The City of St. Ignace will not act on a proposal to narrow North State Street to three lanes, from Marquette Street to the northern city limit, so the city can add a bicycle lane on both sides.

The decision to take no action on the proposal was reached by the city council at its Monday, June 15, meeting after hearing public comment from several people who were opposed to the idea.

Concerns brought up at the hearing included the danger of encouraging bicycles to mingle with cars, increased traffic congestion, and interference with emergency vehicles once the new hospital opens. Roger Novenske, a resident and retired Michigan State Police traffic services sergeant, said the bike lanes would create an unhealthy mixture of bicycles and vehicles on the road, and ambulances may have difficulties getting through to the new hospital on a three-lane road.

"I see no increase in safety," Mr. Novenske said. "Probably a decrease in safety."

He also speculated the change could mean a trip from the St. Ignace post office to the airport would take as long as 10 minutes. Representatives for the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) said studies have actually shown that three-lane roads see better and safer traffic flow than fourlane roads, although it may seem hard to believe .

A lack of bicycle accidents and the need for four lanes to service the hospital were at the top of the list of reasons to drop the idea for local resident Larry Brown, who also attended the hearing to voice his opposition to the proposal.

"I have lived in this town for a long time and I have not yet heard of an accident with a bicycle," Mr. Brown said. "I'm totally against this and it's not a good idea at all."

Those making comments during the hearing suggested alternative plans, such as using sidewalks, shoulders, and other streets, or exploring the idea of a bicycle path separate from the roadway or one that follows a different route.

"There are lots of other avenues that could be explored other than choking down the traffic," said Rob Frasier of Maverick Construction, which is south of the new hospital site.

The MDOT representatives said current and projected traffic flow on North State Street is less than the amount that would necessitate a four-lane road. They said traffic has decreased since I-75 was built and a three-lane road would be appropriate for the city's current traffic situation.

Deb Evashevski, the city's Downtown Development Authority director, said she appreciated the input and would continue to work with the North Huron Scenic Pathway Committee to explore other options for a bicycle path through the city.

"I think a bike path is a good idea, I just don't think this proposal is the desired route we want to go," council member Don Gustafson said.

"I think everyone would say there are other ideas, some of which have been brought up tonight, that would do us well to look at," council member Tom Della-Moretta said.

The motion to take no further action on this proposal was made by Mayor Paul Grondin, supported by Council member Paul Fullerton, and approved unanimously by the council.

Contractor Reports on Bus

Station Progress

The new bus terminal should be completed by the end of June and the site will be turned over to the city by the middle of July, Chris Richter reported to the council. He is vice president of general contractor Cole, Inc. and the construction supervisor for the project.

Council member William La- Londe complained that the builder is using subcontractors from areas other than St. Ignace.

"My concern is local contractors," Mr. LaLonde said. "That they weren't given a chance."

Mr. Richter said that by the October 2008 deadline, 142 bids were received for 12 subcontracting positions. Eight of them were from Upper Peninsula companies, he noted, and three of those were awarded contracts.

"We, as a company, prefer to work with local companies," he said. "We just didn't receive bids from many of these companies."

Mr. LaLonde said he thought more could have been done, especially during tough economic times, to give local companies more work.

"As far as I'm concerned," he replied, "it should have all been done locally. I'm disappointed in that."

Small-scale and last-minute materials have been purchased from local businesses, Mr. Richter noted.

Mr. Frasier suggested that the council require preference for local materials and contractors for future projects.

City Manager Eric Dodson said he would like to set up a ribbon-cutting ceremony as the project gets closer to completion. Voters Will Decide Charter

Amendment

The ballot language to change to the city charter regarding its annual audit was approved by the council Monday. Voters will see the question on the November 3 ballot, providing the lanquage is approved by the state and county in time.

The ballot question will read:

Shall Section 8.7 of the Home Rule Charter of the City of St. Ignace be amended by stating and amending the last sentence of the first paragraph thereof as follows:

Copies of such annual audit shall be available for public inspection at the office of the City Clerk and Notice of the availability of the audit shall be made public by timely publication of the notice in a newspaper of general circulation in the City.

The charter currently requires the city to publish the yearly audit in a newspaper of general circulation in the city, which council members believe would be too expensive.

For the 2008 city audit, council members decided to post a notice in the paper explaining the situation and announcing the availability of the audit for review at city hall, which complies with the amended charter language, but may not comply with the current charter. Nobody can remember when the audit was last published in full in the paper. The issue was brought to the attention of the city by citizens.

Windmill Ordinance Adopted

Anyone constructing a windmill or meteorological tower in the city limits will be held to restrictions and processes laid out in the city's new wind energy ordinance, number 618, which was approved Monday without discussion.

The ordinance sets regulations for noise, environmental impact, setbacks, safety, and avian impact.

The distance to any inhabited building, according to the ordinance, must be at least 1.25 times the height of the windmill tower, and it must be set back from property lines at least 1.1 times the height.

Audible noise is set to not exceed 55 decibels, and windmill blades must have at least 50 feet clearance off the ground.

One sentence was added to the ordinance at the meeting, allowing for a fee schedule to be set up for building permits.

City officials said the exact wording of the ordinance will be printed in the city's public notice section of The St. Ignace News issue. It will be accessible free online at The St. Ignace News Web site, www.stignacenews.com under the Public Notice tab.

The ordinance will take effect on Sunday, June 28.

Taxicab License Request

Withdrawn

A public hearing was scheduled for the June 15 council meeting to explore the public need for additional taxi service in St. Ignace, but city administrators cancelled the hearing after the license applicant, Chippewa Cab, withdrew its application.

After Chippewa Cab applied for a license, Mike Gustafson, owner of Straits Taxi Company, the sole taxicab provider in the city, wrote to the city that he has never received any complaints about service and that there is not enough business in town to support two companies.