During their recent meeting, the Big Lake Town Board approved the final plat for Meadow Estates North, a new development in the works on the corner of Co. Rds. 43 and 83. 

The developers were going to also have their developer’s agreement ready at the time of the meeting, but there were a couple of hiccups that prevented it from being ready. The developer asked the board to approve the contract ahead of time, provided that it was also approved by the county and by township staff, as they did not want to wait until after Thanksgiving to get started. 

Township staff also noticed a couple of errors on the plat, noting there was a to-be-built street labeled differently on two different maps of the area. The developer asked which name should be used for the road, 173rd St. or 174th St. The board told the developer that decision would be up to the county. 

Open Forum

A gentleman spoke during open forum regarding a letter he’d been sent about road markers he had up in his yard. The road markers are in the township’s road right-of-way, and so are technically on land owned by the township. (The township’s right-of-way extends past the edge of the road, 30 feet from the center of the road.) The resident acknowledged that the area was not legally his property, but wanted plows and other drivers to be aware of where the edge of the road is during the winter, as well as protect the sprinkler heads he has buried there. 

The board responded by saying that plow drivers will steer well away from the markers and this will lead to narrower roads in the winter, which they’ve received complaints about in the past.

The gentleman asked if there was any process to change the policy, but the board responded that they follow state laws in this regard, so it cannot be changed on the township level. If residents place anything in the township right-of-way, they do so at their own risk.

In Other Business, the Board:

• Accepted a contract for snow plowing services with JMRL;

• Reviewed and accepted a township road mileage survey from the county;

• Discussed replacing E911 signs throughout the township and formed a committee to investigate the issue;

• Gave an update about the recently completed fall road tour, determining that brushing, trimming, and updating maps would be top priorities in the coming months.