|
| |
|
| |
|
|
|
April 1, 2004Drain chief job will not be splitCOMMISSIONERS: Duties intertwine in many casesByRecord-Eagle staff writer TRAVERSE CITY - County officials grounded a proposal to split soil erosion inspection duties from the elected county drain commissioner. The Grand Traverse county board unanimously voted Wednesday to retain the county drain commissioner's current duties, and will leave that office in charge of enforcing the county's soil erosion ordinance. County officials grappled with the duties and salary of the drain commissioner position since the resignation late last year of 15-year county drain commissioner Maureen Templeton. Some said they worried about the possible election of a drain commissioner not qualified to enforce the county's soil erosion ordinance. But others challenged the move as a power play by the county board and Prosecutor Dennis LaBelle, both criticized by Templeton and others for their slow response last year to allegations of soil erosion and wetland violations in East Bay Township by local developer Bill Clous. "This mentality of saving the voters from themselves is an insulting one," Lew Blouin of the Sweetwater Alliance citizens group told commissioners. "We need a drain commissioner that's beholden to the people of this county, not to (the county board)." Commissioners acknowledged that the issue had become a political albatross and their desire for change ultimately eroded. "My perspective is that it wasn't worth the effort to change it when (the current setup) is working pretty well," commissioner Larry Inman said. "If it's working well right now, why are we coming up with all these 'what ifs'?" Other commissioners said the county's soil erosion inspections are intertwined with the drain commissioner's job through numerous references to the elected post contained in the county's soil erosion control ordinance. "There is no way in our current ordinance to split soil erosion and drain commissioner (duties)," commissioner Addison (Sonny) Wheelock said. Templeton said she was "totally shocked" - but relieved - that the board didn't approve the split, which she suspects was spurred in part by her earlier criticism of LaBelle's handling of the Clous case. "I think it's great that the board sees that these duties go hand-in-hand," Templeton said. "I think in the long run that's the best thing for the county." Newly-appointed drain commissioner Susan Wilson-Broadus also commended the board for making no changes to her job. She said both the drain commissioner and soil erosion jobs should be "directly accountable to the public." Still, some commissioners remained concerned about the potential for having an elected drain commissioner who's not qualified - or is unwilling - to enforce the county's soil erosion rules. "That can happen when you combine an elected and appointed job," commissioner Richard Thomas said. "We're going to end up paying two people to do one job."
|
|
