Mobile Watch

BY ROGER STOBERT

MOBILE WATCH COORDINATOR YOUR CANADIAN LAKES Mobile Watch wrapped up the 2020/2021 Winter Watch (formerly referred to as the Red Lights) coverage effective May 1. It was a very busy year, with more than 290 homes on the list at one time or another. When you see Mobile Watch patrollers, please give them a hearty thanks for their good work this past winter. I know that some of our residents are very thankful for the vigilance and timely red light reporting that helped alleviate potential problems caused by malfunctioning furnaces.

For those of you who have already installed reflective house numbers in your front yards, the Mobile Watch and the Safety Department thank you. These reflective green-and-white address numbers are a great help. They easily identify a house and make it more visible both day and night. These signs also assist the Fire Department and Emergency Medical Services in locating your home in case assistance is needed.

During winter, it is not unusual for house number signs and posts to get knocked down or bent. If that is the case at your residence, please correct this problem as soon as possible. It has been proven that clearly visible reflective house numbers are lifesavers.

When checking on the condition of your reflective house number sign, please ensure that your sign is posted at least four feet off the ground. If your investigation reveals that the sign does not meet that specification, consider reinstalling the sign so that it does. Signs posted lower to the ground than four feet will likely be partially or totally obscured by plowed snow during the winter months. If you need assistance in reinstalling your existing sign or installing a new one, contact Roger Stobert, MW Coordinator. Roger will dispatch someone to help you. These signs are available at ACE Hardware. In addition, applications to purchase professionally made signs through Morton Township are available at the CLPOC office or the Morton Township Office in Mecosta. The form can also be downloaded from the Morton Township website: mortontownship.org/wp-content/up loads/2019/02/911_SIGN.pdf.

You should have installed your 2021 Canadian Lakes registration stickers by now; but if not, please do so soon. Timely application minimizes delays when you access amenities such as the Yard Waste site and the boat ramps and can prevent your receiving a warning sticker from Canadian Lakes Safety when your vehicle is parked at any of our beaches or other common areas.

The proper display of current year stickers also helps Safety and Mobile Watch personnel identify vehicles that belong here and those that do not.

Please remember to provide your guests with personal guest passes and vehicle guest tags to hang on their vehicles’ rear-view mirrors. Guest tags and IDs can be obtained at the CLPOC office.

The number of residents and guests walking, jogging, and running on our roads increases dramatically with warmer weather. For your personal safety, please walk, run, and jog on the LEFT side of the road, against traffic. Wear bright or reflective clothing and carry a flashlight at night to make it easier for drivers to see you. Be mindful of loose gravel and debris on and next to your walking pathway.

Please remember the speed limit throughout Canadian Lakes is 25 mph. With the number of pedestrians, bicyclists, ATVs, and golf carts—not to mention the deer and other wildlife— sharing our roads, we must remain alert. Distracted driving is one of the major contributors to accidents. For your safety and that of your loved ones, please keep your attention on the road, whether driving a car, truck, ATV, or golf cart! AND PLEASE WATCH YOUR SPEED!

One of the goals of the Mobile Watch is to have at least one patrol every day in each of the nine Mobile Watch patrol areas. With the return of our snowbird members, we have been able to increase our patrol efforts. However, we now have members who are leaving for seasonal employment opportunities. While we have been successful in attracting some new Mobile Watch members, we need to continue to ask for volunteers to fill vacancies. Even if you cannot serve on a full-time basis, we welcome your assistance as a backup or part-time member. Remember, we are all Canadian Lakers, and our strong suit has always been helping one another. If you can devote some time to help keep your Canadian Lakes a safe place to live, please contact Roger Stobert at 231-288-0148 or spankky@ charter.net.

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, we do have some volunteers awaiting orientation to join the Mobile Watch ranks. As soon as these restrictions allow, and we can safely do so, we will have an orientation session to get these new volunteers on the active status.

Welcome! If you haven’t already, please contact Member Services at 231-972-7651 or memberservices@clpoc.org to schedule your appointment to get membership cards, vehicle stickers, and any other amenities privileges you’d like.

Then, please visit our members’ website at members.canadianlakes.org to register. You’ll fi nd a ton of great, useful info and you’ll automatically be signed up to receive the Members’ Bulletin email.