First brownfield meeting held
By JANE NORDBERG, DMG WriterEAGLE RIVER - The first meeting of the Keweenaw County Brownfield Redevelopment Authority was held Wednesday at the county courthouse in Eagle River.
After being sworn in, members Janet Shea, Steve Karpiak, Mac Marzke, Marlin Wingard and Mark Bonner approved Shea as chair, Wingard as vice-chair and Bonner as secretary.
Terms of office will be staggered, with Wingard and Shea serving three years, Bonner serving two years and Marzke and Karpiak agreeing to serve one year.
"That actually means you serve until you're replaced," guest Flora McCormack told Marzke and Karpiak about their comparatively short term. "You're not off the hook until somebody else comes on."
McCormack, director of the Grant Services Program of the Michigan Association of Counties, walked the new board through the process the KCBRA would face in spending its $200,000 Brownfield Assessment grant.
One of the first priorities would be to retain a consultant who would, among other activities, create an inventory of properties that may be contaminated, assisting the KCBRA Project Manager (Shea) with community education and involvement, and ensuring the authority adhere to federal and state requirements for the grant.
McCormack said a two-step process has recently been favored among Michigan counties for retention of a consultant.
First, consultants send in a list of qualifications, she said, which serves to introduce the parties to each other.
"The companies tell you who they are, their years of experience, and whether they have experience with your particular issues," McCormack said.
From there, the authority could short-list the consultants they believed to be the best fit, and then hold interviews, ultimately inviting those on the short list to submit blind proposals for the project.
Marzke asked McCormack if the same companies tended to bid on all of the brownfield jobs in the state.
"Yes, so you want to be careful that they know where you are and what you have to deal with here," she said. "Your needs will be different from those of larger urban areas, so companies that only list experience with Oakland or Wayne counties would likely not rate at the top of your list."
Wisconsin firms may also apply, McCormack said, warning that those firms need to be aware of the different brownfield requirements for Michigan.
"Michigan laws are different from any other state when it comes to brownfield," she said. "You need to be sure a Wisconsin firm will have enough knowledge of Michigan laws to help you."
McCormack advised board members not to rush to a decision when picking a consultant.
"You don't have to worry about hiring somebody quickly," she said. "You have the winter coming and in the meantime, you can do public outreach and many other background tasks."
Some of those tasks include setting up a separate KCBRA account with the county treasurer, and getting Shea set up with the Automated Standard Application for Payment (ASAP) federal reimbursement system.
Following the meeting, McCormack and the board answered a variety of questions from the public, not the least of which was whether the authority needed more members.
"Absolutely," Shea said. "And if you don't want to serve on the board proper, you can pick a site you'd like to work on and become part of a work group."
Four other members could be added to the authority who do not necessarily have to be Keweenaw County residents.
Work groups would likely be formed in the future as sites become identified, Shea said.
"These are your tax dollars that have come back to your community, and I encourage everyone interested to become involved," McCormack said. "This is a long-term, county-wide project that shouldn't be left to five people to do all the work."
For more information on the Keweenaw County Brownfield Redevelopment Authority, contact Shea at 289-4211.
Jane Nordberg can be reached at jnordberg@mininggazette.com
