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ESCANABA -- The Delta County Board of Commissioners and the Escanaba City Council both held regular meetings this week. Here is a look at what took place:
On Tuesday, the Delta County Board of Commissioners:
-- Appointed Wendy Holzenkamp, a real estate broker/real estate salesperson at the Coldwell Banker Schmidt Realtors Escanaba office, and Steve Viau, former Gladstone City Commissioner and Delta County Commissioner, to the Delta County Brownfield Authority.
-- Approved an initial work agreement for the FY 2027 Emergency Management Performance Grant, which Emergency Management Coordinator Paul Geyer says helps offset the salary of his position.
-- Approved a letter of engagement for services of legal counsel between the county and Foster, Swift, Collins & Smith, P.C. to oversee the MERS Defined Benefit liberation.
-- Adopted the 2026 to 2027 budget resolution with various amendments to reflect board action taken that night.
-- Rejected a motion that would allow county department heads to post and fill positions as they become vacant. According to County Administrator Emily DeSalvo, the motion was to remove the requirement that all vacancies within the county need to be brought to the Board of Commissioners for approval to post and hire to fill open positions.
On Thursday, the Escanaba City Council:
-- Appointed Linda Heitman and Christine DeSalvo to the Escanaba Housing Commission, filling two vacancies on the commission.
-- Approved the renewal of a grant match commitment of $37,000 for the purchase of a variety of flowers, pots and baskets to be placed on Ludington between the 200 block and the 900 block. The initiative is backed by Enhance Escanaba, who will reportedly seek out a grant for $25,000 to cover the remaining costs.
-- Hired Payne and Dolan for $42,875 to pave two alleys located on the south side of Ludington Street between 2nd and 3rd Streets and 4th and 5th Streets. The alleys are currently gravel. According to City Controller and Interim City Manager Melissa Becotte, the alleys should have been paved last year, but they were missed.
-- Removed an agenda item discussing the potential hiring of Dombrowski Tree Service to clear snowfalls of two inches or more and operate a Zamboni at the Ludington Park Ice Rink at a cost of $487.50 per occurrence. According to Council Member Tyler Dubord, the council found "an internal solution."
-- Approved of a five-year hosted phone system lease with DsTech, of Escanaba, replacing the city’s current system that will expire along with the phone system warranty support.
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Sophie Vogelmann can be reached at 906-786-2021, ext. 148, or svogelmann@dailypress.net.