Please take note of the following rules for Elmwood Cemetery.  The City reserves the right to remove or trim any tree or shrub or unsightly flowers.  This also includes removal of items that do not contribute to the beauty and dignity of the Cemetery. 

The rules include:

No fence or enclosure of any kind shall be placed on or around any burial unit.

Glass containers, wire pins, shells, stones, tin cans, wooden crosses, balloons, solar lights and statues are prohibited.  Digging holes in the sod is also prohibited.

Urns or flower containers shall be placed on the side of the head stone.  They should not encroach on other spaces.

There is a limit of two decorations per space, of which one may be a Shepherd’s Hook.  Pots may not be larger than 24 inches in diameter.

Any grave decorations left after November 1st will be removed.

Wreaths and sprays are permitted after Thanksgiving for winter decoration.  No grave blankets are allowed.

Foundations for headstones must be installed by the City Department of Public Works..

No permanent plantings of any kind are allowed.

All winter decorations must be removed by March 1st.

Lily’s design was featured on the T-shirts worn my the volunteers who helped clean up the town on Saturday, April 27th.  Each year the City sponsors Earth Day activities such as Cedar Creek and White Pine Trail clean-up and an electronic waste collection site.  The activities close out with a pizza party for all the volunteers held at the American Legion Hall.

This year approximately 50 residents signed up for the clean-up and had great time in the warm sun cleaning up the town!

Some of the eligible repairs include repair or replacement of major structural and mechanical systems; disability access and ADA repairs; pest and hazard abatement and energy saving improvements.

You may be eligible for the program if you own and occupy your home, meet income eligibility criteria, live within Kent County, outside of Grand Rapids or Wyoming, and if the home improvement is necessary.

Available financing includes: deferred payments loans or grants.  Deferred payment loans are non-interest bearing loans with no payback required unless the borrower sells or transfers title or discontinues residence in the dwelling.  Payments may be made voluntarily on a Deferred Payment Loan.  Grant are availabe to homeowners who are income eligible and are also 62 years of age or older.  Grants may be used for accessibility improvements, hazard abatement and emergency repairs.  Grants do not require repayment.

For a household in which one person resides, the maximum allowable income is $33,400; a two-person household is $38,200; a three-person household, $42,950; a four-person, $47,700 and a five-person household, the maximum allowable income is $51,550.

For more information, contact the Kent County Community Development Department at 616.632.7400 or visit  www.accesskent.com

Those running include:  Mark Laws, Jerry Hall, Pamela Conley, Dan Clark and Perry Hopkins.

City Charter requires an August Primary for City Council seats if valid petitions are filed for more than twice the number of persons to be elected.  Since five candidates have filed for the two seats, a Primary Election will be held August 6, 2013.  The run-off for the two seats will be on the November 5th General Election Ballot.

New to  the budget discussion this year is a proposed capitol improvement program listing the City’s immediate needs over the next five to six years; but also projecting out 20 years, a sewer rate increase and a five-year financial forecast.

For a copy of the 2013 -14 Budget please click here.

Final brush pickup will take place September 23rd.

If you have any questions, please call DPW Superintendent Tom Stressman at 616.696.1330 ext. 108.

An application is available by clicking here.

If you would like additional information, please email financedirector@cityofcedarsprings.org .

Fire Chief Marty Fraser announced plans for the refurbishment of the vintage fire truck at a recent City Council meeting.  The Straubs plan to do a quality restoration job complete with the truck’s original gold leaf and brass ornamentation.  They estimate it will take about 200 man hours and approximately $7,500.00 to bring the vehicle to museum quality.  “The preservation of this truck is important to all of us as well as the community,” they said.

The Straubs as well as members from the Cedar Springs Fire Department will be taking donations toward the restoration’s expenditures.  Those wishing to make a donation, may contact Fire Chief Marty Fraser at 616.813.6209 or by email at mfraser.csfd@gmail.com   Donations may also be dropped off at Cedar Springs City Hall.  All donations are tax exempt and receipts will be issued.

To begin the fund raising campaign, members from the Cedar Springs Fire Department will be participating in the Chamber of Commerce’s Community Celebration Day August 11th.  They will be holding a car wash at the Fire Station on Maple Street and offering area children the opportunity to see the station’s fire trucks up close and personal as well as getting some hands on experience with a fire hose!

Double Up Food Bucks, a state-side program in Michigan,  helps stretch your food dollars at participating farmer’s markets.  For more information, call 1.866.588.2796 of visit www.doubleupfoodbucks.org to find a market near you.

Many local farmer’s markets now accept Bridge Cards.  For a listing of Community Farmer’s Markets accepting Bridge Cards, please click Community Farmer’s Markets.  For a listing of farmers accepting Bridege Cards, please click Farmers Accepting Bridge Cards.

Saturday, April 28, 2012 is National Drug Take Back Day!!  Area law enforcement agencies have combined their efforts to eliminate dangerous drugs from your home.  A number of police departments, including the Cedar Springs Police Department, have installed a medication/drug collection box at their locations, so that citizens can place  unused medications/drugs into the collection box.

The drug collection and disposal program provides a safe disposal for citizens to anonymously  dispose unused prescription medications.  This program provides an environmentally safe alternative to disposing medications in a landfill or sewer system which may later negatively affect the environment.

Using the drop off box will help to remove harmful prescriptions from the home thereby preventing drug abuse and the risk of accidental overdose and will prevent unused prescriptions from being disposed of in ways that are harmful to our water systems.

Law enforcement officials will properly dispose of the medications using the Kent County waste incinerator.

Liquids will not be accepted since liquids can not be brought to the waste facility.   The program is designed for residential material only.  Waste from medical offices and health care agencies  will not be accepted through this program.

The drop box is available Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at Cedar Springs City Hall, 66 S. Main St.