With Schoolcraft Village’s Fourth of July celebration a success, Council members took time at their meeting a day later to thank and praise those who made this year’s events happen.
It contrasted with last year’s July Council meeting where residents filled the Council chamber to express their dismay over the last-minute cancellation of the Village’s beloved Fourth of July parade.
In response to residents’ comments, the Council had created an ad hoc committee to work with the Fourth of July committee to make sure that the parade would take place this year. That meant securing enough police officers to direct traffic for the parade on US-131. The lack of police officers was the reason last year’s parade was cancelled at the last minute.
This year, Council President Mike Rochholz praised the police department, the ad hoc committee, and the Fourth of July committee for the success.
“Thanks to the Department of Public works, the town looked good even after the storm,” he said.
He acknowledged the work of Treasurer Theresa O’Leary for her work with the car show. “It was quite a show. There were lots of compliments about having the car show here. It was well-liked.”
He also thanked Village Manager Cheri Lutz for her work and others who worked behind the scenes to make the event a success.
The council approved a contract for replacing the parking lot at the Municipal Complex. Rob Coffman, superintendent of the Department of Public Works, presented two bids, one from Rieth-Riley in the amount of $76,284 for the parking lot and concrete apron and one from Lakeland Asphalt and Schoolcraft Concrete for $69,431.10. That amount includes $59,965 for the parking lot and $9,466 for the concrete apron.
Coffman recommended that the Council approve the lower bid. He noted that the Council had already budgeted $74,000 for the project. The Council approved the contract in a unanimous vote.
In a report to the Council, O’Leary provided the interest earnings from the Village’s Michigan Cooperative Liquid Assets Securities System. Michigan CLASS is an investment option for public agencies.
In the first five months of 2026, the Village earned $33,621.43. Earnings for June, 2026, were not yet available, she said. Between April, 2025, and May, 2026, the Village earned $91,833.90 in interest.
Reporting from the South Kalamazoo County Fire Authority, Trustee Kathy Mastenbrook said the Authority has approved a fire station location study. On Wednesday, August 19, at 5 p.m., there will be a meeting at the Schoolcraft Township Hall to discuss the future and the fire stations.
The authority is also looking for a new administrator, she said.
During public comment time, Madison Ring, executive director of the Kalamazoo Drop-In Child Care Center, spoke about the countywide half-mill child-care tax which will be on the August ballot.
Explaining that she is a mother of four young children who are in child care and also a foster mother, she said her remarks are to provide factual information about the millage and the child-care system.
To show that the child-care system is broken, she cited the fact that for every four babies born in the County, just one licensed child-care spot is available.
Also, many parents are spending between 35 and 39 percent of their income on child care while 7 percent is the recommended amount. The pay for 70 percent of child-care workers is less than $15 an hour, she said.
Ring reported that a local business lost 12 employees due to child-care issues.
The proposed eight-year millage has three goals, she said – create more child-care openings, lower child-care costs, and increase wages for child-care providers and teachers.
“This has been a challenge for generations and this proposal is one opportunity for Kalamazoo County to try something local, data-driven and community-led,” she concluded.
If the millage, 50 cents per $1,000 taxable valuation, is passed, the average homeowner would pay about $50 a year, she said.
