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Record of Proceedings

Portage City Council Meeting - July 7, 2026: Proclamation, Ordinance, and Council Updates

City Council — Tuesday, July 7, 2026
BodyPortage, Michigan
SessionCity Council
DateTuesday, July 7, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 11:02

Transcript — Verbatim
0:04

Good evening.

0:05

I call to order the July 7th, 2026 Portage City Council meeting in honor of all denominations and personal beliefs.

0:13

And as we support the efforts of all that promote summer learning opportunities for the youth in this community, please rise for a moment of personal introspection and remain standing for the privilege of allegiance.

0:33

Please join me in the pledge.

0:36

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America.

0:41

And to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible liberty and justice for all.

0:53

And if I could ask the clerk, please call the roll.

0:56

Yes, Madam Mayor.

0:57

I'll start with Burns.

0:58

Here.

0:59

Ledbetter.

0:59

Here.

1:00

Miller.

1:00

Here, Olmstead.

1:02

Here, Pearson.

1:03

Here.

1:03

Randall.

1:04

Here.

1:04

And Young here.

1:06

Thank you.

1:07

All right.

1:07

We're all here this evening.

1:09

And I we also have one proclamation.

1:11

It's the National Day of Summer Learning.

1:14

And if I could please ask Jacese Robertson to please come forward.

1:18

She is a representative from the Kalmazou Youth Network, and she will read the proclamation into the official record.

1:24

Good evening and welcome.

1:25

Good evening.

1:26

Good evening.

1:27

Honored to be here.

1:30

All right.

1:31

So a national day of summer learning.

1:34

Whereas high quality summer learning opportunities are more important than ever in 2026.

1:40

And whereas across the city of Portage, we are coming together to ensure youth and families have access to inclusive, high quality youth programming and critical support for young people to heal, lead, and thrive in the summer months.

1:54

And whereas the National Day of Summer Learning recognizes the vital role of inclusive, high-quality summer programs in supporting young people to thrive, and whereas these programs support youth to build positive identities, experience belonging and exercise agency, nurturing lifelong social and emotional learning skills, and whereas these programs provide youth with real world skills, mentorship, and meaningful opportunities to shape their futures and contribute to their communities and whereas community partners, including schools, nonprofits, libraries, businesses, and youth themselves are innovating to ensure all youth or all young people can access enriching, affirming and culturally responsive summer experiences in whereas the demand for these programs far exceeds the availability, and we must create sustainable funding models and remove barriers to access.

2:47

Now therefore we resolved that I, Patricia M.

2:50

Brandle, as the mayor of the City of Portage to hereby proclaim July 16th, 2026 as the National Day of Summer Learning here in the City of Portage.

3:00

And I commend this observance to all of our citizens.

3:04

Thank you for joining us this evening.

3:06

If you could tell us a little bit about your organization, we'd love to hear it.

3:10

Absolutely.

3:10

So I have the honor of serving as the community engagement lead for the Kalamazoo Youth Development Network.

3:17

We've been around for 25 years, and we serve as an intermediary for the out-of-school time sector.

3:22

So our job is to make sure that all young people have access to high quality out-of-school time programming.

3:28

And so we have the opportunity or the privilege of doing that in Kalamazoo County as well as Calhoun County.

3:33

And so excited for the event that we have uh next week to really highlight all of this and to really celebrate the National Day of Summer Learning.

3:41

All right.

3:41

Well, thank you very much for joining us.

3:43

I have a copy of the proclamation if you'd like it.

3:45

Yes, absolutely.

3:55

All right, moving on with our agenda.

3:57

This is uh the opportunity for petition or statement of citizens.

4:00

If anyone was here this evening that would like to approach the council, now is the appropriate time.

4:09

All right, seeing no one come forward, I'll ask if there are any callers on the line.

4:13

There are no callers.

4:15

All right.

4:15

Uh moving on.

4:17

Uh, under our consent agenda, the consent agenda is available for review by visiting the City of Portage website where it can be found under the City Council agenda and minute section.

4:27

Or you can obtain a hard copy at any time from the city clerk during regular business hours.

4:33

At this time, does anyone on the council wish to have an item removed from the consent agenda for individual consideration?

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural█████████████████████████████████████████████63%
Public Safety██████████████20%
Youth Programs████████████17%
Summary of Proceedings

Portage City Council Meeting - July 7, 2026

The Portage City Council met on July 7, 2026, with all members present. The meeting included a proclamation for the National Day of Summer Learning, approval of the consent agenda, adoption of an ordinance on emergency police lines and nuisance parties, and statements from council members covering community events, storm response, and city initiatives.

Proclamation

  • National Day of Summer Learning: Jacese Robertson from the Kalamazoo Youth Development Network read a proclamation designating July 16, 2026, as the National Day of Summer Learning in Portage. The proclamation highlighted the importance of inclusive, high-quality summer programs for youth, noting that demand exceeds availability and calling for sustainable funding and removal of access barriers.

Consent Calendar

  • The consent agenda, containing routine items, was approved unanimously by roll call vote.

Ordinance Adoption

  • Emergency Police Lines and Nuisance Parties Ordinance: The council adopted an ordinance amending Chapter 50 of the Portage City Code to authorize emergency police lines and clear zones and to regulate nuisance parties. The item had been under revision over several meetings. The vote was unanimous.

Council Statements

  • Councilmember Young: Urged residents to prepare emergency kits for storms and to clear debris from sidewalks and streets for pedestrian and cyclist safety.
  • Councilmember Burns: Had no statement.
  • Councilmember Olmsted: Announced a reading of the Declaration of Independence on July 8 at 6 p.m. at the Portage District Library as part of the America 250 celebration, and noted logic and accuracy testing of tabulators on July 9.
  • Councilmember Ledbetter: Had no statement.
  • Councilmember Miller: Thanked public safety and the Department of Public Works for storm response; reported on attending the Michigan Municipal League Board of Trustees meeting, where she presented on Portage's inclusive "natural place to love" campaign; thanked city staff for America 250 events, noting the patriotic pops concert moved indoors and the 1776 musical rescheduled due to weather.
  • Acting City Manager Heringa: Expressed gratitude for the trust placed in him to serve as acting city manager.
  • Mayor Brandle: Issued a happy birthday to her father and invited residents to the free summer concert series on July 9 featuring a Michael Jackson tribute band.

Key Outcomes

  • Adopted the proclamation declaring July 16, 2026, as the National Day of Summer Learning.
  • Approved the consent agenda unanimously.
  • Adopted the ordinance amending Chapter 50 to establish authority for emergency police lines, clear zones, and regulation of nuisance parties (unanimous vote).
  • Council members shared information on community events, storm preparedness, and city governance activities.

Meeting Transcript

Good evening. I call to order the July 7th, 2026 Portage City Council meeting in honor of all denominations and personal beliefs. And as we support the efforts of all that promote summer learning opportunities for the youth in this community, please rise for a moment of personal introspection and remain standing for the privilege of allegiance. Please join me in the pledge. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America. And to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible liberty and justice for all. And if I could ask the clerk, please call the roll. Yes, Madam Mayor. I'll start with Burns. Here. Ledbetter. Here. Miller. Here, Olmstead. Here, Pearson. Here. Randall. Here. And Young here. Thank you. All right. We're all here this evening. And I we also have one proclamation. It's the National Day of Summer Learning. And if I could please ask Jacese Robertson to please come forward. She is a representative from the Kalmazou Youth Network, and she will read the proclamation into the official record. Good evening and welcome. Good evening. Good evening. Honored to be here. All right. So a national day of summer learning. Whereas high quality summer learning opportunities are more important than ever in 2026. And whereas across the city of Portage, we are coming together to ensure youth and families have access to inclusive, high quality youth programming and critical support for young people to heal, lead, and thrive in the summer months. And whereas the National Day of Summer Learning recognizes the vital role of inclusive, high-quality summer programs in supporting young people to thrive, and whereas these programs support youth to build positive identities, experience belonging and exercise agency, nurturing lifelong social and emotional learning skills, and whereas these programs provide youth with real world skills, mentorship, and meaningful opportunities to shape their futures and contribute to their communities and whereas community partners, including schools, nonprofits, libraries, businesses, and youth themselves are innovating to ensure all youth or all young people can access enriching, affirming and culturally responsive summer experiences in whereas the demand for these programs far exceeds the availability, and we must create sustainable funding models and remove barriers to access. Now therefore we resolved that I, Patricia M. Brandle, as the mayor of the City of Portage to hereby proclaim July 16th, 2026 as the National Day of Summer Learning here in the City of Portage. And I commend this observance to all of our citizens. Thank you for joining us this evening. If you could tell us a little bit about your organization, we'd love to hear it. Absolutely. So I have the honor of serving as the community engagement lead for the Kalamazoo Youth Development Network. We've been around for 25 years, and we serve as an intermediary for the out-of-school time sector. So our job is to make sure that all young people have access to high quality out-of-school time programming. And so we have the opportunity or the privilege of doing that in Kalamazoo County as well as Calhoun County. And so excited for the event that we have uh next week to really highlight all of this and to really celebrate the National Day of Summer Learning. All right. Well, thank you very much for joining us. I have a copy of the proclamation if you'd like it. Yes, absolutely.

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