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EDWARDSBURG — The Edwardsburg Village Council welcomed and swore in recently elected trustees during Monday’s meeting, including one new member of the council.

Trustees Dennis Peak and Nancy Stoner were sworn in for another term after a successful election for each. New Trustee, John Sharp, was also sworn in after running a successful write-in campaign to fill the seat left vacant by the departure of Jay Penny, who did not rerun for election. Sharp previously served on the village Planning Commission and will leave a vacant seat there which will need to be filled. Penny had served as the Water Trustee, a role that will now be taken on by Trustee Kellen Van Hulle until the current term ends. The council also voted to reappoint Peak as the Village President.

Jean Schultz, of Cass County Historical Society, spoke again during the public comment section of the meeting regarding the future of the current Edwardsburg branch of the Cassopolis District Library, which will be vacant once the facility moves to a new building, currently under construction. She listed several possible uses for the building, including a community or senior center, and noted the long history of the building in the village. The Council thanked her for her suggestions and discussed whether parking would be a problem for those uses.

Department of Public Works head Richard Low reported the iron filtration plant as successfully online and already showing positive results, including clean water witnessed during hydrant flushes and minimal wear on filters close to the water source.

He also reported Geographic Information System mapping in the village as nearly complete. The GIS process creates digital maps of village utilities underground, helping with maintenance and addressing problems as they occur.

He reported progress on various seasonal operations by village staff. He also noted that the underground preparations for a stop light installation at Elkhart Road and US 12 was complete, though the final installations may be delayed due to supply chain issues. At the direction of the council, he will research costs for updating multiple buildings to create more efficient storage options for village equipment.

While reviewing financial documents, Trustee Van Hulle requested village staff research changing bond payments to HighPoint to a more secure electronic funds transfer versus mailing a check, due to the high amount of the payments. Trustee Garwood also inquired about diversifying village certificates of deposit among multiple banks. Village CDs are currently all held at one financial institution, though other village finances are spread to others. The council also approved an invoice for $466.50 to Ferguson Waterworks for an emergency repair in the Michiana Shores neighborhood.

The council voted unanimously to approve new rates for employee health insurance in 2025 through Blue Cross Blue Shield. The rates reflect a 14.8% increase in cost, totalling in a $5600 total increase per year.

The council also approved a completely new Planning Commission Ordinance, bringing Edwardsburg into compliance with changes made by the Michigan Legislature in 2008. The changes mirrored the Ontwa Township ordinance, which had already been vetted legally and  matches state guidelines. Included changes are updates to the code of ethics to combat conflicts of interest, the removal of the Village President as a member of the commission, and changing the voting block from an even number to an odd number. With the approval, the Planning Commission will begin work on new by-laws.

The annual Cookie Walk was announced for December 5th, followed by the Christmas tree lighting at the Edwardsburg Area Historical Museum at 6:30pm.

The Village hall will be closed Thursday, November 28 and Friday, November 29 for Thanksgiving. The next Cemetery Board Meeting is on at 4 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 10 and the next Village Council meeting will take place at 7 p.m. Monday, Dec. 16, both at the Village Hall.