation District to speak. Jordan covered the same points he had presented at the meeting at Crockery Lake Association Board Meeting. About a dozen people from affected townships attended. Now Melton is one of four candidates, including the incumbent chairperson, for a seat on the Ottawa County Conservation District Board. Carl also reported the difficulty of getting a ballot for the particular office—making a request for the ballot for the particular office and then bringing it to the polling place or mailing it in. There would be no copies at any of the affected township polling sites.
Bob Blauwkamp moved and Betsy Ludwick seconded to accept the Secretary's Report. Passed.
4. Treasurer's Report
Greg Slater presented a budget. The budget kept the annual dues at $35 for each residence. In 2019 there were 62 members out of 107 potential members. Susan McClure moved to accept the budget; Paula Humphreys seconded. Motion was rescinded. Bob Blauwkamp went through the budget line by line. The only line to be eliminated was “Appreciation Fireworks Detonators” because Wolverine Display, the fireworks vendor, will use its employees to set up the site and detonate the fireworks for the 2020 display. At the line for ML&SA Water Testing, it was noted that lake residents can do the Secchi Disk readings for temperature and dissolved oxygen for no cost. Pat Wolters said it may be recorded in the MICOR, ML&SA, and DEQ data for no cost, but there may be a charge. The line item was kept in the 2020 budget.
The budget for 2020 is $1894, an increase of $454.39 over what was spent in 2019. There is an increase in Communications/Office Supplies. The increase of $125 is not expected to be used, but the Board consensus is to leave the amount as Greg proposed.
The General Fund and the money for the fireworks show are two separate balances. The General Fund ended the year with a bank balance of $1668.99. The ending fireworks balance for the 2020 show is $5051.33, which will result in a smaller show than the 2019 show. Money for the fireworks comes from donations, advertising in the CLA newsletter, and candle sales.
Carl Elliott moved to accept; Paula Humphrey seconded. Passed.
5. Fireworks Update
Pat Wolters reported that all of the paperwork for the fireworks display is finished except for receiving the Marine and Special Event Permit from the MDNR. Once that is back, she will take the paperwork to the Chester Township Clerk to have it presented for approval at the March Township Board Meeting. She talked to Frank Gunkel who is willing to have his field used for the detonation on July 3, 2020. Carl Elliott looked at the list of fireworks in the contract and noted that we will have a much smaller show than in 2019. Bob Blauwkamp asked Carl to talk to Jenny at Wolverine Display to discuss the selections listed in the contract.
Susan McClure read the Crockery Lake Fireworks Guidelines Pat had prepared. The following corrections/additions were noted:
Item 1: Money is collected between January 1 and December 31 for the following calendar year's display.
Item 3: After Jenny at Wolverine Display emails the contract to the CLA contact person, the contact person will email a copy on to the President and the Treasurer. The Treasurer's copy will act as an invoice for the Treasurer.
Item 6: The CLA Treasurer will send a check for the amount agreed upon with the Fire Department for the Rosel Memorial Fund.
The CLA contact person will be appointed at the September Board Meeting. Dennis Arms suggested that the Wolverine Contact Person rotate among Board Members.
An amended copy of the Guidelines will be passed out at the April 6 Board Meeting.
Carl Elliott noted that the Wolverine Display contract shows far fewer shells than we should be getting for a $5000 show. Carl will contact Jenny.
6. Boat Parade Policy
Susan McClure read the proposed Boat Parade Policy. Recommended changes are to have a sign in front of the Treasurer's house which reads “Boat Parade Starts Here.” (Street addresses are meaningless on the house's lake side.) Betsy Ludwick volunteered to make the sign. Also suggested was adding a line on the entry form that asks for the boat's decorating theme.
Paula Humphrey suggested making a list of judging criteria for judges and participants.
Carl Elliot moved and Betsy seconded to accept the Boat Parade Policy as amended. Passed.
An amended copy of the Boat Parade Policy will be handed out at the April 6 meeting.
7. Welcome Packet
Carl Elliott presented the Welcome Questionnaire that Karen Elliott had prepared. The Board made a few suggestions. Perhaps “Husband” and “Wife (SO)” could be changed to “Resident” and “Co-resident.” An email address should be included if available. If the Crockery Lake address is not the permanent address, the questionnaire needs a line for that address too. (Betsy Ludwick and Paula Humphrey reported that they had seventeen fireworks solicitation letters returned as undeliverable. Bob Blauwkamp observed that he didn't know that there were that many cottages on the lake.) Carl reported that the Chester Township Office would no longer notify Karen when a property on Crockery Lake changes owners nor will it give her the names and addresses as they appear on the tax roles. The information on the questionnaire will be valuable to Board Members when they approach people to ask for fireworks donations.
8. Bylaw and Policy Review
A review will be on the April agenda. Betsy Ludwick will email copies of the Bylaws and Policies.
9. Newsletter
Betsy Ludwick will include a copy of Linda Lane's article about Crockery Lake in the newsletter. The article was first published in “The Riparian,” the publication of Michigan Lakes and Streams. Susan McClure noted that she enjoyed getting “Freshwater Future Jill Ryan” online.
10. Lake Health Report
Pat Wolters reported on the health of Crockery based on 2019 data. Crockery Lake is a eutrophic (dying) lake with abundant algae and no dissolved oxygen. It has a high nutrient level. The results of the “Score the Shore” done in the summer of 2019 show an improvement in erosion control since 2017, but too many lawns continue to be mowed too close to the lake. Even a buffer of unmowed grass of several inches protects the lake. Thank you to Linda Lane for coordinating the information and submitting the data to MCOR which keeps a record of the lake's condition.
11. Michigan Lake and Streams Conference
The annual ML&S Conference will be held the first Friday and Saturday in May at Crystal Mountain. Google for program, times, and reservations. Pat Wolters can be contacted too.
Carl Elliott moved to adjourn.
Meeting Adjourned 8:45 p.m.
Next Meeting: / Monday, April 6, 2020 / 7 p.m. / 2779 Van Dyke
Note: March 29, 2020
At this point the April CLA Board Meeting has been canceled due to the Coronavirus Scheduling a meeting at this point is not possible. President Bob Blauwkamp has asked for business items that can't wait for a scheduled meeting.
Greg Slater's email address is greg@gsesllc@outlook.com.