Newsletter
12/1/2022
Dear Village Residents,
I am very honored to be reaching out to you on behalf of the South Range Village Council. To continue the spirit of transparency and community involvement, we want to keep you all informed on this year’s progress, and what we are hoping to work on in the future.
It has been another busy year. We have had some employee changes. This past June we hired David Swetich, Kody Maki, and Brandon Skewes. They are a great team led by Craig Burkman. There is a lot of great knowledge and experience with this crew.
We also had a few resignations from our Council, along with one Trustee not re-running for his position. Thank you to Justin Marier, Carol Petrelius & Kerry Jutila respectively for their years of service on the Council. Congratulations to Therese Parolini & Paul Saaranen for their re-election to the Council, and the appointment of Meredith Carney to the Council. We hope to fill the other Trustee positions soon.
The Christmas in South Range event will be held on 12/17/22 from 1-3 PM in the upstairs of the Community Hall.
Thank you to our great Volunteer Fire Department for putting this event on, and to all the local businesses, residents and committees that help make this event a success! Congratulations to Don Cline, who retired with 34 years on the Fire Department, and Rick Stevens Jr., who retired after 20 years. Hats off to you both for your dedication & service!
Some notable progress over the last year:
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We were able to do a bit more street resurfacing throughout the town.
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We will continue to budget money each year to continue with that.
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We were able to complete the 425 agreement with the Dollar General property which benefits the Village with the added tax base. The store has been a great addition to our small town.
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We sold a 13 acre parcel near the snowmobile trail to Adams Township. The property will be used for an emergency water storage tank. In addition to the $26,000 purchase price, they also agreed to 150 hours of labor to create a recreational trail in that area.
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We have now sold the last of the available Whealkate lots.
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We have done some computer and software (for water billing) upgrades at the Village Office. You can now pay your water bill online. The Remind Program has been working out great as well. The Farmer’s Market was a new addition as well. That one was due to our awesome Clerk Kristen.
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Thank you to everyone who volunteered & attended Oktoberfest, the event was a great success!
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The Old Cozy Corner was purchased and is now open as the 1902 Tap & Grill, they did a fantastic job with the remodel! There also were a bit more properties being cleaned up and remodeled, the housing market has been great in South Range.
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We would also like to thank Tom and Gina Kernan for the donation of several large wheeled trash cans to Village businesses & residents.
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We had to do a few upgrades to our plow fleet. We purchased (2) new Boss Plows and were able to recoup a bit from the old plows. They sold for approximately $2,500.
Next year we plan to address some drainage issues throughout the town, and we will address ordinance violations accordingly. We are also hopeful we will get some upgrades done in the upstairs of the Community Hall.
As I close out this letter here are a few reminders:
The Winter Parking Ban went into effect on November 1st. Pushing or blowing snow onto Village streets is not allowed per our Ordinances. Hydrants need to be kept clear, please do not push snow in front of them. Also, be considerate of putting snow in such a way that it ends up being pushed into your neighbor’s driveway.
Most importantly, snow removal sometimes is a thankless job. Complaints usually outnumber the compliments, so PLEASE thank our guys when you can. I was once told by a past Public Works employee they plowed for about 66 days straight one year. We all know winters can be long. Getting out there extremely early every day isn’t easy. Our crew is top notch!
In the event you have a frozen water line, our “let run policy” is still the same. We will charge the average usage amount of water/sewage rate only after the water line froze once, and someone was paid to thaw the line out. If possible, do not plow or snow blow over the area where your water line is located. Snow can be a great insulator.
To help with some speeding & traffic issues, the Village Council made some changes. Some removable speed bumps were put in place at Whealkate Estates, and extra stop signs on Atlantic Avenue and Whealkate Avenue.
If you have any questions, concerns, recommendations, want to get involved in any way, or just say Hi, please do not hesitate to contact our offices or reach out to Council. Our Council meetings are held on the first Thursday of the month at 6:30 PM inside the South Range Community Building, please be sure to attend whether you want to get involved, or simply listen to what is going on within South Range.
The Village of South Range Council & Employees hope you have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Sincerely,
George Eakin, President
Village Of South Range
