Mayor's Corner

 For this month’s article, I would like to reflect on a few things that City Council accomplished in 2022. We had some challenges, but were able to keep our focus on what was best for the City, which is our top priority. We worked through the hiring of a City Manager, and while we had to part ways with one, we welcomed another one mid-year and that has been a very positive experience. We changed the Quality-of-Life department back to Parks, Recreation and Events and with that, promoted Parks Coordinator Corey Cagle to Director of Parks, Recreation and Events. We are excited about having more events this year! 

Council made the tough decision to close the recycling center located at the DPW; however, we created a committee in conjunction with our township partners, to develop a new location and facility for recycling for the community. We are really excited about the plans for this, so please be watching for more information coming soon! 

The Planning Commission started reviewing the revised Zoning Ordinance. Once that is completed, their recommendation will come to City Council for review and final adoption. We are shooting for them to wrap up their review in April, then Council will start their review. There will be public hearings on this so I will keep you updated as we get closer to that time. 

The Local Development Finance Authority (LDFA) changed their meeting times from every other month to monthly, so they could work on pressing issues in a timelier manner. They most recently approved new signage that will be installed this spring at both the north and south industrial parks. 

The Downtown Development Authority (DDA) started the new year with a new Main Street Director but is ending the year with the director leaving. The DDA is starting the new year with a fresh focus on how to best move forward with the Michigan Main Street program but will be working alongside the Eaton Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce, and other entities to collaborate for future projects. 

I will be giving our annual State of the City address at the February 13th City Council meeting. This will highlight accomplishments of the past year, but will also lay out some goals and objectives for this new year. You are welcome to attend, both in person and virtually. 

Have a great January! 

Mayor Pam Colestock 

Happy December!

If you’re like me, you have been wondering “where did this year go”? It seems like it was July 4th and now it’s Christmas and the New Year is upon us. December is a busy month, but I try to take the time to reflect on the year and especially to be thankful for all the blessings I have.

I would like to thank the residents for entrusting me to lead this great city. It has been an honor and privilege serving you. I’ve met many incredible people this year and I hope that I have lived up to your expectations. I want to thank all of the individuals, committees, boards, city departments and especially my fellow City Council members, that did the work for the City of Eaton Rapids. Keeping your focus and commitment on making Eaton Rapids the best place to live is not always an easy task but we find ways to make it happen because we know how important it is. Thank You!

A tradition of mine during this season is to watch a few of my favorite Christmas movies; It’s a Wonderful Life and A Christmas Carol. Those movies remind me of not just the Christmas spirit, but the human spirit. What is important is giving, not of presents purchased at a store, but giving of ourselves, our time, our resources, our talents, our kindness, and our thoughtfulness. So often people get lost in the commercial aspect of the holidays. We all have so much more to give that doesn’t cost money. Our community is rich in so many ways because of the caring people that live and work here. Let’s remember that giving spirt all year long!

Next month, I will recap all of the positive work that happened this year and what lies ahead in our annual State of the City address. We’ve all worked very hard for you, but we have a lot more to do that we are excited to share.

As always, if you have any questions, comments, ideas or would like more information about serving our city, please reach out to me at pcolestock@cityofeatonrapids.com or call me at 517- 410-9472.

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

Mayor Pam Colestock

Hello Eaton Rapids!

I hope all of you had a great Thanksgiving holiday with family and friends.
I want to give kudos to City Clerk Laura Boomer, and the election team for running a seamless
election. It’s no small feat to run these elections, especially when there are so many candidates
running plus ballot proposals. These folks work very hard to make sure we have the highest
election integrity, so Thank You!

The city will be very busy the next few weeks getting our town ready for Christmas. Kicking it
off is the Hometown Family Christmas on Saturday December 3rd. There will be many activities
throughout the day, concluding with the annual Christmas parade. This is a very well attended
parade so mark your calendars now, so you don’t miss it! If you are interested in participating in
the parade, please contact the Eaton Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce at
info@eatonrapidschamber.org.

Did you know we have a gem in our city? We do! The Jean Bradford Kline Senior Center, located at 201 Grand Street. This nonprofit serves all of Eaton Rapids, and you don’t have to be a “senior” (55 and over) to enjoy it, OR to be a member! They provide resources for seniors, such as tax assistance, hearing and foot clinics, exercise classes, games, meals, and entertainment. They have Bingo each Wednesday and their famous Swiss Steak suppers once per month. They will be holding a membership drive after the new year, so if you need more information please contact Director Rita Honeysett, at 517-663-2335. They also have a Facebook page at The Jean Bradford Kline Senior Center so check them out and consider becoming a member.

City Council in conjunction with our Township partners is working on a new Recycling Center for
our community and have identified a potential location in the south Industrial Park. We are
working through the formalities and will have more information to share after the new year. We
are mindful that this is something we not only want but need in our community, so watch for
more details as they become available.

As always, if you have any questions, comments, ideas or would like more information about
serving our city, please reach out to me at pcolestock@cityofeatonrapids.com or call me at 517-
489-3064 or 517-410-9472.

Mayor Pam

Happy October Eaton Rapids!

I’ve been asked by residents what the city is spending its ARPA funds on. ARPA stands for American Rescue Plan Act. This is federal financial assistance due to the Covid-19 pandemic, that states, counties, schools, and local municipalities received. The City of Eaton Rapids received approximately $550,000. There are guidelines on how to use this money. If a municipality received $10 million or more then the guidelines were more restrictive on how you could use the funds and a timeline of when it had to be spent. Less than $10 million, you could add it to your general fund and spend it the same way you would other revenue, with no timeline on when it had to be used.

Currently, City Council has earmarked $150,000 for projects including an Opticom system, that allows our public safety officials to safely travel through the downtown during an emergency. This system changes our traffic lights when an on-coming emergency vehicle approaches in order for them to safely travel to the emergency destination. We also used the funding for hazard pay for both our Police and Fire Department associates, since they were on the front lines during the pandemic. As Council considers future projects, we can use this extra funding to help with grant fund matching, or use for unexpected expenses.

At the September 26^th meeting, City Council approved the hours for Halloween Trick or Treat, for October 31^st from 6pm-8pm, but also approved the annual Downtown Trick or Treat, to be held on Wednesday, October 26^th from 5pm-7pm. This is for our business district to pass out candy to the kids and has always been a well-attended event. Please be alert when driving through the downtown during this time as there will be many kids and adults walking across the street and we want everyone to stay safe.

At the October 10^th Council meeting, City Council approved the appointment of 4 residents, to the Local Officers Compensation Commission. Dale Erion, Cereita Erion, Robert Napieralski, and Deb Malewski. We are very appreciative to these residents for stepping up to serve our community. We have one more spot to fill on this board, so if you are interested, please let me know.

As always, if you have any questions, comments, ideas or would like more information about serving our city, please reach out to me at pcolestock@cityofeatonrapids.com or call me at 517-489-3064.

Enjoy the rest of your October!

Mayor Pam

 Hello Eaton Rapids! 

Mark your calendars now for our annual Downtown Trick or Treat, on Wednesday, October 26th from 5pm-7pm. The downtown merchants will be passing out treats to all of the kids who want to show off their costumes. Watch for more details to come. 

The Eaton Rapids Arts Council will hold its annual Scarecrow Contest, between Oct 1st-31st. Contest is open to individuals, businesses, organizations, and clubs. Entries must be fully assembled to their desired location on Main Street by 8pm on October 1st. Judging will take place on the Eaton Rapids Arts Council Facebook page where you can vote for your favorite Scarecrow. Voting will be open October 7th-26th and the most “likes” will win! You can get the full scoop on the City’s website. 

As you may have noticed, we have a major street project happening on Hall Street. We are doing everything we can to reduce the inconvenience to both our local businesses as well as residents. The work will include important utility work and the projected timeframe will be 4-6 weeks, weather permitting. 

At the September 12th City Council meeting, council passed several resolutions and ordinances, including a new ordinance to allow Chickens in the city limits. This is by permit only. If you are interested, stop into City Hall to get all the details. This takes affect October 2nd. Council also passed a resolution in conjunction with the Eaton County Road Commission to take over the portion of Spicerville Hwy from M-99 to West Street. This has been under the county road commission authority but will now be under City jurisdiction. 

This month city board highlight is the Local Officers Compensation Commission. This board was established by State statute, and their function is to determine the compensation for the Mayor and City Council. This is a 5-member board appointed by the Mayor and confirmed by a majority of council members. You must be a registered elector of the City. No member or employee of the legislative, judicial, or executive branch of any level of government or members of the immediate family of such member or employee shall be eligible to be a member of the commission. We’ve had several great city residents serve on this board, but like a lot of volunteer committees, people move on to do other things. The board meets annually, or as requested by City Council. Let me know if you are interested in serving on this board. 

As always, if you have any questions, comments, ideas or would like more information about serving our city, please reach out to me at pcolestock@cityofeatonrapids.com or call me at 517-489-3064. 

Have a great fall! 

 Hello ER! 

Mark your calendars for August 20th, starting at Noon, former Mayor Paul Malewski will once again do a 24-hour paddle around the Island, to raise money for 3 causes: Pawsability, Siren Shelter of Eaton County and Team River Runner Veteran organization. All very worthy causes that can use our support! We will have live music on the Island beginning at 5pm with the Island City Jam Session folks (this is OPEN to ANYONE that wants to Jam!) and Thick and Thin from 7pm-9pm. Yours truly may even sing a tune or two. 

This month we welcome new City Manager, Yvonne Ridge. Yvonne officially starts her duties on Monday, August 15th. Yvonne is from Charlotte and brings a wealth of experience, from working in County government, to being an elected official on Charlotte City Council and being Mayor, to becoming a City Manager. She most recently served as Assistant City Manager in Albion. We are all excited to welcome Yvonne to Eaton Rapids and hope that you will stop by to welcome her as well. 

I get asked by residents what the city boards do, so starting with this article, I want to highlight one of our city boards, so you know more about what they do and hopefully, spark an interest and get more participation. This month I want to highlight the Downtown Development Authority, or the DDA. The DDA is served by a 9-member board of residents, mostly business and professional leaders. The functions of the DDA are to correct and prevent deterioration of the downtown district; to encourage historical preservation; to create and implement development plans, to promote the economic growth, and to encourage the expansion of commercial enterprises. In 2018, the City of Eaton Rapids was named a select Michigan Main Street community so all of the functions of that now reside with the DDA. Michigan Main Street’s mission is to assist communities interested in revitalizing and preserving their traditional commercial districts. Michigan Main Street provides grant opportunities to businesses, offers outreach and marketing assistance, as well as many other re-development programs. You can read more about Michigan Main Street by going to their website at www.miplace.org or attend one of our DDA meetings. They meet on the 2nd Friday of each month at 7am at City Hall, 2nd floor. 

School will be starting up soon! Please remember the laws regarding stopping for school buses and be sure to be on the lookout for pedestrian traffic. We wish all of our Eaton Rapids kids the BEST school year ever!! GO HOUNDS! 

As always, if you have any questions, comments, ideas or would like more information about serving our city, please reach out to me at pcolestock@cityofeatonrapids.com or call me at 517-489-3064. 

Mayor Pam Colestock