PUBLIC BUDGET HEARING A public budget hearing will be held at the Barton Hills Village Hall, 199 Barton Shore Drive, on Monday, March 11, 2013 beginning at 6:00 PM. A copy of the proposed budget for fiscal year 2013-2014 will be on file and available to the public in the Clerk’s Office after March 1, 2013. The property tax millage rate proposed to be levied to support the proposed budget will be the subject of this hearing.
WATER CONSUMER CONFIDENCE REPORT The attached annual report for calendar year 2012 is published in compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act and summarizes the status of the BHV water system during the last calendar year. Please read it carefully and contact the numbers given for questions or concerns. See the report on this website under Consumer Confidence Report.
DIRECTORY Contact Deputy Clerk Jan Esch for updates. Many residents are now receiving the Barton Bulletin and other BHV information via email. If you would like to receive the BHV Resident Directory in electronic format, please email Jan at bhvclerk@comcast.net.
SECURITY There have been several home invasions (theft of TVs, jewelry and other personal property) reported in townships around Barton Hills Village in the past two weeks. Remember to take reasonable precautions to ensure the safety of your home and property. BHV will notify residents of any significant security issues as soon as possible using the email list and paper copy as necessary. If you would like to be informed of other public safety notices, consider subscribing to Nixle.com. Nixle is a free on-line community information service that sends up to date notices posted by law enforcement and other agencies concerning the area near you according to your specifications (email, text, etc.).
BHV ELECTIONS A chapter in BHV history is coming to a close this year as 2013 will be the first year Barton Hills Village has not held their own election for seats on the Board of Trustees. The election will take place, but not this year and not in our Village Hall.
What has happened? Due to changes to Michigan Election Law made by the state government, our September election in the odd years has been moved to the November election date in the even years. This means that we will not be holding an election this September 2013, but will instead vote for Trustees in November 2014.
Where will we vote? In the past BHV residents have voted for all elections at the Ann Arbor Township Hall except for the Trustees’ election which was held in the BHV Village Hall. From now on, all elections will be held at the Ann Arbor Township Hall, 3792 Pontiac Trail. The Trustees’ election will be part of the November ballot.
What else will change? Details have not been received from the State Election Bureau yet but the only significant change is the location of the election. Candidates will still gather signatures for nominating petitions and you will receive lots of information about the election and the candidates. Trustee terms of office have been extended one year but only to accommodate the changeover.
Why is this happening? The State of Michigan has worked very hard to improve the election process so they don’t end up with difficult situations like other states have experienced. They were one of the first to institute the statewide voter registration file and have developed an extensive training program for those managing and working at elections. By moving all Village elections to the administration of the townships/counties, they are narrowing down the number of different people who run elections and providing lots of training/experience for those people. With the use of new technology and procedures, elections administration is complex and should be carried out by people who do it a lot and are trained to do it well.
Going forward. We may miss the social aspects of our small community election but we can make that up in other ways. Change is always hard, but you would be going to vote in the November elections anyway (Right? Right!) so this will not be a big change. Absentee ballots will also be available as always. BHV residents will continue to choose their governing officials who volunteer their time to serve the community.
SAFE SIDEWALKS, SAFE RIVER Winter is still with us and sidewalks need to be cleared. Please consider the following tips from the Huron River Watershed Council when thinking about snow removal.
–Melting snow finds its way into catch basins and streams leading to the Huron River. It will carry salt, sand and other materials with it that are potentially harmful to our water resources.
–Instead of calcium chloride consider a deicer like magnesium chloride. Check the label for contents and proper application instructions.
–Use as little of snow removal products as necessary.
–Shovel early and often to avoid use of removal products altogether.
It is up to you to balance needs for safety, environmental impact, cost and convenience when choosing snow removal techniques for your home. Thanks for taking the time to make wise choices. More information about snow removal and lots of other helpful articles (think spring with rain gardens or read about climate change, for example) are available from the HRWC at www.hrwc.org.