• Commissioner Emily Stivers began serving in January of 2019 and is a chairperson of the County Services Committee.

MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP - Ingham County Board Commissioners Emily Stivers (District 11: Northern Meridian Township) and Mark Polsdofer (District 12: Southern Meridian Township) spoke with HOMTV about future county plans that impact Meridian Township.

Road Work:
- In early winter, the start of demolition of old bridges. Traffic will be diverted to Mount Hope road and then Hagadorn road to be directed back to M-43.
- In 2022, repaving and resurfacing on M-43 from Park Lake road east to Oak Point. The intersection between Okemos road and Grand River Avenue will be lifted around two feet to help reduce flooding.
- Exploring options for pedestrians and other safety measures on Cornell road.

Park Improvements:
- More rain gardens to offset flooding.

Lake Lansing Park North:
- Improving boat launch with a new automatic entrance gate, new boat washing station and more. Estimated completion is set for Spring 2022.
- New bathhouse building with restrooms, concessions and changing rooms. Estimated completion is set for Spring 2023.
- New canoe/kayak launch. Estimated completion is set for Spring 2023.
- Connector between MSU to Lake Lansing Trail.
- Adding a disc golf course and improving other play areas.

Lake Lansing Park South:
- Planting more trees.
- Renovating the Carousel building.
- Installing a splash pad and skating rink.

Drain Projects:
- Upgrading Okemos drain and the Grettenberger drain

Both commissioners have many projects they are working on to help improve the county. For Polsdofer, the Advanced Peace Initiative is one of those projects that he is very passionate about.

The initiative works to decrease gun violence by including a daily mentorship program for those who have been involved with gun violence.

"The main focus of this is to teach them deescalation and conflict avoidance and making better decisions," Polsdofer said. "Then, providing that day-to-day interaction to help them move beyond those situations so they can start making better choices. I am thrilled that between the county and the city, we've been able to identify funding."

Stivers is working on many projects including: affordable housing, well and septic assistance, public provided broadband system and more play equipment in parks for younger children.

Stivers said that the well and septic assistance is something the county desperately needs. With homeowners only required to have their wells and septic inspected when selling your property, this can harm the environment and the cost of fixing or completely replacing wells and/or septic systems can be expensive. With Stivers and the county working on a matching grant system to help homeowners with the cost of these well and septic bills.

"We're really excited about being able to finally do something about this issue, because people can't afford to make these improvements, and it's bad for the environment, and it's bad for home sales and it's really bad for the people who are living on these broken systems," Stivers said.

The county also added a new committee, the Ingham County Housing Trust Fund Committee, which will help assist homeowners in keep their homes and help with repairs.

There are no new members on the committee yet, but those who are interested can join through the link below.

Overall, the commissioners said it was very important for all residents to pay attention to their township and county's news.

"Keeping up with what's going on at our board meetings and the things that we're working on is something that helps everyone in the community," Stivers said.