Isabella County Hazard Mitigation Planning Effort Seeks Public Input

Isabella County has experienced several local emergencies and disasters in recent years including floods and the COVID-19 pandemic. Every five years, the County updates its Hazard Mitigation Plan to identify the greatest threats and hazards facing our community, and determines how we can best mitigate the impacts.

Hazard Mitigation is any effort to reduce or eliminate long-term risk to human life and property. Although floods and other events cannot be prevented from occurring, long-term solutions can be implemented to reduce devastating impacts on residents, families, homes, infrastructure, and natural resources.

The goal of a Hazard Mitigation Plan is to save lives, property, and natural resources by reducing the community’s vulnerability to emergency disasters. Residents and other community stakeholders are invited to engage in this vital planning process by completing a brief survey. Results will inform planners what specific hazards cause the most concern, and ultimately identify community assets to protect.

The survey, open to all individuals who live, work and play in Isabella County, will take approximately 10 minutes to complete and is available at https://tinyurl.com/IsabellaHMP . Survey deadline is March 28, 2022.

Summary of Minutes of the Mt. Pleasant City Commission Meeting – February 28, 2022

Summary of Minutes of the regular meeting of the City Commission held Monday, February 28, 2022, at 7:00 p.m., in the City Commission Room, 320 W. Broadway St., Mt. Pleasant, Michigan with virtual attendance options.

Received petitions and communications.

Approved the following items on the Consent Calendar:

3) Minutes of the regular meeting of the City Commission held February 14, 2022.

4) Reappointment of Rachel Blizzard to the TIFA Board.

5) Authorized contract for 2022 Pavement Marking Project to M&M Pavement Marking of Grand Blanc, MI and approved budget amendment.

6) Set a public hearing for Monday, March 14, 2022 at 7:00 p.m. for the purpose of receiving public comments related to Green Tree Cooperative Grocery, Inc.’s performance as required under the CDBG-RLF program.

7) Amendment to the 2022 budget for engineering services for the WRRF rehabilitation project.

8) Warrants and Payrolls.

Approved the spending plan for PEAK Childcare Stabilization Grant funds as presented.

Awarded contract to The Isabella Corporation of Mt. Pleasant, MI for the 2022 Sidewalk Project and approved budget amendment.

City Engineer Stacie Tewari reviewed Downtown Alley Reconstruction Fire Suppression Evaluation.

Conducted a Work Session Discussion on development philosophy.

Adjourned the meeting at 8:16 p.m.

City of Mt. Pleasant Recognized for Supporting Business in their Community

The City of Mt. Pleasant has been recognized for its success and effort in contributing to Michigan’s entrepreneurial growth and economic development in the annual eCities study conducted by researchers at iLabs, University of Michigan-Dearborn’s Center for Innovation Research. Mt. Pleasant was honored as a four-star community along with 90 other communities across the state. This is the sixth time the City has been recognized by UM-Dearborn.

According to City Manager Aaron Desentz, “This eCities recognition is tangible evidence that the City of Mt. Pleasant continues to focus on all forms of economic development, including growth in the entrepreneurial arena. It is an honor for our city to be recognized in this way.”

The eCities study analyzed publicly available data from 277 communities from 54 counties in Michigan. Researchers focused on the five-year changes in property values, community assets, and tax rates, which can demonstrate the growth, investments and cost of doing business within the community. For example, over the five-year period of 2016-2020, these communities increased their capital assets by an average of 2.9 percent per year by investments such as park facilities, emergency vehicles, water, and sewage infrastructure projects, while property tax rates increased by less than 3 percent on average per year.

Although accounting for less than 20 percent of the State’s cities and townships, the 277 communities analyzed are home to 71 percent of Michigan’s population and 86 percent of the state’s commercial property. “Each year, the eCities project aims to highlight the successes and continued commitment of cities and townships to grow business and support entrepreneurship within their communities,” said Kari Kowalski, iLabs project manager.