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Arvon Township Planning Commission Quarterly Meeting Minutes

Thursday, January 22, 2026 at 6 PM

Call to Order:

Roll Call:

• Nancy Strohschein (Chair)
• Joe Bollech
• Bob Janda (Township Board Rep)
• Jay Loman (Zoning Board of Appeals Chair)

Donna Preston – Absent with notice

John Salisbury – Absent with notice

Recognition of visitors:  None present

Pledge of Allegiance:  Done

Comments on agenda:  None

Approval of agenda: Motion:  Jay Loman.  Second:  Bob Janda.  All approved.  Agenda approved as presented.

Approval of minutes from October 2025 meeting:  Motion:  Joe Bollech.  Second:  Bob Janda.  All approved.  Minutes approved as presented.

Public comments:  None

Chairman Comments:

1. Nancy Strohschein (Chair) will present the annual Planning Commission report to the Township Board at the February 2, 2026 meeting.
2. Meeting Minutes:  Nancy is acting as both chair and secretary, and needs additional time during the meeting to record minutes based on the Michigan Compiled Law (MCL) for Records Management and operational decisions by the Township.
   1. Draft minutes of Planning Commission meetings need to be available within a week of the meeting.
   1. Draft minutes are posted on the Arvon Township website for easy access by community members.
   1. Although the MCL does not require a specific format, draft meeting minutes will be typed, not hand written.
   1. Therefore, we will take additional time at the meeting for Nancy to type meeting minutes real-time, during the meeting.
   1. These minutes will be distributed to PC members for review within a week of the meeting.
   1. Draft minutes will be posted on the Arvon Township website by Nancy within a week of the meeting.
3. Notes from recent Board Meetings, including Recreation Plan upload to State of Michigan
   1. December:     Joe will be stepping down in June.  We will serve as a 5 member PC.
   1. January:         Lisa uploaded the Recreation Plan.  We need Recreation Committee updates before we would update the plan.  It’s good for 2 more years.  We should consider updating the plan in 2026 with any accomplishments and recommendations, even if we do not upload a new version.
4. Reminder to PC members and public that this is a meeting to conduct business as a board.
5. PC Member terms:
   1. Joe Bollech – 1 Year, expires June 2026
   1. Bob Janda – per term on township board
   1. Jay Loman – 10/2024, 3 years, expires 10/2027
   1. Donna Preston – 10/03/2025, 3 years, expires /10/03/2028
   1. John Salsbury – October 2024, 3 years, expires October 2027
   1. Nancy Strohschein – August 2024, 3 years, expires August 2027

Old Business:

1. Planning commission comments/concerns: 
   1. There is concern about a family living in a camper on Park Road.  Jay has been approached by several neighbors to see if there is an ordinance that should be enforced on this matter.  Jay has brought it to Buddy’s attention.  This may be a health department issue and not one for local zoning enforcement. 
   1. There was discussion about how to efficiently make our Zoning Ordinance updates.  We may need a work session in May to finalize the changes.  We will have to go through all the steps of public hearing, posting the draft changes and posting notice in the newspaper.  The group agreed that doing an update every 2 years is a good goal, unless there are things of an emergency nature that need to be addressed.  It will be necessary for all PC members to do individual study before the meeting.
2. Bob Janda:  Report from Township Board Rep.  No comments.
3. Jay Loman:  Report from Zoning Board of Appeals.  Jay reports that he has not set a meeting date for the Marcotte’s request to expand the Finn’s toward Skanee Road.  Jay spoke to Doug Mills (Baraga County Road Commission) on concerns he might have in the expansion getting close to the road.  Doug did not express any concerns.  Jay wants secretarial support on the ZBA so the process can run more smoothly. 
4. Buddy Sweeney:  Report from Zoning Administrator.  It was recommended by Jay Loman and other members to keep a running list of the projects the Zoning Administrator is working on.  Not just adding the new ones since our last meeting.  This will be good info for the public if it is included in the minutes.
   1. Since the last report
      1. A25-018  Craig Vickstrom 14166 Bay View Dr.  24X34 Garage
      1. A25-019 John Carroll 19494 Beesley Rd 26 X26 Garage
   1. New year
      1. A26-001 Woodland Retreats Inc. 12313 Ravenswood court, 38 X48  Garage / Apartment 
5. Tracking Zoning Ordinance APPROVED Changes (PC has discussed and agrees)
6. Change 1:  Use of campers on property for occasional use.  There was discussion on how to define “occasional use” to make sure people are not living in a camper year-round.  Possibly use “occasional recreational use” to clarify.
7. Change 2:  Minimum acreage for Forest Resource.  Should be 10, not 40
8. Change 3:  Amend section 404 with definition of “high water mark”.  High water mark is where grass starts to grow.  Not where the water is at the shore.  May have more beach in different years. 
9. Change 4:  Page 38 “Section 602” typo
   1. Change 5:  Edit water setback regulations, in conjunction with high water mark. 
   1. Change 6:  Revise section on fences, to include comments from Buddy Sweeny on height and placement.
   1. Change 7:  Remove section on Short Term Rentals, as requested by the Township Board after review by township attorney.
   1. Change 8:  Revise/Strengthen section on civil infractions after consultation with township attorney

New Business:

• Are there any additional items to consider revising in the Zoning Ordinance?  None recommended.
• Determine schedule to update the Zoning Ordinance with the approved changes.
  • Nancy will find info on the approved changes and provide it to all PC members for review.
  • All PC members will be prepared to discuss 1-8 and decide how changes should be done at the April 2026 quarterly meeting.
  • Make draft changes in a copy of the Zoning Ordinance as a draft.
  • Decide if a work session is needed in May.
  • Define and publish an overall schedule for milestones and notifications of changes.

Topics for Next Meeting:

1. Focus on Zoning Ordinance changes
2. Each member to review relevant sections, especially for fences, high water mark and water setbacks.

Upcoming meetings:

• April 23, 2026

Adjourn:

6:49PM

Arvon Township Planning Commission Quarterly Meeting Minutes
Thursday, October 9, 2025 at 6 PM
Call to Order:
Roll Call: All present
Nancy Strohschein (Chair)
Joe Bollech
Bob Janda (Township Board Rep)
Jay Loman (Zoning Board of Appeals
Chair)
Donna Preston
John Salisbury
Recognition of visitors:
Kathy Salisbusy, Whitey Soli, Al Preston, Pat Janik, Diane McQueen, Nancy Kurkowski
Pledge of Allegiance: Done
Comments on agenda: None
Approval of agenda: Motion to approve by Bob Janda. Second by John Salisbury. All in favor.
Approved as presented.
Approval of minutes from July meeting: Motion to approve by Donna Preseton. Second by Jay Loman.
All in favor. Approved as presented
Public comments: Pat Janik asked if the Planning Commission would have any role in the discussion
about an easement across township property that abuts the property of Kurt Becker on Vicks Road.
Nancy Strohschein answered that there does not seem to be any role that the PC would have in that
discussion as there are no provisions in the Zoning Ordinance for establishing easements. There are
requirements for building and development within specified distances from easements and rights-of
ways, but nothing about establishing an easement.
Chairman Comments:

1. Notes from Monday 10/6/2025 Board Meeting
   a. Nancy continues to work with the board to update our building and zoning fees.
   b. Nancy obtained permission to communicate with attorney Tinti on removing Short Term
   Rentals from our Zoning Ordinance and updating the language to support Civil
   Infractions for non-compliance.
2. Master Plan update – Not needed now. PC members agree that we do NOT need to update our
   Master Plan in 2025.
3. Recreation Plan update – Not needed now. PC members agree that we do NOT need to update
   our Recreation Plan in 2025 since there is no update from the Recreation Committee.
4. Reminder to Planning Commission (PC) members and public that this is a meeting to conduct
   business as a board.
5. PC Member terms: All terms were recognized. Joe Bollech would like to officially step down in
   June, 2026. Until then, we will consider Joe a member and ask him to attend whenever we
   may need a quorum, especially during the winter when members may be absent. Donna plans
   to renew her appointment.
   a. Joe Bollech – 1 Year, expires June 2026
   b. Bob Janda – per term on township board
   c. Jay Loman – 10/2024, 3 years, expires 10/2027
   d. Donna Preston – 10/03/2025, 3 years, expires /10/03/2028
   e. John Salsbury – October 2024, 3 years, expires October 2027
   f.
   Nancy Strohschein – August 2024, 3 years, expires August 2027
   1
   Old Business:
6. Planning commission comments/concerns
   o Donna Preston asked if we have any updates on the geodesic dome project on
   Liimatainen Rd. John Salisbury reported that there has been no substantial progress.
   No construction of road or septic field has been done.
7. Bob Janda: Report from Township Board Rep. Nothing to report.
8. Jay Loman: Report from Zoning Board of Appeals – Jay reported that The Finns want to do a
   20 x 30 extension on the front of the building. This would encroach on Skanee Rd setback.
   Buddy Sweeney (Zoning Administrator) denied the request. The ZBA was contacted to consider
   the request. Jay is making sure the ZBA follows all the regulations for meetings and decisions.
9. Buddy Sweeney: Report from Zoning Administrator
   o Report of recent applications per email. See page 4 of this document
10. Accomplished in 2025 Quarterly Meetings:
    o Reviewed Master Plan – April 2025
    o Reviewed Recreation Plan – July 2025
    o Reviewed Zoning Ordinance changes – Ongoing
11. Tracking Zoning Ordinance APPROVED Changes (PC has discussed and agrees)
    o Change 1: Use of campers on property for occasional use
    o Change 2: Minimum acreage for Forest Resource. Should be 10, not 40
    o Change 3: Amend section 404 with definition of “high water mark”. This still needs to
    be defined. Each PC member should review the information previously provided and be
    able to discuss at the January meeting.
    o Change 4: Page 38 “Section 602” typo
    New Business:
12. Discuss article in MTA magazine about civil infraction. Nancy reviewed the article with the
    PC and referred to section 1401 in our Zoning Ordinance. Nancy will have attorney Tinti
    look at our language and make sure it is written properly.
13. Discuss Part 7 of Green Book, Planning and Zoning Issues, pages 201 through 249. A quick
    review of this section was done as part of the PC’s continuing education. The topics were
    the Land Division Act, Preserving Farmland, Rural Character and Open Space, Mineral and
    Resource Extraction, Waterfront Overlay Zoning and Current Planning and Zoning Issues.
    An outcome of this review is for Nancy to contact Jim Fedie and get a copy of our Land
    Division procedure or guideline.
14. Review possible ZO changes.
    a. Definition of “high water mark” and change in section 404. Yes, we should do this.
    b. Consider changing water setbacks. Jay suggests we use the definition used by
    Chassell.
    c. Consider how to clarify section on fences. Height, permission from neighbors,
    property line. – There was discussion on this point and it was decided that each PC
    member needs to read our ordinance and come prepared to make changes at the
    April 2026 meeting.
    d. Remove STR section per direction from board. PC agrees to remove this per the
    request from the Arvon Township Board.
    e. Strengthen civil infraction language in enforcement section after consultation with
    township attorney.
    2
15. Determine schedule to update the Zoning Ordinance with the approved changes. The
    decision was made to make the changes at the April 2026 meeting. The January meeting
    will be less well-attended due to PC member time away in the winter. Each PC member is
    to look into each change independently and come prepared to discuss changes.
16. Set quarterly meetings for 2026. Quarterly meetings will be held on the 4th Thursday of
    January, April, July and October in 2026. Meetings will be at 6 PM at the Fire Hall.
17. Do we need to set a special meeting for zoning ordinance (ZO) changes? It was decided
    that we will NOT schedule a separate meeting for ZO changes at this time. We will use the
    April 2026 meeting to make the changes.
    Topics for Next Meeting:
18. PC Education? No additional education assignments from the green book were made. Instead,
    each member will look into ZO statements on fences and consider what changes we need to
    make, if any. This is based on Buddy Sweeney (Zoning Administrator) comments.
19. Spend time looking over the current ZO in sections where we need to consider changes.
    Upcoming meetings:

• January 22, 2026 at 6 PM at the Fire Hall
  Adjourn:
  Meeting was adjourned at 7:19 PM
  3
  Information from Zoning Administrator
  July 7, 2025:
  A25-001 Lee Luft Off St.Cyr rd.
  22X30 cabin
  A25-002 Mark Buzenski Lakewood Dr. 32 X84 Home
  A25-003 Sue Hoban Pt. Abbaye Rd. 16 X 14 cabin
  A25-004 Ted Bocek Liimatainen Rd. 20 X 20 cabin
  A25-005 Lee Prost Witz rd. 34X 49 garage ( ZBA Ruling)
  A25-006 Dave Goodreau Bayview Dr. 16 X24 Sauna/ storage
  A25-007 Brian Rule Pine Beach Dr.
  14 X50 cabin ( EGLE Flood Plain ruling)
  October 6, 2025:
  A25-008 Kurt Allert 13934 Bay View dr. 28 X 36 home.
  A25-009 Rodrigo Oyarzun 11643 Liimatainen rd.
  A25-010 Bucky Marcotte 20025 Skanee Rd 20X32 band shell
  A25-011 Frank Cangemi 24375 Huron Rd. 16X21 addition
  A25-012 Mike Mainville 23384 skanee rd 8X8 shed.
  A25-013 Ray Went 20714 Point Abbaye rd 10 X 20 Bunkhouse.
  A25-014 Tony Filarski 19099 Ravenswood Ct. 12 X 28 cabin
  A25-015 Bruce Pesola 14172 Bay View dr. 30 x 50 garage
  A25-016 John Crissman 19060 Collins rd. 14 X 32 addition
  A25-017 Mike Parnicky 22837 Skanee rd 16 X 24 Cabin
  4
  Water Setbacks
  Portage Twp:
  Chassell Twp:
  5
  Eagle Harbor Township:
  Powell Township:
  6