Details of parking deck engagement night announced in short Houghton City Council meeting
Meeting Highlights
Pushback against dog park construction
A resident who lives on Donmar Drive addressed the council about the new city dog park that is being constructed now. She expressed that she was shocked to find out that a dog park was even under consideration for the site, and that she and some of her neighbors were concerned with potential noise and traffic disturbances. She was also worried it might lower her property value.
Public hearing for Dodge Charger police vehicle grant
A public hearing for a rural development grant ended with no comments from the public. The council approved the application, which is a 55% match on a roughly $50,000 vehicle. The rest of the cost will come from the city’s equipment fund.
City Manager’s update
City Manager Eric Waara was not in attendance at this meeting but did provide this printed update to the board and public (highlighting added):
Parking deck public engagement night details
The public engagement work starts next Wednesday (Sept. 29), at the Bonfire conference room, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Pat Coleman will be facilitating the activities. City Clerk Ann Vollrath said they are encouraging people to wear masks because of the number of people they are expecting in attendance, and that people should expect to be there for the entire time, as there is active engagement rather than an open house-style event.
Continued training for Houghton PD
Police Chief John Donnelly reported that officers within the department had retrained this week on how to handle traffic accidents, another program called ‘Hope Not Handcuffs’ from former judge Linda Davis(this is her 2019 TEDx Talk), and also a talk from David Bartley, a professional speaker and suicide survivor, about his experiences with first responder services.
The consent agenda passed with very little fanfare.
The items under new business also passed uneventfully.