NILES CHARTER TOWNSHIP — Vehicle safety measures made up two major talking points at the Niles Charter Township Board of Trustees meeting at 6 p.m. Monday at the Niles Charter Township building on Bell Road.

Lt. Ryan Sullivan of the Berrien County Sheriff’s Department started off the meeting by providing an update on statistics and trends in the township noted by the county branch.

The lieutenant spoke at length of an ongoing trend of car break-ins occurring in the county all summer.

All but one of the break-ins in Niles Charter Township occurred with vehicles that were left unlocked, he said. Some also had keys in the ignition.

Only one break-in happened to a locked car, but at least $100 was plainly sitting on a seat.

Other vehicle-related incidents in the township involved people stealing a headlight assembly, a door and a hood off of cars at auto businesses, Sullivan said. Someone also allegedly hotwired a vehicle at one business.

“That’s been our last month or so around here,” Sullivan said.

“Cars, cars, cars,” responded trustee Chris Vella.

The department and local police departments are working to find who the perpetrators are and if the crimes are organized.

“There is something that we can do about it, and that’s lock your cars and don’t leave your keys in the ignition,” Sullivan said.

Almost 30 percent of the arrests made by the sheriff’s department in June were in Niles Township. The police report township trustees received had 19 pages of arrests, complaints and tickets from the township.

The township is also one of the county’s largest municipalities.

“We’ve had an extremely, extremely busy month,” Sullivan said. “I don’t know if the summer restlessness just kind of came out a little bit late, but I know all three shifts, we’ve been running pretty much call to call.”

The other vehicle-related issue arose around the potential repaving of Adams Road.

Resident Dennis Fields said he gathered other Adams Road residents’ concerns to present to the board during a public comment portion of the meeting.

He said his neighbors feared they would have to pay for part of the road’s fix due to a potential $16,000 payment increase the township faces. They wanted their road fixed so potholes would not cause vehicle damage, but they were willing to wait if it meant not paying for the fix out of pocket.

“I look out for my neighbors’ properties,” Fields said. “I’m trying to keep the neighborhood in an old-school mindset, because that’s the way I grew up. We all kind of look after each other.”

Clerk Terry Eull reassured Fields that no resident would pay for the increased costs.

The township is considering an agreement with the Berrien County Road Department that would split the cost of the road project between the two entities.

“We have to take advantage of the county with their offer,” Eull said. “They don’t do this [often].”

The trustees are slated to vote on the agreement at their next meeting on Tuesday Sept. 3.

If passed, the two inches of asphalt would be laid and leveled and speed limits would be adjusted.

The board of trustees approved the following agenda items at its Monday meeting:

• The installation of two dry wells, totaling about $16,000. The wells are meant to reduce water runoff that could flood areas and properties.

The installation will be paid through the capital improvement fund.

• A $25,704 quote from Hass Roofing in Eau Claire to repair the township’s department of public works building’s steel roof.

Water had been leaking into the department, trustees said. Hass Roofing will coat the roof with a sealant promised by the company to last 50 years.

• An agreement to allow Brandywine Community Schools to host part of a softball tournament at Fireman’s Park, if the number of teams that register for the event calls for it.

No other events are hosted at the park’s diamonds that day, trustees said.

• Certificates of instruction completion to two township volunteer firefighters, Michaela Greer and Kimberly Schultz. The certificates were approved by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, as well.

• Building, fire and zoning/code enforcement reports

• Expenditures and transfers totaling $230,356.