Bennington Township met Sept. 8, not Sept. 7; clerk says no notice list

If you wanted to attend Bennington Township's September board meeting, the township had no way to tell you it was happening. Clerk Donna Ash confirmed to The Current in an email on Sept. 17 that the township "does not have a standing distribution list for agendas/meeting packets" — no email list, no sign-up, nothing that puts a meeting date in a resident's hands before the night of.

The Current asked in writing on Sept. 9 to be added to such a list. Ash's reply says no list exists. It does not say whether the request was handled another way.

That matters because the September meeting did not fall where residents would expect it. The board normally meets the first Monday of the month at 7 p.m. This year the first Monday was Labor Day, so the meeting was held Tuesday, Sept. 8. Ash said the date was set at the start of the fiscal year, when the board fixed its calendar and saw the conflict: "The meeting was scheduled for Tuesday, September 8th when the board meeting dates were determined at the beginning of the fiscal year when it was determined the normal meeting date would fall on Labor Day." The township's own online calendar lists one September event — "Regular Board Meeting, 7:00 pm – 8:00 pm" on Tuesday, Sept. 8 — and nothing on Monday, Sept. 7.

The agenda Ash provided to The Current is short. Under new business: the 2026 tax rate request, the L-4029 form that sets what the township levies, and a budget review. Under board reports: library, planning commission — including a rezoning and special-use permit item listed as "Hitchcock" — roads, and the county commissioner. Public comment was capped at three minutes.

Ash said the board adopted no ordinances and no resolutions in September. It took two actions of substance: one budget amendment and one appointment, both of which she said are detailed in the minutes. Her email did not give the dollar amount of the amendment, the position filled, who was appointed, or how the board voted. The Current has asked her for all four.

Ash said the minutes are available on the township website. When the desk checked on Sept. 17, the site's top navigation showed a "Meeting Minutes" item, but direct requests to the township's minutes and agendas pages both returned HTTP 404 errors. Michigan's Open Meetings Act requires proposed minutes to be available for public inspection within eight business days of a meeting; for a Sept. 8 meeting that deadline is Sept. 18, so the township is not past it.

This is the same board that, as The Current has reported, handled an Aug. 17 veterinary clinic rezoning and sent a 0.3333-mill Shiawassee Area Transportation Agency levy to the Nov. 3 ballot.

What happens next: The eight-business-day window for the September minutes closes Sept. 18. The desk has asked Ash for the budget amendment figure, the office filled and the appointee, and the roll call on both votes. Ash lists herself as the township's records contact at [email protected], 989-723-5555 at the office and 989-277-5971 on her cell. We will report the numbers when we have them, and we will keep asking how residents are supposed to learn when this board meets.