Local meeting primer: Sturgis City Commission

The Sturgis City Commission will meet Wednesday, June 10, for a regular business meeting. Commissioners have a relatively light agenda, including final approval steps for a downtown electric vehicle charging station project first presented in February, as well as four public hearings for sidewalk repair assessments and a proposed $50,000 software and server upgrade for the city’s wastewater SCADA system.

However, in recent months, much of the commission’s controversy has unfolded during commissioner comments rather than through scheduled agenda items. Over the last two months, Commissioner Aaron Miller and Vice Mayor Jeff Mullins have introduced resolutions seeking to censure Mayor Frank Perez, remove him from his mayoral duties, and discipline commissioners they believe were involved in alleged wrongdoing.

During a recent meeting Miller introduced a resolution calling for an external investigation into the alleged wrongdoing, the scope of which will include Perez, Miller, Mullins, Commissioners Richard Bir and Cathi Abbs, and former Commissioner Linda Harrington. Miller later added both his own name and Mullins’ after they said residents questioned why they were not including themselves in the investigation. 

Watershed Voice reached out to Miller to ask whether he will continue introducing resolutions to censure and remove Perez despite the opening of an investigation. Miller said he will no longer introduce those resolutions but remains of the opinion that “change is badly needed” in the City of Sturgis.

The commission unanimously approved an outside investigation on May 27 after earlier investigation proposals failed, though details surrounding the allegations remain largely undisclosed publicly.

Regular business

Commissioners will consider approving up to $92,137 for electric vehicle charging stations at 116 N. Monroe St. within the downtown district.

The project was first presented to commissioners in February, and the commission is now being asked to approve installation costs, charging equipment purchases and a contingency budget. The project includes two ChargePoint Level 2 charging stations, with funding coming from unused contingency dollars associated with the Revitalization and Placemaking (RAP) Grant administered through the Michigan Economic Development Corporation in partnership with Southwest Michigan First.

In order to utilize the available funding, the project must be completed by June 30.

Next on the agenda are four public hearings related to sidewalk assessments on West Congress Street and St. Joseph Street. During the hearings, commissioners will consider final assessment rolls and whether property owners can spread the costs over five years with a 5% annual interest rate.

Lastly, commissioners will consider a $50,000 upgrade to the Wastewater Treatment Plant’s supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) system. The current server runs on Windows Server 2016, which will lose extended support in January 2027. Staff is recommending approval of a $50,000 agreement with Donohue & Associates, the engineering firm that helped complete major SCADA upgrades in 2019, along with a $5,000 contingency.

Maxwell Knauer is a staff writer for Watershed Voice.