This week we had a meeting of the full Board of Commissioners. We once again had issues with the road commission come up. Several employees attended the meeting to protest the allegations that have been made at the road commission. Commissioner Deb DeLeon informed them that the County Services will take up the issues at the road commission and listen to all points of view as we try to determine what is happening. As expected, the Board appointed Marc Thomas and Milton Scales to the two road commission spots.
We also hear from a gentleman who represented Michigan Open Carry, Incorporated. He indicated that he is against the library policy of prohibiting open carry and that it is against the law, and indicated a possibility of pending litigation. I assume he brought this to us because the Ingham County Commission appoints people to the Capital Area District Library Board.
For the items on the agenda, we once again considered the resolution to create a position in the Drain Commissioner’s office to do assessments for the drainage districts. I again mentioned that this was a matter of efficiency. We eliminated a 1/2 time position from the general fund, and the Drain Commissioner is funding a full-time position through the drainage districts which he says is a cast savings to taxpayers. The Republicans argued that this is reckless spending at the Drain office. The resolution passed 12-4.
We also unanimously passed a resolution authorizing a contract with the Dr. Pepper/Snapple group for vending machine service at all Ingham County parks. This project involved soliciting proposals from qualified and experienced vendors interested in entering into a contract with the County to provide beverage vending machines and product at the three county parks: Burchfield Park, Lake Lansing Park, and Hawk Island Park. The request for proposals included evaluations of many different options with respect to the placement of the vending machines, sponsoring options (e.g. banners, field signage, etc.), promotional incentives, advertisements, and commission/rebate options. The final contract includes a 40% commission on all product priced at $1.25, and no extra delivery fees for concession sales. The Dr.
Pepper proposal was the most financially advantageous proposal to the County. Dr. Pepper will also provide and place all equipment and vending machines, and repair and maintain the equipment and machines based on need or predetermined service intervals during the term of the 3-year agreement.
Yet another resolution that we passed unamimously amended the Potter Park Zoo Master plan by removing the Meerkat Exhibit due to a lack of available funding. The 20010 master plan is laid out by world regions with a new area focused on North American.
The master plan lists current projects as; the Rhinoceros exhibit, Meerkat exhibit and Eagle owl exhibit. The Eagle owl exhibit was completed in 2010 and the Rhinoceros exhibit will be completed in 2011. In 2010, $58,000 of the $100,000 of funding planned for the Meerkat exhibit renovation was transferred to the Rhinoceros exhibit. This leaves a balance of $42,000 in the Meerkat exhibit which is
insufficient to complete a renovation, without a significant fund raising campaign. In the new master plan the Meerkat exhibit is located in a new location. During the course of implementing the zoo master plan, constructing a new Meerkat exhibit which will be located in the Lake Tanganyika region, should be done when that region of the zoo is embarked upon. In 2011 the Potter Park Zoological Society will start a capital campaign that will concurrently seek financial support for phase one, Michigan Great Lakes, as well as phase two, the Animal Health Care and Teaching Facility. The Zoo Board and Parks & Recreation Commission supported the amendment
of the Potter Park Zoo Master Plan at their December 2010 meetings.
Finally, I would like to add in a report on economic development in Ingham County. The Land Bank reports that 2010 was another great year of growth for the Land Bank. We had 22 home sales and moved forward on a number of commercial redevelopments. At year end we owned 657 parcels, including 201 structures with demolition slated for 60. More renovation, new homes and demolition to follow! 2011 will be another big year as the Neighborhood Stabilization Program funding kicks into high gear. We have a dozen homes wrapping up renovation in the next 6 weeks. Please visit www.inghamlandbank.org for updates and homes for sale. Also, the Ingham County Brownfield Authority Land Bank/Brownfield Plans are one special funding source we bring to the table. We had a great bond sale this week for $2,685,000 at just under 4.65% interest cost on a 15 year issue.
I hope everyone has a great weekend!
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Drain Assessment Position, Housing Dollars, Road Commission Changes
First, I need to apologize for this blog being so late. We had a long meeting Thursday night (keep reading!) and I had a birthday party last night. This was the best time to get the blog done!
This week, County Services and Finance met and had lots of items on their agendas. In both committees, we considered a new position in the Drain Commissioner's office. Apparently, drain assessments have been done in the past by four different part time people. Drain Commissioner Lindemann wants to make this more efficient by making this one position specifically. His proposal is to remove a 1/2 time position from the general fund and have a full time position be funded from the drainage districts. He told us that there would not be an increase to the drainage districts because the assessments would cover it. And it will save money from the general fund. It passed both committees, but the Republicans voted against it. I supported it because it is a savings to the county and creates an efficiency. The Republicans said that they are concerned with the timing. There were also lots of discussions with the drain commissioner regarding other major drain projects and assessments, which really were not relevant to the resolution.
We also passed resolutions for Mason and Williamston for housing. We passed a resolution accepting $283,300 in Community Development Block Grant Funding from the Michigan State Housing Development Authority for rehabbing rental properties in Mason and Williamston. This funding was requested by the Ingham County Housing Commission. We also accepted $319,999 in Home Grant Funding from the Michigan State Housing Development Authority to provide homeowner rehabilitation assistance in targeted downtown area neighborhoods in Williamston and Mason.
In addition to committee work, we also spent several hours Thursday dealing with Road Commissioners. We interviewed five candidates for two positions on the road commission. For those not familiar with the Road Commission, they are the board that oversee the roads for all the municipalities that are not cities in the county. The five candidates included two incumbents on the road commission. There were lots of issues that we had to review as we interviewed.
On the positive side, it seems that the communication between the road commission and the township boards has much improved. Communication has been a major problem in the past. We heard from just about all the township supervisors in the county in support of reappointment of the incumbent road commissioners because of their work and communication. Also, communication with the Board of Commissioners has greatly improved from years ago.
On the negative side, though, we heard several instances of discrimination of the staff at the road commission. We heard several stories of minority employees having racist comments being used towards them and several stories of supervisors discriminating against people because of skin color or ethnicity. Both minority and caucasian employees came to the meeting to complain. The allegations were very serious. In addition, there have been several civil rights complaints.
We posed many questions about management, roads and other issues to the candidates. Some answers were satisfactory and others were not. At the end, though, most of the Commissioners were convinced that there is a morale problem at the road commission that must be addressed. The County Services committee of the Board will be taking this up soon. These problems also resulted in the two incumbent commissioners being not reappointed. While they seem to do a good job in terms of roads and communication, they could not overcome the internal problems that have arisen at the road commission and with the staff.
I congratulate Marc Thomas and Milton Scales for receiving the 6 year appointment, and hope they can join the incumbent road commissioners (Shirley Rogers, Norman Gear, and Jim Dravenstatt-Moceri) in continuing the good service to the residents while also fixing the many issues that have arisen at the road commission. I also thank Joe Guenther for the 6 years he put in to help the residents of Ingham County, as well as Tom Mitchell for the 2 years he served on the road commission on behalf of Ingham County residents. Finally, thanks to Luke Canfora who applied and has a sincere interest in serving the residents of Ingham County. I am hopeful that the road commission management will get the message that discrimination is simply not accepted, and policies can be put in place to ensure training and repercussions for these issues.
This week, County Services and Finance met and had lots of items on their agendas. In both committees, we considered a new position in the Drain Commissioner's office. Apparently, drain assessments have been done in the past by four different part time people. Drain Commissioner Lindemann wants to make this more efficient by making this one position specifically. His proposal is to remove a 1/2 time position from the general fund and have a full time position be funded from the drainage districts. He told us that there would not be an increase to the drainage districts because the assessments would cover it. And it will save money from the general fund. It passed both committees, but the Republicans voted against it. I supported it because it is a savings to the county and creates an efficiency. The Republicans said that they are concerned with the timing. There were also lots of discussions with the drain commissioner regarding other major drain projects and assessments, which really were not relevant to the resolution.
We also passed resolutions for Mason and Williamston for housing. We passed a resolution accepting $283,300 in Community Development Block Grant Funding from the Michigan State Housing Development Authority for rehabbing rental properties in Mason and Williamston. This funding was requested by the Ingham County Housing Commission. We also accepted $319,999 in Home Grant Funding from the Michigan State Housing Development Authority to provide homeowner rehabilitation assistance in targeted downtown area neighborhoods in Williamston and Mason.
In addition to committee work, we also spent several hours Thursday dealing with Road Commissioners. We interviewed five candidates for two positions on the road commission. For those not familiar with the Road Commission, they are the board that oversee the roads for all the municipalities that are not cities in the county. The five candidates included two incumbents on the road commission. There were lots of issues that we had to review as we interviewed.
On the positive side, it seems that the communication between the road commission and the township boards has much improved. Communication has been a major problem in the past. We heard from just about all the township supervisors in the county in support of reappointment of the incumbent road commissioners because of their work and communication. Also, communication with the Board of Commissioners has greatly improved from years ago.
On the negative side, though, we heard several instances of discrimination of the staff at the road commission. We heard several stories of minority employees having racist comments being used towards them and several stories of supervisors discriminating against people because of skin color or ethnicity. Both minority and caucasian employees came to the meeting to complain. The allegations were very serious. In addition, there have been several civil rights complaints.
We posed many questions about management, roads and other issues to the candidates. Some answers were satisfactory and others were not. At the end, though, most of the Commissioners were convinced that there is a morale problem at the road commission that must be addressed. The County Services committee of the Board will be taking this up soon. These problems also resulted in the two incumbent commissioners being not reappointed. While they seem to do a good job in terms of roads and communication, they could not overcome the internal problems that have arisen at the road commission and with the staff.
I congratulate Marc Thomas and Milton Scales for receiving the 6 year appointment, and hope they can join the incumbent road commissioners (Shirley Rogers, Norman Gear, and Jim Dravenstatt-Moceri) in continuing the good service to the residents while also fixing the many issues that have arisen at the road commission. I also thank Joe Guenther for the 6 years he put in to help the residents of Ingham County, as well as Tom Mitchell for the 2 years he served on the road commission on behalf of Ingham County residents. Finally, thanks to Luke Canfora who applied and has a sincere interest in serving the residents of Ingham County. I am hopeful that the road commission management will get the message that discrimination is simply not accepted, and policies can be put in place to ensure training and repercussions for these issues.
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Committees Begin Meeting, River Trail Dollars, Curbing Teen Smoking
Committees for the Ingham County Commission start meeting tonight, with the Law Enforcement and Judiciary Committees meeting. My committees start next week (County Services and Finance) and we already have a bunch on the agenda. If you want to see the agendas, you can go to www.ingham.org. In the meantime, I have a few other exciting things to report this week.
Over the last week, the Lansing State Journal has reported on Ingham County's youth smoking prevention policy. This was created before I was on the Board, but we have made improvements and updates. We have been criticized in the past for being one of the few counties to have such a policy, but these articles show that we are making great strides in curbing teen smoking. I am proud that we have taken this initiative, and it is working out! Check out the article here, and check out the LSJ op-ed discussing how good this policy is here.
And now, a shameless plug for Lansing and the River Trail...
Keep Learning, a local coalition of schools, universities, and businesses, is in the running to win $50K to create more learning opportunities along mid-Michigan's awesome River Trail. It's a competition in which you can vote DAILY in multiple fashions. Please vote as well as help spread the word to your friends!
There are three ways TO VOTE:
1. Go to http://www.refresheverything.com/keeplearning and login.
2. TEXT 105421 to the word Pepsi (73774).
3. Use the Pepsi Refresh Voting App on Facebook to search "Keep Learning" and vote.
Thanks, Jen, for sending this my way and for advocating on behalf of Lansing. Winning this grant will be one more way to show that Lansing is awesome and that we Love Lansing!
I know this blog is short, but I am at gymnastics with my daughter and am enjoying watching her! Next week, I will have lots to report on. This is just the beginning of a very busy year!
Andy
Reminder: if you receive notification of my blog through my facebook group "Andy Schor, Ingham County Commissioner," you should sign up for my facebook fan page at www.facebook.com/andyschor.
Over the last week, the Lansing State Journal has reported on Ingham County's youth smoking prevention policy. This was created before I was on the Board, but we have made improvements and updates. We have been criticized in the past for being one of the few counties to have such a policy, but these articles show that we are making great strides in curbing teen smoking. I am proud that we have taken this initiative, and it is working out! Check out the article here, and check out the LSJ op-ed discussing how good this policy is here.
And now, a shameless plug for Lansing and the River Trail...
Keep Learning, a local coalition of schools, universities, and businesses, is in the running to win $50K to create more learning opportunities along mid-Michigan's awesome River Trail. It's a competition in which you can vote DAILY in multiple fashions. Please vote as well as help spread the word to your friends!
There are three ways TO VOTE:
1. Go to http://www.refresheverything.com/keeplearning and login.
2. TEXT 105421 to the word Pepsi (73774).
3. Use the Pepsi Refresh Voting App on Facebook to search "Keep Learning" and vote.
Thanks, Jen, for sending this my way and for advocating on behalf of Lansing. Winning this grant will be one more way to show that Lansing is awesome and that we Love Lansing!
I know this blog is short, but I am at gymnastics with my daughter and am enjoying watching her! Next week, I will have lots to report on. This is just the beginning of a very busy year!
Andy
Reminder: if you receive notification of my blog through my facebook group "Andy Schor, Ingham County Commissioner," you should sign up for my facebook fan page at www.facebook.com/andyschor.
Thursday, January 6, 2011
Facebook Fan Page, County Commission leadership and committees, Boards and Commissions
Happy 2011. I hope everyone had a great holiday and New Year season.
First, a note - many of you receive the notification of my blog through my facebook group "Andy Schor, Ingham County Commissioner." It has been pointed out to me that the better way to provide information to constituents, people interested in county activities, and those following Andy Schor in general is to have a facebook fan page instead. So...I introduce my 2011 update - my facebook fan page (click here). (thanks, Mitchell!)
The 2011 Ingham County Commission started our year on Monday with our swearing in. It was fairly standard, with all 16 Commissioners sworn in (12 Democrats and 4 Republicans). We elected our Board leadership – Mark Grebner as Chairperson, Deb Nolan as Vice Chairperson, and Don Vickers as Vice Chairperson Pro-Tem. We also approved committee lineups. The committees for next year are:
COUNTY SERVICES: De Leon (chair), Copedge (vice-chair), Celentino, Schor, Vickers, Dragonetti
FINANCE: Schor (chair), Tsernoglou (vice-chair), Nolan, Bahar-Cook, McGrain, Dougan
HUMAN SERVICES: Tennis (chair), McGrain (vice-chair), Koenig, Nolan, Vickers, Dougan
JUDICIARY: Bahar-Cook (chair), Koenig (vice-chair), Holman, Tennis, Tsernoglou, Schafer
LAW ENFORCEMENT: Celentino (chair), Holman (vice-chair), De Leon, Copedge, Schafer, Dragonetti
In addition, we approved members of the many Boards and Commissions that we serve on. In addition to our official duties serving on committees and attending the Board meetings, we also serve on a variety of boards and commissions for other regional organizations. Adding these to the many neighborhood associations that we visit and other community responsibilities results in very busy schedules for county commissioners!
Here is the list of the many boards and commissions that had commissioners appointed (and in some unique circumstances, county staff in place of commissioners):
Agriculture Preservation Board - Don Vickers
Animal Control Shelter Advisory Board - Todd Tennis
Capital Area Michigan (WORKS) Board - Dale Copedge, Debbie De Leon, Victor Celentino
CARTS Committee - Jared Cypher, Dianne Holman (alternate)
CATA Board - Mark Grebner
Capital Region Airport Authority - Victor Celentino
Capital Region Airport Authority Liaison - Debbie De Leon
Community Coalition for Youth - Deb Nolan
Community Corrections Advisory Board - Carol Koenig
Community Health Center Board - Todd Tennis
Community Mental Health Authority - Dale Copedge
Community Services Administration - Eric Schertzing, Carol Koenig
Convention Visitors Bureau - Debbie De Leon
Drainage Board - Mark Grebner, Bd Chair, Andy Schor, Fin. Chair
Economic Development Corporation - Brian McGrain
Equal Opportunity Committee - Carol Koenig, Dale Copedge (alt)
Fair Board - Carol Koenig
Ingham County Chapter, Michigan Townships Association - Don Vickers, Randy Schafer
Ingham Family Center Adv. Bd. Judiciary Rep. - Carol Koenig
Ingham Regional Medical Center Bd. Of Dir. - Charles Steinberg
Land Bank Deb Nolan (local unit of govt. rep), Rebecca Bahar-Cook, Debbie De Leon (City of Lansing rep), Brian McGrain
Lansing Area Safety Council - Don Vickers
Local Emergency Planning Committee - Randy Schafer
LEAP - Mary Lannoye
MALPH Board - Todd Tennis, Dean Sienko
Mason Local Development Finance Authority - Don Vickers
Mid South Substance Abuse Commission - Debbie DeLeon, Dale Copedge
Parks Board - Penelope Tsernoglou
Potter Park Zoo Board - Rebecca Bahar-Cook, Deb Nolan
Power of We Consortium - Todd Tennis
Tri-County Aging Consortium - Andy Schor, Rebecca Bahar-Cook, Steve Dougan
Tri-County Regional Planning Commission - Dianne Holman, Brian McGrain
Tri-Co. Reg. Planning Growth Study Committee - Brian McGrain
Womens Commission - Penelope Tsernoglou
Youth Commission - Todd Tennis
Now that we are appointed to our committees and commissions, let the business of government begin for 2011!
First, a note - many of you receive the notification of my blog through my facebook group "Andy Schor, Ingham County Commissioner." It has been pointed out to me that the better way to provide information to constituents, people interested in county activities, and those following Andy Schor in general is to have a facebook fan page instead. So...I introduce my 2011 update - my facebook fan page (click here). (thanks, Mitchell!)
The 2011 Ingham County Commission started our year on Monday with our swearing in. It was fairly standard, with all 16 Commissioners sworn in (12 Democrats and 4 Republicans). We elected our Board leadership – Mark Grebner as Chairperson, Deb Nolan as Vice Chairperson, and Don Vickers as Vice Chairperson Pro-Tem. We also approved committee lineups. The committees for next year are:
COUNTY SERVICES: De Leon (chair), Copedge (vice-chair), Celentino, Schor, Vickers, Dragonetti
FINANCE: Schor (chair), Tsernoglou (vice-chair), Nolan, Bahar-Cook, McGrain, Dougan
HUMAN SERVICES: Tennis (chair), McGrain (vice-chair), Koenig, Nolan, Vickers, Dougan
JUDICIARY: Bahar-Cook (chair), Koenig (vice-chair), Holman, Tennis, Tsernoglou, Schafer
LAW ENFORCEMENT: Celentino (chair), Holman (vice-chair), De Leon, Copedge, Schafer, Dragonetti
In addition, we approved members of the many Boards and Commissions that we serve on. In addition to our official duties serving on committees and attending the Board meetings, we also serve on a variety of boards and commissions for other regional organizations. Adding these to the many neighborhood associations that we visit and other community responsibilities results in very busy schedules for county commissioners!
Here is the list of the many boards and commissions that had commissioners appointed (and in some unique circumstances, county staff in place of commissioners):
Agriculture Preservation Board - Don Vickers
Animal Control Shelter Advisory Board - Todd Tennis
Capital Area Michigan (WORKS) Board - Dale Copedge, Debbie De Leon, Victor Celentino
CARTS Committee - Jared Cypher, Dianne Holman (alternate)
CATA Board - Mark Grebner
Capital Region Airport Authority - Victor Celentino
Capital Region Airport Authority Liaison - Debbie De Leon
Community Coalition for Youth - Deb Nolan
Community Corrections Advisory Board - Carol Koenig
Community Health Center Board - Todd Tennis
Community Mental Health Authority - Dale Copedge
Community Services Administration - Eric Schertzing, Carol Koenig
Convention Visitors Bureau - Debbie De Leon
Drainage Board - Mark Grebner, Bd Chair, Andy Schor, Fin. Chair
Economic Development Corporation - Brian McGrain
Equal Opportunity Committee - Carol Koenig, Dale Copedge (alt)
Fair Board - Carol Koenig
Ingham County Chapter, Michigan Townships Association - Don Vickers, Randy Schafer
Ingham Family Center Adv. Bd. Judiciary Rep. - Carol Koenig
Ingham Regional Medical Center Bd. Of Dir. - Charles Steinberg
Land Bank Deb Nolan (local unit of govt. rep), Rebecca Bahar-Cook, Debbie De Leon (City of Lansing rep), Brian McGrain
Lansing Area Safety Council - Don Vickers
Local Emergency Planning Committee - Randy Schafer
LEAP - Mary Lannoye
MALPH Board - Todd Tennis, Dean Sienko
Mason Local Development Finance Authority - Don Vickers
Mid South Substance Abuse Commission - Debbie DeLeon, Dale Copedge
Parks Board - Penelope Tsernoglou
Potter Park Zoo Board - Rebecca Bahar-Cook, Deb Nolan
Power of We Consortium - Todd Tennis
Tri-County Aging Consortium - Andy Schor, Rebecca Bahar-Cook, Steve Dougan
Tri-County Regional Planning Commission - Dianne Holman, Brian McGrain
Tri-Co. Reg. Planning Growth Study Committee - Brian McGrain
Womens Commission - Penelope Tsernoglou
Youth Commission - Todd Tennis
Now that we are appointed to our committees and commissions, let the business of government begin for 2011!
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