Council Denies Business License Over Beverage Return Issue

By Ryan Schlehuber

The City of Mackinac Island is getting tough on pop machine owners and others selling beverages in returnable containers who do not provide a means to return the containers for deposit. The City Council, at its regular meeting Wednesday, January 5, revoked Fred Dykstra’s on-island business license to operate his Upper Peninsula Snack Foods vending business on Mackinac Island. Council warned that if he continues to operate on the Island without a proper business license from the city, he will be issued a citation for each day of the infraction.

Mr. Dykstra, whose business is based in St. Ignace, was informed by City Attorney Tom Evashevski earlier this winter that he must comply with the state’s bottle return law before he can be issued a business license. State law requires that vendors selling beverages in returnable containers provide a place, close to where each vending machine is placed, where consumers can return the containers for a 10¢ deposit.

Mr. Dykstra, who did not attend the meeting but spoke with The St. Ignace News, contends there is a provision in the state law that allows vendors like him to sell the products in recyclable cans or bottles without having to provide a refund center, as long as he does not charge a deposit.

Section 2, paragraph four and five of the bottle bill states: “A dealer shall accept from a person an empty returnable container of any kind, size, and brand sold or offered for sale by that dealer and pay to that person its full refund value in cash,” however, “a dealer who does not require a deposit on a returnable container when the contents are consumed in the dealer’s sale or consumption area is not required to pay a refund for accepting that empty container.”

The discussion was initiated by Franc Doud, owner of Doud Mercantile grocery store on Mackinac Island, who complained to council at a previous meeting that he is inundated with returned bottles and cans he has not sold. He said only a few businesses on the Island sell and also accept returned cans and bottles for deposit.

City officials are still looking into the issue, but they believe Mr. Dykstra still needs to be in compliance.

“He has to come to us with some semblance of compliance,” said Mr. Evashevski at the meeting. “If he’s not complying with state law, that’s something we can’t ignore. If there are others out there that we don’t know of yet, they’ll be dealt with the same way.”

Mayor Margaret Doud said Mr. Dykstra’s check for $400 for a first-time on-island business license will be returned to him. After a business is issued a first-time license for $400, subsequent annual on-island licenses cost $55.

Mr. Dykstra, who said he has been operating on the Island for more than 20 years, had been operating vending machines on the Island without a license, but the city ignored that until other businesses complained they were being overwhelmed with bottle and can returns.

“It’s a whole new situation because we know someone in that business that’s not in compliance,” said Mr. Evashevski.

Mr. Dykstra said he will continue to discuss the matter with Mr. Evashevski.

A request from Steve Murray for a city resolution to support his efforts to purchase bottomlands at his property on Main Street in the Mission area was approved by Council. Mr. Murray plans to build a private dock. The city resolution will be sent to Michigan Department of Environmental Quality’s Geological and Land Management Division, the governing body reviewing the dock building request.

Amendments to the city’s code of ordinances were tabled by council to allow city officials to correct omitted words in some of the ordinances posted online. Mr. Evashevski said each ordinance that Municode .com posts (www.municode .com) may have to be reviewed, as he has caught some words missing in a few of them.

The cost of updating the code of ordinances would be $2,736, not including tax and freight, and will include changes to ordinances 414 to 423, which includes, respectively, Mayor’s Administrative Assistant, Overhang Permit Ordinance, Telecommunications Ordinance, Amendment to City of Mackinac Island Ordinance No. 358, Salaries, Hazardous Materials Ordinance, Amendment of Penalty Provisions for Violations, Section 1.9 Municipal Ordinance Violation Bureau, Amendment to Ordinance No. 210, and Electric Assistance to Accommodate Disabilities.

Alderman Armand “Smi” Horn said there is an impressive number of hits on the city’s online ordinance site.

The city’s annual committee appointment date for 2005 was officially changed from May 2 to May 9 to accommodate the new annual election date of May 3.

After the annual election, Mayor Margaret Doud will appoint her aldermen to various city committees such as finance, streets and sidewalks, ordinance, and cemetery.

A letter to council from Katherine Sgouris of East Lansing was read by Mayor Doud, in which Ms. Sgouris stated she was disappointed to see the streets dirty and smelling of horse manure and urine during her visit to Mackinac this summer. She also requested that the city halt the building of condominiums.

“Please preserve the beauty of the island and stop all these condominiums from making the island another ‘has been’ unique resort,” wrote Ms. Sgouris. “Look at what happened to Charlevoix and Petoskey.”

Mayor Doud and Alderman Michael Hart contended the city streets were kept clean throughout the summer, despite Ms. Sgouris’ complaint.

Mayor Doud, in response to Ms. Sgouris’ second request, said city officials are continuing to address the seeming overgrowth of condos on the Island. She said she will respond to Ms. Sgouris in a letter.

Janet & Company, a plumbing and heating company from Levering, was issued a new off-island business license to work at Ralph Leino’s condominium building project in the Mission district.

Alderman Horn thanked Arnold Transit Company for continuing boat departures to and from St. Ignace for another week. Arnold Transit was scheduled to close for the winter on January 2, but extended business an extra week to allow Island residents more time to prepare for the winter.

Pub Oyster Bar co-owner Debra Orr, who owns the bar with her sister Sandra, thanked the city’s fire department for assistance during a flooding incident, caused by a frozen sprinkler pipe that burst open.

Ms. Orr said there was minimal damage and no one was injured.

City Engineer Dennis Dombroski informed council that the project to install a water removal system at the fire hall may have to wait until spring, unless there is a break in the weather.

Council approved the purchase of a garage door opener for City Foreman Cub Horn’s garage, not to exceed $500.