News File Photo Rogers City City Manager Joe Hefele

ROGERS CITY — The Rogers City City Council is considering eliminating odd-year elections, a change that would extend by a year the terms of the mayor and two council members.

The council on Wednesday scheduled a public hearing at 7 p.m. July 21 either at City Hall or via the online platform Zoom to gather input on the plan.

If implemented, the elimination of odd-year elections means Mayor Scott McLennan, Councilman Dick Adair, and Councilman Ken Bielas will be up for reelection in November 2022, instead of November 2021.

Once the November 2022 election is complete, the mayor would return to two-year terms and the two council members would return to four-year terms.

City Clerk Terri Koss said 170 people voted in the last council election.

McLennan said switching to even-year elections would let the city join the ballot with other races, saving the city about $3,000 per election.

“It would be aligned with the county, and then those costs would be shared,” McLennan said. “In a community the size of Rogers City, $3,000 is a chunk of change.”

The city recently adopted a “bare bones” budget of $1.8 million for the 2020-21 fiscal year, effective July 1.

The council also agreed to resume holding in-person meetings at City Hall, although social distancing will be required, meaning people should stay at least six feet away from people outside of their immediate family, and space constraints may limit the number of people able to fit into city council chambers.

If everyone is spaced six feet apart, council chambers can hold the city council, city staff, the media, and about seven members of the general public, City Manager Joe Hefele said. Once seats from the general public fill up, people will have to participate in the meeting via Zoom.

Crystal Nelson can be reached at 989-358-5687 or cnelson@thealpenanews.com.