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(Editor’s Note: Peninsula Township Supervisor Maura Sanders reports in with news about the PDR program, shoreline regulations, and a ride-along with one of our community police officers. Big thanks to Maura for these weekly updates that keep us tuned into what’s happening at the Township offices. Read on for this week’s update. -jb)
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January 11, 2025
It was a beautiful winter week on the Old Mission Peninsula! There was so much sunshine coming through my office window at one point that I put my sunglasses on rather than lower the blinds.
Township Budget. We kicked off the budgeting season this week. I have been holding preliminary budget discussions with all departments and will continue to do so in the coming week. Once the preliminary work is done, the Budget & Finance Ad Hoc committee will take the reins. I have been introducing the Capital Improvement Planning and Capital Asset Management processes with the goal of full institutional implementation in the future.
PDR Report. The Purchase of Development Rights (PDR) Selection Committee held their meeting this week (read the minutes here). The discussion centered on the current applicants. The meeting agendas and minutes will be posted to the Township website here going forward. For those interested, there is a second meeting next week, Jan. 17, at 10 a.m. in the Township conference room, followed by a “boots on the ground” site visit to some of the applicant properties. There will be a mobile Open Meeting, and anyone is welcome to attend. If you plan to attend, please be mindful of parking at the properties.
Shoreline Regulations. The Planning Commission held their monthly meeting this week. The minutes will be posted soon, but you can watch the recording of the meeting on the Township’s YouTube Channel, where videos are available for 30 days following meetings. Discussion took place regarding next steps for public education for shoreline regulations. Plan on a community wide educational session in early April. I will keep everyone posted as we get closer. The Township will have local, state and federal speakers to address our shoreline regulations.
I was able to spend half of the day yesterday accompanying Community Police Officer Tony Martinez on a Ride-Along! The amount of learning I did in those hours was worth every minute. I was able to see our laser speed detector in action.
Updates from Down the Hall:
Clerk’s Office: It was like ships in the night this week! All I could squeeze out of the Clerk’s office was a reference to the meeting schedules and meeting minutes, available through those links on the Township website. They were busy!
Treasurer’s Office: Not much to report, and I feel bad about that so I will leave you with this link to the 2024 Audit Report. Exciting stuff!
Assessor’s Office: The assessor finished up new construction permit work “in the field” and is working on the 2025 valuations.
Planning and Zoning Office: By now, most folks have heard that we are having some change-ups in this office. Tori Wolever, our zoning administrator, has moved on to be the development coordinator at the Conservation Resource Alliance. Our Director of Planning and Zoning, Jenn Cram, has accepted a position in the private sector and will be leaving us Tuesday. The Township sincerely thanks both women for propelling us forward and making the processes more transparent and consistent!
Mission Point Lighthouse: Lighthouse Manager Ginger Schultz is one dedicated lady. She is in the office every day preparing for the spring opening of the Lighthouse, as well as dealing with the many logistics of managing a historical building — in this case, the furnace. Thank you for taking such good care of such an important asset and community treasure.
Have a great weekend, everyone.
Maura Sanders
Peninsula Township Supervisor
Phone: (231) 223-7323
Email: [email protected]
Office Hours: Mondays 7:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.; Tuesdays – Thursdays 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.; closed Friday – Sunday and Holidays. If TCAPS is closed due to weather, Peninsula Township offices are closed at least until 10 a.m. Please check the website homepage for any updates.
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SUPPORT YOUR INDEPENDENT LOCAL NEWSPAPER: I started Old Mission Gazette in 2015 because I felt a calling to provide the Old Mission Peninsula community with local news. After decades of writing for newspapers and magazines like the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Family Circle and Ladies' Home Journal, I really just wanted to write about my own community where I grew up on a cherry farm and raised my own family. So I started my own newspaper.
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Bet many of us know exactly where that photo was taken, Jane. One of my favorite spots, as it means I’m about to sit on a bench and gaze at the bay.
That’s a beautiful photo, Jane!