Township approves funds for groups helping residents

The Laketown Township Board of Trustees on Wednesday, June 11, 2025, approved the allocation of a total of $15,250 to community organizations that provide important services to township residents.

The board unanimously agreed to the following amounts as contracted services after written and in-person presentations:

Evergreen Commons (a place for older adults to live active lives) — $4,500; Resilience (formerly known as the Center for Women in Transition) — $2,500; FellinLove Farm (a family farm in Laketown Township for all ages and abilities) — $2,000; Reach for Recovery (helps recovering addicts) – $1,750; Holland American Legion Band — $500; Holland Chorale — $500.

The board earlier approved $1,775 for the Macatawa Area Coordinating Council for July 4 fireworks, and $1,725 for the Allegan County Legal Assistance Center.

The board did not receive a written submission or hear a verbal presentation from Seventy X Seven (restoring the lives of people affected by incarceration) which requested $1,000 or hear a verbal presentation from the Holland Symphony Orchestra which requested $500. Supervisor Steven Ringelberg will reach out to those groups.

If those requests are approved, the total allocation would be $16,750. Last year, the board allocated $17,000 total for these types of contracted services.

Other business

In other business, the board reduced the scope of the repaving for non-motorized paths at the north side of the township after the proposed cost increased by $100,000.

The board earlier approved $250,000 for repaving on the path along 147th Avenue from West Wind Lake Estates (between 60th and 62nd streets) west to 66th Street, and 64th Street from 147th Avenue to 32nd Street.

The estimates came in at $350,000.

The board unanimously agreed to limit the project to repaving a little over a mile of path on 147^th Avenue from West Wind west to 64^th Street, and on 64^th Street from 147^th north to 32^nd Street.

Wolters House: The board authorized Ringelberg to investigate any and all options for the Wolters House, 6289 147^th Ave., at Wolters Woods Park.

The township bought the three-bedroom, three-bath 2,260-square-foot house and 2.5 acres of land from the estate of the Rev. Lloyd Wolters in 2022 for $350,000 to preserve the integrity of Wolters Woods Park, which surrounds the property on three sides.

From September 2023 to August 2024, Holland Christian Schools leased the property for $1,600 a month. Since the lease expired, the house has been unused.

Moratorium: The board authorized Ringelberg to continue to work with the planning commission to set up a joint meeting on the six-month moratorium effective May 19 on free-standing short-term rentals that was enacted in an effort to decrease complaints and preserve housing. No meeting date has yet been announced.