MINUTES OF BOARD MEETING
TRUSTEES OF BARTON HILLS VILLAGE
May 12, 2025
The regular meeting of the Board of Trustees was called to order by President ProTem
Darden at 6:01 PM at Village Hall.
ROLL CALL Present: Trustees Calabrese, Capozza, Darden, Hensinger, Prager and
Smith. Absent: Trustees Haitam and Torres
Others attending: BHMC Pres. Jeff David, Supt. Reeves, Asst. Treasurer/ZA L. Reeves
and Deputy Clerk McDevitt and three residents.
MINUTES Minutes of the April 14, 2025 Trustees meeting were approved as printed.
(Perry/Hensinger/P)
PUBLIC COMMENT BHMC President Jeff David thanked the Joint Roads Committee for
all their hard work. Spoke in favor of a road traffic safety study and hopes the Village will
be in support.
FINANCE (Smith) A written Treasurer’s report was provided to the Trustees. –The
Credit and Budget to Actual reports were acknowledged. –The April 2025 checks for were approved as printed (Aux. Book XI G).
(Perry/Capozza/P) –The April 2025 credit card transactions were approved as printed (Aux. Book XI G).
(Perry/Capozza/P) –Will return to the Trustees with a Finance Committee recommendation regarding the
possibility of increasing the interest earned from BHV’s investments. –The new State-mandated Chart of Accounts has been activated for the FY2025-26, and
appreciation was shared for Assistant Treasurer Reeves’ efforts –Our financial system vendor BS&A is mapping BHV’s financial history contained in the
previous Chart of Accounts into the new one. Expected to be completed mid-to-late
summer. –Water usage invoices covering five months ending 3/31/2025 were mailed to all residents
in Mid-April and are due May 15th. The total amount billed was $95,547.06. –We are in-compliance with all Trustee-approved internal controls. All materials will be
turned over to our auditor soon so the FY2024-25 audit can commence. –On April 30th, a letter was received from the IRS that says “We haven’t resolved this
matter because we haven’t completed all the processing necessary for a complete
response.” They say they will follow up in 60 days with another communication. –FY2024-25 Year End Forecast – To clarify what may have been a confusing exchange
during the April Trustee meeting, a one-page document was provided to clearly show why
the March 31, 2025, month-end revenue & expense report totals did not match the YE
Forecast totals.
STANDING REPORTS
Zoning Administrator (L. Reeves) No new applications. The requested Boundary
Adjustment between 825 Colliston and 855 Country Club was approved. 140 Underdown
will remove pack rat storage units by mid-June. Due to unapproved construction at 320
Juniper, the homeowner is required to submit new plans to Washtenaw County, Ann Arbor
Township, and the Village. Also, if the homeowner does not pay his outstanding Village
invoice by May 20, 2025, the ZA may issue a stop work order.
Planning Commission (Capozza) No report.
Superintendent (D.Reeves) A written report was provided. A galvanized service line was
replaced at 691 Spring Valley. A new water meter was installed at the Barton Shore pump
house. And, a request was made to purchase a Toyota Tacoma and a tractor with grappler
bucket instead of the budgeted dump truck. Three written quotes for each request were
provided to the Trustees.
Motion Approve the purchase of (1) a Toyota Tacoma pick-up truck for an amount not to
exceed $41,000, and (2) a tractor with a grappler bucket for an amount not to exceed
$52,000. (Smith/Calabrese/P)
COMMITTEE REPORTS
Roads/Vehicles (Prager) A written report was provided. The Joint Roads Committee
(JRC) was asked by both Presidents to research and recommend options to improve
safety, security and enjoyment of Village residents and invited visitors on BHMC-owned
private roads.
Recommendation: Implement resident communication on the following topics: Speed and
pedestrian safety, parking etiquette, responsibility for guests, emergencies and public
safety. Other areas being explored are brush and yellow line removal. — JRC recommends a traffic study using expert consultants to ascertain feasible options to
improve road safety.
Motion To fund 50%, up to a maximum of $7,500, for a BHMC Traffic Study.
(Prager/Smith/P)
Security (Darden) Is collaborating with the Joint Roads Committee on security.
Water (Perry) A written report was provided. As water system improvement
recommendations involve considerable expense, the Trustees’ memo documents what’s
simultaneously important and urgent for the Village to address about our water distribution
system, why, the timing of the joint committees’ recommendations, and the anticipated
impact on BHV’s FY2025-26 budget. Early findings are: –Will likely recommend directional drilling and the use of HDPE piping (rather than open
trenching and ductile iron) for replacement of the Colliston, Corrie and Hillspur mains. –The Village must undertake a handful of key actions to gather the evidence required for a
go/no-go water main replacement recommendation on Colliston, Corrie and Hillspur roads. –The possibility now exists – though is certainly not confirmed – that a pay-as-you-go
approach could be considered for replacing one or more water mains. More to come on
this in the future. –The annual BHV Water Distribution System Financials FY2021-22 thru FY2025-26
written report was provided.
Motion To achieve improvements in the reliability of BHV’s water distribution system,
direct our Superintendent to (1) secure three quotes for a Water Reliability Study to be
conducted and delivered by November 2025; and, (2) return to the Trustees in June with a
quote from Brevalle Properties to ascertain the C-Factor of the water mains on Colliston,
Corrie, and Hillspur roads (Perry/Smith/P)
Community Activities (Calabrese) No report.
Environment (Hensinger) Coyotes were included in the Wildlife Management program,
but ANAC did not feel it was safe to execute with all the dogs in the Village.
Motion Approval to trap coyotes in the Village this fiscal year (Smith/Perry/P)
Human Resources (Smith) We have an open position on the maintenance team for a
seasonal worker with the possibility of long-term employment.
Long Range Planning (Torres) Absent. No report.
UNFINISHED BUSINESS Zoning fees to be reevaluated. Trustees Capozza, Perry, and
Smith volunteered to work with ZA Reeves.
NEW BUSINESS None.
There being no further business or objections, the meeting adjourned at 7:51 PM.
Theresa McDevitt, Deputy Clerk
