{"id":3400,"date":"2022-05-01T09:46:01","date_gmt":"2022-05-01T13:46:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/betsiecurrent.com\/?p=3400"},"modified":"2022-05-01T09:46:03","modified_gmt":"2022-05-01T13:46:03","slug":"where-the-sidewalk-ends-frankfort-michigan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/betsiecurrent.com\/index.php\/where-the-sidewalk-ends-frankfort-michigan\/","title":{"rendered":"Where The Sidewalk Ends"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Connecting community in Frankfort<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

By Aubrey Ann Parker
Current Editor<\/strong>

For those who do not know, Jordan Bates and I, co-owners of this newspaper, live in downtown Frankfort. We love how we can walk just about anywhere\u2014the farmers\u2019 market, the post office, the beach, the Betsie Valley Trail, multiple stores, restaurants, and bars\u2014though we fully admit that we do not walk as much as we should. Still, we are a one-car household, and we do try our best.

On that note, earlier this month, right after the first real snowstorm of the year, I was preparing to walk the three or so blocks from our house to Frankfort Elementary for a school board meeting. (I am the board secretary.) Thinking that I would be trudging through knee-high snow drifts, I pulled on my snowpants and my heavy boots. To my amazement, however, the sidewalk in the front of our house was pristine. (Like most people who live on our street, we park in the back alley and we rarely use our front doors, so this came as quite a surprise; yes, we are technically supposed to keep the sidewalk cleared, but for the many, many years that we have lived here, next to none of our neighbors actually did this\u2026 so neither did we.) In fact, the entire route to the school was recently snowblown and beautiful, twinkling under the new lamp posts along M-22.

When I arrived at the meeting all bundled up, one of my fellow board members asked if I had come straight from skiing.\u00a0

\u201cNo,\u201d I responded, a bit quizzically. \u00a0

\u201cBut, you\u2019re wearing snowpants?\u201d

I explained how I had expected to be hauling myself through snowbanks, as I had for the previous five years of winter meetings. I told the board how I was pleasantly surprised that the walk to the school had been so easy. I asked if anyone knew who was snowblowing the route; was it a good citizen with a lot of time on her\/his hands? None of my fellow board members seemed to know.

Frankfort-Elberta Area Schools superintendent Jeff Tousley did, however: \u201cI believe it\u2019s Chuck Nostrandt.\u201d

Dedicated community journalist that I am, I decided to find out the scoop.

The Scoop<\/strong>
Chuck Nostrandt (43) has lived in Frankfort most of his life\u2014he was born at Paul Oliver Memorial Hospital; he graduated from the Frankfort-Elberta Area School system in 1997; he briefly moved up to Traverse City for a couple of years after high school, before moving back to live and work here.\u00a0

Nostrandt worked for the Benzie County Road Commission for almost 15 years, and he also worked for the state by clearing state roads, like M-22 and M-115 in Frankfort.\u00a0

These days, though, he can be found clearing sidewalks in his hometown via a medium-sized, orange Kubota tractor.

Last winter, Nostrandt began contracting with the City of Frankfort to snowblow almost 6,200 linear feet of residential sidewalks as a sort of pilot project, to see how much effort it would take, how much it would cost, and whether or not it would be appreciated by the community. This year, thanks to this past summer\u2019s renovation project to much of the city\u2019s streets\u2014and thus the sidewalks\u2014Nostrandt was able to almost double the area that he clears: he added an additional 5,600 linear feet this winter, including the sidewalks in front of my house.\u00a0

How often is he out there?

\u201cI feel out the weather. I try to wait until after the state and the county [plows] go through, because they pile up snow at the intersections, and when the snow is piled up, most people will just go into the road around it rather than climb up it,\u201d Nostrandt explains. \u201cI try to keep on it. About every two to three inches, I go out to clean it up.\u201d

For instance, as of the printing of this paper, Nostrandt estimates that he has been out about five or six times this month.

As to the reason he started this endeavor in the first place:

\u201cWhen I would come through [Frankfort], I\u2019d see so many people walking on the streets or in the alleys, and it made me really nervous,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s hard for drivers to see them, especially when there are parked cars and the alleys are so tight.\u201d

So he started doing something about it, though he admits that it began as something pretty \u201cunofficial\u201d and small. Through his business, CnN Property Care, which he has owned for the past nine years with his wife, Nicole (Boyce) Nostrandt (43)\u2014he is the \u201cC,\u201d she is the \u201cN\u201d\u2014he was already snowblowing the sidewalks for a few people in town.\u00a0

\u201cThen the neighbors just down the way would ask if I could come down a little further to do them, too,\u201d he says. Rather than just doing the area in front of each home, Nostrandt found it easier to \u201cbuzz through\u201d the whole strip, though he explains that first he checked with city officials, because sometimes the sidewalks were in poor shape in places\u2014until recently, that is.\u00a0

If You Build It\u2026<\/strong>
Back in 2013, the City of Frankfort applied for a grant that was procured through the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) to build and\/or maintain sidewalks near the two schools within the city limits. In 2015, construction for the \u201cSafe Roads to School\u201d project began: a sidewalk was put in along James Street and 11th Street, as well as improved crosswalk areas and the re-doing of a section of sidewalk across from the elementary school.

In total, around 3,000 feet of sidewalks were constructed for the project, with each North-South block running about 400 feet on one side:

\u2022 Two blocks on both sides of 9th through 11th streets: 1600 feet
\u2022 James Street on one side, from 11th Street to Day Avenue: 430 feet
\u2022 All of 11th Street: 1,000 feet\u00a0

Six years later, MDOT re-paved M-115\/Forest Avenue this past summer of 2021, from essentially the Gateway through the intersection with M-22 (also called Crystal Avenue\/7th Street). This meant that the sidewalks on both sides of the road were all refinished, also.

The City decided to dovetail a capital improvement project at the same time: the sidewalk was expanded from 10th Street along the south corridor to connect with what had just been redone at M-22. The sidewalk was also expanded at East Main Street to M-22 and then to the A&W restaurant.

\u201cThe state paid for the M-22 portions of that,\u201d explains City of Frankfort superintendent Joshua Mills (48). \u201cThe City paid for the section along M-22 and up to the Grove Place Apartments.\u201d

All in all, MDOT added 1,400 linear feet of new sidewalks and the City added 1,000 linear feet for a total of 2,400 feet of new sidewalks added this past summer and fall, to go along with the 3,000 feet of new-ish sidewalks from the 2015 project.

\u201cNow, you could be at Grove Place Apartments and be on a sidewalk all the way into downtown,\u201d Mills says proudly.

\u2026He Will Snowblow It<\/strong>
For those readers who are not super familiar with the roads of Frankfort, the junior\/senior high school building is located at 11th Street, which intersects with James Street. The numbered streets run North-South, while James runs East-West. So, if a person leaves the junior\/senior high school and then travels along James Street in a Westerly direction, s\/he will reach the elementary school in just about four and a half blocks, at the corner of 7th Street (M-22\/Crystal Avenue) and Leelanau Street (which runs East-West, like James). In other words, the numbered blocks running North-South are 11th, 10th, 9th, 8th, and 7th (M-22) between the two schools; the named blocks running East-West are James, Leelanau, and Forest (M-115) between the schools, and then Main Street lies one block beyond that.

Nostrandt was already snowblowing parts of that school-to-school route for his paying customers, so he thought to himself, Why not go a little further?<\/em>

\u201cI first started by punching out a safety route from the elementary to the [Trinity Lutheran] Church [on James Street], in case there was ever an emergency and they needed to go there,\u201d Nostrandt says. \u201cThen, one day, I was at the [BP] gas station, just down the street from the [blinking] light [at the corner of 7th\/M-22 and Forest\/M-115], and kids were walking from the elementary to the [Benzie Shores District] Library on Main Street after school. So I figured that I should do that, too.\u201d

Safety was the biggest, \u201cnumber one\u201d thing, according to Nostrandt.\u00a0

\u201cI already had several homes on James Street that I was \u2019blowing for, so I figured I would just continue down to the high school,\u201d he says, adding that he immediately saw an impact. \u201cI was done with one pass and turned around; already I saw two kids walking on the other side, where I had just finished. I thought to myself, \u2018That\u2019s pretty cool. That\u2019s a bonus.\u2019<\/em>\u201d

Mills calls the project a \u201cpartnership\u201d with Nostrandt, CnN Properties is giving the City a really good deal and not charging what he could be for something like this.\u00a0

\u201cWe\u2019re covering his fuel, and maybe a little bit of his time, but he does it really efficiently,\u201d Mills says. \u201cHe puts sidewalk markers at different locations where it\u2019s going to be tight, and he removes them when winter is done. After the first year of the project, Chuck [Nostrandt] and I talked, and he gave us an estimate of what it would cost to expand it. Now, we are connecting the library, the elementary school, the junior\/senior high school, the Family Fare grocery store, the Shell [gas] station, A&W.\u201d\u00a0

He continues:

\u201cEZ Mart [BP gas station] and downtown were already being taken care of by Eric Anderson. He does Main Street; the first snow removal is paid for by every adjacent business, including the City in front of the parks, for instance. Every subsequent snowfall\u2014like if it\u2019s really coming down and he has to come back after lunch to clear again\u2014the [Downtown Development Authority] pays him, and about three to four individual businesses do it themselves.\u201d

As for the residential areas:

\u201cWe have a lot of neighborhoods in town, especially the west end, and we\u2019ve had \u2018block captains\u2019 in the past who would snowblow their block,\u201d Mills says. \u201cBut we haven\u2019t had as much participation from homeowners on the east side of town. So we wanted to increase the walkability of the James Street corridor, and we wanted to monitor the expense and the success of the snow-removal program. We need a couple of years of data to average it, just because maybe last year was a milder winter than this year, or whatever.\u201d

Increasing Walkability<\/strong>
Technically, individual homeowners in residential areas of the city are supposed to keep their sidewalks cleared, according to the ordinances. But, Mills explains, we live in a very season-based community, so it is hard to enforce that policy.\u00a0

\u201cSometime in the future, we\u2019re going to have to have a conversation about this and how to enhance the walkability for the year-round community,\u201d he says. \u201cIf we do snow removal for the whole city, does the city contract it out or buy equipment and hire someone; how does it work?\u201d\u00a0

The City does receive some funding from the state through the gas tax, and some money is dedicated to trails and sidewalks, which must be maintained and cleared at a certain level, according to Act 51 through MDOT. But to clear sidewalks for the entire city would take quite a bit of funding that currently is not in the budget, so a community conversation would need to be had.

For now, the partnership with Nostrandt is about testing the waters\u2014or the snow, so to speak.\u00a0

Mills is cautiously optimistic, based on responses that the City has already received.

\u201cWe had a \u2018Safe Roads to School\u2019 grant that allowed us to create sidewalks to and from the elementary school, to enhance the safety of that,\u201d Mills explains. \u201cNow we\u2019re trying to do a better job long-term about enhancing the walkability in the winter, as well. After school, kids are walking between the two schools: sometimes an elementary student has to meet an older sibling at the high school. Or a lot of kids go to the library after school. Or sometimes junior high kids are walking to Family Fare or East Shore for an after-school snack before a game. There\u2019s all kinds of reasons, and this helps to keep them safer.\u201d

Furthermore, Nostrandt says, there are other members of the community who appreciate the sidewalks being cleared.\u00a0

\u201cWe get so many folks who walk their dogs, for instance,\u201d he says. \u201cAnd the City does such a good job of lighting up the streets at this time of year, when it gets dark so early. I love the new lights they have on Forest\/M-22. People can walk in the evening hours and feel decent about not being in the dark; it used to be hard to see people. So yeah, safety is the main purpose of this project, and I think it\u2019s going pretty well. I see a lot of folks using the sidewalks. And it\u2019s such a blessing to have these new sidewalks; it would be a shame not to be able to use them year-round!\u201d

Why does it matter if the sidewalks have recently been redone?

If a sidewalk gets off-kilter because of tree roots, for instance, it can wreak havoc on a snowblower, and vice-versa: the snowblower can cause additional problems to uneven sidewalks.

\u201cI try to keep it cleaned up, but I also want to be respectful and not go out too much. My tractor is new and not super loud, but still; I want everyone to be on board with this project,\u201d Nostrandt says. \u201cIt\u2019s been a lot of trial and error the last couple of years to show what we can do, what we can expect. That way, maybe it can be talked about, and the people can decide it\u2019s worth it. A lot of the homes in this area are summer homes or rentals, so they don\u2019t necessarily take care of the snow like they\u2019re supposed to; if you read the [city ordinances], they\u2019re technically supposed to be done. But if we can get people on board, so everybody can use the sidewalks from one side of town to the other, that\u2019d be great. It doesn\u2019t take a ton, but a little homeowner effort can go a long way for safety; for instance, keeping the pruning of shrubs back, so it\u2019s easier to get through.\u201d

Nostrandt says it takes him 30 minutes or less to clear the sidewalks near the high school, because it is just whatever falls out of the sky. It takes him about 45 minutes to an hour to clear from the Benzie Shores District Library to James Street, because that route has multiple intersections with main roads like M-22 and M-115, where the snowplows deposit \u201croadslop.\u201d\u00a0

\u201cWe greatly appreciate the connector for having a safe route for our kids to walk between the schools in the winter time,\u201d says FEAS superintendent Jeff Tousley. \u201cWhat I\u2019ve noticed the most is that [Nostrandt] gets it every time. He\u2019s really consistent and diligent about keeping the city cleaned up. He doesn\u2019t miss a beat. It\u2019s noticeable, like, \u2018Whoa, we have sidewalks!\u2019 It\u2019s great.\u201d

That is exactly what Nostrandt and Mills were hoping for when this project began a year ago.

\u201cThe goal initially was to enhance the walkability, and we focused on snowblowing these sections because of the schools,\u201d Mills says. \u201cWe also wanted to evaluate the expense part of it, how well it\u2019s been received and used. I can\u2019t speak for City Council, but I could see us doing this city-wide: but how? Do we break the city down into quadrants, do we contract the labor? The city can\u2019t afford to add staff year-round, so we\u2019d have to look at various options, and the bureaucratic process takes time, but you have to ease into it and take time to make sure that tax money is well spent.\u201d

He continues:

\u201cWe created more walkable, safe routes for kids. But it\u2019s not just limited to kids. Our preference is that everybody uses [the sidewalks]. Our long-term goal is year-round walkability of the town through budget control, effective capital improvement projects, and expanded sidewalk development; the ultimate goal is to have a sidewalk on at least one side of the road throughout the city, and to make sure that we\u2019re reaching out to as many neighborhoods as possible. For snow removal, we\u2019ll have to have community discussion for how far that goes. Right now, we can manage the cost of what we\u2019re doing; if we were to do the whole city, that\u2019s a whole different ball game. But that\u2019s our mission. To enhance the safe walkability of the year-round community.

For Nostrandt, it is simple:\u00a0

\u201cI\u2019m blessed to be able to live here and to call this work. I\u2019m stoked just to be able to help out.\u201d

CnN Property Care has around 90 clients currently\u2014everything from lawncare service to power washing to window cleaning to treating roofs; they also take care of seasonal rentals and do house-checks while homeowners are gone. For more information, email\u00a0CnNPropertyCare@outlook.com<\/a>\u00a0or call 231-645-1338.<\/em>

Featured Photo Caption:\u00a0<\/strong>Chuck Nostrandt has been snowblowing the streets of Frankfort for the past two winters. Photo by Aubrey Ann Parker.

———————————————————————–<\/p>\n\n\n\n

SIDEBAR #1<\/strong>
What Is Next?<\/strong>
Mills says that the City already has plans to expand the sidewalks even further.

For 2022, there is a capital improvement project planned for this spring\/summer to increase the sidewalk along M-22 to connect from Park Avenue (where Paul Oliver is located) to Maple Avenue (where The Maples senior care center is located) on the West side of M-22, where the Frankfort Methodist Church is located. Currently, the sidewalk ends just before Park Avenue; and there is even a sign to prove it.

A tribute to the beloved children\u2019s book Where The Sidewalk Ends<\/em>, there is a red sign with black writing with the book\u2019s title located at the corner of Park Avenue and M-22. I asked Mills if he had informed the homeowners that their sign is soon to be outdated. He laughed:

\u201cThe current owners aren\u2019t the ones who put the sign up. But they know [the new sidewalks are] coming.\u201d

For the future, Mills would like to see even more sidewalks connecting important paths within the city limits, though there are no definite plans yet. 

\u201cI\u2019d love to someday get sidewalk along Michigan Avenue from the intersection with Park Avenue to George Street [at the Frankfort City-Crystal Lake Township boundary], because then you could bring in the Michigan Shores community, as well,\u201d Mills says. 

He admits that there are a couple of \u201ctight spots\u201d near Michigan Shores where they would have to look at the topography to see what was possible and affordable. Likewise, he says that the slope of Heffron Hill would never meet ADA compliance, but he wonders if perhaps the City could find a way to enhance it from the current easement trail to something different\u2014right now, the sidewalk on Michigan Avenue in town ends at Winnebago Street, and an unpaved footpath snakes along the road. (In the winters, this area, called \u201cHeffron Hill\u201d by locals, is closed to motorized vehicles and becomes a sledding hill.)

\u201cIt\u2019s all positive movement in the community, a progression toward ensuring a year-round vibrant community that is welcoming for families and people of all ages,\u201d Mills says. \u201cThat\u2019s our mission. To create overall well-being.\u201d 
END OF SIDEBAR #1<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

SIDEBAR #2<\/strong>
City of Frankfort\u2019s Snowplowed Sidewalks: <\/strong>
Residential District: <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n