September 27, 2023 Board Meeting Minutes
Harbor Transit Multi-Modal Transportation System (HTMMTS)
September 27, 2023 Regular Board Meeting Minutes
1. Meeting Called to Order by President Craig Bessinger at 4:30 p.m.
2. Roll Call
Present: Craig Bessinger, Bill Cargo, Bill Cate, Ashley Latch, Deanna McIntyre, Joel TePastte, & Will Whittemore.
Absent: Chris Burns, Gordon Gallagher, Kevin McLaughlin, & Cathy Pavick.
Also Present: Scott Borg, HTMMTS Director; Dana Appel, Finance and Compliance Director; Tom Burghardt Jr., Operations Superintendent; Andrea Dumbrell, Human Resources Director; Annelise Walker, Marketing Coordinator; Trina Robinson, Consultant; Matt Guinn, Safety Coordinator; and Shonda Walski, Dispatch Mobility Supervisor.
3. Additions/Corrections to the Agenda.
None. Motion by TePastte, second by McIntyre, to approve the agenda as submitted. Marion carried.
4. Public Hearing: Review of public comments about reinstatement of fares.
Opened at 4:32 PM. Walker shared an overview of the results of on-line surveys and comments regarding the reinstatement of fares. Surveys and comments were in favor of fare reinstatement overall. There were no members of the public present for the meeting.
5. Close public hearing at 4:37 PM.
6. General Business/Call to Audience
None
7. Consideration for Approval of Consent Agenda:
a. Approval of Aug 31, 2023 HTMMTS Special Board Meeting Minutes
b. Approval of Regular Agenda
c. Approval of Payable Warrant
d. File/Receive Financial Report
e. Approval of FY2023 Final Amended Budget
f. Review FY2023/24 Budget pre-implementation review of budget.
i. Capital Projects
ii. COLA-Wage Scale
iii. Goal Targets
g. Approval of FY2023/24 Bi-Monthly Regular Meeting Dates
h. Approval of MERS HCSP agreement amendment and contribution addendum
i. Approval of John Phillips LAC representative At Large Member
Motion by Cargo, second by Latch to approve the consent agenda. Motion carried.
8. Old Business
a. Discussion/Update on 172nd Ave Property: Borg reported that HTMMTS closed on the purchase of the property and he anticipates that environmental studies will be complete in November 2023. He also reported that SHAPE Corporation may be interested in purchasing part of the property.
b. Discussion on Harbor Transit/Muskegon Area Transit meeting point at Trinity at the Lakes: Borg reported that ridership is trending up for this year. This location is 1.6 miles outside of Harbor Transit’s service territory and the cost per mile to pick up at Trinity at the Lakes is $5.26 per mile. “Justice 40” is a USDOT program that makes grants available, but it not available in northwest Ottawa County. HTMMTS’s service to Muskegon County may make Justice 40 grants available. HTMMTS is also working with the Tri-Cities
Chamber of Commerce in an effort to engage local corporate human resource departments to encourage use of the Harbor Transit/Muskegon Area Transit connection.
c. Discussion/Action of reinstatement of passenger fares.
Motion by Cargo, second by TePasste to approve the reinstatement of passenger fares. Motion carried.
9. New Business:
a. Discussion/Action on Executive Director Pay Increase
Motion by TePasste, second by Whittemore to approve the Transportation Director’s salary increase by one step, effective Sep 21, 2023, and include any Cost-of-Living Adjustments (COLA), when provided to Harbor Transit’s employees. Motion carried.
b. Discussion/Action on Executive Director Employment Agreement
Motion by Cargo, second by Latch to approve the proposed 2023 Employment Agreement with Director Borg and authorize the agreement be executed by President Bessinger. Motion carried.
c. Discussion/Action to elect or re-elect HTMMTS Board Officers: President, Vice-President, Secretary, and Treasurer. Cargo declined another term as Vice President, suggesting Latch as Vice President and Latch agreed. Motion by Cargo, second by Whittemore to elect/re-elect Bessinger as President, Latch as Vice President, Cate as Secretary and Gallagher as Treasurer. Motion carried.
d. Discussion/Update on Aug 16, 2023 LAC Meeting
Borg summarized the last meeting of the LAC, pointing out that there is an opening on the council for a resident of Ferrysburg
10. Reports
a. Marketing Report: Walker updated the board on recent current marketing efforts, including the heavy use of the Coast Guard Festival Park-N-Ride service on Aug 1, the growth in social media (Facebook) advertising and the upcoming Boomerang Career Event on Tuesday, Oct 10, 2023.
b. Operations Report: Borg reported that ridership is still down when compared to pre-COVID numbers, but improving. There has been one bus crash since the last HTMMTS regular meeting. Two complaints and two compliments were received.
c. Transportation Director’s Report: Borg shared highlights of his report, including Coast Guard Saturday ridership, shuttle transportation for the Folds of Honor Golf Tournament, and the 48th anniversary of Harbor Transit. Of special note is the anticipated delivery of new buses, three (3) of which have been on order for nearly three years. Delivery of a total of eight (8) new buses is expected in Oct.
11. Board Member Comments:
• TePastte thanked Borg for his leadership.
• Whittemore welcomed new HTMMTS employees Guinn and Walski
12. Meeting adjourned.
Motion by Cate, second by TePastte to adjourn at 5:02 PM. Motion carried.
The next regularly scheduled meeting is Nov 15, 2023, at Grand Haven City Hall, 519 Washington Ave., Grand Haven, MI 49417.