Thursday, 09 October 2008
7:00p.m.
Parkview Hills Clubhouse
The recorded comments below are expressions of council members
and are not approved policy until voted
on. The statements
were not recorded verbatim and cannot be used as quotes.
AGENDA:
I.
Call to Order
Meeting was called to order at 7:00p.m.
II.
Roll
Call
a. Sign-In Roster
Council Members Present: Paul MacNellis, Duane Hampton, Bob Nagler,
Chuck Ide, Cam Vossen, Bill Steinmann, Mark Hoffman, Steve Kohler, Tim Holysz,
Tyler Bassett
Guests Present: Cari DeLong (Council Coordinator), Kay Chase (Alt. for
KEC)
III.
Adoption
of 09 October 2008 Agenda
09 October 2008 meeting agenda was approved.
IV.
Approval
of 14 August 2008 Meeting Minutes
Duane
Hampton moved to approve the 14 August 2008 meeting minutes. Bill Steinmann seconded. All in favor.
V.
Old Business
VI.
New
Business
a.
Asylum
Lake Management Plans
Cari DeLong
Motion: Paul MacNellis moved to approve the Asylum Lake
management plan as amended. Duane Hampton seconded. All in favor. None opposed.
·
Cari reviewed each of the four water
habitat management plans with the Council.
·
Bob Nagler raised concern that
herbicides have been consistently applied to Little Asylum Lake (LAL) by
neighbors. He asked if they had University approval.
·
Paul responded that whether these
neighbors have riparian rights is a debatable subject. Neighbors have been told
by WMU that if they want to use herbicides they are allowed as long as they
submit DEQ permits. Paul has records of all of these permits.
·
Bob stated that treating a lake with
herbicides modifies the conditions considerably. The Council should be aware of
these activities and pay attention to the riparian border.
·
Steve asked what herbicides have been used.
·
Paul responded that diquat and 2,4-D have been used in the past but are no longer allowed by
WMU. Currently copper chelate, copper sulfate and a few others are used.
·
Paul
stated that WMU administration has neither confirmed nor disputed the riparian
rights of LAL neighbors.
·
Bob
stated that people living in the Parkwyn Neighborhood have voiced their concern
at neighborhood meetings about this issue.
·
Chuck
suggested that the riparian rights for LAL be checked.
·
Duane
stated that if it is necessary to make a move in that direction we have
resources and people. We need to think about how the Council will manage the
lakes and whether that practice is inconsistent with
our goals.
·
Chuck
stated that the Council should inform the administration of their concerns.
·
Bob
commented that the Council has a responsibility to know what is going on at the
lakes. Invasive species and algae control should be included in the management
plan.
·
Kay
commented that it is included in the management plan under the strategy to use
best management practices.
·
Cari
stated that the goal of this management plan is to act as a guideline. From
this document, more detailed plans can be written to address each issue.
Recently she was asked to prepare a summary for Lake Brownwood Association
dealing with specific management strategies for invasive species in their lake.
She has done research into the management of invasive species and algae
including alternatives to chemical controls. She plans to develop a similar
plan for both AL and LAL.
·
Chuck
added that through her literature search, Cari found that once lakes are
treated several times with herbicides then other mechanisms are just as
effective at controlling the remaining, smaller populations. Our role as the
Council is to keep these issues in the light and educate people as to the
alternatives to chemicals. As a group the Council should discuss and make a
comprehensive, holistic plan.
·
Chuck
stated that 0.091ppm is a high level for mercury found in Asylum Lake.
·
Bob
added that the final conclusion to the mercury sampling was that there was no
detection.
·
Chuck
stated that it seems to be a point source in which a grab sample could miss. He
asked for the accuracy of the GPS sampling points.
·
Cari
will look into this.
·
Paul
added that the Council could have more sampling done throughout the lakes for
chemicals that have been flagged in this study.
·
Steve
stated that his Freshwater Ecology class could collect samples to be sent out
for analysis.
·
Duane
noted that in the hydraulic mass balance study only 3% of the water loss in LAL
was due to evapotranspiration. This is extremely low and unusual.
·
Cari
will check the water quality study and make sure this is accurate.
·
Steve
stated that the chemical measurements seem reliable but more sampling needs to
be done.
·
Tyler
noted that Cari was making a chart of metal contaminants and their ecological
risk levels to include in the management plan as a comparison.
·
Cari
noted that she is still currently working on this chart.
·
Duane
stated that riparian buffer strips on the east side of the lake should be added
as a management strategy for reducing nutrient loading.
·
The
Council agreed this should be added to the management plan.
·
Kay
suggested that the Council add “work with neighbors” to the management plan.
·
Paul
added that this management plan is a living document. It is required to be
revised every 5 years by the Management Framework document. He asked for comments
about this plan
·
Bob
stated that interacting with neighborhoods is going to be problematic. Some may
not want to be involved. Dynamics of neighborhoods should be considered.
·
Paul
stated that he is not opposed to attending neighborhood meetings for
educational purposes.
·
Kay
added that the plan should include the genus and species in our description of
the prairie seeds planted and note that they are a non-native genotype.
·
Tyler
stated that now that the management plan is in place the Council should proceed
using this as a governing document for decision making. The Council should pick
a problem identified by the plan and do the follow-through as described by the
management plan.
·
Kay
added that she has a list of bird species from the Kalamazoo Nature Center that
she would like to add as the representative list included in each of our
management plans.
·
Paul
moved that the Council adopt the Asylum Lake Management Plan as amended
tonight. Duane Hampton seconded. All in favor. None opposed.
VII.
Project/Special
Committee Reports
a. Research/Education Committee
Cari DeLong
Cari summarized 2 applications that had been submitted and approved by the
R&E Committee since the last Council meeting. WMU’s female cross country
team was approved to practice at the property for 2 hours, 3 times a week on
existing trails. A WMU Ecology Course was approved to hold 4 labs at the
property observing cricket population structure and taking golden rod samples
for parasite analysis.
b. Operations Committee
No report.
c. PR Subcommittee
No report.
d. Trails Subcommittee
No report.
e. Construction Subcommittee
Winchell Entrance Construction Project
Paul MacNellis
·
Paul
gave an update on the Winchell entrance construction project. Documents have
gone out for bid by WMU’s Purchasing Dept. Vice President Rinker wants us to
bid out with prevailing wage which might increase the fees but it is consistent
with WMU practice. There will be a walk- through at the Winchell entrance on October
15th with contractors. Five local contractors were included;
DeVissor, Naylor, DeYoung, S&T, and Niewoonder. The project was expanded to
include removal of piles of concrete along the path near the entrance. This
concrete was put there by WMU to keep motorbikes out of the property.
·
Bob
asked if the Council will get the opportunity to review the bids.
·
Paul
responded that yes, the Council will review them. The projected cost from the
architect is $66,000.
·
Mark
asked about the timeline for the project.
·
Tim
responded that it depends on their construction timeline. He would like to get
it done this fall if possible. If the timeline is long, they will postpone the
start date until spring.
·
Duane
suggested that additional signage be placed at the entrance warning of the
dangers, if the project is not completed this fall
·
Tim
added that WMU has to address the safety issues at this entrance for the winter
if the construction project is not completed by then. WMU would do part of the
demo and possibly add a temporary handrail to eliminate the safety
concerns.
VIII.
Public
Comments
None.
IX.
Council/Staff
Comments
·
Duane
commented that he was happy with the progress made in the last six months.
·
Paul
mentioned that he has not heard from KEC, ALPA or Campus Planning as to their
Council seat re-appointments. Ann Paulson has resigned and Paul has not heard
back from Parkview Hills.
·
Kay
stated that Tyler was re-appointed as the rep for KEC
·
Mark
stated that he was approved by ALPA to continue.
·
Paul
stated that he needs an email confirmation of these.
·
Paul
stated that Vice President Rinker informed him of an issue with Asylum Lake’s
endowment fund. The projected income from the endowment is an average of the
last 20 quarters. Paul was given the option to receive the usual draw from the
fund for this year or leave the money. If
we received the usual draw, money would have to be taken from the principle
since the market has been low. Paul advised Vice President Rinker to leave the
money since the Council has sufficient grantmaking funds.
X.
Adjournment
Meeting
was adjourned at 8:38p.m.