Eastpointe, MI Free Speech

Another fine day in the City of Eastpointe

Listed are a few thoughts covering items that need attention or should be looked into along with a courtesy response from either our Mayor and/or Council.
Ok, benefit of the doubt, these items may have been overlooked by various city officials or staff.

1. When trees are removed from public property such as medians, parks, due to disease, very little green canopy left due to age, etc. noticed they are not typically replaced. Trees are a very important part of our eco system as well as adding beauty to our environment. The few new trees noticed are quite small and spindly, how about planting tress with a larger diameter trunk say 2-3" minimum? You have the staff and equipment. Hopefully someone listed in the budget for new tree's and replacements.

2. Tree maintenance needs to be kept up on a regular and frequent basis. Don't let growth of suckers and low hanging branches get out of hand, once a year is just not sufficient.

3. It was last year, that a resident (Mr. Brown) made mention, expressing concern on the improper mulch "Volcano" rings placed around the city trees. This is not healthy and incorrect, which will cause tree damage, harbor insects and disease, mold, and many other problems. Yes it does look nice. This can be corrected by simply pulling the mulch rink away from the tree trunk. Who ever did this does not clearly know there job. If you're not sure check into and ask first! Please correct immediately and take care of our / my trees.
http://www.treesaregood.com/treecare/mulching.aspx

4. Junk mailings continue to be thrown onto porches, yards, bushes on a regular basis which is illegal without proper permits from the city. City ordinances cover this and should be modified that any such mailings must have a single point of contact (name and number) where one can be reached. Right now there is no information listed on these packages of individuals or companies to contact. (Mailings are typically inside of clear plastic bags).

5. Eastpointe has 2 city channels, one is currently used for information and the other under utilized, only used over the past several years for the Safety Millage presentation. This second channel could possibly be further utilized by local citizens and possibly business's. This available channel(s) are for public use which means there could be various forums, Town Hall meetings and so on. Our previous Mayor Harvey Curly utilized this one channel, interviewing others, discussing events. This would be a great opportunity for our high school students who are studying in this field of broadcasting, allowing them to have a real, live, first hand experience.
The city has some amount of AV equipment sitting idle which was part of an agreement between Comcast and the city. The assistant city manager was responsible for seeing that the equipment was to be utilized for city events but, unfortunately had no idea on how to use it, or the time to research it. For reference, an individual that hosted events for Comcast offered his services but was turned down by ???

Also as part of an agreement, Comcast was to pay in either a lump sum or payments to the city, which was to be used for the sole purpose of public telecommunications meaning, use by the residence's.
Just where did these funds go, how much was received?
Possibility of Misappropriation of funds?
Come to think of, didn't a resident ask this a year or two ago?

If the city is not going to use this equipment then sell it (not worth much if anything due to the vintage) or at least let select individuals use it for city functions and get some use out of it.

One of our residence (Mr. Ken Brown) has been seen many times, video taping community events, town hall meetings, parades, Gratiot Cruise, ethnic festivals, The Ritz, Shiverfest and many more. He was mistaken many times as a television cameraman and responded, "I'm volunteering, filming events for the city, that maybe it will be on the city channel". People were so excited that these city events would be televised, seeing themselves on TV as well as being able to record it at home, show other family members, those that are unable to venture out, an important event in there life, all positive comments.
We are clearly missing out on a "Family Town" representation.

Who knows, maybe Mr. Brown would be interested in filming from time to time with dedicated support from our folks at city hall.

HeavyMetal001 - Your comments and factual information was appreciated, Thank-you.

STOP THE ILLEGAL SIGNAGE & BLIGHT

Sat. 9/2 & Sun. 9/3, 2006
Time approx 2:00 pm - 5:00 pm
10 minute drive in one area of the city
Locations - 9 Mile road (Kelly to Gratiot),
Gratiot (9 to 10 mile)

Below, a small sampling of Illegal signs in our city.

Several of these unsightly signs are never taken down by those who illegally install, left to maybe removed by someone or not all all, creating an additional unsightly mess as they weather, shred and fall to the ground.

It's very simple - issue these offenders a ticket, address and phone number are all ready on the illegal signage.

Residence, property and business owners:
We all have a responsibility and the right to remove such items in front of your area. When others place such signage on your property without permission or even on public property, you should call the Police and the Building Department to have them removed or just remove them yourself.

Individuals will typically state "We didn't know of such ordinances". Common sense should have immediately taken place, you do not post signs of any type on others property or even on your vehicles on public streets or private property parking lots, post on your own property! This is a disregard, disrespect to others and turns our /my city into a garbage dump.

It's disgusting enough when people throw trash out there vehicle windows and the droppings from trash collection day. They (waste collection) make a mess and don't even bother to pick it up.

Our city officials need to immediately work on this problem, enforcing such ordinances on a continual, regular bases. This is also the responsibility of our code enforcement officers, who typically look the other way and have mentioned I don't bother with garage sale signs, lost pets, etc. You better, that's your job!

Locals have been seen taking down illegal signs and so can you, as well as P&R, DPW, building dept. workers.

Littering carries a large fine in our city and state, as well an additional state law along with placement in public rightaways.

Thank-you to the gentleman who has been doing his best in keeping the downtown area clean, many of us appreciate your efforts.

Court action sometimes used to discourage signs
Published: January 3, 2006
By: Frank DeFrank - Macomb Daily Staff Writer

Small signs advertising a myriad of businesses and services pop up in intersections, usually on weekends, like dandelions sprout in the spring. Some communities are striking back against the illegally placed signs, using everything from weekend collection sweeps to court action. The signs — some of them professionally made — hawk everything from snow removal to home improvement to low-cost health insurance. Others are hand-scrawled productions trumpeting garage sales or lost pets. The signs usually are stuck in the ground between the sidewalk and the curb. On occasion, you’ll find them nailed to wooden utility poles, where the higher elevation promises greater visibility. All are designed to attract the attention of motorists, who, presumably, can scrawl the advertised telephone number while waiting for the traffic signal to change. The signs are potentially hazardous, definitely illegal and a pain for public officials. “It looks terrible,” said John Brennan, Macomb Township supervisor. “Some guys literally put (multiple signs) three feet apart.” Macomb Township’s ordinance prohibits the erection of signs — even small ones — without a permit. Most communities have similar laws on the books. Following a recent rash of resident complaints, Macomb Township officials cracked down on illegal signs. On a recent weekend, three ordinance enforcement officers — Gary Budchuk, John Renard and Lonnee Stiers — were sent out to collect illegally placed signs. “The Board (of Trustees) was fed up,” Budchuk said. After one 4-hour shift, the men had collected more than 600 signs advertising about 40 different businesses or services. The haul was so large, Budchuk said, the booty filled a Dumpster and dozens more signs had to be stored in a pickup truck until they could be discarded. The usual protocol, Budchuk said, is for ordinance officers to track the owners of the signs — usually by calling the listed telephone numbers — and remind them about the prohibition. Sometimes, that’s enough, Budchuk said. Sometimes it’s not. “A lot of them have been warned in the past,” he said. “It’s very hard for them to say, ‘I didn’t know”. In cases of notorious repeat offenders, officers will go to court to enforce the ordinance. The latest sign sweep resulted in the issuance of about 30 tickets, Budchuk said. Placing the signs is a misdemeanor offense. Violators face maximum penalties of 90 days in jail, a $500 fine, or both. “We haven’t lost any (cases) in court yet,” Budchuk said. Ralph Maccarone, supervisor of neighboring Shelby Township, said his community deals with the same problem. In addition to violating local ordinances, placement of the signs in public rightsof-way — the favored location for perpetrators — is against state law, Maccarone said. “They’re litters,” he said. While arguably the signs are unsightly and could block the vision of drivers, Maccarone said their presence creates another problem. Business operators who illegally place signs near intersections have an unfair competitive advantage over established businesses bound by sign restrictions. “We have a vested interest in protecting our tax base,” Maccarone said. “These interlopers take it upon themselves to put up signs where they see fit. If every business put up signs as they see fit, we’d have nothing but litter.” Maccarone said Shelby Township focuses more on removal of the signs than prosecution of violators, though ordinance officers will take hard-core offenders to court if necessary. He also said officers have adjusted work schedules to include some weekends when most of the signs pop up. Signs unrelated to business — a lost dog alert or garage sale promotion, for example — do not get a pass, officials said. “We don’t look at content,” Maccarone said. “If you look at content, you have a problem.” While that might seem a bit heavy handed, there are reasons to enforce the prohibition against that type of sign, Budchuk said. “Now the puppy is returned,” he said. “They’re not going to come back and take those signs down. Nobody I’ve ever seen will take it down.” While officials insist they’re making progress in the battle against illegal signs, they concede the war is never-ending. Brennan said enforcement of the ordinance will remain a priority in Macomb Township. “It’s not right and it won’t be tolerated,” he said. “They can take ads out in the paper.”