What’s New:

Special Meeting of Norvell Township Board:

We wanted to make you aware of a recently announced special meeting of the Norvell Township Board scheduled for tomorrow, Thursday, April 30 at 1:00 PM at Township Hall, 300 Mill Road, Norvell (Brooklyn), MI 49230.

According to the posted agenda, the purpose of the meeting is to accept the resignation of Supervisor Sutherland and approve an appointment to serve the remainder of his term. The board is also scheduled to accept the resignation of Trustee Haystead at that time.

We are working to learn more about these developments. In the meantime, because of the short notice, we wanted to give everyone a heads up and encourage anyone who is able to attend and observe this important meeting. We specifically ask Norvell Township residents to attend and comment! We will also have our new yard signs available outside of the Township Hall, before and after this meeting.

If you do attend, public comment before this agenda item will be an important opportunity. Community members may wish to respectfully express that the Board should notify the public and allow for input before making a decision of this significance. The township supervisor is an elected position, and the process for appointing a successor should be transparent and give residents a chance to respond. One possible approach would be for the Board to announce their candidate, invite public feedback, and then take a vote at a subsequent meeting.

The township supervisor will have an important role in the remainder of the mine permitting process, and IHCC is following these developments closely. We will continue to share updates as we learn more.

DNR PAC update 4/23/2026

Our April 12 letter to the Michigan State Parks Advisory Committee (PAC), which advises the DNR on all Michigan state park-related issues, resulted in our concerns being discussed at their public meeting on April 22, 2026.  The letter detailed our concerns about how the proposed Norvell Township gravel mine could cause water pollution and other impacts on recreation and preservation goals at Watkins Lake State Park, and on safety at Hayes State Park.  The PAC discussed many of our concerns.  Three IHCC board members and  three of our supporters provided public comment after their discussion, and several others were present.  Thank you al!.

Following our comments, the PAC agreed to form a subcommittee of three who will look into our concerns in more detail.  This investigative team will reach out to DNR staff for more information and schedule a site visit within the next few weeks, which would likely include a conversation with the parks’ supervisor.  IHCC has requested an opportunity to confer with them during the site visit, as well.  If their investigation validates our concerns, the subcommittee will draft a letter to Norvell Township for consideration by the entire PAC.   If the letter is approved, they expect it will be sent before the next meeting of the PAC on June 17.

IHCC greatly appreciates their engagement and we’re cautiously encouraged by it.  Next steps will be announced when we learn what their investigation concludes. 

IHCC Petition Drive!

Petitions are being sent to all Norvell Township residents. If you are not in Norvell Township but want to support our efforts, please print and sign the petition and mail to IHCC, P.O. Box 72, Brooklyn MI 49230. IHCC will deliver a large stack of these petitions to the Township Board, letting them know how residents feel about the proposed gravel mine. Please return the petoitions by April 30. Let’s get our message across!