By Tom Gilchrist
For The Advertiser
MAYVILLE — If you live in Mayville, Police Chief Tony Coln is keeping an eye on your grass, and not the kind you smoke.
“You might have seen me at the end of last week out measuring grass,” Coln told the Mayville Village Council at its meeting May 20.
“It’s the season to enforce our ordinances, obviously, and the tall grass is a priority,” Coln said.
The chief pointed out that Mayville leaders have lowered the allowable height of yard grass from 10 inches to eight inches. Coln said police officers look at potential violators either after receiving a phone call about a situation or by noticing someone’s grass “may look a little taller than it should be” when officers are on patrol.
When a yard owner violates the ordinance, Coln said “I will post a notice on that property owner’s door; it gives them … 48 hours to take care of the grass.”
Failure to cut grass below the maximum height of eight inches within 48 hours can result in village workers mowing the grass and billing the property owner. According to Coln, the village charges $35 per worker, per hour, along with an equipment fee of $82.35 per hour for any mower used in cutting grass on violators’ property.
Coln told council members he has hired Gary Fini as a part-time police officer in the village. Grant money from the Arlene Western Trust helps pay wages of both Fini and part-time Officer Nathan Jaco, according to the chief.
“When you hire someone are you supposed to bring it before the council?” council Trustee Sue Marlow asked Coln.
“All of my inquiries stated no,” Coln replied. “I inquired to the Personnel Committee.”
Village President Clare Fryers stated money from the trust “goes to (Coln’s) budget separately.” Council didn’t discuss the matter further.
Coln said he began periodically patrolling by bicycle this month in the village. He said last week that officers will continue occasional bicycle patrols “until the snow flies.”
Coln, hired as full-time police chief earlier this year, said he’ll move to a home in the Mayville area in early June.
During last week’s meeting, council members discussed ways of trying to pay for an estimated $419,000 in street, water-main and storm-sewer repairs along North Fulton Street north of Main Street. A water main broke in January there but the estimated cost of the repairs jumped after workers found problems with storm-sewer drainage in that area, according to Fryers. “The storm drain that comes across Fulton Street and comes through that neighborhood has a lot of blockage, and we have to fix it,” Fryers said.
Fryers told council the estimated cost is $259,000 for the street repairs, “and that don’t include the sewers — the sewers are another $160,000 some.”
Steve Erickson, executive director of the Tuscola County Economic Development Corp., told council some grant money might be obtained through the state Department of Environmental Quality.
“We’re doing what we can to try to get some money,” said Erickson, former manager of the village of Millington, who called the problems along North Fulton Street an “emergency situation.”
Erickson said he’ll work with Mayville officials to try to obtain dollars from a state fund designated for Tuscola County projects.
“That’s how the village of Millington paid to rebuild all the main roads,” Erickson said. “We used those dollars to do it.”
Council members also discussed the possibility of placing a special assessment on properties north of Main Street to help pay for North Fulton Street repairs.
In other action, the council voted 6 to 1 to reject a $44,000 bid from Fox Excavating to remove a floating mass of cattails and other vegetation in one of the sewage-treatment lagoons. Fryers was the lone opponent of the motion. Council will seek bids a second time on the project.
Council agreed to close Orchard Street from Fulton through Pine streets from 8 a.m. to noon on June 14 so Cub Scouts can host a “Cubmobile Derby” on the street. Cub Scouts in each den build one small racing vehicle per den, and take turns riding it down a sloped street, according to a Boy Scouts of America website.
Council approved a one-year contract with Great Lakes Portable Toilet Rental to rent three portable toilets for five months for $40 per unit per month. Workers representing the toilet-rental company will clean each toilet once a week, according to the contract.