Photo courtesy of Main Street Calumet Among the buildings in the village of Calumet that has received ongoing work in stabilizing it for further rehabilitation is the Schindler Building, on Fifth Street.

CALUMET — Since Calumet Village Council approved a motion in favor of a Blight Enforcement Officer at its regular May meeting, the position is now posted on the village website.

Village Manager Megan Haselden had said at that meeting that during the previous week’s Village Council Work Session there had been extensive discussion on the position.

“We discussed what we’re going to pay this person, how many hours they’re going to work,” Haselden said, adding that she did not have those details at that time, but suggested $20 per hour at 10-15 hours per week.

“These are based on that we have a very limited budget,” Haselden told the Council, “So, I’d like to start with that and see where it goes from there.”

Haselden’s recommendations were approved by the Council, and the position was posted on the village website dated May 31, 2024, along with a job summary.

The Blight Enforcement Officer will be responsible for investigating and enforcing the Village of Calumet’s ordinances related to blight, the summary says. The officer will conduct on-site investigations to determine compliance with blight ordinance, review potential violations, follow established procedures for working with property owners to resolve issues and maintain related records.

The issue of blight has long been a concern, not only to the council, but to village residents, as well. At a May 8, 2023, public engagement meeting in the Red Jacket Ballroom, a survey taken by the attendees of the meeting revealed blight among the biggest concerns. As part of the Bring Back Calumet Initiative, blight is one of the top priorities. The Bring Back Calumet Task Force was organized by the Keweenaw Economic Development Alliance in 2016. In May 2023, the task force was awarded a 2023 Michigan Governor’s Award for Historic Preservation. The awardees were the KEDA, Village of Calumet, Calumet Downtown Development Authority, Main Street Calumet, the Houghton County Land Bank Authority, Keweenaw National Historical Park and Keweenaw National Historical Park Advisory Commission. The task force was the only Upper Peninsula entity to receive the award.

“Initially, there was an idea of ‘how can we bring back Calumet,'” Haselden said at the time, “and the realization was pretty early had that it’s going to have to be very slowly, and one building at a time.”

“One building at a time” has led to the need for the village to employ a blight enforcement officer.

One of the opportunities that people expressed, Haselden said last month, is the potential for increased collaboration with the Village of Laurium and Calumet Township.

“Blight is probably going to be the first step in collaboration,” Haselden said. The idea is to organize a meeting between the village of Laurium and the township.

“We’ve all agreed to come to the table,” she said, “and talk about whether it’s possible to have the blight ordinance be consistent. Can we have a consistent process for enforcement? And then possibly having a shared staff member to help with that process.”

“So, I think blight in the region has been a problem for a long time, and as we continue to grow, it’s something that we’ve got to start paying attention to.”