Road Commission Plans Projects for 2007
Luepnitz Elected Chairman at Jan. 9 Meeting
By Paul Gingras

Tuesday, January 9, Craig Kelso and Mackinac County Road Commission members pause for a photo following their first meeting of the year. Pictured (from left) are Manager Craig Kelso, Commissioner Lester Livermore Jr., Chairman Frank Luepnitz, and Vice-chairman Paul Amacher.

Road projects eligible for federal and state funding were prioritized for presentation to townships at the Mackinac County Road Commission's first meeting of the year Tuesday, January 9, at which Frank Luepnitz was elected chairman. The commission also considered public input regarding improvements requested for Government Road in Brevort Township and voted to stop most employees from taking Road Commission vehicles home.

In an office packed with members of the public, township trustees, and members of area road committees, Frank Luepnitz, formerly a 21-year employee of the Road Commission, attended his first meeting as a commissioner, beginning his six-year term. He promptly accepted a nomination for chairman. Paul Amacher was nominated vice-chairman. Lester Livermore is the third commissioner, and Theresa McPherson will continue to serve as clerk.

The group took up the task of recommending roads to be upgraded between 2007 and 2012, which are eligible for state and federal funding.

Decisions made at the meeting reflect the commission's current philosophy to create as many hardsurfaced roads as possible. The goal is to "get people out of the mud," Manager Craig Kelso said, so the commission is making extra effort to prepare roads for chip seal or asphalt, he explained. This should save time and effort in the future because lower quality upgrades wear out more quickly, forcing the commission to work on the same routes repeatedly.

The commission discussed which roads to upgrade with federal and state money, called D Funds, which apply to the highest priority roads in the county. These are kept open throughout the year. Lower priority routes will be paid for with separate funds, Mr. Kelso said. Some upgraded roads will remain gravel; others will be paved.

In 2007, the commission recommends upgrades on the following roads: Town Line, Charles Moran, Black Point, Sandtown, Krause, and East Lake. It also plans to repaint all pavement markings on state and federally funded roads in Mackinac County. In 2008, the commission recommends work on the following roads: Sandtown, Charles Moran, H-40, Black Point, Pointe LaBarbe, and East Lake; in 2009, Sandtown, H- 40, Black Point, Swede, South Curtis, Charles Moran, and Naubinway; in 2010, H-40, Black Point, Three Mile, Swede, South Curtis, and Gros Cap; in 2011, South Curtis, H-40, H-42, Three- Mile, Swede, and Gros Cap; and in 2012, Worth, H-40, Borgstrom, Mackinac Trail, Simmons, and Naubinway.

These are preliminary suggestions, Mr. Kelso explained. Township board members and the general public are encouraged to attend a Road Commission meeting to discuss these proposals Monday, January 22, at 1:30 p.m., at the Road Commission office at 706 North State Street in St. Ignace. Input from the public could alter the list, he added.

Following the discussion, the commission will vote on the final recommendations, which Mr. Kelso will submit to the Rural Task Force at its next meeting Thursday, January 25. The Task Force will meet at the Chippewa County Road Commission's office. All municipalities with public transportation in Chippewa, Luce, and Mackinac counties have representatives on the Task Force. Each will present recommendations for road projects to the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) for approval. MDOT oversees federal and state funding for upgrades, Mr. Kelso said.

These are not the only roads that will be upgraded, he added. Townships will also provide funding for specific road projects. The Road Commission has not received townships' recommendations.

A separate state fund will be applied to improve roads that municipalities consider unsafe. A 90-degree curve on Simmons Road in Marquette Township will be improved and made more "user friendly," Mr. Kelso said, and a guardrail will be eliminated on H-40 in Garfield Township. In some areas, guardrails are unsafe, he explained. Creating a flatter slope beside H-40 would be safer, since an off-course vehicle could hit the guardrail, bounce back into the road, and potentially run into oncoming traffic, he said.

In other business, the commission voted to limit employee use of Road Commission pick-up trucks. Mr. Kelso told The St. Ignace News that, prior to the vote, employees occasionally took trucks home for a variety of logistical reasons, such having them closer to job sites where employees would work the next day.

Mr. Luepnitz said he has received complaints from residents that such practice can increase costs, because of the extra gasoline and maintenance required.

The Commission voted to allow only the two district foremen and Mr. Kelso to take trucks home. Further, the commission decided to have Mr. Kelso's pickup labeled with a Road Commission decal, a truck number, and a rotating light on the roof, ensuring that the public will be able identify it as a commission vehicle, Mr. Kelso said.

The commission also directed Mr. Kelso to send a letter to the Brevort Township Board of Trustees, asking the township if it is interested in upgrading Government Road. David Craig, a member of the township's road committee, cited bad conditions there.

To maintain Government Road all year long, it would have to be brought into the commission's maintenance schedule, and Brevort Township would have to pay 100 percent of the cost for initial upgrades, commissioners said. The cost to do so was not available at the time this article was written.

There is now one year-around residence and several summer cottages on Government Road, which is two fifths of a mile long and has only one-lane, Mr. Luepnitz explained.

"The Commission is running into problems with some of these seasonal roads," he added. During wet times of the year, they often become too muddy to pass without four-wheel drive, yet new homes built along them require services.

George Eros lives on Government Road all year. He and nine seasonal residents who live along the route signed a petition to have the road upgraded last June, he said. Many residents visit their cottages throughout the year. They are not insisting that Government Road become a fully-maintained route, however.

"That would be nice," he said, but Mr. Eros and his neighbors are concentrating on increasing seasonal maintenance. Currently, water pools on the road, sometimes becoming several inches deep. Mild conditions this winter have added to the problem, he said.

Mr. Kelso said the Commission has received the petition and addressed it, but mistakenly assumed residents wanted to make the road a year-around route.

The main artery to Government Road is Black Point Road, Mr. Luepnitz added, so finishing the Black Point project is a necessary step toward making matters easier for land-owners on Government Road.