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Activist renews effort to eliminate crosses from Frankenmuth public property by Theo Keith | The Saginaw News Wednesday June 04, 2008, 8:24 AM Lloyd C. Clarke maintains he'd be happy getting "two out of three" religious symbols taken off public property. While he surrendered his battle to remove a Luther cross from the Frankenmuth city shield, he succeeded in having crosses on a Frankenmuth bridge removed. Clarke still hopes to have what he calls an "8-foot-tall white cross in a city park" across from Bronner's Christmas Wonderland removed. "This is a pattern --crosses on the bridge, crosses on the shield, now a cross in a city park," said Clarke. Although there was much less fanfare at Tuesday's June 3 Frankenmuth City Council meeting than the May 6 meeting, Clark returned. Clarke, a Frankenmuth resident, also accused the council of preparing a statement outside of open session. Clarke was referring to Mayor Gary C. Ruppecht's statement read aloud May 6, which he said violated the Michigan Open Meetings Act. The act seeks to open to full public view the processes by which elected and unelected officials make decisions. "We believe from a historical perspective that our shield accurately reflects the 1845 founding of our community," Ruppecht's read from a prepared statement. "Should we be formally challenged, we will vogorously respond and not waver in its defense." Clarke took issue with when the statement was crafted. "I don't know when it was conjured up," he said. "But I'm sure it wasn't done at an open meeting that I was allowed to attend." Clarke brought the matter to the council's attention during opening public comments. He left soon after. Before he adjoured the meeting, Ruppecht wished to make the council's position clear. Clarke "has made a serious accusation," he said. "We feel we are not in violation of the Open Meetings Act." The written statement was prepared in the morning session on May 6, but Ruppecht said the council has done everything "above board." "We published minutes of our morning meeting and read the statement at that evening's meeting," he said. Clarke said he believes the city will sell the land that the cross is on to a private citizen, he said. But, he said that a vote on the matter must take place at a public meeting. "If the council did (vote publicly), they would be admitting there was a problem," he said. Yet, he wants to have closure. "I'd like to see the whole thing go away," he said. "I would expect the city to do the right thing (in regard to the cross), but this isn't a matter of us and them. Theo Keith is a staff writer for The Saginaw News. You may reach him at 776-9682. |