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| “Saugatuck in the 19th Century” |
Workshop
-Workshop on Admin Qualifications. Steering committee for approval. MI Works Executive Search, need more executive planning (I agree that strategic planning is important. Then need tactical and strategic. Tactical in short term up to a 5 year plan. Then a 10 year and 20 year plan based on longer term market trends.). Something about ARC monies for infrastructure and not anything else. The ARC money will (ARC Grant) end in 1.5 years and there will be difficult financial issues. Cost in retraining new people and finance. 3 year projection on cost was done. Projection of expenses. 70 hours of admin and 70 of original position by current interim administrator. Comment on firing and the issues it created. Appointment vs. hiring of position. Comments on hours, saving $100+K on position, and a few other concerns. Two people feel it should have all been settled already and we have discussed already. A discussion on bending finance committee and personnel hiring rules with interim position. Procedures issues. No discussion on finance committee approving money. Contract is still being discussed. There was an issue on not having the financial approval through the right committee and then approving her for money to be paid due retroactively without that official approval. Concerns that we cannot do things like we did in the past if we need to go forward. One felt cannot go forward unless things are done differently and will vote accordingly and move on. (Something about birds. Cute Funny Parrots)
Regular Meeting
-Agenda items passing.
-One resident feels that commissioner is not representing the people. Owned a manufacturing company and consulting firm. He feels there are conflict of interest in both positions and one cannot double dip and protect one position through another with the same person. Feels that its an unethical issue. Job description should be memorandum of understanding and outlining duties. The job description created with this in mind.
-Discussion on Conservation District and the revenue that the county made and where that is and whether or not its returned back to the county. Feels the board is not in a position to make a decision without understanding these issues. Have been seeking information since last October but the full information has not been received in accordance to Michigan Constitution and FOIA (You can find more information on MI FOIA.)
-Discussion on whether we can consider RFP at this time. There were other items included in the agenda and it should have been stopped at that time. Didn't feel one of the commissioners kept their word.
-Looks like the news came on for a minute through Zoom.
-Interim County Commissioner Dept. Heads: Brownfield redevelopment project. Online reservations for campground. User friendly. Every monthly excess revenue would be carried over into an account.
-Sheriff Department Head: $240K cost to update courthouse construction. One additional deputy requested. From my knowledge of construction I agree that sometimes depending on the plans and the overall need to ensure structure integrity it is best to do it all at once. Sometimes, depending on which walls and other items are being broken out there may be places to reasonably incur a modest cost in phasing. An engineer would sort of need to project the costs and natural points where projects can be halted and then restarted. Financial discussion going to Finance Committee on costs.
-Conservation District Head: Discussion on not having restrictions on access to land to the South. Any complaint on county forest were investigated. A lot of self serving individuals. A cross country ski trial possible but cost with plowing. Similar issue with bike path that ends at Pioneer Trail. 2018-22 County has data entire QuickBooks report and where money was spent. $111K - a bunch of expenses. Kept the grounds person during COVID. $75K and work for the year. Lots of volunteer labor hours. Revenue was only $13K. Maybe up to $20K. Liked auditing background with interim county admin. Needs Conservation District to be reimbursed. Some false statements have been made in the past few months.
-Public Sector: Looking to get best we can get. Prefer community public service. Options to swap knowledge, education and experience. Vote yes on job descriptions. 3-2.
-Advertising the position passes.
-Process for applications passes
-Review of applications passes
-Interviews passes.
-Attorneys. Issues of conflict of interest things when such issues arise. $6K for services. Liability of suits away from tax payer. Malpractice or liability insurance. Motion passes.
-Vets Funding: Spoke with another county. The person at the county said they don't have a lawyer. Another commissioner indicated that he talked about energy and attorneys and was forwarded emails for that county. A few names mentioned. Attorney's opinion provided. Something about the lawyers provided and then information was processed. Apparently there was different people part of the conversation and different people know different things. It happens. A legal opinion is offered. (I found this great video on veteran culture. We need to do a better job with our vets going forward. I respect them and I hope others do as well. Its important. '15 Things Veterans Want You to Know' )
-Budget. Storm water grants. $226K for sampling. Passed.
-Out of county travel for commissioners. Passed.
-Will be issues with cost and labor if someone takes over the parks management. $200K or more. Doesn't want an issue down the road. Don't build too big. Avoid an authority. Ad hoc would make more sense. Maybe having the county run it. County is taking over the work. Doesn't want monies received from the parks into the general fund. (I think this money should be different and in turn used to build and maintain the parks. The money should go into a park fund for future endowment of the park and removes it as an expense completely.)
-Someone retired. Awesome! Great Tod!
-Airport safety shut off. In budget. Purchase lesser of two. Passes.
-Part-time district court clerk position. Non-union. Some issues and county employees are burnt out. Lots of employees work in high stress environment. Its a tough job. Lots of negativity simply by the nature of the work. (Here is some stuff I found on Employee Burnout). Passes
-$16-18 passes
-Zoom vs. YouTube recommendations. Wants Zoom to be eliminated. Livestream on YouTube. I wonder still how comments are going to be made? Maybe I missed it. Perhaps, it will be phone called in. That might work. Yep they said phone! A comment on ADA compliant with Zoom. Multiple phone lines, with blind abilities. You can sort of look up these rules if necessary. Here is something on ADA YouTube Compliance. One could also consider the Google Meetings (I don't know all the caveats but maybe worth an exploration.) I guess you can call in to an ADA coordinator with notice (I have dealt with this stuff many times and I'm still not an expert. Better to have someone look at it. ADA compliance officer and/or attorney.) 3-2 passes.
-Escanaba community garden approval. MSU extension. Take ownership of the building. The size of the greenhouse. Greenhouse isn't very big. ISD builders. They just want to use county property. I support the community garden. Maybe a letter that releases the county from liability would make sense. Buildings and grounds to meet with the group.
-Motion to go into executive session.
-Approve interim administrator to take on new responsibilities with $384 per day. One wants a stipend but not full pay. Approved.
-Grant administrator and signature on grants by current interim admin. Approved. (Makes sense regardless of the firing issues)
-Resident came up and said that she wants the county to manage parks and wants the court house to be updated with bullet proof windows. Doesn't like hiring an extra municipal attorney. Concerns about what they are worried about. We all have our own political views. Concerned about comments on Fauci Flu and the politicization of some board members.
-Wants Zoom. Doesn't like the phone call with YouTube. Feels like we are not representing the young. Happy of ADA.
-Average age is 48 years of age. Wants to not use Zoom. Happy about ADA (Watch a video on ADA Overview)
-Concerns about not using Zoom. State it would be discriminatory to require people with disabilities to ask for special permission for access.
-Another person is asking to keep Zoom. Cheap price. (I think the free subscriptions only include so many participants. The paid version allows for many more participants. )
-Another person says that not having Zoom would cut off those who call in and don't have computers.
-Another person hopes that Department Heads to not take 30 minutes because the meetings are long.
-Another person worried about Zoom. Stated that people are frustrated that one commissioner does research and its ignored. There is no point in meeting when commissioners come with their mind's already made up. Feels that firing Emily is not strategic planning.
-Another felt that some are following others who lost their elections. People vote and don't want certain people. Feel that some are in there to fulfill their own needs and not for others. Character every day. Do something or be something. Loosing is a game. They want to be someone. Comments online assault with false allegations and intimidation of wives and children. Mess with me he says, not my things, and not my family. Yikes, someone else now said it!
-Private citizen. Look over MMRMA before making decision on hiring civil attorney on frivolous lawsuits puts the county at risk. You start incurring costs past the point of settlement resolution. The county gets on the hook and it could be substantial. The MMRMA is run by the county. Malpractice only comes into play when the DA makes a mistake or messes up.
-All 5 were elected to office. Lots of breaking up on microphone. Something about Zoom.
-Want to thank from the youth of Delta County that they appreciate two of the commissioners for caring.
-Do not play to the crowd but does play to the facts. If we save $100K then we should earmark $50K for Veterans Service Officer. People are concerned about tax. (Delta County Veterans Services) Great job on drugs and supporting people getting their life back in order. Sobriety Court Graduation. (Don't Get Upset)
- $13K for controller out the door. Save the taxpayers about $100K. Public Act 214. 1 out of 4 homeless and PTSD. Showing respect to vets is important.
- One commissioner brought forward “I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality. This is why right, temporarily defeated, is stronger than evil triumphant.” Martin Luther King. **
adjourn
* This is written in the spirit of First Amendment as an effort to understand and improve where possible. I shouldn't have to say that but unfortunately it is what it is. There are a number of people around who reported being targeted community members once they voiced their opinion. (It could be an indication of lax enforcement of laws and rights depending on which clan, group or religion one belongs. There were other community complaints by other members of society glossed over in the past. Some of them potentially serious. It seems to be a growing trend and I hope as a nation we can stop it. That would require different stakeholders to believe that certain American values are universalized across the population.) While I believe as a nation we will get there, it won't happen unless we value all members of our society as having certain endowed rights.
**This is a different sort of discussion on the leaders that come along every once in a while and sort of flip the script on the way we view the world. I know a lot of diverse people so they may appreciate a discussion on MLK. MLK was a gifted man who thought about other people and the bigger picture of our nation and peoples. These transformational leaders sometimes carry with them the certain traits High intellectual and emotional capacity based deep within the way the brain is wired. The brain is a complex thing and how it is connected from a neural level impacts its capacities. I talk about a concept called mirrors sometimes. Its when the outside stimuli is processes deeply within the neural network and encoded sensations that are retriggered and that in turn creates a difficult task of separating what is a trait of another and what is a trait of self as the stimuli are blended. Sorry I digress..... MLK felt certain people were being prematurely judged unfairly as a collective whole and that impacts the signals/ value propositions they receive from their environment that creates people's misunderstandings. Harvard has a pretty solid discussion on the Connectivity of the Human Brain and how it functions in processing stimuli. )
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