Hastings downtown New Year’s Eve Ball Drop, always a part of the city’s holiday celebrations, is on track for its 10th year with unanimous approval of the Hastings City Council Monday.
Speaking for the organizers, Carl Schoessel said this year’s event will again have a big tent at the corner of Jefferson and State streets, a fire pit, an interactive ice sculpture and groups with displays and possibly items for sale.
WBCH’s Dave McIntyre will emcee and John Anderson will be the DJ until midnight, when illuminations will create “oohs” and “aahs” as the ball drops at midnight Dec. 31 to say good bye to 2018 and welcome to 2019.
A wedding and David Tossava’s swearing in as mayor of Hastings have occurred at previous ball drops. The event attracts around 1,000 people, and is growing. It's all made possible by the “generous” Downtown Development Authority, Barry County Chamber of Commerce and volunteers and sponsors, Schoessel said.
In other business Monday, the council gave tentative approval to a revised agreement with the Hastings Public Library, the City of Hastings and Rutland Township, an action taken with the failure of Hastings Township residents to pass millage to support the library.
Without the millage, Hastings Township residents will not have unlimited access to the library, though they can still buy non-resident cards and have library’s services. The document has been made more generic and flexible, City Manager Jeff Mansfield said.
The library’s board of trustees has also given tentative approval of the changes, including removing Hastings Township representatives from the library board. The agreement will now go to Rutland Township for its review and approval. Mansfield said Rutland Township attorney Craig Rolfe will likely want to examine the agreement, so the council would get it back in January.
The new agreement is flexible enough to let Hastings Township re-enter the agreement without amending the document, should township residents pass millage in the future, city attorney Stephanie Fekkes said.
