Roads

Roads

There are many types of roads in Hayes Township; the Township does not own any roads.  Within the township, 8.4 miles of county primary roads (all paved), 73 miles of county local gravel roads, and 13.19 miles of paved county local roads.

The Clare County Road Commission maintains close to 1000 miles of roads, 1/10 of which are in Hayes Township.

Bridges are the responsibility of the Road Commission, and the township does not share the costs of maintenance, improvement, or replacement.

Roads are classified as:

  • trunklines funded by MDOT (M-61, US 127, and Business 127)
  • county roads, divided into county primaries and county locals (most subdivision roads are county local).  All roads that are county roads are certified under Act 51 as public roads.  All county primary roads in Hayes Township are paved (Stockwell from Clare Avenue to Coolidge, Harrison Avenue from M-61 to Gladwin Road, and Townline Lake Road from Clare Avenue to the Hamilton Township border).
    • A subset of county roads exist that are seasonal.  Seasonal roads are not maintained in the winter months, and are bladed in the non-winter months only occasionally. These include Edmond Woods/Arnold Lake Road from Harrison Avenue to Burns and Stockwell Road, from Stockwell Drive to the dead end at the freeway.
    • Another subset of county roads are roads that are unimproved for various reasons, due to hills or other reasons.
  • All other roads in the township not certified under Act 51 are not maintained by the Clare County Road Commission (CCRC). These roads may include:
    • Private roads in platted subdivisions or condominium subdivisions
    • Public roads in platted subdivisions not accepted by the CCRC
    • Easements for private roads and driveways outside of platted subdivisions

Generally, mail delivery, school buses, and trash collection only occur on public certified roads or private roads built to county specifications. Trash collection for non-certified public roads and private roads not built to county specifications occurs at the nearest public certified road.

The CCRC receives funding from the state for county roads for those roads listed on the Act 51 Certified Road map (https://clarecrc.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Hayes.pdf).  The funding received for maintenance may include routine blading, ditching, tree trimming, and snow plowing.  Not enough funding is received to improve those roads.

Hayes Township partners with the Road Commission for improvements and certain types of maintenance.  The voters of Hayes Township approved a permanent 1 mill road millage in 1974.  This millage rate is reduced by Headlee and is typically around 0.7 mills collected each tax year in the neighborhood of $100,000.

Hayes Township prioritizes keeping the paved roads in good condition. Maintenance typically involves crack sealing, chip and fog, or overlaying the existing pavement with a new topcoat. Some overlays have additional improvements such as widening the road, adding valley gutters and check dams; tree trimming, cleaning ditches, fixing culverts, etc.  The Road Commission provides a match on one pavement project per year, up to $40,000.

When township funds allow, an occasional gravel project can occur.  Gravel projects typically involve cleaning out ditches, trimming trees, widening the roadbed, and adding up to six inches of gravel.  The CCRC splits the cost of gravel road improvements 50/50.

Generally, the only gravel roads to be considered for improvement by the township are main roads (not subdivision roads) which are mile roads or half mile roads on the county grid system. Recent projects have included

  • Mostetler Road, from Spikehorn to the Hamilton Township border, along with a bridge replacement over Mostellar Creek
  • Clarence Avenue (Harrison Avenue to Coolidge Avenue)
  • Cranberry Lake Road (Coolidge to beginning of pavement).  This completes a project that involved the paving of Stockwell and the repaving and widening of Cranberry Lake Road from Clare Avenue; Greenwood Township had already completed the re-graveling of Coolidge from Cranberry Lake Road to Stockwell.

 

Dust Control

For public certified roads, the township provides dust control through a special assessment district; seasonal and unimproved roads are not part of the district.

Funds are collected from benefitting property owners and the township contracts with Michigan Chloride to provide dust control during the summer months. The CCRC is involved only to the extent that they blade the designated public certified roads prior to the application of brine. In 2023, approximately $120,000 was spent to brine the roads in Hayes Township.

More information on Dust Control is available from : https://hayestwpclaremi.gov/dust-control/

Brining costs, 2005-2023

Private Roads

The maintenance of platted private roads and other private roads are the responsibility of co-owners in a condominium subdivision, homeowners associations in a platted subdivision, or the road association for other private roads.  These maintenance activities include blading, brining, snow plowing, and ditch and culvert maintenance.

More information on Private Roads and Driveways is available from https://hayestwpclaremi.gov/drivewaysprivateroads/

County Roads, comparison of townships

Useful Links

State Trunk Line Highway System (Act 51 of 1951)
https://legislature.mi.gov/Laws/MCL?objectName=MCL-ACT-51-OF-1951

Clare County Road Commission:
https://clarecrc.com

Clare County Drain Commissioner:
https://clareco.net/department/drain-commissioner/

Hayes Township Act 51 maps (public county roads):
https://clarecrc.com/certified-maps/

Private Roads and Driveways: https://hayestwpclaremi.gov/drivewaysprivateroads

Culverts, Bridges, Ditches and Drains: https://hayestwpclaremi.gov/drainsditches

Dust Control: https://hayestwpclaremi.gov/dust-control/

How do I get my road fixed (minor repairs)?

For county local roads and county primaries, contact the Clare County Road Commission for potholes, washouts, drainage issues, visibility issues, blading and snowplowing.  If an issue occurs with dust control (brining), please contact the township supervisor.  If a road issue is a continuing occurrence, consider bringing it the attention of the township supervisor.  The supervisor drives most roads in the township every month, and brings issues to the road commission.  You may also consider attending a meeting of the Clare County Road Commissioners.

What if I want my road improved (major repairs or hard surface)?

If you live on a road in a subdivision and would like to have it improved, whether a re-graveling or a hard surface, you can speak with the township about the formation of a special assessment district (SAD) to raise the funds for the project.  A special assessment district identifies benefitting properties to which an assessment would be collected for the improvements; Formal petitions are necessary.

Projects also may include ditching, culvert replacements, and tree trimming or removal from the Right of Way.

Gravel Districts in the past have included:

Cranberry Lake #1 – graveling road and bringing roads up to county standards

Paving Districts in the past have included:

Parklane Drive (Cranberry Lake #1) – paving

Lapham Drive and part of north part of Hampton – paving

Oak Leaf subdivisions – paving of Timber Lane, Meadowbrook Drive, Oak Leaf Drive, and Acorn Drive

Dancer’s subdivisions – paving of Dale Street, Ireta Street, Anne Road, Willard Road, and Lee Road

Little Long Lake #1, #2, #4 – paving of Lakeview, C’Dale Drive, Grouse Road, Lansing Street, and South Street

Little Long Lake #5 – paving of Bischoff Drive

Future improvements and maintenance of the pavement and ditches for any of these roads remains the responsibility of the original district.  Property owners would need to do new petitions to reestablish the districts.

Other certified public roads subject to a special assessment district would be those paved without township involvement, including roads in the Harrison Industrial Park (Transportation Drive and Industrial Parkway) and Hazel Drive north of Cranberry Lake Road.

Private Roads in platted subdivisions or condominium subdivisions that are paved are the responsibility of the Homeowners Association in that subdivision or co-owners in the condominium subdivision, either through their normal association dues or through a SAD.