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OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD

Record of Proceedings

Portage City Council Meeting - March 9, 2026

City Council — Monday, March 9, 2026

BodyPortage, Michigan

SessionCity Council

DateMonday, March 9, 2026

StatusFILED

Video Record

0:00 / 48:24

Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

0:10

I call uh to order the uh March 9th, 2026, Portage City Council meeting.

0:17

Uh please rise for a moment of silence due to the Iran War and seven follow fallen U.S.

0:25

soldiers, then remain standing for the pledge of allegiance.

0:28

Thank you.

0:36

I pledge allegiance to the flag, the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands.

0:44

One nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all.

0:50

Will the uh clerk please call the roll?

0:55

Yes, Mayor Pro Tem.

0:57

Burns.

0:58

Here.

0:58

Ledbetter?

0:59

Here.

1:00

Miller.

1:00

Here.

1:01

Olmstead.

1:03

Pearson.

1:04

Here.

1:04

Randall.

1:06

And Young.

1:07

Here.

1:08

So Mayor Randall is unable to attend the meeting tonight.

1:12

And if you're watching on the screen, she's listening in via TV link.

1:18

And you can see her picture in the lower right hand corner.

1:21

She's not able to speak, but she's watching everything that goes on here.

1:25

So next we'll move on to proclamations.

1:27

And this is going to be fun.

1:29

We're going to swear in the fire division dog Flora.

1:33

And I'm going to turn to Deputy Clerk Tammy Durin, who will administer the oath for Flora, accompanied by Director Matt Wolf and firefighter Scott LaRau.

2:11

Providing comfort, Valley Ropes with Dnity, and serving the community with oil team, good cheer.

2:19

And for the city portage, we have to zoo to the best of your guilty.

2:35

Thanks.

2:36

Chief, do you want to say a few words?

2:38

Sure, thank you.

2:40

Um I was appointed on a Tuesday night, and this project was uh left on my desk the following morning on Wednesday morning.

2:49

Uh what I found out was that um bet a lot of firefighters do a lot of uh hard work on getting this program stood up.

2:55

Uh they did a lot of research to determine feasibility.

2:58

They did a pilot program, they developed policies.

3:02

Umce uh this landed on my desks.

3:05

I I really like the idea.

3:06

I worked with uh city manager McGuinness to bring it across the finish line.

3:10

And uh once we got the green light, we partnered with uh Hounds and Company on Portage Road for uh food and Shaver Road Vet for veterinary care.

3:20

So we have some uh some very uh philanthropic partners out there in the community that are helping us out with this program.

3:26

Uh Scott Laroe, one of our firefighters, uh actually trained Flora.

3:30

The actual purchase of the dog came from the Portage uh Public Safety Foundation, so there's no taxpayer uh dollars being used.

3:37

And so far, she's uh uh been a wonderful asset to the department.

3:41

Now let Scott uh say a few words about the program.

3:47

Um first off, thanks for letting me um come in here today with her.

3:51

Um I got uh unique opportunity to be able to help train this dog.

3:55

Uh a partnership with myself and Warrior Canine.

3:59

Um so some of the stuff this dog's gonna be able to help with, is she's gonna be doing a lot of post-stress, you know, post-incident stress debriefings for the firefighters in the morning.

4:11

We're actually going down to Union City with her.

4:13

Um so there's just a lot of things like that.

4:16

So she can help us here a lot.

4:18

She's she's a comfort for the firefighters, a lot of normalcy.

4:22

You know, we live at the fire station.

4:23

For you that don't know, we're there 24 hours a day.

4:26

There's somewhere at the fire station seven days a week.

4:28

So for us to have something that's just a little bit like at home, she helps with that.

4:34

We can go to other municipalities or other fire departments, other public safety places, or schools, whatever, to help just give bring somebody a little bit of extra comfort, a little cheer, and a little um smile.

4:46

Sometimes that's all that it needs.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting

Waste Management██████████████████████████26%

Public Engagement██████████████████████22%

Youth Programs████████████12%

Procedural█████████9%

Animal Welfare████████8%

Public Safety███████7%

Mental Health Awareness████4%

Environmental Protection████4%

Transportation Safety████4%

Summary of Proceedings

Portage City Council Meeting - March 9, 2026

City Council met on March 9, 2026, with Mayor Pro Tem Burns presiding due to Mayor Randall's absence (she attended via video link). The meeting opened with a moment of silence for seven U.S. soldiers fallen in the Iran War, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. Key highlights included the swearing-in of a therapy dog for the fire division, public comments on a ballot measure and mental health policy, and updates on the new waste management contract and tornado relief efforts.

Proclamation & Special Presentation

Swearing-in of Therapy Dog Flora: The council administered the oath to Flora, a facility dog for the Fire Division, funded by the Portage Public Safety Foundation (no taxpayer dollars). Fire Director Matt Wolf and firefighter Scott LaRau described Flora's role in post-incident stress debriefing and providing comfort to firefighters. Councilmember Miller presented a welcome basket with donations from Hounds and Company. A retired public safety officer expressed support for the program, noting the importance of mental health support for first responders.

Public Comments & Testimony

Terry Tassari (6047 Marlowe) spoke against the upcoming May 5th ballot initiative regarding trash collection, arguing that citizens should not have to vote on such complex issues. He stated he would vote 'no' and hoped a decisive defeat would discourage future ballot initiatives, preferring representative democracy.
Elizabeth O'Dell (representing Kalamazoo Alumni Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority) and Gloria Foster Wemley (Social Action Chair) requested information from the city on mental health and health care policies, asking for a response from Mayor Randall to take to the state level. They also noted similar outreach to the City of Kalamazoo.

Consent Calendar

The consent agenda was approved unanimously by roll call vote (all present members voting 'aye'). No items were removed.

Communications

Youth Advisory Committee (YAC) Presentation: Chairperson Anya Goyle and member Katherine Lee presented the 2025-2026 YAC goals and objectives, including continued volunteer activities (e.g., back-to-school event, food drive, Valentine's Day celebration), liaison roles on city boards, and maintenance of a social media presence. The council received and approved the report by voice vote.
Appointment of Steve Rodia: Appointed as the second citizen-at-large member to the Water and Sewer Rate Study Committee. Approved by voice vote.

Discussion Items

Council Committee Reports: Councilmember Burns reported on the Central County Transportation Authority (CCTA) board meeting, noting a proposed millage of 0.36 mills for seven years on the August 2026 ballot to support Metro Connect paratransit services (for seniors and residents with disabilities). Discussion was minimal; the report was received by voice vote.
Council Member Statements:
- Councilmember Olmsted explained that the initial $42.12 waste management bills cover three months (March–May 2026) at $14.04/month, and noted upcoming events (KRESA Career Connect campus, tick season awareness).
- Councilmember Ledbetter urged residents to report issues with the new waste management service, and expressed opposition to the May 5th ballot measure, citing that Best Way (the losing bidder) never complained about the bidding process in other communities and that the company supports variable pricing. He noted the $55,000 cost of the special election.
- Councilmember Miller provided updates on ice rink feasibility discussions (town halls, CSL study highlighting critical need) and encouraged patience with the waste management transition.
- Councilmember Young thanked the YAC and Delta Sigma Theta, offered condolences for Union City tornado victims, highlighted the city's emergency alert system (first Saturday of each month), and announced an opiate settlement-funded presentation by Becky Savage at Portage Central High School on March 11, 2026, as well as the March 25th Portage Road 360 Phase 1 construction meeting.
- Councilmember Burns welcomed Steve Rodia to the rate study committee, announced the annual meeting on March 24, 2026, at 10 a.m., and suggested involving youth in addressing the potential loss of ice rink capacity.
City Manager McGuinness: Reported on the waste management transition: call volumes improved from an initial 2-minute hold time to 6 seconds by day two, and 27 seconds by Friday. He noted 224 calls on Friday, with yard waste signups ongoing. He also reported that six city employees volunteered to help with tornado cleanup in Three Rivers, with equipment transport donated by a local contractor.

Key Outcomes

Consent Agenda: Approved unanimously.
YAC Report: Received and approved by voice vote.
Steve Rodia Appointment: Approved by voice vote to the Water and Sewer Rate Study Committee.
Council Committee Reports: Received by voice vote.
No further votes or formal actions were taken. The meeting adjourned after Mayor Pro Tem Burns's closing remarks advocating a 'no' vote on the May 5th trash proposal, citing personal cost savings under the new single-hauler contract with Waste Management.

Meeting Transcript

I call uh to order the uh March 9th, 2026, Portage City Council meeting. Uh please rise for a moment of silence due to the Iran War and seven follow fallen U.S. soldiers, then remain standing for the pledge of allegiance. Thank you. I pledge allegiance to the flag, the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Will the uh clerk please call the roll? Yes, Mayor Pro Tem. Burns. Here. Ledbetter? Here. Miller. Here. Olmstead. Pearson. Here. Randall. And Young. Here. So Mayor Randall is unable to attend the meeting tonight. And if you're watching on the screen, she's listening in via TV link. And you can see her picture in the lower right hand corner. She's not able to speak, but she's watching everything that goes on here. So next we'll move on to proclamations. And this is going to be fun. We're going to swear in the fire division dog Flora. And I'm going to turn to Deputy Clerk Tammy Durin, who will administer the oath for Flora, accompanied by Director Matt Wolf and firefighter Scott LaRau. Providing comfort, Valley Ropes with Dnity, and serving the community with oil team, good cheer. And for the city portage, we have to zoo to the best of your guilty. Thanks. Chief, do you want to say a few words? Sure, thank you. Um I was appointed on a Tuesday night, and this project was uh left on my desk the following morning on Wednesday morning. Uh what I found out was that um bet a lot of firefighters do a lot of uh hard work on getting this program stood up. Uh they did a lot of research to determine feasibility. They did a pilot program, they developed policies. Umce uh this landed on my desks. I I really like the idea. I worked with uh city manager McGuinness to bring it across the finish line. And uh once we got the green light, we partnered with uh Hounds and Company on Portage Road for uh food and Shaver Road Vet for veterinary care. So we have some uh some very uh philanthropic partners out there in the community that are helping us out with this program. Uh Scott Laroe, one of our firefighters, uh actually trained Flora. The actual purchase of the dog came from the Portage uh Public Safety Foundation, so there's no taxpayer uh dollars being used. And so far, she's uh uh been a wonderful asset to the department. Now let Scott uh say a few words about the program. Um first off, thanks for letting me um come in here today with her. Um I got uh unique opportunity to be able to help train this dog. Uh a partnership with myself and Warrior Canine. Um so some of the stuff this dog's gonna be able to help with, is she's gonna be doing a lot of post-stress, you know, post-incident stress debriefings for the firefighters in the morning.

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