2020)

In an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19, the City of Mt. Pleasant continues to follow recommendations of federal, state and county health officials while still providing vital City services.

Therefore, through May 28, 2020 the City is following Governor Whitmer’s “Stay Home, Stay Safe” Executive Order 2020-77, and is continuing its level of building closure and only providing critical services at this time. This includes: police, fire, airport operations, water, wastewater, limited street services as well as limited construction permitting and inspection services.

Other City staff will be monitoring emails and phone calls and will attempt to answer urgent inquiries.

City Parks

City parks are currently open, but park restroom facilities are closed as well as Island Park’s Skate Park and Hannah’s Bark Park.

Trash/Recycling (Updated 5/12/2020 and 5/18/2020)

City trash pick-up is still taking place.

Recycling

The City of Mt. Pleasant has contracted with Republic Services to conduct a one-time curbside pick up for recyclables. This collection will take place on your regularly scheduled recycle pick up date during the week of May 18, 2020. Please place your items at the usual pick up point (curb or alley) by 7:00 a.m. on your usual scheduled pick up day. All City recycling guidelines are still in effect.

REMINDER: Recycling should NOT be placed in plastic bags or in oversized/appliance-size boxes. Boxes 24” x 36” will be collected, if they are not too heavy and can be picked-up by recycling staff.

For detailed information visit:

https://mpcityblog.com/2020/05/12/special-one-time-recycling-collection-for-city-of-mt-pleasant-residents/

Recycling will remain suspended after this one-time pick-up. Further announcements regarding the opening of the Isabella County Material Recovery Facility, will be made when information becomes available.

Recycling fees were waived on the April and May utility bills due to the Materials Recovery Facility being closed.

As a result of building closures, the City has temporarily suspended the direct sale of recycling bins, City trash bags and tags. City trash bags and tags are available at Meijer and Ric’s. Individual tags are available at GreenTree Grocery.

Large Item Pick Up

Large item pick-up is now reinstated. Tags can be ordered online. Once payment is received your tag will be delivered to your door.

http://www.mt-pleasant.org/residents/online_service_center/

Second Spring Leaf Collection

Since landscaping companies are now operating, a second leaf pick-up for May 11, 2020 has been scheduled. Please note all leaves must be out and ready for pick up by 6 p.m. on May 10. There will be one collection through each neighborhood starting on May 11.

Public Meetings

The City of Mt. Pleasant will host its public meetings virtually as allowed by the Governor’s Stay at Home Executive Order. Citizens may watch these meetings live on Spectrum Charter Channel 188, webstreamed at https://www.youtube.com/user/MtPleasantMi/ or via Zoom. Any citizen desiring to make a public comment must email their comments on agenda items to comment@mt-pleasant.org.

-Virtual City Commission meeting will take place on May 11, 2020 at 7 p.m.

-May 12 Historic District Commission is cancelled.

-May 14 DDA meeting is cancelled.

-May 14 Airport Advisory Board meeting is cancelled.

-May 18 TIFA Board meeting is cancelled.

-Virtual Parks and Recreation Commission meeting will take place on May 19 at 6:30 p.m.

-Virtual Police and Fire Pension Board meeting will take place on May 21, 2020 at 8:15 a.m.

-Virtual City Commission meeting will take place on May 26, 2020 at 7 p.m.

-May 27 Zoning Board of Appeals meeting is cancelled due to lack of action items.

Event Cancellations

Federal and state health officials are mandating all events be cancelled or postponed to stop the gathering of people, of any size. This guidance has caused the cancellation of the following to date:

-PEAK activities cancelled until at least June.

-Farmers’ Market cancelled through the month of May.

-City of Mt. Pleasant park shelter rental reservations are cancelled for the duration of Governor Whitmer’s Stay at Home Executive Order.

Payments and Building/DPW Permits

Citizens can make payments via mail (320 W. Broadway Street), the City’s Drop Box located outside of City Hall, or online at www.mt-pleasant.org.

Building Permits can also be electronically submitted by visiting www.mt-pleasant.org. Inspections will be scheduled once the City receives the proper recommendations from federal, state and local health officials. If needed, virtual inspections can be conducted through Skype or Zoom.

COVID-19 Resources

The City will continue to monitor this situation and be guided by information provided by the Central Michigan District Health Department https://www.cmdhd.org/novel-coronavirus, the State of Michigan https://www.michigan.gov/coronavirus, and the Center for Disease Control & Prevention https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html.

Information Updates

Information will be updated and shared via the City’s website (www.mt-pleasant.org), Blog (mpcityblog.com), Facebook and Twitter accounts, MACTV Charter Spectrum Channel 188, and the Community Information Phone Line (989) 779-5320.

Small Business Relief

Are you a small business impacted by the COVID-19 outbreak? If so, you may be eligible for a grant or low-interest loan. Refer to these links for more information.

https://www.michigan.gov/Coronavirus

https://www.sba.gov/funding-programs/loans/coronavirus-relief-options

City parks director receives top state award

Chris Bundy, director of parks and public spaces for the City of Mt. Pleasant, is the 2018 recipient of the Park Resource Leadership Award.

Presented by mParks – Michigan Recreation and Park Association – the award is among the highest of individual honors granted by the statewide organization and recognizes professionals who demonstrate outstanding contributions in the area of maintenance practice, equipment management and resource development.

Chris has served the City for nearly 30 years, beginning his career as the director of recreation, and later assuming the role of director of parks and public spaces.

Throughout his tenure, his leadership has resulted in extensive growth and improvement within the City parks system. Chris was instrumental in the original build of the Timber Town playscape at Island Park in 1994, as well as the rebuild of the playground in 2017, working with the volunteer committee to secure hundreds of thousands of dollars in donations and coordinate hundreds of volunteers.

In 2009, he led the design and construction of the Access to Adventure Trail, which is part of the GKB Riverwalk that connects five of the City’s parks along the Chippewa River.

In 2013, Chris spearheaded the Green Maintenance Bike Initiative, reducing the use of motorized carts and introducing bicycles with trailers for the daily maintenance tasks in City parks. This effort produced a significant cost savings, reduced noise and air pollution, and gained statewide recognition.

“The list of opportunities and facility improvements Chris has made is extensive, but more impressive is his ability to plan, maintain, and think to the future sustainability of projects that will impact future generations,” said City Recreation Coordinator Steve Hofer.

Chris has also dedicated much of his career to preserving the community’s natural resources, specifically the Chippewa River and the riverbank corridor. In 2016, Chris worked in coordination with the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe to obtain Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) funds to improve the corridor connected to City park lands. These efforts protected much of the riverbank during the flood in June of 2017.

“Chris strives to set a good example and be an out-of-the-box thinker,” said City Manager Nancy Ridley. “He is most certainly deserving of recognition for the tremendous support and exemplary leadership he provides for all things related to parks and recreation in our community.”

Chris was honored at the 2018 mParks conference earlier this month. He is also the 1994 winner of the mParks Recreation Leadership Award.

Award recipients are selected based on their development of innovative programs and services, community affiliations and volunteer experiences, contributions to the profession, and more.

mParks created the video below as a tribute to Chris!

Several City parks closed and events canceled following flood

UPDATE: The Mt. Pleasant Farmers’ Market on Thursday, July 6 will now take place in the parking lot at Morey Courts from 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. (This market was originally canceled due to the flooding that closed Island Park indefinitely.)

Due to extensive flood damage, the City of Mt. Pleasant has closed all of Island Park and Nelson Park, as well as portions of several other City parks until further notice. Additionally, the USA Softball State Tournament scheduled for June 29-July 2 in locations throughout Mt. Pleasant has been canceled; and the Mt. Pleasant Farmers’ Market at Island Park is canceled for both Thursday, June 29 and Thursday, July 6.

The parks partially closed include:

Chipp-A-Waters Park (bridge and trails)
Mill Pond Park (trails)
Mission Creek (various locations)
Pickens Field (lower fields)

“Although the flood waters are starting to recede, there are still many locations throughout our parks that are unsafe to access,” said Director of Parks and Public Spaces Chris Bundy. “We are asking the community to please abide by these closings so we can focus on recovering and repairing our parks and facilities as quickly as possible.”

Additional information and scheduling changes for upcoming events will be posted as they become available at www.mt-pleasant.org and on the City’s social media pages.

See a video update regarding the City parks at https://vimeo.com/223335251.