This week at the County Commission meeting, we focused mostly on the proposal to renew the millage for the Potter Park Zoo. First, we worked on perfecting the language for the November ballot. One issue that was raised is the language dealing with tax increment finance authorities (such as DDA’s). Under state law, these authorities create economic development and jobs, and can capture a small amount of all millages (general fund and special millages). Previously we have included the names of all of these authorities on the ballot, and this can be very confusing to voters. I have actually had people tell me that they decided to vote against a millage because they don’t understand this authority language (which really has little to do with the actual question). We recently found out that state law doesn’t necessarily require us to include this language on the ballot, so the County Services and Finance committees had taken it out. There was an amendment to add language to the ballot initiative saying that authorities can capture some of the money, but that amendment was defeated. While I understand the idea behind the language, I opposed the amendment because I believe that it makes the ballot question very confusing for voters who may vote against the ballot question because they don’t understand that additional language. I think they should be voting on whether or not they want to fund the zoo, which is the point of the question in the first place. Others also said that brevity is the most important part of a ballot question, and opposed the amendment. I also pointed out that other ballot questions on the November ballot don’t have this language, so there is really no inequality of the various questions.
After that discussion, the Board was reminded that it is an election year when a second amendment was proposed. One of the Republican commissioners (Steve Dougan) proposed an amendment to the millage language that would reduce the millage amount from .41 to .39. He said that he thought that we should reduce the millage by 5% to give voters a break. This really was just an election-year stunt and, as I am sure he knows, was not necessary and actually could negatively change the ballot initiative. First, as Commissioner Celentino pointed out, the millage has already been reduced. When it first passed, it was .46, but was automatically lowered to .41. Second, I pointed out that the Board of Commissioners can reduce the millage at any time on our own. We ask the voters for a renewal to keep up the operations of the zoo, and if we think it is bringing more money than needed then we can reduce the millage amount on our own without going to the ballot. Dougan knows that, yet he has never attempted to reduce the millage at the Board level. When I questioned him about that, he didn’t respond. Also, I asked what Dougan proposed to eliminate at the zoo in order to make up for the reduced funding. He also had no answer to that. Commissioner Bahar, though, had the answer. She and Commissioner Nolan both serve on the Zoo Board and know what these cuts would mean to the zoo. Commissioner Bahar said that the cost would equal a veterinarian or something equivalent. They both also said that only a part of the zoo is funded from the millage, and the rest is provided by contributions from the zoo society. This cut would negatively impact the zoo when the people have already said that they support the zoo by passing the millage four years ago (at a higher amount!). Plus, Commissioner Tennis pointed out that decreased property values have already lessened the amount that people are paying for the zoo. .41 mills brought in $3.1 million a few years ago. Now the same .41 mills brings in $2.9 million. So people are paying less property tax values and the millage is already reflecting that. All these reasons and more show that Commissioner Steve Dougan was just engaging in election-year politics, which is disappointing but not surprising. Finally, it was pointed out that this language would no longer make the ballot question a renewal. With the renewal language removed, some voters may think it is a new millage and oppose it. That would be disingenuous to the voters. The proposed amendment was defeated with the 13 Democrats opposing and the 3 Republicans supporting, and the resolution placing the millage renewal on the ballot as reported from Finance committee was passed. The Democrats all voted for it, and the 3 Republicans on the Board voted against allowing the citizens of Ingham County to decide if the zoo millage should be renewed or not.
Campaign Update: 6 more days left! I continue to campaign based on my record, which is getting tremendous response at doors and everywhere. I really appreciate the good wishes and great comments from my constituents in SE Lansing. My opponent continues to sling mud, though. He must not realize that it isn't working and the voters are not fooled. This week, he again accused me of taking a pay-raise (a lie), and a new accusation...he accused me of doubling my own Board pay per diem (another lie). The per diem has gone up $1, and this was done approximately 4 years ago. We have never doubled it. Where does he get this from? I appreciate that the voters see through these attacks and ridiculous claims, and want someone with a proven record and ideas moving forward.
If you are interested in helping me this week, please let me know. You can also go to this page for more info on how you can help, or you can contact me at aschor@yahoo.com. Thanks everyone for your support. I am excited for election day to come and for the voters to speak!
Monday, July 26, 2010
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Deputy Sheriffs Added, Economic Development, Community Assessments, Fed Farm $, Hawk Island, Soldan Dog Park, and Campaign Update! (Whew...)
This week in County Services, we passed a resolution waiving the county’s hiring freeze so that we can fill several Deputy Sheriff positions. Several positions, two supervisory, have become vacant and need to be filled. There were some questions in committee about whether or not we should fill the positions because of the budget problems. I and others, though, argued that this is not the place to re-fight the road patrol issue. We have already taken affirmative action to end road patrol at the end of the year and the townships will be voting on whether or not they want to re-create those positions with local assessments. That being said, I believe that we should continue to provide the deputies that we committed to provide when we did our budget last year. We also need to have appropriate staff in the jails, and on the roads (at least until the end of the year).
We also once again looked at the federal bonds that were given to Ingham County to provide to local businesses. We allocated these a few months ago, but the Accident Fund returned their bonds because they were able to get other financing (which is good news for our economy!). Lansing Township (DDA) has a good share of the private bonds that we can make available for the phase 2 of the new Eastwood development (mixed-use parking garage and other things), and they have requested the balance of the bonds. They had not done anything with the original bonds until last week, though, when they actually went out to market with the bonds (i.e. sold them on the market). The EDC director was not comfortable giving more bonds if the township had not yet even gone to market with the other bonds. The EDC also was not comfortable going out for bid until Lansing Township produced the numbers that they needed (which they were not willing to do). Lansing Township has sent a letter to the Board asking for the balance of the dollars, and I expect that we will give it to them at the next meeting as they are the only entity to apply.
Speaking of economic development, we learned last week that our economic development director, Susan Pigg, will be leaving us on August 6th. So County Services had a good discussion about the process to replace her. We contract with MSU Extension and they will hire, but they will include us in the discussions. We are also discussing other potential possibilities when it comes to economic development. I think this is a good time to evaluate our program and see if there are ways to increasing its effectiveness. Commissioner Brian McGrain and I are working on some recommendations for the Board.
We also learned that there is $400 million available from the Federal Farm and Ranch Land law. This money is being allocated and the Ingham Farmland and Open Space committee has submitted our top 10 farms, requesting $650,000 in matching funds from feds. If approved, the county would only pay $.38 on the dollar for every dollar we spend on the farms (which comes out of the millage). So this could help us capture federal dollars.
In the last County Blog I mentioned the community needs assessment. We passed that in Finance (and the Human Services Committee also passed it). The Health Department needs to do a risk assessment in order to apply for the $11 billion available to Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHC’s). That process will be started with the passage of this resolution and needs to happen quickly as the money will be applied for in November (and there needs to be a community needs assessment done before that). We are also looking to work with the hospitals (Sparrow and Ingham) and Community Mental Health, who also have to do community needs assessments.
We had an update on the snow tubing hill at Hawk Island. For those that don't remember, a few years ago we approved spending for a new snow tubing hill. We are pushing back the timeline once again, though, because we are still trying to get dirt for the project. We have relied on dirt from the city Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) project, but some of it was contaminate and couldn't be use. And for all those who have complained that the county shouldn't be spending money on a snow tubing hill (note: the money was approved years ago!), an important point was made by the Parks staff - not only is there very little money from the county (because we receive matching funds), but this hill will be a revenue generator. People will rent tubes and pay admission to the park, so it will generate much more than the $75,000 that it will cost.
Finally, we have received a request from the Dog Park folks. As you may know, the Soldan Dog Park is the dog park that was created attached to Hawk Island (although the property is city property). While there are set rules for the users of the dog park, there have been problems with people not following those rules. The city doesn't have the personnel to staff it, and neither does the county. So the users are sort of on an honor system and are expected to follow the rules. This is not happening as much as it should be, though. I have heard from constituents who have said that they or their dogs have been attacked and bitten. The Dog Park Task Force has proposed to create an electronic gate at the entrance to the Dog Park on the north and south sides. In order to get in, someone would have to purchase a pas, which would cost $5 per day or $40 for an annual pass ($25 for students). The cost of the pass would cover the installation of the gate and the maintenance of the Dog Park (capital expenditures, fencing, improvements, etc). Also, people would have to sign a consent to follow the rules in order to get the pass. Finally, we would have a record of who is at the Dog Park and when they were there, so attacks can be investigated. I like the idea of the pass, but it seems that the cost is a bit steep. People would not have to pay the cost to get into Hawk Island if they entered the Dog Park from the north (and park in Ingham Regional's parking lot), but I am still looking for feedback from people about the pro's and con's of the electronic gate (costs vs. benefits). Thoughts?
On the campaign trail: I have once again completed knocking doors throughout the whole district, and will start once again! If you are interested in helping out with the campaign, please let me know. I have received tremendous response at doors and at the many events I have attended, and am greatly encouraged by the comments of the voters of southeast Lansing. They are judging me on my record, which is all I can ask, and ignoring all the negative stuff from my opponent! 12 more days until the campaign is over!
We also once again looked at the federal bonds that were given to Ingham County to provide to local businesses. We allocated these a few months ago, but the Accident Fund returned their bonds because they were able to get other financing (which is good news for our economy!). Lansing Township (DDA) has a good share of the private bonds that we can make available for the phase 2 of the new Eastwood development (mixed-use parking garage and other things), and they have requested the balance of the bonds. They had not done anything with the original bonds until last week, though, when they actually went out to market with the bonds (i.e. sold them on the market). The EDC director was not comfortable giving more bonds if the township had not yet even gone to market with the other bonds. The EDC also was not comfortable going out for bid until Lansing Township produced the numbers that they needed (which they were not willing to do). Lansing Township has sent a letter to the Board asking for the balance of the dollars, and I expect that we will give it to them at the next meeting as they are the only entity to apply.
Speaking of economic development, we learned last week that our economic development director, Susan Pigg, will be leaving us on August 6th. So County Services had a good discussion about the process to replace her. We contract with MSU Extension and they will hire, but they will include us in the discussions. We are also discussing other potential possibilities when it comes to economic development. I think this is a good time to evaluate our program and see if there are ways to increasing its effectiveness. Commissioner Brian McGrain and I are working on some recommendations for the Board.
We also learned that there is $400 million available from the Federal Farm and Ranch Land law. This money is being allocated and the Ingham Farmland and Open Space committee has submitted our top 10 farms, requesting $650,000 in matching funds from feds. If approved, the county would only pay $.38 on the dollar for every dollar we spend on the farms (which comes out of the millage). So this could help us capture federal dollars.
In the last County Blog I mentioned the community needs assessment. We passed that in Finance (and the Human Services Committee also passed it). The Health Department needs to do a risk assessment in order to apply for the $11 billion available to Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHC’s). That process will be started with the passage of this resolution and needs to happen quickly as the money will be applied for in November (and there needs to be a community needs assessment done before that). We are also looking to work with the hospitals (Sparrow and Ingham) and Community Mental Health, who also have to do community needs assessments.
We had an update on the snow tubing hill at Hawk Island. For those that don't remember, a few years ago we approved spending for a new snow tubing hill. We are pushing back the timeline once again, though, because we are still trying to get dirt for the project. We have relied on dirt from the city Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) project, but some of it was contaminate and couldn't be use. And for all those who have complained that the county shouldn't be spending money on a snow tubing hill (note: the money was approved years ago!), an important point was made by the Parks staff - not only is there very little money from the county (because we receive matching funds), but this hill will be a revenue generator. People will rent tubes and pay admission to the park, so it will generate much more than the $75,000 that it will cost.
Finally, we have received a request from the Dog Park folks. As you may know, the Soldan Dog Park is the dog park that was created attached to Hawk Island (although the property is city property). While there are set rules for the users of the dog park, there have been problems with people not following those rules. The city doesn't have the personnel to staff it, and neither does the county. So the users are sort of on an honor system and are expected to follow the rules. This is not happening as much as it should be, though. I have heard from constituents who have said that they or their dogs have been attacked and bitten. The Dog Park Task Force has proposed to create an electronic gate at the entrance to the Dog Park on the north and south sides. In order to get in, someone would have to purchase a pas, which would cost $5 per day or $40 for an annual pass ($25 for students). The cost of the pass would cover the installation of the gate and the maintenance of the Dog Park (capital expenditures, fencing, improvements, etc). Also, people would have to sign a consent to follow the rules in order to get the pass. Finally, we would have a record of who is at the Dog Park and when they were there, so attacks can be investigated. I like the idea of the pass, but it seems that the cost is a bit steep. People would not have to pay the cost to get into Hawk Island if they entered the Dog Park from the north (and park in Ingham Regional's parking lot), but I am still looking for feedback from people about the pro's and con's of the electronic gate (costs vs. benefits). Thoughts?
On the campaign trail: I have once again completed knocking doors throughout the whole district, and will start once again! If you are interested in helping out with the campaign, please let me know. I have received tremendous response at doors and at the many events I have attended, and am greatly encouraged by the comments of the voters of southeast Lansing. They are judging me on my record, which is all I can ask, and ignoring all the negative stuff from my opponent! 12 more days until the campaign is over!
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Ingham County Primary Elections Preview
This week in my County Blog, I thought I would focus on the upcoming primary elections. There are several important elections and issues that will be on the ballot, and this is a good time for people to start thinking about them.
First a reminder – you can only vote in the Democratic or Republican primary election. Not both. If you try to cross over and vote for one democrat and one republican, your ballot at the box will be rejected. If you do it with an absentee ballot, your ballot will be spoiled and none of the choices will count. So once you decide if you are voting on the Republican or Democratic side…stay there!
The Governor’s race is the first on the ballot. For the first time in 8 years, there will not be an incumbent. The Democrats have Lansing Mayor Virg Bernero versus Speaker of the House Andy Dillon. The Republicans have Congressman Pete Hoekstra, businessman Rick Snyder, Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard, Attorney General Mike Cox, and State Senator Tom George all running. These have been well documented in the press, so I won’t comment any further.
There is no U.S. Senator on the ballot this year. Senator serve 6 year terms which are staggered, and neither Sen. Stabenow nor Sen. Levin are up for re-election this year. All 435 members of the U.S. House, though, are up for election. As such, in Ingham County we have Republican U.S. Congressman Mike Rogers seeking re-election. He is unopposed in the primary. On the Democratuc side, on the ballot is Kande Ngalamulume. He has dropped out, though, and has will not campaign for the job. Running as a write-in for the Democrats is Lance Enderle of Clinton County. Should be interesting to see if Mr. Enderle can get enough votes to knock Kande off the ballot.
For State Senator, most of the county is represented by Democratic Sen. Gretchen Whitmer who has another term available and is running for re-election. She is unopposed in the primary. Repuvblican Kyle J. Haubrich is running on the Republican ticket. Part of the county near Livingston are represented currently by Sen. Valde Garcia. He cannot seek another term due to term-limits, though. Former State Rep. Joe Hune is running for the seat as a Republican, as is Brighton Councilman and former Mayor Paul Rogers. That should be an interesting race. On the Democratic side is Chuck Fellows.
For State Rep., most of Lansing (and all of Lanisng Township) is represented by Democrat Joan Bauer. She is unopposed in the primary. On the Republican side is Timothy B. Moede, who is also unopposed in the primary. For East Lansing, Democrat incumbent Rep. Mark Meadows is unopposed in the primary. The Republicans have Meridian Twp Supervisor Susan McGillicuddy and Frank Lambert running against each other in the Republican primary. Parts of south Lansing as well as the rest of the county are represented by Democrat Barb Byrum. She is unopposed in the primary. There are 3 Republicans running for her seat, though. They are Jeff Hall, Jeff Oesterle, and Trisha Opper. I understand they are all running hard, so if you are in the district and are a Republican, you have a tough choice to make.
All 16 County Commissioner seats are up. There are only a few primaries, though. You already know that I am the incumbent in SE Lansing and face a primary opponent. Rebecca Bahar Cook of downtown and Westside Lansing is running unopposed in the Democratic primary, but has Republicans Vickie Niklas and Jennifer Smith running against each other. Democrat Carol Koenig of East Lansing is also unopposed but has Republicans Robert Batchelor and Owen Blank opposing each other. Republican Don Vickers of Mason faces primary opponent Leon Black. And the one empty seat (Commissioner Laura Davis is not running again) has three Republicans facing each other – Barry Damon, Vince Dragonetti, and Renee Sumerix.
The 30th Circuit Judge spot is open due to Judge Giddings being unable to run again due to age. Candidates for the spot are: Gregory Crockett, Clinton Canady, Jim Jamo and Billie Jo O’Berry.
The 55th District Court spot has Judge Don Allen running to retain his spot after being selected for the bench by the Governor. Opposing him are Randie Black, Patrick Crowley and Paul Joseph. Judge Allen will have the incumbency designation on the ballot.
There are also a variety of ballot initiatives. CATA has two millages. The first renews the CATA service millage of 2.22 mills in Lansing, East Lansing, Meridian Twp, Lansing Twp, and Delhi Twp. The second renewal is primarily for the elderly and disabled. It is a .48 millage renewal. While this millage is primarily for the elderly and disabled, some of the money is also used for rural CATA service.
The Capital Area District Library has a renewal of its millage of 1.56 mills for library operations.
Lansing has a 1 mill renewal of its Parks millage. Delhi has a new police protection millage of 1 ½ mills on the ballot, and a fire protection millage to increase the previous millage by 1 ½ mills. Dansville and Leslie schools also each have millages on the ballot.
For more information, you can go to the County Clerk website at http://www.ingham.org/CL/Election_Info/2010/AugustPrimary.htm or go to the individual city or township clerks.
First a reminder – you can only vote in the Democratic or Republican primary election. Not both. If you try to cross over and vote for one democrat and one republican, your ballot at the box will be rejected. If you do it with an absentee ballot, your ballot will be spoiled and none of the choices will count. So once you decide if you are voting on the Republican or Democratic side…stay there!
The Governor’s race is the first on the ballot. For the first time in 8 years, there will not be an incumbent. The Democrats have Lansing Mayor Virg Bernero versus Speaker of the House Andy Dillon. The Republicans have Congressman Pete Hoekstra, businessman Rick Snyder, Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard, Attorney General Mike Cox, and State Senator Tom George all running. These have been well documented in the press, so I won’t comment any further.
There is no U.S. Senator on the ballot this year. Senator serve 6 year terms which are staggered, and neither Sen. Stabenow nor Sen. Levin are up for re-election this year. All 435 members of the U.S. House, though, are up for election. As such, in Ingham County we have Republican U.S. Congressman Mike Rogers seeking re-election. He is unopposed in the primary. On the Democratuc side, on the ballot is Kande Ngalamulume. He has dropped out, though, and has will not campaign for the job. Running as a write-in for the Democrats is Lance Enderle of Clinton County. Should be interesting to see if Mr. Enderle can get enough votes to knock Kande off the ballot.
For State Senator, most of the county is represented by Democratic Sen. Gretchen Whitmer who has another term available and is running for re-election. She is unopposed in the primary. Repuvblican Kyle J. Haubrich is running on the Republican ticket. Part of the county near Livingston are represented currently by Sen. Valde Garcia. He cannot seek another term due to term-limits, though. Former State Rep. Joe Hune is running for the seat as a Republican, as is Brighton Councilman and former Mayor Paul Rogers. That should be an interesting race. On the Democratic side is Chuck Fellows.
For State Rep., most of Lansing (and all of Lanisng Township) is represented by Democrat Joan Bauer. She is unopposed in the primary. On the Republican side is Timothy B. Moede, who is also unopposed in the primary. For East Lansing, Democrat incumbent Rep. Mark Meadows is unopposed in the primary. The Republicans have Meridian Twp Supervisor Susan McGillicuddy and Frank Lambert running against each other in the Republican primary. Parts of south Lansing as well as the rest of the county are represented by Democrat Barb Byrum. She is unopposed in the primary. There are 3 Republicans running for her seat, though. They are Jeff Hall, Jeff Oesterle, and Trisha Opper. I understand they are all running hard, so if you are in the district and are a Republican, you have a tough choice to make.
All 16 County Commissioner seats are up. There are only a few primaries, though. You already know that I am the incumbent in SE Lansing and face a primary opponent. Rebecca Bahar Cook of downtown and Westside Lansing is running unopposed in the Democratic primary, but has Republicans Vickie Niklas and Jennifer Smith running against each other. Democrat Carol Koenig of East Lansing is also unopposed but has Republicans Robert Batchelor and Owen Blank opposing each other. Republican Don Vickers of Mason faces primary opponent Leon Black. And the one empty seat (Commissioner Laura Davis is not running again) has three Republicans facing each other – Barry Damon, Vince Dragonetti, and Renee Sumerix.
The 30th Circuit Judge spot is open due to Judge Giddings being unable to run again due to age. Candidates for the spot are: Gregory Crockett, Clinton Canady, Jim Jamo and Billie Jo O’Berry.
The 55th District Court spot has Judge Don Allen running to retain his spot after being selected for the bench by the Governor. Opposing him are Randie Black, Patrick Crowley and Paul Joseph. Judge Allen will have the incumbency designation on the ballot.
There are also a variety of ballot initiatives. CATA has two millages. The first renews the CATA service millage of 2.22 mills in Lansing, East Lansing, Meridian Twp, Lansing Twp, and Delhi Twp. The second renewal is primarily for the elderly and disabled. It is a .48 millage renewal. While this millage is primarily for the elderly and disabled, some of the money is also used for rural CATA service.
The Capital Area District Library has a renewal of its millage of 1.56 mills for library operations.
Lansing has a 1 mill renewal of its Parks millage. Delhi has a new police protection millage of 1 ½ mills on the ballot, and a fire protection millage to increase the previous millage by 1 ½ mills. Dansville and Leslie schools also each have millages on the ballot.
For more information, you can go to the County Clerk website at http://www.ingham.org/CL/Election_Info/2010/AugustPrimary.htm or go to the individual city or township clerks.
Friday, July 2, 2010
County Advertising, Health Department Restructuring, Land Bank Update, and Campaign Update
This week was relatively quiet in terms of issues for the Commission. There was some controversy on whether or not we should spend about $10,000 on yellow pages advertisements. While several of us were very uncomfortable with this expenditure, we were told that four departments (Health, Animal Control, Parks, and Clerk) advertise in the yellow pages. It seems that the Health Department advertises for their clinics, which is a public service and also brings in revenues to the county. The Clerk also advertises under "Passports" for passport photos and application processing. The Clerk collects over $60,000 per year in Passport photos and processing fees as compared to their advertising costs of $1740, so this may be a worthwhile expense.This expense will be approved this year, and we plan to look into all of these expenditures to ensure that there are efficiencies.
Another issue that is worth reporting on is the reorganization in the County Health Department. There have been some questions, so it is worth explaining what is going on. First, let me point out that our Health Department is nationally recognized as one of the best in the country. We are the model for other counties. The recent retirement of a Deputy Health Officer triggered a look into a realignment by our Health Department Director. The Director and the retiring Deputy Health Director both thought the county could save money if we didn't fill her position. In looking into a reorganization, the priorities for the Director (who is one of the best in the nation!) were to be sure that the Health Department is positioned for the future, to continue to work well with county labor, and to ensure any change is budget negative. The world of health care, and especially of Federally Qualified Health Center operations, is changing dramatically, and the Health Department Director believes we will be better positioned with this realignment. While the county could have hired someone to fill the deputy Health Officer position and no one would have complained, the County Health Director and the Board of Commissioners decided instead to be dynamic and flexible in this changing health care world. Instead of filling the position, it was eliminated and current employees received more responsibility and more pay to compensate for the added responsibilities. All unions were informed and supported the changes. Human resources vetted the positions and recommended the re-classifications. This saved the county close to $70,000 in General Fund.
Finally, an here is update on what the Land Bank has accomplished for Ingham County. Ingham County Treasurer Eric Schertzing and the Land Bank Board have done a great job revitalizing properties in Ingham County. I previously served on this Board and saw first-hand the tremendous impact that the Land Bank has for the county. Ingham County is truly a leader in the Land Bank movement. Here are the highlights:
If you are interested in receiving monthly updates about Land Bank activities, you can email County Treasurer Eric Schertzing at eschertzing@ingham.org.
On the campaign trail, all is going VERY well. Response at doors has been exceptional with people supporting my record and agenda moving forward. People are not buying into the negative attacks of my opponent and are carefully reviewing the specifics of the materials provided to them from both candidates. Voters cast votes on the issues, and I have presented them with a past record and proactive agenda that they agree with. With 30 days to go, I am more and more optimistic that the voters won't be fooled by negative attacks and will vote based on the important Ingham County issues of today and the future. Thanks to all who have helped by contributing, knocking doors with me, putting up lawn signs, and everything else! We are in the home stretch!
Another issue that is worth reporting on is the reorganization in the County Health Department. There have been some questions, so it is worth explaining what is going on. First, let me point out that our Health Department is nationally recognized as one of the best in the country. We are the model for other counties. The recent retirement of a Deputy Health Officer triggered a look into a realignment by our Health Department Director. The Director and the retiring Deputy Health Director both thought the county could save money if we didn't fill her position. In looking into a reorganization, the priorities for the Director (who is one of the best in the nation!) were to be sure that the Health Department is positioned for the future, to continue to work well with county labor, and to ensure any change is budget negative. The world of health care, and especially of Federally Qualified Health Center operations, is changing dramatically, and the Health Department Director believes we will be better positioned with this realignment. While the county could have hired someone to fill the deputy Health Officer position and no one would have complained, the County Health Director and the Board of Commissioners decided instead to be dynamic and flexible in this changing health care world. Instead of filling the position, it was eliminated and current employees received more responsibility and more pay to compensate for the added responsibilities. All unions were informed and supported the changes. Human resources vetted the positions and recommended the re-classifications. This saved the county close to $70,000 in General Fund.
Finally, an here is update on what the Land Bank has accomplished for Ingham County. Ingham County Treasurer Eric Schertzing and the Land Bank Board have done a great job revitalizing properties in Ingham County. I previously served on this Board and saw first-hand the tremendous impact that the Land Bank has for the county. Ingham County is truly a leader in the Land Bank movement. Here are the highlights:
- The Ingham County Land Bank Board accepted a proposal from Kincaid Henry to redevelop a commercial property at 934 Clark. The due diligence process will take place over the next few months. This is the 2nd major commercial redevelopment proposal in discussion this year.They have also updated their listing of high quality, energy efficient homes can be found at www.inghamlandbank.org. Click on the featured property link for pictures.
- The 5th Annual Land Bank Conference in early June brought over 200 folks from around Michigan to learn more about Land Banks and see our beautiful Capital City.
- The Land Bank is sponsoring a 2 week window restoration training with the Michigan Historic Preservation Network. Selected applicants will finish the class with the training and tools to start a business in mid-Michigan.
- The 2010 tax foreclosure auction will take place on July 23rd at 10 a.m. in the Board of Commissioners Chamber in Mason. Registration begins at 9 a.m. A Land Bank auction will follow at approximately 11 a.m. The auction list and rules will be posted on the treasurer's web sit after the holiday.
If you are interested in receiving monthly updates about Land Bank activities, you can email County Treasurer Eric Schertzing at eschertzing@ingham.org.
On the campaign trail, all is going VERY well. Response at doors has been exceptional with people supporting my record and agenda moving forward. People are not buying into the negative attacks of my opponent and are carefully reviewing the specifics of the materials provided to them from both candidates. Voters cast votes on the issues, and I have presented them with a past record and proactive agenda that they agree with. With 30 days to go, I am more and more optimistic that the voters won't be fooled by negative attacks and will vote based on the important Ingham County issues of today and the future. Thanks to all who have helped by contributing, knocking doors with me, putting up lawn signs, and everything else! We are in the home stretch!
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Blog coming...
This week's blog will be posted either tonight or early tomorrow. Sorry for the delay!
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