NMMBA Board of Directors Meeting
Date and location: Wednesday, March 4th, 2026 Acme Twp Hall
Board present: Mike Walters, Tom White, Tim Reicha, Margarete Wanley, and Steve Mentzer
Board absent: Chad Jordan, Chad Schut, Brian Pugh, Heath Day, Kim White, Chuck Hathaway and Tim Jenema.
Guest(s): Sarah Schaub and Casey Ressl - TART, John Roe and Kamie Wade
Mission statement —----> It is our mission to Envision, Build and Protect the mountain bike experience while respecting all forest users and uses.
Last month’s board minutes were approved online.
Mike called the meeting to order at 6:35 pm.
Public Comment:
Casey Ressl, development director with TART was in attendance to discuss the proposed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that outlines shared responsibilities with NMMBA in regards to the maintenance facility that will be constructed at Timber Ridge Resort to house grooming equipment, tools, etc for both organizations.
This new document will replace the one signed in April of 2025 with few changes.
As mentioned in last month’s NMMBA minutes, the parties are still short of the financial goal but would like to break ground this Spring.
Casey indicated that this contract will have to be in place for them to start securing permits starting April 20th, 2026. TART will vote on the proposed MOU in two weeks.
There are a few grants still outstanding which will help them to further reach their goal.
Other discussions covered a variety of topics.
A reserve fund to manage expenses on the building, utility costs and what percentage each entity would be responsible for.
Insurance for contractors, sub-contractors and all volunteer labor will also have to be finalized.
Much more to follow.
Next on the Public Comment agenda was Kamie Wade.
Kamie, a Cadillac native has 3+ decades of involvement in outdoor recreation in the Cadillac area. She also is a ride leader, organizer and volunteer and would love to be more involved in promoting her home trail.
She led the Singletrack Sisters group for 5 years and has also staged triathlons in the Cadillac area.
She is anxious to get the community more involved in the CP trail system.
She indicated that presently there is a great crew of volunteers already committed to making the CP trails the very best. In all 4 seasons.
With Kim absent there were no Financial or Grant reports submitted.
TCTN:
Tom led this discussion.
Greilick Park Planning Group meetings for both February and March have been rescheduled for April. This group functions to discuss future park activities, events and procedures.
With the top 1/3 rd of the Greilick property county owned, the bottom 2/3rd’s is scheduled to transfer to city ownership sometime in April. Tom will provide the exact date. If bikes are allowed, there will be lots to do.
Tom also notified the board as to the next Brownbridge Advisory Committee meeting, which is scheduled for March 19th on the 2nd floor of the Governmental Center.
VST - Backcountry Wayfinding:
Brian made note of an upcoming meeting with Corbin Design to further discuss the Wayfinding project. It will be held at the Corbin offices on Thursday, March 19th, 2026 starting at 2:00 pm.
Cadillac:
Report submitted by Michele Andrews.
Winter Sports:
We have had 37 grooms for the winter sports trail so far this winter season and 16 grooms for the xc ski trail. It has been an excellent winter of good snow and a lot of users.
Trust Fund Grant:
Missaukee County applied for and was awarded the DNR Trust Fund Grant. With those funds we now have a wide ADA accessible trail that takes you to the Clam River, a complete paved parking lot, bollards in front of the pavilion, and an information kiosk. The kiosk is empty right now, but we will be looking to fill it up with a new mapping system and other information items over the next year.
West Side Trail Build:
The DNR has obtained funds to finish the west side trail project. These funds have existed for a few years and the DNR has been working through all the steps it takes to use them. We finally have a contractor in place and the build is to commence this summer.
With Chad J absent, there was no Bike Leelanau update submitted.
Merchandise Update:
New 2026 Velcro membership bands need to be ordered. Along with stickers. Talk of using the grooming badge artwork for the 2026 membership stickers.
Vasa Bike Park:
No report submitted.
As noted in last month's minutes, Tim Jenema will attend a couple of workshops and the Grant window opens April 24th.
Commons Bike Park:
A new MOU has been prepared but not officially voted on between NMMBA and Garfield Twp. NMMBA will draft a proposed agreement with some edits to the document that was submitted by Garfield Township.
TCTF:
John Roe has been putting together a first draft of the courses for 2026’s TCTF.
Discussion that followed was to what trails to utilize for this year's event.
Once the courses are completed and permits in place, registration will then open up. Looking at the possibility of May.
Winter Trails:
John also led this discussion.
A new 2025 Ski Doo Tundra Sport 600 ace has been purchased. John Roe will get the damaged sled out to Clarke’s for an estimate of repairs. It will most likely be a total loss. No report as yet from our insurance carrier.
Shop/Community Rides:
This is being headed up by Chuck, Chad S and Tom.
Continued discussion on the idea of hosting community rides during the summer months. These would take place on Monday nights. Have all local bike shops and teams come out for a ride and possibly offer snacks, etc.
This would be a ride for everyone!
LMB/MMBA:
John let the board know that the scheduled meeting was taking place on Thursday, March 5th. He will get back with a report.
TCTN:
More to report on.
Brian was not in attendance but filed this update.
VST Supply Rd. Trailhead Pavilion Lighting Project:
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Amy and Mario Kennedy will be spearheading this project
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Thursday March 5th, Keen will be meeting with Mario and Amy at the pavilion to discuss options for this project and provide cost guidance
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A CCCC grant will be submitted for support of this project.
VST Supply Rd. NMMBA Awareness / Membership Engagement trailhead weekend meet and greets.
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Amy and Mario Kennedy will be coordinating the scheduling of this activity
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Our intent is to have NMMBA board members and enthusiastic volunteers set up a simple NMMBA branded table/banner/etc. right in front of the trailhead archway to act as ambassadors for NMMBA awareness and to encourage support through memberships.
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At the very least we would like to schedule one weekend per month (Saturday or a Sunday in April through September) for a 4 hour morning or afternoon session. Scheduling to be flexible to hit days that will have maximum rider exposure due to good weather/conflicting events/etc.
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If we find we have a lot of enthusiasm for this activity, it would be great to expand the number of monthly events.
New Business:
Club Express vs CAMBA(Chequamegon Area Mountain Bike Association).
Kate White had alerted the board to a new platform, Neon One CRM. This platform has performed well for the Wisconsin group mentioned as it pertains to donors, membership, fundraising and events.
Definitely worth looking into.
NMMBA Part-Time Coordinator:
Megan Motil from Parallel Solutions did present the board with a more defined job description to review.
Mike had emailed the board the full document on February 22nd.
Discussion did answer some questions the board had.
First, this person would be considered an employee not an independent contractor.
Also discussed, was it a salaried position or hourly wage?
Secondly, Margarete remarked on the proposed weekly hour range. 15 to 25 hours per week. Would the coordinator be able to handle not only what they “have to do” duties but also be able to tackle other “if there’s time’ duties within that time frame?
With a few board members absent it was decided to expand on this topic with a full board next month.
Open Forum:
Steve had received an email from a representative of Erik’s Bike Shop. Joe Kreitzer. He was wondering if they could stage a mountain bike demo event at Palmer Woods. Titled Erik’s Mega Demo Mountain Bike Tour. They usually attract 5 different bike brands and have 50 bikes available.
After discussion it was determined that this kind of event was not allowed at Palmer Woods due to bylaws associated with the land owners, Leelanau Conservancy.
Steve will follow up with Mr. Kreitzer and suggest having the event at the VST trailhead. Steve will also provide Joe a link to the Michigan DNR website for them to obtain the proper permits to stage this event.
The next scheduled board meeting will be Wednesday, April 8th, 2026 at the Acme Township Hall. Beginning at 6:30 pm.
With that the meeting was adjourned at 8:30 pm.
Submitted by
Steve Mentzer, secretary