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A
Word from the Editor: Welcome
to the June edition of the Lake St. Clair Network
Newsletter. Thanks to all of you, we are celebrating
our 5th record-breaking month in a row. We are now
visited over 30,000 times per month!! We won't rest on
our laurels however, as we will constantly strive to
bring the community as much interesting and useful
information as we can cram into our site! Remember, we
created the Lake St. Clair Network for YOU. If there
is something you would like to see on our site that's
not currently available, drop us an e-mail and let us
know. We would also like to take a moment to welcome
our new sponsors to the Network. We encourage you to
support our sponsors and visit their web sites to find
out more information about them.
For all
you anglers out there, we've updated our Pro's
Pointers page with new information from our LSCnet
resident Pro Bass Fisherman, John "Mini"
Maniaci.
We've
got brand new Scales
and Tales comics from Bill McElroy to keep you
laughing.
The JobbieNooner
Party on Gull Island was a great time for
thousands of area boaters, but it wasn't without it's
detractors. Check out our Jobbienooner page to find
out what went on. If you have pictures of this
year's event that you would like to share, send them
to photos@lakestclair.net.
We
are always looking for content. Content provided can
result in free advertising for your company or
organization. Please E-mail me with suggestions or
proposals. If you are interested in becoming a
Bulletin Board moderator, contact webmaster@lakestclair.net
for more details.
For Internet Solutions visit Advanced
Media Solutions.
Wishing
you calm waters
and sunny skies....
Captain
Rob
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Attention Business Owners: Take
advantage of our free services!! Use the Bulletin
Board as a forum to discuss upcoming sales or specials
you may be running. Post an event on our calendar
letting our visitors know when something special is
going on with your business. Dealers are welcome
to create unlimited classified ads with sound and
pictures, so we encourage you to take advantage of
this great free advertising opportunity.
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Detroit’s
$14 Million Riverfront Promenade To Open
Visiting ships, cruise liners & tour boats will
have a magnificent new 3,000 foot long berth,
right in the heart of downtown Detroit. It will
offer visitors a world class viewing and
boarding experience.
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The
Detroit waterfront will receive a new Riverfront
Promenade at Hart Plaza this July, as part of the
City’s 300th birthday celebration. The cost
of the project will be more than $14 million, according
to the Downtown Development Authority (DDA).
On
July 19th, during the Detroit 300 Festival,
the new Riverfront Promenade will be unveiled and will
run 3,000 feet, from Hart Plaza to Joe Louis Arena. It
will be landscaped, paved with decorative bricks and
granite pavers and feature continuous bench seating,
decorative lighting and railings. It will also offer
spectacular views of the Detroit River, Ambassador
Bridge and the Windsor skyline.
Designed
by Albert Kahn Associates, the Promenade will add a
pedestrian environment to Detroit’s Riverfront.
Architectural and design elements of the Promenade
include an impressive serpentine wall with seating both
atop the wall and seating that is built into the length
of the 3,000 foot wall.
The
Promenade was designed for waterway use as well –
ships and vessels that are touring Detroit as
attractions will now have a pedestrian friendly location
for public viewing and boarding.
The
newly refurbished waterfront will become maritime
central for the visiting tall ships that are part of the
Detroit 300 birthday celebration. More than 20 tall
ships are expected. Many will be tying up along the new
Promenade.
The
Detroit 300 campaign is offering metropolitan Detroit
residents the opportunity to leave their own legacy on
Detroit’s future with personal inscriptions – there
are 3,000 bricks, 3,750 granite pavers and unlimited
opportunities on the 5-foot tall, 30 foot long retaining
walls that are on each side of the stairs that lead from
Hart Plaza to the riverfront.
Ben
Smith, DDA project manager says the Riverfront Promenade
is being built with both design and safety in mind.
“The decorative furniture, lighting and railing system
will be both attractive and safe for families and kids.
With our railing system, you could walk all the way to
the River’s edge and and feel secure”, he says.
As
part of its mission of bringing history into the future,
Detroit 300 has also commissioned artist Ed Dwight to
design the International Underground Railroad Monument,
a symbol of the pivotal role Detroit played in this
movement.
Two
companion monuments will be installed on both the
Detroit and Windsor sides of the Detroit River and will
be unveiled on October 20, 2001. On the Detroit side,
the monument will be installed at the landing of the
main entrance to the Riverfront Promenade.
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| Source
- Tom
Watts, Macomb Daily Staff Writer |
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Chesterfield
residents outraged over boat proposal
The
Chesterfield Township Board of Trustees on
Monday approved an amendment to a parking
ordinance that will not allow residents to
park RVs or boats in their front driveway.
Macomb Daily photo by David N. Posavetz |
Residents
who park a recreational vehicle or boat in
the front yard of their Chesterfield
Township home for more than 24 hours could
be ticketed after an amendment to a
controversial parking ordinance was
approved by the Board of Trustees late
Monday.
After hearing testimony from 42 residents
who spoke against amending the ordinance,
Trustee Kelly Jo Smolarek moved to approve
the amendment, which was supported by
Supervisor Jim Ellis, Clerk Connie Bowles,
Treasurer Elise Miller and Trustee Stephen
Krull.
"The existing amended ordinance is a
relaxation of the past ordinance,"
Ellis said at Monday's regular Board
meeting. "The existing ordinance is
much more restrictive than the amended
ordinance because of the set back rules.
"We're trying to work to make the
ordinance more community- friendly. (But)
it looks like the harder we try to address
the issue, it looks like there are more
complaints."
Trustees Robert Garvin and Jodi Jones
voted against amending the recreational
vehicle ordinance.
"By turning it over to the attorney
and planner," Jones said, "you
take it out of the hands of the
board."
Among the changes to the ordinance,
residents can obtain a permit that will
allow for temporary parking of one RV or
boat in the driveway or the street for a
total of seven days with a total of two
permits issued to each resident.
Despite the backlash Monday, a public
hearing to finalize approved amendments
was set for July 16.
"We hope to have a final draft for
approval by then," Ellis said of the
July meeting. "We thought most of the
board was in agreement with the draft we
have. There needs to be some more fine
tuning. But we're hoping we can make a
decision and force out the old
ordinance."
Dozens of complaints this year about
recreational vehicles and boats sitting in
the front driveways of residential homes
prompted the change in the ordinance,
Ellis said. However, residents say only a
handful of complaints have ruined it for
the boating community.
"Most people say it destroys the
aesthetics of their subdivision,"
Ellis said. "And naturally people on
the other side say they should be able to
park their RVs because they always
have."
The amended ordinance, as presented to the
board on Monday, allows residents to park
one RV or boat along the side of a house
within three feet -- instead of the
current five feet -- and one foot off the
property line. Residents must park the
rest of their RVs in the garage.
"I don't think it's right," said
resident Donna Park, who owns two boats,
two snowmobiles and one RV. "If it's
a safety hazard, enforce it. You're saying
twice a year I can park in the front. I
don't think it's right."
In the amended ordinance, canal residents
would define their front yard as the
'canal side' and the back yard would be
the 'street side.'
"Most of the people (Monday night)
want to say, 'Leave it alone,' (and) most
of the phone calls we get don't want the
existing ordinance changed," Ellis
said. "But there's an ordinance on
the books and it should be enforced,
amended or removed. In this case it needs
to be amended."
Many residents against changing the
ordinance Monday night were in favor of
"abolishing" the ordinance all
together.
"I bought here because I'm a
boater," resident Jamie Scott said.
"I'm not going to put up with it.
Maybe put it on the ballot and let us vote
on it."
Said Ellis: "My position is to not
abolish the ordinance," he said.
"You need some medium to provide
safety in the community."
Other residents argued about the
ordinance's 24-hour rule for having a boat
or RV parked in the driveway.
"Twenty-four hours is not enough time
to get ready to go camping," one
resident said.
Rick James, a resident in Anchor Bay
Gardens, said he pays for his roads in his
subdivision.
"We're private!" he said.
"That's what I'm going to tell
you."
Resident Duane Green quoted a text and
called it "abuse of discretion."
"I think our freedoms are being
infringed on," he said.
Two weeks ago, 57 residents spoke up about
the ordinance. On Monday, 42 residents
stepped up to the podium.
"This has never been a cookie-cutter
community," resident Garnett Connell
said. "Since when have we become such
a fascist community."
In a related agenda item Monday, a
full-time ordinance enforcement officer
was approved by the Board.
"Our full-time officer quit and we
had two part-timers," Ellis said.
"Now we have one full-time officer
(Billy Shaw) which will make it easier to
do his job." |
| ©The
Macomb Daily 2001 |
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Halon
System: Check manual for inspection procedures.
If the system has not been
inspected by a professional within the past two years,
call one and have
him go over the system and make certain there has been
no leakage.
Halyards: Inspect all
wire halyards for signs of corrosion and for broken
strands that stick out;
and wipe each one down with an oily rag, paying
particular attention to
the condition of the splice where the wire is joined
to the length of rope at
its end. Examine rope halyards for signs of chafe
or fraying and replace
those that look doubtful. Use color-coded lines to
simplify identifying the
correct halyard in a hurry when under way.
Hatches: Lubricate hinges
and locking hardware on hatches that open, and inspect
the gaskets or weather stripping around the rims
(replace if dried out
or cracked). Plastic hatches should be coated with wax
and buffed to protect
them against scratching and to help shed dirt.
Head: Scrub walls, shower
stall, sink and counters. Also wash the inside of
the medicine cabinet and
check inside other cabinets and lockers for signs
of mildew. First aid
supplies that were taken home over the winter should
be checked and
replaced as soon as possible.
Holding Tank: Flush out
tank and inspect the discharge for signs of calcification.
Reconnect all hoses and inspect each for signs of
cracking or sponginess.
Hose Clamps: Test each.
clamp with a screwdriver or wrench to make sure it
is tight, and make
certain there are two clamps on each through- hull
fitting (at both ends of
the hose). Only marine-grade stainless steel clamps
should be used,
especially on through-hulls that are below the
waterline.
Hoses: If any engine hose
feels soft or spongy replace it. Also took for cracked
or split sections-especiany near the ends where hose
clamps may have been
overtightened. If any defects or signs of wear are
noticed, replace the hose
as soon as possible. See: hose clamps.
Hull: Wash topsides with
boat soap and a soft brush. Use a stronger hull
cleaner if there are
stubborn stains that won't come off, or if there are
oil or exhaust stains,
especially along the waterline. Wax fiberglass and
all gel-coated surfaces.
Bottoms and underwater metal parts (struts, props,
shafts, trim tabs, etc.)
should have been pressure-washed and scraped clean
in the fall. If this
wasn't done, it should be done before the boat is
launched. If the boat
was stored in the water over the winter, it should be
hauled so the bottom can
be cleaned before the season gets under way. Examine
antifouling bottom paint to see if it needs another
coat or touching up.
Hydraulic Systems: Fluid
levels should have been checked and topped off in
the spring. If you
neglected this, do it now. Also check all lines for
signsof leakage, especially at fittings.
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