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• All City of Alma Buildings are currently closed to the public in response to the COVID-19 virus.

The City of Alma, Michigan

Municipal Building is Open 8 am - 5 pm Monday - Friday
Closed for Lunch 12:45 pm - 1:45 pm

Letter from City Manager: COVID-19 Response

Please take a moment to read an update from City Manager Matt Schooley on the response to the COVID-19 crisis.

Download a File:

March 29 COVID-19 Community (PDF)

Public Buildings Closed: Update 3/26/2020

Effective at 12:00 pm on March 19, 2020 all City of Alma Buildings closed to the public. Know that employees of the City are still here working to maintain the highest level of service possible. All departments are functioning and available by phone. Many of our employees are currently working remotely from home. There may be a delay in their response. We appreciate your patience. Our priorities as a City are shifting on an hourly basis at this point. We appreciate your patience and understanding as we all deal with an unprecedented crisis.

UPDATE: SUSPENSION OF SERVICES-LARGE ITEM REFUSE AND RECYCLING

UPDATE: MARCH 26, 2020
Due to the recent increase in the volume of residential solid waste, the Cities of Alma and St. Louis must temporarily suspend large (bulk) item disposal. This includes disposal of large items such as mattresses, large pieces of furniture and appliances. Beginning on March 30th, the service will be suspended for an initial period of 30 days. This is being done to reduce the overall volume of refuse and conserve capacity for disposing of normal household waste which is essential to public health and safety. Since recycling services were previously suspended, please continue to bag all recycling along with your garbage. The Cities are working with Republic Services to stay on top of this situation and will provide additional guidance as we receive it.

March 18, 2020
The Cities of Alma and St. Louis have received communication from their recycling processor, Isabella County, that all recycling processing will be suspended until further notice. This announcement is linked to the COVID-19 precautions to limit the risk to county employees.

At this time, it has been determined the virus can spread through hard surfaces such as paper, plastics and other recyclable materials according to the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) and other health experts.

Based on this information our solid waste contractor, Republic Services, will be collecting the Recycling at the same time as the garbage until the Isabella County recycling processing facility comes back online.

We advise at this time for our residents to bag all recycling along with your garbage, to keep the material contained during collection. The Cities are working with the Republic Services and Isabella County to stay on top of this situation and will provide additional guidance as we receive it.

Isabella County, City of Alma, City of St. Louis & Republic Services our taking the coronavirus seriously. We are closely monitoring CDC, FEMA and local, state and federal guidance.

2020 Hazardous Waste Collection POSTPONED

The 2020 Hazardous Waste Collection has been postponed due to COVID-19 response restrictions. We are currently working with our contractor to find an acceptable date in August or September. We will update this site as soon as we have more information. Thank you for your patience.

Gratiot County Declares State of Emergency

Gratiot County has declared a State of Emergency to take effect Monday March 16th, 2020 at 12am. The declaration will remain in effect until further notice due to the novel Coronavirus 2019 pandemic. This step is being taken after consultation with Health Officials and County Emergnecy Management, and is in line with the same efforts being take at the State and Federal level. The declaration limits crowd sizes, modifying government services as needed, and barring visibly ill persons from workplaces and businesses.

As you all know we are heading into some uncharted waters in relation to dealing with the COVID-19 crisis. Be assured that the City of Alma will remain diligent in our efforts to plan and make sure that we can continue to provide essential services to our citizens. Right now there are quite a few unknowns that are being analyzed and discussed at many different levels. We all should heed the suggestions of our public health departments and attempt to limit our unnecessary contacts for a period of time. I understand the strain this puts on all of us, especially those of us whose job it is to serve the public. The best way for all of us to get the most accurate public health information is through the Center for Disease Control or the State of Michigan Coronavirus Page.

Download a File:

Gratiot County Declaration of State of Emergency (PDF)

Gratiot Area Water Authority

The April 10, 2020 meeting of the Gratiot Area Water Authority has been CANCELLED. Regular business will be moved to the May meeting.

Yard Waste Begins April 6th

Yard waste will be collected from the first Monday in April through the third full week of October of each year in accordance with the following procedures:

All yard waste must be separated from recycling materials and general refuse at the curbside.

All grass clippings, leaves and other small loose trimmings from shrubs, trees or bushes must be placed in paper sacks or cardboard boxes (mandatory biodegradable containers) and/or multi-use containers clearly and permanently marked for "Yardwaste" (lettering 6 inch minimum) with a maximum size of 32 gallons and weight of 50 pounds. Multi-use containers cannot be 55-gallon drums nor 'cut down' barrels.

All tree limbs must be placed in piles, not bundled, with all stems lying in the same direction. Large limbs, up to four (4) inches in diameter must be delimbed to reduce size for sufficient handling.
Large tree limbs over four (4) inches in diameter, tree stumps, tree roots, or excessive quantities of branches from heavy tree trimming or tree removal will NOT be collected. Plastic bags and unmarked containers will not be collected.

Placement of yardwaste shall not obstruct sidewalks or public streets.

Yardwaste material will be collected on each resident's normal garbage collection day. Materials should be placed out by 6:00 a.m. to ensure pickup.

City Park Playground Areas Closed

The city parks and trail systems remain open to the public at this time As per the governor’s order, it is important for our citizens to have the opportunity to get outside to exercise or relieve some stress. However, the park bathrooms will not be open during this crisis as it is impossible to ensure they are sanitized and cleaned. To that point, effective today we are closing off the city park playground equipment and pavilions.

Remember: Our best way to fight this virus as a community is to distance ourselves from others as best we can. Thanks for your continued cooperation.

Utility Bill Procedures During State of Emergency

Dear Residents,

As part of our commitment to safety, we are closely monitoring developments related to the coronavirus (COVID-19) and taking appropriate precautions to protect the health and safety of our residents and employees. We are closely following the guidance of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, State officials and the local health department.

We are striving to stay open during this uncertain time by reducing or eliminating some services in the City. We are also ensuring our essential employees who regularly interact with customers take the necessary steps to perform their jobs safely. 
 
How will COVID-19 impact City utility services? 
The City intends to continue providing critical services of water and wastewater. Importantly, The City will suspend service disconnections during the State of Emergency and waive new late payment charges through May 1, 2020.

City Hall is closed to the public however, we are requesting that you use one of the following options to make a payment:

Use the drop box located on the West side of City Hall
Pay online at myalma.org/bill-pay-online (during the state of emergency, the City of Alma will waive the credit card fee)
Call the automated 800 number 1-844-940-2039
U.S. Postal Service

Don't Forget Our Local Businesses

Be sure to check our Community Page to see what Local Businesses are still open and serving the community.

Alma Public Library Closed

Due to the Declared State of Emergency in Gratiot County that has been put in place to assist with slowing the spread of the COVID-19 virus, the Alma Public Library will be closed to the public until further notice. The library is currently providing some services to the general public.

Check their facebook page

Thinking about running for City Commission?

City voters will elect four members to the City Commission in November 2020. In the event that there are nine or more interested parties, a primary election will be held in August 2020, narrowing the contest to eight candidates.

Commissioners whose terms are expiring this year are:
Roger Allman
Gregory Mapes
Larry Mott
Nicholas Piccolo

The only requirement to be a City Commissioner is that you are a registered voter of the City of Alma.

The filing deadline for nominating petitions, per State Statute, is no later than 4:00 p.m. on the fifteenth Tuesday before the August Primary, or April 21, 2020. Signatures must be gathered within the 180 day period immediately preceding the date of filing. The City Charter requires the petition be "signed by no less than twenty-five (25) nor more than 50 registered electors of the City". The $100 fee in lieu of petition filing is not available due to Charter restrictions.

Nominating petition packets are available at the City Clerk’s office. Please contact the City Clerk's office at 989-463-8336 for more information or to have a packet mailed to you.