In a cover memo accompanying the resolution, county treasurer Catherine McClary reported that the amount of delinquent taxes turned over to her office for collection has more than doubled in the past seven years. And for the last two years, the county was not able to self fund the delinquent taxes. McClary expects a small increase in delinquent taxes this year, but asked to borrow the same amount as last year – an amount not to exceed $50 million. However, she expects interest rates to be higher this year than last year, due to the tightening credit markets.

This brief was during the county board of commissioners meeting at the Washtenaw County administration building. A more detailed report will follow: [link]

Commissioners each received a Red Cross personal safety kit at Wednesday's meeting.

Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners (May 6, 2009): At Wednesday’s meeting, commissioners got an update on how the county is responding to the swine flu threat, plus a bonus: Every commissioner was presented with a Red Cross personal safety kit. The implicit message was  that the county is prepared for emergencies, be it virulent viruses or something else entirely. Dick Fleece, interim director of the county’s public health department, assured commissioners that funding for the kits came from the feds, not the county’s general fund budget.

Commissioners also discussed a federal grant aimed at helping track purchases of pseudoephedrine.

Meth Tracking System

The county is the fiduciary for a $218,000 federal grant that will help pay for a computer system that tracks the purchase of pseudophedrine from large drugstore chains as well as small pharmacies. It’s a Michigan State Police COPS-Meth grant for the Michigan High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area, known as HIDTA, which includes Washtenaw County but operates out of Detroit. Pseudophedrine is taken as a decongestant and contained in over-the-counter products like Sudafed, but it can also be used to make methamphetamine, an illegal drug.

Commissioner Jeff Irwin asked what information would be collected for this database, and how will that information be used by law enforcement. Kari Dorr, from the county prosecutor’s office, said that pharmacists currently are required to check the driver’s license for anyone who buys products like Sudafed, and that you have to sign for such purchases. If someone  who has a history of using meth buys the drug, the database will flag it, she said. Likewise if someone is buying large quantities, perhaps from different pharmacies. That kind of information would be shared with law enforcement officials statewide. Steve Hiller, deputy chief assistant prosecuting attorney, said the same information is already being collected – this system is just a conduit to get the information into a central database.

Irwin said he was skeptical about the accuracy of the front-end data. If he were a criminal, he said, he wouldn’t be using his own ID to buy drugs. He said it looks like the feds are spending a mountain of money nationwide that would be better used elsewhere. Hiller noted that state police troops are being cut in Michigan, and that this kind of data collection and information sharing is helpful as fewer resources will be available for law enforcement.

Commissioner Ken Schwartz asked Hiller if meth trafficking was a problem in Washtenaw County. Hiller said they do see meth on the streets quite often, but that Washtenaw County is a little less affected by it than neighboring counties.

Outcome: Commissioners approved the grant in their Ways & Means Committee meeting. It will be forwarded for action at the regular board meeting on May 20.

The Flu Formerly Known as Swine

Stating that “it’s been quite a week,” Diana Torres-Burgos, the county’s medical director, gave commissioners an update on the H1N1 flu virus. As of Wednesday, May 6, there were no confirmed cases in Washtenaw County, she said, and only four probable cases – two residents, and two nonresidents who attend school in the county. [As of May 9, there were nine confirmed cases in Washtenaw County. This report from the state is updated daily at 4:30 p.m.]

Torres-Burgos noted that this is something health care workers deal with every year – seasonal flu typically results in 30,000 to 40,000 deaths a year, nationwide. There was reason for concern because it was a new strain, which means there’s no immunity against it, she said, and it wasn’t clear whether it would be more virulent than seasonal flu. They’ll continue to monitor the situation to see if the virus mutates into something stronger, but at this point, normal precautions – like washing your hands regularly, not touching your mouth nose or eyes and staying home if you feel sick – are sufficient.

Cindra James, the county’s public health emergency preparedness coordinator, described the protocol for dealing with outbreaks like this. She said they have sufficient quantities of the antiviral drugs Tamiflu and Relenza, and that they would not open a central dispensing site unless demand escalated.

Torres-Burgos said that communications had been challenging, particularly in keeping up with demands of the media. The county was in daily contact with local hospitals, communicated regularly with schools and kept its website updated. She said that earlier guidelines had recommended schools be closed if they had probable cases – that’s what happened at Father Gabriel Richard High School, she said. The county contacted the school principal and recommended that the school be closed last week because two students had probable cases. The county also called for a community-wide meeting of schools, Torres-Burgos said, noting that it was a very fluid situation. Soon after, the Centers for Disease Control and state public health officials issued new guidelines saying that schools did not need to close, and so Gabriel Richard reopened on Wednesday with the caveat to be vigilant, she said.

As part of their presentation, Torres-Burgos and James gave each commissioner a Red Cross Deluxe Personal Safety Kit. Here’s a sampling of what it contains, according to its label: Gloves, mask, light stick, whistle, a 4.5 oz. pouch of drinking water, hand warmers, hand sanitizer, first aid supplies, poncho and emergency blanket.

Public Hearing

The board held a public hearing about the one-year action plan for the Washtenaw Urban County group, an entity chaired by commissioner Leah Gunn and consisting of representatives from 11 local jurisdictions: the cities of Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti, Ann Arbor Township, Bridgewater Township, Northfield Township, Pittsfield Township, Salem Township, Scio Township, Superior Township, York Township, and Ypsilanti Township. The group is a conduit for federal grants to fund affordable housing and community development projects.

Only one person – Thomas Partridge – spoke at the hearing. He said not enough is being done to provide affordable housing in Washtenaw County. He urged commissioners to establish an affordable housing commission and to provide more funding for affordable housing.

Recognitions

Mark Ouimet, board co-chair who was leading the meeting in the absence of the chair, Rolland Sizemore Jr., gave two presentations. He presented a proclamation to Washtenaw County Sheriff’s commander Dieter Heren declaring the week of May 10-16, 2009 as Police and Correction Officers Week, and designating May 15 as Peace Officers Memorial Day in Washtenaw County. The week is intended to honor those in law enforcement who have been injured or killed in the line of duty.

Ouimet also presented Rich Sheridan with a resolution congratulating Menlo Innovations, an Ann Arbor firm, for being named to the Worldblu List of most democratic workplaces. Sheridan is Menlo’s CEO. Ouimet, a Republican, said he felt like he’d been set up in making the presentation. Sheridan promised that next year they’d try to be named the most republican workplace.

Commissioner Barbara Levin Bergman presented a resolution honoring the Area Agency on Aging 1-B for its 35-year anniversary. Tina Abbate Marzolf, the group’s CEO, thanked the commission and showed them an original letter that the agency had written to the board in 1974 asking for funding. At that time, they received $348,000 – today, she said, the agency gets more than $5 million in state and federal funds to support services for seniors. In response to a question, Marzolf said that they were trying to work more collaboratively with veterans groups, and that she’d be happy to return to the commission with details about that project.

Public Comment

Two people spoke during the four public comment sessions Wednesday evening. Tom Partridge spoke at all four opportunities for public comment, calling for action to protect the county’s homeless and vulnerable populations. Roberta Asplund, a former public health nurse, said she was a member of the  Michigan Public Health Association and past chair of its nursing section. She said the group was trying to make legislators more aware of the importance of public health nurses, and urged commissioners to provide more funding for public health nurses at the local level. She said school nurses were important as well, and that coordinating between the schools and the county public health nursing staff was crucial.

The board ended its meeting by going into closed executive session to discuss labor relations.

Present: Barbara Levin Bergman, Leah Gunn, Jeff Irwin, Kristin Judge, Mark Ouimet, Jessica Ping, Wes Prater, Ken Schwartz, Conan Smith

Absent: Rolland Sizemore Jr., Ronnie Peterson

Next regular board meeting: Wednesday, May 20 at 6:30 p.m. at the County Administration Building, 220 N. Main St. The Ways & Means Committee meets first, followed immediately by the regular board meeting.  (Though the agenda states that the regular board meeting begins at 6:45 p.m., it usually starts much later – times vary depending on what’s on the agenda.) Public comment sessions are held at the beginning and end of each meeting. [confirm date]

How their wishes will be answered isn’t clear. They’ve been told to supply “shovel-ready” projects, those that are ready to go within 90 days of getting funded. Federal dollars will likely be delivered to the state, with the governor and state legislature responsible for allocating those funds. The Chronicle recently talked to state Sen. Liz Brater, who said that until Congress decides how much it’s willing to provide and how it wants the states to handle those funds, “we’re really in a holding pattern here.”

So what exactly do city and county officials hold in their wish lists? Housing, roads, sewers, sidewalks and more – there’s no shortage of projects. The files below give the details.

City of Ann Arbor Wish List

City of Ann Arbor Environmental Wish List

Washtenaw County Wish List

Washtenaw Road Commission Wish List (JPG file)

UPDATE: Ann Arbor Transportation Authority (AATA) Wish List

Washtenaw Library for the Blind & Physically Disabled @ AADL

Josie Parker, AADL director, gave a brief presentation about the Washtenaw Library for the Blind & Physically Disabled, which was formerly housed with the county and was, at the request of the county last year, moved to the Ann Arbor library. It opened under AADL management on Feb. 2.

Parker praised all the people involved in making the transition. She noted that the library board had waived the district’s residency requirement so that anyone in the county who’s eligible for those services can participate at no cost. And rather than being in just one location, as it was at the county, the services for the blind and physically disabled will be accessible from every branch, she said. [Some of these services were also described by staff at a recent library board meeting.] Over the next few weeks, library staff will be doing outreach by calling every person who has registered for the WLBPD, Parker said.

Commissioner Barbara Levin Bergman asked whether the software being installed on AADL computers – which allows vision-impaired people to use the computer – would be installed in other library districts, like Ypsilanti and Saline. Parker said that it’s expensive software, but that they’re hoping to engage other library districts in the county to make their patrons aware of the services at AADL.

“We won’t let those clients down,” said Parker, “and we won’t let you down.”

Vendor preferences

The topic of giving preferences to local businesses for county contracts had been previously discussed but came up again on Wednesday. An agenda item asked commissioners to approve a contract with Allied Building Service, a Detroit firm, to provide as-needed general construction services to the county, and with Huron Valley Electric, based in Scio Township, for electrical services.

At the evening’s first public comment session, Cindy Carver of Manchester-based Carver Construction spoke about her concerns over the bidding process, saying that it’s difficult to know what the county is looking for and how it awards its contracts, and that the process is frustrating and confusing.

Commissioner Jeff Irwin moved to postpone the item until the board’s March 4 meeting. Commissioner Jessica Ping said she’d like to discuss the topic of local vendor preferences and the procurement process at an upcoming working session. By a voice vote, commissioners approved tabling the contract.

Meet the staff

Bob Guenzel introduced two interns and a former intern who’s now part of the administrative support staff. He said the county had great success working with interns from both Eastern Michigan University and the University of Michigan’s Ford School of Public Policy. He first introduced Scott Rasmussen, who’s in his final semester at the Ford School working toward a master’s degree. Rasmussen, who’s been an intern since September 2008, spoke briefly to the commission, saying that after graduation he hoped to make Washtenaw County his permanent home. He currently lives in Pittsfield Township with his wife and two sons.

Kyle DeBoard has also been an intern since last fall, and is attending EMU for a master’s degree with a concentration in public management. He was unable to attend Wednesday’s board meeting. And Guenzel introduced former intern Stephanie Jensen, who now works as an administrative coordinator for the county. She recently finished her master’s of public administration from EMU.

Public comment

In addition to Cindy Carver, the only other person who spoke during the public comment portions of Wednesday’s meeting was Tom Partridge. He spoke at all four public comment sessions. He berated the board for not doing more to help house the homeless, especially when temperatures dropped below zero, as was the case that night. Following the discussion of county finances, Partridge said that if he were a commissioner, he wouldn’t focus on doom and gloom but would come up with creative concepts to move forward, like a countywide transportation system and an economic development department that’s part of the county, not a separate nonprofit, referring to Ann Arbor Spark.

When Partridge spoke past the three-minute time limit, Conan Smith – who, as Ways & Means Committee chair, was leading that part of the meeting – told him his time was up. That prompted Partridge, raising his voice, to say, “You know it’s unconstitutional!” Partridge was referring to a recent vote by commissioners to change the time limit for public comment speakers from five minutes to three minutes per turn.

At the final public comment session of the evening – following the board meeting, which was chaired by Rolland Sizemore Jr. – Partridge said he was disappointed the commission was not funding lifetime education for county residents, countywide transportation or a county economic development department. He asked why he hadn’t heard about county projects for the proposed federal economic stimulus package, and said they should send such projects to President Obama forthwith.

Several commissioners responded to Partridge’s comments. Wes Prater noted that the county had submitted about $61 million in projects that might be eligible for federal funding through the stimulus package, and said the road commission had submitted a similar amount. Barbara Levin Bergman noted that Ann Arbor Spark was doing economic development for the entire county. Both Mark Ouimet and Sizemore pointed out that commissioner Jeff Irwin had been a leader in regional transportation initiatives. Sizemore also asked the county’s administrative staff to provide Partridge with copies of the proposed stimulus package projects.

Misc. items

Commissioners Barbara Levin Bergman and Kristin Judge reported that they’d had an orientation tour and meeting with the county jail and community corrections staff. (Judge took the tour as a newly elected commissioner; Bergman serves on the community corrections advisory board.) Bergman said she wished that other commissioners could have attended, and recommended that they find another time to set up something similar for other board members.

Bob Guenzel said he appreciated the Ann Arbor News article and editorial about the county and city of Ann Arbor sharing an IT data center, but he wanted to clarify that county employees would not be working at the city, as The News seemed to imply. Only the equipment is located at city hall, he said.

Present: Barbara Levin Bergman, Leah Gunn, Jeff Irwin, Kristin Judge, Mark Ouimet, Jessica Ping, Wes Prater, Ken Schwartz, Rolland Sizemore Jr., Conan Smith

Absent: Ronnie Peterson

Next board meeting: Wednesday, Feb. 18 at 6:30 p.m. at the County Administration Building, 220 N. Main St. [confirm date]. The Ways & Means Committee meets first, followed immediately by the regular board meeting.  (Though the agenda states that the regular board meeting begins at 6:45 p.m., it usually starts much later – times vary depending on what’s on the agenda.) Public comment sessions are held at the beginning and end of each meeting.

County administrator Bob Guenzel is interviewed by WEMU reporter Andrew Cluley during a break at Wednesday night's board of commissioners meeting.

Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners (Feb. 4, 2009): Faced with sharply lower revenues in the coming years, Washtenaw County government will be dealing with staggering budget deficits and must start making some tough decisions about where to cut costs. At their Wednesday night board meeting, county commissioners heard that grim report from county administrator Bob Guenzel, who estimates the budget deficit in 2010-11 could reach $28 million under a worst-case scenario. And it likely won’t end there. “We don’t know when we’re going to hit bottom,” he said. “It’s just too hard to predict that.”

Guenzel called the financial situation the worst he’s seen in his 36 years with the county, but noted that this was a nationwide crisis. Falling property values and a sluggish housing market have eroded tax revenues – property taxes and fees related to building inspections, real estate transfers and other housing-related services account for roughly 75% of the county’s general fund, he said.

His report to commissioners was an initial step in working through the upcoming budget cycle, laying groundwork for decisions that the board will ultimately need to make. The county’s finance staff has laid out best- and worst-case projections for property tax revenue: Assuming that expenditures remain unchanged, the worst-case projections for 2010-11 would result in a $28 million deficit, equating to 318 full-time jobs. Under the best-case scenario for property tax revenues, the county would still face an $18 million deficit in 2010-11, or 211 full-time positions. Guenzel said that this didn’t mean those jobs would be eliminated – it was simply an indication of how dire the situation has become.

At the board’s next meeting in two weeks, Guenzel said he hoped they could reach some consensus about revenue projections for the next two to three years. That will then give staff a target for identifying cuts to expenditures.

For planning purposes, the county works on a two-year budget cycle, with the current cycle ending this year. It has already been forced to adjust the current budget when faced with revenues that fell short of projections: Last April, the county had estimated a $13 million shortfall for 2009, and identified $10 million in cuts. By the fall, that shortfall was estimated to be closer to $15 million, and the county worked to find additional cuts. On Wednesday, Guenzel said they won’t get the final revenue figures for 2009 until this April, and that might force the county to make even further cuts this year.

Guenzel and his staff – as well as some commissioners – will be meeting with employees, other elected officials in the county and community groups to talk about the financial situation. ”We need all the help we can get on this budget,” he said.

Commissioners gave Guenzel some initial feedback after his report. Barbara Levin Bergman said the county should take a look at its mandated services – she sensed the levels of service were higher here than in other counties, and that might be a place to cut costs.

Leah Gunn said the public doesn’t really understand the depth of the county’s financial crisis, and that they need to be better informed. Other elected officials also need to be engaged in these discussions, she said. Guenzel agreed, saying he had already started reaching out to the 28 jurisdictions in the county.

Maintaining cash balances would be crucial, Mark Ouimet said, both for cash flow and bonding. He also said the county needed to be aware of the impact its decisions will have on local nonprofits, a sentiment later echoed by other commissioners.

Some commissioners asked for additional details to be provided as they go through this planning cycle. ”The more information we have, the better decisions we can make,” said Kristin Judge.

Judge also said she disliked using jobs to characterize the deficit, saying it came across as though cutting jobs would be the top priority. She said it caused employees to panic, and that she’d already heard from one of her constituents, who also works for the county.

Jeff Irwin noted that Washtenaw County was still relatively affluent and hadn’t been hit as hard as other places in Michigan. There might be something to learn from communities that have already gone through this, he said. Irwin said he reacted negatively to the idea that Guenzel had floated about across-the-board cuts, and hoped that they could be more strategic, especially when considering departments that had already endured cuts in previous budget cycles.

He said he thought the county should seriously look at slowing its jail expansion in light of the budget situation, and that perhaps the new sheriff, Jerry Clayton, had some ideas for revenue growth in his department. Irwin also cited the importance of being aware how dollars in the budget were sometimes used to leverage state and federal funding. Nonprofits funded by the county might have the same issue – sometimes they’re able to use money from the county to leverage other funding sources. “If we lose sight of that, we’re going to be penny wise and pound foolish,” Irwin said.

Rolland Sizemore Jr. urged the staff to market the county’s services to townships and cities, and to look at building space that might not be needed.

Wes Prater, referring to a chart from Guenzel’s presentation, wondered why general fund expenditures in 2007 had increased at a higher rate than previous years. Jennifer Watson, the county’s budget manager, said she’d find out and report back. Bergman later quipped that she “seemed to remember” $800,000 they’d spent on a lawsuit – referring somewhat obliquely to a dispute between the county and three townships over the cost of sheriff deputy patrols, which led to a lawsuit against the county and substantial legal fees on all sides.

Ken Schwartz, injecting a bit of humor into the otherwise somber discussion, said he wished he could lead off his comments with a joke: “Did you hear about the budget from Nantucket?”

[Editor's note: The Chronicle will report on other items from Wednesday night's board meeting in an upcoming article.]

Mark Lindke, director of Washtenaw County Veteran Services, and artist Leslie Sobel hold one of four panels from the "Ecology of Place" artwork presented to the Board of Commissioners on Wednesday.

Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners (Jan. 21, 2009): A light agenda for the county board on Wednesday included the presentation of a major art project, a report on efforts to partner with other municipalities for shared services, and appointments of commissioners to various committees. Rolland Sizemore Jr. led his first full board meeting as its new chair, and Kristin Judge led her first meeting as the new vice chair of the Ways & Means Committee – Conan Smith, the committee’s chair, was absent.

“Ecology of Place”

A large four-panel work of art called “Ecology of Place” – a collaborative piece by local artist Leslie Sobel – was presented to the board and will be hung in the meeting room at the county’s Learning Resource Center on Hogback Road.

Partnering with the Washtenaw Land Trust, the Ann Arbor Street Art Fair and other individuals in the community, Sobel used aerial images, maps, drawings, photographs and text by local residents to make a collage that highlights the county’s natural features. The four panels represent the four quadrants of the county – the work spans 7.5 feet by 7.5 feet. [Find out more details here.]

“Anyone watching the changing of leadership in our capitol this week should have a renewed understanding of the extraordinary power of art – it is inspirational, informative and inclusive,” said Shary Brown of the Ann Arbor Street Art Fair, in presenting the piece to the board. “Arts give voice and vision in the exploration and expression of our values. The “Ecology of Place” is an expression of our values, using visual and word images to celebrate what is very special about our varied ecosystems, created collaboratively.”

Sobel described the work as “truly a map of where we are.”

Partnerships for shared services

David Behen, deputy county administrator, reported on several initiatives to partner with cities and townships in the county, looking at ways to cut costs by sharing services. Among those projects are:

• Ann Arbor: The county and city are working to combine their data centers, Behen said, a project that should be completed by March. The joint center will be housed in the city’s facility. The two entities are also working on a joint strategic plan for their IT services, hoping to gain more purchasing power by combining forces. And they’re doing a common needs assessment for human resources and financial systems.
• Pittsfield Township: The county staff plans to manage human resources and labor negotiations for the township, Behen said. Pittsfield currently has a vacant position of its HR director, which it would leave unfilled if the county takes over those services. The county might also provide some IT services for Pittsfield, including joint licensing of Microsoft software and developing an intranet.
• Chelsea and Ypsilanti: The county is already handling IT services for the Chelsea police department, which paid $4,000 to the county in 2008, Behen said. They do the same for the city of Ypsilanti, which paid the county $35,000 for IT services last year.
• Washtenaw Road Commission: The county now manages HR and labor relations for the Washtenaw County Road Commission, allowing the commission to leave its HR director position (at a salary of $86,528) unfilled.
• Regional dispatch: The county and Ann Arbor are working to consolidate two dispatch centers, which could save the groups $6.4 million over 10 years. This project would require approval by the county board, city council and state police, as well as approval by the governor, before implementing, Behen said.

Behen said the administrative staff plans to bring the board a draft of policy and guidelines for pursuing partnerships within the next 30 days.

Commissioners had several questions and comments for Behen. Commissioner Kristin Judge said she wanted to ensure that county staff had the resources they needed to take on additional work. Commissioner Mark Ouimet said it was important to make sure that the county is being reimbursed at the appropriate rate.

Commissioner Wes Prater asked how many dispatch centers there are countywide, and whether consolidation with others was in the works. County administrator Bob Guenzel responded, saying that the five other centers were hesitant, so they’ll just be consolidating these two initially. Judge asked if anyone from the county’s staff is working with the other centers to try to persuade them to participate, and whether it would be helpful for commissioners in those districts to get involved. Behen said it could be a combination of both, and Guenzel added that staff had involved police chiefs throughout the county in those talks as well.

Commissioner Ken Schwartz wanted to know what the county’s legal liabilities were regarding potential lawsuits brought by workers in the townships in which the county is handling human resources and labor negotiations. Prater said the road commission addressed those legal issues when the county started handling their HR and labor negotiations, so they might serve as a guide.

Sizemore ended the discussion by saying he’s glad the county is partnering with other entities. He also wants staff to look at what townships and cities can offer the county, not just what the county can do for them. And he asked staff to find out what other counties have done in this regard – there might be things Washtenaw County can learn from them.

Other items

Commissioners had discussed appointments to roughly 30 committees, boards and councils at a Jan. 14 meeting. The board chair is charged with making the official nominations, and on Wednesday Sizemore announced the appointments, which were unanimously approved by the board. [PDF file of appointments]

Sizemore also scheduled a board retreat for Saturday, March 21. When asked by commissioner Ken Schwartz about what topics would be covered, Sizemore said he planned to talk with each commissioner individually to get their input before setting the agenda.

Present: Leah Gunn, Jeff Irwin, Kristin Judge, Mark Ouimet, Jessica Ping, Wes Prater, Ken Schwartz, Rolland Sizemore Jr.

Absent: Barbara Levin Bergman, Ronnie Peterson, Conan Smith

Next board meeting: Wednesday, Feb. 4 at 6:30 p.m. at the County Administration Building, 220 N. Main St. [confirm date] The Ways & Means Committee meets first, followed immediately by the regular board meeting.  (Though the agenda states that the regular board meeting begins at 6:45 p.m., it usually starts much later – times vary depending on what’s on the agenda.) Public comment sessions are held at the beginning and end of each meeting.

Artist Leslie Sobel, Shary Brown of the Ann Arbor Street Art Fair, and Suzie Heiney and Susan Lackey of the Washtenaw Land Trust at Wednesday's meeting of the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners.

Kristin Judge leads her first meeting as the new vice chair for the county board's Ways & Means Committee.

Pre-meeting entertainment

Commissioner Barbara Levin Bergman was in the administration offices prior to the 5 p.m. meeting start, and used a computer there to show The Chronicle a YouTube video that her 9-year-old grandson had alerted her to: Barack Obama Is Irish! The chorus goes, in part: “From the old Blarney Stone to the green hills of Tara, there’s no one as Irish as Barack O’Bama.” And we’d be remiss if we didn’t note that Bergman was inspired to belt out a chorus or two – even though her clogs (bought at Mast Shoes) were decided orange, not green.

Administrative briefing

Joanna Bidlack of the county administrator’s office led the briefing. Before she began, Sizemore said he’s asked county staff members to make sure they notify commissioners when they hold meetings in their districts. He wants to make sure that if the county is involved in discussions with other officials or residents of a district, the commissioner representing that district is informed. Bergman said she hoped the process didn’t get too baroque. Commissioner Kristin Judge, participating by speaker phone, said she thought having the invitation was important, even if it’s as minimal as being in an email loop.

Bidlack said that the Jan. 21 meeting would include a presentation of the “Ecology of Place” art presented by the Ann Arbor Street Art Fair. The project is a collaboration between fair organizers, the Washtenaw Land Trust and local artist Leslie Sobel, and the group hopes to exhibit the finished work in one of the county buildings, Bidlack said.

Also on the agenda:

• An agreement to receive FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) pass-through funds of up to $72,808 to pay for the salary and fringe benefits of Mark Breckenridge, the county’s emergency management director. In previous years, the county has received far less than that, Bidlack said. In 2007-08, they received $51,686 in funding.
• An agreement to accept a Homeland Security grant of $1.2 million, to pay for disaster preparedness, and emergency planning and coordination, among other things.
• An agreement to receive $14,464 in federal funds from the Department of Homeland Security for Community Emergency Response Team training. Responding to a commissioner’s query, Bidlack said that last year, about 24 citizens were trained, and that any Washtenaw County citizen is eligible.
• An agreement to award $256,548 in county matching funds for a Community Corrections Program, administered by the Washtenaw County Trial Court and designed to provide alternative sentencing options. Those funds have already been allocated in the 2009 budget.
• An agreement to accept $103,944 from the state’s Safe Communities grant, to pay for overtime hours related to enforcing underage drinking laws, safety belt laws and other enforcement.

Finally, Bidlack reminded commissioners of a photo shoot set for Monday, Jan. 26 at 5 p.m. to take the board’s official group portrait as well as individual shots. Commissioner Mark Ouimet quipped, “We need to get some better-looking commissioners.”

Appointment causus

The newly installed board – sworn in last week – had to fill board positions on 33 county committees, councils and boards. Appointments are officially made by the chair (Sizemore) and voted on by the board, but the process on Wednesday night was collaborative. Commissioners had previously sent Sizemore their preferences for committee appointments, and he began the caucus by saying “I want to make this as easy as possible.” For the most part when more than one person asked for the spot, they quickly worked out who had the most interest in serving without any overt arm-wrestling.

It became clear as they worked through the list that some committees held much more weight than others. For example, the Solid Waste Management Consortium never meets, according to commissioner Ken Schwartz. Ditto for the Drug Forfeiture Committee, which commissioner Jeff Irwin says has never met in the 10 years he’s been on the commission. Irwin’s revelation led to a discussion of what the state-mandated committee does, or should do, and an apparent consensus that it would be good to find out what was happening to drug forfeiture funds. [Editor's note: A search of the county's website found reference to a meeting of the committee in October 1999, when Ron Schebil was sheriff. It is set up to allocate funds from crime-related forfeitures generated by the Livingston and Washtenaw Narcotics Enforcement Team, known as LAWNET.]

Leah Gunn, Sizemore and Irwin are tentatively tapped to serve on the Emergency Telephone District Board. Discussion of that appointment  prompted Irwin to note that the county has seven 911 call centers, when it should probably only have two. Conan Smith and Wes Prater both had interest in serving on the Washtenaw Area Transportation Study Committee (WATS) – Smith saying he’d like to align local efforts so that the county would be eligible for more federal funding, and Prater because he saw a good fit with being the Road Commission liaison, a position to which he’ll likely be appointed. Smith deferred to Prater.

The appointments expected to cause some friction are those to the Police Services Steering Committee: six commissioners – Jeff Irwin, Barbara Bergman, Kristin Judge, Mark Ouimet, Rolland Sizemore and Ken Schwartz – are interested, but only four positions are available. This committee was formed in 2006 to discuss issues related to the price of contract policing by the county sheriff’s department and to address the kind of police services the county should provide. In the past it has been at the nexus of a split between commissioners representing urban districts – which pay for their own police services as well as supporting the county sheriff’s department – and rural districts, which rely on the sheriff’s department for public safety services.

Sizemore said he planned to talk with each commissioner individually about the appointments before presenting them at the Jan. 21 meeting. At that meeting, he will make his recommendations, and the board then votes to accept or reject them.

Prater brought up the fact that in total, there are more than 60 county committees, councils and boards, and asked whether it might be time to pare down the ones that weren’t active. Sizemore said that Curtis Hedger, the county’s corporate counsel, was reviewing the committees and that they’d likely make decisions based on that review.

Present: Barbara Levin Bergman, Leah Gunn, Jeff Irwin, Kristin Judge (by speaker phone), Mark Ouimet, Wes Prater, Ken Schwartz, Rolland Sizemore Jr., Conan Smith

Next board meeting: Wednesday, Jan. 21 at 6:30 p.m. at the County Administration Building, 220 N. Main St. [confirm date] The Ways & Means Committee meets first, followed immediately by the regular board meeting. (Though the agenda states that the regular board meeting begins at 6:45 p.m., it usually starts much later – times vary depending on what’s on the agenda.) Public comment sessions are held at the beginning and end of each meeting.

Rolland Sizemore, right, newly elected chair of the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners, confers with Curt Hedger, the county's corporate counsel, at Wednesday night's board meeting.

County Board of Commissioners (Jan. 7, 2009) In an uncharacteristically short session, members of the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners were sworn in. They then elected new leaders, adjusted their rules to cut the amount of time given to public comment – and adjourned in less than an hour.

Rolland Sizemore Jr., whose district primarily covers Ypsilanti Township, was elected to chair the commission, replacing Jeff Irwin, who represents District 11 in Ann Arbor. Both are Democrats. Any drama that occurred over the change in leadership happened behind the scenes – no dissenting votes were cast in the election of any officers on Wednesday night.

Swearing In

The meeting began with County Clerk Larry Kestenbaum officiating, a role he maintained until after the board chair was elected. Judge David Swartz of the Washtenaw County Trial Court swore in the nine commissioners in attendance – absent were Ronnie Peterson and Leah Gunn, who was reported ill by fellow commissioner Barbara Levin Bergman.

The swearing-in ceremony: Commissioners Jessica Ping, Mark Ouimet, Wesley Prater, Kristin Judge and Conan Smith.

Each commissioner said a few words after the swearing-in ceremony, and all spoke about the financial challenges facing the county in the coming year – county officials had to make cuts to their 2009 budget to deal with a $15 million shortfall, and difficult decisions will be made as they look to 2010-11. Even so, many expressed optimism that the difficulties could be overcome. Jeff Irwin stressed the importance of continuing to invest in areas that would spur economic development, such as transit and energy. That approach, he said, would create jobs and drive a “Keynesian recovery,” rather than having the local economy “fall victim to the waves that are rising around us.”

Conan Smith, after joking that he was “shocked and amazed” that the citizens of Washtenaw County had sent him back to the commission, said it would take every ounce of intellect and energy to deal with the financial challenges, but that they weren’t insurmountable. Mark Ouimet, who thanked his family and constituents, said they needed to look at government differently than they had in the past.

Election of Officers

Though Jeff Irwin, at a previous board meeting, had expressed a desire to remain board chair, Mark Ouimet nominated Rolland Sizemore Jr. No other nominations were offered up and Sizemore was elected on a voice vote with no discussion or dissent. Jessica Ping nominated Mark Ouimet for vice-chair, and he too was elected on a voice vote with no discussion or dissent. Ouimet and Ping are the only two Republican commissioners, representing District 1 (western Washtenaw) and District 3 (Saline and several townships in southwest Washtenaw), respectively.

Later in the meeting, Wes Prater made the remaining nominations, which were all approved by voice vote with no discussion or dissent: Conan Smith, chair of the Ways & Means Committee; Kristin Judge, vice chair of Ways & Means (from District 7, Pittsfield Township); Jessica Ping as chair of the board’s Working Session; and Ken Schwartz (District 2, northeastern Washtenaw) as vice chair.

As noted in a Stopped.Watched. item, Smith is the only Ann Arbor commissioner who was elected an officer on Wednesday. Previously, Ann Arbor commissioners chaired both the board (Irwin) and the Ways & Means Committee (Bergman), where much of the board’s business is conducted. Also of note: Ouimet is the first Republican elected to a county board leadership position in several years. (Ouimet told The Chronicle that he was informed it had been more than 20 years – we are as yet unable to confirm that time frame.)

Rule Changes

The board also adjusted some of its rules and regulations. Most notably, a proposal by Conan Smith – and approved by the board, with only Jeff Irwin and Rolland Sizemore Jr. dissenting – cut the time alloted to each public commenter at the Ways & Means Committee to 3 minutes, down from the current 5 minutes. He also proposed, and the board (aside from Irwin and Sizemore) agreed, to require that public comment during Ways & Means address only items on the agenda. Currently, there are no such limitations.

Smith said his goal was to make the meetings more efficient, and that the public still had the opportunity to speak before the entire board with no change in the current time limit or topic rules. (Public commentary sessions are at the beginning and end of both the Ways & Means Committee and board meetings, which are held back-to-back.) He said that the public still had a total of 16 minutes to speak over those four periods, down from the current 20 minutes.

Curt Hedger, the county’s corporate counsel, said he thought there might be free speech issues associated with limiting the topics of public commentary, and that he’d check on that.

Irwin said he thought people should be able to read the phone book for 5 minutes if they wanted to, though he’d prefer they didn’t. He said the board generally gets very few people at its public comment sessions, and that he didn’t want to restrict it in any way. “We need to keep our doors as open as possible.” He also noted that the Ways & Means Committee meeting can last for two hours or more before the board meeting begins, thus forcing someone to wait who wants to speak on a topic that’s not on the agenda.

Smith said he believes citizens should be treated more like staff, and that he would be willing to allocate them even more than 5 minutes if they contacted him before the meeting and if it were appropriate to the agenda.

Bergman said she’d like to see that approach codified into the commission’s rules and regulations. She also wondered how citizens would know that they could get this additional time, and urged the board to do some kind of outreach about it.

Public Comment

Interestingly, given the discussion, no one spoke at the board’s final public comment session of the evening. The first public comment session early in the meeting had two speakers: Tom Partridge and Ken Siler.

Partridge admonished the commission to pay more attention to the situation of the homeless in Washtenaw County, urging them to open the doors to public buildings so that homeless people would have a place to stay on cold, snowy evenings like this one. He said they should consider meeting outside in the cold, just like the homeless. He also wanted the commission to pass an emergency resolution calling for affordable, accessible transportation and health care throughout the county.

Siler was recently reelected president of the Washtenaw County Farm Bureau, and distributed a list of resolutions by the bureau stating what they’d like to accomplish. He said he hoped the commission would support their work, as the bureau hoped to support the commission.

Liaison Report: Road Commission

After the first public commentary, Mark Ouimet gave a liaison report from the Washtenaw Road Commission. He said federal funds might be available for road work this year, and that the commission was preparing a list of roads that were a high priority for repair. He said that David Rutledge had been elected chair, and Doug Fuller is vice chair. Fred Veigel is the road commission’s third board member.

Wes Prater, who previously served on the road commission, said the staff had started working on a comprehensive preservation and maintenance plan in 2007, but that it wasn’t yet done. He expressed frustration that he hadn’t been able to get a clear answer about its progress, and said the county commission might need to pass a resolution to push it along. (The county board appoints road commissioners, but has no real authority over their actions.) Prater said the plan was important to have soon, given the possible availability of federal funds.

Present: Barbara Levin Bergman, Jeff Irwin, Kristin Judge, Mark Ouimet, Jessica Ping, Wes Prater, Ken Schwartz, Rolland Sizemore Jr., Conan Smith

Absent: Leah Gunn, Ronnie Peterson

Next board meeting: Wednesday, Jan. 21 at 6:30 p.m. at the County Administration Building, 220 N. Main St. [confirm date] The Ways & Means Committee meets first, followed immediately by the regular board meeting. (Though the agenda states that the regular board meeting begins at 6:45 p.m., it usually starts much later – times vary depending on what’s on the agenda.) Public comment sessions are held at the beginning and end of each meeting.

Kristin Judge and Wes Prater take the oath of office for the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners at Wednesday's board meeting. The image on Prater's tie is a Christmas tree.

At its last meeting of 2008 and before adjourning to a post-meeting year-end gathering at Argiero’s, the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners swore in two new members, got word that the state is cutting back on winter road-clearing funds, heard from the newly elected sheriff on plans to reorganize his department, debated the police services contract and discussed how information was handled regarding an upcoming article in the Ann Arbor Observer. And everyone got a bottle of Calder Diary eggnog to boot – more on that later.

New board members

Wednesday night’s meeting began with the swearing-in of Wes Prater and Kristin Judge, who were elected in November to represent districts 4 and 7, respectively. Though normally new commissioners don’t take office until the beginning of the year, the board suspended its rules because the two people who formerly held those positions – Karen Lovejoy Roe and Mandy Grewal – recently resigned after being elected to other government posts (Lovejoy Roe is now clerk in Ypsilanti Township, and Grewal is Pittsfield Township supervisor).

Winter road-clearing update

Steve Puuri, managing director of the Washtenaw Road Commission, gave the board an update on this season’s snow and ice removal strategies, in response to concerns raised at a previous board meeting. Puuri said that service this year will remain at the same levels it’s been the previous two winters for Washtenaw County roads. However, service will be cut back for trunklines that are the responsibility of the Michigan Department of Transportation, including I-94, US-23 and M-14. For these roads, MDOT is reducing the amount of funding for winter maintenance. That means the Road Commission, which is under contract with MDOT to provide that maintenance, will be following MDOT’s guidelines about how much to plow and salt after the snow stops falling. Puuri said people can expect to see a noticeable difference compared to previous years.

In response to a question from Commissioner Rolland Sizemore, Puuri said that Road Commission workers would respond to any emergency situation when they get a call from law enforcement officials – that would not change. Commissioner Ronnie Peterson, who had originally raised concerns about how roads would be cleared, told Puuri that his staff needs to clearly communicate to the public about road conditions during the winter. He suggested using the website or establishing a hotline for people to call to get information on a timely basis.

After thanking Puuri for his report, commissioner Barbara Levin Bergman quipped, “I might go out and buy some chains, I’m not sure.”

Sheriff’s Department reorganization

Sheriff-elect Jerry Clayton gave the board an update on his plans to reorganize the department, including some key hires. In addition to an undersheriff, two commanders (for corrections and law enforcement), and a director of business and finance, Clayton said that Derrick Jackson, the county’s chief deputy clerk, had agreed to take the job of director of community engagement. “I did talk it over with Larry,” Clayton joked, referring to county clerk Larry Kestenbaum, Jackson’s current boss. Jackson’s role will be crucial in rebuilding relationships and forming new partnerships between the sheriff’s department and others in the community, Clayton said.

The sheriff’s department needs to be stewards of their budget, Clayton said, and mindful that cost overruns affect the entire county. That approach doesn’t mean jeopardizing public safety because of cost concerns, he said, but it does mean that cost should be one factor in making decisions.

After his remarks, several commissioners praised his work so far. Conan Smith said that Clayton’s plans to accurately track spending, as well as his communication skills, would be valuable during the next budget cycle, as the county needs realistic expectations about costs. Mark Ouimet said that everyone wants Clayton to be successful, and that he should feel comfortable using them as a resource and support system. Leah Gunn said she was “absolutely thrilled” that he was going to be the new sheriff.

Accommodations tax

The board held a public hearing regarding an increase in the county’s accommodations tax. Only two people spoke, standing together at the podium: Jim and Kim Myles, who’ve owned the Chelsea House Victorian Inn for eight years.

Jim Myles said they were concerned about the impact of this room tax, which is being raised from 2% to 5%. He said they’d planned to lower their rates to attract more customers, so the proposed tax hike would force them to take an even greater income hit. Myles also said that since their business was on the western side of the county, they didn’t feel they benefited from marketing done by the Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti convention & visitors bureaus, which are funded through this tax. Kim Myles pointed out a trickle-down effect on the local economy: the lower income they’ll have because of the tax would result in them spending less money at other local businesses. She also said that the tax should be phased in over several years, rather than raised dramatically all at once.

Commissioner Ken Schwartz asked the county’s corporate counsel, Curtis Hedger, to look into whether the county could have a bifurcated tax, with a lower amount levied on small businesses like bed & breakfast inns.

The resolution authorizing the tax increase passed unanimously as one of several agenda items voted on collectively. (When Jim and Kim Myles left the board room shortly after the vote, they were followed into the lobby by Commissioner Mark Ouimet, who represents their district, and Mary Kerr, president of the Ann Arbor Convention and Visitors Bureau. The Chronicle did not join them.)

Police services contract

The one agenda item pulled out for separate consideration was an amendment to the police services contract, which had been discussed at a previous administrative briefing and board meeting.

At a public comment session earlier in the evening, Ypsilanti Township Supervisor Brenda Stumbo urged the commission to consider amending the contract for a two-year extension at a 2% increase per year. (The proposal called for a one-year extension with a 2% increase, through 2010.) She said the townships can’t afford to cut any more from their budgets and taxpayers can’t afford more taxes to pay for a greater increase beyond 2010.

Bergman began a discussion of the amendment by saying she wouldn’t support it – she was concerned because the change would impact the 2010 budget, which hadn’t yet been determined. She also said city residents were being double-taxed, first with a tax for their own police force, then by helping fund sheriff’s deputy patrols in the townships. She said it was unconscionable to do this at a time when there would likely be layoffs in the county’s human-services sector.

Several commissioners spoke, each saying they would support the one-year extension. All expressed confidence in the new sheriff and in his ability to keep costs under control at the department, and said they wanted to give him breathing room in his new job before dealing immediately with contract negotiations. Bergman said her no vote did not reflect a lack of confidence in Clayton, nor should it suggest she wouldn’t be part of a team approach to dealing with a new contract. She said it was rather a vote against unfairness.

The amendment passed, with votes against it coming from Bergman and board chair Jeff Irwin.

Ann Arbor Observer article on police services

The police services contract came up again as the meeting drew to a close. Jessica Ping told the board she had received an email that afternoon from Jennifer Watson, the county’s budget manager, with information that Watson had sent to the Ann Arbor Observer. Ping said she thought it was wrong that information would be sent to the Observer before being seen by board members.

County administrator Bob Guenzel said he took responsibility for that, saying he’d been interviewed by Jim Leonard for the article and had asked Watson to update the figures for what it costs the county to fund a sheriff’s deputy. The cost she had calculated was $243,825 per deputy – higher than the previous figure of $141,963, which had been cited in the amendment to the police services contract.

The ensuing discussion revealed that many if not all of the board members had spoken to Leonard. Bergman defended her right to talk to a reporter and to provide information that was in the public record. Schwartz asked if the document had previously existed, or whether it was created in response to a reporter’s request. When Guenzel answered that the latter was the case, Schwartz said it wasn’t a public document, and therefore should have been vetted by the board.

Conan Smith said he’d requested the information after talking to Leonard earlier in the day. He said the number was based on an approved methodology for calculating the cost of a deputy, and that regardless of the number, there was still disagreement over the percentage that should be paid by the county or the townships. He said he had expressed urgency when he made the request, and was sorry that others on the board didn’t like how it had been handled.

A few miscellaneous items, including eggnog and brownfields

Several agenda items were approved by the board in a unanimous vote, without discussion. They include: 1) approval of brownfield projects within the city of Ann Arbor (Maple Shoppes, 2800 Jackson and 601 Forest); and 2) approval of a three-year lease at 2051 S. State for the county’s Community Support and Treatment Services Department.

The board also agreed to appoint members of a new Veteran Affairs Committee. They are: Don O’Dell of Chelsea, Washtenaw County Commissioner Ken Schwartz, Ed Steele of Manchester, Rueben Swisher of Ann Arbor, and Gregg Weaver of Whitmore Lake.

Tom Partridge, a Scio Township resident, spoke during the first public comment session, urging the board to 1) work with state and federal lawmakers to help the auto industry, and 2) hold an additional meeting this month to discuss the area’s homeless population and the lack of affordable housing. Though he usually stays to speak at the final public comment session of these meetings, he left after his first remarks and later showed up at the “Future of Journalism” panel discussion at the Ford Library, an event also covered by The Chronicle.

Commissioner Jessica Ping, foreground, and other commissioners each got a bottle of Calder Dairy eggnog on Wednesday from Mike Score, Washtenaw County agricultural agent for the MSU Extension program. Score had been honored by the commission for his work with the Food System Economic Partnership.

Mike Score, who works with leads the local unit of the Michigan State University Extension, was recently honored with the program’s John Hannah award, which recognizes excellence within their statewide system. On Wednesday, the board awarded Score with a resolution commending his work, specifically in developing the Food System Economic Partnership. FSEP is a five-county effort to promote local agriculture in southeast Michigan. Score thanked the commissioners for their own leadership in this program. Then, noting that Calder Dairy was another important partner, Score passed out chilled glass bottles of the dairy’s eggnog, which is being sold in commemorative bottles that also highlight FSEP. (The Chronicle also received a bottle, and can vouch for its creamy goodness.)

Present: Barbara Levin Bergman, Leah Gunn, Jeff Irwin, Kristin Judge, Mark Ouimet, Ronnie Peterson, Jessica Ping, Wes Prater, Ken Schwartz, Rolland Sizemore Jr., Conan Smith

Next meeting: Wednesday, Jan. 7 at 6:30 p.m. at the County Administration Building, 220 N. Main St. The Ways & Means Committee meets first, followed immediately by the regular board meeting. (Though the agenda states that the regular board meeting begins at 6:45 p.m., it usually starts much later – times vary depending on what’s on the agenda.) Public comment sessions are held at the beginning and end of each meeting.

County leases

At its Dec. 3 board meeting, commissioners will be asked to approve a 3-year lease at 2051 S. State St. for the county’s Community Support and Treatment Services (CSTS), at a cost of about $34,000 for the first year and increasing to nearly $38,000 by year three. The space would be used by the Community Crisis Response Team of the county’s Community Mental Health staff. This agenda item prompted commissioner Rolland Sizemore to ask, “Why are we leasing?”

What followed was a discussion about possible county-owned alternatives to leasing, including one on Towner Street in Ypsilanti. Sizemore is looking to identify space that the county already owns so that it can avoid the additional cost of leasing. He wants the county to better explore such options before signing another lease.

Swearing in

Commissioners Mandy Grewal and Karen Lovejoy Roe both ran for offices in Pittsfield and Ypsilanti townships, respectively. They were elected to those township posts and have resigned from the county commission. Normally, the people who won the seat to replace them – Kristin Judge and Wes Prater – wouldn’t be sworn in until January. Jeff Irwin, the commission board chair, had previously suggested voting to suspend board rules, which would allow Judge and Prater to be sworn in sooner. His rationale was to make sure those districts were represented on the board without the month-long gap that would otherwise occur in this situation.

One possible way to do this would be to hold a brief board meeting first, with the swearing in as the only item of business, then hold the Ways & Means Committee meeting, followed by the remainder of the regular board meeting. Normally, the board starts its Wednesday meetings with the Ways & Means Committee, which is immediately followed by the regular board meeting – all commissioners attend both.

Commissioner Ken Schwartz said he wasn’t willing to fight over it if there were any objections, but that he hadn’t heard any. Commissioner Conan Smith said the only thing he had heard was that it was important that Prater and Judge both be sworn in – commissioner Jessica Ping had made this point at the previous board meeting.

Police services contract

Commissioner Barbara Levin Bergman indicated she would be asking for the item regarding a proposed extension to the police services contract to be separated out for discussion at the board meeting and she wanted to discuss it at Wednesday’s administrative briefing as well.

The proposal originally had been floated at the Nov. 19 board meeting by commissioner Jessica Ping. The current contract between the county and municipalities – in which many townships and villages pay the county to provide sheriff’s deputy patrols – expires at the end of 2009. The proposal would extend the contract through 2010, with a 2% cost increase.

However, the 2010-2011 budget has not been set. Bergman, based on calculations provided by county staff, said that a $227,000 shortfall to the general fund would accrue if the 2% increase (as opposed to a 4% increase, which some commissioners support) were to pass. This is the equivalent of three full-time employees, she said. Her goal was to not tap into the general fund.

There was agreement and optimism expressed around the table that the quarter-million dollars could be saved within the sheriff’s budget. The expectation among the commissioners present was that newly elected sheriff Jerry Clayton would be easier to work with on budget and cost issues than outgoing sheriff Dan Minzey had been. Disagreement arose on whether the general fund should act as a “fail safe” – that is, if the sheriff can’t find the cost-savings in his budget, then the shortfall gets taken out of the general fund.

Smith said he believes there are cost savings to be had in various contracts that are coming up, including some for kitchen staff and janitorial services. He also said there are opportunities for increased revenue through restructuring of insurance recovery contracts.

But Bergman countered that until those savings are realized, it’s money out of pocket – Smith conceded that this was true.

Bergman argued that the board has five urban commissioners – herself, Smith, Leah Gunn, Jeff Irwin and Ronnie Peterson – and five non-urban commissioners, and that the urban commissioners have to represent their constituents who are being double and triple taxed. (The argument there hinges on the fact that taxpayers in Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti pay for their own cities’ police forces, as well as for the county sheriff’s department.)

When Ken Schwartz questioned Bergman’s urban/non-urban description, noting as an example that Mark Ouimet represented Chelsea as well as township residents, Bergman said, “Well, I guess they’re just selling those voters down the tubes, then.”

Rolland Sizemore, who represents Ypsilanti and Superior townships, said he’s not selling anybody down the tubes. He said he thinks the county can find the savings – the first place he’d start is by cutting the $35,000 allocated for leasing space for CSTS (discussed earlier in the briefing), and instead using space the county already owns.

The proposed contract extension will accomplish two things, Sizemore said: 1) it shows the sheriff that the commission isn’t trying to control his department, and 2) it shows the townships that the commission is willing to work with them.

At one point the discussion wound around to what seemed like a consensus: the sheriff should make up the shortfall out of his own budget. But when Bergman pressed for a resolution or some piece of writing that would outline these goals, Schwartz noted that at the end of the day, if the money’s not there, the general fund would just have to cover it. That prompted Bergman to say that she felt like she was getting nothing out of the discussion. Curtis Hedger, the county’s corporation counsel, pointed out that the difficulty in crafting such a resolution is that it’s not possible to bind a future board of commissioners on a future budget.

And that’s the problem: the timing of the contract renewal and where it sits in the budget cycle.

Present: Barbara Levin Bergman, Mark Ouimet, Ken Schwartz, Rolland Sizemore, Conan Smith