Sumpter board takes steps to hire second ordinance officer

At an almost three-hour combined workshop/regular meeting on March 9, the Sumpter Township Board of Trustees voted to hire a second ordinance officer with a base pay of $49,566 plus benefits.
The posting for the job will be at once and the candidates will be interviewed by a hiring committee made up of Supervisor Tim Bowman, Trustee Donald LaPorte, Public Safety Director Eric Luke, Det/Sgt. John Toth, and Financial Director/Deputy Supervisor Michelle Cole.
The hiring will not take place until after the beginning of the new fiscal year on April 1.
Supervisor Bowman said he is out and around the township every day and, “As bad as it is… I see it every day.”
He said if the township cleaned up the blight in five to ten years, it would need this second full-time person to keep it cleaned up.
“Peter is doing a great job, but he is overwhelmed and needs help,” Supervisor Bowman said, referring to current ordinance officer Peter Gregory.
“Our image means a lot,” Supervisor Bowman said. “When I come to township hall the first and last thing I see is the worst in the township, right across the street. It looks like the backhill of Kentucky. I agree we need to clean up our own backyard and frontyard.”
The backyard comment referred to the cleanup of tires in the recycling yard behind township hall that was on that evening’s agenda.
In other business at the March 9 Zoom meeting, the board:
• Approved extended leave of four years for probationary fire fighter Jacob Kosikowski who has joined the Marines as of March 14. He requested the township hold his paid-per-call position open for him while in military service;
• Approved the three-year audit proposal from PSLZ LLP for fiscal year 2021 of $15,000, 2022 of $15,400, and 2023 of $15,800;
• Approved the resignation of Human Resources Director Michelle Bellingham effective March 9 with no ongoing benefits;
• Approved resuming in-person township board meeting as of April 19 and re-opening township hall to the public on April 5, in response to changes in state directives;
• Approved the updated Washtenaw County Mutual Aid Agreement for the fire department;
• Tabled for two weeks emergency hiring of ADP for Human Resources Coordinator and payroll services at an annual cost of $55,000;
• Approved temporary payroll processing services for eight weeks at a cost not to exceed $4,000 until ADP implementation is complete or a new plan created. Finance Director/Deputy Supervisor Cole said the unnamed person does payroll in another community and will come on her off-hours to do the township payroll;
• Tabled for two weeks the extension of Public Safety Director Eric Luke’s contract for three years, holding at the same salary and benefits as of this date, $120,000 annually, plus 1% annual raises to match the rest of the employees getting the raises. Trustee Peggy Morgan, Treasurer Jim Clark, and Supervisor Tim Bowman said they had not seen the old contract which was not provided in their packets for the meeting so they could see how it is being changed for the new contract;
• Approved spending $4,500 to remove the tires piled up in the recycling area and causing a fire hazard;
• Approved buying a new furnace for the police department at a cost of $7,700;
• Heard insurance proposals from John Johnson of Nickel & Saph, Inc. and Jon Johnson of Burham & Flower Agency;
• Heard the 2021-22 budget presentation by Finance Director/Deputy Supervision
of Supervisor Cole;
• Heard Trustee Tim Rush announce Parks and Recreation is scheduling a cleanup of Banotai Park on April 24 to coincide with International Earth Day. A DNR spokesperson, Butterfly Garden representative, and Republic Waste representative will be there. Time has not yet been set, but it is typically around 10 a.m., he said;
• Held a moment of silence in memory of Supervisor Johnny Vawters, Jr., who served 2004-14.