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| Board of Education Meeting; August 17, 2009 | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Sep 2 2009, 12:05 AM (691 Views) | |
| Administrator | Sep 2 2009, 12:05 AM Post #1 |
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Administrator
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http://www.livoniapublicschools.org//videos.cfm?channelID=1&categoryID=12 Watch the meeting, then comment. |
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| Deleted User | Sep 2 2009, 01:14 PM Post #2 |
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PLANTING OF NATIVE GRASS SPECIES ON LANDFILL CAPS AND FORMERLY CONTAMINATED WASTE SITES IN THE MID ATLANTIC Native warm season grasses provide extremely valuable habitat for ground-nesting birds and many mammals. They are very deep rooted, making for a long lasting, stress tolerant, low maintenance plant. The root biomass of native warm season grasses far exceeds that of the introduced cool season grasses. This characteristic provides increased organic matter in soils and more rapid infiltration rates. The bunch-type habit of these grasses provides space for the These These species are also invasive and can sparrow). populations. summer. mowing rotation. Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) cap. site planted in native grasses for six years costs $3,000. inclusion of native forbs, wildflowers, and legumes to further improve habitat quality. In the past, most landfill caps and remediated waste sites have been vegetated with a monoculture of cool season non-native turf grasses (e.g., Tall Fescue or Kentucky 31). non-native species may provide quick cover that can stabilize soils, but they require regular mowing and periodic fertilizing to maintain plant vigor. out compete native plant species. These non-native species generally provide little food or cover for grassland birds or other wildlife, and it essentially wastes land that could be productive for wildlife. This is especially critical when breeding bird surveys note continuing declines in populations of many grassland birds (e.g., field sparrows, grasshopper sparrows, and Henslow's There are alternative strategies that produce vegetative cover that can stabilize the soil and provide erosion control, provide habitat for a wide range of birds and other wildlife, and have lower maintenance costs than what is currently used. By striving for a diverse grassland community, habitat will be provided for several species of grassland birds with declining Planting a seed mix with a both native warm and cool season grasses can achieve all of these objectives. Cool season grasses grow and flower in the early and cooler part of the Warm season grasses grow in the later and warmer part of the summer. Warm season grasses are better adapted to poor soils and drier conditions, making them well suited for landfill and other caps systems, as well as most formerly contaminated waste sites. While these cool and warm season grasses do require some mowing/haying to prevent woody species invasion and to maintain plant vigor, these grasses can often be managed on a three year Conversely, species typically planted (e.g., Kentucky 31 fescue) requires mowing and fertilization at least twice a year. Thus the long-term mowing costs of these nonnative species, as proposed for many cap systems, are six times the cost of mowing a native warm season grass community. Using 2003 estimates, it costs $50/acre to mow a Resource Using Kentucky 31 as a cap seed mixture on a 30 acre landfill, and mowing twice a year for six years costs $18,000. However, managing the same Establishing a community of native grasses does take more effort, planning, and care initially. Seeding must be done at appropriate times, and sometimes requires specialized equipment. It also takes two years to fully establish the warm season grass plants. But the long-term maintenance costs will pay off, and the difference in habitat value for wildlife species is substantial. http://www.epa.gov/reg3hwmd/risk/eco/restoration/Planting_Native_Grasses_at_Formerly_Contaminated_Waste_Sit..pdf |
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| Ms. AK | Sep 2 2009, 03:40 PM Post #3 |
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My observations of this meeting: On Franklin pool fix: 1. It was suggested by Ms. Mang, Ms. Burton & Mr. King to get a second opinion on the HVAC fix at Franklin pool. Auch, who designed the "pool fix" was paid to do that--and they will be the company getting the contractors to do the work. Lots of power and money for a looooong-time LPS consultant. Mr. King, Ms. Burton & Ms. Mang suggested "mixing it up a little" and gathering more information from another company before spending over a million. 2. Mr. Oke shot that down, saying that it was not necessary to seek another opinion, because it would cost money. Yet, he did not mention that money could be saved by seeking another opinion. It was also not discussed how much a second opinion would cost. Ms. Burton folded on her suggestion for another opinion and went with the flow. Mr. King and Ms. Mang stood their ground. Mr. King's comments were purposely edited out of the tape: During Mr. King's comments, at one point, he was censured and completely cut off. His comments were edited out of the final tape. Who decides to censure the meeting? Although Mr. King was censured, at another point, Mr. Lessard's rude, disrepectful and nasty comments to Mr. King were not. Mr. King DID NOT respond in kind to Mr. Lessard. Use of soccer field will require money to pay for buses Mr. Liepa said that LPS students would use the soccer place "during school hours" and that bus transportation would be provided. AK: Soccer field trips are okay for using buses? Yet, educational field trips are denied because it is deemed "too expensive" to use buses? Ms. Mang asked how old is the soccer dome really? Mr. Liepa said it was "in storage" for two years, but he would not say how old the dome really is. Ms. Scheel did not saying much during the meeting. While still employing an imperial attitude while running the meeting, Ms. Scheel is being very, very careful not to get herself too riled and end up on YouTube, yet, once again. It appears she has been schooled to not fly off the handle. |
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Krome on Cars | |
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| Deleted User | Sep 2 2009, 08:36 PM Post #4 |
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I agree with Greg Oke when he says it has been 18 years or so this property has sat. That would be unacceptable to me if I lived in the area, really unacceptable. I do not know all the details, but I need to understand why it is so important to develop the land. All the risk seems to fall on the shoulders of LPS. Why is it so important to develop the land? Why didn't we just cap it as soon as the money was available? If it is capped for another 25 years, will progress produce a better remediation method in the future? Will the economy be better at that time? Are there alternatives to "cutting the grass" as Mr. Lessard pointed out? Are those alternatives allowable under Michigan law? Will people be willing to play soccer on a landfill? How do we remediate the rest of the land? Who will mow the grass, and be responsible, if it all falls through after two years? Who will pay to maintain the soccer dome that we will own if it falls through in two years? |
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| LPS Reformer | Sep 2 2009, 09:53 PM Post #5 |
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The schools exist to educate, not employ.
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What part of Mr. Kings comments were censured? How far into the meeting was it? |
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“Child Abuse” means different things to different people.... ----Randy Liepa 8/9/12 | |
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| Whatever | Sep 3 2009, 10:32 AM Post #6 |
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Very good questions! I don't think they thought about this: Will people be willing to play soccer on a landfill? |
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| Ms. AK | Sep 3 2009, 11:35 AM Post #7 |
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At 102.05, Mr. King's audio and visual fades mid-sentence to another shot. It could've been the editor's mistake, but I did not note another BOE member's comments cut short. At the time of the audio fade, Mr. King was questioning Ms. Abbey about how rent is established for the few leasees LPS has. At another time, Mr. King was making comments and the editor did not give him a head-and-shoulder shot, which usually happens when the individual BOE members make comments. The editor chose a wide shot for Mr. King's comments. In TV, there are usually 3 cameras used, however, I'm not sure how many cameras are in use at a BOE meeting (TBurr can you help here?), but, once again, the editor could have make a mistake. Also, Mr. Lessard snickers before many of Mr. King's comment begin. |
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Krome on Cars | |
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| Ms. AK | Sep 3 2009, 11:49 AM Post #8 |
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Also, the "neighbors" to the fenced "old" Cooper area include a strip mall, a (closed?) gas station, a smallish complex of townhouses (across the street), a graveyard, the "new" Cooper school about .5 mile east, and a largish complex of apartments across the street from new Cooper. There are no houses or traditional neighborhoods butting up to the site. Old Cooper looks like an overgrown field with a tall fence around it. Behind the old Cooper area is a heavily wooded area and behind that and down the hill is Hines Park. There is not a turning lane in front of the fenced area. Ann Arbor is a 2 lane street there. Depending on traffic, I believe this could pose an issue in this area. It seems to me, that a turning lane and/or a widening of the road will be necessary. I don't know for sure. Where is the soccer concern contract for the public to view? Would one have to FOIA? To be honest, I do not trust Mr. Liepa's business sense or his ability to make wise business decisions for LPS. How much were all the consultants, lawyers (2 law firms), etc. paid to prepare for this soccer dome business deal? Was that amount taken into account to decide what kind of deal this is for LPS, considering upfront costs, etc.? |
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Krome on Cars | |
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| tburr | Sep 3 2009, 02:11 PM Post #9 |
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You are correct Anna. At 102.05, Mr. King's audio and visual does indeed cross-dissolve mid-sentence to a wide shot of the board room. You can hear Mr. Freeman staring to take the vote role without the usual direction by Ms. Scheel to "take the role" Definitely an edited meeting. Very poorly done I might add. The question then is.... Why? If I were you Mr. King, I would demand an answer as to why... |
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| Deleted User | Sep 3 2009, 04:35 PM Post #10 |
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Bummer. I guess the edited portions will just end up on the much more visable, and searched, YouTube in the future. |
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| Purple Haze | Sep 4 2009, 11:30 AM Post #11 |
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you forget, tburr, that Ken McMullen is in charge of the LPS video department in my experiences with Mr. McMullen, too many meetings have not been re-broadcast for a plethora of excuses, hence the $20.00 charge for a DVD copy if you miss the original meeting... revenue enhancement at its best! |
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| injuneer | Sep 4 2009, 11:45 AM Post #12 |
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The transition that you see in the recording is likely a tape change. Being as LPS isn't exactly NBC, my guess is they picked a bad spot to dub the two tapes together. |
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| Ms. AK | Sep 4 2009, 02:53 PM Post #13 |
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Don't follow? "Tape" change? Isn't this digital? |
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Krome on Cars | |
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| injuneer | Sep 4 2009, 03:18 PM Post #14 |
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I can't speak for how LPS specifically records their programs but my guess is they are not anywhere remotely close to digital. Digital equipment = seriously big bucks Most operations like this are still recording to tapes which are lucky to hold 90 minutes therefore they will start up a second tape leaving a little overlap. After the recording is done they have to dub the tapes together to end up with one continuous program to put on-line (convert to digital) or replay on TV. Even if they have modernized a little and write directly to a DVD-R there is still a capacity issue similar to tapes and a long meeting will have to transition onto multiple DVD's. |
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| LPS Reformer | Sep 4 2009, 07:12 PM Post #15 |
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The schools exist to educate, not employ.
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I went back through the copy of the meeting I have. Nothing very interesting. |
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“Child Abuse” means different things to different people.... ----Randy Liepa 8/9/12 | |
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