The Lights Are On ...
A report on the regular council meeting of December 18, 2025
DEC 22, 2025
In December, if I can, I like to spend quality time reflecting on the year. For me this involves transferring perennial information (birthdays, holidays, meeting dates, important anniversaries and milestones) from this year’s weekly planner notebook to next year’s. In this process I relive the year, day to day but fast-forward, from January 2025 to now. I see things happen for the first time ever, or again (and again). It’s challenging. It’s funny. It’s scary. I watch as events, ideas, and activities that seemed urgent or serious one day or for a few weeks (it really shows up in my handwriting) slowly fade out of the planner, and new ones arise. I see and remember when I literally or figuratively planted a tree or a seed. I see when something or someone left for good. I see new ideas and projects and sometimes friendships get born, grow, and become fully integrated into my life in what has amounted to a very short time. I stare at the rectangle printed with the day of the week and my little scribble representing the thing’s first appearance in the planner, and I get a jolt—that just happened this year?
There’s been a lot more of that shock and awe than usual this year, both for me personally and for the Village of Elberta. Maybe you feel the same. In contrast to what’s going on nationally and globally, many of the deeply local events of 2025 have been truly blessed. I’ve been taking extra time to process it all during these longer nights. Next year I hope to do a real year-in-review wrap-up of Village and community events (maybe less will happen in 2026?), and I’ll be catching up soon on some recent Village matters, such as the council meeting report for November and the meet-the-developer public event. I’m also going to be slowly archiving all Alert Substack articles over onto my Wordpress website, so they’ll be accessible to anyone who doesn’t want to sign up for Substack and easier to revisit and keyword search for anyone. Be it ever so humble (and kind of ugly right now, ngl), there’s no place like one’s own website.
For now, before I launch into this council report, I’d like to thank you, since you’re reading this, for reading this, and wish you a safe and healthy winter solstice and new year, much merriment, and a lumen output not to exceed responsible outdoor lighting standards.
((((((((( Audio from the council meeting )))))))))
Did you know that, per our meeting rules, the agenda for each meeting is to be posted in the post office, at the Village Office bulletin board, at the Community Building bulletin board, and on the Village website at least 18 hours before a meeting? In the past year, since our clerk Rachel Perkins joined the team on December 9, 2024, Council has often met this deadline. The agenda for the December meeting was posted in the Village post office, and it was on the Village website as of December 12 according to the timestamp. It seems to be gone now, so here’s a screenshot:
As is now customary, Chief Cederholm gave his report during Correspondence instead of during committee reports so that he wouldn’t necessarily have to sit through the whole meeting. (This was a great innovation of 2025!) He often does stay anyway (a glutton for punishment, our noble chief). See further below for a summary of his report. Gary Sauer was away, possibly at a community holiday event, thought President Wilkins, so there was no county commission report.
Materials Management Survey
Wilkins urged everyone to take the Tri-County Resident Waste and Recycling Survey. If you have strong opinions about composting and recycling programs, or even if you know nothing about them, now is your time to weigh in. It’s anonymous and takes about 5 minutes to do, unless you’re a weirdo like me and you do it twice (nota bene, survey processors). Here’s the direct link so you don’t have to scan the QR code, and a couple of my answers for inspiration:
I also think a pet waste composting program would be excellent. Wouldn’t it be awesome to have a locked-down “hazmat” container in which to dump your fully biodegradable dog poop bags and horse-bedding kitty litter? I’m not sure how long it would take for this material to become suitable for reuse, but in the meantime, it would be kept away from our landfills and watershed, and would give people a financial incentive to nix the chemical-heavy litter and plastics: compostable material can go in the composting unit and save you big money on garbage bags.
Village Closer to Receiving $5.3 Million to Acquire ‘Terminus Park’
During Correspondence, Wilkins read the notification-of-recommendation letter from MDNR and thanked Bree McGregor for her work writing this grant, as well as GTRLC and their donors for providing the matching funds to make the project possible. The grant funds will become available in four to six months, but there are some more steps to be completed first. Here is the text of the letter:
This funding is meant to help the Village acquire and create a public park from 16 of the 35 acres of waterfront property that GTRLC purchased from Elberta Land Holding Company in December 2024 (10 of the acres will be a sanctuary with limited to no public access). For grant-writing purposes, McGregor and others involved chose the temporary name “Terminus Park” for the area in the image below labeled Proposed Park Addition—perhaps there will be an opportunity for Villagers to officially name the proposed park addition, the way there was a contest to name the Village in 1911? In the upper left-hand corner, outlined in purple, you can see part of the 9 acres now owned by the State Land Bank Authority, which is going to be developed in a much-discussed but not-yet-underway community-centered process. Read the Benzie County Record Patriot’s coverage of the grant news here.
Historic District Study Committee
Arlene Sweeting, who is the chair of this committee, said the committee had not met this month because three members had health issues, so stay tuned for a report in January.
WUWU and the Elberta Heritage Center Get the Merc, and Are Having a Christmas Open House
During final public comment, Sweeting announced that Elberta’s best LPFM radio station, 100.1 WUWU and the Elberta Labor Heritage Center, met their fundraising goal to purchase the old Elberta Library/Elberta Mercantile building from Mark and Carol Carlin, and that they had closed on the sale on December 17. There was a round of applause. The WUWU Whoop De Doo at the Oliver Art Center was very successful monetarily as well as socially. They are now working on a site plan for modifications to the new facility at 704 Frankfort Avenue to submit to the planning commission (among additions will be a radio tower, which is an allowed structure. [12/22/25 Per former PC chair Jon Ottinger today via email, radio towers are not an allowed use in the downtown commercial district in either the current or new draft zoning ordinance. Arlene Sweeting also said today via email that WUWU is not planning on a tower at this point; all they need to transmit is an internet connection.] A Christmas open house will be held at the current station HQ on Lincoln Avenue, with hosts coming in to do their shows live. “We decided we’d open our doors to everyone, so from 10 am to 1 pm if you’re out around town and don’t have family or someone to go to that morning, stop on over to our house. You can go on the air and send out your Christmas wishes, or put in a song request, and share some coffee and munchies with us as well.”
Financial Report
Wilkins recused herself from the payroll vote. She said to expect some budget amendments to the Streets fund soon. There are two water/sewer funds in the MiClass investment portfolio now, including one for the reserve funds. So our money is making money babies.
Planning Commission Applicants
The Planning Commission is down to three members (still a quorum), with the resignations of Megan Gray in November and chair Jon Ottinger in December. I submitted an application to be a member on November 4, and Dan Carter has also applied, according to Ryan Fiebing. It’s up to council to review the applicants and vote on them, hence the agenda item. Wilkins said she had been preoccupied with DPW hiring and she made a motion to table the applicant review and vote till the January meeting so she could meet with the applicants first. Council agreed.
Chris Cervantes Is Hired as DPW Superintendent, and Devan Niemi Is Hired as DPW Assistant
Wilkins read the glowing letter from Personnel and Policy Committee chair Barb Wirtz recommending Cervantes for the job (00:20:18). Chris has been on our staff since July 5, 2023. Wilkins said that during the interview with Chris they discussed plans for him to get his water operator’s license, prepare and oversee the DPW budget, and supervise the new assistant.
Wilkins commended his outstanding efforts during the recent snowstorm, when he did his best to clear the roads essentially on his own, in his first time running the big plow truck. She said he’s also taken the initiative to proceed with the plan to change out old water meters in several residences. He replaced mine, in fact — and my water bill went up! The truth hurts, but the installation was painless and a nice opportunity to chat with Chris. New DPW Assistant hire Devan Niemi had been interviewed twice, by Ken Holmes, Wilkins, and Wirtz. Wilkins said he had great references (in which he was described as smart, dependable, and punctual, with a good work ethic and good decision making ability). He is experienced in lawn care and less so with snow removal.
The wage and compensation resolution (2025-013) had not yet been posted on the website at the time I posted this story, and the pay rate was not disclosed during the meeting, but that should be available soon. Wilkins said the amounts council had before them “are recommended; they are the lowest amount advertised for.” She said the employees’ 90-day review period will almost be up at the beginning of the new fiscal, when wage increases would be considered anyway.
Committee Appointments
December, though it’s not the beginning or end of the fiscal year, is when committee appointments are normally made (unless there are vacancies to fill mid-year), because elections are in November. Wilkins had added Fiebing to the Budget, Grant, Finance and Audit Committee. This was the first Fiebing had heard of it. She suggested Bill O’Dwyer for Code Review Committee because he has been zoning administrator in the past. That committee will begin to meet once the “codification process” begins, Wilkins said. One codification proposal has been received and another is on the way, she said. Ken Holmes is now president pro tempore. The RFQ Committee is now called the Development Committee and will also meet as needed. The Water and Sewer Committee is meeting as needed because they are in the middle of asset management planning for water, Wilkins said, which has been true since the DWAM grant was received a couple of years ago. Wilkins is starting a sewer asset management plan with Michigan Rural Water Association (MRWA). Wilkins said there is one committee in particular we really need a person for, the M22 Byways Committee. “They meet quite regularly. They are going through a lot of stuff and are pretty on top of it. I’ve attended one and a half meetings and I wish I could do more because it’s an important connection. I took it to the planning commission last year and no one was interested. It’s all web meetings.” If anyone’s interested in finding out what the M22 Byways Committee actually is or does, contact the office or County Commissioner Gary Sauer, or better yet, start by reading this Networks Northwest webpage.
The council and committee meeting schedule for next year will be the same except the planning commission meetings will start at 6 instead of 5:30. Expect these dates and times to be posted imminently.
Village Manager Strategy Session
Wilkins said: “Bill [O’Dwyer], you have never been in a strategy session. This is where we just discuss stuff. We’ve talked about the Village manager and Village president role before. We’ve taken a basic job description to the Personnel and Policy Committee and we talked in the Budget committee about a salary. Based on current events, we’re a pretty happening place. We’re headed for great things and we need to manage that growth responsibly. We’re at a point where the traditional part-time administrative structure is no longer sufficient for the work that’s going to come to us. The development is happening, the park, all these great positive things we’ve worked hard to achieve, but it brings more stuff to the employees, and a Village manager is definitely something we need to support the staff, support us, so we can go back to doing what we need to do, which is policy. A Village manager can provide continuity, knowledge, day-to-day operations oversight and execute the administration [inaudible].”
Wilkins presented council with two different job description scenarios: a combined Village Manager–Village President role, a job description for a Village President who has a Village Manager, and a Village Manager job description. She referred to the duties of the president and village manager described in the General Law Village Act (a village manager is addressed on page 17). “I wanted everyone to see everything, so we knew the difference between the administrative role and what the president does.” Fiebing asked what the Budget committee had discussed. Wilkins said the position would probably start as part-time, because the Village can’t afford a full-time manager right away; according to her research the salary would probably amount to $34 an hour; other office roles would have to be adjusted, and there would be training. She expected the job would become more involved after the new development occurs. She had asked Josh Mills to provide his job description as city superintendent of Frankfort for comparison’s sake. Fiebing said he would look into it more, especially now that he was on the Budget committee. O’Dwyer asked if Wilkins had an idea of when to post the job opening and Wilkins said it might be at the beginning or end of the next fiscal year; she would be looking at the 2026–27 budget with this possible addition in mind. She welcomed input from council members at any time.
Job Description President Village W
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Job Description Glva Village Manager
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Job Description President W Manager
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Fire & Safety Report
Chief Michael Cederholm commented on a few updates to the written report he sent to council. The department is continuing their ISO efforts. He has mechanical drawings now for the cistern at Graceland, he has GPS coordinates for all the hydrants in Frankfort, but still needs flow rates from the city; Elberta’s hydrants flow at a rate of 250 gallons per minute, which is within ISO standards. The Fire Advisory Board had met the day before about the department’s budget to send to the townships as they enter budget-drafting for their various fiscal years; they hope to have the fire & safety budget ready by January 22. Elberta had 4 EMS calls and 1 fire run in the past month; the fire call was a faulty alarm. A total of 750 calls have been fielded this year in the whole service area, and that’s about 100 more than the Benzonia department. There will be a joint ice water training with the Coast Guard on Saturday, February 7, at Loon Lake. On March 7 there will be a joint training with the Traverse City hazmat technicians, since if and when there is hazardous materials spill here, the department is responsible for “decontamination—diking, damming, diverting, and absorption.” The department received a DNR 50-50 grant (written by Melanie Cederholm, Elberta’s new treasurer) which they’ll use for wildland fire protective gear (gloves, etc.). Fifth graders visited the department and wore themselves out climbing all over the fire trucks (and learning about fire safety). A kayaker was rescued from the swamp along the Betsie River with the help of an app called what3words, which the department has on their phones; they were able to pinpoint his precise location. Two members of the rescue crew suffered some suit failure in the process, and Sue Webber from Webber Insurance donated $1,000 toward new suits.
Planning Commission
Fiebing said the last official meeting with the zoning-ordinance consultant from Beckett & Raeder was at the December 3 meeting. They went over and made revisions to the third draft and are hoping to review the final draft with their skeleton crew of three at the January 7 meeting without the consultant and make any tweaks. They’ll know at the January meeting whether the changes are minimal enough to schedule a public hearing later that month. Wilkins said the office hadn’t received an invoice from B&R yet.
Parks & Recreation
Wilkins said the commission is on hiatus for the winter but would have a “bylaws session.”
During final public comment, Arlene Sweeting, who is a member of the Parks & Recreation Commission, asked Wilkins if there would be a role for the Parks & Rec Commission in the Terminus Park grant process. Wilkins said nothing would probably happen before Parks & Rec meets again and if it looked like something would, she would let them know. “Before we wrote the grant, we added it [Terminus Park] into the new Rec plan, not even knowing if we would get it.” Sweeting said, “But it sounds like we’re hiring somebody [the “prime professional” mentioned in the DNR’s letter] to come up with a project plan?” Wilkins said, “I don’t know if Parks & Rec would do that. I think it may be with Artemis, but I’m not exactly sure yet.” Sweeting: “So it would be part of the other development?” Wilkins: “I don’t know, everything is so fresh I’m not sure what’s going to happen yet. I’ll ask Grand Traverse [Regional Land Conservancy].”
DPW
Wilkins said the out-of-order men’s bathroom stall at Penfold Park has been fixed and will be up and running in spring, and all the winterizing was done. “We did the best we could on Christmas decorations. Going to work on that next year.”
Road to Beach Is Officially Closed
Chris Cervantes said there’s a sign indicating the road down to the beach is closed. Despite the sign, someone did drive down and get stuck. The family of the stuckee requested towing help from the Village and Cervantes explained that the Village does not do recoveries and that the sign was there for a reason. “We normally put a big pile of snow [at the top of the road] as a physical barrier, but we got many complaints that people couldn’t get down there in the winter, so we decided to leave it open, so this happened.” He said the road will remain unobstructed so that people can walk down. The road is closed to vehicle traffic, and “if you choose to take a car down there, it’s at your own risk.” He said DPW’s focus would continue to be plowing for the time being and he expects it will go more smoothly with Niemi’s help; our normal backup plowing help has been tied up with other communities’ needs. Water meter replacements will continue when the weather improves.
Clerk’s Report
Short-term rental applications are coming in. Perkins said the Village had advertised for the DPW positions in the paper for two weeks, on Indeed, the MRWA, and Facebook and that all the applications came from Indeed. She said they would continue with Indeed going forward but it’s expensive, at about $50 per job per day; there’s a free version, but it’s necessary to “boost” the ad in order for anyone to see it.
Treasurer’s Report and BGFAC
“Melanie Cederholm had her first BGFAC meeting,” Wilkins said. Cederholm said the office had met with State Savings Bank about merging some of the Village’s accounts (we used to have several different accounts because of limits to FDIC insurance). State Savings Bank uses a service called IntraFi, which allows accounts over $250,000 and up to $5 million to be covered by the FDIC. Money can still be moved quickly, within a day if necessary. She says she’s enjoying learning the new job and is looking forward to working on the draft budget.
Wilkins said they had sent out requests for proposals for a five-year budget and cash flow projection. She will request funding from State Treasury to cover the expense of one or both projects. Back on the topic of “codification,” which they are also seeking proposals for, she said, “It hurts your brain a lot. I’m kind of excited about it. We need it badly. As well as a five-year budget, because we can include a manager and extra staff when we grow. Stuff is happening.”
Utility Billing
Jon Ottinger said a handful of resident-customers are behind on their water bills but two caught up this week. He said he was “too soft” to shut off people’s water during the holidays but would revisit after New Year’s. During public comment, Kay Bond, a former executive director of BACN and Benzie Senior Resources, mentioned to Ottinger that there are services he can refer people to for help covering their bills. Wilkins mentioned that these resources are listed on the shutoff warning notice.
Ottinger mentioned that we have have 270 meters: 200 have to be read (meaning Ottinger drives by and reads them from the truck) and 70 are cellular and communicate remotely with the billing system, I believe (I need to double-check this with Jon). I’m also going to ask him how many meters have been identified as not working at all at this point.
Personnel and Policy
“We don’t have a report. Barb I think might forget that we need it at a certain time,” Wilkins said. Policies in the works are the BSS (?) for the security system, which Wilkins said will go to the Village attorney and the security company, TKS, for review. The investment policy, PTO and hiring policies, the Employee Handbook, and a volunteer policy are in the works, as well as the Tree Board/policy which is “moving forward.”
BLUA
Holmes said, “They got the garage built but no garage doors.” All the underground piping is done. The loading dock by the drive where the trucks will come in is still to be completed.
Wilkins said it looks really good and Spence Brothers is doing a great job; another payment has been approved because they are speeding right along. The so-called Muppet Monster brush is down. “It came apart. We kind of knew this was coming,” Wilkins said. “It took off like a jet,” said Holmes.
RFQ (Now the) Development Committee
Wilkins said everybody’s on hiatus for the holiday but State Land Bank Authority and Artemis are developing a development agreement (meaning a contract or MOU, probably—not a plan for the site).
Lights at the Beach
During final public comment, I asked, “Is the beach area closed now, and if so, is there a way to get the lights to come off?” There was no response, and Holmes made a motion to adjourn.
After the meeting I asked Chris what he knew about how the beach light poles might be shut off or controlled, whether there was a timer and if he was able to adjust it with the seasons, and I shared what I had learned at the meeting with the electrician, Justin Towle, and Michigan Dark Sky member Susan Schankin one early morning this past May. I offered to fundraise for any extra expense involved in making adjustments to the system. (I’ve made this offer a few times before.)
I haven’t been back to the beach later at night yet this winter to see if the lights go out at 11, when the park closes during the summer. It seems like a waste of money and energy, in addition to disrupting stargazing, moonlit-wave watching, and the nighttime view of the shore, to keep these four super bright lights on when few if any people are down there. And who knows what it’s doing to the migrations and lifeways of birds and other creatures (insects, bats, peepers) who until now have enjoyed natural light and darkness on our beach. But I’d love to hear what other people think about it!
Other news that fits …
Red House Demolition Began on December 18
… and then stopped, reportedly because asbestos was discovered, but I have not confirmed that. While it was ongoing I spoke briefly with one of the owners, a Ms. Wertheimer, who was watching the progress. She and her family plan to rebuild on the site.
An Invitation from Elberta’s Best Church
In case you didn’t receive this letter in the mail, behold these tidings of a 5 p.m. Christmas Eve candlelit service at 555 Lincoln, guided by new pastor Suzanne Goodwin.
