Martin Village and Martin Township will have their annual spring cleanup day from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, May 23.

This, despite recent state orders against people gathering in large numbers during the COVID-19 pandemic, which has caused nearly 5,000 deaths in Michigan and more than 80,00 fatalities nationwide.

Martin Township Supervisor Glenn Leep said, “From my perspective, I say we go. If everybody stays in their cars and keep their distance from one another, we should be all right.”

Residents are urged to line up to dump their refuse in one of five dumpsters that will be provided to the township by CDR at a cost of $395 for that day alone

Leep said he understands the concerns, but he believes the recent state-at-home orders have prompted many citizens to spend all that free time cleaning their houses and locating unwanted refuse.

The annual cleanup days usually is held earlier in May, but this year it has been delayed because of the Coronavirus.

In other business at Wednesday night’s meeting, the Township Board:

• Learned from Clerk Rachelle Smit that the August primary (Aug. 4) may be more costly this year because of pressure to have all voting done via mail instead of in-person. Michigan already has provisions for no excuse abstentee mail-in voting with passage of Proposition III in November 22018 with 66.9% approval.

“There is definitely going to be some changes for this election,” Smit said. Who knows what kind of disaster this will be?”

• Approved raising the leftover money in the deputy clerk’s budget to help buy Smit a new computer she believes will be necessary to handle the approaching primary. Only $1,000 had been budgeted for the unit, but it will cost more than $2,000.
• Approved the addition of four cadets and one middle-aged man to the fire department. The Cadets, two of whom are 16 years old and two are 17, can become firefighters after reaching 18 years of age and graduating from Fire Academy. The middle-aged man can join upon successful completion of the academy.
• Was told by Chief Kurt Knight the fire department has earned a $5,000 grant to buy agricultural rescue equipment.
• Learned from County Commissioner Rick Cain that no one has even caught as much as a cold at the Allegan County Medical Care Facility during the COVID-19 crisis.
• Noted the Planning Commission may have a public hearing Tuesday, June 2, on a variance and the township’s budget workshop will be at 6 p.m. Wednesday, May 27.
• Unanimously refused to wear masks at the meeting despite state guidelines for them to be worn under indoor public circumstances.