By: Dean Vaglia | Fraser-Clinton Chronicle | Published October 4, 2022
CLINTON TOWNSHIP — The Clinton Township Board of Trustees unanimously voted to reject the bid for the Civic Center’s parking lot repair project at its Monday, Sept. 26, meeting.
The township received one bid for the work from Birmingham Sealcoat of Oxford Township, and the total cost of the work was estimated at $57,200 following the discovery and correction of an error that priced the bid at $72,124. Scott Chabot, the project manager handling the project with the Anderson, Eckstein & Westrick consulting firm, recommended the board reject Birmingham Sealcoat’s bid.
“We decided at this point not to go forward with this project,” Mary Bednar, Department of Public Works director, said. “In fact, we are going to try to do this in-house. We will be doing the crack sealing — which we have done numerous times in-house — but we will also be doing the striping in-house, which could save us probably about $40,000.”
While Bednar estimates the DPW will need to use overtime for striping the parking lot and that the sealcoating aspect will be dropped, she believes that the DPW can do the project at or below the $50,000 mark originally budgeted for the work.
METRO Act permit
The board voted unanimously to allow 123NET to install fiber-optic cables within northern and southern Clinton Township. Part of the agreement will require 123NET to restore any dig sites back to their original condition once work is completed, based on comments made by Township Supervisor Robert Cannon.
“As I walk and drive around the township, I see a lot of places (where utility work is done) that are not put back in good condition. … It just seems like there is no oversight to the restoration,” Cannon said.
While Chabot said the township would have to speak with the county to help ensure 123NET worksites are restored, Treasurer Paul Gieleghem made restoring the sites part of the conditions for allowing them to complete the work.
SMART credit allocation
On Sept. 26, the board also voted to allocate its annual municipal and community credits from the Suburban Mobility Authority for Regional Transportation (SMART), with all $94,079 in credits going to community buses. The credits were split between community buses, which were allocated $136,130, and charter buses, which received $24,000.
Municipal and community credits are used to pay for the senior center’s bus services, as well as the bus passes available through the township supervisor’s office.
Neil Reid Park adaptive field
The board also unanimously approved the design and construction of an adaptive baseball field at Neil Reid Park. Clinton Valley Little League Challenger Baseball has spent the past four years raising funds for the project with the intention of using the field for senior league baseball.
The project is expected to cost slightly over $270,750 with Clinton Valley Little League providing about $11,106.
Tobacco age raised
Township trustees voted unanimously to raise the minimum tobacco sale age in the township from 18 to 21 years old. Several surrounding communities have made this change, as well, bringing local ordinances in line with state law passed in July 2022.