- Weed management program for all of Henderson Lake. Open water & shoreline
- Treatment of Eurasian Water Milfoil, Curly Leaf Pondweed and any future invasive species of weeds
- Treatment of all developed shoreline for any weeds up 5’ water depth. (This includes lily pads, pond weed, etc. All weeds in water depth of 5’ or less.)
- Undeveloped shoreline will not be treated except for Milfoil, Curly Leaf and future invasive plants, and only if needed
- Henderson Lake Milfoil Control Committee is urging formation of a Special Assessment District for funding
- Public Act 188 of 1954 defines this structure used for “Special Assessment Districts to provide for payment of an improvement by special assessment against the property to be benefited by the improvement”.
- S.A.D. will run for five years 2015 /16 /17 /18 /19
- Proceeds will be used only for weed control on Henderson Lake
- $160/year per lakefront lot
- $30/year per back-lot with deeded access
- Owners of multiple lots are encouraged to combine lots
- Both Cumming & Hill Township Boards have approved this initiative
- Petition attached for approval signature. 57% owner approval is required.
- Return as quickly as possible to those listed below. No later than July 6th 2014
- Both townships will hold public hearings if 57% (or over) sign the Petition, likely in August / Sept. 2014 timeframe.
- If approved, the special assessment will be included as a line item in property taxes for 2015 /16 /17 /18 /19.
- Henderson Lake Milfoil Control Committee will be involved in treatment contractor selection, definition of areas requiring treatment and quality surveillance of the treatments.
Downloads...
Special Assessment Progress
(From Oct. 2013)
Welcome to Henderson Lake in Lupton, Michigan
- 2 Consultations with Attorney-at Law, Cliff Bloom, Riparian Rights specialist with Bloom Sluggett Morgan Law P.C. and Counsel for Michigan Lakes & Streams Association
- 3 Consultations with Mr. Scott Brown, Executive Director of Michigan Lakes & Streams Association
- 8 (at least) Personal visits and conversations with Ogemaw County Department of Equalization
- 12 (at least) Personal visits and conversations with Ogemaw County Register of Deeds
- 14 Conference Calls of HLMC to coordinate, communicate, track, manage, etc. this overall effort
- 16 (at least) Conversations and meetings with Hill Twp. Supervisor Rob Reid who has experience with creation and management of Special Assessment Districts for Aquatic Weed Control
- 24 Township monthly meetings attended by representatives of HLMC (Cumming & Hill Twps.)
Hill Township
- Allens Park
- Henderson Lake Heights Sub. #1
- Henderson Lake Heights Sub. #2
Links to Petitions
Special Assessment Petition Updates
The Henderson Lake Milfoil Control Committee (HLMC), who have been managing invasive weed species since 2010, strongly believe that approving and creating this Special Assessment District for weed control is best for long-term aquatic health,
boating & fishing and also property values. Please consider the future of our beautiful lake.
Special Assessment District for Weed Control
Plat Maps & Tax ID Numbers
State of Michigan
Plat Map Library
http://www.dleg.state.mi.us/platmaps/sr_subs.asp
(This application requires Java.)
Be on the Lookout!
Another Invasive Species
Cumming Township
- Henderson Lake Sub. #1
- Henderson Beach Sub. (from 1925) now re-platted into "Assessor's Plats of Ogemaw and Chippewa" #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8.
Website for Residents & Property Owners at this Wonderful Place
Special Assessment History
May 31, 2014
The Special Assessment District Petition currently in circulation is the result of significant input from legal counsel, professional experience and Twp. Boards. This petition scope is defined by both Cumming & Hill Twp. Boards.
Ogemaw County
Property Search
Both Ogemaw County and the State of Michigan have some very useful on-line tools for locating
Plat Maps, Tax ID Numbers, Assessed Values and Tax History.
Read and learn more about European Frog-Bit and other invasive species at the
Midwest Invasive Species Information Network website.
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources' Wildlife Division is leading response efforts to control a new aquatic invasive plant, European frog-bit (Hydrocharis morsus-ranae).
Until recently, this free-floating plant had only been reported in a few localized sites in the southeastern Lower Peninsula. Through recent statewide monitoring efforts, this species has been detected in Saginaw Bay, Alpena and Munuscong Bay in Chippewa County.
- Hundreds of email exchanges (HLMC Members, Township Board Representatives, Cumming & Hill Twp. Assessors, Michigan Lakes & Streams Staff Members, etc.)
- MANY hundreds of man-hours invested by HLMC since 2010, researching, shaping, GPS plotting of weed beds, coordinating, consulting, communicating, attending twp. meetings, and generally managing invasive aquatic weed species, aquatic health, usefulness and overall value of Henderson Lake as a wonderful destination.
- Next Steps to preserve Henderson Lake for future generations
- We ALL need to act now
- Please your petition and provide the required information. If more than one owner all signatures are required
Ogemaw County
Property Tax Search
Henderson Lake has five platted subdivisions...
Background
Both Cumming & Hill Townships scheduled, announced by US Mail & Ogemaw Herald postings, two special Township Meetings. The purpose of these meetings were for...
- Hearing concerns about creation of the Special Assessment District, and
- Finalizing the financial calculations / billing to property owners within the proposed District.
Dates for these meetings were...
Cumming Twp.
- Hearing: Thursday, Sept. 19, 2013
- Finalize: Thursday, Sept. 26, 2013
Hill Twp.
- Hearing: Friday, Sept. 20, 2013
- Finalize: Friday, Sept. 27, 2013
Update
Both of the first hearings went about per expected. There were a total of five owners in the two townships combined who voiced disagreement with the proposed Weed Control Assessment District. The Committee had managed to gather signed petitions from 66% FOR in Cumming and 61% FOR in Hill Townships vs. that required by PA188 of 51% minimum. Very good support by a clear majority of property owners.
During the second required Public Hearing in Cumming Twp (Sept. 26) the Twp Board became very concerned about how to coordinate the SAD between two townships; coordination of competitive bidding, supplier selection, quality surveillance and payments to the supplier.
The Cumming Board had also developed concerns / confusion regarding the five Public Accesses in the south / Henderson Beach Subdivision; the accesses intended use, who can use them, who maintains them and No Trespassing signs that had been posted at two of the five. While these concerns had nothing to do with the proposed SAD, they resulted in concern and confusion within the Board. In the end, the Board took no action toward creation of the SAD for 2014 tax year.
Hill Township was in full support of creating the SAD in their second Public Hearing (Sept. 27), but given that most of Henderson Lake is in Cumming Twp and that Cumming Twp Board took no action, the Hill Board took no action as well.
Meanwhile, our assortment of invasive weed species is still there and will need treatment in 2014. The weeds know nothing about Twp Boards and PA188 SAD's. So, for 2014 treatments we will be back to the voluntary donation program we've run since 2010.
(See Donation article below.)
The Henderson Lake Milfoil Committee is re-grouping on how to proceed and next steps. Many thanks to all on the Committee for the hundreds of man-hours spent on this project!
Copyright © 2016 Bill Olsen. All rights reserved.