Asylum Lake Policy & Management Council
Thursday, 13 September 2007
7:00p.m.
Gibbs House
4503 Parkview Avenue

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
7:03p.m.

 

II.  Roll Call
a. Sign-In Roster

Council Members Present: Frank Wolf, Paul MacNellis, Chuck Ide, Bill Steinmann, Steve Kohler, Mickey Cook
(alt for Ann Paulson), Tim Holysz, Mark Hoffman, Tyler Bassett, Cam Vossen
Guests Present: Cal Mastin
(alt. for Mark Hoffman), Cari DeLong (Council Coordinator), Bob Macher



III.          Adoption of Agenda
    13 September 2007 Agenda was adopted.



IV.            Approval of 14 June 2007 Meeting Minutes
Frank Wolf moved to approve the 14 June 2007 meeting minutes. Bill Steinmann seconded. All in favor. None opposed.



V.         Old Business
a.  Discussion of Consulting Company Presentations

       Paul MacNellis
On August 29, 2007 L.L. Harris & Associates and Site Design Solutions presented their ideas for collaborating with the Council to improve the Asylum Lake property.  Paul opened the floor for discussion on these presentations.  There was general agreement that both firms are very capable. They both presented ideas for taking a comprehensive look at the property, and coming up with a long-term strategy or master plan.

Several Council members made the point that there are infrastructure issues at the property that should be dealt with soon.  The subcommittees, specifically the trails subcommittee need the advice and expertise of a consulting company.


Chuck raised concern that there is discrepancy within the Council as to each member’s long-term vision for the property. This needs to be decided before working with a consulting company. There has never been a discussion of an overall philosophy for the property other than what is included in the Conservation Agreement. He suggested that the Council discuss and agree upon a philosophy for the property that is consistent with the existing management documents. It was agreed that this should be put on the agenda for next month’s meeting.



VI.            New Business
a. 
Kalamazoo Foundation Quarterly Report
      Cari DeLong
      Cari handed out copies of the Kalamazoo Foundation Quarterly Report for Jan 1, 2007 through June 30, 2007.  She reviewed the statement with the Council, including the ending principal amount for this quarter as well as the amount available for grants.



VII.        Project/Special Committee Reports
a. Research/Education Committee
    
Nothing new to report.


b. Operations Committee
Paul reported that as of this spring the entire prairie has been burned, and much of it has been burned twice.  He is currently working on dividing the prairie up into smaller burn areas rather than the larger areas currently separated by mowed paths. In the future the plan is to burn smaller plots in a mosaic pattern to mimic natural fire occurrences. Also, we should consider alternating between fall and spring burns to better control invasives. Would like to burn each area every three to four years but need monitoring to determine the best frequency.  Cari is working with faculty to get classes to begin an ecological monitoring program for the property.


c. PR Subcommittee
Logo for ALPMC
Cari DeLong

Cari passed out examples of a few logos developed by the PR subcommittee. A favorite was picked and some suggestions were given.  The PR subcommittee will move ahead with the development of a logo.



d. Trails Subcommittee
Cal reported that the trails committee has met and discussed a few main projects that should be dealt with soon. These included the re-design of the Winchell entrance, and the re-design of the outflow from Asylum to Little Asylum Lake.  Due to safety concerns, they would also like to re-design the entrance closest to Little Asylum Lake to become a walking only entrance since visibility is limited and parking there is dangerous. They would also like to work on adding one handicap accessible trail that leads to the lake. Trails committee needs the expertise of a consulting company to advise them on these projects.



VIII.    Public Comments
Bob Macher voiced his concern for restoring the anthropological historical integrity of the preserve. He wanted to reiterate the historical significance of the preserve and stress that this be considered by the Council in managing the property.



IX.            Council/Staff Comments
 
None.



X.    Adjournment
Meeting was adjourned at 8:12p.m.