It didn't used to be so bad until they raised the speed limit from 25 mph to 35, now you get them coming at you at 40+.

Also, big increase in traffic for this intersection coming off Oxbow Lake Rd ever since they paved it thru to Cooley Lake Rd and Bogie Lake Rd.

I fully agree. Maintaining open communication lines is increasingly important and we need to focus on allowing our residents access to any and all information. You don't even need fancy technology to post meeting minutes, etc. Detailed agendas also help citizens prioritize what meetings to attend if they are unable to attend all meetings regularly. The concept of 8:30-5 PM office hours is outdated, but could work if more information was online.

Laura,
contact the township and you can be placed on a mailing list to receive this information well before the meeting.

Thanks, Scott, but we're talking basic information that all residents should have readily available. While I appreciate the ability to be asked to be treated special, why is it like pulling hen's teeth to get simple background information? State law requires e.g. posting proposed ordinance language before it is considered and enacted, so the twp takes the least communicative path by posting on an interior office-area bulletin board that is unviewable and unseeable unless the twp office is open. Yes, technically meets the letter of the law, but hardly evidences a government that wishes to have its citizens informed and involved.

Transparency was an issue discussed by several candidates in the last election and it will be interesting to see how this issue is addressed by the new board.
I personally think that 20 years after the dawn of the information age the township should at the very least be able to provide verbatim transcripts of board meetings.
Several months ago I contacted The Patch about recording the meetings and converting the audio to text and publishing the minutes here.
Then I spoke to Carol Burkhard and she told me that she can now Skype into a meeting if she needs to.
Well, if we have the technology available for her why not make it available to everyone?
The meetings could easily be recorded and posted to the township's website...
In the meantime, Laura if you have a portable device capable of Skyping tomorrow's meeting I am sure it would be appreciated.

I wish I did, Gerry. There is no open WiFi channel at the Twp Hall, so I can't e.g. bring my laptop, connect to the WiFi and then broadcast the meeting to you. If you have a special issue you're concerned about (like sewers?) I can try turning on the "record" feature on my phone and seeing if it'll get a halfway decent sound recording for you

And this begs ("re"begs, actually) the question of why we pay to have microphones and a sound system that pipes to the transcriptionist, but somehow that audio recording can't be streamed live (or broadcast on the lovely public access cable channels that no one watches) or otherwise made available to folks who can't physically be there.

Pam has a great point about how the agendas are often so cryptic as to give you little to no idea what will actually be discussed, especially since each meeting of late tends to begin with the Supervisor removing items from and adding items to the agenda so that the public has no notice at all of what ends up actually being what was planned to be discussed.

Totally agree

Absolutely! A place for the dogs to run would be awesome. Great for way for both human and canine to keep fit year round!

for the road issues? Contact the Oakland County Road Commission at http://www.rcocweb.org/AboutUs/Contact_Us.aspx
I've found them to be very responsive (generally within the week you'll get an email back). If it's a patch/repair problem, they really rely upon all of us road travelers to help be their second set of eyes since it's impossible for them to simply drive around looking for potholes and (on the dirt roads) washouts.

I have to agree with Debbie. Everytime I want to make pasta sauce I have to drive clear out to the East side to find the quality ingredients I need. If I was going to make Thai food I'd be in a similar situation.

I'd also like to see Indian Springs Metro Park follow suit with Stoney and Kensington and make another world class Disc Golf course. This area is a bit of a deadzone for the sport.

I find Colosanti's to be comparable if not better than Nino Salvaggio's and Whole Foods and to be honest, I like the home town feel of Colosanti's much better than either of these places. Having Snook's inside is a bonus! With my difficult food allergies to deal with, I find it easy to please my palate with many wonderful choices from Colosanti's from exotic fruits and vegetables and fresh fish choices year round.