Massie Field to have bluff view

By CHARITY SMITH

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Bessemer — Visitors to Massie Field will soon have a full view of the bluff, as the Bessemer city council voted Monday to allow the Bessemer Area Schools to cut down a large portion of the trees behind the field.

According to city manager Charly Loper, the request to remove the trees came from Bill Steiger, who noticed from old school photographs that the bluff used to be viewable from anywhere in the stands, but now that view is limited because of the trees. Loper said that there are some concerns with erosion so something would have to be done in that area to support the earth.

“I took a walk back in there and I actually changed my mind a little bit to help out the school,” said Mayor Adam Zak. “I have less worries about erosion control now, because it’s almost like a mesa or a plateau there. Right behind the school’s fence it’s very flat and then there is that steep drop. All the trees that need to be cut appear to be in that flat spot, anything on that steep drop isn’t sticking up high enough to obstruct the view. I have no problem with them cutting the trees. I actually think it would look really nice.”

Zak suggested, as both a cost saving measure for the school and as a way to prevent erosion, the tree stumps be cut to ground level and left in place.

“They have to be cut off at the ground level, so it is not a tripping hazard,” he said.

Council member Lou Miskovich said that it was a good thing that roots stay there to help with any erosion problems.

The arrangements for the removal of the trees must be made by the school and brought back to the council for approval, said Loper.

One-way street

The council discussed converting Mine Street, which runs along the west side of A.D. Johnston Junior and High School into a one-way street for northbound traffic only. Loper said turning onto the highway from the street is difficult, so because of the amount of traffic there, they are looking into making it a one-way.

Loper said it’s not as simple as putting up a one-way sign, though.

“This is a really, really tricky one, and trying to figure out a design has been really interesting,” Loper said. “When you look at a road, how the road feels is how the road is used. ... So when we are looking at Mine Street, we are looking at what can we do to make it more intuitive so that is easy for people know this is a one-way street.”

Loper expressed concern that it could get chaotic if they just change it into a normal one-way, because it would seem like a two-way street. She said that she could see traffic trying to go the wrong way and kids crossing in front of traffic.

The other way they are looking at is making it just wide enough for one lane of traffic to drive through and to have a school bus pull-out lane.

Zak said he didn’t mind either way.

“I’m not concerned about people using the one-way incorrectly,” he said. “I think that with the sheriff’s office right there, I think that it will be pretty easy to enforce or catch them.”

Loper said that the second way will allow them to gain more parking on both sides of Iron Street along the north side of the school.

“I’m not in favor of one-lane streets anywhere, but I do think that it is high time that this road does become a one-lane street,” said council member Linda Nelson. “There is potential of danger there and I am surprised that nothing has happened in the past.”

According to Loper both ways will cost the city about the same amount of money. The council asked that Loper continue her discussions with Dan Niemi, superintendent of Bessemer Area Schools, regarding the conversion of the road to one-way, as well as to the attention of the school board for its input.

In other action

The council discussed setting a new policy to state what is the responsibility of the city to fix plow-truck damage to a resident’s grass area in the winter.

“We have phenomenal plow drivers, but when you’re dealing with as much snow as we do, you’re going to scrape up the grass. It’s just going to happen,” said Loper.

Loper said that without a policy there is some ambiguity as to who gets their grass area repaired and who doesn’t. She suggested that repairs be done within so many feet of the right-of-away and that for those the city doesn’t fix, they have topsoil available for the resident to pick up, at no cost, to repair the area themselves. She said that they simply don’t have enough workers in their Department of Public Works to repair them all. According to Loper the city has seven DPW workers, but in the 1970s they had 39 and could more easily repair them all.

“While we wish we could repair them all, honestly we don’t have the man power for it,” she said in a press release.

Suggested policy language included: if the city removes more then 20 square feet of grass that it will return in the spring and repair the damage, and if the city damages property such as a house or garage, it will fix it to the condition it was in, as long as the structure meets the zoning codes.

The council voted to postpone a $43,000 payment to the Michigan Department of Transportation until it secures a meeting with MDOT to discuss placing islands at the entrances to and from the city to slow traffic as part of U.S. 2 reconstruction project next summer.

Loper reported on a failing culvert on Tamarack Road. She said the county highway department estimated the cost of the repair to be between $20,000 and $60,000. The funds for the repair would come out of the emergency fund, which Loper said is “dwindling.” She recommended, and the council approved, hiring an engineer to accurately estimate the cost, plan the repair, and get the required permits.

“We are uncertain we could do it internally,” she said in a written report. “Given the complexity, equipment required, and our small crew.”

Loper said that during the interim they will monitor the road and close it down if necessary.