Petoskey to repair Bayfront Park clocktower this summer

PETOSKEY — Petoskey will be endeavor repairs to the clocktower at the Bayfront Park marina this summer time, nevertheless there were being some issues about its utility in the modern cell age.

Among the other concerns, the renovation attempts ought to appropriate the inadequate backlighting of the clock face, and take care of inside motor malfunctions that have created the system fewer than entirely correct in the latest yrs. Metropolis council users final week authorised a $49,154 contract with the clock’s maker, Verdin Enterprise, to do the do the job. That will probable take place this summertime, and will include switching to LED lights, changing the three timepieces, and putting in new clock palms, a controller and battery backup.

Metropolis council customers were virtually unanimous in their conclusion to go ahead with the function, which was originally bundled in the cash improvements approach for 2023, aside from councilwoman Lindsay Walker, who advised the price tag tag, at a lot more than the normal yearly wage for the area, may be a bit steep for what could efficiently be viewed as out of date technological innovation.

“I do have to inquire, what is the relevancy, our clock tower in today’s society when most people have mobile products or watches to retain keep track of of the time?” she reported at previous week’s assembly.

The clock tower is much more than 30 several years previous at this point, and the metropolis has experienced a upkeep settlement with Verdin by way of the length of that time. There has been yearly upkeep work on the clock, but the problems which presently require to be tackled extend further than that common annually process.

The planned 2023 repairs are getting pushed up to this 12 months because the metropolis has the funding offered now, and doing so will avert the do the job from obtaining to be break up up over the span of two several years in a piecemeal trend, interim metropolis supervisor Al Terry said. The money to do so will come from the TIFA and electric cash, the previous of which is created from the maximize in tax revenues the city has attained due to the fact building Bayfront Park.

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Members of the town council and metropolis workers reported the clock tower was still a section of what designed the metropolis legendary and pleasing to vacationers.

“This is aspect of what would make us so unique is our very special waterfront space that’s flanked by a lovely marina, and miles of trail and the luxurious of having the luxury of the surroundings,” stated Parks and Recreation Director Kendall Klingelsmith.

Mayor John Murphy, who stated he has gotten calls from citizens in latest years about the time on the clock staying gradual, stated the city has a fantastic observe file of sustaining its present facilities as a prerequisite to going forward with new initiatives and fees.

“I assume this clock is the instance of it,” he mentioned. “I know if you locate aged postcards of Petoskey, you can see that clock in the waterfront images. Men and women recognize that as Petoskey.”

This write-up initially appeared on The Petoskey Information-Review: Petoskey to fix Bayfront Park clocktower this summer